Illustration by author. *I first wrote about this is January of 2011, and I think the question remains relevant. What do you think? From time-to-time I've heard conversations among artists as to how they see their work. Whether it's unique to the art industry or not, an artist sees his own work through emotional eyes. They see each work as precious. Something that you have created - whether through the medium of paint, or sculpted in clay or carved from stone, glued together bits of paper or welded in steel - seems to be an extension of who you are.... Continue reading

One of the pleasurable things about early summer mornings is walking through the garden. And, in my case, taking a walk through the farm. Continue reading

This is our George - curious as always. He's a bird...but not a bird brain! Amazon Double Yellow-Headed Parrots are intelligent, funny and loving members of the family. And ours just recently turned 10 years old. We got him when he was only six months old. We know his age, name and that he's male 'cause the little guy came with documents. Pets are as much members of a family as the humans...I've always believed this. Growing up my family had dogs...loved our German Shepherd named Baron. His delightful peculiarity was that he would rescue babies: baby birds, kittens, even... Continue reading

This was the view from my hospital room; loved all the green! Spent a bit over a week in the hospital couple weeks ago. Not much to do there 'cept watch television - thank Jupiter and Mercury for that! Got hooked on the FoodNetwork. I like cooking shows, but since the senior software engineering guy and I don't 'do' cable tv, we watch either what's up on Netflix or on dvd. Anyway, one of the FoodNetwork shows I really enjoyed was the cooking competition one called Chopped. Now this was fun! The premise is simple: *four chefs compete in three... Continue reading

I've been watching the CNN series,"Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown." via Netflix. See the senior software engineering guy and I don't 'do' TV per se. We have an extensive dvd and vhs [remember those?] collection and have no problem with re-watching favorites. However, one of the boxes under the tree this past Christmas had my name on it and inside was an Apple TV device thingymabob. And on it was an app for Netflix and I thought, 'Hmmmmm, maybe I can see some shows I don't have on dvd.' And yes, I've been having fun doing just that. One of those... Continue reading

When I was growing up, my dad would grill steaks, hamburgers and hotdogs for us four kids in our backyard. He was a wonderful grill cook and had a sauce recipe I wish he'd written down for me! He'd buy these ginormous t-bone steaks and douse them with that secret sauce and slap them on the grill. Continue reading

Last summer, a ladybug caught resting on the bud of an okra flower. Photo by author. Right now there is a row of tiny okra seedlings gleefully breaking through the soil to embrace the sun. What they don't know is that the temp is supposed to top 90 today! But I gave them some extra water this morning. Gave extra water to two watermelon seedlings [two so far that is] and the pole beans. This weekend I'll be planting more veggies. The senior software engineering guy has requested zucchini so that'll go in, too. Actually found some great recipes using... Continue reading

The sun is shining today and the weather is warming up. I'm so glad! Welcome to an updated micro blog, renamed: Writing Season One. Continue reading

The important news for this post is to announce a new blog home - one that is, indeed, part of my website [www.LindaCSmithFineArt.com]. This new blog will be a place to: announce new artworks, describe the artistic process, report on events and shows in which my work appears and any art-related news/views that catchs my eye. Continue reading

This post is about the best tuna sandwich I've ever eaten and guess what? I made it myself. Continue reading

Have you ever been to an art show or gallery and seen works that entrance you? Have you looked at other works that leave you scratching your head and wondering why they were included because, to your mind, any 5-year old could do that? Why do you suppose this is? Continue reading

I recently cleaned up my cookbook bookshelf. Continue reading

I love to read and in the past six to eight weeks I've read six books and started two more. Back in December I wrote a post listing seven books I'd like to read this year. Continue reading

There are a couple of elements of design that I do actually pay some attention to: color, line and value. Continue reading

I got the idea of asking artists what their hopes are for this new year of 2013 and got some fascinating answers. Continue reading

Yesterday I went to the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento (CA) to see an exhibition of the work of Norman Rockwell. Wow. Continue reading

A Muse is a source of inspiration for a creative person. Some people find their inspiration - their muse- through music and others through solitude and meditation. Continue reading

Whew! Am finally back at my desk in the studio and contemplating all the work that needs doing this year. Continue reading

My last blog post for 2012 - I'll be off the grid as they say now until after January 5th for a vacation and to enjoy the holidays. I'm wishing you all a very wonderful, safe, fun New Year celebration! Continue reading

An artist I met through one of the groups on LinkedIn speaks the language of color...she works in color and teaches color. She is one of the few artists I've seen who can bring vividness to oils that I've only seen matched by acrylics. Continue reading

This interview with Ilene is rather inspiring to me...it shows that a person doesn't have to limit themselves to one medium or one artistic discipline. You can actually go in one direction - have fun with it, then set off in another direction. "Life" after all is like a box of chocolates.... Continue reading

What a great idea to share: a reading list for the new year coming up. I've never done that before, set a goal of books to get read. Continue reading

Speaking of Christmas...how about the artists in your life? Need some ideas for filling their Christmas stockings? I did a little surfing and came up with a nice list of 12 Stocking Stuffers for Under $25. Continue reading