The Arm Wrestle Ho Down.

That time has come again, the arm wrestle.

That's the time after I've given myself a break from the studio, but before I actually start painting again. I need a little break after a big push for a show. I have to clean the house, because it's usually been completely neglected, work in the yard a bit, catch up on all those errands I put off. I might even put stuff on etsy like I did a week or so ago. ( You can see the etsy shop at : http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheSpringGallery?ref=si_shop )

But now it's time to get back to work, it's been time to get back to work for a week or so. But instead, I have started the dance...the Arm Wrestle Ho Down.

Oh sure, I'll get a couple hours of work in a day, this week I've carved two little bird lino blocks, and printed about 50 of the little boogers on pattern paper last night. But really, that is about one day's work stretched into a week.

But, it's been sunny, and beautiful, and my garden has been weedy, and there is bread to bake and dog bellies to scratch. Oh, and a mosaic wall to fiddle with, but somehow that is too close to actually "getting something done" and has only been worked on in fits and starts. And naps to take.

But that annoying bitch in the back of my head is starting to mutter, and moan. She is loudest as I am trying to get to sleep at night. Chastising me for going to bed at a decent hour when I had a nap, and I really didn't get much done today. "You do have another show coming you know, you might want to have, oh I don't know...some inventory? A painting or two perhaps?" She is very sarcastic.

And of course, once I get the motor going, shake off the spring fever, and get immersed in making new work. I find a great rhythm. Scott knows to fend for himself, and I find this great peace. I think I am almost there. Boxes of canvases are coming in a few days, I am scratching down new ideas on scraps of paper everywhere.

But the tomatoes, I need to plant tomatoes.

Ideas

A question I hear over and over at art shows is "how do you come up with all these ideas?" It always sort of takes my by surprise, because I guess I never think I have enough. I am always building piles of new ideas, in my head, in my sketchbook, on scraps of paper beside the bed. They come in the form of photographs, scribbled notes, random sketches.

Walking the familiar route from studio to kitchen this past winter the buds on my dogwood tree caught my eye.



The contrast is what caught me, they tell you in art school that the human eye registers contrast between light and dark faster than any other aspect, even bright colors.

So I went in to grab the camera and made a few shots. All the while little birds were out fluttering in the chilly air. So here I was out shivering in the cold, while they were out doing whatever little birds do. And, well, I can't carry on with this thought much further without sounding like a complete nut. Suffice it to say I must have been heavily influenced by Disney's Dr. Doolittle as a child, I wish from the bottom of my heart that I could talk to these little creatures. In fact I do talk to them, all forms of animals, lizards, dogs, frogs, birds, even bugs on occasion, so I guess what I really wish is that they could understand, or even talk back!

So as I watched the birds, it dawned on me one was gathering bits for a nest. And I was simply cheering her on, "attagirl" as my father would say.

This is the second I've done like this, the earlier one can be seen a page or so back in this blog. The bird is a pine warbler, not the same as the little brown bird that was building it's nest, but a later visitor. And who knows, this may be a male, being such a bright yellow, but I'm still going with "attagirl." And if you need to see it, I have my artistic licence in my wallet somewhere!

Attagirl is 24" square and has sold!