Winter Wolf

Someone posted a photo of a black wolf crossing the ice near my hometown yesterday in Michigan's Eastern Upper Peninsula.  It inspired this painting.  The canvas is small, only 9x12", so the wolf is done in very tiny detail.  Wolves are considered a threat to livestock and house pets, but they mean so many good things for the environment.  I've heard them at night, but have never actually seen one this close to home.

 

This painting is really all about the sky and the burgeoning snowstorm.  The Eastern UP has its own definition of wild beauty, even in the depths of winter.  I wanted to show the flat landscape, the cold, the icy shore, the moody sky. 

 

The camera didn't negotiate with yellow very well -- they are blended better in reality.  I may touch it up some more.

Clifford Visits Fernwood Botanical Garden and Gallery

 

We had a whopping turnout of over 300 people to meet Clifford, pose for photos and see him sign books at Fernwood Botanical Garden and Gallery in Niles, Michigan.  The setting was beautiful and so was the weather!  You can't ask for more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday June 15

A Gallery Show at Fernwood Botanical Garden

Several of my paintings, including "Dots", this watercolor of an Appaloosa filly, will be hanging in Fernwood Gallery for their Contemporary Show beginning on Valentine's Day.  Fernwood Gallery is located in the sprawling and inviting Fernwood Botanical Gardens in Niles, Michigan.

Also present will be my experimental acrylic collage on 10x20" stretched canvas. "Bubbles," features a family of dolphins undulating over paper background "sand," which  has script in it about love and affection. I added some adhesive gems for the sparkling bubbles, giving this painting a whole new dimension of light and motion. It must be seen in person to appreciate! See it at Fernwood in Niles, Michigan, Feb 14 - March 16, 2014.

How Does a Horse Celebrate His Birthday? At the Library!

It all started something like this!

 Then, 20 years later, Clifford did an appearance at Roscommon MI County Library.

We were swarmed at the door!

 It was a Birthday Bash to remember!

Clifford got a horse-sized birthday card!

What horse could resist this plate of home made peppermint treats?

Not this one!

And a good time was had by all!

"It's not every day you have a real horse IN the library, but Clifford was a perfect guest!  We had over 70 children enjoy the program, and they have asked for him to come back again and again! Clifford even autographs his books! I would strongly recommend having Clifford the horse come to your library!"
~ Lisa Sutton, Roscommon Area District Library

Clifford turns 22 today, and going strong!  We are still working on his 2013 tour.  Please share our campaign site and spread the word!

Isn't It Rich....

Clifford was invited back to Cedarville Library to co-host a clown's appearance on June 18, 2012. These ladies had a lot of fun with him, being kindred spirits and all.  They even let him keep the glasses!

We had a good crowd there and Clifford signed books on this little table.  The signing was interrupted when he realized the table had wheels.  He just wanted to keep pushing it around.

Terrible Til, Cliffy's border collie buddy, had a good time performing tricks for the 50+ kids that showed up.  This girl took kind of a shine to him.  They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Til shows how to best balance on clown feet.

After our library visit, we stopped over at Cedar Cove Assisted Living Center.  There was a lady there who wanted to see Clifford so badly that she postponed a doctor's appointment to wait for us.  She was sitting on the porch when we arrived.  Note how she is shrinking away.  I guess nobody warned her that when you meet Clifford, you MEET him.

After that, we went inside to meet the residents and sign books.  They took turns posing with him by the fireplace.

He was ready to nod off there in the air conditioning.  No bugs...  Ahhhh...

Thanks, Til!

Thanks for visiting us!  Help support Clifford's 2013 tour by visiting our campaign site.  

Today's Project - A Loon for My Dad

"Display on Dark Water", acrylic on canvas, 9x12"

After 87 years on the planet, my dear Dad has left for higher ground.  I am so very sad.  He was a great man, my best buddy and the source of so many good thoughts and conversations.  I will miss him horribly, forever.  It is still so early, and I haven't thought about how I am going to come to terms with this tremendous loss, but I feel every day pulling me farther away from his time here.

