We have, from Netflix, Disney's Haunted Mansion. The kids have watched about a dozen times this week and last night, as I was cleaning from supper, Rianna got this book out and illustrated her own version of the "legend" of the haunted mansion story. Very carefully, she drew each of the scenes and told me what each drawing was of and was very excited to do it! The best way to see them is to go to the Kids' Art set, they are in the proper order there.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Monday, April 24, 2006
Bellydance!
We did it!!! We survived and danced, too! Don't we look cool!
We (Marcy, aka Christiana and me, aka Vina) made our choreographic debut yesterday with our original dance to Raquy and the Cavemen's Caravan in the Shimmyfest recital of the Maya Zahira School of Bellydance. We also danced with our intermediate class to Paul Dinletir's Raks Africa. I was in the front row, next to our teacher Amara (whose photo is in my stream!), by accident, and nailed it!!!
(Click the photo to go to Flickr and mouse over it for notes)
Saturday, April 22, 2006
"Still Life" by Dave Gray
One of my Flickr contacts is Dave Gray, his screen name is "dgray_xplane."
Dave is an artist.
His Flickr stream is a lovely place to hang out and just absorb light and beauty, photographs and paintings. Recently, he's uploaded a lot of his oil paintings.
I saw this this morning.
The composition is masterful. His whites are so full of color and light. The palette and tissue next to his easel...like he's just taking a break from his painting to make a painting.
I live within 2 miles of Thomas Hart Benton's studio/home, and the studio was left the way it was when he died, working at his easel on a painting. His palette's there and brushes and it looks like he is just taking a break and will be right back any minute to finish signing it...an unintended homage.
Click the painting to go to a larger version and his Flickr stream!
I really love this Dave!
Monday, April 17, 2006
Weekend
Well, I had a bit of a surprise when I woke up, my monitor shows blue, green and a tiny bit of red. I know it's either the vid card or the monitor (it's rebuilt). The monitor's had a problem for some time, though. Partway through the morning, it gets darker. So my photos have been a little off...I think. I try not to mess with them too much, just in case. Well, it's just time to get the new machine, finally. I've been using the kids' computer that we found, it's an old school computer with a Pentium MMX and a teeny hard-drive. I could do most things I needed to with it. I have my scanner, printer, mp3 player, an old version of Photoshop and my lickity-split Roadrunner. So we just let it limp along, trying not to fill it up, having Walgreens burn my photos to cds, not putting all my music on it, til now. When we get the new one, I'll wipe the drive on this one and give it back to the kids with a new monitor/video card.
We went to the library Saturday and the kids picked out some great books and played while I drew this scene out the window (that doesn't count as plein air, does it?). Anyway, it was lots of fun. April is poetry month and the kids and I made poetry pockets with styro desert plates and small poems to put in them. We found one by Shel Silverstien about homework that Rianna liked and made a new version about balls with the same form. She is such a creative kid, I hope no one squashes that! I plan to keep a close eye on her teachers (already do)!
We went to the library Saturday and the kids picked out some great books and played while I drew this scene out the window (that doesn't count as plein air, does it?). Anyway, it was lots of fun. April is poetry month and the kids and I made poetry pockets with styro desert plates and small poems to put in them. We found one by Shel Silverstien about homework that Rianna liked and made a new version about balls with the same form. She is such a creative kid, I hope no one squashes that! I plan to keep a close eye on her teachers (already do)!
Sunday, April 16, 2006
ShimmyFest
"Shimmyfest" Dance Recital
Sunday April 23, 2006
1:30 pm - 4:30 pm
Event Location: Shawnee Civic Center, 13817 Johnson Drive, Shawnee KS
Notes:
Doors open at 1 p.m.
Reception follows show.
$8 advance tickets, $10 at the door, Kids 8 to 12 $3, Kids under 8 are free
I am dancing a duet with my friend Marcy and with our class. My first performance!
Sunday April 23, 2006
1:30 pm - 4:30 pm
Event Location: Shawnee Civic Center, 13817 Johnson Drive, Shawnee KS
Notes:
Doors open at 1 p.m.
Reception follows show.
$8 advance tickets, $10 at the door, Kids 8 to 12 $3, Kids under 8 are free
I am dancing a duet with my friend Marcy and with our class. My first performance!
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
EDM Challenges #1 & #13
I did most of this yesterday. At home I did the phone and at the park I did my shoe. I colored in the phone this morning in the same light. In my hedgehog!
New Book
Another friend on EDM, Starr, had commented about my blog and how she was inspired by my drawing consistently and as a surprise Thank-you, she sent me Danny's book! Bless you Starr! I read it in one sleepless night and have loaned it to another friend who is an "artist-in-hiding"... for the time being!
What I'm Doing
Hi!
