Yet Another Move
Robert, my husband, started a new job in Alexandria. We decided it would be best not to move Desiree, our very ill dog, so for half a year he commuted from Charlottesville to Alexandria Virginia. When Desiree passed in July 2017 we decided to make our residence together in Alexandria. I felt I needed to revitalize my passion for painting and begin another chapter in my life. It took two months to pack, two days to move and two weeks to unpack!
Moving is quite the disturbance in time, causing one to focus on one’s “stuff” instead of one’s purpose or goals. After three months of down time it is October 2017 and I face my studio anew and a new commitment to my purpose, but not knowing what to paint.
One morning I woke up thinking about a teacher I had at California College of the Arts back in the late 70s. His name was Arthur Okamura. I researched him online only to find out that he had passed away in 2009.
His work is beautiful and compelling. If you have a chance view Arthur Okamura’s work.
Mr. Okamura was primarily an abstract painter and a print maker. I decided to energize myself by doing some little monoprints as he had instructed so many years ago. Thus I explored the idea of a painting that would symbolically represent my new physical workspace and our newly rented apartment in Alexandria.
These are a few of the monoprints I did. They are small 5” x 7” prints. I soon remembered that smooth paper and oil paint worked best for me. I created some that still had the image of my dog, some with elephants that decorate our apartment and some looking out of my window at the Potomac river.
With the creative juices loosened up I combined my view overlooking the Potomac river, two perched wrens on a branch (thanks to the first 2 birds that discovered the birdfeeder I put out on the balcony) and the cherry blossoms that represent the excitement I have for this new location in life.
susan krieg 