Monday, April 30, 2012

A Home in Carlton Landing - The Beth Version

“We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.”
– Marian Wright Edelman

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

A Home in Carlton Landing – 5″ x 8″ Watercolor and Sharpie

This house is across the street from The Meeting House at Carlton Landing.  When my hubby saw this painting, he said “They really need to get a new lumber yard.  They are not getting very straight boards.”  Isn’t he funny.  It is a perfectly straight and beautiful home.  It has just been “Beth-ized”.    The homes that are popping up in Carlton Landing are so wonderful.  When you look inside them, you find all kinds of fun little surprises.  They are truly unique.

About Marian Wright Edelman

American activist Marian Wright Edelman, who founded the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) as a voice for poor, minority, and handicapped children, was the first African-American woman to practice law in Mississippi. She was born in 1939 in South Carolina. Her father, a Baptist preacher, died when she was 14; his last words to her were, “Don’t let anything get in the way of your education.” She graduated from Yale Law School in 1963. Her many awards include the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Friday, April 27, 2012

Vested Bird ATC

“Yesterday is ashes.  Tomorrow is green wood.  Only today does the fire burn brightly.”
Eskimo saying

Another Vested Bird – 2.5″ x 3.5″ Watercolor ATC

Here’s a little bird ATC I painted for an exchange.  Have a great weekend!

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012



Thursday, April 26, 2012

The Meeting House at Carlton Landing

“We can let the circumstances of our life harden us so that we become increasingly resentful and afraid, or we can let them soften us and make us kinder and more open to what scares us. We always have this choice.”
– Pema Chodron

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

The Meeting House at Carlton Landing – 5.5″ x 8.5″ Watercolor and Sharpie

I painted this from a photo I took some time ago.  Now there is little window boxes on the windows and a hand painted sign (by me) hanging on the corner of the building.  Carlton Landing is a wonderful new community on Lake Eufaula that is like the old days, where you knew your neighbors and got together in the common areas to celebrate events or just hang out.   The meeting house will be one of many areas that people can come together.  It’s a magical place and I’m happy to be a part of the team, as their sign lady.

Our Favorite Place is opening on May 3rd!  I am so excited!  My artwork is there, among so many other wonderful pieces of art.  It’s truly a unique gallery and showcase for all things made in Oklahoma.  Go take a peek at their website.

Pema Chodron is a leading exponent of teachings on meditation and how they apply to everyday life.   She is widely known for her charming and down-to-earth interpretation of Tibetan Buddhism for Western audiences.

Pema is the resident teacher at Gampo Abbey, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, the first Tibetan monastery for Westerners and has authored several books, including:

Always Maintain a Joyful Mind (lojong teachings)
Practicing Peace in Times of War
No Time to Lose
The Pema Chodron Collection (audio)
Getting Unstuck:Breaking Your Habitual
Patterns & Encountering Naked Reality (audio)
The Places that Scare You
When Things Fall Apart
Start Where You Are
More info here.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Kitty wants that treat…. pleeeeeeease!

“How pleasant is the day when we give up trying to be young – or slender!”
–William James

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Kitty wants that treat…. right now!  I can smell it! – 3″ x 4″ Watercolor & Sharpie

Susan (Surob) at WetCanvas posted a photo of her cat, Trixie for us to paint last weekend.  I love painting cat eyes.  I think this expression could also say… “Who me?  Those are not my claws in the dog’s nose!  I have an alibi!  I was right here napping…. feel the warmth on my back from the sun?”.

William James,  January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910

William James was born into an affluent family. His father was deeply interested in philosophy and theology and strove to provide his children with a rich education.

The James children traveled to Europe frequently, attended the best possible schools, and were immersed in culture and art, which apparently paid off – William James went on to become one of the most important figures in psychology, while brother Henry James became one of the most acclaimed American novelists.
Early in school, James expressed an interest in becoming a painter. While Henry James Sr. was known as an unusually permissive and liberal father, he wanted William to study science or philosophy. Only after William persisted in his interest did Henry permit his son to formally study painting.
More here.

