tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2139807080867512942024-03-12T17:38:36.141-05:00PineShoreStudio/Paintings by Helen HarrisHelen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.comBlogger200125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-60497621575267855002022-08-20T11:11:00.002-05:002022-08-20T11:11:33.595-05:00If there is dark then...<p>... there can be light. </p><p>I say this as a mantra now when I paint. I have recently made a point of studying the work of the American tonalist painters, from the 1880's in particular, George Inness.</p><p>After visiting and viewing his work on display at The Delaware Art Museum, I found that in returning to my studio, I had finally found that my painting soul felt at home. I had an immediate response to the subtle shifts of light and dark that was so very present yet not stark and abrupt. There were grays that united forms yet it was a slight change of tones within the color range that created the mystery.</p><p>Paraphrasing and condensing information from: What is Tonalism(12 Essential characteristics) by David Adams Cleveland:</p><p><i><br />Tonalism is a <span style="font-family: ll-unica77, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">use of subtle color tones, </span><span style="font-family: ll-unica77, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">atmosphere, and nature painted in an emotional way. Using a 19th century approach of lost and found edges to evoke a mysterious sense of place or mood. Landscape elements are presented in a way to affect the emotion, rather than to depict a realistic scene.</span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: ll-unica77, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">I created "Morning Walks", painted with these elements in mind. A misty morning that allowed a subtle light to filter through and the rise of the first heat of the day</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikuAcE_8AQd8TYyFf0KZbDogDlJgVgEIUlRNLRdcOewPC79EO_so_I0q-EE34WusC6e874sIS3b7ZvqvUNuDvwS-aoJZobqj2Acxu4LkY2VItKKDkYakN2gCr-m5BL7A4tzsK7j6MejpTaLrYmxXPqLygZ86WbRRisr30DMS72MuukztSgpqHAtxn8aQ/s2638/IMG_E3303.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="font-family: ll-unica77, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2636" data-original-width="2638" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikuAcE_8AQd8TYyFf0KZbDogDlJgVgEIUlRNLRdcOewPC79EO_so_I0q-EE34WusC6e874sIS3b7ZvqvUNuDvwS-aoJZobqj2Acxu4LkY2VItKKDkYakN2gCr-m5BL7A4tzsK7j6MejpTaLrYmxXPqLygZ86WbRRisr30DMS72MuukztSgpqHAtxn8aQ/w254-h254/IMG_E3303.jpg" width="254" /></a><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: x-small;"> Morning Walks </span><span style="font-family: arial; font-size: small;">12"x12", oil on canvas</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 dLqGMG" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: ll-unica77, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-top: 40px;"></div><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 dLqGMG" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: ll-unica77, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin-top: 40px;"></div><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: ll-unica77, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 Flex-cw39ct-0 cLbofV" display="flex" style="align-items: flex-end; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex;"><br /></div><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 cvHNin" style="box-sizing: inherit; margin-top: 10px;"></div><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 Flex-cw39ct-0 deSTdW" display="flex" style="align-items: flex-start; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex;"><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 nscQv" overflow="hidden" style="box-sizing: inherit; flex: 1 1 0%; overflow: hidden;"><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a class="RouterLink__RouterAwareLink-sc-1nwbtp5-0 eLjsDS" data-testid="metadata-artwork-link" display="block" href="https://www.artsy.net/artwork/george-inness-shawangunk-hills" style="-webkit-text-decoration-line: none; box-sizing: inherit; color: inherit; cursor: pointer; display: block; margin-top: 0px; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.25s;" text-decoration="none"><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 Flex-cw39ct-0 gaIPKD" display="flex" style="-webkit-box-pack: justify; box-sizing: inherit; display: flex; flex-direction: row; justify-content: space-between;"><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 Text-sc-18gcpao-0 bXYoMj" font-family="sans" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"></div></div><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 jGXstL" style="box-sizing: inherit; position: relative;"><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 Text-sc-18gcpao-0 caIGcn bZdcZD" color="black60" font-family="sans" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #707070; font-size: 16px; line-height: 20px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><i style="box-sizing: inherit;"></i></div><div class="Box-sc-15se88d-0 Text-sc-18gcpao-0 caIGcn eyeyta" color="black60" font-family="sans" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #707070; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"></div></div></div></a></div></div></div></div>Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-54178257027736486062022-06-12T17:10:00.000-05:002022-06-12T17:10:02.708-05:00#WIP<p>Each day I walk into my studio and some days my brush is a magic wand but sometimes it's a piece of lumber. <b> </b>The important part of that sentence, the take away thought, is<b> "each day".</b></p><p><b></b>All the best brushes, top notch paints, stacks of sketchbooks + good intentions = nothing until I walk through that door and do something to move myself forward.</p><p><b>Surprisingly, sometimes I find going backwards <i>is</i> a way forward too. </b></p><p>A case in point. I rework older paintings. You know, the ones that sit faced to the wall or on a shelf, even hanging in my own living room! Passing by it each day, all of the would have, could have, should haves nudge it back onto my easel. A #WIP, a work in progress, is filled with possibilities to learn, experiment and grow in my skills. I don't need to reinvent the wheel with each painting. A new idea is wonderful but if it's not working out that day I don't walk away. I look over my shoulder at that stack. Remember the past informs the present. My skills grow with each stroke and the artist I was a year, month, week or a day ago is not me today. </p><p>Here are two paintings the first was painted in February and posted. I feel that it had potential yet.... so the second one is the same painting reworked today. I look at the first version and see a good solid idea painted with a knife and the second version a fuller expression of color and detailed with brush.</p><p> Each has it's merits.Which would you choose?</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLPCZQMWUJ7liaQJ0VbaElPNaBmTxvgQ0mFM_JfEpN2RWJ7OM3Vendz54vjhH2ythmbeDbMI44OPUH-bRhfo_w7iAqI7QS3YnO8S0yLxNne15tZrPAyGXE21qFBxtWPqIdzaLrnwQ8WDg9JEjWIY6EMplzM13O5Nxwbnnf4Pzi4UDUSQeHTnzD38vfrA/s2700/IMG_3155.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2700" data-original-width="2658" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLPCZQMWUJ7liaQJ0VbaElPNaBmTxvgQ0mFM_JfEpN2RWJ7OM3Vendz54vjhH2ythmbeDbMI44OPUH-bRhfo_w7iAqI7QS3YnO8S0yLxNne15tZrPAyGXE21qFBxtWPqIdzaLrnwQ8WDg9JEjWIY6EMplzM13O5Nxwbnnf4Pzi4UDUSQeHTnzD38vfrA/w197-h200/IMG_3155.jpg" title="High winds" width="197" /></a></div> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDvgMWsM-n-BzBNIv7Oq03aMHRHL1l7L0QIfmL5meKrQbyE7BHZUnjnT1VDiyXUYXK1rZSRZ7sNHdCED0swXRStke83Gaxk4oFxdmUCnMo8gmZMzQAaM6L1IMk4Q893cZzcEECgx9LOm-1bT98Ka7nh62ubdH5Vl0OmcUeL1Pj3H3Foe8S3Ba-g2lpQ/s2710/IMG_3388.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2683" data-original-width="2710" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvDvgMWsM-n-BzBNIv7Oq03aMHRHL1l7L0QIfmL5meKrQbyE7BHZUnjnT1VDiyXUYXK1rZSRZ7sNHdCED0swXRStke83Gaxk4oFxdmUCnMo8gmZMzQAaM6L1IMk4Q893cZzcEECgx9LOm-1bT98Ka7nh62ubdH5Vl0OmcUeL1Pj3H3Foe8S3Ba-g2lpQ/w200-h198/IMG_3388.jpg" width="200" /></a><p></p>Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-27040158303428858112022-06-08T08:57:00.000-05:002022-06-08T08:57:04.670-05:00Talking to myself...again!