Birdsongs
5 x 7 inch paper cutting.
Blue Heron
Atchison County, KS, 2010
Simplify
“As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler; solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, nor weakness weakness.” -Henry David Thoreau
A lake in Atchison, KS, March 2011.
Birdsongs: Sun Song
5 x 7 inch paper cutting.
Patience and portals
Sunlight coming through the corn in a Kansas field.. but looking like a portal (to me, anyway). Here’s some more Van Gogh:
“Ought one not to learn patience from nature, learn patience from seeing the corn slowly ripen, seeing things grow?”
One of the most frequent comments I get at art fairs is that I “must have the patience of Job.” All I can say to that is, I try..
Reaching for the Sun
11 x 14 inch paper cutting.. complete with a ‘sun spot’ .. or in other words, I tore my sun after I glued it down and had to patch it, hence the spot. It’s like Bob Ross says (I’m on a total Bob Ross kick lately — he was so peaceful and positive about everything) — it was a happy accident.
Taming of the Squirrel
Upon returning from a ‘get-outta-the-house’ mind clearing walk, I found this squirrel hanging out by my deck looking for something to eat.. So I tossed him a handful of sunflower seeds, and he let me come as close as I wanted.. And we hung out for about half an hour.. Strangely I had just read the following Bob Ross quote before I took a walk (I enjoy reading quotes often..):
“People look at me like I’m a little strange, when I go around talking to squirrels and rabbits and stuff. That’s ok. Thaaaat’s just ok.”
The same squirrel is, as I type, sitting right outside my screen door next to where I am, and there’s a red-shafted flicker and a female downy woodpecker about 1/3 it’s size competing for space on my bird feeder while a male cardinal spies them from a neighboring tree. And I’m totally enjoying it all. (It’s the simple things..)
South Dakota
Northwest South Dakota, 2010.. one of the prettiest places I’ve ever been where the landscape consistently changes. I first went to SD in the late 80s and planning to go back to visit again sometime. There were many areas without cell phone reception which was liberating. I think it’s good to be disconnected, in that way, from time to time. Keeps you connected in other ways.
Shakespeare Spec Work
I was contacted by a publisher awhile back about doing some book covers, and this was my mock-up for Romeo & Juliet. Alas, I will not be doing them, but it was a good practice in trying to figure out how to include human features in my art.. something I don’t normally do.
Past Restaurant Logo Work
I did this rooster for incorporation into this logo for the Salina, KS, restaurant back in 2010. The bad news is that they have since closed down. The good news is that the owners have gone on to open a bookstore & cafe that is so far thriving. The finished paper cutting had color, which I posted awhile back here.