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

A bird can’t fly with clothes on, silly!

“Mindfulness is the aware, balanced acceptance of the present experience. It isn’t more complicated than that. It is the opening to or receiving the present moment, just as it is, without either clinging to it or rejecting it.”
–Sylvia Boorstein

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

A bird can’t fly with clothes on, silly! – 3″ x 4″ Watercolor and Sharpie

Having clothes and shoes on has certainly impeded this bird’s ability to fly.  He had to climb up on a ladder to see what other birds see from these heights.

The weekly word on Illustration Friday is Heights, and I’m posting this little fellow over there today, too.  The (naked bird) photo I painted it from was posted by Susan (Surob) at WetCanvas and it is her sister’s Blue Fronted Amazon, Blue.  :)

Sylvia Boorstein

The anthropologist Margaret Mead said that some people have a “teaching gene” and, if that’s true, I think my father, Harry Schor, had that gene and that I inherited it from him. He loved explaining and demonstrating, and so do I. He taught me to swim, to roller skate, to ride a bike, to solve anagrams and to construct crossword puzzles. He taught me about puns and limericks. He was a mathematics teacher by profession and he taught me algebra and geometry at home, years before I learned them at school. My mother was unique amongst the mothers on our street. She had a job. She drove a car. She had passionately progressive political views and the loudest laugh of anyone I knew. I think I’m just like her.

More about Sylvia Boorstein can be found on her website here.

Monday, April 23, 2012

It’s so Hot at these Heights! – 3″ x 4″ Inktense and Sharpie

There are many ways of breaking a heart. Stories were full of hearts broken by love, but what really broke a heart was taking away its dream – whatever that dream might be.
Pearl S. Buck

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

It’s so Hot at these Heights!  – 3″ x 4″ Inktense and Sharpie

The word of the week at Illustration Friday is Heights.  Susan (Surob) at WetCanvas posted a photo of a squirrel, all sprawled out trying to cool off on a hot day.  I thought it was perfect for this week’s theme.  Check back tomorrow for another one.

Are you wondering what Inktense is?  Inktense pencils are like watercolor pencils, except the color is very intense and after it is dry, it’s permanent, like ink.  Here is a photo with part of the sky still in the pencil form.

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Today is the 20th anniversary of Signs by Beth, LLC!  I can’t believe I’ve had my sign shop for 20 years.  I should be celebrating somehow.  Can’t celebrate with the hubby because he has been wanting me to retire for the last 10 years.  My business is the thing that keeps me away from him.  I can see what he means, but it’s still something to be proud of.  WoooHooo!  There!  Celebrated.  :)

Heights - Illustration Friday

I had to post the photo again, because when Facebook picks this up, sometimes it posts the last photo and I didn’t want the half done sky to show up on Facebook.  :D

Pearl Comfort Sydenstricker was born on June 26, 1892, in Hillsboro, West Virginia. Her parents, Absalom and Caroline Sydenstricker, were Southern Presbyterian missionaries, stationed in China. Pearl was the fourth of seven children (and one of only three who would survive to adulthood). She was born when her parents were near the end of a furlough in the United States; when she was three months old, she was taken back to China, where she spent most of the first forty years of her life.

In 1910, Pearl enrolled in Randolph-Macon Woman’s College, in Lynchburg, Virginia, from which she graduated in 1914. Although she had intended to remain in the US, she returned to China shortly after graduation when she received word that her mother was gravely ill. In 1915, she met a young Cornell graduate, an agricultural economist named John Lossing Buck. They married in 1917, and immediately moved to Nanhsuchou (Nanxuzhou) in rural Anhwei (Anhui) province. In this impoverished community, Pearl Buck gathered the material that she would later use in The Good Earth and other stories of China.
More on Pearl S. Buck can be found here.