I've been busy lately! A friend on Everyday Matters introduced me to Wet Canvas! a couple of weeks ago and I've done two of their Weekly Drawing Events! It's a really big art community site with tons of stuff and people and I'm finding my way around it. I got back to doing some tiny little ATC-sized paintings, this time more landscape-y than what I was doing for ATCs before. This one is from a photo by WDE host Barbara last weekend of a beach in Maine. Just 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches! You'll have to read these posts backwards to get it all...
I've been busy lately! A friend on Everyday Matters introduced me to Wet Canvas! a couple of weeks ago and I've done two of their Weekly Drawing Events! It's a really big art community site with tons of stuff and people and I'm finding my way around it. I got back to doing some tiny little ATC-sized paintings, this time more landscape-y than what I was doing for ATCs before. This one is from a photo by WDE host Barbara last weekend of a beach in Maine. Just 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches! You'll have to read these posts backwards to get it all...
Sunday, April 02, 2006
Garden Panorama
We went to the Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead today, the second day they are open for the season. It was 73, a little windy, but gorgeous! The kids had a grand time and were good as gold! So, on the way home we stopped at Sonic and had a large chocolate shake! Yummy!
There is a new member in the Everyday Matters Yahoo group who said lots of complimentary things about my blog today. How it made a difference with her. I'll make sure I keep posting. If one person is touched by what I have to give, others are and haven't said so. Thank you Starr!
I have been working on a painting this weekend for a Weekend Drawing Event on Wet Canvas! Diahn is hosting and I am working on something for her, so I thought I'd try. It's really amazing that a tiny little painting is taking me more than 3 days to get done. I've, maybe, put an hour's work into it. They are only supposed to have about 2 in them. Spending lots of time with the kidlets!
There is a new member in the Everyday Matters Yahoo group who said lots of complimentary things about my blog today. How it made a difference with her. I'll make sure I keep posting. If one person is touched by what I have to give, others are and haven't said so. Thank you Starr!
I have been working on a painting this weekend for a Weekend Drawing Event on Wet Canvas! Diahn is hosting and I am working on something for her, so I thought I'd try. It's really amazing that a tiny little painting is taking me more than 3 days to get done. I've, maybe, put an hour's work into it. They are only supposed to have about 2 in them. Spending lots of time with the kidlets!
Monday, February 20, 2006
Daily Zen
Daily Zen is one of my favorite sites, every two weeks, or so, they post a historic text to contemplate and commentary to guide your enjoyment and journey. They are usually very timely and always insightful. Acompanied by lucious artwork, the whole site is an oasis in the crazy modern world. 
Friday, February 17, 2006
EDM # 51 - Our TV
Our TV with The Incredibles playing. Everyone in our family likes this movie, the kids have seen it about a hundred times and Ron & I have seen it almost that much. We finally bought the DVD for Christmas. There is a second DVD with special stuff on it including "Jack-Jack Attack," the short that features the baby's special powers. The kids and I have seen it MANY times and we all three still squeal when he does his "thing!!" There is also a short that features the talents of Bud Lucky, a veteran animator from the Disney studio (now at Pixar). If you're into animation, this film is a grand show! I made this with Pigma micron pens, Pigma brush pen, and PITT pens. I got the colors to blend in the reflection on the screen in a cool way but I goofed up the yellow color in the "i." In my hedgie on watercolor paper.
Monday, January 30, 2006
EDM #17 - Musical Instrument
My new Toca doumbec (also called a darbouka)! I did it in watercolors and in with some prismacolor pencil over it. I wasn't crazy about the intensity of the colors. In my hedgehog. It's a middle eastern drum used for the main rhythms and embelishments in Middle Eastern music. There's a photo of it in my flickr Bellydance set also. I found it at Explorers Percussion on Wornall Friday and they had aluminum ones from Egypt also to save for. It's got a light-weight synthetic body covered with a Balinese batik print fabric and sealed finish and a goat-skin glued head. I figure it'll be good for me to practice rhythms on and for toting to the Renaissance Festival, parades, etc.
Friday, January 27, 2006
Treffpunkt
An Austrian Magazine is using a photo of Rianna for their website! I'm glad to see her razzing face everywhere!
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Self Portrait Tuesday - History #3
Here's the moment! My first camera! A Kodak Tele-Ektra 1 outfit. I must have been about 8, it was before the accident. I still have it!
It took 110 film and had a telephoto lens you could switch into place. That stuck after about a year and didn't work any more. I remember taking it to the St Louis Zoo where it was camera day and shooting lots of animals. I don't know where any of the photos are, probably at Mom's in one of the thousands of boxes of photos there. I also bought myself a brownie and could get film for it and shot that for a while. My dad had tons of Popular Photography magazines around and I used to dream about being able to take breathtaking landscape shots, spectacular colored-filter shots and model shots for fashion magazines. I didn't know it until much later, but I had an uncle here in town who was a photographer. I do remember seeing his large slr rig with an off-camera flash bracket and a big camera bag. My dad had a Ricoh twin-lens camera he got while he was serving in Korea in the 60's.
