Women You Should Know

I was enormously flattered to have my work and story published on womenyoushouldknow.net on March 10, 2021. Their support of my Women Who Have Guided Us On Our Path series has meant such a lot to me. I got some great feedback after the article was published. It was also good for me to articulate my thoughts about art and what it means to me on a personal level. Sometimes it's hard to put feelings into words, but readers shared their impressions about my bio and I'm happy that I was successful in communicating my story meaningfully.

Thank you WYSK!

More work to do on the series and the spotlight made me more determined to keep painting!

Art in a New Year

Already it's February and that's nearly over, too. I must admit, the first part of the year I was occupied with reorganizing after the holidays and getting through the election, etc. I still tried to be productive in art, but found myself distracted with other events. But I have some good news. So often, artists go through periods of self doubt, and I must admit I've had a lot of those periods lately. I wonder if what I'm doing is of any value, but thankfully those times pass and I keep plodding on.

In searching online for organizations that focus on womens' issues and those that focus on celebrating the successes of women throughout history, I came across www.womenyoushouldknow.net. Their mission is to "inspire and inform and ensure that the triumphs and struggles of women and girls have a powerful platform." I noticed that they have an Art section, so I sent them a query describing my Women Who Have Guided Us On Our Path series to see if they would be interested in reviewing my paintings. Yes, they were!

And, they asked if I would like to be included on their website with images of my paintings, an Artist's statement about my work on the series, and a Bio. Wow, that was so exciting.

Everything has been sent off and will be on their site in March.

Boy, did that give me a boost. So, today I feel great, have so much inspiration and can't wait to get painting. A few weeks can be entirely different!

Inspiration in 2021

Waiting for 2020 to be over, I had great optimism that the world would breath a sigh of relief and get on with a feeling of change and forward thinking. Well, the events of the past week have burst that bubble, for me anyway. It's sometimes tough through the holidays to stay optimistic and positive, especially when my family has experienced deep personal loss. I

felt blocked from any creativity. I know I'm not alone in feeling this way. Many people I have spoken to have felt confusion and have had a lack of ambition or creativity in the last year.

So, how to get over it? I pulled out my painting supplies to start another painting in my current series, Women Who Have Guided Us On Our Path, and started my latest work in a tribute to Marie Madeleine Fourcade, the inspirational resistance leader in France during World War II. The only woman leader of a resistance network that contained over 2000 agents, her devotion and bravery helped the Allies win the war against Nazi Germany. She is certainly someone who needs to be celebrated.

The work has been tough. As with every painting I begin, I have self doubt. Is what I am doing any good? Does it mean anything? I think every artist feels these feelings of negative self criticism. Sometimes it's hard to get beyond that, but the only way I know how is to just continue. I can let everyday events and responsibilities take precedence over painting. Some days it's a delaying tactic from me facing my canvas. But, eventually I break the block and once I start painting I go to that other place in my brain that totally engages me and turns my thinking around. That is the wonder of creativity and I am so grateful that I have it in my life.