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: justify;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijbkmJE_1GZw2i4kzQVgePDVr7uBUMeR53GegBdoRtVnlzUqjgWh_33qWxtUZPSlVuGAorWA0n0YeSQhOoHPfs2Vr--tNW75NXwdUNzqCW4r4GkbR0rrcGMYJcGsFAoYkPmtu_bWMyRPArjJ8jCcu1BmUoP__ZepgsVklE6nXEJcrolQNhbNqDamaN9Q/s3648/IMG_E3375.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1764" data-original-width="3648" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijbkmJE_1GZw2i4kzQVgePDVr7uBUMeR53GegBdoRtVnlzUqjgWh_33qWxtUZPSlVuGAorWA0n0YeSQhOoHPfs2Vr--tNW75NXwdUNzqCW4r4GkbR0rrcGMYJcGsFAoYkPmtu_bWMyRPArjJ8jCcu1BmUoP__ZepgsVklE6nXEJcrolQNhbNqDamaN9Q/s320/IMG_E3375.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Solitude <br />12"Hx24"W, oil on canvas</td></tr></tbody></table><br /> </span></div><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p></p></blockquote><p> Blogs don't always seem to be the way to communicate these days, yet here I am and hopefully you are curious enough to have landed here.</p><p> I do manage a reel or two on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/pineshorestudio/" target="_blank">Instagram,</a> a story here and there, but no, I don't seem to have the wherewithal to set up a vlog. I do, however, appreciate and learn from the ones I follow mainly on youtube!</p><p>I've just been rereading some of my past blogs. I started writing in 2007, oh geez, that was 15 years ago!</p><p>It seems part of my painting education has been self talk while painting in my studio. Do you do that too? Often it is accompanied by dance moves that are accented by cracking knees and misinterpreted lyrics. Joyful moments because I'm doing what I love.</p><p>It seems every now and then I do more self talk than painting. When I reach that point it is a clear sign that it's time to write down these swirling nuggets of late night wisdom so that I won't forget them. Sometimes I'm motivated to share these thoughts with you, thus ...a blog.</p><p>Let today's pause to blog serve as a reintroduction to my past readers and an invitation to any new eyes. (I've recently added a subscribe button to my website and I'm getting many interested viewers.) </p><p>I am surprised when I reread past blogs that I actually have had quite a journey in my painting discoveries. I do hope you'll scroll through my archives ( just tap those 3 little lines up in the header)and get a snap shot view of my studio life.and then check back to see what's new.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://helenharrispaintings.com" target="_blank">helenharrispaintings.com</a><br /></p><p><br /></p>Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0Mt Ephraim, NJ 08059, USA39.8784465 -75.092673812.192097422819288 -110.2489238 67.564795577180718 -39.9364238tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-52597047656691342792021-01-08T10:50:00.004-05:002021-01-08T11:02:04.714-05:00First an Amateur...<p> "Every artist was first an amateur" ...Ralph Waldo Emerson.</p><p><br /></p><p>I have had this quote taped to my computer for years. It's smudged and torn from my repeated touching as if it were a talisman. If ever there were a time to truly understand its meaning... it is now. It is a time that we all need encouragement and something to believe in that depends only on ourselves. Our self reliance and resilience have been called upon in so many ways that to ignore that call to creativity would be to start at a disadvantage. </p><p>First of all to start this New Year of 2021, I am thankful having just been notified of this award :</p><p><b style="color: #df6a23; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 26px;">Congratulations!</b><br style="caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;" /><br style="caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;" /><span face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-size: 15px;">You are a </span><b style="caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">Judge's Pick</b><span face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-size: 15px;"> winner of the December 2020 DPW Monthly Contest! </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9EYAAlXhuP8/X_h91aOirTI/AAAAAAAABPE/wGsX-6FUL0knYWKPf7xz0Lgtwb5QAzD5wCNcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_1977.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1431" data-original-width="2048" height="140" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9EYAAlXhuP8/X_h91aOirTI/AAAAAAAABPE/wGsX-6FUL0knYWKPf7xz0Lgtwb5QAzD5wCNcBGAsYHQ/w200-h140/IMG_1977.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><p><span face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></p>"Sea Escape Series No.5"<p></p><p><span face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-size: 15px;">5"H x 7"W</span></p><p><span face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-size: 15px;">oil on panel </span></p><p><span face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-size: 15px;">SOLD</span></p><p><br /></p><p><span face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); color: #666666; font-size: 15px;">Now back to the studio!</span></p>Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-36777169304831333682020-08-09T14:17:00.000-05:002020-08-09T14:17:50.737-05:00Good BonesI have to laugh as I write this blog. I skipped last Sunday's check in because of a technical glitch. Today, this is my second version of this blog because my computer ate my first draft... and ooo I thought I had a good one too! The universe is clearly trying to tell me something... bringing me to this question posed by a follower.<div><br /></div><div>Q: What do you do with older/failed paintings? Do you throw them out ?<br /><div><div><br /></div><div>A: When a painting has stayed in my hands too long, I know it is only a matter of time before it will be returned to my easel. I never think of a painting as a failure, only as a work that needs time and more skill to resolve. I am not opposed to reworking a painting. As my skills have grown, my vision for my work has changed. Influenced by other artists that I study and simply by showing up each day in my studio to paint.</div><div> <br /></div><div>That being said, it is not easy for an artist to rework a finished painting. There is a period of denial, of angst, frustration of time invested and a disappointment of a creative effort not fully realized. I usually need a time of self talk. Now understand that self talk is quite different from talking to oneself. Self talk is a <i>teaching</i> moment while talking to oneself is often <i>negative muttering </i> and will lead you down an unproductive crazy path. Both have their place...but this is <i>my</i> next step.</div><div>I hang my work throughout my home,walking past it everyday has been a far more productive way of "seeing" it than having it leaning against the wall in my studio. I live with it, just as you would in your own home. My critical eye will rest on a color that works or not, composition that falls apart or is pleasing. Reflected in a window or mirror something may seem off, or suddenly an unintended shape becomes a focal point. Family members may comment (my children never held back!) at their own peril but should be given a nod. Then what? </div></div></div><div> As a watercolorist, I tore up my "not up to snuff" work and all the little pieces lived on in a glorious treasure box of colors and shapes that puzzled together successfully in later paintings. As an acrylic oil painter a knife ripping into a painted canvas or sawing finished panels can raise some crazy eyebrows but still may be necessary to move on because you find the piece unacceptable. </div><div>Timidity is the bane of correction in my experience. A good, loud warrior cry followed by a well considered palette knife thick with color often does the trick... my studio is not for the faint hearted!</div><div>Then comes the time spent working on rebuilding . If it had<b> "good bones"</b> the adjustments will strengthen it. Just like buying that ugly, foreclosed home, you need to have a vision of the potential beauty that lies beneath all the wrongness and understanding that some TLC coupled with your growing skills can rehabilitate rather than destroy a painting.</div><div>I'll let you think about this...my eye just caught sight of a spot that needs...RED!</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://www.helenharrispaintings.com">helenharrispaintings.com</a><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_ptVJxm7jkA/XzBI1vl3gBI/AAAAAAAABNI/nF-RxI_uYr41jCczPrO2RUJq-kKZA91vQCNcBGAsYHQ/s2048/IMG_1360.