It took 110 film and had a telephoto lens you could switch into place. That stuck after about a year and didn't work any more. I remember taking it to the St Louis Zoo where it was camera day and shooting lots of animals. I don't know where any of the photos are, probably at Mom's in one of the thousands of boxes of photos there. I also bought myself a brownie and could get film for it and shot that for a while. My dad had tons of Popular Photography magazines around and I used to dream about being able to take breathtaking landscape shots, spectacular colored-filter shots and model shots for fashion magazines. I didn't know it until much later, but I had an uncle here in town who was a photographer. I do remember seeing his large slr rig with an off-camera flash bracket and a big camera bag. My dad had a Ricoh twin-lens camera he got while he was serving in Korea in the 60's.
Saturday, January 14, 2006
Blind Contour Friday
My drink cup at McDonald's. It has Olympic Bobsledder & Mom Vonetta Flowers on it. I can't wait for Torino!!! I love the Olympics!!!
Thursday, January 12, 2006
Stuff in my Kitchen
The cinnamon sugar shaker on top of the Jelly Bellies tin on top of my microwave. Pigma micron ink in my Hedgie.
I've been pretty good and sketching something every day this week. More than one thing on most days. My poor old computer isn't handling all the work of scanning very well though. Oh, well, adapt and overcome... I'll scan some more later.
I've been pretty good and sketching something every day this week. More than one thing on most days. My poor old computer isn't handling all the work of scanning very well though. Oh, well, adapt and overcome... I'll scan some more later.
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
Self Portrait Tuesday - History
Photos are a way to capture what someone looked like at a particular time. They are also a way to record an event. In my Family, gatherings are always a special event. This one was Christmas of 1971. My Grandma & Grandpa Welte had three of their children visiting with their families. Here are my Uncle Curtis, his wife Marilyn, their new son Cyrus, Aunt Corliss, her husband Paul, their children Cherie and Jon, my sister and myself.
We were very lucky to have our grandparents in Missouri with us for so long. They had 11 children and I have hundreds of cousins scattered all over the country. Having my grandparents here meant that we had their primary attention and got to take trips together. One of our favorite places to go and a family tradition we have continued with my children, is the visit to Silver Dollar City (near Branson, MO) in the Fall. This water clock is still there, but not functioning any more. We took the kids for their first trip this November.
We were very lucky to have our grandparents in Missouri with us for so long. They had 11 children and I have hundreds of cousins scattered all over the country. Having my grandparents here meant that we had their primary attention and got to take trips together. One of our favorite places to go and a family tradition we have continued with my children, is the visit to Silver Dollar City (near Branson, MO) in the Fall. This water clock is still there, but not functioning any more. We took the kids for their first trip this November.
Material Girl
I took this in response to Felicity Grace's Material Girl challenge. These are the art materials I use the most right now plus some new markers we got at Wal-Mart yesterday. The kids had a ball with the markers last night! This photo has a bunch of notes on it in flickr, click and mouse over the photo to see them!
Friday, January 06, 2006
Blind Contour Friday - Bigfoot
For Blind Contour Friday I did my bear cub's Bigfoot Zip-zap monster truck. When we went to St Louis on vacation, we stayed at a hotel near where the real Bigfoot "lives."
This is probably the worst BC I've done yet! Ha!
This is probably the worst BC I've done yet! Ha!
Thursday, January 05, 2006
New Year's Resolutions -- With Self Portraits!
On or about New Years we're encouraged to set new goals for the year. I posted some art goals to the Everyday Matters list:
Draw something every day, even if it's just a doodle in my hedgie.
Complete one EDM challenge per week, more if I'm inspired.
Complete one Photo Friday photo per week.
Study color, maybe I'll do what Laura did and explore a color at a time. I'm open to suggestions...
Integrate dance into more of my life, study arabic/north african/middle & near eastern art and music.
Make my habit more self-supporting, sell hedghogs/journals.
I also have some goals regarding dancing: I'll practice every day, even if it's just the 15 minute workout from Rachel Brice's Tribal Fusion Belly Dance Yoga Drills & Isolations video.
And go as far as I can with my classes. I found some teachers I really like and are very encouraging!
Draw something every day, even if it's just a doodle in my hedgie.
Complete one EDM challenge per week, more if I'm inspired.
Complete one Photo Friday photo per week.
Study color, maybe I'll do what Laura did and explore a color at a time. I'm open to suggestions...
Integrate dance into more of my life, study arabic/north african/middle & near eastern art and music.
Make my habit more self-supporting, sell hedghogs/journals.
I also have some goals regarding dancing: I'll practice every day, even if it's just the 15 minute workout from Rachel Brice's Tribal Fusion Belly Dance Yoga Drills & Isolations video.
And go as far as I can with my classes. I found some teachers I really like and are very encouraging!
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