Three things

A collection of three things about this morning:

* My new favorite tea is Awake by Tazo.
* Yesterday snowflakes rested on our fully blooming daffodils. Today our plum tree on the north of my studio has puffy white buds in its branches. I keep turning my head to look at them, they're a cheery sight on this (yet again) grey day.
* I am currently working on a three color print using some of the letterpress ornaments above. Cars & trucks! Today I will use yellow.

Hope you have a good day!

Rite of spring

While driving through Kansas Friday night, a little after dark we noticed a red-orange glow on the horizon and soon realized it was range burning. We had never seen this at night so we took a detour. I was a bit giddy inside but also a little nervous driving on the dark gravel roads straight towards nowhere, but still, excited to see the pastures ablaze. The burning fields smelled slightly sweet and after stopping the truck all we could hear out there were crackling grasses and a March wind.
Range burning is an annual rite of spring.

Check out the photography of James Nedresky for scenes of the Kansas prairie.

New watercolor work and Hearts + Hands for Japan



Lately I have been developing a small body of new watercolor paintings. I am thinking about how color flows through confined areas and in some of the pieces I may attach solid shapes or draw constructions growing out from the color shapes. While I work I note phrases or concepts about these austere paintings in my sketchbook like: "learning the words", "finding and discovering", "between loss and moving forward".
I plan to list a few of these pieces in my gallery store later in the week. It will be the first update of new original work in over four months! The paintings will be up for only two weeks then they will be on to other things. I'll keep you posted.

Also I am so pleased to be contributing to HEARTS + HANDS for Japan, designed and coordinated by Lynn Russell of Satsuma Press. Open edition HEARTS + HANDS cards, designed and letterpress printed by Satsuma press, are for sale until April 6th, 2011 for $10 each. Each purchase receives one entry to the HEARTS + HANDS drawing which includes prizes from 90 independent artists, studios and shops. 100% of the proceeds from the HEARTS + HANDS card sales will be donated to relief efforts in Japan in the aftermath of the March 11th earthquake and tsunami.

I will share later on what my contribution will be. Please consider giving to HEARTS + HANDS. You can donate, learn more about the project, and see the list of artists here or click the Hearts + Hands button in my blog sidebar. Thank you Lynn for putting this together! This project is just another great example of how there is good happening in our world.

In the studio

daff

Yesterday when I was hanging laundry on the line I saw that our first daffodils were blooming. At first I wasn't going to cut any, but then I kept looking at them and just couldn't resist. So I brought these three up to my studio, stuck them in one of the jelly jars and enjoyed them as I painted. Each year when spring comes I feel that surely this is the most excited I've been for spring.
And now officially begins my spring break, yay! In the photo above there is a peek at something I have been setting on the press, and hope to print next week.
Have a great weekend!