Friday, April 20, 2012

Alpaca Party and a Proper Lipstick Shade

“Our real blessings often appear to us in the shape of pains, losses and disappointments, but let us have patience and we soon shall see them in their proper figures.”
– Joseph Addison

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Alpaca Party – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor and Sharpie

While we’re on the subject of alpacas…. what shade of lipstick goes best on a pink and yellow alpaca?  Bright red, of course!  Nothing is off limits in art.  I can always find my inner goof-ball!  I have a very stressful, busy work life and art helps me not to take myself too seriously!  :)

About Joseph Addison

English politician and writer Joseph Addison is remembered as a cofounder, along with his friend Richard Steele, of The Spectator, one of the first magazines to cover literature and manners. He was born in 1672 in Wiltshire. He spent four years traveling in Europe, studying politics and writing poetry, and became a Commissioner of Appeals on his return to England. His shyness made public office difficult. His most famous work is the play Cato, a tragedy about ancient Rome. He died in 1719.

Thursday, April 19, 2012

Hey, It is a Purple Alpaca!

“True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment.”
– William Penn

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Hey, It is a Purple Alpaca!   4″ x 6″ Watercolor

No really…. I do not take drugs.   I don’t even drink.   I just have a vivid imagination.  I painted this from a photo by Crias at WetCanvas.  Yes, the teeth really looked like that.  :)

About William Penn

William Penn is remembered as the founder of Pennsylvania; the democratic government he set up became the model for the United States Constitution. He was born in 1644 in England. After he was arrested several times for preaching Quaker ideals, he decided to found a settlement in America. He drew up the “Great Treaty” with the Delaware Indians to ensure they were paid fairly for their land and toured Europe marketing the new colony. He died in 1718.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Versace Home in Pink

“The other day a man asked me what I thought was the best time of my life. ‘Why,’ I answered without a thought, ‘now.’”
David Grayson

I agree, with a resounding NOW!!!  -  I love this time of my life!
--Beth
 
Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Versace Home in Pink – 5.5″ x 8.5″ Watercolor & Sharpie


Helen at WetCanvas posted a photo of the Versace home on WetCanvas for us to paint from.  Yes… of course it is white.  What’s the fun in that?  At my house, we are having our pink stucco freshened up this week.  Wanna see?

Beth & Duane's Pink House on Lake Eufaula

So… now does it make more sence that I turned Versace’s home pink?  We had leftover stucco.  he he
Note… I can’t give you any biographical info today on David Grayson.  There are too many of them on the internet.  I don’t know which one said this.  I got it from one of my favorite books in the whole world… Wrinkles Don’t Hurt – Daily Meditations on the Joy if Aging – by the wonderful author, Ruth Fishel.  She also wrote A Time for Joy, another of my favorites.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Congress Hotel goes Yellow

“The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue growing as we continue to live.”
–Mortimer Adler

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

 Congress Hotel – 5.5″ x 8.5″ Watercolor & Sharpie
Helen posted a photo of the Congress Hotel in South Beach, FL  on WetCanvas for us to paint from.  It is a grand, art deco style, white building.  But of course, I found a sale on yellow stucco and re-did the color for them.  I love the unique architecture of this hotel and it is happier in yellow.

Mortimer Adler, (born Dec. 28, 1902, New York, N.Y., U.S.died June 28, 2001, San Mateo, Calif.) U.S. philosopher, educator, and editor. He earned a doctorate in philosophy from Columbia University (1928) and taught philosophy of law from 1930 at the University of Chicago, where with Robert M. Hutchins he promoted the idea of liberal education through regular discussions of the great books. Together they edited the 54-volume Great Books of the Western World (1952); for Encyclopdia Britannica, Inc., they edited an annual, The Great Ideas Today (from 1961), and the 10-volume Gateway to the Great Books (1963). In 1969 Adler became director of planning for the 15th edition of Encyclopdia Britannica, published in 1974. His many books include How to Read a Book (1940), How to Think About God (1980), Six Great Ideas (1981), and Ten Philosophical Mistakes (1985).

Read more here.

