I am finally back in Oregon after three weeks of painting and leading my Embracing Magic art retreat in Ireland. I also spent an additional week in France (more on that later). WOW! I still don’t quite know what time zone I’m in, but I’m eager to get back to my studio.
I have tons of photos and stories to share, but first I want to thank Lora Murphy at Essence of Mulranny for hosting this retreat (and also hosting Painting with Fire!). She is a talented artist and a generous soul. 💕
I also want to thank the FABULOUS artists who joined me on the retreat for their enthusiasm and willingness to experiment as they encouraged each other throughout our…
Read More
I’ll bet most of us have a story about following our intuition. Maybe it’s that time you decided on a different route and met a wonderful person, or accepted a job you loved when another seemed like the more practical choice, or maybe (hopefully) when you bought that lucky lottery ticket!
I can recount many of those stories, but the freshest in my mind is still the trip I took in late 2019 just before everything changed. I didn’t have the budget for it but I (uncharacteristically) threw caution to the wind and made it happen. Little did I know that everything would shut down within a few months and I wouldn’t travel internationally again for years. You just…
Read More
One day I just snapped.
That was it, things had to change. I grabbed a huge tote and filled it with things from the house and studio until it was full. And then I grabbed another one, and another. These were things I had purchased and loved, but I knew that now someone else could enjoy them too.
So what triggered this early spring cleaning? It started with one little painting.
Read More
The opportunity for collaboration is one of my favorite parts of being an artist. Not only collaborating with other artists in support of our journeys, but also collaborating with my collectors on the paintings they dream of. Being able to guide their personal vision into reality while staying true to my own artistic instincts is an exciting process.
I’m currently working on a new painting for one of my most enthusiastic collectors, which will be a combination of a few of her own photographs. As I developed the initial layers, I became entranced with the sky, happily lost in pushing depth and pulling contrasting colors together. As I stepped back to get a better view, I realized
Read More
We are just moving from summer to fall where I live, and it seems like I’ve been distracted for the whole season. After not doing much socializing over the last couple of years, it’s been a wonderful but frenetic time. In just a few short months I’ve been to my high school reunion in Hawaii, travelled to the Oregon coast for a few days at the beach, done a couple of rounds of dog sitting and attended the wedding of a dear friend in Washington.
Sounds like fun? I won’t lie, it was. And since I recently painted my way into tendinitis, it was good timing. The problem was that I didn’t have a chance to reset, or in some cases to even unpack. The result was that my thoughts were
Read More
I think many of us have dreams that we feel are either unrealistic or we don't feel worthy of. We tuck these seeds away for later, waiting until the time is right. For me that time is now.
It's time to stop holding back and say YES to the things I've been too cautious to pursue in the last few years. I recently replaced my unreliable old car. I'm headed back to teach in Ireland next year. And I'm making big changes to…
Read More
Art is a unique blend of skill, emotion, culture and imagination. Music, poetry, dance, literature, and visual arts can all convey messages and ideas that otherwise would be difficult to express.
We’re all creative in different ways, and we all have a passion for something. So how do you combine the two? Whether you do something for yourself or for others, there can be great satisfaction in combining them.
I recently realized that…
Read More
I recently traveled to Hawaii to attend my 🤐th high school reunion, where I got to hang out with friends who I rarely see except on social media. I also reconnected with a friend I hadn’t seen in decades!
Scott teaches second grade, and invited me to share a class with his budding artists. He was so enthusiastic that I said yes immediately. Scott recently introduced his kids to working with watercolor…
Read More
