May Day 2019

Not the best photo as the art is square, 10 x 10 inches, and not the best art by any means. Technically, it’s flawed. And, I totally missed the mark. My intention was a controlled pour with a rainbow of colors… blues and white in the “sky” region, greens in the foreground, and a splash of vivid floral colors in the mid-zone for an abstract field, a wild flowers effect. I ended up with this chaotic mess.

Oh May Day, may day… what does one expect when paints sit idle too long?

This was my first Art for Breakfast since I started prioritizing my daily activities by heading into the studio with my first cup of coffee on at least one day a week. I was going to put the photo with my last post, but rambled on too long… not everyone wants to read all that.

As messed up as it is, I still like it. Maybe because life is chaotic at times or everything looks perfect on the outside but inside, you feel like this.

UPDATE: Replaced photo after signing and wiring for hanging. The painting goes over and down the 3/4 inch sides, so there was no need for framing.

Here’s what it looks like on a blue wall.

Yes, it is square, 10 x 10 inches… the half blind photographer is slightly askew. I take a zillion photos (or at least a dozen) and sometimes, I cannot tell if the image is slightly blurry or if it’s just my vision.

Here’s how I finished the back… tidy up a bit with black paint and wall protector dots on corners. Yes, those are my fingerprints from holding it up like a waiter’s serving tray, turning it this way and that while checking my edges. Maybe someday I won’t be so messy.

There’s a nail and hook in the little baggie hanging on the wire, just an extra touch in case anyone is ever interested in buying it.

Thanks for looking!

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One Cat Pass

The 9 x 12 inch drawing from my last post is finished. I posted it on my YBWorks blog, but here it is for those who don’t go there. I’m calling it “One Cat Pass” as the cat in the drawing represents a cat shaped gate for Mr. Marsberry to pass through on his way out of here.

Sometimes, I think he is still here as I see a cat shaped dark spot at his guard dog post by the door in the wee hours of the night, then look again and it is gone.

Thanks for looking!

Yesterday’s Coffee

Black strap,
cold and dark,
strong as molasses
with hints of amber.

I lift the carafe
to fluorescent lights.
Good. No clouds
pour into the pan.

18/10 stainless hits the ring
pretend fire on electric range.
I long for gas, and a pass…
forgiveness of my sins.

Boiling down to bitter,
cutting the edge with cream.
Why settle for yesterday’s brew,
while jars hold roasted beans?

Depression swirls in my cup,
settles to grit the bottom,
Why bother with a fresh pot?
Tomorrow is not promised.

I smoke my cigarette.
Inhale, exhale, life’s a drag.
Smoke trails white from red
ash covered tip, as I sip.

Where are the days
edged in mania?
Where are the nights
that break near dawn?

I can deal with racing thoughts,
a kaleidoscope of creative ideas
rushing faster than I can spin,
jotting notes to make art again.

Can I crawl back in my bed?
Take the time to clear my head?
Erase the words that were said,
By those who act like I am dead?

I put on my face with makeup,
shovel it on with a trowel,
then buff it off with paper towels.
Paint on a smile with Maybelline.

Soon I’m dressed and out the door.
My down side of up is a private war,
No one needs to know the score,
It’s time to laugh and smile again.

I would really like to make amends
to the man I loved as my dear friend.
His raw assumptions were not true,
But I do want my cake and eat it, too.

Why should a woman have to choose?
She could have friends and lovers, too.
Yes, I kept my secrets close to home,
I had to sort some things out on my own.

I’m warming this up like yesterday’s brew,
it was never a choice between the two,
I cannot understand, I’m lost and confused,
I miss my friend, but there is nothing I can do.

N.2016