Late August Poppies & Dilly Beans

I bought poppy seeds in Vermont in late June, planted them after the 4th of July. TODAY the first one bloomed! I will have poppies in September for the first time ever. My veggie garden is still putting forth tomatoes, beans, dill, and cucumbers. I have been making dilly beans. There's nothing like a couple of dilly beans on your sandwich in February to remind you that LIFE IS VERY GOOD.

I have been clearing brush down by the river, washing windows and other chores that I want done before winter. School started this week with 3 days of workshops, the students return on Tuesday. Once teaching gets underway it's hard to find the time for these bigger projects. It was a fine summer. I had a lot of time in my studio, but I am ready to see the students again and see what they will create!

Christmas at the end of July...

I dug up garlic yesterday. Nothing says 'Christmas in July' better than a harvest of garlic!
Summer is battery charging time. I divide my time between my studio and my gardens. I've been working in my studio on two paintings, one is quite large, a portrait. The other painting will become a print in my Etsy shop.



I took a little trip last month. First I collected my mother from her butterfly hatchery in Vermont, then we drove to Montreal to the Botanical Gardens to see the 'Mosaicultures' show. IT WAS AMAZING. This show runs until 9/29/13 and is a 'must see' if at all possible. Here are a couple of pics. The bird sculpture in the water was my favorite.

I want to live in this tree!

Summer begins... BRING IT ON!

My school year has ended - let summer begin! I have many toys tucked around my classroom; I packed them away for a couple of months on the last day. This year a 4th grade boy asked to trade his Blue-Winged Kookaburra for a stuffed, singing Chickadee I had nestled under the TV set. I told him he could just have the Chickadee, but he insisted on trading. I tried to give the Kookaburra back to him on the last day of school... and he answered "But I gave him to you." - I realized then that he really wanted me to have his bird. I got an idea then that it might be fun to take this Kookaburra on my summer adventures and take pictures for my student. Yesterday, I took two photos at The Portland Museum of Art. I went there to see the William S. Paley Collection on Modernism. This is  a "must see show" - a remarkable collection on loan from MOMA. In the collection was one of the pieces I was tested on in my National Board tests - wow!, now this painting feels like an old friend.

It seemed fitting to see this rainbow on the last night of school. A great year has come to an end - with inspiration set in motion for the fall. My school will be getting a new principal and a new superintendent... change is on its way. Change is good. Happy summer!

Moving On...

I took my 6 NBPTS tests; a year of hard work comes to a close. Waiting begins. I won't get scores until Thanksgiving. Surely I will wonder 18 gazillion times until I know the answer. It's been quite a journey. Among the myriad of things both technical and profound I learned along the way, my ability to singly focus on tasks has also become greater. 

School is almost done for this year. I am ready to focus my energy in my studio... well, after I weed the garden. I spent the weekend getting caught up outdoors. Mowing a running path late in the day showed these dandelions owning a hill. A little trip to the woods to dump trimmed tree branches gave me a peek at a bird's nest on the ground. I can feel my batteries getting charged. 2 paintings are ready for my attention in the studio. Life is good - so, so good!

NBPTS and felting at MAEA Spring Conference

Wet Felting: My first 2 vessels.... it's all about color folks...

2 entries are submitted for National Board - wahoo! 1 entry to go and 6 tests.
I think I can, I think I can...
The Maine Art Educators Association spring conference at UMO was great. The keynote speaker was Dr. Kerry Freedman, author of: Teaching Visual Culture:  http://www.art.niu.edu/Art-Design-Education-Faculty/Kerry-Freedman.html.
At the conference I took a wonderful workshop entitled: Explorations in Felt: Small Vessels. I have noodled around a bit with needle felting. This workshop was wet felting, over mason jars. Our teacher: Jodi Clayton of One Lupine  http://www.onelupine.com/ was a wonderful teacher. This is my kind of conference - provocative information for the mind and a hands on creative experience.