New Year

 New Year

Oil on Wood

8"X8"

Small kindnesses. Music. Laughter. Family. Friends. The children. Comfort. Gratitude. Art. Resilience. Science. Hope. Health. 

All of the above.

And LOVE. All of it with LOVE. 

Staying Positive

 Morning Light

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

I am trying to stay positive while testing negative. Here we go again. Hunkering down. Listening to music that touches my soul. Focussing on unexpected moments of simple joy. Painting. Holding on to Hope.

Raindrops Keep Falling

 Raindrops Keep Falling

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

It is still raining. Our windows are little works of art. This morning there was a rainbow. I am hoping this is a harbinger of good things to come.

Last Light

 Last Light

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

The darkest hour is just before dawn. These last few leaves clinging to the branch give me hope.  We are more resilient than we think. The days will get longer. Light is returning and with it better days ahead. Happy Solstice.

Joanne's Maple

 Joanne's Maple

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

SOLD

It's amazing what seeing blue sky and a friend can do for the spirit. It's the gift that can't be found online or in a store. The gift that isn't a "thing" at all, but in the end, is everything.

Rain

 Rain

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

Raindrops have been falling for two days. Every window is a soft focus painting. And we are celebrating.

Winter Light

 Gift from the Garden

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

SOLD

I am looking to nature again to light the way.

Thanksgiving 2021

 Thanksgiving 2021

Oil on Wood

6"X8"

 Family, Friends, Health, Humor and Nature's bounty. Giving thanks for everyone I love, past, present and future. 

Anniversary Vase

 Anniversary Vase

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

My parents' anniversary vase glows with one white rose, a bright light on this grey, foggy day.

In the Fullness of Fall

 Fall

Oil on Wood

16"X20"

As darkness falls, the last remnants of light are that much brighter. The sweet sadness of all that is gone washes over me, and I am in awe of life.

Reading and Writing

 Reading and Writing

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

It's that time of year. Contemplative, quiet, and yearning to make sense of it all.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

 Light at the End of the Tunnel

Oil on Canvas

24"X30"

Trying to stay positive, energetic, and hopeful.

First Rain

 First Rain

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

I can't get enough of it.

Everyone is soaking it in. The birds, the plants, and my friend's turtle. It's been a long dry spell. Cause for celebration.

HOPE Journal of a Pandemic Year

 HOPE Journal of a Pandemic Year

Paperback Book

Paintings and words chronicling March 2020-March 2021

136 Pages

Available from SusanLandor.com

HOPE is back.

Early Fall

 Early Fall

Oil on Wood

24"X24"

Yesterday I walked with my friend.   Today I listened to Kelly Corrigan interview Anthony Ray Hinton. 

The world would be a better place if everyone walked and talked, listened, loved and looked up a lot.

Shine On Harvest Moon

 Shine On Harvest Moon

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Conducting business virtually is just plain frustrating and ridiculous. I've been trying to counteract it by soaking in nature, friends, Bach, and playing with paint. Staying afloat.

Fall Llight 2

 Fall Light 2

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Anemones are everywhere in my garden, oblivious to the drought and everything else that is amiss.  Their flower may be delicate and fragile, but they are survivors returning every Fall, spreading their lightness and simple beauty just when the summer light begins to fade. Trying with all my might to follow their lead. 

Bright Light in Dark Time

 Bright Light in Dark Time

Oil on Wood

10"X10"

It's still the unexpected pleasures that give my life meaning. This morning I went for a walk and ran into two neighbors who I hadn't seen in awhile. I walked and talked with one and then later the other and came home lighter and livelier.  And painting. These flowers. The shear joy of making it happen. There is nothing that compares. 

Flowers from Friends

 Flowers from Friends

Oil on Wood

10"X10"

A gentle rain fell Saturday night. Old friends came to dinner. They brought flowers from their garden in a beautiful glass vase, which sits on the table, filling the room with memories of our conversation and laughter. Friendship. There's nothing like it.

Fall Light

 Fall Light

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Fall light makes me nostalgic. My parents are in my heart. The crystal vase he gave her for their 15th anniversary is on the table, casting a long shadow. I remember the day, this gift, her surprise.  She filled it with flowers from her garden, and all these years later, I do the same, a tribute to them and time gone by.

Absorbing "La Vie en Rose"

 Absorbing "La Vie en Rose"

Oil on Wood

10"X10"

Back to SF MOMA where I soaked in the magnificence of Joan Mitchell's unbridled energy.  To be in a room, with a few good friends, surrounded by art is enough to make the future seem plausible.

Laundry Day 2021

 

Laundry Day 2021

Oil on Wood

16"X20"

I'm back! Back from Maine and back to painting. 

More to come.

Light and Airy

 Light and Airy

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

Wishful thinking.

August is on the horizon.

 June 2021

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

We have been celebrating. Birthdays. Being together. Summer. Each other. But mostly, just being in the presence of friends and family without fear is in itself a cause for celebration. Despite all the rancor out in the world, I am still hopeful. Scientists came together and gave us the vaccine. And our government  distributed the vaccine making life possible again. I remember how I felt last year at this time. Here we are, in each other's company, living and loving life. How sweet it is. 

