Just Keep Swimming

With an entire day ahead of me in my studio this past Sunday, I started a painting inspired by our recent househounting venture.  We are just beginning our search and it is a daunting task to find that perfect place within the seventh largest city in America.  My concept is simple; the birds, perched outside a beautiful house, are looking for their place to belong.  The fish school above them in a dream, representing an ideal community.

My work for the past few years has been very illustrative, evolving from the first few drawings made during my Italian residency.   I enjoy the process of narrating these scenes of adventure, homecoming and love in saturated color and playful patterns.  Lately, I have been working a lot with acrylic paint; my job as a painting instructor inspires me to keep the spark alive in my own studio.

I documented my entire day, from first cup of coffee to last glass of wine, for my friend Ann.  She is an amazing artist living in Illinois, owner and blogger of A Beautiful Party.  She is starting a new feauture called "A Day in the Studio Life,' where she asks other artists to document a typical day in the studio-what our space is like, what we make, what we eat, what we get distracted by...

Below are a few highlights of the project I began for the feature, an acrylic painting on 12" x 12" x 2" cradleboard.  My husband paid me the biggest complement when he came in to check out what I was working on..."your painting looks like Lisa Frank's binder."  Yes.

 

                       

Check out the first "A Day in the Studio Life" on Ann's blog, featuring Oklahoma artist Katy Seals!