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1478" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_ptVJxm7jkA/XzBI1vl3gBI/AAAAAAAABNI/nF-RxI_uYr41jCczPrO2RUJq-kKZA91vQCNcBGAsYHQ/w144-h200/IMG_1360.jpg" width="144" /> <img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1431" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c5omhauhK5A/XzBJpfnB3cI/AAAAAAAABNg/r_yHFkPuk4o9CjpbGrKSTG9df_TkCDKKwCPcBGAYYCw/w140-h200/IMG_1490%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="140" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><br /><div><br /></div>Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0New Jersey, USA40.0583238 -74.405661211.748089963821151 -109.5619112 68.368557636178849 -39.2494112tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-3691695427836092872020-07-26T11:42:00.000-05:002020-07-26T13:59:26.854-05:00The Gifts...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3lmifX28nZ4/Xx2lb3EOerI/AAAAAAAABMU/CrDZpVZGGp0FtJtwo4XkwPEx_LuIKkypgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_1883.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="797" data-original-width="1600" height="197" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3lmifX28nZ4/Xx2lb3EOerI/AAAAAAAABMU/CrDZpVZGGp0FtJtwo4XkwPEx_LuIKkypgCNcBGAsYHQ/s400/IMG_1883.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#work in progress 12"H x 24,oils on canvas by H.Harris</td></tr>
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I'm late this morning in writing this blog. My most recent painting was just too tantalizing to leave on the easel untouched in the early morning hours. A fragment of color here & there, the wispiness in a cloud ... it was just too tempting and the blog could wait.<br />
<i>If you've been following my journey in my past blogs, this brings me to the fourth stage of my painting progression into other mediums... oils. </i><br />
I had resisted oils for many years. I always found a reason not to use them . They were toxic, messy and took too long to dry. I'm a prolific painter and had always had a full schedule of art shows to prepare in short time frames. Oils were just too needy....but then as before, it happened ...what if?<br />
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I experienced 3 separate incidents that were gifts that changed everything about my work.<br />
<b><i>First</i>,</b> an impromptu visit to a tiny gallery/studio in Lambertville, NJ where I caught a glimpse of color like no other that fired my imagination and sent me in pursuit of its illusive light.<br />
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<b><i>Second</i>,</b> a casual conversation with artist, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sv5RmpU9goY">Michelle Soslau</a>. The subject of our discussion was painting in acrylic versus oils. Her thoughts on acrylic absorbing light and oils reflecting it was one of those "but of course, ah-ha moments!" that clarified my need to head in a different direction.<br />
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<b><i>Third</i>,</b> was simply serendipitous, when my friend, Jude Decker, gave me a gift of water mixable oils as I was about to move to a new home. I was hooked ...my learning curve of two years was now not a time of frustration but a welcome time to playfully explore my skills . As each painting comes off my easel I am feeling more and more excited about the changes that I see happening. Water mixable oils eliminated my excuses of toxicity, and was an easy clean up. I did, however, need to learn patience in handling the drying times of dealing with oils. With this change of medium I was able to bring together my drawing studies, my need to show textures was achieved in my layered brush strokes and palette knife work. My search for light in paint is getting there. I had been content for some time with watermedia work whether it was watercolors, mixed media or acrylic but you never know what influences will affect your work ...just be open to them and then go for it!<br />
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<b><i>I deeply appreciate my art collectors that have followed me and supported all of these risky moves as I have grown to become the artist that I am.</i></b><br />
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<a href="http://helenharrispaintings.com/">helenharrispaintings.com</a><br />
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<br />Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-56218856389989624742020-07-19T10:50:00.000-05:002020-07-19T11:25:56.812-05:00The journey continues...Acrylic<br />
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Acrylic ...that was my next adventure. After years of establishing a following of watercolor and mixed media I decided to take off after an idea that I had been kicking around. That "what if " question that lurks behind the " I'm bored" thought, took hold and for the next two years (remember my learning curve) I explored this medium.<br />
At first I struggled with the properties inherent to the paint. Unlike watercolor that used water as a vehicle to spread color, acrylic just stayed where I put it. No exciting explosions of colors mixing...<br />
<i> I had to create that</i>.<br />
No accidental forms that pushed my imagination...<i>I had to create that. </i><br />
<i>WAIT...just why am I torturing myself? Is it worth starting all over again?</i><b> ...but what if?</b><br />
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So it began. Once I set aside my expectations of painting as I had before, I gave my self permission to play. I got paint on my hands, mixing globs of paint just to see how it reacted, smearing it on canvas,papers and panels. I was miserable over the results. My weaknesses in fundamentals showed up. I was discovering that I needed to pay closer attention to my drawing skills, value studies and composition. As I did this I combined the skills that I had already gained particularly in mixed media.<br />
This was where my creativity began to flourish as I played . The shapes and forms began to layer and raise off the surface. My work took on a 3D aspect demanding a new understanding of the sculptural aspects of the materials. Acrylic mediums added to the plastic like nature of acrylic paint allowed me to lift rice papers off the surface and paint in, under and around the forms. I created ridges and nooks and crannies. <br />
My landscapes had grown out of the canvas and yet retained an abstract quality. I was creating landscapes,seascapes, florals and abstracts, I was happy, my collectors were with me, I<br />
was selling...lol<br />
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<i><b>BUT WHAT IF? ... next week ... oils!</b></i><br />
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Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-90579824345197991762020-07-12T11:50:00.000-05:002020-07-12T11:50:50.222-05:00Mixing it up...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The key to my progress and success as a working artist lies in my constant experimentation. A fear of marketing my work had to be put aside in order to grow. I never lose sight of my collectors' desires yet I do not let others dictate my work. I am motivated by a sense of discovery, a questioning of what is known and study of those who have come before me and found answers.<br />
It is important to note that with each deliberate change of medium I was able to build on past skills, not abandoning what came before. Watercolor progressed into Mixed Media, as I stated in my last blog, because of my need to find a way to better express the form of a rock. A humbling moment when my skills were not able to satisfy what in my mind's eye was needed to elevate my work to the next step . I struggled.<br />
