The Old Road - A Last Look

   The Old Road-Walking Into Beauty will be on display at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve through Friday, May 4th.  Take a leisurely walk through the exhibit to see the paintings and poetry, (and don't forget to check out The Old Road book, in the gift shop) then enjoy the burst of spring flowers along The Old Road itself (Old 131 Trail). This trail is always open, so even if the other trails are too wet from all the rain this week, the birds and flowers and more will be easy to see along this paved trail.

Map of The Old Road

   Many birds are here now, and every day more are coming in for a rest or to stay for the summer. The Old Road takes you to the ponds, marshes, fields and woodlands of the KVR. This may be the best place to see the most variety of birds.

A Morning Walk

   After our exhibit leaves the KVR, it will be shown again later in the summer and fall in La Crosse,

West Salem and Viroqua. We hope to see you again!

Susan and Joanne

The Old Road Meet the Artists

Are you going to the Spring Fling  at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve? Celebrating April as poetry month continues at Spring Fling, as the Earth Day Poetry Contest poets of merit read their work at 4 pm. It's inspiring to listen to these young people's poetry and share their enthusiasm for the beauty of well crafted words.
After the Earth Day Poetry presentation, The Old Road-Walking Into Beauty exhibit of walnut ink drawings and poetry of our well-loved 'Old 131 Trail' will be introduced. Joanne Shird and I will talk about the project and answer questions. Be sure to check the gift shop for The Old Road-Walking Into Beauty souvenir book.  All proceeds go to the Friends of the KVR.
We're looking forward to seeing you there!

Bridge 13

Paddling on the pond, wonderful raffle prizes, great food, music and more......Spring Fling is the place to be on Saturday!

The Old Road - Walking Into Beauty

Bright Promises - Walnut Ink and Watercolor on Paper 8" x 10"

    Walking Into Beauty.....that phrase immediately seemed right to both Joanne and me as we

began collaborating on a project to combine poetry and visual art to express our experiences walking the Old 131 Trail through the middle of the Kickapoo Valley Reserve. For years we both have walked what we call 'The Old Road', in all weather, seasons and times of day. It remains our favorite place to wander and observe this land we love.

     We also made a book of the poems and drawings! We feel poetry is best read and re-read over time. The book gives you the opportunity to remember your own wanderings on The Old Road, and share some of the beauty there with others who may not be able to walk this trail.

Along the Riverbank - Walnut Ink on Watercolor Paper 8" x 10"

   We think of The Old Road as a way to connect many aspects of this place. Through time, it has been an animal track, a footpath for humans for thousands of years, then a highway, and again a footpath for humans and all who live here. In that way The Old Road connects us all through time and a shared way through the land.

   Walnut ink was used for the drawings. Gathering the nuts from trees in the valley, making the ink and then the drawings and finally sharing the images with you lets Walnut speak through the process and the sharing. Walnut trees are common here, growing in the rich soil. They offer food and shelter for many who live in the land, and finally their wooden bodies as well as their fruit (nuts) for human use too. Walnut ink has been used for centuries to color human made objects and for writing and drawing. So the walnut ink connects us to the walnut trees, the others who depend on them, and to human connection to walnut trees over time.

   The Old Road is an invitation for you too, to walk into beauty on the Old 131 Trail in the Kickapoo Valley Reserve.

     The Old Road drawings and poems now are on display at the Kickapoo Valley Reserve Visitor Center, through May 4th, 2018.

The Work of Art

   Recently a few friends and I were discussing the reasons each of us 'make art'. No matter the medium, or the skill level, or the degree the art-making influenced their daily life, everyone agreed that actually creating a painting (for example) entailed effort and skills that were impossible to imagine for someone who had never done such a thing.
   It became clear to me long ago that those artists that I knew personally, and who were doing work that I could only aspire to being able to do and were even supporting their families with their creations, all struggled daily with the same types of problems. They constantly work on one aspect or another of the skills needed, whether it is self discipline or the ability to mix the correct color, or getting the perspective right, or countless other questions.

Miller Denver Saddle 1937 - graphite on paper

   The Painter's Keys is one of the most popular artist blogs. After Robert Genn died, his daughter kept the blog going, and often reposts Robert's past entries. This one from 2002 illustrates a spectrum of artists struggling with their work, and was both amusing and enlightening. levels-of-achievement gives a quick glimpse of artists at work. Of course there are many other ways artists get things done, and many ways they approach their work.