Monday, April 16, 2012

Puzzled Giraffe

“There is a sense of exhilaration that comes from facing head-on the hard truths and saying, ‘We will never give up. We will never capitulate. It might take a long time, but we will find a way to prevail.’”
– Jim Collins

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012


Puzzled – 5.5″ x 8.5″ Watercolor & Sharpie – for Illustration Friday

Surely you have seen a giraffe of this sort… right?  he he  Well…. maybe in Bethville.  :)

I did this little painting for Illustration Friday.  The theme word is “puzzled”.   I found a wonderful reference photo by jerri rose at WetCanvas, that made this a pure joy to paint.  Fun!  I would like to be able to do IF more often, because I really enjoyed it.

About Jim Collins

American business guru Jim Collins has written or cowritten four books, including the instant classic Built to Last, which spent more than six years on the Business Week best-seller list, and Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t, which became a New York Times best seller. He was raised in Boulder, Colorado. After seven years teaching at Stanford University’s business school, he founded a research laboratory to examine companies and why they succeed.

Friday, April 13, 2012

You’ve never seen a blue turkey in a straw hat, playing the fiddle?

“Place yourself in the middle of the stream of power and wisdom, which flows through your life. Then, without effort, you are impelled to truth and to perfect contentment.”
–Ralph Waldo Emerson

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

What?  You’ve never seen a blue turkey in a straw hat, playing the fiddle?

Rummaging through the archives again.  I imagine people sometimes wonder what kind of drugs I do.  Just coffee, I promise!  :)

Ralph Waldo Emerson

(born May 25, 1803, Boston, Mass., U.S.died April 27, 1882, Concord) U.S. poet, essayist, and lecturer. Emerson graduated from Harvard University and was ordained a Unitarian minister in 1829. His questioning of traditional doctrine led him to resign the ministry three years later. He formulated his philosophy in Nature (1836); the book helped initiate New England Transcendentalism, a movement of which he soon became the leading exponent. In 1834 he moved to Concord, Mass., the home of his friend Henry David Thoreau. His lectures on the proper role of the scholar and the waning of the Christian tradition caused considerable controversy. In 1840, with Margaret Fuller, he helped launch The Dial, a journal that provided an outlet for Transcendentalist ideas. He became internationally famous with his Essays (1841, 1844), including Self-Reliance. Representative Men (1850) consists of biographies of historical figures. The Conduct of Life (1860), his most mature work, reveals a developed humanism and a full awareness of human limitations. His Poems (1847) and May-Day(1867) established his reputation as a major poet.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Bald Boys

“Despise not small things, either for evil or good, for a look may work thy ruin, or a word create thy wealth. A spark is a little thing, yet it may kindle the world.”
– Martin Farquhar Tupper

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Bald Boys – Watercolor & Sharpie

I have a lot going on this morning, so I am posting something from the archives.  I painted this from a photo reference by Valri at WetCanvas.

Have a wonderful day!

About Martin Farquhar Tupper

Martin Farquhar Tupper was a genial, well-liked British poet best known for his book of blank verse, Proverbial Philosophy, which was a popular present for weddings and birthdays during the Victorian era. He was born in 1810 in London. He became close friends with the future prime minister William Gladstone in college. Prevented from entering the ministry by a persistent stammer, he tried law school before becoming a poet. He cured his stammer at age 35, he claimed, by constant prayer. He died in 1889.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Rolling Fields of Memory - Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas 24″ x 36″

“Each new season grows from the leftovers from the past. That is the essence of change, and change is the basic law.”
–Hal Borland

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Tah-Dah!  -  Rolling Fields of Memory
Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas  24″ x 36″

Or…. the back yard at Bethville.  *giggle*  It is actually my memories of the Eastern Idaho landscapes I visited last summer.

Sorry for the bad photo.  The florescent light in my lobby is working only part time, so I took this with a little light coming through the window, over-lighting the left panel.  The lines match up when the paintings are pushed together, but for some reason, I didn’t do that for this photo.  I’ll get some better pictures later, but I wanted to show you the finished painting.   As soon as I varnish it, it’s going to Our Favorite Place.  They have a spot saved for it.  :)

My next one is going to be a single painting, 24″ x 48″.    Weeeee!  This is fun!

