First Day of Spring & Indulging in Art

Rose-O-Shannon Progression
Acrylic & Water Soluble Wax Pastel
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2015

With our part of the world being kept in an almost perpetual deep freeze this season, it's easy to let time get away from us. Dark days & cold, miserable temperatures can make one feel depressed, despite our not necessarily suffering from depression. 

It feels as if we've spent months just waiting. Waiting to be inspired, waiting to feel free. Free of layers of clothes & the subsequent piles of laundry. Free of the tedium of clearing & manuevering endless acres of snow. Free of the doldrums and hopeless feeling that spring may never arrive. 

And, while, in theory, this should be the perfect time to hibernate in the studio, it is difficult to do so. The thought of going beyond the radius of the fireplace was more taxing than joyful. 

But, today is astronomically the first day of spring. Over the last week, the snow pack has melted to show saturated greens & browns. Bunnies & deer have emerged, hungry. The birds have started to sing again. Flocks of geese have begun to return to the neighborhood, honking their way across the skyways. Yes, it is still snowing. Lightly & briefly, if the meteorologists are remotely correct. Soon it will stop.

Hibiscus, Rose-O-Shannon & Stella Doro Daylily Progression
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2015

The attempted arrival of spring has helped me to get some hustle going. I've been in the studio. I've taken account of the seemingly gazillion pieces & projects that have lain as dormant as the trees these last 4-5 months. It's overwhelming, in a good way. 

Base Acrylic Painting for Stella Doro Daylily
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2015

This particular project I'm sharing today is for a specific show. The details of the show preclude my sharing the purpose of the exhibit, but I still would like to share the experience with you.

There are 4 pieces started, each with acrylic paint to create a random pattern of greens & sunshine. From there, I sketched the flowers that I'm looking to paint as the subjects. I was excited to be working with acrylics again!

Tiger Lily Progression: Acrylics
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2015

BUT, as soon as I tried to paint the flowers with the acrylics, I remembered why I don't like using acrylics. I'm an alla prima painter which works wonderfully with oils & even watercolors. Not so much with acrylics! I know that you can mix some oil retardant with the acrylics, but, I need the pieces to be ready in a few weeks & that would defeat the purpose of using the actrylics!

Rose-O-Shannon Progression: Acrylic & Water Soluble Wax Pastels
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2015

So what to use? A-ha! Water soluble wax pastels! Great for blending & quick to dry, these beauties are just perfect for this project. I'll keep posting the progress as I go along.

What projects have you rediscovered lately?

And, mostly, Happy Spring, everyone!

Skies of (Painted) Color

Sailing In5x7 Watercolor on 90# Paper©BEDeuel  Bronson Hill Arts 2008

When we see those perfect sunny-day clouds floating above us, we see white puffs moving across the horizon, usually against a bright blue sky. As painters & photographers & poets, we also know that those clouds are never just "white". There are blues, purples, pinks, even greens mingled in the vapor canvases up there. 

Vermont Sunset
11x14 Water Soluble Oils on Gallery Stretched Canvas©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2013

Painting a sky above a landscape is generally easy to capture, largely because it is put into perspective by the foreground. The colors of sky and land intertwine & reflect, but the differences in textures also help to create necessary depth.

Once you're painting upwardly, as if you are in the clouds with your subject, gaining depth, I find, is very different to portray. There are colors & shadows to help, but keeping proportion and perspective is not so easy for me.

This is the 2nd attempt I've made to paint a specific subject. And, even though I'm generally happy with the cloud formations on both pieces as they are, they will not work for the composition I want to create. 

This is what I did with the first attempt:

Start of Balloon...

Balloon Amidst Clouds
20x16 Water Soluble Oils on
Gallery Stretched Canvas
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

  













And, yes, I am very pleased with the whole piece with setting the hot air balloon against the clouds. However, if you look, you'll see that there is a lack of shadows to create a depth to the clouds. The mix of pink, blue & white definitely gives one the sense of clouds, but, the expanse of the cloud cover is limited. So, technically, this is the first "fail" to paint "in the clouds".