   I do not make my living painting and so do not have those pressures that add to a day's work. I do always have something I try to learn and some skills I make efforts to improve.  I certainly spend more time struggling with getting something to look and feel the way I intend and not so much time blithely spreading paint around a canvas. Actually, that never happens!

   Here are a few quotes from The Painter's Keys Quote Page about painting:

   People think you can get out your canvas and paint any time you have a free moment. You can't. Commercial art and painting are entirely different. Painting takes a different mental approach. You have to get the right attitude, the right mood. (Pierre Alechinsky)

Painting should educate and enrich. Modern painting merely offers a split-second emotion: You see it, you have an instant reaction and move on. Instead, real painting can be looked at over and over again and each time it has something new. (Igor Babailov)

Goose Eggs With Brass Bowl and Gold Light - oil on panel

Painting requires the bravery of solitude. Painting requires disciplined labor. To be a painter is to search the world with a benevolent eye for every subtle beauty that the infinite world offers. (Charles Philip Brooks)

Painting is easy, getting it right is the hard bit. (Danny Byrne)

  If it isn't challenging it probably isn't much fun either. If you've got a craft or art or passion to do something, now is the time! Join the man on the street wrestling with his easel and paint, or me, working through the next question about value or color; you might find great rewards hidden among the challenges.

Susan

Walnut Ink Drawing

River Cliff-Walnut Ink on Paper 8"x10"

     Walnut ink has me fascinated with it's gorgeous, rich color. Our refrigerator has a shelf of jars full of dark brown ink. Drawing is fun, but the process of making walnut ink connects my act of making a drawing back to the land with a deeper, felt connection.
     First, drawing with walnut ink means thinking about the drawings well ahead of time. The walnuts hang green on the trees, the weather changes, the leaves start to fall. The walnuts continue to hang on the trees. Finally they drop to the ground and can be gathered. The aromatic greenish brown balls are scattered in the driveway, and we drive over them day after day until the softening husks break away from the walnut shell. It is not necessary to drive over them, but it speeds up getting the husks off the nutshells.
     The darkest pieces are put into an old kettle with some water and simmered until I remember to take them off the burner. This is usually several hours. After cooling, the ink is strained and bottled with a bit of vodka to preserve it. Over time mold may grow in the ink, so I keep it in the refrigerator to extend the shelf life. But if it starts to mold, the film can be scraped off the top of the liquid.
     Walnut ink can be used with brush or pen nibs, mixed with watercolor or other inks. I'm not sure how lightfast this ink is, so recommend any drawings made with walnut ink be displayed out of direct sunlight. That's a good idea for any drawing.
   

Warner Creek Standing Rock 8"x10"

     The warm, natural tones of walnut ink seem just right for drawings of the rocks, trees and land that are part of Walnut Tree's home. Check back for more walnut ink drawings through the winter months.
Thanks for stopping by my blog!

The ART of Travel

A venerable traveler

Recently I've inherited suitcases from the 1940's and even earlier. Those were the days when travelers, especially women, had well made suitcases for every department of their wardrobes.
They were all hard case, with satin linings, ribbons to hold contents in place (neatly folded), and even removable trays.

Ruffled side pockets, tiny locks with tiny keys, leather trim....details and quality of construction was important.
Yes, they were heavier than contemporary soft luggage, but if you are traveling by car that doesn't matter as much as when your trip across the vast airports of today take almost as much time as your flight.

So, these suitcases are cool, but I'm thinking not fun enough. So I painted one a while ago, in tribute to the trip to Arizona that was planned but cancelled due to my broken leg. I painted the desert on the suitcase; a fitting way to memorialize the untraveled trip.

Desert Dreaming Suitcase painting in progress

After the suitcase was finished, it went along on some overnight trips. Arriving and departing really was more fun with 'Desert Dreaming' as a companion. By now it has been to Madison, Milwaukee and several places in Iowa.

Desert Dreaming Suitcase -the other side

Leo considering a journey with the Desert Dreaming Suitcase

The suitcase was a lot of fun. It inspired a painting project, was interesting to work with, and when finished was still more fun when filled up with my stuff and taken on a trip.

After a while, another suitcase started drawing my attention. It was going to showcase the coloring book  'A Day With The Horses'. After cleaning it up and putting a base coat of white acrylic paint on, the horses were sketched in with pencil, then painted with acrylic.

