ramblings on nature (and art)
Jean B.
noticed the sky looked like a fine painting, with the dark tree
branches silhouetted against a sky of gray and blue with a few
powder-puff clouds. Such visions make me feel at peace with the
world!
This morning, as I stepped out of the shower and gazed out toward the
back woods, I saw the trees with their pregnant leafbuds were golden
from the rising sun. What a glorious sight! Even though I eagerly
await the emergence of the leaves, I also love it when the buds have
swollen.
Years ago, when I was still working in Boston, I would deliberately go
several blocks beyond my destination at this time of year just so I
could walk back through Boston Common and the Public Gardens (that is
where the swan boats are). I would gaze at the tree tops and think of
Seurat and how pointillism would capture this time of year so
perfectly. I always thought I would take some photos and then try to
paint the scene of the trees around the bandstand using a combination
of pointillism and a technique I came up with for doing tree bark (do
I even remember it?). It never happened, because I would not bring
the camera, and then suddenly it was too late to capture the leaf buds
at that perfect stage. Now those perfect trees have been cut down,
possibly as a safety measure because it is an area where homeless
people with drug and alcohol problems hang out.
I still think about painting again. I used to love drawing and
painting, but then life got in the way. Now my daughter laughs when I
say I am going to put the drafting table out on the porch and use it
for genealogy and art. Actually, it would be perfect for the latter,
especially if I do oil painting, because the turpentine gives me a
headache....
Jean B.
judithann
when the beauty will emerge on the canvas. Now, about the
turpentine........ :o)
ja
"All works of art are commissioned in the sense that no artist can create
one by a simple act of will but must wait until what he believes to be a
good idea for a work "comes" to him."
~~~~~~
W. H. Auden
"Jean B." <jb...@rcn.com> wrote in message news:3AE405D0...@rcn.com...
Billy E. Ray
instead of oils! My Mother and Dad both painted and she switched to acrylic because it
cleaned up easier.
Faye
Keith52791
>. . . I still think about painting again. I used to love drawing and
>painting, but then life got in the way. Now my daughter laughs when I
>say I am going to put the drafting table out on the porch and use it
>for genealogy and art. Actually, it would be perfect for the latter,
>especially if I do oil painting, because the turpentine gives me a
>headache....
"Your diamonds are not in far distant mountains or in yonder seas; they are in
your own backyard, if you but dig for them."
--Russell H. Conwell
Or, nearer the front yard in your case, Jean. :) Do it! Did you know that
most of the houses out here don't have porches? Sad to say, true, as Americans
have, generally, retreated first to the television room and then to the
backyard. God forbid we say hello to the neighbors.
Ramble on, anytime, about Boston or New England. Not bad country, not bad.
k
None are so old as those who have outlived their enthusiasm.
--Thoreau
GeoGoddess
Kelly Petit
abook-:)
kelly
Billy E. Ray <b_...@bellsouth.net> a écrit dans le message : wdWE6.900$5b1....@news1.atl...
dae
Sounds like you're interests are close to mine. I don't practice any except
the Genealogy one which is driving me nuts. Have you tried alkyds yet?
They're like acrylic and oils mixed. Takes about 24 hours to dry. Clean up
with a solvent that doesn't smell bad at all. I'm very seriously thinking
of doing "Miniature Paintings" for a change. I just wish my ambition would
get up and let me go.
Don (Prone)
"Jean B." <jb...@rcn.com> wrote in message news:3AE405D0...@rcn.com...
JD Cooper
Beautify written and I have the images in my head!! For us the spring
comes much sooner, but I honestly see the things you write of.
Many years ago I was a budding artist. I loved the expression my hands
would interpret from my eye. My work never looked like the things I saw,
but I figured it was, well.... a lack of skill!
Later I took up photography and let the camera paint my pictures.
Then I took up blacksmithing and let my hands take over again.
I took up other creative things to satisfy my eye, never "getting
there."
I guess you need to let go the creative juices. I never fully satisfied
me. Perhaps you can satisfy thyself. It is such and illusive thing!
Best of luck!
JD Cooper
Rancho Problemas, Texas
Like you, life got in the way for me, to!
Jean B.
>
> Jean..do it! Don't wait another minute! When the desire strikes you is
> when the beauty will emerge on the canvas. Now, about the
> turpentine........ :o)
Well, some minutes have passed, and I have not yet done this. I have
located my boxes of art supplies and will start going through them.
Jean B.
>
> ja
[snip]
Jean B.
>
> In article <3AE405D0...@rcn.com>, "Jean B." <jb...@rcn.com> writes:
>
> >. . . I still think about painting again. I used to love drawing and
> >painting, but then life got in the way. Now my daughter laughs when I
> >say I am going to put the drafting table out on the porch and use it
> >for genealogy and art. Actually, it would be perfect for the latter,
> >especially if I do oil painting, because the turpentine gives me a
> >headache....
>
> "Your diamonds are not in far distant mountains or in yonder seas; they are in
> your own backyard, if you but dig for them."
> --Russell H. Conwell
>
> Or, nearer the front yard in your case, Jean. :) Do it! Did you know that
> most of the houses out here don't have porches?
Interestingly, the new houses that are being built around here are
getting big front porches. A nice trend I'd say.
Sad to say, true, as Americans
> have, generally, retreated first to the television room and then to the
> backyard. God forbid we say hello to the neighbors.
So I discovered when I moved into this house. Very odd.
>
> Ramble on, anytime, about Boston or New England. Not bad country, not bad.
>
I have not even been to your neck of the woods. I really need to
start living. Maybe with that almost 1 million I have made, right?