This is the second attempt:

Start of Mystery Blue Skies

Next Step of Mystery Blue Skies

Right now,the clouds are almost monochromatic: Prussian blue mostly, a touch of Cerulean blue, and titanium white. The base is somewhat "starred" with the colors being crosshatched. (I've discovered that I really, really like this effect. Maybe I like it too much!) The next step is to add some "shine" to it with some golden/yellow hues... after I fix the mottled clouds to the right-hand side of the canvas, that is. I like the depth of the shadows as they are, though. So one hurdle overcome since the last attempt. You can also probably tell that the 2 canvases were started from the same template photo. Hmmm....

BUT!

The clouds are too small & distant for the subject I want to paint. So it's time to rethink what subject I can do with this canvas! 

High Clouds
6x9 Watercolor on 140#
Canson Paper
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2011

The encouraging aspect of all of this is that, each time, I see a breakthrough in executing a design. Always learning, learning, learning! Just looking back at this earlier attempt at clouds makes the point for me. I do still love this piece, but the flow of the clouds is not really there.

What discoveries have you uncovered with your artistic techniques of late? 

Ice Fog
7x5 Water Soluble Oil on Gallery Stretched Canvas
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2011

And, yes, it is still colder than any winter in memory around here. Hopefully, not so much where you are!

A Studio Detour

Chatham
9x12 Water Soluble Oils on Stretched Canvas
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014-15

Caught up in so many other "details" of everyday life & other such distractions, I have to force myself to go up the stairs & visit my own studio. 

Realizing that I still haven't done any new pieces (Grrrr!!!), I thought it'd be nice to bring you along on the visit.

When hubby & I designed the house layout, we had his 3 young girls staying with us regularly. We opted to make it a 4 bedroom house. And, in the process, we wound up having an enclosed loft area on the 2nd floor. After the girls moved on into adulthood, we also found that we have 2 oversized spare rooms upstairs.

Somehow, I've managed to fill almost 2/3rds of the entire upper floor with art materials & work areas. 

The loft holds a work table used for mat & paper cutting, an old artist table with a computer & paint supplies for glass painting. In between are rolling carts & Yaffe squares full of supplies & goodies.

The framed picture on the one rolling cart is a print hubby made for me for one Christmas that showcases our original logo design for Bronson Hill Arts! He is my best fan & supporter.

There are 2 large windows that look out over our backyard. This is the best spot for the drafting/painting table. Again, the table is surrounded by carts & tables. If I want to keep something on the tilted table, I attach some rubber feet to the bottom & that generally works. I've been using a small cosmetics holder for tubes of watercolor paints with the sticky feet keeping it nice and steady!

I've got several fluorescent lamps around the area which helps to give me better lighting at night for working & for quick photos.

My favorite part is the easel area, though. I have a large wooden easel on one side & a small metal easel. In between is an old desktop computer table that is great for storing oil paints, brushes, water buckets, & as a working area with its "keyboard" pull-out. 

The next room over is for storage & photographing paintings. After 4+ years of doing this, I'm still struggling with taking a good photograph of a painting. But, I think we're gaining on it! This set up seems to be working better than any other I've tried to date.

So, now that I've taken a solid look at all the fun to be had in these rooms, I have to force myself to enjoy it!

Hope you have a ton of fun, too, this week!

Exploring the Options (During a Deep Freeze)

Frosted Treetops
Letchworth State Park
©Mike Deuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

Last week, I touched on the difficulty of finding an effective, and cost-effective, method to locate buyers for our works. And, a huge "Thank you!" for all the feedback and information regarding your experiences!

My experience with Etsy, Zazzle, and Fine Arts America was disappointing. I've been "developing" a website for 3+ years and have yet to find my stride with it, but thought that maybe, just maybe, I could fine-tune it & set up a PayPal cart. It would be simpler, right?

A couple of big problems with that: I am not technically proficient when it comes to coding & it is really kind of ugly once you embed the PayPal buttons/options next to your artwork.

Icy Sunrise
From Our Front Porch
©Mike Deuel Bronson Hill Arts 2007

Looonnggg story shorter: came up with as pretty a design as I could for the buttons & the "View Cart" button. Tested them. The cart button worked & the others did not. Ouch. Another couple of days wasted. Apparently, it has something to do with site verification and HTML coding into the site. Yea. I got this. Um, I got not a clue. HTML coding is on my list of things I'd like to learn, but this is needed now. The other probable issue is that, for some reason, despite the copious cost of using GoDaddy, I do not have a hosting service?!? So, back to the beginning. Again.