A Day With The Horses Suitcase

The painting went quickly. I forgot to take pictures of the process, so will show that another time.
'A Day With The Horses' suitcase is larger than 'Desert Dreaming'.  Both are about 12" x 18" but 'A Day With The Horses' is slightly deeper. 'Desert Dreaming' has more side pockets and a satin lining.
'Horses' has leather trim.

A Day With The Horses Suitcase-the other side

The desert is still on my mind! The leather trim added to the western theme.  Inside, this suitcase is roomy but simple; no ruffled pockets, just a nice big boxy space to put lots of travel stuff into.

Inside of A Day With The Horses Suitcase

Finishing this painted suitcase by painting the side panels and putting a protective coating on the painted surfaces completed the project.

Side

Top of Suitcase with Leo the Cat

A Day With The Horses is available on SusanCushingArt.etsy.com Other suitcases will be added in the near future. Visit my blog again soon for updates on the Suitcase Project. Thanks for stopping by!

Mountain Paintings at Wine Guyz in March

   Deep Snow High Mountains continues to keep me busy as the exhibit travels to another venue.   The Wine Guyz will host the paintings from February 27th through March 25th.
  Please join us for the reception on Wednesday March 8th, from 6-8pm. There will be new paintings to enjoy as well as The Wine Guyz ambiance.
  Now, I have to get back to finishing the rest of the snowy mountains, stormy clouds and glacial rivers waiting on the easel. I hope you can join us at the Wine Guyz.

Thank You Driftless Cafe

'Deep Snow High Mountains' paintings had a great showing at the Driftless Cafe in November and December. There were a number of positive comments about the show and also several sales.

I'd like to give a warm thank you to Luke and Ruthie, who have made a beautiful place to display paintings, and their support and enthusiasm was great.  

Sunset on Highway 1 - oil on canvas 11"x14" SOLD

Parkers Ridge - oil on canvas 11"x14" SOLD

After a long break from painting, I'm now finishing several more 'mountain' paintings that didn't get finished in time for display this fall and early winter. Once those paintings are finished, ideas for other subject material are ready to be explored, which really means lots of problems to solve and hard work to do. But it is fun, and learning something is one of the best feelings there is. Each painting has a life of its own, and is a unique experience to create. When one is later sold and goes to live on someone's wall, it's an added bonus to share my experience of that mountain place with other people, through the painting.
Susan

Snow Hoodoos Painting

Snow Hoodoos  acrylic on panel 16"x20" SOLD

Thank you! to the North Carolina purchasers of Snow Hoodoos. May you enjoy the painting in your home as much as I enjoyed creating it. Snow Hoodoos shares a sparkling clear, cold day after a storm created the lovely 'hoodoos' - snow sculpted by wind into huge mushrooms perched atop rocks and trees. In the hoodoos, light refracts through the curved layers of snow, making translucent bands of blue.

This weekend Snow Hoodoos' new home in North Carolina was covered in 8" of new snow. Somehow that seems fitting to welcome this painting!

Monashee Traverse  oil on canvas 24"x30" SOLD

A big thank you to the buyers of Monashee Traverse. It is an honor to have my painting be the start of your art collection.

Monashee Traverse goes to its new home in Seattle.

Simple Gifts for Holiday Sharing

     The first 'Simple Gift' to share with anyone is kindness. The second 'Simple Gift' is generosity.
If you also want to offer a gift to unwrap and enjoy over time, consider an adult coloring book.

Original drawings of real horses for you to color

    This beautiful coloring book has twelve hand drawn pages of real horses, in scenes from the grassy fields, snow filled forests and windy prairies where they live. These horses live free, in open country; each page of A Day With The Horses takes you into their world, as they graze under the stars, play together, take a morning nap, and more. All the horses' names, and information about them is included.
 

Joe and Dusty on a Snowy Day

      Adult coloring books are a great gift choice, for any age! Coloring is relaxing, meditative, fun and an easy activity to share. Give everyone their own coloring book, and share the colors. You can even take the pictures out of the book, and give everyone a picture to color. Then, put them on display for a mini art exhibit of your own. It's fun to share each person's unique colored picture.

   Coloring encourages relaxation; it can be used to enhance relaxed breathing, and mental calmness, which always feels good!

   A Day With The Horses is easy to mail to your friends and family far away, take as gifts when traveling for the holidays, or offer at gift sharing events, holiday parties and given as a special 'stocking stuffer'. Remember your friend or family member who is living in a nursing home too; a coloring book may be just the gift to bring them pleasure for many days.

   May your holidays be safe, and filled with kindness, sharing and the company of good hearted people.