let's try this again

Those of you who have been readers since the beginnig will remember that I had a thwarted trip to Egypt planned earlier this month. After some rescheduling, I plan to leave tomorrow morning, so I will give the same disclaimer: I may from time to time be without internet access, but I will be painting every day and posting when possible. I found this image from "the archives" of my last trip there. This was an agricultural area along the Nile with beautiful, lush fields and rows of palm trees, a very different landscape from Middle Tennessee, but one I look forward to experiencing again.

waiting for winter

It is finally coming...the first snow of the season. Or so they say. There was a certain excitement in the air around town today in anticipation of awaking tomorrow morning to find everything dusted in white. I worked on the large piece in the downtown studio today, and just as I was about to leave, I caught a glimpse of this very cold-looking bird sitting atop the utility pole. Although I often find anthropomorphism to be a bad habit, I had the brief passing thought that the little bird was looking out over the horizon searching for signs of snow. Probably she was just being a bird, but I liked her shape, the contrast of living being about to take flight with the cold industrial background. And who knows? Maybe she was hoping for snow as much as I was.

exile sculpture

This sculpture was a gift from my mother, depicting the Holy Family in exile in Egypt. It was created by an Egyptian sculptor who apparently works in these themes often. I immediately loved the simplified forms and the serene expression on Mary's face (which I have not really captured here) and the evidence of the sculptor's hand at work. I chose this subject today because I thought it would be a fun painting exercise, and I am mentally preparing for my (rescheduled!) trip to Egypt later this week. Plus, it was far too cold here today for me to drag myself out of the studio long enough to search for landscape subjects!

slickrock

Last fall Derek & I camped with my father near the Joyce Kilmer/ Slickrock WIlderness Area in Nantahala National Forest. It was a pilgrimage of sorts for Derek and me...we had heard of the fabled old-growth forest for years and had always wanted to see the massive trees for ourselves. We were amazed to stand beneath the giants, some of which would take three or four people to wrap arms around. This spot was on a small footbridge at the beginning of the trail. Even though there were no old-growth trees visible from this point, I thought it was a very magical place, and it held the promise of things to come.

let it snow

This weekend we here in Middle Tennessee had many promises of "possible dusting" of snow, or, as our local weatherpeople like to call it, a "wintery mix." As usual, the "mix" turned out to be rain, followed by bitter cold, with hardly a flake of snow. I spoke with my family up north who were lamenting the fact that their beautiful snowfall of several days ago still has not melted. All this has me pining for the soft white blanket of winter. This image is from the one snowfall we had last year (which we had to drive east for an hour to see in the early morning before it melted off by noon). Here's hoping.