It was Gorey

Tuesday morning we went to the Orlando Museum of Art to see the Edward Gorey show.

Loving illustration I knew it would be fun. It was a treat. Gorey's humor, his incredible skill with pen and ink and wit was inspiring.

I am including a little drawing I did after seeing that show.

Check out Artistree Co-op to see some new work.

Katrina is Complete

Katrina has been completed. It is purely coincidence that this is the hurricane's 5th anniversary.

This is the final version of the storm in my hurricane series. Several months ago I was working on her and posted a snippet on this blog. I looked at her as the months passed and finally knew what I had to do...paint over the collage background. The resulting texture has given the piece a depth she didn't previously have.

The water bird in the foreground is another character in southern tragedies. They appear so fragile with their long legs and necks. Their vulnerability is shared with the woman and baby. However the drive to survive is shared by both mankind and nature.

In the end, as depicted in this painting, both New Orleans, as portrayed by the woman, and the city's future, as depicted by the baby, and the surrounding nature, as represented by the water bird are still standing. A little shaken, but nevertheless back on their feet. If you have lived in or visited the city you understand that feeling.

2129 Miles: Coal Trains, Sunflowers, Buttes, and Miles of Miles of Texas

The end of the summer spirit has arrived. The youngest child has returned to college so the nest is empty again.

Said child and I drove 2129 miles from Oviedo, Florida to Golden, Colorado. We had impromptu stops in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Colleyville, Texas to see old friends.

These visits put my life in perspective. The friendships I have been fortunate enough to have have been wonderful gifts. I miss my friends and am so grateful N.W. is a patient son and was willing to indulge my whims to drop by the homes of these great people. The welcomes and smiles were invaluable. Thank you Liz, Laura, and Patty for this.

The time N.W. and I spent driving, reading, listening to Garrison Keillor, listening to music (my intensive lesson in new music, I gained some new favorites) and plotting our next food stop was a lot of fun.

There were laughs along the way: Buc-ees, Kevin Greene in a song, the La Quinta in Amarillo, squeezing the sign in to the backseat of the car, and the hurricane that didn't.

There was so much great food in Baton Rouge at Acme Oyster Bar, beignets in the morning, the Flying Biscuit breakfast in Gainesville, Au Petit Paris in Houston, breakfast in a roadside diner in New Mexico and finally Pei Wei and Jimmy Johns in Golden. We decided to pass on the camo caramel popcorn at Buc-ees between Houston and Dallas.

Works by N.W. Rommel

The summer is drawing to a close. A return to school is forefront in our minds. Next week my son and I begin the almost two thousand mile drive to Colorado so N.W. can have his car on campus. We researched shipping the car, but all in all decided, "why not?" I have the time and precious time it will be. How often do you have your almost twenty year old to yourself for 4 days? Not often. I am posting some of his artwork. We share this art-thing. He has spent some time in my studio this summer working on a variety of projects, experimenting with different techniques and materials. I am very proud of his accomplishments.