Amsterdam!

Just back from my trip to Amsterdam with my father, I thought I would leave a survey of the walks made through the remarkable city, to its many museums, shops, canals, and landmarks. We visited Rembrandt's house, recreated with many of the objects and possessions in the house when Rembrandt went bankrupt. I was stunned by the array of objects in his Kunstkammer (cabinet of curiosity or the most elegant array of painting and teaching props I've ever seen). Rembrandt's recreated studio is also startling, arranged with a nod to one of his drawings of the space. We took in the Gay Pride Parade on the canal system, a floating parade which was an incredible and memorable event full of joy and confetti. Our visit to the Rijksmuseum was a beguiling exercise in the viewing of long-awaited works of art, including my personal favorite, Jan Asselijn's Threatened Swan. We visited the Van Gogh museum where I became enthralled with his lesser known Dutch-influenced early and much darker paintings as well as the copious holdings they have in still life. I was especially partial to Van Gogh's paintings of Parisian Novels and Shrimp! We took in the New Church and its elegant show "Black is Beautiful: Rubens to Dumas", the women's only Begijnhof, the lush and bustling Amsterdam Flower Market, the luxe Herengracht (men's canal), and richly layered pedestrian and bike friendly streets. My father and I also took a day trip by train to the Hague (den Haag as the Dutch say) and were astonished by the beauty of the Dutch government buildings as well as the absolute-must-see Mauritshuis Museum. There we dazedly took in Vemeer's Girl with a Pearl Earing, a captivating array of Rembrant works including a moving late portrait, and some of the lushest still life paintings I have ever laid eyes on. The pictures of Den Haag will come in the next day or so, when I catch my breath. We stayed at the Hotel de l'Europe, an intriguing old-world place full of paintings, chandeliers, and curiosities. Interestingly, the hotel is owned by members of the Heineken family, so that's the beer they have on tap, exclusively, which we indulged in greatfully while devouring Dutch snacks after days of walking. I am so grateful for the wandering days spent with my father, I don't know when we'll get to do anything like this again together.

Newest Baby Skull

My early morning painting session two days ago yields a nice dry painting to scan today. I think the ground should be a bit darker, yes/no?

And Even More Skull Paintings

More Skull Paintings

Skull Paintings

I'm working on a group of skull paintings, I have been for some time now, and now I feel I can begin to show a few of them on the blog. These little bitty portrait skulls are all 3.5" x 2", so they are wee miniature skulls done with unbleached titanium white, white, and raw umber. I work with a range of plastic skulls and reference images, but mostly I consider these to be playful portrait/still life ciphers. I hope they smirk at you even as I make rows of them.

A Walking Day in Portland

On vacation in Portland, the husband and I had a magnificent day walking the city yesterday with our friends Tracy and Mark. We started the day with brunch at Helser's where one of our dining companions dared to try the scotch egg, a hard boiled egg wrapped in bratwurst and then deep fried! I had pancakes with Rainier raspberries, a most elegant and document-worthy dish. Then we scooted down to downtown and happened upon our first Benson Bubbler, one of his many elegant water fountains in Portland installed by Mr. Benson to encourage the temperance of his fellow Portland citizens. I wonder how well that worked... We took in the city streets, the skyline, the decorative flourishes on the sides of the buildings. Portlandia, the female with the trident, protects the city just a block down from city hall. Her mammoth form was trucked in down the avenue and there is a very amusing plaque below her commemorating her travel into the city.

A Walking Day in Portland Continues

We continued our walk through a street fair which held a good portion of its booths under a bridge, and watched the trolleys go by, including one Boston-style Cyclops trolley. Meandering through Chinatown our hosts pointed out the landmark Hung Far Low Restaurant, a good picture even if you don't eat there. The pioneer courthouse plaza you see there held this remarkable signpost with improbably cities labeled with distances, including Lillehammer. We headed over to Powell's Books, but I didn't photograph the place, because predictably, I had my nose in a book. And then we jumped in the car to drive to another stroll, the Portland Rose Test Garden, a remarkable and lush place. Husband believed it was similar to the Butchart Gardens of Victoria, and I'm inclined to agree, the Pacific Northwest is a wonderful place to grow flowering plants. Excuse me for taking excessive cliche pictures of roses, I figure I'll paint more roses into the cracked still life paintings that way! And then we finished our day with a drive up to Pittock Mansion to take in one of the best views of Portland.

With Bow