An Evening Of Paint

I went painting with some coworkers tonight.  It was at a local pub where you can sign up and drop in for an evening of painting.  Christine, Jayci, and Carla came along, and together we spent 2.5 hours painting and drinking a few glasse of wine.

Two More Paintings

I finished my last 2 paintings.  My instructor(s) are moving back to the West Coast, so I'm not sure if or when I'll pick up painting again, but in the meantime, here are my last 2 pieces of work.

Spring And Fall

Here are my two latest paintings, about half/three-quarters done.  I should be able to finish them up in 3 weeks' time.

I almost bought a painting to put up on one of the many still-empty walls in my house, but I just couldn't do it.  It was $900, and that with a 35% discount.  I can swallow $500, but that's about it.

Forest Scenes

I went for some more painting classes in Moose Jaw yesterday.  I find I'm getting faster, more comfortable "in my skin" when holding a paint brush.

I'm working on 2 paintings at the same time, both of a forested scene; one is set in the spring, the other in the fall.  I'll go back in 3 weeks' time to continue working on them.

Back to Painting

Moving to Saskatoon from Moose Jaw was a good decision in every way, except for one: I miss Lloyd and Judy's painting lessons.

About two months ago I decided to take advantage of their presence here in the prairies while I still can (they're moving back to Parksville at the end of the summer) and take some more lessons.

So on March 14th I drove down, and painted to my heart's content, for about 3 hours.  Judy fed me lunch, and that gave me good energy.  Below was the result.

Note the painting on the left, a painting by Judy.  I was trying my bestest to copy her great work of art.

Anyways, fast forward to today, and another 3 hours of work, and voila, the result:

It took me 6 hours in total to complete it.  I'm very pleased.  Painting is tremendously therapeutical.  I wish I could do it on my own, without so much need for guidance.  But then, painting is no different from any other skill - sports or music for example - it requires much patience and practise.

Before Judy and Lloyd move back to BC I'd like to do 3 more paintings:
* one of a west coast scene
* one of the badlands
* and a "set" of two, with a forest scene

Daytrip To MJ

I went to MJ today, to visit some old friends.  Rick, Alison, and I went out for dinner.

Boy, healing takes time.  Poor Alison is struggling, having been chased out of Providence Place by a monster.  Rick, on the other hand, while retired and seemingly happy,  My own healing too is taking time.  Things are going well - so much positive in my life currently, what with a new job, new coworkers, new friends, a new house, a new church, a new worshiping community, and a new girlfriend - but I can't deny that my heart still aches from my experiences at my previous workplace.

God, continue to heal your broken children!

I also dropped by Lloyd and Judy's art gallery to say hello.  I had a good conversation and caught up on all the gossip in town.  Tha's MJ, everyone talks about each other.  But I spent some serious money too, buying two paintings which I will be my feature art in my living room walls.  

The first painting is a farming scene set in the prairies.  This painting highlights the simplicity and peacefulness of prairie life.  The second painting is of the west coast, probably Parksville.  It has ocean, a rocky beach, evergreens, mountains, and of course, clouds in the distance.

I connect strongly with both of these picture.  The first one because of where I live now, and because of the simple beauty the prairies communicate.  The small hut in the shed, the fence, and the overgrown path reminds me of the footprints of previous generations, and how life is always in flux.  The second picture touches me because I miss the west coast - the ocean, the rocky, log-strewn beaches, and the cloudy sunsets.  I kind of sehnsucht for the coast pervades me when I look at it.

A Day Spent Painting

I painted all day today, from 9am - 4pm.  

I finished my 3rd painting....

...and began my 4th one.

No, that's not a beach, it's a pathway....

Pathway Painting

My third painting's almost finished.  According to my instructor Lloyd, I've got about an hour worth of work left before it's done.

I don't like the painting though.  Something's off, not sure what.

A Pathway: My Next Painting

After a three-month break, I took up painting again today.  My next painting's going to be of a pathway in the woods.

Ever since I got into hiking and walked the Camino in Spain, I've become enamoured with pathways.  Reading Arthur Boers' book The Way is made by Walking last year augmented this appreciation by exploring the theme of walking and pilgrimage from biblical, historical, spiritual, and theological perspectives.  It's almost as though Boers elaborated in words on a theme that I'd grown to appreciate experientially - by walking! - over the past 10 years.  Not only that, Boers' exploration of the theme confirmed something that I'd known intuitively for years: something happens to us when we walk.  Something spiritual.  God speaks to us. 

I've experienced this Voice over and over again, first when I started living car-less in Vancouver, going to many places on foot, but more particularly this past year after moving to the prairies, walking to/from work almost everyday.  In the morning, I pray while walking through Crescent Park.  In admiring the beauty around me, my spirit is taken up as it were, to contemplate God's own beauty.  The colours.  The smells.  The sounds.

But walking is conducive not just to praise, thanksgiving, and adoration, but also to repentance, lamentation, and supplication.  The most common words coming out of my mouth while in the park are Lord, Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner!  I tell God all my troubles.  I repent of my sins.  I ask for mercy.

It makes perfect sense to me that Boers considers regular walks a spiritual discipline, along the same lines as fasting or prayer.  When we walk, as when we pray or fast, things important for our spiritual well-being mysteriously come to the fore.  And mysteriously, God meets us there, on the way.