Two years later I found my way. I gave myself permission to "fail" to stumble, and to simply play. I reached a point that I was creatively satisfied in the joy of puzzling together various papers. I created textures that became new surfaces in which my watercolors could spontaneously blossom. Unexpected landscapes, seascapes and vegetations washed across these textures as I played with layering torn papers, rice papers, papyrus and barks. I adhered each to the surface with archival gels. My experimentation with my work became joyous and free of angst because there was no such thing as a failed painting. Tiny pieces of color, a misplaced mark, too saturated tone all became another part of a painting, ripped and stored away until just the right moment when I reached for it like a prized jewel to complete my idea.<br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3pl100vzj18/Xws8EEOK6dI/AAAAAAAABK8/v5xsVh06hNQ_4peh-Z0va7RUIPol6TJYwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/100_2700.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1094" data-original-width="1600" height="218" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3pl100vzj18/Xws8EEOK6dI/AAAAAAAABK8/v5xsVh06hNQ_4peh-Z0va7RUIPol6TJYwCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/100_2700.jpg" width="320" /></a><b>Mixed Media</b> was for me a giant step of exploring a full range of creativity from realism to abstracts and met success with my collectors. I remained in mixed media for many years.....and yet I knew that there was something tantalizingly in the back of my mind, guiding my hand ever so slowly in a new direction. What was it? I could see and feel my work becoming "the same" and less satisfying... uh oh...change was on its way!<br />
Until next week ...Acrylic!<br />
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<a href="http://helenharrispaintings.com/">helenharrispaintings.com</a>Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-14845671032385787332020-07-05T12:16:00.000-05:002020-07-05T12:16:36.266-05:00Upon this rock...<div style="text-align: left;">
In last week's post I said that I would speak about my thoughts on how and why I've progressed through 4 different mediums during my art career. Each stage was a deliberate not arbitrary change. My path changed because there came a pivotal moment when I chose to follow a different direction. </div>
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Today we will begin with my work in <i>Watercolor.</i></div>
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I was surprised, while looking back through my photos of my earlier work that I found very few examples of purely watercolor paintings. Those that I did find were quite revealing! I think that my first attempts definitely pointed out the simple fact that this was not to be my forever medium. Yes, they all sold, and yes, they were of professional quality but I could see that I was using it as a way to explore my skills.<br />
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<b><i>Let's be clear... watercolor is not for the faint hearted!</i> </b></div>
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It will quickly inform you of your strengths and weaknesses in your studies. It will frustrate you into acknowledging that your need to understand value is paramount. Temerity of color will be a badge of courage. It will command that your composition be spot on from the moment you touch your brush to paper. "One stroke and done" is an awesome power that you yield with your brush! You'll hold your breath as you see color blossom into serendipitous forms or puddle into muddied and puckered papers. Watercolorist in their purest pursuit are magicians and at their worst ...well let's just say they are hard to live with!</div>
I did gain a certain degree of skill over a number of years but I knew that I would never be a purist when I stumbled over the most humbling of forms ...a rock.<br />
I remember the moment that I stepped off that precipice of painting. I wanted to feel that rock in my painting. I wanted to see it grow up out of the ground with such solidity that I could stand on it. I wanted to shift it's location and add to it's shape.No matter how I painted it, the values I worked, the shape I drew it just did not translate from my mind's eye to the paper. In frustration I tore up painting after painting. Throwing down bits of color on to surfaces of previously painted papers. Slowly, ever so slowly, I puzzled out these beautiful torn papers of color,<i> my colors</i>... a rock emerged. Sculpted of torn paper, colors from my palette in lands and seascapes from my imagination held by rice papers, papyrus and adhered with archival gels. My work shifted, painting in watercolors and combined with these papers, I felt my creativity open again to the joy of creating.<br />
One moment I was on solid ground, with an identity as a watercolorist then everything shifted.What was I to do? I had worked at creating a following, collectors and my work was recognized! Do I start over? Could I build on what I had and find a new path? Would my collectors abandon me or grow with me?<br />
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Two years later... I presented my new work, my new identity as a mixed media/collage artist and I had my answer...<i>but that's a story for next week.!</i><br />
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helenharripaintings.comHelen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-13454607845943432982020-06-28T10:03:00.000-05:002020-06-28T10:03:33.688-05:00It all began...<div style="caret-color: rgb(117, 117, 117); color: #757575; font-size: 15px; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"> I began my art career as a graphic designer. My father wanted me to have the possibility of earning a paycheck if I chose to be an artist! Lol.. loved that man. He didn't know nor did I that computers, a marriage and three children would redirect that dream to take a different path and to this day I am forever grateful it all happened. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Many artists will begin in a medium and happily stay with it perfecting all of its nuances and never questioning their choice. Others will flail about with a brush always searching for that magical tool that will bring success. </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FQQfooKSXwM/XvisxS0vLnI/AAAAAAAABKA/_ZQTzxGgyO0VKFtHrbw82Tp5pK3QpAA-wCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/100_0109.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For 25 years ink and brush were used in many illustrative, commercial ways yet I knew it was not the right fit for me but then what was? I joined an art guild, resurrecting my figure drawing skills and habits of study from my college days, met like minded artists and continued to explore.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FVkOHI5N-UA/XvisvmTLziI/AAAAAAAABJ8/Rdww4cIJTAMv-naDVdJjFhtElLbWzABxwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Dragon%2527s%2BFalls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="944" data-original-width="879" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FVkOHI5N-UA/XvisvmTLziI/AAAAAAAABJ8/Rdww4cIJTAMv-naDVdJjFhtElLbWzABxwCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Dragon%2527s%2BFalls.jpg" width="297" /></span></a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> Watercolor </b>was my first brushstroke. It seemed a natural step after commercial work. It was a safe medium to have in the house around growing & inquisitive children. Fast to put out on a table and quick to gather before being needed elsewhere. Tentative strokes of pale colors progressed to vibrant, abandoned splashes of exciting colors. This did not happen overnight. I was beginning to understand that the learning curves of my art was not to be a "one and done" effort. I had all of the fundamentals of art that I had studied at college yet I needed more... the library became my teacher and classroom once again...later the internet.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My work over the next 20+ years has been guided by a progression of instinctual yet methodical steps into the next phase of learning. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This question :</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i style="caret-color: rgb(117, 117, 117); color: #757575; font-size: 15px;"> Why & how have I risked changing mediums over the years?</i> was asked by a reader. I thought that it was going to be simple to answer. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I find I'm struggling to look back. The road from there to here has not been straight but has had many twist and turns shrugging off complacency and taking risks along the way.The question is not easy to answer in one post but over the next few posts I'll try. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So the map from here to there will be my work in watercolor, mixed media, acrylic and oil...</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hope you'll read along and your questions will continue to come in and we can have this conversation. Remember the only wrong question is the one<i> not </i>asked....</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><i><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Next Week...Watercolor.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">helenharrispaintings.com</span></span></div>
