Ranazul Show

Thank you to everyone would came out for my reception at Ranazul Restaurant. I really appreciate everyone that came!My show will be up until April 2nd. Visit www.ranazul.us for directions and hours.

On June 4th and 5th, Savage Mill will once again be hosting the Green Life Festival. During the fesitval, I will have an open house featuring my landscapes and seascapes. Lately, I have been working on some acrylic layered "sunflowerscapes". This is a rather involved process where I make petals on palette paper, and transfer them to the canvas. The result is very textural, and I like that.

Also in June, my work will be featured at Ahh Coffee!, in Eastport Shopping Center in Annapolis, MD. And in July and August, I will have some of my work at Salon on Cross St. in Chestertown, MD.

So things are busy, and life is good. Hope the spring weather is pleasing you, and here is to warmer days ahead!

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

Thank you!

Thank you to everyone who attended my reception at Ranazul Restaurant! It was great fun and great conversation, meeting old and new friends.

The next big event is the Howard County Art Council's Celebration of the Arts on March 26th. I will have two paintings in the silent auction. Hope you can make it! Visit www.hocoarts.org for more information.

I am starting a new series of sunflowers in acrylic called "Layers of Sunlight". A picture of "Layers of Sunlight IV" is attached, and is one of my paintings for auction at the Celebration of the Arts.

May you have an artful day!

Cheers,

Cathy

March Show and Reception at Ranazul Restaurant

You are cordially invited to a champagne reception

for

Cathy Harville's art show

"Embracing Our Natural Places"

at Ranazul Restaurant

8171 Maple Lawn Drive

Fulton, MD 20759

on Sunday, March 13th from 4:00 to 5:00PM

Please bring a friend!

The show will be up from February 27th to April 2nd, 2011. For more information, contact Cathy at 443.286.3233 or cathy.harville@gmail.com.

The Fox and the Cat

The art "business" has been pretty slow lately. Part of the lack of foot traffic to my studio may be the economy, or the sad fact that two major "draws" moved to spaces in the main shopping building.

But once in a while, I get a visitor or so. A talkative man, named Joe, stopped by with his two granddaughters. While the granddaughters looked at my work, he told me an interesting story about his cat and a fox. His cat is a big, black hunter, and regularly kills small animals. They have a fox who frequents their yard, so there aren't many little critters running around.

One day recently, the fox and cat had an encounter. The fox walked confidently towards the cat. Instead of fleeing, the big feline started to charge the fox! The fox turned tail and ran.

The next night, Joe got up because he heard some noise outside. Looking outside he saw the fox and cat sitting near each other, looking in opposite directions. It seemed that they were hunting together! He could not believe his eyes, and woke up his girlfriend to take a look. I guess he wanted a witness, because it was such an unusual site. He watched for a while, and went back to bed.

He told the story much better than I ever could. But I thought it was worth sharing. I have the privilege of meeting a lot of interesting people. And Joe made my day.

Slowing Down

Greetings to all,

My husband and I recently returned from a trip to Peaks island, off the coast of Maine. Ferry boats run about every hour, taking tourists and commuters to this little gem out in Casco Bay.

After just a few hours, I understood why people live on and visit the island. its charm is only surpassed by its beauty. The rock formations, and waves cresting on its ocean shores are a sight to behold. Bikes are a common mode of transportation, and we joined the small groups that were biking around the island. Stopping at several places to take photos, we drank in the sights. (Photos from the trip may be found on my Facebook page.) We also went sailing, in the slowest boat on Peaks Island! But it was relaxing and fun.

Our three day trip seemed like a week, as we read at night - no TV in the cottage. It reminded me to slow down, and enjoy what this life has to offer. I have lots of potential paintings in my photos, and looking at them will be a reminder to slow down. Life doesn't have to be a rat race. We can plod along from time to time, and just enjoy the view.

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

Ten Things I am Grateful for as an Artist

Ten things I am grateful for as an artist (in no particular order):

1. I have supportive family and friends;

2. I have the financial resources to cover my expenses;

3. I have a great network of artist friends;

4. I have a rare opportunity to enjoy nature up close with boating and kayaking;

5. I have the time to create;

6. I have my own studio space in public area;

7. I meet lots of great people while at my studio;

8. I enjoy working from photos (it is kind of difficult painting from a kayak);

9. I have good health, and

10. I don't have to make money and support myself!

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

Art Therapy

Greetings to all,

As most of you know, I am trying to manage a brain disorder. (If you didn't know, I guess I am coming out of the closet!) Yesterday, I went to a KIFA (Kent Island Federation of Art) meeting. The members there were very nice, and it was a pleasant time.

I knew that there would be a demo at the KIFA meeting. What I didn't know was that we could participate by painting a vase of flowers on this wild, Yupo paper with watercolors. As I followed some preliminary instructions, I dabbed my brush into the juicy watercolor, and started to paint. Within a few minutes, it seemed like art therapy I had in a few of my hospitalizations. I giggled to myself as I played with abandon.

Distraction and keeping busy are powerful tools when managing a brain disorder. By distracting myself, and keeping busy, I am able to push the uncomfortable symptoms to the background, often forgetting about how bad I feel for a while. Movies are also great distractions. With the big screen, it is almost guaranteed that you will have a few hours of peace.

While my art effort at the meeting will not win any awards, I saved it as a reminder of the power of distraction and play in coping with bipolar disorder. Whenever I feel unable to cope, I need to find some busy play, to distract myself. While this cognitive therapy is not always easy, it is effective.

I also learned that my current artist block is penetrable. All I need to do is play, experiment, and have some fun, as well as be patient - for this too, shall pass.

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

PS - The attached jpeg is "Cooling Off", 8"X10" pastel by yours truly. (I didn't wan't to post the yupo flower picture just yet - the vase is a little cockeyed, and needs a bit of attention.)