Hal Borland wrote what he liked to think of as his “outdoor editorials” for the Sunday New York Times from 1941 until just before his death in 1978. Born on May 14, 1900, on the prairie in Nebraska, he grew up in Colorado, and then moved to New England in 1945. Borland brought to his writing both personal life experience with nature and the wisdom and ways of rural America.

Edwin Way Teale said the Mr. Borland’s “books are always like a breath of fresh country air.” Like his Sunday editorials, his outdoor books are essays which follow the seasons through the year: An American Year, Hill Country Harvest,Sundial of the Seasons, Seasons, Hal Borland’s Book of Days, Hal Borland’s Twelve Moons of the Year. Trained as a journalist, his writings report the daily news from the world of nature.

Mr. Borland also wrote four novels that include theme of nature and human’s relationship with nature. His most famous fiction is When Legends Die. The novel tells the story of Tom, a Ute Indian boy who is raised in the wilderness by his parents. They die when he is still young, so he adopts the old Ute ways, builds a lodge for himself, and lives off the land. However, neither the Utes nor the whites will leave him alone. Men from both communities use him for their own gain. Finally he returns to the mountains where he rediscovers himself and his roots. Other novels he wrote are The Amulet, The Seventh Winter, and King of Squaw Mountain.

Mr. Borland and his wife, Barbara, lived on a 100 acre farm, the site of an old Indian village in northwestern Connecticut. Mrs. Borland was also a writer and assisted her husband in his writing, too. Mr. Borland wrote many magazine articles, poems, essays, and stories as well as his many books.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Gallery Wrapped Canvas Edges

“There are two ways of exerting one’s strength: one is pushing down, the other is pulling up.”
– Booker T. Washington

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Gallery Wrapped Canvas Edges – A Sneak Peek

Well, I think it’s finished.  All I have to do now is sign it and varnish it.  I wanted to show you how I painted around the edges.  All four sides on all three panels are continued around the edges.  The gallery will sell them as individual paintings or all together, so each one needed to be a complete piece of art.  I am so excited to be done, but at the same time… I’m going to miss it.  This baby has been a big part of my life for over 3 weeks.  I guess that means it’s time to start another.  **giggle**

About Booker T. Washington

Booker T. Washington, the influential American educator, was the first African-American to be invited to the White House; he also had tea with Queen Victoria. He was born in slavery in Virginia in 1856. After emancipation, he worked in the salt mines. When he learned of a school that would accept former slaves, he walked much of the 400 miles to get there. He became an outspoken advocate of education and hard work for African-Americans and founded Tuskegee University. He died in 1915.

Monday, April 9, 2012

A New Sneak Peek at new Painting

“You are invited to live more consciously, to get off auto pilot and cruise control. To try new things to find out who you really are in this moment and time.”
– James Hollis, Ph.D.

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Another Sneak Peek at new Painting

I have been working on this every morning and more on the weekends.  It is such a slow process, as I tweak this and fine tune that.  I am so very pleased with this painting.  I have a growing affection for the whole process.  It’s a shame I have to keep going to my day job.  I could happily create in my studio all day.

This is the same little peek I showed you here.  It’s a wee little part of what I showed you here.   It’s on the far left panel, in the top third.  Many layers of color and glaze have been added since then.  I am almost finished.  A little more tweaking and fine tuning to go.  I think I even have the title… Fields of Memories, or something along that line.   Are two plurals in a title improper?  Like I said… or something like that.  :)

James Hollis, Ph.D., was born in Springfield, Illinois. He graduated with an A.B. from Manchester College in 1962 and with a Ph.D. from Drew University in 1967. He taught the Humanities 26 years in various colleges and universities before retraining as a Jungian analyst at the Jung Institute of Zurich, Switzerland (1977-82). He is a licensed Jungian analyst in private practice in Houston, Texas, where he served as Executive Director of the Jung Educational Center of Houston from 1997-2008. He lives with his wife Jill, an artist and therapist, and together they have three living children, and six grand-children. He is a retired Senior Training Analyst for the Inter-Regional Society of Jungian Analysts, was the first Director of Training of the Philadelphia Jung Institute, and is vice president emeritus of the Philemon Foundation, which is dedicated to the publication of the complete works of Jung. Additionally, he is Director of the Jungian Studies program of Saybrook Graduate School of San Francisco.  (See www.saybrook.edu, and then Jungian Studies).

