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| Fallen Tree, Acrylic on Gallery stretched canvas 20 x 20"x 1 1/2" |
Finished! I might have over done, but I've had ball doing it. The painting was too tight, so on my first day back in the studio in quite a few days, I went back in painting like I did in the old days--painted wet into wet with the canvas on the floor. Lots of bending, stooping, walking around, wiping, spraying and painting again. I had a great time. Abstract landscapes like this are great for loosening up, a perfect companion genre for a portrait artist--but then you already know I think the two compliment each other.
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| Red Heads |
My
Red Heads found an appreciative home I'm pleased to say. Those boys didn't belong on a dark shelf in the studio even if they were painted for practice. They belonged surrounded with a linen mat and a fine frame on their loved ones' wall. And so they are in Scarsdale, New York, a gift from their grandfather who fell in love as soon as he saw it.
If you've wondered what happened to me, (I'm such an egotist), I was busy figuring out how you eat lowest sodium, lowest sugar and still have a quality life. I managed somewhat, but I'm still not satisfied. Going out to dinner or lunch is a chore when it used to be fun, but having to figure out what on the menu won't make my head spin took all the pleasure out of it. So I celebrated mymore slender, but starving, body with a couple of new dresses and a few pairs of shoes. There's nothing like shopping to make a gal feel better except a pound and half Maine lobster loaded with sodium. Secondary Endolymphatic Hydrops (SEH) isn't for the weak minded.
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Welcome back. =)
ReplyDeleteI have also worked on loosing some weight, lost around 6 kg this summer.
What I can see on the latest picture of the abstract landscape you have softened it, less colors and contrasts, more structure and nuances.
Not sure which way I like most, matter of taste.
This one is more realistic. We don't see too much Cobalt in nature. I lost weight, but didn't plan on it. It's this new eating regime that brought that about.
DeleteHi Linda,
ReplyDeleteI've been out of circulation myself. Back soonest!
Glad to hear from you. I was beginning to worry.
DeleteThe Red Heads are fabulous!!! You are right- they deserve to be seen. I'm glad they have a good home.
ReplyDeleteYour diet change sounds tough. Sounds like you are managing. It's good to celebrate and treat yourself. Good for you!
I love the energy in Fallen Tree.
I really like your new header. Sorry I missed out on your other posts. I'm still not getting my emails from your site. I'll just have to check my reader more often.
I checked over my settings to see if all was checked properly and, as far as I can tell, they were. With that not kind self portrait--much like photographs where our eyes are closed or you can see our fillings--I had to do something different as far as using it in a head. Multiplying the unkind drawing seemed to be just right. Glad you agree. You're a graphics person I can trust.
DeleteI have no other choice but to manage that austere and totally unamerican diet. Damn. I'd like a new hand dealt please.
I think the only way to eat low sodium and low sugar is to have a raw diet... though fruits have natural sugar, at least its not processed which is a big no-no...
ReplyDeleteNatural sugars and sodium that are in everything we eat can be balanced with careful meal planning. I'm getting really skilled at that. Processed foods have to be watched closely. I'm doing a lot of reading of nutrition labels in the market. I'm a carnivore through and through--chicken and fish and even a clean steak every now and then--clean means no MSG and no marinating.
DeleteI agree, minimal seasoning on protein... spices and herbs enhance as u know... I don't eat red meat at all. some chicken and definitely wild fish... no shellfish since they're bottom eaters... I've also lost my appetite for pasta and baked potatoes which I loved years ago... If u are game for a good ribollito soup I've got a great recipe.
DeleteHow game do you have to be? Soups are great, my favorite "dinner" in a bowl. Spices make the difference. It's amazing how quickly your taste buds adjust to no salt. It's only been months since I went as low as you can go and now I can detect immediately if there's added salt in a dish at restaurants making me one of those women no wait person wishes to have at their table. i make a big deal BUT i am a great tipper.
DeleteMy lentil sauce recipe is published in me other blog--the Cook's Meniere's Blog, (we can trade recipes)'. To see it just press the swirly graphic on my side bar and you're there. If you add a tad more vegetable broth to the sauce recipe, you've got a low sodium lentil soup. If you make your own vegetable both, you have a very low sodium Lentil soup.
Bonjour,
ReplyDeleteFaire quelconque régime impose des règles contraignantes... pourtant parfois nécessaire pour le bien-être.
J'ai un souci constant, je ne garde pas le sucre, je me trouve toujours en hypoglycémie...
Je suis heureuse toutefois que vous ne fassiez pas le régime avec la peinture car vos productions sont extraordinaires...
Gros bisous
Lowest salt is very difficult. Finding the ingredients and preparing the lowest salt sauces and dressings I need to make foods worthy of eating was exhausting and did take time away from painting, which I resented. Everyday cooking, I felt guilty that I wasn't in the studio. But it had to be done and now I'm in a good place for dining in or out. Sugar was easy to cut out--I never was a sweets eater--but salt? I adore potato chips--and finally found one I could eat in moderation. Thanks for your kind compliment. It was so good getting back to the studio yesterday and I had such a fine time with this painting doing my thing, it set my world back where it belongs.
DeleteI love the cool and warms bouncing off each other. So much movement. I feel like I am looking down into flowing water. This is a very satisfying finish to the journey this painting took me on.
ReplyDeleteThanks Julie. I thought it needed toning down. It's really a very weird painting--the subject, the perspective, etc.--but abstraction is a great way to get involved again. There are no wrong moves. There is overdone. This one needed cleaning up as well as toning down. The subtractive part of my painting process undoubtedly comes from my sculpture training AND working with graphite and charcoal where I am most comfortable.
DeleteLove the two paintings, esp. the 'red hearts'! I eat low sugar, low carb in fact, and I try to keep my salt intake low, but I think that is harder that leaving the sugar out.
