Connecting Artists to the Community with Education, Therapy and Fun

This oil painting is in its infancy and is about the shape the Mother and Child makes and the shape in the mountain behind them. Note the heart shape in the mountain that mirrors the interaction and shape the mother and child makes. This exists in the mountain in reality, was strictly by accident I chose to marry the images and, yet, there it is there in plain site!

I started it as both a quest for subject matter for the Congo festival (I looked up Congo points of interest and Congo dress and found these images) and a personal comment on what is happening in my life, as always. To respect copyright laws, I'm turning it into a piece all mine with changing of the clothes into my own, i.e. the clothes will say what the adult in me wears around... my life experiences, what floats inside my head, etc. Its an inspiration, not a copy! 

The child is the child within that carries around questions and comments from the past. The adult is in a loving and accepting form, showing the acceptance of past issues and the caring relationship between present and past. She hears and accepts what the child is and loves him.

Its form will turn into a mixed media oil/collage. As with everything else, more pictures will follow as it nears completion.

Thank you for looking!

Old Woman Wisdom started to form while we were doing a clay project at the Steven's Center Women's group as I was overhearing Dianne talk to the group of clients about wisdom, wrinkles and age. As I worked with my little piece of clay, a face started to form and one of our clients said she looked like an owl. How fitting! Owls are some of my "closest" creatures and they are associated with wisdom and, of course, wisdom is associated with age. (Altho sometimes I feel I have none of it but some premature wrinkles!)

The impressions of leaves we had gathered as a group started to form her "hair-feathers" and I watched her morph into a mixture of owl, tree and woman. The stars in her eyes were created with an imprint into the clay with immature fruit plucked off a tree in the Center's yard on the "texture getting" excursion. Much of the lines were made with sticks on the same afternoon, too.

So, as she continues to form, she "told" me she needed a body. And some big roots, later... no rush as she is wise and knows all too well the demands of other life's facets. She will grow, bear fruit and house some animals who will perch on her for shelter- some even breaking off a branch or two and shaping her form. Others will leave their mark and give her wings. Yet others will poop on her, gross~ yes, and give her fertilizer to sprout up stronger.

All in due time.    

Note the smile lines and the starry eyes. The jowls were hard won, too.  More to come, later.

Blessings,

Linda

The Dragonfly is inspired by one of Stephen's pictures of a dragonfly and its silvery wings. The beginning of it was an experiment in texture and layers, now all it needs are some strategically placed lines to give it some form and a little trimming. I'll upload new pics as it grows towards completion.