As western Louisiana and more are continuing the clean up from Hurricane Laura I thought I’d share this journal spread from Friday, July 31st when Isaias was heading for the Carolina coast. Having lived briefly in Florida I’m still attuned to keeping tabs on all the Tropical Storms and Hurricanes. Every one of these storms carries the possibility of devastating consequences. My heart goes out to everyone still dealing with the aftermath.
As an aside, I’m quite fond of the triadic color scheme I’ve got here… Red Orange, Yellow Green, and Blue Violet.
So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion, respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service of your people. Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide.
Always give a word or a sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, even a stranger, when in a lonely place. Show respect to all people and grovel to none.
When you arise in the morning give thanks for the food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies only in yourself. Abuse no one and no thing, for abuse turns the wise ones to fools and robs the spirit of its vision.
When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home.
After a little research on Wikipedia it seems this childhood game of pulling petals from a daisy, the Marguerite, has a French origin.
I’m going with the French title since the only gender referred to here is linguistic… and it belongs to the daisy!
The lettering was applied with a brush and liquid frisket/mask. Once dry, the background color was washed across the pages and the mask was removed once the watercolor was fully dry.
I hadn’t planned to take a blog “vacation” these last two Fridays but that’s what they became.
I’ve fallen out of my usual daily art habit and I’m working to put it back into place. It’s too important to let it all slip away.
A few weeks ago I was practicing my direct brush technique by painting one of my Breyer horse models and I can see areas where I’d like to improve my proportions.
I guess it’s time to paint her again. That should get me moving!
As Keith Richards and Mick Jagger wrote… “Wild horses couldn’t drag me away.”
She sell seashells by the seashore.
The shells she sells are surely seashells.
So if she sells shells on the seashore,
I’m sure she sells seashore shells.
85. Critics don’t matter. Who cares about Michelangelo’s critics?
86. Structure your day so you have time for painting, reading, exercising and resting.
87. Aim high, beyond your capacity.
88. Try not to finish too fast.
89. Take the theory of the “last inch” that holds as you approach the end of a painting, you must gather all your resources for the finish.
90. Build your painting solidly, working from big planes to small.
91. See the planes of light as shapes, the planes of shadows as shapes. Squint your eyes and find the big, fluent shapes.
92. Notice how, in a portrait, Rembrandt reduces the modeling of clothes to the essentials, emphasizing the head and the hands.
93. For all his artistic skill, what’s most important about Rembrandt is his deep compassion.
94. To emphasize something means that the other parts of a picture must be muted.
95. When painting outdoors, sit on your hands and look before starting.
96. When composing a picture, do many thumbnails, rejecting the obvious ones.
97. Study how Rembrandt creates flow of tone.
98. If you teach, teach the individual. Find out when he or she is having trouble and help at that point.
99. Painting is a practical art, using real materials — paints, brushes, canvas, and paper. Part of the practicality of it is earning a living in art.
100. Finally, don’t be an art snob. Most painters I know teach, do illustrations, or work in an art-related field. Survival is the game.
As a staff, we are heartbroken; we are lost, but we know that the work continues, the fight remains, and we cannot – we must not get lost in the sea of despair. So if asked how you may honor the congressman, I will echo the words of the greats who stood here before. You can make sure that his work, his sacrifice, his message lives on, and that there’re actions that every person can do regardless of their age or their station in life. Be kind, be mindful, recognize the dignity and the worth of every human being. Be the best version of yourself. Be informed, stay engaged, even though the work is hard. And, if you’re of age and eligible, for the love of God, please vote. Thank you.
Jamila Thompson John Lewis’ Deputy Chief of Staff 30 July, 2020 Ebenezer Baptist Church Atlanta, Georgia
Dana Burrell... Art 