Remember this painting? The Banana Fairy? 

This is how it began...... a collage warm up for the sake of play. 

Never throw away the crazy stuff.  You can't tell where it may fit! 

And this one?  "Try to See It My Way"

It came from a section I removed from another, larger painting that never satisfied me. 

That panel looked like this....

The reason I share this is that painting is a PROCESS.  It's not a formula. 

The mystery of it comes through as I move the paint and let it move me.

Frozen Bristles

Ice on the car windows, frozen paint brushes, and cracking tubes of paint. 
No more leaving class supplies in the car!
It's cold enough to leave the heat on when I'm home and to wear a sweater under my paint smock.
I've been reading my friend Christina's blog about working as a volunteer in Rockaway Beach, Coney Island and all around the city.  http://tinastraveltales.blogspot.com/2012/11/for-joe-in-far-rockaway.html     I'm grateful to have heat and a place to paint and sleep.  Read some of her blog stories.  We don't see it every day, but the people there are still desperate for help. If you feel moved to donate to the Red Cross, they're passing out hot food and supplies. 

Today at Timber Ridge the class "marbled" paper with shaving cream and food coloring, a project I've done with little kids as well as big ones.  My camera broke, or I'd have pics for you here. It was a blast!  The small 4"x6" marbled pieces are glued on to cards.  Actually, they are abstract expressionism at its finest.  True!

The bee painting is finished and the small pieces are hopeful. I'll post them as soon as I get to take pics.

Tomorrow I deliver paintings to the show at Ida Culver House in north Seattle for the show. "Walk the Line".   Go to    http://www.eraliving.com/communities/broadview to find out more about the venue.  The show is up from November 14 until March 9. 

Today, I trotted 5 paintings over to the Kirkland Art Center Gallery at Parkplace on 85th NE. 

And this Friday evening, November 16, is the opening of our ART EAST Small Works show.  I'll have new pieces in that show.  I always like this holiday show because the work is small, imaginative, and affordable.

I'm headed to Homer, Alaska in March to do an artist residency.  Hope we get to do masks again!  Like this:

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Blogger: Gail Baker Art - All posts

Blogger: Gail Baker Art - All posts

No bees in the rain

Honey bees. Rain. Not compatible.
Honey bees. Pesticides.  Killer!
I'd rather have the rain. 

Last year I was lucky to get to place my hand inside a warm, electric swarm of honey bees. I was jazzed.
I've never had the chance to be close to a swarm. And being invited to reach inside was the chance of a lifetime. Those bees didn't care if I was there.  They were intent on a purpose: starting another hive. The feeling of that hot, buzzing, crawling ball of movement is something I'll always remember.

Then, last fall, I heard a show on NPR about pesticides killing honey bees.  I've heard this before. .. as in WHERE HAVE THE BEES GONE? But, this time it hit me.  We're killing ourselves, not just the bees.  We're destroying the pollinators of the planet.  See the dvd, "Queen of the Sun"  http://www.queenofthesun.com/about/trailer/

I was inspired to do a series of paintings on honey bees.  I've finished the first of 7.  Here it is.

Detail of the bees. 

As I sat in my garden watching the bees in the borage and oregano flowers, I considered how afraid we are of them.  They mind their own business, but we squash them, poison them, and run from them.  Maybe we're just afraid of nature. Period. 

When I looked out my apartment window in August, I could see the 12' sunflowers, calendula, zinnias, and lupine. I've never painted and garden, but the colors just wouldn't leave me alone.  This piece isn't  finished, but I decided to post it anyway.  It's done with layers and layers of paint and oil pastels, and it's coming along slowly.  I thought I'd add bees, but I know that's overdoing it. I'll keep you posted when this one's done.

The "Pebbles" series is growing from earth colors into kid's crayon colors.  Here's one of the first ones. 

I'll keep you posted as work progresses.  Let me know if you want to keep up on the process. 

I'm in the thick of it!  I love it!  Hope you'll share your creative juices with me. 

Namaste, Gail 

Small abstract painting/greeting cards

Trout paintings

Just sent 5 new paintings to Donterra Gallery in Sisters, Oregon. Teri has been waiting for 3 months. The rivers and streams there are full of trout. She sells trout art for me. Here are a few pieces.

May Visual Journaling and Studio Work

What happens when art is used as a tool for self-exploration and growth? For healing and insight?
Is art peripheral to life? These are questions that motivate me to research the value of the arts in learning (from the earliest age) until the moment we die. Not just visual art, but music, dance, writing, and the art relationships

An injured knee, a sore hip, difficulty relating to anther person, .pregnancy, stuck in a job we don't like, taking time to relax, fear of living fully are some of the subjects we work with in Visual Journaling class sessions. A group's insights and vulnerabilities contribute to each participants sense of understanding and learning. Change happens as we open up. Even though we may take breaks from looking within, once we've begun journaling, we've started the movement and change we seek.

Our bodies hold memories. We can use VJ to access those cellular memories and heal. It may seem uncanny, unreasonable, and impossible, but it happens. Tension held inside as numbness, heaviness, pain, tightness, shaking, aches, and restlessness can be accessed and worked with.

I've tried to ignore my body's needs and ended up flat on my back in bed. It's common in our fast-paced society to keep going when we need to slow down. Even an hour a week can change our connection to ourselves, to have a dialog with the miraculous vehicle called the "body".

If you want to try this process, I'll send you an introduction just to see how I approach it. New classes start in Seattle on Westlake Avenue on May 16, Sundays from 11-1 and May 21, Friday evenings from 6:30-8:30. The purpose of VJ is to connect with sensations and images in our unconscious. It's a contemplative, non-judgemental process of quieting the mind with meditation and opening the heart to emerging awareness. The purpose is to cultivate self-expression and discovery for life changes. It also helps in integrating inner and outer worlds. If you're working with a therapist, this an excellent way to go deeper into issues with which you're working.

Namaste, Gail B