ReplyDeleteVery difficult getting adjusted to a taste we were all raised with (due to its use as a preservative for centuries). But it's doable IF you don't mind being in the kitchen longer. That's where I've been. Cooking definitely ATE into my painting time. :-)). I resented it. Then of course, I resent having this affliction
Deletethat requires such a stringent diet. I thought breast cancer was enough to worry a person. Low sugar from what I've been doing, is easy to control compared to salt and fat. The less salt in a processed product, the higher the fat. From scratch is, unfortunately, the way to eat.
Hi Linda, 'Fallen Tree' is beautiful!! Love the natural colors you used. Welcome back!
ReplyDeleteThanks Hilje. It is wonderful to be back. I finally relaxed a little over my food dilema. I was pretty tense for a while--and angry that this happened to me. I was moaning the why me, poor me blues. I suspect that's why this painting is so agitated and bluish. Meet the dark side of LWR. I'm still not ready for flowers though.
DeleteOh, where has all the colour gone? Fallen Tree is fabulous, I have to admit it sits easier with me now, as I prefer a simple palette and subtlety, as you know. I am very interested in your process, lord knows how you got there!
ReplyDeleteLord does know. I haven't a clue. I respond. Painting with me is all intuitive. Thank you. Now if I would just sign it and let it go. There's the danger with me.
Deletelinda i'm sorry to read your post ...i hope your new diet will help you...you really did go in dark with the abstact good for you ... red heads is endearing take care jane
ReplyDeletePainting is a wonderful tool for releasing the soul. I've always loved that I was gifted with the ability to free myself from whatever demons were snapping at my heels. So far the diet is paying off. Thanks for asking. I can't paint or do much of anything else when the world is spinning. Hopefully, the diet will put that worry to rest?
DeleteFirst of all, Linda! Your work with abstracts is REALLY good!!! I love this one and hope to see many more abstracts from you.
ReplyDeleteSince I have high blood pressure, I should be watching my salt intake as well...a lot of us think that since we're taking pills, we don't have to be so careful...however, we should always take notice...and its good for the waistline as well...thank you for the inspiration....and I love those precious redheads...beautiful work!!!
Thosered heads don't come close to your beautifully polished work, but they are a step forward for me.Practice makes perfect. Ye Gads! Does that saying age me! Thanks Hilda. I do think that we have carried salt too far. From using it as a preservative to using it as a spice has gotten way out-of-hand. I do feel so much better--aware, lively, not bogged down by bloat and fullness since I've cut my intake below 800mg. and the water weight just dropped off in a matter of weeks.
DeleteDear Linda,I love your ARTWORK!!! Congratulations for the abstract and even for your painting that has found a home!
ReplyDeleteI noticed that a specific emotion is the basis that determines
the purchase of a painting ... We know what to do to create excitement at least in us, I recognize myself in the description of the final stages of your painting, with the advantage that in my case I use the water! I think I washed my watercolors finished in the shower as the tub ... until the destruction or the final victory!
(most often the destruction than victory).
In this life-action painting where the health forces us to make flights of fantasy to save a normal life on the table as on other occasions, what is more beautiful than to be totally free in relation to their painting???
Total freedom in spite of a thousand other minor limitations if you look at them all together are a heavy challenge ... So appreciate your new silhouette and tries to save public relations. I am years that I can not digest anything about what everyone is eating normally...
Although I do not have vertigo, but then I'm very ill for a few days with my gastrointestinal system.
Painting in freedom really is my salvation! Have nice week end,Rita.
Yes, my process is a series of construction/destruction/construction. When I washed this canvas in the tub, some paint came away, some did not. Some stayed. Some ran a d puddled and did interesting things to soften edges. But then comes the firming up stage. That one requires prudence. I do think that the whole process is necessary and should not be denied for fear of loss. The sum of the layers yields depth and interest. Acrylics are the best for this back and forth motion to conclusion.
DeleteFew of us sail through our time unscathed by assaults in one form or another. Good thing too. The journey both strengthens and humbles and should be celebrated. Seniors should be revered. Unfortunately, our eyes aren't fully opened till we are seniors and invisible to the young.
You have a lovely weekend too dear Rita.
Hi Linda! You've managed to smooth out the whole painting. Intriguing and easier on the eye, great work. I I like the gesture of protection in "The redheads". A lovely interpretation of sisterly love. Have a good weekend Linda.
ReplyDeleteBrotherly love Helene, though they are pretty enough to be mistaken for sisters.
DeleteEdge treatment is an important consideration in every painting. They have more to do with distance than object and are on a par with color values--dark to light, hard to soft, closest to farthest--whether you're painting a pot or , in this case, a pile of wood. Thank you for your comment.
Sorry, my mistake Linda! Have a good day.
DeleteNot to worry. The parents and grandparents knew who they were--and what gender. That's the important thing. You know, it's a risk gifting the relatives of the kids you practiced on. For all I know, the grandfather passed the little painting on to the parents and they passed it on to the trash cuz the boys looked too girlish. I did clear space on my storage shelf though and the gesture will be appreciated.
DeleteCongratulations on the sale! Those boys definitely deserve a place of honor in a frame and on the wall - lovely and painterly work! Your process on teh abstraction is so interesting and does add incredible, and enviable, depth!
ReplyDeleteThanks Susan. Naturally, I couldn't just leave it at this stage. Since I published it, I've pushed on--firmed up this, softened that, enhanced colors and subdued others. The trouble with abstractions is that the finish point is an abstraction. :-))
Deletecatching up! YES! the fallen tree painting came out great! Redheads is so sweet..I'm sure it will become an heirloom.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear you've gone shopping. I agree---shopping cures many ills!