The Daily Spectrum - Primitive

In the camping world, the term primitive refers to a tent - it is a basic shelter and a site that has no running water, electricity, or sewer service. People who camp in these sites cook over an open fire they build themselves. This can be rather tedious work as well as time consuming. Yet in the "primitive age", people had all day to take care of their basic needs.

Primitive in painting or drawing is more of an expression of wild abandon. There are no lines - only marks or splatters. The color choices are random and contrast seems the mode of the day.

I have felt that the art I've created in the past month has been primitive. They were done outdoors at a picnic table when the weather was cooperative. I also used basic materials - in some cases, crayons and markers, as I need my work to dry quickly while we were still traveling on the road.

Does having a studio matter? Yes it does. Oil paintings need six months to dry completely. A warm, dry, ventilated studio is preferable.

Every experience leaves impressions within the artist. When a series of paintings is completed, there will be a sense of cohesiveness within that series. Either the same materials (or color palette) is used, or the same five brushes were used, or perhaps the works were all the same size. All those factors come into play - but do the paintings or works still contain their primitive quality? Or do they become a stale repetition of one another? "The artist has perfected his or her technique - ho or she is now deemed a Master Painter." Is this truly a goal that should be sought after?

When a plant or animal has reached its peak - it dies. I want to continue to grow and change constantly. I may get my studio and set up my oils again. I have over 800 photo reference pictures of my favorite subject, but between each classical piece, I think I must break out - be primitive again in order to never lose my life spirit.

Until next time,
The happy painter,
Jill

The Daily Spectrum - Clouds View

I heard it said today - "There are people who lie down on their backs, look up at the clouds, and see pictures, shapes, or images in them - maybe an elephant, or a duck, or perhaps a giraffe. But what do the clouds see when they look down at us?"

The wisdom in this statement is profound. Why do humans think we are the "only" intelligence on this planet? The Creator's mind is in all of creation.

What began as a simple pattern formation called to me for more embellishment. The symbol of eternity - the spiral became an integral part of this composition adding many more dimensions and perspectives.

Until next time,
The happy painter,
Jill

The Daily Spectrum - Glory Lights

What lights up your life? What makes your heart sing and puts a bounce in your step? Some might say a warm Spring day. For others it may be playing with a puppy where its exuberance is contagious. Being with a special someone who is always positive, has an affect on us as well.

This may sound peculiar, but what lights me up is searching for "golden moments". This has become a treasure hunt of a game for me. It began one evening a long time ago as a special someone told me about the "golden" moment of a sunset. We watched it together in silence... at one point he said, "Ah - there it is."

The light was hitting the clouds with its most brilliant shade of gold that evening. I was stunned at the closeness to God that I felt in the moment. Pure joy flooded into my heart. I was 100% there... ALIVE, ALERT and AWAKE!

Creating a drawing or painting has this affect on me as well. No matter how late into the evening it was, I had to wait and keep working on this piece until I knew in my heart it was finished. It's golden moment.

Until next time,
The happy painter,
Jill

The Daily Spectrum - Meadowbright

There is something about a wildflower meadow that always catches my eye. The flowers are so randomly planted by the wind, yet somehow they all come together in perfect harmony color-wise. Man, in our finite wisdom, tries to create the "perfect" garden - well manicured and pedicured. For all of our tom-foolery - we still have to cut and prune plants where Nature allows her gardens to grow with wild abandon to their fullest potential.

It is been said, "When one door closes, another one opens." Our journey to the Southern United States and back to Maine in our RV (called the Nomad) is coming to an end. In about six months, we will be emptying the contents out and preparing it for winter storage.

One of my dreams has always been to have a homestead or mini-farm. Over the years, I have collected information on how to raise chickens, goats, and other small domestic livestock. I also have directions on how to build a greenhouse and a small barn. I have piles of seed catalogs... more than I can count.

Most importantly, I have a vision of where everything is going to go on this farm. There will be a cutting flower garden off to the left with a plethora of colors, a couple of acres of rows of vegetables, and, eventually, some acreage for the sheep and llamas. The chickens and rabbits will have their own out-buildings.

With the time we've spent in our RV, the Nomad, we were able to accomplish a great deal of research. A farming business actually can make more money than a regular job. People buy shares of your crops in the spring, so they are already paid for.

While we have a farm layout, a business plan, as well as countless other blueprints - most importantly, we have faith. Faith will see us through this.

Until next time,
The happy painter,
Jill

The Daily Spectrum - Reflections

May in Maine is usually a month of the occasional wild weather - Spring is still trying to arrive and on some days, Summer steps in for a preview. The April showers of just a few days ago have left behind some large puddles. On my walk today, I wanted to photograph whatever I saw in those puddles. I stopped by a wide, slow flowing stream where clouds and blue sky could be deciphered. Other puddles contained reflections of trees and other colorful plants nearby.

All in all, I thought it was a productive as well as energetic exercise - breathing deep and observing locals performing spring yard chores and other outdoor seasonal rituals. One young guy was clearing out his side yard. There was a wooded area near a stream. He'd been working all day and by this time had a fifteen foot high bonfire of trees and shrubs ablaze. The heat felt good as I passed by on the road.

I was reminded of a book I read about Maine called "Come Spring". It told of men clearing land from the St. George River area up the banks of Thomaston, and the progress made for the next couple of years every Spring up into the town of Warren as well as the Seven Tree Pond area in Union.

I imagined the hardy men directing their oxen to fell the trees and, in reality, was a bit disappointed in the comparison of this young, somewhat unfit man in a big red tractor just pushing the trees down and uprooting them in an effort to make his yard more "tree-less". The men of the past cleared the land in order to plant crops for food to survive. I walked on by full of thoughts of men of brawn.

On the return trip, I observed an elderly man talking to himself - there was no cell phone apparatus... I checked - and he quickly made up a story as he saw me; "Spring - this weather - gotta get up the leaves before the bugs come out. It's a good day to do it." "Indeed it is - great attitude," I responded.

I got back just as the first heavy afternoon shower came rolling through. A half an hour later, the sun was back out. About an hour later, things clouded over, gusty winds swept up, and it down-poured some more - and cleared out just as quickly. The last shower of the day was the most incredible. I stopped what I was working on and looked out one set of windows that face the west. The sun was low in the afternoon sky and shining brightly inside. Yet, I could hear the torrential beating of the rain on my roof. Outside, the rain was coming down in huge drops and with the bright sun, gave this shower a phenomenal 3-D effect.

When I turned around and look out my other set of windows in my work space, I was amazed at the brilliance of a double rainbow against the black clouds. It was as if God had photo-shopped them. The rainbow was so close to my location and it seemed too beautiful and colorful to be real!

Until next time,
The happy painter,
Jill

The Daily Spectrum - Rain Drops & Oil Spills

Life happens. Life itself, is neither good nor bad, but my thinking that makes it so. We age another day older but have we become any wiser? Our bodies begin to show the wear and tear life has had upon them. There are aches and pains galore - how do you respond? We know one day that death will come - do you wait around to die? Or are we still making the most out of what we have been given?

God is with us now. Even though the weather outside, as I'm writing this, is chilly, dark, and dreary... full of a pouring rain... I have a choice to make. Am I going to choose depression and mope around the house all day? Or can I remember the warmer rains - when I put on rubber boots and splashed in puddles?

Puddles come in all shapes and sizes. Some even contain rainbows where a certain type of oil has leaked onto the ground.

I choose to go out, get wet, and be a part of life that is happening today.

Until next time,
The happy painter,
Jill