Fall notes: Open Studios, and Back to the Blog!
"Why would you bring strawberries and dogwoods to open studios in October. Where are the pumpkins?"
It started with a notification from the library that a copy of Sorolla: Painted Gardens was finally available and on hold for me. Have you seen this book? It's on my Christmas list now, officially.
I've been strawberry obsessed since I was little (Strawberry Shortcake dolls, obviously). I've painted plenty in my life, but this season it started with Sorolla. I spent hours slowly turning the pages in this beautiful book, noticing the light, the shadow, how he used hard and soft edges to move the eye, how he let parts go slightly out of focus so you've no choice but to hone in on what's important… I wanted to try that. Given that I'd just brought home a gorgeous strawberry plant, I painted strawberries. All summer. Then as I was battling deer and squirrels for a single berry, I painted them again with a better background. Then again with more accurate light. Guess what? They are growing madly around the garden even now. Well played, garden visitors, well played.
The palette I landed on: blues for the background field, flame red and primary red for the fruit, white for the light hits. Warm against cool.
Why did I paint all of these strawberries? To try playing around with edges? Yes. To work on warm vs. cool light and shadow? Yes, and most importantly to share the moments with you. So you could feel the sun-warmed earth, smell the strawberries, see those itty bitty flowers. Can a painting do that? It sounds like a snake oil cure until you witness it, right? Season be damned, I think I still have a strawberry or two left in me.
At the same time I moved into dogwoods. I currently have dogwood paintings, finished, unfinished, sketches and studies blue-taped all over my dining room wall. Temporarily, I swear.
Summer was glorious and spontaneous and routines were loose and free. As soon as school started and my time was my own again, I didn't want another week to go by without reaching out.
What I'm sitting with:
How dare I create when, as Mr. Murphy from PolySci used to say, "the world’s going to hell in a handbasket"?
Creating is a human right, whether you do it in public or in private, for sale or for you. It's awesome.
I say that because I spent a lot of this summer negotiating with myself about when I'm allowed to pick up a brush. The internal monologue goes: do my PT/move, pick up kids, go lie down, prep meals, what's that smell?, rest my body, drop off kids, keep the groundhog out of the garden, hydrate, fill out the forms, schedule another doctor's appointment, pick up kids, Zoom meeting, why is it sticky here?, dog to the vet, pick up medication, drop off kids, check on Mom and Dad. Raise your hand if any of this sounds familiar.
All of this needs to happen, yes. Ideally. When I paint early, I approach the list with more patience. It keeps my hands mobile. Lowers my blood pressure. Helps me be a better person to everyone else on that list above. Painting is my business, and that business is using my hands, my eyes and my paintbrush to share what I see and feel — right now, that's a dining room wall covered in blue tape, dogwood studies and grateful awe. I am painting almost every day now. It keeps the practice from becoming scary and reminds me that our lives hold infinite possibilities. I will share the "infinite possibilities" story in my next blog entry. Promise.
You want a pumpkin? Here's a pumpkin. My gorgeous original miniature painting, "Right Where I Left it" is on display at the library and it is available. See? I've got you. Does it look familiar? Yes! It's Weston Road going into Weston. Before the middle school.
Where to find me this fall:
I have a few things coming up and I'd love to see you:
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Natick Art Association Exhibit — Morse Institute Library, through the end of October. I'm on the lower level, just past the Children's Library room, in two separate cases.
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Natick Open Studios — October 17th and 18th from 11-5pm on Saturday and 12-5 on Sunday
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Natick Farmers Market — November 28th, Downstairs 9-2pm
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Southborough History and Arts Center Craft Show - December 5th, 10:00 am - 5:00 pm
Put one in your phone. Put them all in!
Yes, I will offer these for sale online to my subscribers Friday evening until 11am the morning of the 17th. Get on my email list to make that happen.
And if you want to see what's happening between now and then — the process, the art market prep, the reality of a very messy dining room table while kids get off to school and my husband starts a new job — I'm at @stelladorriestudio on Instagram and www.StellaAndDorrieStudio.com.
-- Miranda
P.S. My nighttime sketchbook filled up — the one that isn't for a project, isn't a study or a plan. For a while I was coloring in kid coloring books with palettes from the Japanese Color Dictionary vol. 1 while I watched The Last House. Now I'm playing with watercolor while I listen to The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer. What are you watching and reading or listening to? Write me back.