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Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-83427546834924884762020-06-21T11:33:00.000-05:002020-06-21T15:18:57.903-05:00Soaring...redux<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Today is Father's Day... "Soaring" is a mixed media collage that I painted in 2009, 1 year after my father had passed. At that time I wrote:<br />
" <span style="background-color: white; color: #757575; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , "trebuchet" , sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">My father passed away one year ago today on April 1st. It is said that a parent can give two important things in life to a child ...roots and the wings to fly. For my father............</span><strong style="caret-color: rgb(117, 117, 117); color: #757575; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", Trebuchet, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"><em>SOARING"</em></strong><br />
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The original is in the collection of an art collector that I know appreciated the art as well as the motivating sentiment and to this day I remember all of the nuances of its structure.<br />
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I have asked my readers to send me their questions about my work and I thought that this example would answer one of those questions about composition.<br />
<b>Q:</b> How do you avoid the natural tendency to divide a painting in half either vertically or horizontally?<br />
<b>A:</b> The simple answer is... <i>I don't, I work with it.</i><br />
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I came across a sub heading in a book "Design & Composition Secrets of Professional Artists" a North Light Book, 2001, that truly resonated and has guided my work.<i> </i><br />
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<i>Artist Peter Folkes stated "I take risks to find clever and exciting solutions." </i></div>
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When I begin a work that is not from life but more conceptual, as "Soaring" was, I just let my painting take its own shape without premature judgement. It is in the initial setting down of the creative idea that I strive to convey an emotion. I will spot the compositional challenges as I work.<br />
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<b>Problem: </b>Here there is a very strong, deliberate vertical line that is emphasized by shape as well as color. I doubled down on this "error" when I placed the birds at the horizontal center line!<br />
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<b>Solution :</b> I followed Folkes design plan : find balance, use geometry, design with triangles, design with circles, combine opposites ...take risks!<br />
If you were to place a tracing paper over this image ( I'm old school,lol... go ahead & use your computer programs) you could quickly discover the cross composition, the triangles, circles etc. Note the change of direction in the tilt of the birds wings, the textured rice papers that are applied that softened that cliffside edge, the exactness of size and location of the sun to create tension with the center line.<br />
This is the way I think when I paint. This is what makes the act of painting a daily adventure.<br />
I enjoy sharing my thoughts and process. It is why I welcome your questions. So ask...I'll share.<br />
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<i>Next week's question: Why & how have I risked changing mediums over the years?</i></div>
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<a href="http://helenharrispaintings.com/">helenharrispaintings.com</a><br />Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-27979451300288081922020-06-14T07:53:00.000-05:002020-06-14T07:53:45.572-05:00#WIP<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This week, I began again.<br />
Walked away, cleaned the palette, washed out the brushes and doodled in my sketchbook...playtime.<br />
I know the answer seems simplistic, but really it works. Take away the "should " and "ought to" and just let "what is" take over.<br />
Good news, I sold two paintings, made progress on a commissioned work that had stalled and began another painting. You see, it doesn't take much to put some zing back into my daily painting.The important take away here is that over the years of working I've come to understand how I work. It is probably very different for another artist, but it suits me. I have a library full of books, I watch plenty of Youtube art videos but nothing has taught me more than getting to know, understand and accept who I am as a painter. My likes and dislikes, my comfort zones and my risk taking show up every time I pick up a brush. I may have some traditional approaches to a painting but I know that there is a moment where my mind has that quirky twist that is tempted by the "what if" ...lol... awww... just do it!<br />
It's when I enter my studio with excitement of what is to be. Think about it. That is what I want to share with you this morning.<b> #wip (work in progress) = adventure.</b> This is action taken and it is the difference that sets the wannabe artist apart from the working artist. So to those readers that have messaged me with questions about being a working artist, this is my answer... paint, paint daily. Please note that I did not say post daily! Good, bad, or ugly, it all moves you forward. When you need to pause, understand that it is a resting spot and that you are not taking up residence there!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#wip</td></tr>
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So have at it and I look forward to answering more of your questions about being a "working artist". Leave a comment below or message me through my <a href="http://helenharrispaintings.com/">web site</a>.Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-56322010228558174922020-06-07T08:12:00.000-05:002020-06-07T08:12:14.802-05:00Cranky...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's been one of<i> those</i> weeks. You know the kind. I wandered in and out of my studio or sat down with a sketchbook and ....nothing. Not that I didn't do anything this week, in fact I did everything... but paint! Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am in constant motion. My partner and I have been rebuilding a house, really it's the second home that we have rebuilt. It seems I have this need to knock down walls and redesign any room that I walk into. Fortunately, together, we have acquired the know how and tools to accomplish our vision.<br />
Weeks like this come and go and I declare at least a half dozen times that "I'll never paint again...!"<br />
I'm out of step out, out of rhythm. My paint brush might as well be a 2 x 4. Colors muddy together, images get obscured and I get cranky.<br />
I've learned to walk away and choose to do something else. Believe it or not I have found that to be the healthiest way to cope. Just like a toddler about to grow, the awkward stumbling moments usually lead to change. The irritation is necessary for me to move on. Rather than bemoan what is, I have learned to accept this pause, redirect it temporarily and with great expectation wait for what is to come...for it always does. I truly bristle at the term "artist block". It's not helpful. I see it more as a pause before continuing. Being creative is a way of life not a thing I do. Whether I'm building, cooking, gardening, playing my guitar or painting, the artistry is there entwined in my DNA.<br />
I'm looking forward to what my imagination has waiting for me...<br />
