How does your garden grow?

Here is another painting destined for the Witherstone Gallery in Lunenburg. 8 x 24 . It is in a simple black frame and looks great! The darker the weather, the brighter my paintings seem to get. lol. We have had a string of rainy days, but it is making the grass electric green so that is a good thing!

Tonight my mom,daughter and I are going to see Memphis, the broadway play we saw last year. There is a special showing of it up at a local movie theatre and I am really looking forward to that. It won last year's Tony award for best musical. I'm also looking forward to some popcorn! Can't watch a film without it.

Curried Red Lentil,Leek & Quinoa Soup ( fat free)

Just made this fat free soup and it is delicious! Had a bowl and decided to write down the recipe immediately before I forget~

Shelagh's Curried Lentil, Leek and Quinoa Soup

2 Leeks diced finely
1 Carrot chopped
2 stalks of Celery chopped
5 cloves of Garlic through a press or minced
1 grated Parsnip
1 cup of Red Lentils, rinsed
1/2 cup of Quinoa, rinsed well
2 Tbsp Curry powder
2 liters of stock ( I used two boxes) aprox. 9 cups
( orange and/or lemon zest for garnish)

1. In a heavy pot, I sweated the leeks, carrot, and celery with a teeny bit of water until a bit softened, stirring occasionally.
2. Add garlic, parsnip and curry powder, stir.
3. Add red lentils, quinoa and stock.
4. Simmer until everything is cooked and soft. About 30 minutes. Add more water if getting too thick.
5. Salt and pepper to taste and some orange zest to serve.

This was really good and packed with protein. You could add some ginger if you wanted and any other random veggies you might have floating around. Perfect for a grey day like today!

daffodils

Rainy and dull today. That's ok, it is feeding all the lovely flowers that are about to burst into vigorous growth!
I'm off to the car dealer to get tires, oil, squealing, clunking, and brakes dealt with. Cringing at the thought of how much it will all cost. Oh well. A shuttle will drive me back here where I will spend the day painting to start paying the bill. Sort of sad really when you think of it. I'd like to think I paint for loftier reasons!
On Sunday I did a painting which I was not really sure about and tinkered with it to fix it, made it worse and then tried to save it and made it even more awful and then tried another fix and whoa nelly, you should have seen it! So today I have painted over the entire thing and am starting anew. So frustrating to spend all that time working and have it amount to nothing! I must have learned something but not sure what it was:) One of my friends said that years from now, someone will x-ray it and see ten paintings underneath and it will be big news! lol.

green and gorgeous

Kale beautiful kale.... I've been trying to have a "green smoothie" on most days although weekends are usually a fail. I actually look forward to them now and can feel my body doing the happy dance as I slurp it down. I tend to pop in whatever I have, although it is usually the same stuff becasuse I always purchase the same things. 3-4 handfuls of kale, 1 orange, 1 carrot, handful of blueberries, tbsp. chia seeds, half a banana, a small tomato, celery and a splash of water or unsweetened almond milk. I whiz it up in my kitchenaide mixer and voila! Very thick and so good for me! Sometimes an apple goes in and some ginger, or parsley or strawberries or blackberries or...... you get the picture. mmm.

Last night my daughter was driving home from a friend's house and happened to notice a young man step out from some bushes and lob something at her. She had the presence of mind not to swerve and BAM! an explosion of wet and sticky and hard hit the passenger's side and then slimed the windows. She arrived home quite pissed and proceeded to go out and try to wash the car off.

Whatever it was, it scratched the paint down to the metal on the bar between the front window and passenger window. There were bits of eggshell too but not just egg. I wonder if it would have shattered the window if it had hit it directly? So glad that she kept her calm and it was not serious. She called the police to report it because she worried, what if it had been a senior citizen? They would have been terribly startled and might have gone off the road. She said she was lucky she saw the guy so had a bit of warning. Honestly, this stuff ticks me off!

So, today is a bit of grocery shopping, some canvas shopping, some post officing, some painting, and I hope some walking.... Have a great day.

Sunday

The smallest deed is better than the greatest intention~ John Burroughs

Hey, the Halifax Seaport Market is open today. Lots of fun stuff going on for the children, from 11-2. Also performances by Atlantic Cirque.

