cedar’s blog

Cedar April 28th, 2008

I was recently contacted by some people who have a really tall wall in their house that needs a really tall painting. They’re commissioning a 6-foot-tall, 4-foot-wide painting of a fall tree. I won’t say any more about the plan for the painting (you’ll see that when it’s done.)

This will be one of the largest paintings I’ve ever done, which is exciting. For a painting this large, I have to build the underlying frame and stretch the canvas myself. Building large canvases is an art in itself, so I thought it would be cool to share that process with you.

I made this video explaining how I stretch a canvas:

So, that’s what I’ve been up to.

Also, this past weekend I got my garden mostly planted. I’m going to install a drip irrigation system, which will save me a lot of water and a lot of time this summer. I ordered enough irrigation hoses and connectors to install a low-pressure system in all the garden plots in my front and back yards. I can’t wait for the stuff to arrive in the mail!

My husband and I are going to start riding our bicycles more often. And for the past couple of weeks I’ve been lifting weights. I’m working on incorporating my plans to become ripped into my schedule. We’ll see how that goes.

This is a busy and happy time of year for me!

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Cedar April 15th, 2008

Here’s another kitty for you:

Curious Kitten
Acrylic on Canvas 8 x 10″

Thanks to the excellent photographer JP Dawson for the source image for this painting! This is one of my favorites so far in the cat series–I like how the red background is so vibrant. I can just picture this little guy swatting at a piece of string.

Please take these 2 quick polls. Polls are fun!

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Cedar April 12th, 2008

Sorry for the lack of updates–glorious spring is finally here and I’ve been spending more time outside than at my computer. Everything seems to be picking up speed.

My husband and I are working on our garden this weekend. One of my very best friends, Katrina, volunteers at a local horse farm teaching kids to ride once a week. Through her connections, I have scored a free, unlimited source of rich, already composted horse manure, the stuff I call “black gold,” for use in fertilizing my garden. Yesterday we procured 7 giant garbage bags of the stuff, and I have plans to go back for more.

Words can barely describe how giddy I was when I saw this mountain of manure at the horse farm. Ranging from colors of burnt sienna to a near-black charcoal, it is literally as tall as a 2-story building, and free for the taking. With the help of this beautiful addition to my soil, I am confident that I will grow the monster-sized veggies of my dreams this summer.

And, lacking the sheer awe of a 2-story-building-sized heap of composted horse manure, but probably of more interest to you, here’s the thing this post was supposed to be about:

Last night I attended Maryland Art Place’s “Out of Order” art show and silent auction, where I hung my painting “Glowing Water.” This is the third time I’ve taken part in this annual event, and it was fun! I met a lot of other artists.

Here’s me next to my painting:

As you can see, the place was packed:

And there was a lot of excellent art:

And I received many compliments on my work.

I’ll have new paintings to show you in my next update–for now, I’m off to dig in the garden!

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Cedar April 4th, 2008

Blossoms, blossoms, everywhere!

This painting began with a photo of the bare branches of the tree in my backyard, like my previous painting “April Cherry Blossoms.” Once I had painted the branches onto the canvas, I proceeded to add an abundance of fluffy blossoms all over the place! The blossoms this time are white–in reality this tree blooms in pink, but I was in the mood for white, hopeful & pure. Gotta love creative license!

Snowy Blossoms
Acrylic on Canvas, 30″ x 24″

The sky in this painting includes colors that range from a very light sky blue to a darker blue with a hint of lilac–you can’t go wrong with cool colors like this! (The Pantone Color Institute, which is the leading authority on color trends, from interior design and fashion to popular colors for cars, has named “Blue Iris” as the official hottest color of 2008.)

I’m fully enjoying the warmer weather. Last weekend my husband and I tackled some landscaping work we’ve been planning for a long time. There’s now a beautiful brick border around the flower bed in the center of our lawn. I’ve been working out every day, and I’m constantly sore but it feels good to be getting in shape. I’m going dancing tonight. And this weekend I’ll be out digging and prepping my garden for planting.

Life is good!

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