by Susan Lobb Porter | Art, Work in Progress |
Or birthin’ a painting.
Once upon a time there was a canvas. A big puppy, 48 x 48 inches. She came into this world Artic White.
On the color charts, that is the next step below blinding.
So I fixed her good. With black. And gray. Hints of red oxide. Some pretty light blue. And all manner of marks and scratches. This is a closeup, a small sample of the overall look.
Which soon changed as I tied it all together with Titian Buff. Another small sample.
Then layers and more layers, knowing in my heart that red would play a major roll in her look. Like a slash of carmine lipstick.
This is where I left off today. I’m not finished yet. Before I left the studio I flipped the canvas upside down.
Ahhhh…that was MUCH better. The weight of the red needs to be on the bottom. You have to trust me here, the camera would not cooperate. The battery was exhausted. No lie, EXHAUSTED. That’s what the notice on the screen said.
If you have good insurance you have my blessing to crane your neck or turn your monitor upside down so you can see what I mean.
Or you can come back later in the week to see the finished painting. That’s probably a better idea.
As always, I’d love to hear from you in the comments below. Unless you’re complaining about your neck and/or the broken monitor….I don’t want to hear about THAT at all. 
by Susan Lobb Porter | Art, Process, Work in Progress |
In the beginning…
She said, “Let there be marks.”
And lo, she made all manner of marks within the paint.
While the music shook the studio, she sang. And danced. And jumped up and down on concrete playing a mean air guitar.
The marks became layers. And the layers became more. And more.
And she became sore of shoulder. Developed a knot in her back. And her knees and hips screamed quit jumping up and down on concrete!
But she arted on, saying, “I’m taking one for the (art) team.”
(Actually she said “Holy Crap! I’ve got a show in a month. I can’t stop painting now!!!”)
The photo up above is supposed to be a square. Who edited this anyway? Oh…me. My bad. 
Until the painting spoke to her and said, “Wait, I may be done now…or maybe not. Go do something else for a while and let me think about this.”
And so she did. But I won’t confuse you by showing the start of the new painting. Not in this post.
Disclaimer: Despite the size differences between the photos, these are indeed the same canvas. It’s a big puppy, 48 x 48 inches. As of yet it has no name. For now we’ll call him Red Bob. He is the first cousin to Red Dreams, a much smaller oil and cold wax I did last year. There is a strong family resemblance.
As always, my sweetums, if you like this please pass it along to your friends. And be sure to take a minute and say hi in the comments below. I will bake you a chocolate cake if you do. And I will eat it for you too, because I am your friend…and that’s what friends do.
by Susan Lobb Porter | Art, Life, Parents |
I’m clearing out the cottage. The place where Mama spent her final seven years, the place that once was my studio. I’m getting ready to rent it out.
At this point it’s not the big stuff, it’s the things in the drawers and closets. The things on the shelves.
The things I’ve been avoiding dealing with.
Mama’s things. And mine.
Yesterday I filled my car with books. Art books I haven’t looked at in years.
Books I once thought I could never part with but now I realize I’ve grown beyond. Way beyond.
I don’t need them anymore but others will find them useful, will be as excited as I once was to open them up and learn new techniques. So I took them to the thrift store, the one that provides medical care for the animals in the local shelter.
It was a good place for my books to go.
A few days earlier I took another carload of stuff…mugs, kitchen things, linens… this and that’s that were once the everyday of Mama’s life… I took all of that to the Hospice thrift store.
Because we owe so much to Hospice.
Today I walked into the cottage, looked around and thought Holy crap, there’s still a lot of STUFF here!
The stuff I never wanted to deal with. Like shoebox (size 8) stuffed to the rim with notes and cards from when Daddy died.
I looked through them, reading each and every one and wondered if Mama did that from time to time, before her vision failed her. I read them, notes from people I haven’t seen in years and years. Notes from people I never knew.
I set one letter aside, the rest–box and all–went into the recycle bin.
Because it’s time to move on.
I loaded up my car with more things. And then I went up to the new! improved! Studio Grande. Cranked up the music. And painted.
Because I can’t think of a better way to remind myself that life goes on.
by Susan Lobb Porter | Photography, Ponies, Ponies in the Morning |
The morning had that special quality that comes after a night of rain. Light but hazy as the moisture burned off.
The ponies were hanging out in the shed. Waiting.
Lana was first to the fence. First to greet me with a throaty nicker. She always is.
Notice the tufts of hair on the fence. This is her favorite rubbing spot
She’s getting used to the camera in my hand. Used to our pause before feeding.
This is my favorite photo of the day. In fact, I think this has HAFP…high artsy fartsy potential.
What’d I tell you…is that Uber Artsy… or what? This one’s my new favorite for today.
by Susan Lobb Porter | Uncategorized |
Leland and I work together.
If you call this work.
Or this.
You first met Leland in Chocolate Chip Awesomeness. He was the one who promised to wear a pink dress if I brought more cookies.
I might just do that.
Leland has graciously agreed to appear on Arty Life from time to time. Lend a little color to an already colorful blog. If he behaves himself I might let him say something.
Then again I may not.
