Bon Voyage!

"Three's Company"  Pastel 14 x 11 © Donna Gross
Available: donnatheresafineart.com

Tomorrow I leave for a grand European vacation with my family.  New adventure awaits .... more memories to be made.  Our fabulous family of four has traveled together several times....Hawaii, Belize, Washington D.C., Paris, Australia, Alaska....to name a few.

Travel allows me to put my life on hold... to peak into another dimension of life .... to appreciate the grand glorious world we inhabit...to ultimately return home with a renewed gratitude...I will return with oodles of inspiration for future works of art! I plan to sketch and watercolor during my travels creating a journal of colorful visual entries.... trying a new medium will add to the newness of everything.  Stepping out of my comfort zone is what I love to do. Curiosity is what motivates me to create....what better way to achieve that than to travel!

The above piece is the last pastel for awhile....it is a larger version of a small tree study I did awhile ago.....Hang onto that vibrant color !  It'll be back! 

~À bientôt~

Working Bigger than Usual

" Resting Place"  Pastel  14 x 11 © Donna Gross
Available donnatheresafineart.com  

Working this size takes planning.  It's a practice I am actively practicing!! Planning...

In composition, I plan where I want my viewer's eye to go...from point A to point B and perhaps other places along the way.  In value, I plan where the sun is in my composition and appropriate shadows...execute highlights... it's a win win combination....planning.

In my mind, in my daily life, I am planning...when I get up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom I sleepily think about what the next day's plans are.... however, am I present?

When I paint, I am most present than at any other time in my everyday.  

We are born innocent with only our moment to moment experience .... as we grow out of that innocence and join the rest of humanity in this thing we call life, each moment becomes everything but that very moment...then , for some of us, we notice all the planning....all the noise in our heads and if we're willing, we find a way out of that noise and into the present moment.

For me, it is the creation of beauty when I paint.  Tell me what brings you to the present moment and out of planning.?

Inventing the Landscape..A Series of Small Works

SOLD

SOLD

This series of small works are all pastels 4 x 8 matted and framed under glass using clip frames.
A handsome addition to any small space.
Available @ donnatheresafineart.com

Capturing the Light

"Three Friends"  Pastel 12 x 9 © Donna Gross
Available donnatheresafineart.com

This is a work in progress... Trying to continue to capture the light and define the shadow meanwhile enjoying the friendship these three buddies are sharing....or perhaps they are simply tolerating each other's presence all the while knowing they are in competition for the next morsel of food...

not too different from the human species....no?.... could we evolve beyond competition?  could we embrace each individual as equally worthy?  not being one to be a pessimist...I regret to say that I don't see that happening in my lifetime.... the best one can do is 

be the change you want to see....

A Good Day at the Easel

"Settling Down"  Pastel 9 x 12  © Donna Gross
Available donnatheresafineart.com

Sometimes paintings paint themselves...today was one of those days...I didn't struggle...my feet didn't ache from standing too long...my coffee stayed warm until the end....it just flowed....I am so grateful.

Stripped Peppers from Holland!!

"Stripes Win"  Pastel 8 x 10 © Donna Gross
Available contact artist

Striped pepper on the right is from Holland

Grocery shopping is a chore....I dare not complain out loud as I know living in the richest country in the world grants me the predictable shelves full of nourishment.  Born and raised in the U.S. has given me a myopic view of life.... safe streets, food in the grocery stores, clean water...the list goes on. Sure we have our problems...just turn on CNN or some other 24 hour news broadcast spewing bad news to raise your anxiety... a good reason not to have cable television.  I make choices everyday what to see, what to listen to, how to spend my time...because every minute is one less that I have...and all I have is now.

Grocery shopping is a wonderful experience when you start to take pictures of the produce section.  The produce stockers create works of art with their displays of fruits and vegetables.  So I just couldn't resist purchasing this fabulous pepper....STRIPES!! 

from Holland of all places...perhaps they are applying their techniques to achieve striped tulips to peppers?...Genius.

More from the Neighborhood!!

"Home"  Pastel 6 x 9  © Donna Gross
Available contact artist

"In Full Bloom"  Pastel 6 x 8  © Donna Gross
Available contact artist

Continuing a plein air painting practice in the neighborhood! I love being outdoors in nature and I love painting with pastels....combining the two in one activity is the best it can get for me!

What do you love to do?