The Odyssey

Every day we set sail for ports unknown
12-2-14
mixed media

Bird in A Boat

On the prow of a small boat in the middle of a wild sea… a tern pauses for rest. The empty boat is an island for his thoughts to occupy while the elements swirl around him.  

The wind gusts and rushes with no apparent reason or pattern. The clouds and mist fly across the white sky.

Above it all, the imaginative moon stalls transfixed yet untethered.

The empty boat, once so full of ambiguous promises still seems to wait. Wait for what? Terns fly from pole to pole and from sunrise to sunrise. The bird is always fatigued and always ready to go.

The Tern gathers strength and solace imagining that this moon, even, this benevolent and sly orb, sends a few beams (of uncertain vintage) his way and dimly lights his gay and urgent flight.

This painting is from my sketchbook. It was finished on June 4th. I lump it into my series of paintings and drawings about Owl and Tern.

The Blue Hour

"Time to go"
ink, watercolor, acrylic. charcoal
April 20, 2013

It was so tempting! The lights in the sky beckoned. They danced and pointed the way. Bear ran his paws over the gunnels of his trusty bateau which bobbed in the reeds and sedges. It was a nice thought. But there were plenty of warm Summer nights ahead… maybe he'd take off some other time when he absolutely needed to view the blazing stars. He checked the painter and checked the knots, tramped out of the water, shook himself better and walked back to the house. Later. his eyes closed and all he could think about was… "dawn!"

Each Painting is a Journey

10-19-12a
mixed media

I painted this the other morning. It started out one way and ended another way. The bear was the last thing I added (well, actually the oars were the last things. Or maybe it was the bear's toenails; I can't remember).

The important, take-home message is to never give up on something. Eventually a solution will be whispered in your ear and a bear might appear. Now, it's true that I have a number of images of bears in boats… I guess I'm just not through with that basic idea. But that's my prerogative isn't it?

The boat in this image and the sentiment it conjured (that we may not know the way but just having faith that our tools or methods have merit gets us through the rough patches) confirmed a steady belief of mine. It's nice also to have these ideas bubble up through the process. And making good Art is rarely a top-down process. And it's nice to end with a confirmation rather than begin with one. Although, having both isn't so bad either.

Blah blah blah! Bonne journée dear readers!