Radiant Child

Need I say more?

I Dreamed I was Anna Pavlova

When I was a little girl, I took tap, jazz and ballet classes. Like most kids, I went through a series of "what I am going to be when I grow up" phases. By the time I was 11 and had started dancing on point slippers, I was more in love with ballet than ever. I would go to the library and look at books with pictures of all the famous ballet dancers and none impressed me more than Anna Pavlova in her Swan Lake costume. I thought she was so beautiful and graceful and nothing could be more glamorous than dancing under hot lights for an audience of thousands. Thus went my daydreams.... Sadly, by the time  I was 12

 a major upset occurred in my life which took me away from the teacher I loved and the classes I was used to. I didn't adjust very well and ended up hanging up my toe shoes and dancing Swan Lake only in my dreams, a decision I still regret to this day. The painting is me as Anna Pavlova  in my Swan Lake costume.

Mother: Saint or Sinner?

Painted around 1993 as I was on the verge of becoming a mother myself, I began to reflect on my feelings about and the relationship with my own mother who had died 8 years earlier.  As I sorted through a wide range of emotions and saw the conflicts on so many levels, I realized that I was trying to make a decision, a judgement in black and white about who she was. Was she a Saint, or was she a sinner? all good or all bad? I painted this from my memory of her with her white hair and paisley housecoat, her cigarette, her yellowed fingers and wrinkled skin. I think I even captured the pain in her eyes. Having been a Mom now for 14 1/2 years, I have finally grown up and realized, she was just a person, like me, doing the best she knew how.

The Confused Thoughts of an Angry Cow

One of my earlier Cow paintings, this one is a scream! Literally, I painted this around 1993 when I had a lot on my mind, felt angry and was having a hard time making sense of things. My cows and other paintings will often be autobiographical of situations I might be in or feelings I am experiencing. Thank God for art. I don't know what other people do. :-)

This image may seem a little odd. I painted it in 2000 as I was contemplating the many layers of Christmas and how it was celebrated. It depicts myself as a child, looking at the tree with the gifts below. Jesus hangs on the tree. When I was a kid, of course it was all about Santa Claus and getting the goodies even though one of my favorite things to do was also to visit the creche in church and see the baby Jesus. In my adult life as a more mature Christian, I pondered the correlation between the tradition of the giving of gifts as it related to the magi bringing gifts to the Christ child. I don't know where the tradition of the Christmas tree originated, but I was thinking that in a way the tree foreshadowed the crucifixion as Jesus was hung on a cross of wood, the greatest gift of all to mankind.

Autumn Cows 2

One of a few paintings inspired by the Autumn leaves. I like to imagine all sorts of things with cows obviously and this is one that often gets a chuckle. This original is still available. Also available as a print and giclee'. Please visit my website for details. :0) Happy Thanksgiving and many blessings to you and yours!

See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil....

This one is from an outing with my brother and nephews when we went for lunch in South Jersey several years ago. My older nephew's girlfriend was also with us as we waited in the booth for our food to come. True to form, my brother had told an off color joke which caused everyone to squirm in their seats including his sons. I was somewhat oblivious since I was taking a picture. I was simply documenting our time together since I lived in Philly and didn't see them that much. It wasn't until I had developed the film and was going through the pictures that I realized the total humor in the photo and had to paint it. My brother just has that kind of charm :0)