Ophelia

A pastel study of two year old Ophelia. Doesn't she have the look of an angel? Don't you believe it. She is a fireball, always finding something interesting to, um, explore. Another grandchild who lives too far away to pose-- as if that were actually a possibility even if she were here! This is from a photo I took of her when she was two, a rare moment when she wasn't a blur.

pastel on Tiziano cream, 13x18cm (5x7 in.)

Phlox and beebalm

Soft pastel on Tiziano white, 30x23cm (12x9 in.)

You know that saying "Time is Nature's way of keeping everything from happening at once"? Well, that's true, but the problem is that, like the universe, it is kinda uneven, and sometimes things clump together. That's the way last week was.

Yesterday afternoon, when I came home, I looked at the five-foot-tall mound of snow next to my house, and imagined the flowers that will be blooming there in a few months. I decided to do a quick sketch just to see if I could capture the feeling of those flowers. Though it still needs finishing, as I look across the room from a distance of about 15 feet, it has the sense of light and color I was looking for. And needed. This morning the temperature is minus 6F and the wind is blowing. So, finished or not, here it is.

This is for my friend Lew.