He has written eight books published by Inner City Books, a Jungian-oriented press located in Toronto, Canada; he has also written three books published by Gotham Press, a division of Penguin, and two books published by academic presses. His books have already been translated into Russian, German, Swedish, Spanish, Portuguese, Turkish, Italian, Korean, Finnish, Hungarian, French, Czech, and Japanese.

Friday, April 6, 2012

Kitty Cat Easter Hat

“Neuroplasticity is our ability to change our mind,
to change ourselves and to change our perception of the
world around us; that is, our reality… we have to change
how the brain automatically and habitually works.
The ability to make our brain forgo its habitual internal
wiring and fire new patterns and combinations is
how neutoplasticity allows us to change.”
–Joe Dispenza, D.C.

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Kitty Cat Easter Hat – Watercolor

I thought this little painting would put us in the Easter fashion mode.  I know there is more to Easter than eggs, bunnies and lovely pastel colors, but this is an art blog.  I get to giggle and play with the fun things the season has to offer.  One Easter weekend about fifteen years ago, I died all my white painter’s overalls different pastel colors.  It was fun!  Overalls used to be my sign shop trademark, but my husband does the laundry and he hates to listen to the clanging buckles in the dryer.  So… without hesitation, I gave them up.  :D

Have a wonderful Easter weekend!

Joe Dispenza, D.C.

Take Your First Step Toward True Evolution

Ever wonder why you repeat the same negative thoughts in your head? Why you keep coming back for more from hurtful family members, friends, or significant others? Why you keep falling into the same detrimental habits or limiting attitudes—even when you know that they are going to make you feel bad?

Dr. Joe Dispenza has spent decades studying the human mind—how it works, how it stores information, and why it perpetuates the same behavioral patterns over and over. In the acclaimed film What the Bleep Do We Know!? he began to explain how the brain evolves—by learning new skills, developing the ability to concentrate in the midst of chaos, and even healing the body and the psyche.

Evolve Your Brain presents this information in depth, while helping you take control of your mind, explaining how thoughts can create chemical reactions that keep you addicted to patterns and feelings—including ones that make you unhappy. And when you know how these bad habits are created, it’s possible to not only break these patterns, but also reprogram and evolve your brain, so that new, positive, and beneficial habits can take over.

This is something you can start to do right now. You and only you have the power to change your mind and evolve your brain for a better life—for good.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Papa Bird Dresses for Easter

“I think the purpose of life is to be useful, to be responsible, to be honorable, to be compassionate. It is, after all, to matter: to count, to stand for something, to have made some difference that you lived at all.”
– Leo Rosten

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Papa Bird Dresses for Easter – Watercolor & Ink

I painted this little dude at the same time as I painted yesterday’s mama bird.  I really love his shoes!  I would wear those shoes… much to the horror of my poor “footwear conservative” hubby.  He hates my red high tops.  he he he :D

About Leo Rosten

Leo Rosten, the Polish-American academic and author, is best known for his seminal The Joys of Yiddish, an amusing look at Yiddish words that have entered the American vernacular. Born in Lodz, Poland, in 1908, he immigrated to Chicago as a child. He wrote dozens of books, including a set of extremely popular humorous stories about Hyman Kaplan, a night-school student struggling with English. Under the pseudonym Leonard Q. Ross, he wrote mysteries and film noir screenplays. He died in 1997.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Mama Bird in Her Easter Duds

“For what is a man, what has he got?
If not himself, then he has naught.
To say the things he truly feels;
And not the words of one who kneels.
The record shows I took the blows -
And did it my way!”
–Paul Anka for Frank Sinatra

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Mama Bird in Her Easter Duds – Watercolor & Ink

It’s another Eastery image for you.  I painted this during that monster snow storm we had in January of 2011.  I was in a motel room, since it wouldn’t be possible to get out of our steep driveway at home.  We were there for 4 days!  I liked this winter much better!!!

