Happy New Year!
Greetings –
Our Solstice bonfire is built around the upright trunk of the previous year's Christmas tree. On the 21st, we celebrated with friends and family for the first time since 2019, so the teepee of three trunks (!) created a joyous good cheer. However you seek the light in this winter darkness, I hope you also found moments of joy and peace.
I ran my “top nine” (liked posts on Instagram) and was not surprised to see that most of them reference Summer Lake. That place earned a piece of my heart the very first time we visited the wildlife sanctuary in 2021, but especially during a self-directed residency at Playa last summer. I found new ways to see, new techniques to try, new courage to experiment. The work I produced there resonates strongly for me and, apparently, others. My wall at Tumalo Art Co. this month exclusively displays work from my residency, including Where the Trout Rise, acrylic on canvas, 38x24.
I'm looking forward to quiet winter days when I can really focus on studio work. I've never been big on new year's resolutions, but here are some intentions: continue learning and experimenting. Read books. Listen. Take a walk. Look. Daydream. Make lots of art. Look at lots of art. Give back. Get outside my comfort zone. Get outside. Focus. Practice gratitude. Make more art. Repeat. Again.
Work in Progress
Here's a sneak peek of two paintings on the walls of my studio right now. We took a hike at Smith Rock on Thanksgiving day expecting the park to be quiet – amazed by how many people had the same idea. I guess we all have to earn our pie. I'd never been on this bit of trail across the river from Asterisk Pass and I am enjoying tracing the light and shadow across the rock from this vantage point. I pre-stretched the canvas on the left and stapled the other directly to my new soft homasote-like studio wall. For this comparison I cropped to the same detail. The pre-stretched canvas is a vertical, but the one on the right is a large panorama. I'm learning a lot from the textural differences that I can achieve on these two surfaces and the different effects of subtle alterations in the palettes.
That's all for now. Mostly, I just wanted to thank you for your support of and interest in my art practice and wish you a very happy new year. Anne
“If I could say it in words there would be no reason to paint.”
– Edward Hopper