Lake people

Picnic on the rocks
Photo
Barbara Muir © 2023

Today I'm showing you a photo.  Of all of the beautiful photos
I've taken in the last two days, this one resonates the most. Why?
Because the people love the lake so much, that instead of using one
of the available (though rare) tables for their picnic, they climbed
out onto the rocks, to get the full Lake Ontario experience.

And the waves were crashing against the rocks and sending
up beautiful spray. So sweet.

Have a loving your life day.

The dance of art

Getting Ready To Dance

Pastel on Drawing paper

181/2 x 24 inches

Barbara Muir ©

Today would make busy look like a holiday. We have been
on the go since before I even had coffee. That happens sometimes.
So much to get done. We planted one whole garden, and part of
another. We have 3 garden spaces in our backyard. I should say
Steven did the planting and I helped -- weeding while he did most
of it.

I still have so much to do, but love this image and post from 2019
titled This Lucky Girl. Last night on our night walk with the dog
there was a backyard party near the alleyway we walk in, and Steven
and I danced briefly across the street, unseen by the party people
with the dog in complete astonishment.

Here's the post from 2019

"This young woman, who modeled for me when
I was doing pastel drawings, has had a magical life. 

The connections between drawing and painting portraits,
and changes in mine, and the models' lives has

been fascinating. I painted a portrait of one model
and placed her in Paris hoping she'd get to travel there.
Later I learned that she'd already traveled extensively.
But a few years later I was invited to exhibit in Paris.
Something I could never have imagined, but had
dreamed about since my first trip to Paris after university.

In this case maybe drawing the model shown above
signaled the start of a completely different life for her.
She met and married the man of her dreams, had two lovely
children, and a happy life --  friends, exciting travel, and
wonderful work opportunities.

Though I might be mistaken, I'd like to think I had something
to do with the unfolding of her story.  At the time
she was into dance, and that's why the pose is athletic."

Have a loving your life day. 

The power of power

Journal Sketch
marker on journal paper
6 x 8 inches
Barbara Muir © 2023

As the power has shut off once for a few hours today, and may
go off again at any minute, I'm writing this now.  This morning
working on my 3 journal pages and sketches, I was able to get
a rough sketch of a young woman I want to feature in a 
painting.

What challenged me when I first tried to draw her was her glasses.
I drew a rough sketch of the painting I was planning on a square
canvas, and realized that I needed to get a rectangle canvas and
paint horizontally to fit her and her boyfriend in with their arms
stretched across a table. So the good news while the power is
on, is that the glasses were not a problem. And I may
proceed with that painting empowered by my improved
ability, when our power (electrical) here is secure.

Have an acknowledging your own power day.

Looking back on 2020

Today was ferociously hot, but not as hot as all of the 
southern United States, and southern Europe. I have
been in meetings, and busy today, so wanted to find 
something meaningful from the past.

2020 was when this long, long pandemic began.  We
had no vaccines, and new variants kept coming at us.
One of my friends, the wonderful artist Georgia 
Fullerton, held a GASP session for artists on Zoom,
to try and inspire us to keep going.  I will quote that
piece tonight, and show the poor quality video I made to go 
along with the blog post.

 

"Georgia Fullerton's GASP -- and the magic of fellow artists

COVID -19 has shut a lot of artists down.  We keep trying,
and doing this and that, but the impetus to paint is impacted
 by the facts -- most galleries being closed, no meetings with
other artists, no workshops in person, and the endless
sad stories connected to the virus.

On June 26 Georgia Fullerton held a Zoom event to introduce her
GASP method of painting people's emotions and histories.  She had
wonderful, inspiring guests.  And I don't know about the effect on
other artists, but it got me back into the studio in a pre-COVID-19
way.  I'm not saying the art I'm producing is great, but I feel super
painting.  The joy of doing it has come back to me.  I credit
Georgia.  Oh and of course my husband Steven who came into the
studio and said he liked the painting I was working on.  We need
that support."

Have a loving your life day.

Exciting times

Flowers for my father

pencil crayon on paper

21 1/2 x 26 inches

Barbara Muir ©
(the drawing was photographed
through glass because it's
framed.)

The other day I got the promise of a commission, and 
when I mentioned it to a friend, the promise of another
commission.  The first one is to paint a flower garden,
and the second one is of a garden through a window.
All enticing, because I love flowers.

The first request may want something very realistic
in a Dutch Renaissance way -- that will be a challenge. 

So I found this drawing I did years ago when I was
painting flowers every day, and I worked primarily
in coloured pencil. And my style was more realistic.

In recent years I like a much looser impressionistic 
style.

So I will let you know where this goes.

Have a loving your life day.

Date night

 

At the restaurant 
Black marker on Moleskine paper
6 x 9 inches
Barbara Muir © 2011

Our date night used to be Thursday, but now I'm 
teaching on Thursday night, so our date night is
Tuesday.  We head out to Ikea, wear masks in the
line, then eat 40 feet away from anyone else and
enjoy ourselves.

The staff know us, and are very sweet.  It's not
quite like this drawing from the pre-pandemic
restaurant days, but it isn't bad.

Have a loving your life day.

Always celebrating

Steven and me at the 

beginning

(Yes I was not blonde yet)

Photo
Wallace Muir © (my father)

People who read my blog often comment on how we
are always celebrating. Of course that's not true, but
Steven and I do notice a couple of important dates
each month that are just ours -- our Monthaversary
of our first date, and our Monthaversary of our wedding,
which happened 11 months after our first date.

Last year on this day I wrote to you that love is coming,
if it isn't in your life right now, and you want it. I could
never have imagined meeting someone who loved me
from minute one, before meeting Steven.  And I wish that
love for you in your life.

Are we perfect?  Not at all.  We argue quite a bit, but do
we love each other -- yes. To the moon and back.

Have a loving your life day.