I’m still working on the large acrylic.  It’s coming along nicely.  I really hope I can finish it over the weekend, but we’ll see.  More sneak peeks coming.  :)

I heard My Way by Frank Sinatra on my way in to work today and I love the words to it, so when I got to work, I looked it up. This is part of that song.  The lyrics of “My Way” tell the story of a man who, having grown old, reflects on his life as death approaches. He is comfortable with his mortality and takes responsibility for how he dealt with all the challenges of life while maintaining a respectable degree of integrity.

“My Way” is a song popularized by Frank Sinatra. Its lyrics were written by Paul Anka and set to music based on the French song “Comme d’habitude” composed in 1967 by Claude François and Jacques Revaux, with lyrics by Claude François and Gilles Thibault. Comme d’habitude had in turn originally been written in English, titled “For Me”. Anka’s English lyrics are unrelated to the original French song or the earlier English version. “My Way” is often quoted as the most covered song in history.  Source:  Wikipedia

Listen to it here… Frank Sinatra, My Way (Live at the Royal Festival Hall 1971) by waytoblue

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Distorted Pink Easter Bunny

“Hope is the feeling you have that the feeling you have isn’t permanent.”
– Jean Kerr

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Distorted Easter Bunny – Watercolor & Sharpie

Since we are approaching Easter, I thought I’d revisit some of my Eastery paintings.  This little bunny was done by drawing a graph over the photo reference (of course you do know he wasn’t wearing a bow tie and vest… he he) and then drawing a graph on a piece of watercolor paper with curvy, distorted lines.  You then draw what is in each square into the distorted squares on your paper.  Clear as mud?  I know.  Just enjoy the bunny and pretend you’ve had a couple glasses of wine.  :D

About Jean Kerr

Comedic American author Jean Kerr is known for her wry take on married life in the suburbs in such books as How I Got to Be Perfect and Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, which was turned into both a movie and a TV series. She was born in Pennsylvania in 1922. She often collaborated on plays with her husband, drama critic Walter Kerr. She also wrote a number of plays by herself, including the extremely successful Mary, Mary, which ran for nearly 1,600 performances. She died in 2003.

Monday, April 2, 2012

3″ Crop from Panel 3 – Still adding color

“We may spend our lives seeking something that is right inside us, and could be found if we only stop and deepen our attention.”
–Tara Brach

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Itty Bitty 3″ Crop from Panel 3 – Still adding color

The color is starting to be defined and the fun is really beginning.  This part is so addictive!  I just keep adding more layers and more light and shadow.  It’s so hard to walk away at this point.  I got to paint most of the day, yesterday.  I still have so much to do.

My non artist hubby is having a hard time reconciling all the time it takes to do these.  He sees all the hours as less and less profit when it sells.  I tried to explain to him that it’s not really about the money, but as his eyes glazed over, I explained that I will always own the image itself and I can reproduce it in other ways to make more money.  That seemed to satisfy him, sorta.   It makes little sense to the non artist that we fall a little in love with the “whole” of the painting as we tenderly dab on each little bit of color, delighting in each new shadow or area of light that dances off the canvas.  I can’t wait to see it hanging on the gallery wall and I hope that someday, someone will love it as much as I do.

Tara Brach is a leading western teacher of Buddhist meditation, emotional healing and spiritual awakening. She has practiced and taught meditation for over 35 years, with an emphasis on vipassana (mindfulness or insight) meditation. Tara is the senior teacher and founder of the Insight Meditation Community of Washington. A clinical psychologist, Tara is the author of
Radical Acceptance: Embracing Your Life With the Heart of a Buddha and the upcoming book, True Refuge-Three Gateways to a Fearless Heart (Bantam, February 2013).
Tara is nationally known for her skill in weaving western psychological wisdom with a range of meditative practices. Her approach emphasizes compassion for oneself and others, mindful presence and the direct realization and embodiment of natural awareness.