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Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-56928256389292870262020-05-31T08:08:00.000-05:002020-05-31T09:36:44.164-05:00Sea Escapes...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XXjxwSoKmFs/XtFW3m2CxGI/AAAAAAAABIM/ev1nx8VyQ3sBpiigwMspID5xFrb-043DQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/100_1756a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="425" data-original-width="1381" height="122" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XXjxwSoKmFs/XtFW3m2CxGI/AAAAAAAABIM/ev1nx8VyQ3sBpiigwMspID5xFrb-043DQCNcBGAsYHQ/s400/100_1756a.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Living by the shore changes one's heartbeat. The sound of the surf, the warmth of the sands, the smell of the breeze, have contributed to many paintings over the years. I'm a lake kid from upstate New York. Oceans came later in life. Much to my surprise, I currently have five seascapes in process in my studio. Obviously, I need to get away!<br />
As a painter this setting is a wealth of studies of rock, sand, grasses, birds, water and sky. Watercolor, mixed media, acrylic and oils. I've worked in all media for seascapes creating stormy seas crashing into rock and calm shoreline ripples against hot sands. Other than the work that is on my easel, they are all gone, connecting with the heartbeats of many of my collectors now. I do miss some of these paintings. Each was a moment in time in my life that was important enough to record. In an instant I recall that brush stroke, the choice of color to blend or torn paper to collage.<br />
After months of lock down in this pandemic, a walk along a shoreline, even if only on my easel is a necessity. I need to feel the breezes, hear the surf, to look for the joyful colors of umbrellas planted the sands and hear the children's laughter in the wind.<br />
I listen to my 4 year old granddaughter, Zoe, tell me of her adventures to come "...when the world is healthy again." A child's hope and belief that all will be well infuses my "sea escapes."<br />
My prayers are painted in the sands and seas...<br />
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<br />Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-50015358095178043412020-05-24T07:25:00.000-05:002020-05-24T07:25:19.597-05:00A Moment in Time...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NV15sFNGuPI/XsmGOmNDB0I/AAAAAAAABHc/qp55Cc9nHd0UCr3qjRildoFBA22XxyNDQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_E1490.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1144" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NV15sFNGuPI/XsmGOmNDB0I/AAAAAAAABHc/qp55Cc9nHd0UCr3qjRildoFBA22XxyNDQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_E1490.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>
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Some paintings are simply moments caught in time. Seemingly unimportant and the image may not be grand but note the time spent with someone special in that location and gives that painting a story to hold in my heart.<br />
"The Culvert" was such a painting. I packed up a small kit and met my daughter, Jessie, for a morning walk near a lake. This was a rare opportunity for it was for us, alone, no children to walk or entertain, no spouses to divert attention. We walked the perimeter of this well worn path talking and finally stopped where we found our comfort, both verbally and with each others presence. Mother and daughter our roles of past, now adjusting to grandmother and mother. We talked of the children and spouses. I talked of shadows and light, of lines and perspective, of pencils and paint. Jessie, though she brought a sketch pad, let her poetry rise up and paint her thoughts and words. This casual walk along the lake, a painting and poem... pre pandemic, before our knowing of her cancer, was a rare quiet time of sunlit trees, lazy streams, no past or future... just the present.<br />
I am thankful for that day with my Jessie.<br />
<br />Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-74093167676900326552020-05-17T07:13:00.000-05:002020-05-17T07:13:07.988-05:00Shadows and Light...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shadow Falls 24"H x 12"W ~ sold</td></tr>
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In painting I have chased the light but it was not until I painted shadow that I succeeded in its glow.</div>
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The natural tendency was to simply paint in tones that were lighter and lighter though it just never reached the point of glowing that I looked for or envisioned. Try as I might it just wasn't there. Did it need more white pigment? Was it a different brush or paint brand? Was it painting at a different time of day? I ran through all of the "what if" and "how to" without success. I sat in the sun, I sat in the shadow... I walked in and out of the heat and coolness. I pushed my paint around the canvas until that day the light grew out of the darkness. It was understanding that the light and shadow are most impactful when each is at full strength! The lightest light can only exist juxtaposed to the darkest dark. I had to be "all in, committed to the extremes. Application of anything less resulted in a mediocre representation of what I hoped to achieve.</div>
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Perhaps it is the extremes by which we are moved, that our eyes catch what otherwise would go unnoticed. </div>
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<i> "There is strong shadow where there is much light." ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe</i></div>
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Ps... I could go on philosophically and psychologically here while writing during a pandemic but I think you get the analogies...and I'm off to the studio to paint!</div>
Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-42115220353295085102020-05-09T23:59:00.001-05:002020-05-09T23:59:52.471-05:00From a Mother's Heart...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fAYPUc2SEEw/XrbWIMKs8yI/AAAAAAAABGs/rCmDdzLI8TckhCZZ3g4MUeUf0t6b1bg7ACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/100_2519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1040" data-original-width="1600" height="208" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fAYPUc2SEEw/XrbWIMKs8yI/AAAAAAAABGs/rCmDdzLI8TckhCZZ3g4MUeUf0t6b1bg7ACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/100_2519.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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It is a Mother's Day as no other. There is no denying the extremes of emotion that will fill today.</div>
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I have kept this quote on my desk for years... </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">"Mother is a verb.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It's something you do </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Not just</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">who you are."</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">-Dorothy Canfield Fisher</span></div>
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So to my children, Stacy, Jessica and Lindsay, now all mothers too... <br />
May the day fall lightly on your hearts today... with all my love.<br />
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mom</div>
Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-50948667506731104802020-05-03T07:45:00.000-05:002020-05-03T07:45:00.827-05:00A Tube of Paint...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wPWVKiQxB0k/Xq6vkc5LPHI/AAAAAAAABGU/U472VVCERtgQDd2P3EWlAQYgdiEHW6CGwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_1709.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1252" data-original-width="1600" height="156" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wPWVKiQxB0k/Xq6vkc5LPHI/AAAAAAAABGU/U472VVCERtgQDd2P3EWlAQYgdiEHW6CGwCNcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_1709.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
If your paint tubes look like this today,what does it say about your time in the studio? It really does tell a story and after some thought you'll find it says a lot about your journey as a working artist.<br />
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There is great joy, expectation and excitement when a new tube of paint is in my hands. A gift of unpainted ideas yet to be uncapped, full with no squeeze indentations, clean rims and a cap easily removed. That first daub of rich, luxurious paint on my palette invites me to play.<br />
