I love it when it’s blooming season for our Japanese camellia trees, these are from our smaller tree…..look at all those delicate veins on the petals and lovely yellow centers. They are currently sitting on my painting table against a wall of inks in a gorgeous ceramic tea cup I bought from a talented pottery artist at the Melrose Flea Market. Can’t wait to do a few watercolor sketches of them.

Above: A little peak into the sketchbook and my travel palette (hand-crafted inlaid wooden box found at a thrift store that I filled with half-pans!)

For my birthday this year, my wonderful husband surprised me with a lovely trip to Morro Bay in Central California, a little seaside town with a tiny harbor and a giant rock in the middle of the bay.

We went kayaking among seals and birds and had fresh seafood!

The bay was, as most of California is, a treasure trove of nature’s gems and I couldn’t help picking out some of the most inspiring ones to share! And as usual, I delighted in the abundance of raw material for future paintings.

(Click on image to see it bigger) Memorable moments: Dried seed pods fluttering in the Elfin Forest; little ecosystems carved into the boulders by the beach; otherworldly hanging moss from miniature oaks in the Elfin Forest; bright pink seaweed; multi-colored beach pebbles worn smooth; wine and cheese pairing at sunset; a twilight magical mini maze; slippery rock threading; and gorgeous gorgeous sunsets.

This past weekend, we had the most amazing camping/hiking trip ever. Specifically 6 hours north to the jaw-droppingly beautiful region of California’s Sierra Nevada, a stone’s throw away from the legendary Yosemite.

The Ancient Bristle-cone Pine

In spite of being rained and hailed on during our hike, what we encountered there was to me the epitome of tree heaven. And heaven perhaps it was, a living cemetery of strange and ancient pines- simultaneously dead and alive, its departed limbs twisted into grotesque and other-wordly forms seen nowhere else.

The trip was so extensive I couldn’t possibly show all of the breath-taking wonders we saw, so this will only be Part 1. Sit back, grab a hot cup of tea and be prepared to enter an enchanted land.

many shapes, click to zoom in

playground

These are the world’s oldest known living beings, almost 5000 years old. Just pause and ponder on that.

And can you see a painted triptych? I have so many painting ideas just from this one weekend trip!

textures

Can you see the owl?

The severely twisted tree trunks and limbs were worn and smooth and textured, like a beautifully carved table or wooden sculpture. They are no longer alive.  Only a few inches of bark and leaves reveal the tree’s seemingly fragile thread to the living.

otherwordly

unimaginable tree spaces. click to zoom in.

Trees always fascinated me, as a child they were places where fairies and magical creatures hid and where you could climb up to strange worlds upon their treetops. To walk amongst these ancients recall those youthful imaginings and made me realize that literary fantasies do not hold  a candle to what the natural world can reveal!

a closer look- an ancient bristlecone tree, the miniature moss world, reeds

sunset over the campsite

Can you imagine what it was like being there?? Next up in Part 2, strange rocks, glorious lakes and the seeping in of a vivid fall…

A spontaneous midweek inspiring post. Our new garden has been very bountiful this year and we have been practically buried under giant zucchinis and the heavy tomato plants have long since abandoned their fragile cages for the ground.

Those shy things

In the twilight of the evening yesterday I harvested a few tomatoes, some with skin wrinkled from the unrelenting sun the past week or so, and thought to myself, there should not be too many more.

Lo and behold I head out today in the blazing afternoon sun and look what I found!

A Tomato Triptych. Click for more for juicy details.

The garden angels have been smiling and these are the most beautiful of our harvest so far this summer. Gorgeous unblemished perfectly round blushing beauties, with plump skins and bright green starry tops. I was so overjoyed I had to write/draw/photograph it! I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did gazing at them.

Umami slow-roasted tomatoes it will be tonight!

Captivated.

Follow-up post to Part 1 here and mention here, slight change in thematic direction.

Words cannot describe the beauty that is the North Carolina Core Banks and to be able to work on a special (treasure) map for a special couple on location was a tremendously wonderful experience. Giant oak trees, boat rides, beautiful shells (Inspired Monday post to come), crystal clear turquoise waters, bait balls, fishing, seafood and great company!

The Original

This is the original painting, measuring 30″ x 11″ on thick watercolor paper. The idea was to work on a jewel-toned wedding map with pirate treasure map influences (the notorious Blackbeard once lived in the area) that would highlight the beautiful oak tree the couple will be wedding under, and would be an extra-special keepsake gift for their guests.

A Pirate History

The map would show all the important places for the wedding and point out noteworthy local attractions for out-of-town visitors. The towns in the vicinity were founded in the early 1700s and are one of the oldest towns in the country.