A Winter Viewing
Letchworth State Park
©Mike Deuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

Then what is the next move? Do I keep the website & just try to find a different cart platform through a 3rd party site? Do I follow Crystal Allure's lead and upload the site to the blog? Would still need a cart option. So, do I simply drop the website & use a 3rd party site instead? 

This then comes back to being 1-in-a-million artists on any given site & keeping the fees under control, so as to keep the prices of the products under control. Print-on-Demand sites are out, so it also means keeping a steady inventory of inks, papers, mats, envelopes, shipping materials, etc., for any possible orders. And, again, how to reach out to the world?

Frosty Fir Fingers
Our Backyard
©Mike Deuel Bronson Hill Arts 2013

I thought that I'd have had more insight to offer this week, since I thought that the PayPal buttons would solve one major dilemma.

That being said, however, here's the intended plan, in no particular sequence:

1. Use Pinterest and Facebook for "advertising". Pinterest offers business accounts & I have switched my account over, but, I haven't had an opportunity to explore the details of the features & abilities of the business platform. I will keep you posted.

Winding Winter Way
Letchworth State Park
©Mike Deuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

Facebook is threatening to become more difficult to use for advertising your products. Rumor has it that if you try to link back to your own commercial site, they will drop the post, unless you want to pay for advertising. I say "rumor" because I haven't tested it per se. However, I do know that if you want to link your page directly to your website, Facebook will charge you an advertising fee. Articles that I've seen indicate that Instagram, as a part of Facebook, will most likely follow suit. 

Pinterest, at this moment, is seemingly not taking this approach. So far.

2. Use a site, such as Square Market, as a 3rd party sales platform. They offer a lower transaction fee than any other, including PayPal, and do not take any other fees for the web storefront or sales. 

And, if I decide to ditch the website, the look of the storefront Square Market offers is clean and simple. They, most likely, do not have the following and exposure Etsy, Zazzle or FAA do, but that really is irrelevant, since those sites are overwhelmingly overloaded.

Alone at Niagara-on-the-Lake
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada
©Mike Deuel Bronson Hill Arts 2005

Part of my reasoning for dropping the website is that, while it's paid for the rest of this year, I've hated supporting GoDaddy since the beginning. I dislike their advertising for exploiting the female body and, recently, a tastelessly cruel ad involving a lost puppy and selling him. And, honestly, I haven't gained anything from using them for the basics. Again, like Etsy, I do the work and they reap the fees. Unless, of course, I want to pay for more features. Hmmmm...

3 Inventory: I am obsessive out of the gate. I have so much inventory that I've accumulated over the last 5 years of doing this, I sincerely doubt that I'll need a whole lot of anything for quite a while. But, that's me, the borderline hoarder!

So, for this week, this is the plan. Let me know what you think of it or any of your experiences!

Ice & Fir
Our Backyard
©Mike Deuel Bronson Hill Arts 2013

The next quest is finding my "brand" and what exactly is that?

A Simple Thought

Happy Holidays!
Digital Graphic
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

The Golden Rule: Treat others as you would want them to treat you.

That would be the greatest gift of all from each of us to everyone else.

Happy Hannukah! Joyful Kwanza! Merry Christmas! Blessed Winter Solstice!


Happy Holidays!

Let the Fun Begin!

A Lucy & Sweetie Pie Christmas
5x7 Watercolor on Strathmore 140#©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

The leftovers are in the refrigerators & care packages are dispersed among the family members. The cats are exhausted from all the activity this past week, between preparing the house & meal and all the people here to enjoy said meal! Thanksgiving was a quiet & fun day full of love and grace, too. We had a tremendous amount for which to be happy this year.

A lot of people are working today. Too many people are shopping for the "deals". Some of us are just trying to get our gears moving to carry us through the next few weeks. 

Yes, the latter would be me!

I've been off the grid the last few weeks for a few reasons. With something of routine again rising on the horizon, hopefully I'll be back fairly regularly. And, very much looking forward to all the beautiful holiday goodies being created.

I was fortunate enough to actually receive a couple of commissions for personalized pet portraits and have completed the one posted at the top of the page, A Lucy & Sweetie Pie Christmas. 