HOPE - Journal of a Pandemic Year

HOPE - Journal of a Pandemic Year

2020-2021

Book available for sale online from SusanLandor.com.

Summertime

 Summertime

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

SOLD

It's that time of year. To sit back, soak up some sun and let the mind wander. After being on high alert for months on end, have we forgotten how to just be? 

Present

 Present

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Yesterday I visited my friend, Ellis Heyer, her magnificent paintings, lush garden and Chelo, the endearing turtle who calls her garden home.  It was a welcome dose of inspiration and once again, a reminder that life is all about being present and connecting.  We've been without each other too long.

Egret at the Edge

 Egret at the Edge

Oil on Wood

8"X6"

Neither in nor out. At the edge of land and sea. It is where the egret finds her nourishment. We are all on the brink in new territory. It is an unsettling time. I am not sure what I am suppose to be doing. But a little Bach and making this little painting have restored my equilibrium. A little miracle in the afternoon.

Beach Day

 Beach Day

Oil on Wood

8"X6"

SOLD

 Beach day with the family last weekend. Good for heart and soul.

Sea Song

 Sea Song

Oil on Canvas

30"X24"

The sea and its song is soothing like nothing else.

Spring 2021

 Spring 2021

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

What lays ahead?

Who knows?

In the Pink

 In the Pink

Oil on Wood

16"X20"

I have been focusing on Spring in recent weeks.

Spring flowers. Spring cleaning. 

Like the birds, I am flitting from one task to another, never finishing anything.

Unearthing old drawings and photographs has brought a flood of memories and with it a longing for loved ones who are no longer here. 

Then I take a walk, intoxicated by flowers and fragrance and hope is in the air again.

Spring Springs

Spring Springs

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

Sun, snow, rain, clouds, and daffodils everywhere. Spring is in the air.

Magnolia Morning

 Magnolia Morning

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

 Sausalito's Spring show is almost enough to make up for all the art and theater we have been missing.  

Harbinger of Spring

 Harbinger of Spring

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

Everywhere I walk there are magnolias in bloom. Things are looking up. And it is lightening my mood.

Hope 99

 Hope 99

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

A month ago I saw the first magnolia bud on this tree.

What a difference a month makes.

Hope 98

 Hope 98

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

After days of rain, the woods are teaming with new life. Thick moss covers every tree, and ferns carpet the earth below. 

Without my friend I wouldn't have seen the cluster of elusive Fetid Adder's Tongue that crossed our path. 

They are tiny and hidden amongst the ferns on the forest floor and they only bloom briefly. Until today, I didn't even know they existed. Without my friend I wouldn't have found my way through the woods, and I wouldn't have walked and talked and laughed and returned home fully rejuvenated, seen and heard and a little less on edge.

Hope 97

 Hope 97

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

It has been dark and grey and cold, and rain has been falling all day. We desperately need the rain, so  rather than moping around we really should be celebrating. Hot chicken soup is simmering on the stove. That and a nice warm fire should perk us up.

Hope 96

 Hope 96

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Spring. Will. Come.

There is nothing more hopeful than a bunch of Narcissus in the middle of nowhere.

 Rain and vaccines are on the way.

Hope 95

 Hope 95

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Fog blanketed the bay this morning. There was softness in the air, and I felt a welcome sense of deep down calm. Little by little light is returning to our world, and I, for one, am quietly ecstatic.

Hope 94

Hope 94

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

It is a new day and I am more hopeful than ever.

Hope 93

 Hope 93

Oil on Wood

 6"x6"

Last Thursday my friend and I sat by the bay on a warm afternoon to celebrate her birthday. We wore masks and kept our distance, but that didn't diminish the laughter and camaraderie that comes with shared history and the enduring bond of friendship. 

Today a big baby boy was born to a dear young friend. 

One by one my friends and I are getting vaccinated.

And tomorrow competent and compassionate leadership comes to Washington. 

Hope is bubbling up everywhere, and I am weeping quiet tears of joy.

Hope 92

 Hope 92

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Little by little, the days are getting longer.

Playing with my granddaughter under her magnolia tree last week I saw this lone bud open before my eyes. 

Spring will come.

Hope 91

 Hope 91

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

I took a long walk over the hill and through the vineyards this morning. The sun was comforting and recent rains have turned everything green. There is hope in that, and in seeing new growth as Nature takes its course. Again. 

Hope 90

 Hope 90

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

Are there more birds these days, or are we just more attuned to their chirping? 

Are they trying to tell us something? Or have they always been broadcasting the same message, and we are just now paying attention?

"I am here. I am here. I am here." 

Hope 89

 Hope 89

Oil on Wood

6"X6"

She's back! 

Happy New Year.

This is what I wrote when she first showed up in May. back when she became the subject of "Hope 39."

"A female peacock (peahen) showed up on our doorstep this weekend. Everything about her reminded me of my mother. Elegant, exotic, beautiful, present, with a deeply soothing spirit. Even the crest on her head looked like something my mother might have worn to adorn her topknot. She stayed around for two days, watching us and us her. Then, just like that, she was gone."