No actually, I am thinking that I'd better travel in the near future,
with or without my daughter, if I am ever going to do it. (My last
trip was back from Japan in 1983!)
Jean B.
Jean B.
> > I still think about painting again. I used to love drawing and
> > painting, but then life got in the way. Now my daughter laughs when I
> > say I am going to put the drafting table out on the porch and use it
> > for genealogy and art. Actually, it would be perfect for the latter,
> > especially if I do oil painting, because the turpentine gives me a
> > headache....
> >
I think I will. It's also a good way to lose some weight. (I tend to
forget everything else when I am engaged in some artistic endeavor.)
Jean B.
Jean B.
>
> Jean , you just painted a word picture. What a lovely talent. BTW you can use acrylic
> instead of oils! My Mother and Dad both painted and she switched to acrylic because it
> cleaned up easier.
> Faye
Acrylics do have that advantage, Faye. I don't know that I like them
as much as oils though--and my perception is that watercolor is much
harder because there is no room for error!
Jean B.
Jean B.
>
> Jean!
>
> Beautify written and I have the images in my head!! For us the spring
> comes much sooner, but I honestly see the things you write of.
JD! You are one of writers here that I hold in awe, so I take that as
a high compliment. Thank you. (I have a lot of YOUR prose saved and
should send it to myself via email lest I have problems on the
newsgroup someday.)
>
> Many years ago I was a budding artist. I loved the expression my hands
> would interpret from my eye. My work never looked like the things I saw,
> but I figured it was, well.... a lack of skill!
Now, if you read what I wrote in my response to Don, I viewed my
adherence to reality as a flaw! It is therefore interesting that you
have the opposite perspective.
>
> Later I took up photography and let the camera paint my pictures.
I have never been into that very much, except taking photos of my
daughter. That ebbed when I started caring for my dad.
>
> Then I took up blacksmithing and let my hands take over again.
Wow! You are a multi-faceted person. My dad used to do metalwork,
and he also cast pewter using antique molds. When we were going
through the house, I sort-of wanted the molds but left them for the
auctioneer. Those molds just disappeared.
>
> I took up other creative things to satisfy my eye, never "getting
> there."
I wonder how others view your creations? Maybe you are your own
harshest critic. I think I view myself and what I do much differently
from the way others do.
>
> I guess you need to let go the creative juices. I never fully satisfied
> me. Perhaps you can satisfy thyself. It is such and illusive thing!
I'll try! I hope you continue with yout endeavors too. Don't sell
yourself short! (By the way, having said I REALLY like your writing
[and I was an editor], may I ask how you perceive your writing?)
Jean B.
Jean B.
>
> She's indeed very talented, there are so many good writers in here. Together you could write
> abook-:)
> kelly
> Billy E. Ray <b_...@bellsouth.net> a écrit dans le message : wdWE6.900$5b1....@news1.atl...
Kelly,
I am in awe of some of the things I read in this NG and would not put
myself in the same category (but then I tend to judge myself more
harshly anyway). It is so much easier to critique/edit someone else's
prose than to generate it oneself.
Jean B.
Jean B.
>
> Jean B.
>
> Sounds like you're interests are close to mine. I don't practice any except
> the Genealogy one which is driving me nuts.
It does do that, doesn't it? I guess you still haven't made the jump
back to Germany....
Have you tried alkyds yet?
No.
> They're like acrylic and oils mixed. Takes about 24 hours to dry. Clean up
> with a solvent that doesn't smell bad at all.
Those sound VERY interesting, Don. I will have to check them out!
I'm very seriously thinking
> of doing "Miniature Paintings" for a change.
What do you normally paint? In the past, I felt I lacked imagination
and would paint totally realistic things. (Think early Chuck
Close....) I find as I get older, my mind is less fettered, so I
think I will be a better artist than I was. Anyway, I enjoy the
process....
Jean B,
Keith52791
>. . . I have not even been to your neck of the woods. I really need to
>start living. Maybe with that almost 1 million I have made, right?
>No actually, I am thinking that I'd better travel in the near future,
>with or without my daughter, if I am ever going to do it. (My last
>trip was back from Japan in 1983!)
I could add some thoughts Jean, but my friends have already said it, better:
Regret for the things we did
can be tempered by time;
It is regret for the things we
did not do that is inconsolable.
--Sydney K. Harris
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do
than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the
safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
--Mark Twain
I hold on to the blissful notion that the journey is worthwhile, and I tip-toe
across the chasm with a song and a smile.
--Harry Chapin
I hope you have the resolve, the money, the time, and the health to follow your
dream.
k
Kelly Petit
Jean B. <jb...@rcn.com> a écrit dans le message : 3AE7675A...@rcn.com...
But I still think you belong to those chosen few who've been gifted..
kelly
Jean B.
> >
> > I am in awe of some of the things I read in this NG and would not put
> > myself in the same category (but then I tend to judge myself more
> > harshly anyway). It is so much easier to critique/edit someone else's
> > prose than to generate it oneself.
> >
> > Jean B.
> I agree, Jean-:)
> But I still think you belong to those chosen few who've been gifted..
> kelly
A humble thanks, Kelly.
Jean B.
Jean B.
Oh! I like these quotes, Keith! Thank you for posting them for me.
>
> I hope you have the resolve, the money, the time, and the health to follow your
> dream.
>
> k
Just need to firm up the resolve. Money? How are most of us EVER
sure we have the money we will need to get through our final days? On
the other hand, if we just think about that and forego life because of
it, that is not living. I've thought of that more and more since I
turned 50.
Jean B.