Wedding under a giant oak tree.

The wedding ceremony would take place under this giant oak tree and the couple wanted to include it in the map. What a lovely symbol of longevity in love!

Fun

Fun activities for the reception to entice guests.

Polaris

The stylized north symbol with the personalized wedding logo.

Ditty

I suggested a ditty for the map greeting, and the bride came up with this awesome poem above!

Please tune in next time for Part 3, the making of the keepsake map from the original painting…..

Sometimes...

Altered photograph, original provided by Andrea

Its been an exceedingly wonderful but busy few weeks, and I haven’t really had time to venture outside my studio. But here’s a little secret: we are planning a trip back East for a mini vacation and I am going to be working on a piece of wedding artwork for a betrothed couple’s invitations, RIGHT on location!

The wedding would be under this beautiful ancient oak tree (you know me and trees, so I am thrilled to bits!) by the ocean bay. I am hoping for many glorious outdoor inspirations, seabirds, seashells, fresh crisp air, historical buildings, and abundant native vegetation to inspire the artwork.

Will need to tote my pens, inks and the like but who could turn down this opportunity for a little plein air studio time? Do stay tuned for more from this upcoming adventure….

What the rain brought...

The wonderful thing about living in this part of LA, is the amazing little worlds we can escape to no more than 15 minutes from our doorstep.  Before I moved to this city, I never imagined that it would be ridden with hills and canyons with so much breathtaking beauty my heart aches everytime I see it.

A little patch of serenity

I took these series of images in our most recent hike through the Sepulveda Pass hills this past weekend. The unseasonably rainy winter has left behind a lush green landscape dotted with myriad pretty little weird and unusual wildflowers. So much inspiration so little time!

Pops of color

Growing wild...

My favorite encounter was with these strange little wildflowers below, little balls of thorns with a few tiny flowers sticking out of it.

Twilight flowers

The strangest things

Ethereal

The sun was setting as we walked, so we were blessed with everything bathing in a rosy golden glow! Unfortunately my camera battery died halfway so I missed out on some cool flora- miniature wedding bouquets and little mushroom caps! Till next time…

...are fun

We went camping over the weekend, and saw lots of scraggly bare trees with interesting shapes.  I tried out this little drawing experiment I’ve been meaning to do while perching on a rock overlooking the beautiful Ojai Valley mountains! Yes it is an ongoing obsession with tree spaces for me!

Our gorgeous camping spot...

a Tim Burton tree space a hike away from our camping spot

Functional Art

A few weeks back, I planned a trip out to Santa Monica for some supplies. It was not a trip I was looking forward to, it was raining,  I had other errands to run, and the thought of the dreadful-LA-traffic-rumor-that-isn’t, amplifying as city drivers panic at any signs of wetness was quite seriously horrifying.  To my surprise, my little hand scratched directions brought me to this tucked away artist community in the middle of an industrial and quiet part of the city.

Handmade Papers and Children's Art Wall

I was excited of course-my dreary little excursion has now become somewhat of an adventure! There were so many galleries, shops and buildings to explore! Here are some of my favorites, they include a functional art gallery, the Santa Monica Museum of Art, and a Japanese artisan paper shop. To me Bergamot Station seemed to have a sort of functional art theme running through it, which suits me JUST fine.

Functional Art Museum/Gallery/Shop

I really enjoyed looking at (and learning from) the unusual functional items that have been given a creative makeover-unique artist books, miscellaneous games, notepads, puzzles, twisted pendant lamp shades, contorted upcycled household objects, art jewelry, so much more….For those of you who have yet to visit LA, definitely make this one of your stops!

Mobile Planter

...we improvised.

SNEAK PREVIEW!

A few days ago I read a disturbing article in a weekly news magazine we receive in the mail. It pointed out how kids today spend 90% of their waking hours connected to some electronic media or the other (among them the usual guilty triage of Apple paraphernalia, and various types of virtual reality apparatuses)  They also multi-task, which meant they were consuming a few hours more of digital information than the hours they actually had!

This was not news of course, it has become something of a standard rant in my household, my husband and I could have a field day discussing this and comparing what (in our opinion) were superior yesteryears.

I grew up in a really small town in a far away distant land, we didn’t have cinemas or malls, and I remembered when the very first traffic light in town went up. It was a joyous occasion, we were finally a real town! It has been many moons since, and being occasionally guilty of media overload, I wanted to remember how playtime was when we didn’t have much else.

This project, fueled by requests for a collection of childhood illustrations from my parents, became in the end, a series of 12 vignettes-each one a little precious nugget of memory. It is a project just as much  for myself as it is for anyone who cares to reminisce of a simpler time, not so very long ago.