It was commissioned as a tribute from Stephanie of Crystal Allure Beaded Jewelry Designs to a couple of her fur babies. Sadly, she & her family lost Sweetie Pie, the kitty, this past year after a few years of his battling cancer. She will be using them as her seasonal cards, obviously. But I am very grateful for the opportunity to design this special tribute for her and her family, human and furry.

The next one in the works is for a friend looking for a Christmas gift for a friend of hers. I'll keep you posted on that one, too.

What are you planning to create this season? Anything special for holiday gifts? Commissioned or for friends and/or family? I'd love to hear from you!

Stop on by our Etsy page to see the listings for the Pet Portraits. We'll be running a special for Cyber Monday, as well as continuing our donation program with the Note Cards & Digital Pet Portraits.

Meanwhile, Baby & Buddy are setting the example of how to spend the rest of the weekend!

Life Reflections

Fall Friends for Playful Pups Collection/Susie Q's Dog Rescue
5x7 Watercolor on W&N 140# Paper
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

This wasn't a week for a lot of progress in the studio. It was busy with work (the one that pays the bills) & family events.  It was more of a week for reflection during the sporadic quiet times.

It was a week that reminded me that we have no clue as to how much time we have. Nor any idea of the future quality of our time on this plane. Many of us with silent illnesses or horrid invasions of our bodies struggle to keep a positive aura. Sometimes, though, we just can not. Yet we still try.

It was a week that showed us those we could truly count upon, either in person or in spirit. Not only in our immediate lives, but also to others who have hidden strength to share with those without it. And in discovering that others believe in you, despite your own doubts.

It was week for family. The joy of love's cocoon during a time of fear was evident in places unsuspected.

It was a week of rain showers, bright sunlight, & lingering grays. All the while, the golden hues of the leaves reflected any & all light, as if to bring us to tomorrow. 

It was a week of miracles. Life sustained by the minds & talents of many before us. Others were given futures because of the sacrifices of some. 

It was a week to admire the art of living, of appreciating the love, of revealing of meaning. 

It was a week to realize how fortunate I am.

 Baby & Buddy for Kitty Kapers Collection/Another Chance Pet Rescue
(In Process)
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

And, it is now time to say, "Thank you!" and to send virtual hugs to everyone. Did you notice the note cards feature friendship today? 

Celebrating Discovery

It's a PuzzleAll Art Shown Done by
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2014

In working to develop various marketing sites, there are 2 topics that have completely stumped me: my niche, audience, or market (whichever term you prefer) and defining my artistic style.

I can't even begin to find the first without knowing the second!

With such an emphasis on keywords, tags, phrases & SEO in online marketing, it's almost impossible to avoid the need for the singular description of something that is so intimately emotional.

For expediency, I'd used the term casual representative. This is one of the disadvantages of not having completed a formal art education. I knew that there had to be an universally accepted term for whatever my style has become.

After hours of reading art marketing articles, I was still stymied.

Then I struck the proverbial jackpot: Painterly. Breaking it down in order to visualize that term are the words Expressive Realism. It feels right. The definition I'd found of the title made it right:

"...it's not a style of painting where the end result is intended to look smooth & glossy...

"It's a style which (and here's the word that brings it home for me- BED) celebrates & shows off the materials made to create it: paint & a brush.

"The result is something only a painter could produce." (Italics added by me.)

Celebrates. Celebrates the beauty of paint and brush. Celebrates the painter's view; perhaps, even the painter's soul.

I could not have found a more perfect statement to convey how I feel about creating artwork.

Now, let's see what Google thinks of the term! To be continued...

After reading the articles that I've linked here, visit our Etsy shop and let me know if you agree or disagree with my selection of Expressive Realism.

How would you describe your artistic style? Leave a comment if you'd like!

Journey
6x9 Watercolor on 140# Cold Press Paper
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts 2011

Flowers & Five Senses

Bountiful Blooms
8x10" Watercolor & Water Soluble Pencil on 140# Strathmore 300 Paper
©BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts

For so many years, I have gardened without gloves. My hands have been scratched, scraped, gouged, & bruised. Repeatedly.

