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

Finished or Not

Greetings to all,

Yesterday I posted this painting, titled "Sailing Club", on Facebook. I asked readers to judge whether it was "finished" or not, feeling like I needed to add detail to the foreground water. One brave soul piped up and suggested that the addition of more detail to the water would be exciting. Bravo!

So today, I will take it back to my studio and "finish" it. Finishing a painting is an arbitrary thing. Only the artist knows if a painting is finished or not. Sometimes, as in this case, the artist is not even sure!

Thinking about it, many things in life require finishing. But most of those have a definite end point. You pretty much know when a house is clean, or when the grass is cut. With soem things, as in grass cutting, you can see when you are finished.

Not so with art, and creative endeavors. You can always add a bit here and there. Sometimes, artists try to make their medium do too much. Sometimes, we fall short. Have you ever gone to a movie, and thought it was the end, only to have it go on? Or the opposite - the ending left you wanting more?

Perhaps some things never really get finished. Perhaps that is why artists paint a single scene many times. There is always something new to paint every time you look at a subject with fresh eyes. New focal points or backgrounds appear on the canvas. Sometimes, the color scheme changes dramatically.

The finishing continuum is what makes an action creative. We creatively pick a point to stop, and allow the world to see it. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder indeed.

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

Sunset Grasses

Attached is a wild waterscape that I completed recently, titled "Returning". The sun was setting as we returned from a day on the water. The grasses captured the colors of the setting sun, creating a display of color that just amazed me. The painting has a second name, "Grass Sunset".

To paint the tall grasses, I used a plastic pizza cutter. I just rolled the pizza cutter in a pan of paint, so it was coated all the way around. The results were very gratifying!

I often paint with odd things - my fingers, paper towels, and more traditionally, palette knives. Yes, I do use brushes, but I love to paint with my fingers. Clouds are especially easy to paint with my digits!

Sometimes a painting will paint itself - others are like hard labor. The ease of completing a painting really depends on two things - how well I "know" the subject, and how large the painting is. I seem to get stuck on larger paintings, probably because there are more problems to work out. Smaller paintings have less detail, and seem to go more smoothly.

I am working to get my completion rate up from about 30% to nearer to 70%. I think I need to put more thought into the process, and allow my brain to solve problems while I sleep. It always seems to help when I approach a half finished painting after a good night's sleep.

Then, there are gems like "Returning". With the goal clear in my mind, and the pizza cutter trick, this painting almost painted itself! Such gems are rare, and much appreciated.

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

www.harvilleart.com

Summertime = Quiet Time

It has been a busy spring. In addition to a studio show, finishing my book, a Mill event, and a few charity shows, I have been hospitalized for a relapse in bipolar disorder, as well as chest pain (my heart checked out fine!). For a while, it was a rough patch.

Now, with all the shows behind me, I can relax a bit and paint. Boating season offers a respite from the busy Mill weekends. Going out on our boat offers solitude, time to think, and time to rest. While kayaking, compositions spring forth, and my sketch book fills up.

I have been reading a book about "productive obsessing" by Eric Maisel. He is the author of numerous books on the subjects of creativity and the mind, and how we can think ourselves into greatness. Despite the "quiet" of the summer, my mind is working on percolating the next big project. Some candidates include: expanding my book, and finding a less costly route for publishing; filling two beautiful 12x16 frames I acquired this weekend (for a song, from a kind Mill merchant); working big, as in 24X36 size; using rice paper and tissue paper to create some semi-abstract florals; and finally, continuing to experiment with various color palettes.

Obviously, I need some focus! But I have learned that I need to let my mind obsess things into being. So, I remain quiet as I finish a few canvases I have been working on, including the two 12X16's! I write in my art journal daily, and sketch crazy ideas. I play with small canvases, and try new application techniques and mediums. I mess up a lot, but I also learn a lot.

So to those of you who are obsessing, try productive obsessing. It is far more rewarding, non-anxiety producing, and kind of fun, like daydreaming about cool stuff. Let me know what your mind come up with!

Artfully yours,

Cathy Harville

My New Book May be Previewed on Blurb!

Greetings,

My book is now ready on Blurb for previews and purchases! Blurb is a website for self-publishing. I would be interested in what you think, and I welcome all comments, good, bad and ugly! Since this is my first book, there is no doubt lots of room for improvement.

You can buy the book from Blurb - that would be sweet! But if you fund my project, it will enable me to order a large quantity of books at a discount, to distribute as rewards, and sell at cost in my studio. Plus, they would be hand signed by me, with a sentiment of your choice.

Ultimately, I would like to use the funds from the project to work with a real, live publisher, so my book could be offered to a wider audience, and maybe even sold through book stores. It would have an ISBN number, and a SKU! I plan to meet with a local publisher, and discuss details in the next few weeks.

Of course, none of this will be a reality without your support. I want to thank those who are already backing my project. If the Amazon, online method of pledging is too confusing or time consuming for you to make a pledge, please ask me for help, or write me a check - I won't cash it unless I am fully funded. Even a few dollars will greatly help.

