It's now a day off from the Gallery, and I am catching up on some important "other" projects that I have going. While going through very old photos and documents, I came across some old letters that I sent to my husband, mother, grandmother, and their return answers from the years soon after our moving to Norway. I sat a while with these old memories, and relished them. They gave me strength during a time in my life that I was unsure of. Had I made a mistake in moving to Bergen? Would I ever master the language and customs? Would I ever be accepted by "real" norwegians? With one foot in Norway and another in the US, I felt privileged, yet, torn.  Here I am 37 years later, reflecting…..so happy that I didn't give in to insecurity and the uncomfortable feeling of leaving behind everything familiar and loved.  We take giant leaps of faith all the time in our lives, not knowing where we will end up. We make decisions and then anguish about how they will pan out. I felt that I had to follow my heart, and it has been the best gauge of what is right and good. The insecurity turned into security….likewise with the rest of the negatives. Life is good and it is getting better all the time…..just give it….time.

Just an afterthought, ……will I ever get past the botanicals?? I have a new series that I am working on that is possibly more personal than I have painted previously, but needs to come out. Maybe that will be a new direction for next year's exhibit. In the meantime, Here's a little taste of what's coming up this time around.

Today started out wet and rainy…improved slowly, and now the sun is shining through my living room window like it's the most normal thing in the world. Thank you God for the most wonderful summer in Norway EVER. I had the feeling that I was in PA. during a heat wave and now I remember why Fall used to be my most favorite time of the year. I have become scandinavian in tolerance for heat. I actually enjoy being able to put on a sweater and feel a cool breeze. Warm=good, hot=hell.
After having had to cancel our trip to the US this summer because my husband had emergency appendix surgery, I have not have so many hours in the studio to prepare for the exhibit I'm committed to in September. I admit, I do work hard when I am there, and I have about 15 relatively new paintings that are going to be shown, so all in all, if I had managed to put in more studio hours, I would have twice the number. Fortunately, Lille Atelier is just a 2 room gallery, with exactly the amount of wall space to accommodate my production.
I am looking forward to September.  At the same time, I am anxious about what the vibe of these paintings will be like when I hang them up in a controlled, coordinated, confined area. I'm betting that I will feel like putting a bed in the gallery and staying there for the entire month. Hoping that I'll get plenty of visitors/art interested/curious types that come in an just want to STAY. After many positive experiences with exhibits, I expect nothing less than to build on the positive trend from past years. I look forward to seeing new and old friends, family and neighbors and plenty of strangers that will be wowed by what they see. Wish me luck……..

Just a small note here cause it's late and I've done…not so much today. Funny how lack of energy fuels lack of energy. I woke up today fully expecting to go through the usual motions, and head to the studio. The weather went from bad to worse….rain, wind, grey, dark, gloomy.  Actually, the perfect day to go to the studio and lose yourself in work and forget about the outside world. Well,  I started to re-arrange furniture, look up books and authors in my book case and on the web, shower, wash clothes, make food, read, and before I knew it, I had unwittingly puttered the day away. This is how it can be if I don't make the determined decision to get out of my home and walk the short distance to my studio. It's a slippery slope to start fixing this, and cleaning that, and checking the emails/FB/NYTimes, etc. Time stealers, all of them. It's a devil on my shoulder saying that I deserve a day to relax and catch up on all the loose ends that hang around in my head and irritate me. I will not do this next week, cause I rob myself of days that I have been given to live and create, and to get one step closer to fulfilling the reason I was given the ability and privilege of a studio to carry out this work in. As artists, we have a duty to show up on the job daily, and plug away. My high school teacher would have ruled it unexcused absence……..

