Gallery hopping

I took a bit of time to go search out some galleries "NEW" to me. I've read about them for years, wanted to go, but with 3 kids-gallery hopping just doesn't "happen". It was wonderful to MAKE it happen. I visited the Moberg Gallery on Ingersoll in Des Moines, IA-blown away by Wendell Mohr's new abstract paintings. I've studied under Wendell for 2 summers learning his experiemental watercolor techniques, but, to see his new direction-doing a NEW thing at "80+ years old"-what an example to me. That's what I want to be like at 80-teaching and painting and still DOING art. I also visited the Olson-Larsen Galleries and saw their current "Figurative Show". I was especially draw to the work of Priscilla Steele. Her large scale figures were amazing-the glazes, the texture and pigment used to create the figure-so rich, so beautiful.

After gallery hopping, I headed to a scrapbook store-wandered around the aisles-looking for something NEW-something I had to have. For the first time in a long time, nothing came home with me. What is up with that? Something about being immersed in the fine art world and then the scrapbook world-it was unsettling to me. I love to scrapbook, but it seems more clear to me than even before that I want more from my books. I want more than "theme stickers'. I use them but I want more. I want more than simple, graphic lines. I want more than precut letters. I know that many people need and use these-I'm just saying that for me-I'm becoming more driven to use my own art supplies, use my own designs, make my scrapbooks really look like me.

The weather here is finally gorgeous after weeks of storms, missed vacations due to cancelled flights, ice, snow and being forced inside. I opened the windows yesterday and let the fresh air in. Fresh air in my house and fresh air in my soul.

I did lots of work at church yesterday. Good things-not easy mind you, but necessary. Good is not always easy in this life, in fact, I know that I often learn the most during the most difficult times. So much going on at church-deep, good, life transforming things.

I'm heading out to the gym, and birthday lunch with girlfriends. I've got some finishing up to do on my newest paintings-can't wait to show you, but it's "still a work in process". I'm working on so many things-spring is here and time to renew the gallery with new works. Time to fill my books with new pages. Time to clean my house...but that's another story I'd really rather NOT talk about today!