Entering a New Arena

I have been encouraged by other artists to establish a blog to showcase my artwork online. I took a blog workshop facilitated by Susan Carlin and gleaned some pertinent information necessary to begin this venture. So here goes!

My personal objective is to record my work over the years in some chronological order.

My favorite childhood gifts were crayons, paints and art paper - speaking to an enduring, lifelong attraction to the arts. I remember Christmas mornings and the pure delight of finding new crayon sets and clean white paper waiting under the tree. Encouragement from my parents and Saturday visits to Carnegie Museum to attend Tamoshanter's Art Class in my native Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania contributed to and fostered that interest.

My first attempt at portrait painting was straight from the heart. My fiance', Bill, got his orders from the Army and the love of my life would be away for a two-year stint. My brother, Tom, bought me a small paint set and with aching heart, I set about capturing Bill's handsome face on canvas. The results looked more like an ape than a man. I think the crew cut hair on his Senior photo attributed to that look. It was just horrible, a disaster. That was many years ago and, by the way, Bill returned safely and we were married. Today we have three adult children and five grandchildren. I have no idea what happened to that first painting.

Several years later I attended a watercolor class. The instructor had us wet the entire paper, lay on paints and hope for the best. I lost complete control as the paint did it's own dance on the soggy paper and I could not wait for the experience to be over. I felt like I was on a roller coaster, hanging on for dear life, and had no choice but to ride to the end. No, watercolor was not for me!

Another early pursuit centered on decorative art. I sold my work at local craft shows. Soon my customers began requesting lessons. I taught tole painting privately for many years, rewarded by seeing others discover and develop their talents. My students ranged from air traffic controllers looking for stress relief to true amateurs who improved so much that eventually they sold their works in the same carft shows.

Enough of my humble beginnings. I hope to do a posting every day to record the rest of the journey.