LIFE, Painting, patience……
OK, it's been way too long since the last posting, and I don't know if I've been missed, but I have been painting steadily since January. October and Nov. were vacation months….in the US…..a nice long stretch were I got to see friends (in South Carolina), family in Rochester, NY, and just plain vacation (including Thanksgiving!!) in Florida. After that long break, I was ripe for some studio time, but Christmas came and went before I managed to get over there. I don't at all mean to make excuses, so let it be said that while I was waiting to get my hands messy with color, I was planning my next color scheme, thinking about strategies, size of canvases, etc.  You see, even though I'm not actually painting, I AM doing it in my head. And I walk around with a nearly constant bad conscience when I find that I have to use time on other projects/duties/appointments, etc. But when I walk through the door to my studio and smell the smells, see the works on the walls/lying on the floor, or my desk covered with opened books, or my journal-open and ready to be written in, I just feel HOME. Even when the sun is shining outside, and I know I should be out soaking up some vitamin D (this is Norway in the winter, after all!!) I just have to use that extra energy from the sun on creative per suits.
A small side trip to Copenhagen and the Louisiana Museum in Humlebaek were keeping my brain focused on the myriad  of possibilities available to creative types. Jackson Pollack and Asger Joern were exhibited side by side, so as to see the very similar roads traveled by the two, even though they never met, and never saw each other's work. Even though their works sprung from two very different cultures and social engagement, their techniques sometimes looked nearly identical. How fascinating to have this made evident by the excellent curators at the Louisiana……
While in Copenhagen, I also used the opportunity to buy excellent quality paint, which costs quite a lot more in Norway. Also bought clothes and ate excellent (and, at one dinner, not so excellent) food. Copenhagen is a wonderful little/big city, that once you get to know it, you appreciate and take advantage of the BIG TOWN offerings.
Tomorrow it's Monday…..fun day…..back to the studio day…..

Inspiration by the Buckets.....
I know this is long overdue, and I must make a note to self to think of this more often. I have been out accumulating masses of inspiration and hopefully it will be fun at the studio the next week or so, before I take an extended break for the next couple of months. The US trip is coming up soon, then by the time we're back, it'll be Christmas preparations, Christmas itself/New Year's....etc.
But, the past weeks I have been up in the mountains in the middle of Norway at Geilo. The fall hiking is absolutely amazing, and I have taken full advantage of the trails.  The photos will be reviewed to try to recapture some of the feeling/smells/tastes of the rustic atmosphere. There was snow, ice, boulders, heather, blueberry bushes (with berries), wind, and sunshine. I have had one of the best re-charge sessions ever, so this will have to be done on a more regular basis. One determining factor for the ability to cancel out the rest of the civilized world was that I was mostly alone....only me and my thoughts, paints, books.  I ate simply, drank only water and tea/coffee, with the occasional splurge with wine, no schedules, no stress.  It was wonderful. I couldn't recommend this stronger to anyone...Peace.
We could all use more of it, and it's relatively free....a long walk, hike, bike ride. Use the body like it was meant to be used and feel your mind calm right down. Nature has some remarkable qualities to heal and restore.  And Inspire. Peace to you all.

Halfway through August Exhibit.....

A good morning from the kitchen table in Sandviken (Bergen......Norway). The view was sooo gray when I woke up, but the fog is slowly lifting, and my spirits with it.  My day is shaping into a repeat of the past 3 days, but that's a good thing.  Not that it's everything, but so far this exhibit, 5 paintings have found new homes, and today I have people coming in with the expressed intention of purchasing.
The fact that people react so positively to my work keeps me plugging away, cause even though I paint for me, the feedback is so positive that I know my work resonates.  Sharing a work is gratifying for both parties. Hoping for more people to take the step.....into an art gallery.....mine, or anyone else's, because if we don't get over our phobia for art, we're locked into taking 'others' word for what is and isn't good work. I get the feeling that the idea of art is so exclusive and out of reach for the majority of people that they just don't dare even step in the door of a gallery. BE BRAVE. GET OVER YOUR INFERIORITY complex and trust your own taste, BUT, in order to determine what it is that you like and don't like, you have to go look at enough art to have an opinion! It's fun, and it can be very moving. It can make you laugh, cry, anger you or give you insight through an image, made by a person who is better at communicating through making images, than through words.
Have a great Sunday!