Beginnings. . .

I’m writing this blog about painting and my practice because through painting I am with my lover. I enter a space where I get so engaged that I lose myself. I look, feel and love. I’ve been making pictures all my life and to this day, it’s totally absorbing. I want to share something of this experience with you dear reader, and perhaps find a thread that connects us through our inner diversity in response to a rich world.

For instance, I painted this flower recently. The flower was beautiful, but what really got my attention was the quality of the flower that day in the Rose Garden in Portland, Oregon. I was with my friend Venetia who I hadn’t seen for some months. The flower, the smell, the warm day and the joy of being with my friend all led me to the wonder of this almost edible, voluptuous flower. This flower brought me to a presence in that perfect moment with my friend. We shared the smell and delighted in it. We were like kids in a sweet shop. In painting this painting, yes I’m painting a beautiful flower, but I paint it through the memory of that moment. The flower encapsulates the essence of that moment. A painting arises out of me through a distilled experience.

Paintings are doorways into experiences and the act of painting is my way of making sense of my world. They are an adventure for a painter and a viewer with an invitation to join in.