With time, my skin also continues to get more and more sensitive to saps, sticky leaves and ant nibbles. So, this year, I've been trying to wear gloves to keep some of the "damage" under control.

I can't do it. It's too unnatural.

Just in the tedious task of weeding, it is much easier to "feel" where to grip the stem and how to twist and pull the noxious plant without gloves.

Then I started thinking about how tactile gardening can be: the silky sensation of a petal, the waxy smoothness of the pocket of a deep bloom. The strength that supports a multitude of colored crowns and the delicate curliques of a climbing vine can be sensed through naked fingertips.

Reaching deeper into the thought, it became obvious how the flowers in our gardens and in nature's fields envelop all of our five senses.

The visual beauty can be overwhelming in the flow of colors and textures. Either spread sparsely, elegantly amid grasses and trees or clustered like happy children, blending into a mosiac of life, the sight can be stunning.

Of course, inhaling the sweetness and freshness of blossoms is a treat beyond description. Memories and dreams are triggered with the slightest whiff on the breeze. Spring and summer become eternal, following a trail of scents that only flowers can create.

What do you hear in the garden? Whispers of the air sharing a laugh with you. The joyful hum of the bumblebees and the honey bees getting high on nectar. The swooping of swallow's wings, the hovering of the hummingbird.

How do you taste a garden? The berries, the grapes, yes. But just plucking a spike of chive and savoring the spontaneous zing can be delightful. Harvesting sunflower seeds, brewing chickweed tea. There are so many little surprises waiting to be sampled.

The next time you're feeling dull and uninspired, find a garden. Then let your senses run free!

Bird Squares Part II

It's been a few weeks of typical day-to-day busyness. As such there has not been much in the way of art production of late.

But here are the next steps in developing the Bird Squares:

Each square was traced and "sized" for the canvas-

Next, charcoal was applied to the back of the tracing-

Lastly, the image is traced directly to the canvasses-

Simple as an elementary school exercise, but effective in order to comfortably design such a small composition!

With some luck, I hope to have the chance to take them to the next level some time this week!

*********************************************************************************

This past week, I was fortunate enough to be able to contribute to a new blog, Paper, Paint, Pencils & Pens, hosted by Lynn Cohen. Check it out some time; it's a very diverse, themed collection of artwork, across the boards! 

There are quite a  lot of fun challenges and showcases out in Blogger Land. And there is a lot of work that goes into so many of them. Thank you to all of our wonderful hosts!

Completely Fallin' Over Falls

The almost final of the Untitled Falls I posted a while back:

And, a little, teeny change and, the final painting:

And, the title is simple & to the point! "Stony Waterfall".

Organizing to Do



Step 1: The Sketch
Where to Next?

A fellow creative soul, as well as a dear friend, and I managed to exchange a couple of emails that somewhat constituted a conversation.  With our equally crazy schedules, it has become a rarity, indeed.

In her part of the initial conversation, she was able to take a break from her thriving craft business. Instead of pushing ahead with marketing tedium, she was taking the available time to reorganize her art studio and areas.

While in several ways this may seem as if it is procrastination, I can appreciate the need to regroup. It may not seem to be working towards a successful art business, the need to step back and look at your surroundings. But, it is actually crucial at times.

Often, it seems that when we just roll with the tide of life, we flounder, unable find a focus. When we stop, look and evaluate the direction of the tide, we can remind ourselves of where it is exactly we meant to go in the first place.

I’ve found myself doing a tremendous amount of reevaluating where I want to go with my art, and with Mike’s photography. In the rush to get our name out to the local circuit of craft outlets and art groups, I found myself  being approached to do things that were, honestly, not what I enjoyed doing.  It was not what I wanted Bronson Hill Arts to become.

I enjoyed trying new crafts and mediums, techniques and designs. But I  feel  as though  I have been sidetracked in developing the type of artwork for which  I am passionate.

So, yes, here’s to “procrastinating” enough to redirect and refocus.

It’s not only a necessity: it’s a wonderful thing to give one’s self.

Step 2: Watercolor Colorization 

 

Back to Basics

Hand In Pencil by Pencil in Hand
©2013 BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts

 

Lately, it seems that we may be catching up with the list of summer projects. The house is rearranged to the point of being usable. Vacations are almost done for the season. Gardens are as finished as they will be for the year. Kids are set on their career/college paths. We’re finding some time to spend with friends and family again.

