Read more about the ribbon cutting here:

Our Everyday Earth

Beginning to paint

I have decided it is time to get back to painting. Well, I have been painting, but on grand children’s nursery walls, which I love, but, when I wasn’t painting on walls, nothing to do but I decided I would make a couple of small quilts. What was I thinking? Well enough is enough, I have to start a new piece. I miss my time in front of a canvas. It is my opportunity to use the talent that God has given me, to attempt to capture his magnificent creations. As Erma Bombeck said ” When I stand before God at the end of my life I would hope that I would have not a single bit of talent left and could say, “I used everything you gave me.”  I hope I can say the same thing.

This new piece will be called “The Art of Gardening”, it is a 36″ x 48″ gallery wrapped canvas and has some of my favorite things in it. There are the Morning Glories on our back fence, sunflowers in our side garden, my old cobalt blue and yellow bottles, my potted plants, and not to forget a butterfly! So here it is sketched out, it’s kind of rough, but the painting has started! I’ll keep you up to date on it’s progress.

The Sketch

Zebra Longwing and Jatropha

I have almost finished my piece “Zebra Longwing and Jatropha”. This is the piece I am doing for the Organic in the City event for Texas Discovery Gardens. I was able to get pictures of the Zebra Longwing and the Jatropha plant on one of my visits to the Butterfly House and Gardens at Texas Discovery Gardens. The Zebra Longwing is the mascot butterfly for Texas Discovery Gardens. It is actually a poisonous species due to the host plant it feeds on, they advertise this with their brilliant black and yellow- white markings. Slow but dignified, the Zebra Longwing is a weak flier. Long antennae and a slender body are typical of these butterflies, which are at home in the tropics, but can sometimes be found as far north as Kansas. According to Wikipedia, Jatropha is a genus of approximately 175 succulent plants, shrubs and trees, from the family Euphorbiaceae. The name is derived from (Greek iatros = physician and trophe = nutrition), hence the common name physic nut. Jatropha is native to Central America and has become naturalized in many tropical and subtropical areas, including India, Africa, and North America. As with many members of the family Euphorbiaceae, Jatropha contains compounds that are highly toxic. Below is a glimpse into the work in progress:

Just beginning to paint.

Working on Jatropha flowers.

Filling in color.

Sunflowers and Gulf Fritillary Butterfly 8 x 8 acrylic on canvas

I am just about finished with my small canvas “Sunflowers and Gulf Fritillary Butterfly”. I have just a little bit of detail work to do, but it is almost there.  I was surprised at the time it took to do this small canvas. From beginning to end it was about a days worth of painting. For some reason, I feel like with such a small canvas, it shouldn’t take that long, but the detail work is time consuming. Oh well, I enjoyed working small and will probably do some more. The star in this painting is the Gulf Fritillary, which is a Brush-footed Butterfly, this family of butterflies is very large with about 3,000 species worldwide. This lovely bright orange member is found primarily in the South.  As I mentioned in a previous blog, the caterpillars of the Gulf Fritillary, love passion flowers. One of these vines in your yard and some nectar flowers will provide a nice habitat for these beauties.

8 x 8 canvas

I’ve decided to start work on some small canvases, after finishing my last 36″ x 48″ Painted Lady. I have two going right now, an orange zinnia, which is one of my favorite flowers, this is on a 12″ x 12″ canvas and a gulf fritillary on an 8″ x 8″ canvas. I really love painting the large canvases, but the small allow me to really concentrate on the details and I am a detail person. With Christmas around the corner, I’m not finding much time to paint, but I am more than enjoying the trade off, time with family and friends, whom I love dearly! Wishing the best of the Holidays to all.

12 x 12 canvas

The beginning.

I am now working on a 36 x 48 acrylic on canvas. My inspiration was a painted lady butterfly that was taking advantage of the sweet nectar of a zinnia in our side yard. I was able to get within inches of her. I am always amazed at the creative power of God, the detail right down to the iridescent glow on her back. All the flowers are found in our front, side and back yard, zinnias and sunflowers, all of which are absolutely spectacular when in mass. The zinnias are such a deep, rich red. I am included pictures to show the progression of my work. I’m beginning to see the light at the end, however I still have a lot more work to do on the leaves and more detail work to do on the flowers, well back to painting.

Near the end.

Work continues.