I remember when I first encountered this introduction. I was never timid but this made me pause. Do I approach this mound of delight with a cautious brush or slash delightfully through with a knife? I tried both. Now years later, the memory still lingers and my smile is there but it has taken on various expressions. I've become my own cheerleader as well as critic while in the aloneness of my studio. The vision has become fine tuned as the learning curve was navigated from stumbling amateur to self assured professional.<br />
It was not one tube of paint but many, squeezed out over the years. In time of plenty a little paint was left in the tube before being discarded and in leaner times not a smidge remained. Theses tubes were my diary, my journal, my confident, my playmate that held the secrets of my creativity. It didn't matter if these tubes held watercolor, acrylic or oils. Landscapes, seascapes, florals, figures and abstracts arising from thoughts and sketches appeared on canvas and panel.<br />
A tube of paint... it is magical journey.<br />
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Now would be a good time to travel while staying at home! #stayhome #staysafe #savelives<br />
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<a href="http://helenharrispaintings.com/">My gallery</a></div>
Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-66735920866564339062020-04-26T09:24:00.001-05:002020-04-26T09:24:22.036-05:00Pause...<span class="hg" style="font-family: -apple-system; font-size: 13px;"><span class="hw" d:dhw="1" role="text" style="font-size: 23px;">pause<span class="gp tg_hw"></span></span><span class="pr" style="color: #666666; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 0.5em; vertical-align: 12%;"> |<span class="ph t_respell" d:pr="US" style="margin-left: 0.3em; margin-right: 0.3em;">pôz</span>| </span><span class="gp tg_hg"></span></span><span class="sg" style="display: block; margin-top: 0.4em;"><span class="se1" style="display: block; margin-bottom: 2.2em; margin-top: 0.2em;"><span class="posg" role="text" style="font-size: 13px;"><span class="pos" d:ps="1" style="font-size: 16px; margin-right: 0.3em;"><span class="gp tg_pos" style="margin-right: 0.3em;">noun</span></span><span class="gp tg_posg"></span></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><span class="df" role="text">...a temporary stop in action or speech. Wow! How appropriate is that for the time we live in right now?</span></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><span class="df" role="text">I seem to have taken this to heart in the studio this past week. I started and stopped a number of tasks. I'd head in one direction then find myself turned around in another. Confusion? No, I don't think so. I found my pause button and it was quickly followed by the question"why?"</span> My subject choice, palette, medium, the time spent or not spent in the studio, everything was on the table to be questioned and really examined. If anything, this pandemic and pause of our "normal" habits in our day, have caused me to really look at my day as an artist. </span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PYZhEC0TGDw/XqWWjnx65vI/AAAAAAAABGA/nnA1z6SQgJcQ5rMrKihN9pTDFkcJO-1nwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_0710.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PYZhEC0TGDw/XqWWjnx65vI/AAAAAAAABGA/nnA1z6SQgJcQ5rMrKihN9pTDFkcJO-1nwCNcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_0710.jpg" width="150" /></a>I have/had an exhibit at a library that opened just as the world shut down, not unlike many working artist. My work is still hanging, unseen and out of reach, <a href="http://www.helenharrispaintings.com/">my website</a>, Instagram and Facebook and eBay are my "galleries" for now. What this pandemic did not pause was my creativity! Perhaps it is this "time out" that has allowed me to simply experiment without pressure of producing. The amount of productivity is not the important factor but this time to pause, to explore a new approach, color or subject is an opportunity not to be wasted. So this week I invite you to pause. It is simply a TEMPORARY STOP in action and question, </span></span></span><br />
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<span class="sg" style="display: block; margin-top: 0.4em;"><span class="se1" style="display: block; margin-bottom: 2.2em; margin-top: 0.2em;"><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n9XSdSVUIi8/XqWWmSeNFUI/AAAAAAAABGE/8sre5pbz3xUu4KFP2xQbZGHy2LxpQYvLwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_0703.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-n9XSdSVUIi8/XqWWmSeNFUI/AAAAAAAABGE/8sre5pbz3xUu4KFP2xQbZGHy2LxpQYvLwCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_0703.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></span></span></div>
<span class="sg" style="display: block; margin-top: 0.4em;"><span class="se1" style="display: block; margin-bottom: 2.2em; margin-top: 0.2em;"><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;">then discover what could be..</span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span><span class="msDict t_core" d:abs="1" id="m_en_us1276178.001" style="display: block; margin-left: 2.2em; margin-right: 1em; margin-top: 1.4em;"><br /></span></span></span>Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-56059900402629956362020-04-18T10:08:00.000-05:002020-04-19T06:48:47.676-05:00Stay Home,Stay Safe, Save Lives!I think of this blog as my Sunday morning check in. It is an arbitrary deadline because I usually don't wait to write it on that day. My thoughts bubble up throughout the week as I stand at my easel and paint. I jot down ideas, a word, describe an image, a lyric of a song. I pick up my pen or guitar as readily these days as I pick up my brush. Time has slowed and ideas that had no space are expanding. Words that have been banked in thought are being spent more freely. The notes long forgotten in my fingertips are picking out the basics once again. I am a student again. Reading and exploring the variety of skill lessons on the internet in so many subjects that I wonder at how narrow my focus had become as I aimed to meet that elusive "goal" in my own work. Sometimes it is just a glimpse of color, a phrase or a sound that has caught my attention and I'm off like a little kid once again looking for adventure....virtually.<br />
In a time where we are all forced to turn inwardly, we are also finding ways to reconnect outwardly. A phone call, text or video chat with friends, and family help.The concerts, the baking videos, the diy videos, gardening, and painting lessons abound on TV or social media. The sun has cooperated at times, the rain more frequently but runners and strollers, distanced apart but ever present, remind us that our lives are going on... just differently.<br />
I paint the outdoors while responsibly being indoors. I check in and <b>Stay Home, Stay Safe, and Save Lives!</b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking Down River by H Harris<br />Sold </td></tr>
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<br />Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-84207595695934493602020-04-11T08:03:00.000-05:002020-04-12T06:48:14.321-05:00Be Gentle ..life is tender right now.It has been a difficult week...no, let me speak truthfully... it has been a heartrending, knee shaking,<br />
faith tested week. My studio has been my safe place to speak, virtually, in tear-filled words to friends and family, to hear the prayers of long ago and new found friends. This pandemic has touched us all, some directly and others indirectly. I have stared at palettes of dried color, flipped through art books blurred by tears. My well cared for brushes have stiffened in shared grief and my pencils broken by a grip of frustration and anger at a government unprepared and inept.<br />
I take deep breaths... be gentle my heart beats. Be kind and tender with yourself. Be ready to give the hugs and care for those that will need you in the weeks and months to come.<br />
I have no painting to offer this week but I wanted to share one in my collection. The artist is a life long friend, Penny, my anchor when the storms of life have tossed me off course. I gaze at her work and feel all the emotions that our flag,wind whipped and tattered symbolizes. It honors the selflessness and the caring so many who have been called upon to find in themselves in unexplainable courage in these horror filled days.<br />
