Sunday Painting

Sunday is the day I paint for fun. I drew this picture during last Sunday's sermon in church, but it sat unpainted all week. I ended up with a sort of Oz thing going on here: drab-gray foreground; a more colorful and inviting "happier land" in the distance; and a winding yellow road connecting the two. It's pretty close to what I envisioned.

Exodus 33:15; Moleskine watercolor journal

EDM 173 - Something from Memory

It's been almost 30 years since I've seen the backyard of the home where I was a child, so this is REALLY drawn from memory--an old, probably slightly faulty, memory. I grew up in a modest home in northern Ohio. I have many memories of the small yard.

Clockwise from the upper right: the large, carpenter-ant-infested oak tree that was struck by lightning and fell toward the house and pounded the small crab apple tree into the ground several feet but did no damage to the house; the snowball bush (I'm sure that's not the technical name, but I'm botanically challenged); the rail fence that my brother Mark tried to jump over when he was about 12, resulting in a compound fracture of his forearm and a harrowing drive to the emergency room (my mom at the wheel); my favorite bush, a purple lilac, which yielded many gifts of flowers for our school teachers; the ill-fated crab apple tree, from which we tried to make juice one summer (we might or might not have used a 5-lb. bag of sugar and might still have thrown the whole batch away); the brick chimney, around which many Easter eggs were hidden; a generic tree (What do I know? It had no fruit to juice, so....); the rock patio, meticulously laid by my dad one summer; the amazing split-trunk oak tree, around which many family pictures were taken; and lastly, the row of bushes under which I created many little "villages" from sticks and leaves and my brother's Matchbox cars (Shhh! He still doesn't know!)

This was a really fun project. I must do more memory paintings like this.

EDM 173 - From Memory; 3x3" watercolor

EDM 172 - Something that Sparkles

My son's favorite drinks are Pellegrino and cranberry juice. I would mix them, but he thinks that ruins both drinks.

EDM 172 - Sparkles; 3x3" watercolor

Four from the Imagination

I realized that I did four paintings in a row that were from my imagination, with little or no photo or real-life reference. Of course, nothing is really entirely without reference, because we as artists are always drawing on something we've seen or felt or dreamed of. More precisely, then, these four pieces are sourced out of my crazy, disorganized brain.

EDM 168 - 171

EDM 171 - Some Ice Cream

We've been in a record-breaking cold snap this week, so eating or thinking about ice cream is not that appealing right now. So, I decided to paint something non-traditional for ice cream. Shocking, I know!

I've been reading on Facebook how some friends are making ice cream from snow. That's fine. Actually eating it is another matter. I'm not brave enough. But, putting a cone hat on a snowman? Yep. I'd do that!

Choose your hat wisely, Mr. Snowman. You might not want to look too yummy!

EDM 171 - Some Ice Cream; 3x3" watercolor

EDM 170 - A Zipper

For the movie, "You've Got Mail," I made a sign for the fictional Zipper Man on Amsterdam Avenue. "You never have to buy new luggage!" I decided The Zipper Man's selling point would be that he fixes your gaps. (I realize I'm never gonna make it in the real marketing world.)

Three illustrators who have greatly influenced me as an artist are Charles Wysocki (no longer living), Jan Brett (still living and illustrating), and Mary Engelbreit (still cranking out delightfully cute illustrations). All three manage to communicate lightheartedness, while obsessively sweating every little detail. For doing so well something that I always strive to do, they are my heroes.

This piece pays homage to Wysocki, the master of invented signs for his wonderful folk towns; to Engelbreit, who works entirely with markers and colored pencils because she says she does not know how to paint (I did this piece with my hodge podge collection of markers.); and to Brett, who is notorious for hiding things, even entire sub plots, in her illustrations (This is #170 from the EDM list, and I used the number in The Zipper Man's address.)

EDM 170 - A Zipper; 3x3" markers

EDM 169 - A Piece of Cake

It was here a minute ago! Promise. I don't think I've ever let cake get stale. I barely let it get completely cool. I LOVE cake. Too much.

EDM 169 - Piece of Cake; 3x3" watercolor