Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Longleaf Pine

At least, I think it is a longleaf pine! I was only able to see it in the distance. The smaller trees nearby looked like longleaf saplings.

Rain came through today and cooled everything off a bit. I couldn't wait to take pencils and paper outside to draw. I'm making an effort to rediscover some art materials that I have neglected for a long time. I love charcoal! It is wonderfully messy and expressive. This was a quick exploratory drawing... and a lot of fun.


I love the way the branches come off the trunk at odd angles. The paper is a rose-colored Ingres I had sitting around. It was fun to work on. The foam backing board that the paper is taped to is an old one that I like to take out in the field. It's full of acrylic paint from previous projects, and makes a very soft surface to work on.




Monday, September 16, 2013

Wanderings...

I suppose I am a wanderer at heart. My parents used to take us on long car trips through the western U.S. when I was young, and I used to wonder what it would be like to live in some of the little western towns, surrounded by cattle and sagebrush. I would look at the houses, at the curtained windows, and wonder what their day was like: what experiences would be normal and routine for them, but foreign to me. Now I can say that I have lived in a small western town, surrounded by cattle and sagebrush. What a grace to experience other worlds, other vistas in this vast, beautiful country we live in.

For now, I am back home. Here we will probably stay, though I still dream of visiting a little cabin in the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho, or the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. A change of location brings many other changes: ways of working change; goals change. This move has been no different.

There are so many stories to be told here in Louisiana. I think for a while here I will be focusing on nature sketches and writing, telling some of these stories in words and pictures. It will be interesting to compare my sketches from years ago to the same areas today.

My aunt once told me that my grandmother loved the sight of the cypress trees and Spanish moss coming back into view after being away. I love that sight, too. I know some of my readers are visiting this blog from other places, and do not know this scenery. Stay tuned, and I will be delighted to share some of it with you.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is my well-worn painting bag, collecting patches and pins from National Parks and Monuments. I like it because it is waterproof and has little pockets for all sorts of supplies. Inside, I can also fit a few sketchbooks. It was not designed to be an artist's bag, but it is just right for the things I need to carry!


Well Loved Books



My last post reminded me of a couple of other well-loved books from my younger years. In the photo above, you can see the Eliot Porter book I mentioned, Hal Borland and Les Line's A Countryman's Flowers, a book of Robert Frost's poems, and a National Geographic book titled Exploring America's Backcountry. Interestingly, this last book features chapters about both the Sawtooth Mountains of Idaho and the Atchafalaya swamp here in Louisiana. I could not have imagined in my wildest dreams when I was young that I would know both places. I am truly blessed.

There was another National Geographic book that I loved as a kid, Our Fifty States. I had that book almost memorized. Back then, I wanted to see them all. Today, I can say that I have indeed been fortunate enough to see quite a few, but there are still some tantalizing states left for me to see. I still want to visit Alaska and Hawaii, and Maine.

My parents were good to me. They gave me books to love.


Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Poetry and Art

I have a dear friend in the frozen north who is a wonderful poet. Yesterday, the two of us "discovered" Anne Porter's poetry on the Writer's Almanac website. (Incidentally, today's featured poet over there is Ted Kooser, another one of our favorites!) Porter's poetry is simple and beautiful. It was also interesting to learn that her husband was the painter Fairfield Porter, and her brother-in-law was Eliot Porter.

When I was 11, my parents gave me a copy of Eliot Porter's  In Wildness is the Preservation of the World. To say that this book had an influence on me would be an understatement. I still have my treasured copy, and pull it out from time to time. It is fading, but retains its beauty. I think his photographic vision shaped my love of nature, conservation, and my own artistic viewpoint.

It is interesting how often poetry and art seem to intersect, at least in my wanderings.



Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Works on Paper and High Humidity

As we near the end of summer, I am astonished at how differently paper acts in a humid climate. Previously crisp folds go limp, and books change shape. After living in lower relative humidity for so long, it is tough to know how to respond. Fall air should be drier, but winter will bring humidity again, and so the cycle will repeat itself.

I recently noticed the same issues are starting to show up in the origami pieces on display at my home, even with air conditioning.

I am hoping that another book or paper artist will chime in and comment with some tips or ideas!

In the meantime, I am weighing whether encasing future works in a layer of acrylic medium would help, by sealing the papers.