Have a peaceful day.

video experiment

Happy Earth Day! This is an experiment. I shot this with my new iPad. Queensland beach in Hubbards. A quick stop on my way home from Mahone Bay yesterday. I have to figure out how to hold it steadier.

Market Yoga

Did you know that there is free Yoga at the market on Sunday mornings? The class is from 9:15am to 10am. They are held on the North side of the Mezzanine at the top of the stairs.All levels welcome.

The market opens at 10am on Sundays so I am thinking of setting up early and getting some stretching and strengthening in before I start the day. Also, this Sunday, the Monkey Show is having a fun "scavenger" hunt for all the kids and there will also be Easter eggs (11am-2pm) to find! Little Red Kitsch'n will be giving out free mini cupcakes for the scavenger hunt too!

I'm off to Mahone Bay again today. More art to deliver:) That is where the whale painting is destined.

Thar she blows...

"We are Family" 24 x 30 This took forever to do.........all those dots:)

sunflowers and seagulls

Two more gallery pieces:) Today I'm working on a whale painting! Painting is good therapy for a gloomy grey day.

Secret Cafe....

I bet you are someone that loves books and book stores and cafes like I do! This one is a GEM! The Biscuit Eater in Mahone Bay. I always try to stop in each time I pass through. This is Kim, a lovely girl who was kind enough to let me take her picture as she was reading. She looked so cosy when I entered the room.

This charming wee cafe/bookstore is tucked away on a side street behind "P'lovers". Not the kind of place you would find by yourself, it is one of those special spots that is passed on by word of mouth and treasured by the locals. In the summer you can relax outside in the back under umbrellas and majestic trees.

Another great thing about this place is the food. You can order "raw" selections and gluten free and of course all the other good stuff. They serve meals as well as "treats". This was what we stopped in for on our way back to Halifax.

I adore the way they have labeled their reading selections. So creative and whimsical. Just my kind of spot.

Wish I lived down the street !

Lunenburg again

I was here again on Friday! Lunenburg! It was a perfect early Spring day. Blue, blue skies and a tiny breeze. The town is slowly gearing up for tourist season. See that window below? Look closely. See some art? It's mine! Hooray. The Witherstone Gallery will be open for business on May 1st. It will be chock-a-block with lots of creative gooodies from all disciplines.

See this boat? Recognize it? No?

Look closer. See what is transpiring on it?

Ha. Filming has begun for Haven. It is "Duke" and "Nathan". know I've mentioned the show before and will probably again but it is now broadcast in 11 countries! I love how it showcases the beauty of Nova Scotia although it is supposed to be set in New England. lol You can watch episodes here.

no brainer

Savoy cabbage........

Daughter and I are addicted to this Jamie Oliver recipe.

Cabbage braised in Worcestershire sauce

1 large Savoy cabbage
Olive oil
1/2 cup or more Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
knob of butter or two

1.Remove and wash the outer green leaves of the cabbage, then roll them up like a cigar and finely slice them – this is called ‘chiffonade’. Cut the cabbage in half, remove core and finely chop/slice the rest.

2. Put a LARGE frying pan on a high heat and add a good glug of olive oil. Add the sliced cabbage to the pan and move it around, giving it a good shake. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes.

3. Add the Worcestershire sauce and some salt and pepper.

4. Keep moving the cabbage around so it all gets nicely coated and cook for another 4 minutes until it has softened. Keep an eye on it, moving and tossing it around so it doesn’t catch on the bottom of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and add butter – this will give it a nice sweetness.

Yum.

Hal's House

Whew, another one finished, except for some minor touch ups. This is 30 x 34". Largest painting I've created to date. Took a lot of hours to get this one done but very satisfying to see it completed. It was my daughter's idea to paint a wider view showing Hal's entire house. That's Hal below. 26 x 30" These are both destined for a gallery.

business and pleasure

Anyone from Lunenburg will recognize this photo. It is the Lunenburg Academy built in 1895. So cool. It is an elementary school that is still being used:) A wonderful old building perched atop Gallows Hill overlooking the colourful town. Click on the picture to see some other views of it.

On Friday, I drove to Lunenburg with two other artist pals to visit the owner of a new gallery which will be carrying some of our work and to meet with a few of the other artists! It was such fun and very exciting. The Witherstone Gallery is on Lincoln Street next to a few others so it is becoming sort of an "Artist's Row. After our meeting, we all had lunch together at the Scuttlebutt. My fave spot Magnolia Grill is closed until the 15th but'll pop in there when I deliver my paintings later this week. There is our table glimpsed through the door.

