Where Dolphins Swim

Dark Side of the Moon

If you are Pink Floyd fan you might appreciate the title of this piece. I don’t play much with light and black but this one photographed in such an interesting way also. I hope you enjoy it!

Orientation of these is always up for discussion…I was thinking should I post it horizontal or vertical? I went with vertical because I thought it made the composition more interesting and less predictable. What do you think?

When things just come together unplanned…

This is a big one and it hangs over my bed. I kinda love the way the pink calms me before I go to sleep…at the moment, it is not for sale. It is so hard to let go of some of them! They are like my little children.

I am however happy to sell you a signed, large format print of this image. As you can see, I still haven’t signed the front of it!

In the meantime, I want to share with you my latest passion. Actually, I found this artist several years ago, in a small gallery tucked into the seaside village of Portofino. Oh how I wish I could paint like Lorenzo Cascio! Or afford one of his paintings! In fact, his prices are really not that outrageous, just beyond my teacher’s salary…but if you can spare the cash, grab an original while you can! He uses bright bold colours and his paintings are so happy and evocative.

I met him personally and he is a lovely man!

Inspiration is everywhere

Ever heard of Raimondo Sirotti? Me either. At least not until last month when someone invited me to the exhibit here in Genoa. All I can say is WOW! I was blown away!

Obviously his art inspired me and I love a good challenge. His use of light and dark in abstract had me staring at his paintings and feeling this overwhelming sense of awe and calm.

If you can, do check him out…and in the meantime, here is my feeble attempt at capturing his essence. I ran out of white paint…so this may just end up back on the easel again, but for now it is slowly drying since I recently switched to water based oil paints and in this horrid summer humidity the layers are taking forever to dry! This has no name so feel free to call it whatever you like just be kind with your adjectives please. Also, just like all my abstracts, orientation varies depending on my mood. Feel free to rotate this one to your heart’s content! And since size matters…no really, it does, this one is big. 🙂 PM me for details.

…Enjoy!

Harmony

On a hot summer night, would you offer your throat to the wolf with the red roses?

• MEATLOAF, 1977 Bat Out of Hell

The air is thick with heat tonight. Church bells chime in the distance and dogs are barking at the moon. It is almost full. It reflects magically over the sea and every time I see it, I am amazed at how peaceful an image it is.

Covid still lingers in our midst, like an unwelcome guest who doesn’t know when to pack up and leave. Nothing is normal. Even with many of us being vaccinated, there is stillness in the air. It’s really hard to look at the future right now because there are so many uncertainties. It is like this is the future and there is no going back. Covid is here. It is not leaving. And we just need to accept that our lives will forever be this way. Distant. Unattached. Uncertain.

When I painted this one, it took me months. Layers upon layers. There was a lot to cover. It started as a landscape…believe it or not, sometimes I think to paint something real, but eventually they all end up abstract. I’m not sure why, but they just do and I am totally okay with that.

This one had me experimenting with liquid pours…those darn YouTube people make it look so easy! But trust me, it isn’t! It’s a big one and I ended up liking it so much in the end that I had it stretched and it is now hanging on my wall at home.

There’s just something about the shades of blue, grey and yellow that flow and the black pour that bring me peace. I called it HARMONY because this is how I feel when I look at it.

I also refuse to sign it…at least not on the front. I want it to be versatile. At the moment it is hanging vertical but I had a copy printed and mounted for a friend and she hung it horizontally. It brings me such joy to walk into her house and see my artwork in her beautiful home.

I hope you enjoy it either way!

• Namaste my friends xo

Weird is the new normal

Occhio – Eye, 2020, 66 x 80 cm, Acrylic on rolled canvas

The older I get, the more I learn to just be myself. Hidden away somewhere, there is still this shy, awkward girl who is starting to emerge on a canvas. That canvas is now big and loud and well, dare I say, even a bit weird.

Growing up in the 70’s and 80’s, girls were taught to speak in hushed tones and stand up straight. High heels and lipstick opened doors. Not strong opinions and pink hair. I wanted to be Cyndi Lauper but my mom had other ideas and nice girls didn’t dye their hair blue and pink and get tattoos.

I was in constant conflict with rock and roll desires and singing in a band and then trying to make people take me seriously and like me. No wonder I was so confused! Times have changed and I am so inspired by the young women of today who are embracing their loud voices and fierce uniqueness.

Above is another new painting by me. I am no longer afraid to post the weird ones but am starting to celebrate them. Who knows what will come next. All I can say is that I am looking forward to it.

Note: Some, but not all paintings are for sale. PM me for affordable price details.

Inspiration carries a mighty sword

If you asked me which tool I preferred I would have a really tough time answering that question.

Some days my fingers fly across the keyboard at lightening speed and I think writing must be my passion but then I am distracted by something inside me that only canvas and paint can reach.

Creativity is something that pushes and pulls me in ways that I never thought possible. Inspiration is not always a beautiful sunset or blooming flower. I have learned that deep sadness, heartache and pain are also inspirations.

The year 2020 cut into me like a sharp blade long before the Covid pandemic arrived on the shores of Italy.

During our mandatory lockdown up to today, September 1, 2020, I have painted about 30 new paintings. I have worked on cataloguing them and am sharing them all here in this post (there are more but I seem to paint faster than I can post them). Some are for sale, some are not…if you are interested in a print or original we can have a chat.

All paints are Acrylics, I hope you enjoy them…

Finestra – Window, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

La Porta, The Door, 28 x 35,5 cm, carta, paper

Cavallo Blu, Blue Horse, 28 x 35,5 cm, carta, paper

Farfalla – Butterfly, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Flatline, 35,5 x 28 cm, carta

Puddle of Tears, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Heartbeat, 35,5 x 28 cm, carta

Lacrime, Tears, 35,5 x 28 cm, carta

Amore, Love, 62 x 80 cm, tela, roll canvas

Serenity, 28 x 35,5 cm, carta

Pavone Blu – Blue Peacock, 2020, 50 x 70 x 1,5 cm, Acrylic on canvas

Baciare gli Uccelli, SOLD, 35,5 x 28 cm, carta

Indigo Bird, SOLD, 28 x 35,5 cm, carta

Violoncello, Little Violin, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Ji, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Colomba – Dove, 2020, 70 x 100 x 1,5 cm, Acrylic on canvas

Zebra Blu, 2020, 80 x 60 x 1,5 cm, Acrylic on canvas

Torre – Tower, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

J, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Ear, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Hansin, Universal Soul, 28 x 35,5 cm, carta

Lo Amo – Hook, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Swirl, 2020, 80 x 60 x 1,5 cm, Acrylic on canvas

Vita – Life, 2020, 28 x 35,5 cm, Acrylic on paper

Acqua e Sangue, 28 x 35,5 cm, carta

Ascolta, 28 x 35,5 cm, carta

Day 17

Yes, I know I missed a few days of painting! Such as life I guess but I shall not give up trying to keep up with this crazy challenge!

Day 14

I decided to try another one in the same style. It looks very different depending on the light in the room but I prefer to look at it in a darker setting because the colours are so moody.

Day 13

This was inspired by a request from a friend. He asked me to paint something from the archives of 1916 by Canadian artist Tom Thomson. I loved how the bright oranges contrasted with the blue sky and river and the dark hill and foreground really make the other colours pop out at you. I am inspired to do more with this colour palette in the future…