My favorite place to be on a rainy day like today (or any day, really!) is in bed with plenty of work, good books and, of course, coffe. Definitely today's moment of bliss!
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I'm so lucky to have a friend who writes me these beautiful letters! They're more like works of art really. Not only is the handwriting outstanding, but she also illustrates the letters with a precious watercolor! Can you believe it? She's a heartfelt aesthetic and a true artist, this rare, elderly woman, and I treasure her friendship. The only problem is that it's so hard to answer her with my handwriting.. I think I'll practice calligraphy this autumn! I love this way of working: to let myself be engaged in something in the world and then recreate the impression of it on paper. Without any thoughts about how it will be used. If it will be used at all. It's simply the best way for me to spend time and enjoy life. We just came home from a week on the Greek island Kefalonia and it was a beautiful experience. I love the Greek islands. Over the years I've been to a few, and every one of them has been a great delight: the people, the scenery, the food - basically everything. And Kefalonia was no exception. We were a family of four who went this time - two adults, one 20 year old and one teenager - and this island suited us all. The hotel we stayed in was right on the Xi beach - a marvelous, red beach which was not at all over-crowded. We went for a stroll along the shore, and after five minutes walk we found ourselves as good as alone on this most precious of beaches. High cliffs covered our backs and where the cliffs stopped a meadow of Queen Anne's Lace streched out before us. Almost like paradise. This is another screen print from my "Botany" series; it's called "Clematis". . I have always worked very hard to make an object appear as 3-dimetional in drawing and painting. Now I really enjoy the flatness of the screen printed forms, because it is new to me and therefor challenging. I love this kind of challenge - to have to make an effort and learn to think in a new way. Another of my new screen prints. It hasn't got a title yet. I'm thinking about giving it another layer with a text printed on top - maybe in brilliant pink. What do you think? These little watercolor sketches give me so much pleasure. I'm not quite sure what I'll use them for, if I'll use them at all in fact. They're not made as artwork for an exhibition or anything like that. I make them because I want to, because they give me pleasure. Simple as that. Yesterday was time for another visit to the screen printing studio of Pål Gunnæs. Since I'm in the process of learning to screen print, I wanted to experiment a little with different colors on both the motive and the background. I ended up with six different versions of the same motive; gold and black respectively on white background + on two different background colors - turquoise and grey. It's very hard to say which I like most and consequently should print a whole series of. I asked my Instagram friends and got so many different answers - maybe I The late afternoon sun enters our bedroom window and overflows the room with golden rays. So many blessings in an ordinary life! The new NorwegianMade promo pillows have finally arrived and we are so happy with them! Hopefully we'll be able to offer them for sale pretty soon. The very lovely Emma Harris has made a truly beautiful blog post on my Instagram account on her blog A Quiet Style. Thank you so much Emma, I'm both honored and proud! More delight from the garden: ground elder. This is really the most stubborn plant ever but I've been thinking if I start to see it's beauty maybe it won't bother me so much. Ground elder was brought to Norway by the monks as a leaf vegetable. Maybe I should start putting it in my soup? Together with my friend and business partner Cathrine Wefall I run the company Norwegian Made, a wenture whos goal it is to support quality handcraft and design products made in Norway and made to last. Recently we had some really, really good news which called for a celebration. I'll tell you more about the project soon.. Today the Kunsthall Grenland opens its doors: everybody is invited to hang their artwork on their walls. The exhibition lasts until sunday. I'm going to exhibit my new botanical print " Maple Flower". Tomorrow at 1800 hours is the opening of the members' exhibition at TKS - Telemark Kunstsenter - at Norges Bank, Skien. I'm participating with a screen print. Please be welcome! Making plans for future prints. Can't wait to keep on working with more screen prints My mind is working day and night with new ideas and, after some time of restructuring, suddenly I see the world with screen-print-eyes - possible motives everywhere! My first screen print - "Maple Flower" framed and going up on the wall. I'm really excited about this new project! I love painting these unpretentious sketches which are not intended to end up as art work but give me infinite pleasure in the making. I find so much joy in the natural world and recreating parts of it on paper, like this, sort of prolongs the enjoyment for me. It feels like in a way I'm holding fast something good, without any other intention than that. No plans to exhibit or sell. I do it simply because it feels good. This is the best way to create art I think. When you are free to listen to your true self, not thinking about what others |
M A R I T S A X E G A A R D
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Information about my workshops here. See my paintings, drawings, etchings and watercolors here.
All
May 2016
See more pictures from last years workshop here
See my fineart photography here.
"Fine works of art never age, because they are marked by genuine feeling. The language of the passions, the impulses of the heart, are always the same."
Delacroix |