And please spread the word by telling all your friends! If 10 people each told 10 people, that would be 90 new, potential backers. And if half of them donated only $10, that would put me much closer to my goal.

When Land Meets the Sea by A collection of paintings and stories by Cathy Harville |BOOK INFO

Click on the link above to see my book on Blurb!

In life, we all get back far more than we give out. As my mom alway says, what goes around, comes around. If we all help each other, we can accomplish great things.

Thank you, and cheers,

Cathy Harville

Immersion

As a painter, I have experienced immersion in many ways:

- I am startled when someone walks into my studio unexpectedly;

- I often forget to eat lunch, or to eat at all;

- I make coffee, and forget to drink it;

- I constantly lose track of time, despite the very accurate "Whatever" clock I have beside me (all the numbers are falling off, so I really never know what time it is);

- I realize I was supposed to meet someone, and forgot;

- After a while, I realize I have been cleaning my brush in my coffee;

- My phone rings, and I am immediately annoyed;

- and, I put off bathroom breaks until the very last minute! (Just let me finish this one area!) Come on, I know you have done that, too!

I also experience immersion while I am kayaking - no, not in the water, but in the act of observing nature. I will often sit, and listen to the wind rustling the trees and grasses. I hear the beating of a swan's wings as it screams at my approach. I watch the reflections in the water change like liquid mercury. I watch the schools of minnows move across the surface of the water, as a bigger fish is hunting them, no doubt. If the light is right, I take some photos. (It is too hard to paint in my kayak!) And, I forget all about everything, except the moment I am in.

This nature immersion serves me well in the studio. I can easily recall the smell of the water, and the taste of the air. I can recall the light shifting, and reflections gleaming. And although I have my pitiful reference photos to work from, it is the immersion I experienced on the water that helps me to capture the essence of the scene I am painting.

Thank goodness for immersion. Like yoga, it is an opportunity to escape, and just be.

Namaste,

Cathy Harville

Rain, rain, go away....

Remember the little rhyme we used to say as kids? "Rain, rain, go away, come again some other day".  

We have had 19 million days of continuous rain, sometimes accompanied by falling trees, wind damage, and lightning zaps. While everything is green, I think even the plants want to see the sun.

All this rain makes for achy joints, depressed moods, and cabin fever. And lots of jokes - about arks, webbed feet, and people mildewing. Even our boat was full of water - the poor bilge pumps just couldn't handle it anymore, and blew a fuse.

Since we have been indoors for so long, I am working from photos of a year ago, when we actually saw the sun. I find that people in my studio just love to look at the sunny skies, and sunsets, and blue skies. I am starting to run out of photos!

I have a 24X36 painting that is near completion. It is called "After the Rain". I cannot finish it, because I need to see the world after the rain. 

Okay, perhaps I have employed a bit of exaggeration. It really hasn't been 19 million days. But I know it has been at least enough to alter the sanity of really stable and intelligent people. Come August, we will probably have our usual late summer drought. And as our grass dies (which, by the way, has to be cut constantly), I don't think I will be complaining. Perhaps that is the lesson.

Stay dry,

cathy

Lucy

Our wheaton terrorist, I mean terrier, is now one year old, and still very much a puppy.  We took her on a cruise with some friends, and their aging lab, Belle. Poor Belle! Lucy is a non-stop play toy, and Belle was worn out by the end of the day.

We can learn a lot from dogs.  Dogs live in the moment. None of this worrying about the future! They play when they want to, eat when they need to, and love you unconditionally. Lucy is always happy to see me, even if I have only been gone an hour. She tries so hard to be good, and not jump, but she has this bouncing, springing action that she just can't seem to get under control.

Someday, maybe Lucy will be calm enough to be a good studio dog. Although she has confiscated a few tubes of paint, and has sported various garish colors in her fur, she is still much too active to watch me paint. I have been thinking of creating a piece with her paw prints in it, but the concern over the chemicals in paint have held me back.  

This past weekend, Lucy helped me realize, for the zillionth time, that life consists of moments. Most of the things that worry us are trivial, and unimportant.  She also shows us how easy it is to unconditionally love one another. If only people could be like dogs - minus the butt sniffing!

Artfully yours,

Cathy

The Time Has Come

I have come to realize that perhaps I am not good at keeping a daily blog, or even weekly for that matter. But since I enjoy it, I will continue. This forum gives me the opportunity to bare my soul, and share my innermost thoughts with total strangers.

Doesn't sound like a good deal? Maybe it is. Only through self-expression can we move forward. My art is a great vehicle for expressing my ideas and feelings, but the written word will continue to have tremendous power in our lives.

