Stones in the River

Watching the water flow over stones in a river is much like

watching the flames in a fire: very hypnotic and soothing.  I can lose myself on a river

bank for hours just watching and listening to the water dance over the different shapes

of the stones.

This painting is 18" high by 24" wide (before framing) and is done in acrylic with many transparent

layers on a gessoed board.  It is framed (see the photo below).  Funny, but as someone who usually paints in oils, I found using transparent layers of acrylic oddly meditative.

PURCHASE HERE





Stones to Speak in Melbourne Area!

You and Yours

are cordially invited to join us on First Friday,

Nov. 4 between 6 and 8 pm for

"The Stones Speak"

a poetry and art collaboration by

Fay Picardi & Cindy Michaud

poetry reading at 6:30 pm

allaprima Styling Group

1540 Highland Avenue

Eau Gallie Arts District

This unique presentation opened in September in Linville, NC at the

Avery County Arts Council and now

makes it way to Melbourne.

A book containing the poetry as well as full color art work has

been produced in time for gift-giving season and

will be sold that evening for

$12.00.

Hope to see you there.



And the WINNER is...

I promised I'd follow up on what possessed me to compose this piece titled "Only a Suit?"  It was great to find out that more than a couple readers did "get it" and shared perfect explanations of the meaning of the piece.  Several others sent in humorous, albeit appropriate, remarks.  It is always nice to know that when you attempt to use symbols or imagery for a different meaning that it is, indeed, decipher-able!

The suit here represents the outside of the person, much like the rock is first seen only from the outside.  In the case of a geode it could be ugly and nondescript, muddy or rough.  You really don't know what is deep inside until you crack it open and get to the heart of the stone.  The exterior of people is much the same (remember when you were told not to judge a book by the cover?).  The suit might give me one assumption but until I get to the heart of the person, or crack him open, I will not have the truth.  The geodes were a good way to remember this when dealing with the public...I soon learned that the exterior appearance had absolutely nothing to do with the situation...it was my job to slice through the exterior and learn what really lay below.  Only then could I do my job.

Hope you find a geode today.

I can't stop myself....

I've got it bad, I know I do!  Sometimes we need to be saved from ourselves.  Stones now occupy every facet of my creative mind and if someone doesn't stop me soon I may ....who knows??  Anyway, thought I would share the latest shiny object that caught my attention.

I had contacted a jeweler in NC with the idea of him making me a couple of tiny cairns out of river stones...he thought he could so I commissed two of them and have really enjoyed them.  About a year later I was playing with stones on the banks of the Watagua River and had the bright idea (!) of making a keychain.  As usually happens,

one thing led to another and before I knew it I was playing around with the cairns myself...as well as earrings and whathaveyous.

I was blowing drill bits like crazy (not to mention stones) so just for the heck of it decided to see if I could "make" stones out of polymer clay. 

These proved to be much more lightweight.

I've got friends "product testing" the keychains in clay to see how they holdup; the earrings are fun to wear, long and dangly and the pendants say "river gal" all over them.  Oh, I did stick pins, flat pins and have a request for hair sticks.  I have short hair so these may pose a challenge but as soon as they are finished the clay goes back into the (back of the) closet.

Whew!  Glad I got that out of my system!

Almost...not quite!

Almost finished...but not quite.  The more I paint stones the more ideas I have for paintings about stones.  but deadlines loom and I must bring this to a close. 

With that in mind I decided to throw caution to the wind and paint in all the layers of colors that I so love.  This painting is almost complete...still has a little ways to go but I

intend to leave most of it loose and colorful, letting

your imagination fill in the gaps.

Don't worry: there is water planning to rush over those roots, they'll serve

a purpose when all is said and done.

Now, back to varnishing and afixing hanging wires...