wild Columbine watercolor

Painting is just another way of keeping a diary.~Pablo Picasso~
St. Theresa's Prayer:
May today there be peace within. May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith. May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.... May you be content knowing you are a child of God.... Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us.
I put this prayer in a circle journal and my prayer journal under the section friends. I believe we have infinite possibilities. I pray today I live and love in a way that others will also.

New Day............................New Way.................
Judith lead me step by step through this painting. She is an excellent teacher. I cannot wait to work with her again. She has become a very important part of my art making journey.
Notes from Making Art like a true Artist:

The artistic journey begins with a simple desire to create. …this seed grow into a Philosophy of art making. I am driven by some philosophy of art making whether I am are able to articulate it or not.
He goes on to write his philosophy of art and I agree with him through out the article.

Living a life in response to God.... cultivating my talent resposibly and praying to the Holy Spirit to fill me with the skill, ability and knowledge that I need on the way.
I wish to be surrounded by many wonderfully gifted and artistic people.
I am blessed with Sherry she is willing to paint and be patient with me as I tie myself in knots over this art journal altered composition book.

Laying it down

I rush my work expecting something wonderful to just happen....I fret over my work trying to make something happen.... How do I bring excellence to my craft? I want to live in response to the desire to be creative that God has given me. I want to cultivate my talent responsibly... Is my desire to create self contrived ...Do I have talent? Holy spirit of God, help me, please lift the frustration and fill me with skill, ability and knowledge. I desire excellence in my craft. I offer my work to you Lord for Your glory..May I imitate Christ, the prime artist, for by Him all things were created. Today help me to actively put to rest the strife in my soul. may I peacefully serve You in my craft and in every aspect of who I am ............ thank you Lord for situations that humble me and bring me to You. You are a good Father.

SLOW DOWN

This painting reminds me that I hurry through... What a waste of time and materials to rush through.
Imaginative space where faith and artistic vision meet... Is there such a place? If this is a journey then that is my destination.
Lord help me to within myself reconnect beauty to goodness and truth and Lord help me to express it visually,
Valerie

This is the outside of my prayer journal. After seeing all the wonderful art journals on line... I am excited, overwhelmed, and a bit afraid that I will embark on this journey and never arrive. My goal is to start a 2006 art journal soon......

My still life watercolor

Okay I am going for it!!! I am realizing that I am wired in a way that I have to redo everything... I write and then rewrite... so I want to incorporate this into art. The problem I have is after executing one piece I am bored with the subject matter and medium and want to move on to something else. When I do make second attempts and third attempts sometimes they are worse than the first. Very frustrating. Frustraion is usually not a good motivator for me ... Go figure. It is going to take discipline on my part but today I am going to crown myself the redo queen.... I am going to take time to plan.... practice... and work in series of threes to learn from my mistakes... Trilogies of redos.
Okay now to live the life....

trying to figure this out

This really is a journey. Observing every step of the way . Constantly searching for beautiful things to incorporate into my creative attempts.
What I am learning.... sometimes less is more..LOL reminds me of Garry's dancing (: Layers work.
Still trying to "find my colors". I do not have a "style" I am looking for things that visually appeal to me... Some of my "art" is just an attempt to capture something someone else has already done...... there is nothing new under the sun and I do not mind being a student who looks to the masters... and more experienced artists. But when will I know and be confident in my own ....artist's way?