So here's the deal...it is time to talk about a rather "fringe" topic in society - that of mental health. I can envision readers rolling their eyes, getting uncomfortable, maybe even thinking, "here is just another wacko". But bear with me for a few sentences, and consider the impact that mental health has on our society. Stress is a mental health issue, and is the leading cause of workplace absenteeism in our society. We are bombarded with new technology on a daily basis, and expected to learn new skills which even 10 years ago did not exist. Our children are glued to screens instead of books, and texting instead of talking.

In the midst of all this, there is an alarming epidemic of humans who have mental health issues. Maybe you do. I certainly do. I struggle with a brain chemical disorder on a daily basis. My health plan treats my illness like it is not quite legitimate, making the task of seeking help very difficult, and inevitably, quite costly.

We are often frightened by what we do not understand. But unlike a new remote, or fancy cell phone that we can ignore, the problem of mental health cannot be shoved aside. Mental health problems are a silent epidemic that are only noticed when someone with a mental health problem is messing up - breaking the law, behaving in unusual ways, or drawing attention to themselves.

Most of us with brain illnesses are able to navigate through society quietly, using tools we have learned to survive, or even thrive in our complicated world. Some are not so fortunate. I am quite fortunate - I have a support system, good physicians, and I am able to make art. On the downside, I cannot keep a rigid, demanding schedule, or be superwoman anymore. Despite my health issues, I can still contribute to society and my family. Art has given me that opportunity.

If you are still reading this, you are either crazy like me, and understand, or are perhaps curious...or enjoying the voyeurism that blogging provides. It doesn't matter to me. What matters is that somewhere out there, someone read the message that they are not alone. Or someone out there learned a little bit about mental health.

Perhaps you won't come back. That is okay. I still plan to write when I am able, talking about boats, art, and common struggles. In fact, over the past few weeks, stories are piling up! That is okay, too. Just the fact that I am out on the boat, or making art is a healthy thing. When the time comes to sit in front of this screen, I will be back. I still want to talk about pea soup fog, and pricing art work. But not today.

Peace and prosperity,
Cathy

Moving On and More Money

From time to time, we all have to move - to a new house, to a new job, or perhaps onto new relationships.

Currently, I am moving into a new art studio at Savage Mill. (Of course, the rent is higher.) More money. I tend to have high expectations, but I have quickly learned that high expectations cannot be applied to moving. One would think this is obvious, given the fact that I have completed all sorts of moves, but with each new situation, hope springs eternal - until the inevitable problems crop up.

The first step is getting maintenance work done to the space. Usually, the last tenant seems to always have strange taste in wall colors, so painting is required. Since my studio does double duty as a gallery, I bought paint in a color I liked for the maintenance crew to use. More money. After a week, the remaining blood red wall is staring at me defiantly. Work was delayed because the HVAC system wasn't working, so everyone's space was like a sauna, and the maintenance crew was feverishly working to help the merchants and customers cool, in more ways than one.

Until the walls are complete, the floor cannot be cleaned. Until the floors are cleaned, furniture and art supplies cannot be moved in. Then there is the old carpet my husband and I managed to roll up to be removed, which I keep tripping over. And the wall sized mirror, just an accident waiting to happen.

Then there is the lighting situation. The space has great ceiling lights, but no wall switches. A step ladder is needed to turn them on and off, so an electrician has to be hired to put in wall switches. More money. (The tenant in the space next door just ran extension cords to the wall outlets, but the look is not what I am going after.)

Since there were no wall switches, the prior tenant left the lights on continuously, and all of the bulbs are dead. More money. (I found this out the hard way, but I did get a free electroshock treatment.) Some of the dead bulbs are actually fused into the fixtures, so the lighting fixtures may be ruined, which means new lights will need to be installed. More money.

After cleaning up broken light bulbs, I left. It is Friday. My husband and I are taking a long weekend on our boat, and I can paint, and put all this on the back burner for three days. Some say I set my expectations too high. But how can great things be achieved without great expectations? Life is full of mediocrity. Every once in a while, it is nice to see high expectations realized - but not when moving!

Lesson learned. Actually four lessons - one (1) needs to be patient, or (2) just do it yourself, and (3) plan to throw a lot of money at whatever you are trying to do. Kind of like owning a boat. And last but not least, (4) expect the best, but prepare for the worst!

To all those who are moving on, good luck!

Cathy

Greetings! My Introduction

Hello fellow travelers!

This is my very first post, as I bravely step out into the world of blogging. I hope you find some interesting, entertaining, and artful moments to share with me.

I am an artist in the Chesapeake Bay region, and I will be posting acrylic paintings, and talking about our adventures on our boating trips. While I am a slow painter, I seem to get a lot done while "out at sea". More of my work can be seen on my website.

I am taking a leap, and switching from pastels to acrylics. Fellow artists will understand why...maybe not, but acrylics are easier to ship, take with you in the field, and less costly to frame. Plus, acrylics are very tough - some believe tougher than oil paintings. And, they dry fast, making them ideal for working while out on the boat.

Thank you for getting this far! I have no idea what I am getting into, but I am sure it will be exciting, unpredictable, and fun.

Paint yourself a great day!

Cathy