We sing for you, we clap so you will hear what is in our hearts and this flag, our flag, will forever wave to honor<b><i> you... the doctors, nurses, first responders, grocery clerks, the postal workers, the pharmacist, delivery services, the parents and the children...our neighbors and strangers.</i></b><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"My Country Tis of Thee...Sweet Land of Liberty, To Thee I Sing..."<br />
by PHood 2019<br />
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">To view my paintings go to : helenharrispaintings.com</span></i><br />
.Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-25937365173919948792020-04-05T06:07:00.000-05:002020-04-05T06:07:09.981-05:00IDK...<b>IDK.</b>.I don't know...those words are repeated all day in every thought and conversation. It is the only answer that we all have right now. Too many opinions, theories and false information fill the air...<br />
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I stand before an empty canvas, brush in hand but lowered by my side. I want my arms around my children and grandbabies for they are what fill my world with color. We each have our stories right now. I do....So we pray and cry,we laugh and bring hope. We try to find support and act together as a team through ZOOM, FaceTime and texting and calls. Finding a way to reach out...to be together.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">FireStorm </td></tr>
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I painted this abstract <i>"FireStorm"</i> many years ago. Again at a very difficult time in my life. This piece was one of the most spontaneous works that I have ever created. An emotional work, one of those crossroads that reaffirmed to me that my painting was my true path. I rarely paint in abstract, it is not peaceful to me. The raw emotion is hard to face. My studio is filling up with scraps of abstract right now...<br />
As a child I found joy and peace in the woods and fields,the creeks and ponds that were my playground. Is it a wonder that now as an adult, I would seek this out again in my landscapes and seascapes? But... my marks betray me these days. Playing hide 'n' seek with reality and dreams of my heart my quiet pastorals and gentle seas are transforming with slashes of knife wielded colors texturing the surface of my panels. IDK...the heart is violent, the mind questioning ...my studio is now my woods,my creeks, my seas, my refuge... <b>IDK</b>...idk...<span style="font-size: xx-small;">idk</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#wip</td></tr>
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Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-47207489353275336572020-03-29T06:41:00.000-05:002020-03-29T06:41:34.865-05:00Balance ... Breathe<b><i>Balance</i></b> is a word that is guiding my days. In the studio, kitchen, yard, sharing on social media or watching the news. As a noun,verb or phrase this simple word holds so much meaning today and it<br />
describes the foundational building block of getting from one day to the next.<br />
<b><i>Breathe...the path I choose to get me there.</i></b><br />
As artists, we feel that we have an outlet, a place to go creatively to explore life as it was, now is and imagine what will be. We are capable of creating peace as well as chaos, finding beauty and growth in the ugliness of destruction. Both hold a fascination and in the years to come will be documented in word, splashed in paint and sung with passion. We are essential to humanity, to bear witness.There is no right or wrong of how we go forward and the timing is yours.<br />
Today I picked up the brush that I put down two weeks ago and I listened to music freely shared. I'm reading a book for understanding and FaceTime my grandchildren to ease my heart...BREATHE<br />
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<b><i> <span style="font-size: large;"> I am an artist... I paint.</span></i></b><i><b><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></b></i></div>
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<br />Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-83981717917221913752020-03-22T07:07:00.000-05:002020-03-22T07:07:04.640-05:00When What Was ...Isn'tYou've cleaned your studio, inventoried your supplies and turned those failed paintings back around. With all the best intentions you set up a schedule ...your heart just isn't in it. The time you used to have for yourself to paint is filled with other family members, invading your space and interrupting any semblance of concentration and of course there is just plain fear and anxiety right now.You may be the person that has to hold it all together for others that surround you.<br />
KNOW THIS ! You have a super power..<i>.your creativity. </i>We are rarely creative in just one thing. All over this world right now the human spirit is singing to each other, playing music, reading aloud, sharing in a life that we rushed through each day and has now slowed to a halt. We are finding long forgotten interests in hobbies, crafts, picking up that old guitar or plunking on the dusty keyboards of our past. We are creatively converting spaces in our homes to accommodate the semblance of an office and homeschooling.<br />
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gB0AzcIvX6E/XnaccA29dpI/AAAAAAAABEw/g9SnK8erHX8snCMClYIIM5t8483HbcymwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/IMG_1661.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1366" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gB0AzcIvX6E/XnaccA29dpI/AAAAAAAABEw/g9SnK8erHX8snCMClYIIM5t8483HbcymwCNcBGAsYHQ/s200/IMG_1661.jpg" width="170" /></a> I dusted off my sewing machine. I am making masks. I watch on Instagram and use FaceTime to see my children entertain my grandchildren, teaching them new ways to stay active and entertained and hopeful. Humorous memes cajoles the fearful thoughts from our minds and brings laughter in place of tears.<br />
I'll find my way back to my canvas. Perhaps it will be in the early morning hours alone when I am not needed rather than midday. It waits for me, for my heart to beat evenly, for my joy in color to be made visible.<br />
I'll check in next week and the week after that. Let me know how you are doing.<br />
Be well, take care ....HelenHelen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-213980708086751294.post-28124170758695299782020-03-15T06:24:00.000-05:002020-03-15T06:24:38.227-05:00Coping in My Own BackyardIt seems trivial to be sitting here writing this blog in light of what is happening all around us today with the covid-19 virus. I'm writing as part of my self care and in an effort to also keep connected to others in my tribe of artists, collectors, friends and family. After all, art is a way of communicating <i>everything</i> about our lives. Historically, artist have documented the trials as well as the celebrations of mankind. This time will be no different. Our thoughts, ways of coping, our relief and grief will be drawn, painted, sculpted, danced, sung, composed and written in the coming years.<br />
<b>Choose to be a part of this through your art! It's a healthy, sane proactive way that will help you as well as those around you!</b><br />
For my part, I have spent the last few days outdoors, turning dirt in the vegetable garden and breaking ground for new flower beds(we've had a warm winter here ). As I was doing this, I formed a plan for my next project. Having just set up an exhibit of my landscapes at a local library, I needed to find something new to move forward. Standing in my freshly turned garden I decided that my next sketchbook and paintings are to be about gardening, tools, plants, blooms, vegetables and flowers. Not my usual subjects, so this will be a challenge that will take my concentration and a perfect distraction from worry and anxiety.Who knows how long we are going to need to stay far from crowds and this is <i>my own backyard. </i><br />
I'd love to hear what art plans are in the works for you during this time that will help you cope and show up in your studio. Just add a comment below.<br />
<i> Be well, stay connected, focused and positive...Helen</i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Unexpected Bouquet 2019 (sold)</td></tr>
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Helen Harrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14983135036488744742noreply@blogger.com0