One of the things I just haven’t been able to motivate to work at, though, is getting back to the studio. It sits up those stairs, all clean and organized. Materials overflow: canvases, paints, brushes, pencils, frames and framing supplies.

I want to do artwork, I need to do artwork. It makes me feel good, it pleases my senses & my soul.

Part of the issue is that I haven’t found an inspired block of time to dive into the process. Ideas are overflowing, design execution ready to be applied. But that 3-4 hour span of uninterrupted creation never seems to happen simply because, darn it! something else pulls me away.

I’ve been trying to start the practice of a doing a “little” something regularly. Okay, I’ve done it once. But, that counts as “starting”, right?

The first (yes, there will be more) is this sketch of my own hand. It was just a quick exercise in the basics.

And, that seems like a great place to start, doesn’t it?

Summertime

Charleston Garden
6x6 Water Soluble Oils on Stretched Canvas
©2013 BEDeuel Bronson Hill Arts

 

Summertime is here and, yes, almost gone. Where, oh, where have the long days of sunshine gone?

It's been awfully hot all around the country, including these netherlands of upstate New York, land of snow and snow. So, yes, summer is still going strong, even if we are on the shorter end of the long days.

But with the "dog days" of summer, it seems to be too easy to waste the days. In avoiding the heat, we languish.

Is that really a bad thing, though? No, it's not. The quote about "mad dogs & Englishmen" always rings true to me at this time of the year.

The painting here, Charleston Garden, was inspired by a photo taken many years ago while wandering by and admiring the lovely, gated gardens in that city. It took a lot longer to finish the painting than it should have, and, while I do like the final result, it's missing a key part, the part that held up the final brushstroke. I couldn't paint a decent looking, white cat.

The original photo depicted a pretty garden with a white cat in the foreground lazily cleaning him/herself.  The image of comfortable indifference was entrancing. It was the picture of the perfect way to spend the summertime: relaxed, casual, easy. S/he was doing only what was necessary and doing it slowly, at that!

So, taking a cue from my white, Cheshire cat (that only I can see), it's time to kick back in the hammock and enjoy what is left of these wonderful, sunny, hot days! Hope you do, too!





 

Accomplishment

Crossing
6x6 Water Soluble Oils on Stretched Canvas
©BEDeuel/Bronson Hill Arts

It’s been an interesting first quarter this year. Work issues, kid issues, art business issues, house issues, etc..

All the issues have been creating challenges and opportunities, equally.

My “free” time (yes, the time for which you don’t get paid) has increased quite a lot. It’s been nicely liberating, yet, overwhelming, too.

I’ve been able to dive into all the projects around the house and in the studio that I’ve wanted to do for the last 2 years.

Rearranging, painting, planning for new carpeting in a some rooms. Cleaning and purging the other rooms. Three new paintings in as many months. Pulling prints and pieces together for various charity auctions. Developing both the website for Bronson Hill Arts as well as trying to keep up BHA’s Facebook page. Researching other online options, too. Preparing for the spring onslaught outside of the house. And, a few dozen more projects to touch on as each one is, ahem, completed.

And, all of this is being done simultaneously. Needless to say, my home is a mess and I’m tired. I think I’m wearing my husband out as well!

When this surge started, it seemed as if it was going to be so easy; all this extra time. And, really, how much time does it take to sort and dispose of the excess collection of gadgets, utensils, pans, dishes, and cleaning products in the kitchen. Well, so far, it’s been about 7 hours. Still have about 3 more hours of sorting plus another 4 or more to truly clean the cabinetry and flooring.

That’s one room. Add another five rooms currently in turmoil to that list.

But it’s slowly coming back together.

The shifting of furniture and things from room-to-room is beginning to appear logical. The rooms look and feel better as the superfluous junk is chucked. The website is starting to look like, well, a real website and the FB page is really starting to reach people and galleries. The response to the auction and show prints as been very positive.

It’s tough to tear the everyday fabric of life into so many bits and then reattach them again. That’s the challenge.

But, once the patchwork starts to take on a pattern, it’s nice to know that you’ve utilized the opportunities to the fullest. Accomplishment can never be overrated.