Revising a Nude Drawing and He Works for Potato Chips...

When I was a kid I often heard about how artists often return to work long after it was done.  That seemed so strange to me at the time.  I couldn't imagine working on a painting years later but now I understand why this happens.  Sometimes I figure out what what was wrong with an earlier painting or drawing long after I cried uncle.  Artists continue to learn more about their work as it becomes more complex and then earlier works seem so much easier to deal with.  Right now I am revising a charcoal nude drawing I did many years ago and like the effect I am getting.

When I was dating there was one comment I consistently heard from boys that made me uncomfortable.  They said I didn't talk very much.  One boy said other girls talked his ear off but I was so quiet.  I know I wasn't a big talker but I did think I talked when I had something to say.  I am painfully shy so I have to put on an act when I am around people to keep up my end of the conversation.  The effort grinds my stomach so I am perfectly happy alone in my studio or with my family.  When I started this blog I wasn't sure how I would be able to think of much to say so I decided I would have to be creative which is why I try to include something funny.  Sometimes I come up with something but I rely on the poet I married and the great thing is I don't have to pay him!  He works for potato chips!  As long as I keep potato chips in the house he tries to come up with something for me!  He didn't have anything for me today so I better go and check the supply.

Looking forward to seeing my most popular print, "Reaching Out", on The Mindy Project.  I saw an  advertisement for the show yesterday.  Hope it is a hit!

Now They are Coming to the Door and the Big Three are Coming Along

As I mentioned in another blog my husband and I are two of about five people in the world that don't have cable and are still holding out against the continual barrage of advertisements.  My husband says the other three are in the Antarctica photographing penguins.  Every week we get four or five offers in the mail for cable, satellite, dish, etc.  I am forever tearing up these letters.  This last week they got tough.  We have had two cable guys actually come to our door.  This has never happened before.  It is interesting to me that this new effort coincides with my digital TV problems that would be cured by cable.  When it is hot I can't get Judge Judy or Big Bang reruns which is about all I watch.  We lost PBS with digital but I can find the programs I watched on DVDs in the library.  We are not giving in!  I am a movie buff and I can live without TV and I refuse to pay to watch it.  ARE YOU CABLE GUYS LISTENING!  GIVE UP!  WE WILL NOT SURRENDER!

My three large paintings are coming along and I am definitely changing my approach as always.  Painting, like my hair, is a new experience every day!  I never know what to expect as I try to boss them around and instead they boss me around until I give in and just enjoy the ride.  Two of them are shore scenes and one is another field near Rocky Knob where my husband should have a mail box.  I think there should be a marker where he sits during hawk migration.  Any way it is great to have more time to paint and I will be pleased to add them to my portfolio on the web.

Be sure to check out my special canvas print offers of A Break in the Clouds, Reaching Out, and Cheers.  The offer starts tomorrow.

Limited Time Promotion Coming Soon and How I Saved Countless Lives

I am offering two of my most popular paintings at a 40% discount this week only. "A Break in the Clouds" and "Stepping Stones on the New River" are paintings that express the joy I have experienced living in Southwest Virginia in what is commonly known as the Blue Ridge Mountains. Actually, only a small part of this area is the Blue RIdge but I use the term for other mountain ridges since it is the accepted name in the New RIver Valley. Both of these paintings have the atmosphere I have come to love my whole adult life. I am originally from McLean, VA but I can't imagine living anywhere else now. I think I was a mis-placed mountain girl. Look for my promotions. They should be up soon!

In a about a month I will retire from teaching at Radford University, VA. I have enjoyed working with highly motivated students and I think I was able to help them better understand what are the exciting and beautiful aspects of visual art. I won't miss the students that don't seem to be motivated and do not put much effort into learning. Years ago I gave make-up tests to students who had various reasons for missing tests. I would have around twenty students per class I had to schedule make-up tests for. Then I decided to rate the tests so I wouldn't have so many make-up tests to give. If a student missed the test then the second one would count double. If they missed both tests then the final would count for their test grade. I saved countless lives. After I started the new test policy grandparents stopped dying, girlfriends stopped going to Emergency rooms, and room-mate's dogs stopped getting run over. Students came to all of the tests and everybody was happy, especially me.