I just put up Lilac Tea I on my portfolio and soon it will be exhibited in womanKIND, A Cole / Drews Project supporting the YWCA of Silicon Valley at The Citadel Gallery from December 16-19 with a reception Saturday, December 17 from 6-9.
The lilac symbolizes the first emotions of love in the Victorian language of flowers, I paired this flower with an Anna’s Hummingbird and an antique Bavarian J &C teacup called “Louise” (my middle name).
Had to drop my brush for this Tiger Swallowtail feeding on the lilacs outside my studio window – love when my models come to call!
Finally!
I found a rare hand-painted, antique lilac teacup from Bavaria called “Louise”. It’s funny how different flowers go in and out of fashion… but lilacs will never loose favor with me! The motif was listed as violets, but I knew better – a huge bush used to grow below my childhood window and their scent was always a sure sign of spring. In the Victorian language of flowers, the lilac signifies beauty and pride, and the purple lilac speaks of the first emotions of love.
I’m thinking a hummingbird or a goldfinch would go nicely with one of these shots for an upcoming painting.
My studio as the wisteria would see it, the air laced with iridescent cobwebs.
Today was a perfect day, iridescent spider webs trailing from the skies and across my face on the way to work. The air was heavily scented with wisteria and lilac, all flooding through the open windows of my studio, mixing with the smell of linseed oil. NPR was talking about the secret lives of cats as seen though mini cat cams and I was finishing up a painting that my son has named End of Spring. I was taken with the melancholy beauty of this image when I first saw this photo by my multi-talented friend and novelist Christy Ann Conlin. She was generous to let me use it for a painting and although I should be prepping for Open Studio I’m so glad I dropped everything to do it. I love how this dead robin lying on a shovel transcends its profane circumstance and is elevated, literally and figuratively, to a vantage where we can experience a moment of wonderment at its life.
Wisteria sinensis “Alba” I wait for it all year long.
Syringa vulgaris ‘Sensation’, a twist on a childhood favorite grows beneath my studio windows.
Finishing up End of Spring.
Examining real feathers.