HYPNO

HYPNO is a painting resulting from a combination of my hypnotherapy experiences and one of my caricature drawings of model, Sally during a figure drawing session. I learned from my hypnotherapy that you have all the answers, it's just a matter of accessing them.
Painting is my strongest form of expression. It is where I find my voice and my passion....

iris

I just finished this painting of an IRIS for my massage therapist. This was a barter. We agreed to the terms of my hours equal to her hours. I look forward to many, many fabulous massages and she has a beautiful painting to last her a life time. I titled it SIRI,, which is IRIS backwards, just like Oprah and Harpo. SIRI is three feet by three feet on canvas painted with gauache.

Window Pane/ reflections

Hand colored photographs of recent tree reflections

zoomed images of tree reflections

I've always enjoyed reflections, probably because abstraction by far pleases my eye and brain more then realism. Window panes are made of glass which reflect what's in and out side depending on your vantage point. Seeing a reflected television screen slightly slanted in a window seems more surreal and interesting than looking at the screen straight on.

I shot my images digitally and printed them in black and white on strathmore paper. After spraying the paper with workable fixative, I began applying prismacolor pencil to the surface. I used colors that please me not what was originally captured. The white bars seemed to be like the divisions in a window so I left them almost colorless. In actuality it was the snow next to the creek where the reflections were shot.

BLOW HOLES

My dog Fern and I walked the beach Saturday afternoon. There was no wind and temps were mild for mid January. I photographed blow holes......ice formations that start as small ice chunks slowed by the cold. They fuse to the shoreline and build with each wave. A small hole is created very naturally with the forces of nature. they are volcanic, pleasant roundish shapes, but when they begin to melt unusual forms begin to appear.
Fern made lovely smooth ripples in some creek water that runs into the lake....I was able to catch trees reflecting in the interrupted water which I will post later.
As severe as winter can be, there are stunningly beautiful images every where.......peace, ZZ

TREE SPIRITS

My current series of paintings and prints are of tree spirits. I have been photographing trees for about ten years. Roots, tree holes and bark have all captured my attention, but presently, I have seen tree spirits in my photographs. I make work prints first, then, simplified sketches. I scale up my sketch and transfer it to my canvas. Then the fun begins. I paint over my pencil line using thinned gauache paint and a lettering brush. When I do this the line alters some. For me, there is a big difference between my dry lines and my wet lines. My wet lines are more fluid and confident.
Blocking in color happens rather quickly. With much contemplation, my paintings always tell me what colors they want to be. Color has been a passion of mine for a very long time. I had a professor who told me I needed to limit my color.....I decided not to follow his advice...and have been a colorist ever since, so I guess I could thank him for my palette beginnings.

Happy New Year

New Year's eve I created this lamp shade ....collaged rice paper on to an old linen shade from the fifties that I purchased at an estate sale last Fall. A friend asked me if I as going to wear the shade at midnight...I didn't, but it was ready and back on the lamp by the strike of twelve. I would make a few changes but you can't erase this so I live with my mistakes. The lamp is now in my studio, and when lit reminds me of the excitement the new year always brings.
Sooooooo Happy New Year everyone.