Rukuhia road

I was a complete traffic hazard enroute home from the supermarket today, stopping to take photos ,often at short notice,to the detriment of the strawberries and eggs, I might tell you. But it was worth it....wonderfully sights and a lot of inspiration.

You would think that someone hosting a party for 58 adults and 18 kids this Saturday would need to be more focused, but I needed to relax and paint.The party will happen whether I stress or not, so I may as well not.


I also forgot to pick the kids up from the bus stop..and they managed to walk home without any problem and are all chuffed with themselves and their newfound responsibility!

I have posted the photo and my interpretation.




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A middle distance stare

When someone asks me a question that needs a carefully answer, or when faced with a situation that needs a considered response( think Lucien and his recent antics), I engage " the middle distance stare" in order to clear my mind of all other issues barring the one at hand.

I think this is what I need to see when engaging that tactic.



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statice and green chrysanthemums in vase

Statice is a weird flower.
Having said that, it is also a lovely color and lasts an inordinately long time.
I had a window of 40 minutes to paint this today....and for a quickie, I am pleased.
Not a masterpiece ( rolls around laughing) but ok as an excercise.


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Location:Studio

Monday mania

I locked myself in the studio today.....I loaded new music onto the iPod,made sure I had enough rags,paint and tea...and primed canvasses...and I was off! I made a seat available to frustration in the corner, but put the music up loud so I could not hear him!

old MacDonald had a farm........nah,the music was better. Snow Patrol, Fallen Empires.

Not all finished, but I was, so I will leave the Scotty till another day to finish.













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Location:Studio

The dune paths back from the beach

todays's painting. I multitasked and helped Lucien make a Lego robot and refereed a few arguments....somehow the serenity of the painting belies the circumstance of it' s creation!!!



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Location:coromandel

abscent without leave

I am swamped by demand from my other responsibilties so much that I have found little space for painting. I had a horrendous spell of wiping canvasses clean( 3 in one session...I almost drank the damned turps!). but then my eldest son,Lucien,told me he recognized my frustration and I knew that this was a perfect opportunity to model some ideal behavior for him. so, once I stopped swearing, I calmed down and told him how I felt and we agreed that a good tactic would be to imagine frustration as a person, welcome him into the room, ask him to take a seat and then explain that no matter what, we were going to continue until we had succeeded, whether he stayed or went. It was great to work it through with him, sharing frustrating experinces( he is learning to draw objects and finding the whole job of practice frustrating too) and I hope this visualization exercise benefits is both.

I finished a commission piece just as school went back and have not painted since, so tomorrow is D-Day for a start.Let me go make sure I have seat for my guest, in case he arrives.....!

I went AWOL to Auckland to visit the refurbished Auckland Art gallery( a must if you are in Auckland) and really enjoyed the wide range of art they had on exhibition. some is just plain mad and other is just plain beautifull. I like to have a balance of beauty and challenge in my art, but not necessarily in the same piece.Then I went to some smaller galleries to view their collections. I also savoured shopping at an independent art store,drinking coffee in lovely cafe,s overlooking the sea, catchin up with friends and eating fudge.My friend Shaun has a company that makes fudge...real, smooth ,gorgeous fudge in fabulous flavours like Almond and honey,ginger and, the most mind boggling best,liquorice! so, as you can imagine, I gave myself. Over to taste testing!!!!


Now home, a gazillion things to do in my garden that is fast becoming a jungle( the cat is delighted with the long hunting friendly grass. the rabbits and birds,not so much), school, and extra mural activities and an impending Xmas part for 100 people to be held herein 3 weeks time( suddenly need to lie down in a darkened room ).

but tomorrow is a date with the paint. definite.