The food was really good and the cheerful place was full of art and light. I had a lentil burger with a light salad and AMAZINGLY crunchy and delicious sweet potato fries with a smoked paprika dipping sauce. So good I forgot to take a picture. I'd recommend it. Nice to kick off Spring with a wee road trip and good company. I'll be back there before I know it!

Also....... I'll be in this gallery in Mahone Bay! (Trilogy) Another new one. It looks as though it is in the middle of nowhere but actually, it is right on the Main Street as you go around the curve to all the shops. There's a wee brook next to it and the house backs onto the bay. Plover's is off to the left across the street. I have a LOT of work ahead of me:)

Saturday Market

Cool huh? These are the wind turbines on the living roof of the Halifax Seaport Market. These pics were taken Saturday morning. Sun rising over Georges Island.

Love this pic! "the golden girls" The rising sun this time of year beams into the JavaBlend
Coffee Roasters kiosk. I always pick up a skinny latte here to start the morning after I've taken my snapshot of the harbour.:)

road trip

Headed here today! Mini road trip to Lunenburg. Checking out some galleries:) This painting is by my friend Zehava Power:)

Seraphina

Another gallery painting! 16 x 16.

I had to pop into National Art the other day to pick up some bits and bobs and just as I was walking up the stairs to go in, I glanced over to the next parking lot and saw a policeman in a "legs bent holding gun with both hands squat" and then I saw another one with gun pointed! They were corralling someone. I froze. I was in the line of fire should they shoot or something go wrong. There were three police cars haphazardly parked with doors open. I was wondering why there was not a police cordon to prevent people like me from getting so close. Scary!
and then I noticed they were just shooting a movie:) Ha.
Once inside, I told my story to the sales clerk and she laughed and said the same thing happened to her earlier when she arrived at work.

Argyle Fine Art Gallery

I had to pick up some things downtown last week and thought I would pop in to see Argyle Fine Art's new digs. They are now on the corner of Barrington and Blowers Street where Carsand Mosher used to be.

It is a bright cheery spot with a great future. Barrington Street used to be a prime busy shopping street and then fell into decline. It is now in the midst of a Renaissance and Adriana and her team make a great addition. This is Crystal wrapping up a folk art cat. ( if you were wondering what on earth was in that package:)

The gallery is stuffed with beautiful art and interesting bits and pieces. Downstairs there is a 3-D exhibit on at the moment which is really fun.

They often run workshops and special events throughout the year and Argyle Fine Art also has a blog where you can learn more about the artists featured and a Facebook Page too.

seagulls

Fun stuff.This silly 16 x16 is headed for the new Witherstone Gallery in Lunenburg!

Daguerreotype

I came across this amazing collection recently. Look at his hair style! (1850) These pictures fascinate me. They belong to the Donald Weber Collection, which was donated to George Eastman House (a cornocopia for visual feasting). Most of them are small daguerreotypes circa 1850.
"Donald Weber began collecting photographs in the 1950’s when he purchased a ‘bushel basket’ of stereographs for $7 dollars. In 1976 his initial association with George Eastman House was established with a gift of a few items, and in 1994 he donated his collection of nearly 260 daguerreotypes, ambrotypes and tintypes along with funds to support the collection’s care. Since his original gift, Weber has donated over 600 objects to the museum and continues to offer a variety of 19th and 20th Century photographs to George Eastman House every year."

Weber finds nearly all his objects in flea markets, estate sales or through dealings with other collectors. It is said that “chance favors the prepared mind,” and discoveries at such venues must therefore result from experience and the ability to recognize exceptional objects amidst a preponderance of unremarkable ones. It is evident by looking at this selection of his ‘finds’ that Weber possesses a remarkable eye, and an obvious passion for photographs."

Twins, 1855, daguerrotype. They are even wearing the same ring on their index fingers!

I find the seriousness of the subjects fascinating but I know it had to do with sitting still so no blurring occured. A face without an expression seems to express more for some reason. Almost haunting in some cases. I wonder who they were, what happened in their lives.

Look at this woman and her seven children( 1860), so different from today's pictures!
Say Cheese:)