New Paintings

A couple of my out-of-state friends who were unable to attend the artists reception at Amato's Art On Broadway this weekend asked me to post some images of my new paintings on my blog. So in response to Mary and Helen's request, and for anyone else who was unable to be there on Saturday, here are a few photos I shot just prior to the start of the party ....

Welcome, please come on in...

May I offer you a glass of wine ...

This watercolor painting is titled, "Gaudi Made Me Do It," and was inspired by Anton Gaudi's masterful Sacrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona. I took a series of photos while touring the interior and was struck by the enormity of the structure, the complexity of its design, the commitment of its artisans, and the freedom of visitors to walk unsupervised through the "under construction" portions with workers pouring concrete on the ground level and operating cranes carrying materials to the roof tops. I loved that parts of the cathedral were finished and functioning, and others were completely open to the sky, with only netted wiring to separate one area from another, and workers from tourists. The experience made me weep.

These two paintings began as photographs taken in a small village in southern France. The soil in the area surrounding Roussillon consists of red and ochre clays, and the colors of the village's architecture reflect it natural resources. "Inside and Outside the Red Wall" and "Shadows and Shapes in Roussillon" are the results of my connection with the colors and shapes of this charming village - its simple and playful imagery, and its sense of a warm and contented lifestyle. Our visit here was too short.

Another view of the Gaudi painting, along with several small plein air pieces that were painted during earlier trips to Italy and France. The other full sheet watermedia painting in the right of the photograph is titled "Una Strade Stretta," - A Narrow Street - and was inspired by a photo I took while breaking away from the formal Florence tour and exploring on our own. I loved the patterns - the dark and light, the near and far, the large and small, the cool and warm - and I was moved by the quiet simplicity of the space just minutes from the splendor and crowds of central Florence. We delighted in our off-the-beaten path discovery and enjoyed it along with the architectural and sculptural wonders of the Renaissance.

Well, Helen and Mary, thanks so much for your interest and for allowing me to share my recent work with you. I hope you'll stop by my blog again some time soon.

Merry Christmas from Me and My Neighbors

In January we will have resided in Oregon for three years - hard to believe, but true. Each year we are delighted and amazed by all the work one of our neighbors puts into his holiday light display.

He lives on a cul-de-sac and decorates both his front and back yards, and some of his displays are so large they have "marched" their way over to the yard next to his.

We have no idea where he stores these displays from February through October, or whether he has to take out a second mortgage during the remaining months to pay his electric bill. But we do know that his passion for the holidays is obvious and his efforts bring delight to our neighborhood and everyone else who drives down Murray Blvd. and sees the glow from his yard from blocks away.

My contribution to holiday cheer this year was taking pictures of our neighbors' yard to share with you and bring a little light and gaiety into your holiday experience. Hope you enjoy the photos and have a wonderful Christmas and New Year.

A Full Sheet - Painted and Signed

I feel good. With inspiration from my friend Annie Salness, I challenged myself to do a full sheet watercolor. I usually work smaller for space and economic reasons (cost of framing, fear of failure, etc), but thought if Annie can fight back from a stroke, I can surely tackle a large white sheet of paper.

I have an inventory of inspiring photographs from earlier trips to Italy and the Mediterranean - great subject matter for a painting. This latest piece is based on a place that brought me to tears. After touring La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, I sat on a bench and cried - me, little old Donna McCormick Sanson who comes from very humble beginnings, was sitting in this beautiful foreign city outside a splendid work of art by Antonio Gaudi, able to reach out and touch it, to stroll under its vaulted ceilings, to stand in the bans of colored sunlight streaming through its fractured stain glass windows, to watch artisans continue the daily work of its ongoing construction and know that I was there when parts of it were still open to the sky - I was overwhelmed.

The detail in this image is meant to give you a little peek, a little preview of my January showcase at Amato's.

I'm happy with it - I signed it - I'm moving on. Thanks Annie!

My Holiday Auction Tree

Halloween is in two days and I'm working on a tree sculpture for the Christmas season. No wonder life seems to be racing by!

My tree of soft whispy white branches draped with watercolor ornaments and chains will be just one of many holiday trees to be exhibited in December at Amato's Gallery. Each of Amato's artists was challenged to create a tree sculpture reflecting individual style and medium.

My main struggle was choosing a form that would display my watecolor ornaments. After several unsuccessful starts, I finally settled on a white ceramic vase filled with sand and pretty manufactured glass stones. I can't claim creating the vase, sand, stones, or fake tree branches, but all the ornaments are designed and handcrafted by me. I used old less-than-successful paintings as my main material, cut them into strips, wove the strips together, added little watercolor collage elements here and there, strung strips together to make colorful paper chains, and then placed all my unique ornaments carefully on the very delicate branches.

The trees will be featured at Amato's Gallery starting on December 4, with an afternoon reception from 1-4. Each tree will be accompanied by a bidding sheet with a starting bid recommended by the artist. Bidding will begin during the reception and continue until noon on Saturday, December 18. The highest bidders for each of the trees will then be notified and will have their own one-of-a-kind holiday tree to enjoy this Christmas and for years to come.

I can't wait to see what all the artists design!

A New Painting!!!

Monday night, instead of getting ready and heading out to The Canvas Bistro for an evening of drawing, I stayed home in my pj's and painted in my studio. I worked from a photo in my collection of a scene in Roussett, France. My husband and I had taken a cruise of the Mediterranean and selected to take a day trip to this region where the soil is red clay and the buildings reflect the area's natural resource in their coloration. I started with watercolor and ended with a gouache painting. I find myself using this process frequently, which allows me the freedom to make changes and experiment more with the image. I'm happy with the results.

November Event at Amato's

As you can see, our next artist to be featured at Amato's Gallery is an abstract painter who obviously loves color. Bruce Ulrich will share a series of his latest paintings and collages in a show entitled, Exploration in Abstraction.

The show will run from November 6 through November 30, with an evening reception from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, November 6.

I hope you'll join us at Amato's for the reception and visit with Bruce and the other ten Amato artists. Mark your calendars!

Today at Amato's

I spent this afternoon staffing Amato's Art Gallery; during the quiet time I began work on a special project for the month of December.

All of Amato's artists will create a sculpture reflecting their design style and primary medium, and the results will be featured at our Artists Reception on December 4.

I began with old paintings that were started on 300 lb. Arches watercolor paper and just never quite made the grade. The old pieces provided the weight and durability I was looking for, not to mention a use for paintings I will never finish.

I applied wet washes of w/c paint to the backs of the old work so the images can be viewed from both sides and then cut everything into strips of various widths and lengths. When all the strips were dry, I wove them together and varied the edges.

The image above is not finished but you can get the idea of what the final assemblage will look like. It still needs to be embellished and secured. Not sure at this point how many of these I'll need for my finished sculpture but the project has begun and the problem solving is underway.

It was fun to do something creative today. Hope your day included some time for creativity.