This is my firat painting since he's been gone, a fitting one as we often sat out on the deck at camp in the evenings, listening to the loons yodel and howl as they flew over to settle into Bailey's Lake.  It was my favorite part of the days on Drummond.

Dad gave me a great gift in sharing his love for the natural world.  He taught me respect for the earth and for all living things.  When I am walking through the woods I usually see something that I can't wait to tell him about.  I know I will always think of him when I am in the woods.  I hope that, because of this, I will somehow be able to keep him close by.

Native Americans considered the loon the totem of dreams.  To see a loon signifies that you are drawing closer to your dearest hopes and wishes.  Of course, to the mainstream, a loon is a term for crazy -- which at this point in time, is totally accurate.  With the current mess
of characters crawling out of the woodwork, it would have to be loons.

It's either that or vultures.

"Loon Light" acrylic on canvas 9x12", 2012

International Women's Day - the Woman I Admire Most

“Your new little sister is a Mongoloid,” Dad’s tone was somber and he watched us all carefully for a reaction.  It was September 1970.  Dad had sat us all down, all seven of us, so that we could understand the depth of this new development.  The baby was going to show up with slanted eyes and a large, protruding, pointed tongue.

At nine years old, I took this all very seriously.  From his description she sounded like some sort of freak.  But my heart immediately went out to her.

Then she arrived.  She didn’t look like a freak.  She was a pink and golden infant with perfect skin and tiny, plump clenched fists.  It had been five years since we’d had a baby in the house, and when this one opened her eyes, I saw they were navy blue, so dark that the pupils were indiscernible.  I fell immediately, violently in love.  I had never seen a baby more beautiful.  I even loved her name:  Amanda Christina Bowman Bailey.  Maybe it was my age, or perhaps it was the fact that she was different from other babies, but some sort of tender mothering thing in me kicked in.  This became my baby.  I dressed her.  I fed her.  I changed her.  I held and talked to her for hours.  I sat by the crib and watched her sleep.

Amanda age 2, and already a superstar! Note one shoe off...

 As she grew, she became very much her own person, filled with the typical sweetness that people with Down's are known for.  But she has an added twist of sarcasm and an unexpected wit that will ambush the innocent bystander.  She has remained my good buddy all these years.  Her stoicism grounds me in ways that no one else can.  (Like the time she handed me a five dollar bill and said, "Go get a Coke and calm yourself.")

I've kept a journal of quotes from her over the years, and reviewing them always makes me wish I had started sooner.  Here's hoping for many more quotes, many more movies and pizzas and Girl's Day Out events with Amanda.

Nancy: Amanda, your eye is red. Does it hurt?

Amanda: No.

Nancy: Look that way. Look this way. Look up.

Amanda: It's okay.

Nancy:  How many fingers am I holding up?

Amanda: Two. (Making the shape of an L on her forehead) How many

fingers am *I* holding up?

Posing by Manistique light house!

·         Amanda: I told you about Elizabeth Taylor, right?

·          Me: I heard.

·         Amanda:  She's going to be buried right smack dab next to Michael Jackson. At Neverland Ranch.

·         Me: Michael Jackson is buried at Neverland Ranch?

·         Amanda: Yes. They have a cemetary there.

·         Me: They do?

·         Amanda: Yes.

·         Me: Who else is buried there?

·         Amanda: Elizabeth Taylor!

Amanda frequently helps out with Clifford's events.

Me:  I hate driving when I’m this tired.  My judgment is like the weather: A little cloudy. 

Amanda:  It’s not THAT bad.

Me: Aw, thanks Manda!

Amanda:  I meant the weather.

Dad and Amanda, 2012

Me (attempting to wax philosophical): What's the most beautiful thing you've ever seen?

     Amanda (without hesitation): You.

"Amanda With Her Coke", illustration from "Clifford of Drummond Island"