Ebb and Flow

Ebb and Flow

Oil on Wood

24"X12"

Available for sale online from SusanLandor.com 

 Is it the time of year, or the time of life?  Or is it reading Susan Orlean's beautiful, "The Library Book" that has me swimming in memories of the past?

Her thoughts on memory and the meaning of life on page 92 and 93 are a reason to read the book, not to mention the bright red cover with gold lettering that beckons from the night stand at bedtime. 

"Our minds and souls contain volumes inscribed by our experiences and emotions; each individual's consciousness is a collection of memories we've cataloged and stored inside us, a private library of a life lived.  It is something that no one else can entirely share, one that burns down and disappears when we die.  But if you can take something from that internal collection and share it – with one person or with the larger world, on the page or in a story recited – it takes on a life of its own."

I am holding that thought as the days come and go like the ebb and flow of the tide that shifts the sands ever so slightly making what was, new again.

Sea of Calm

"Sea of Calm"

Oil on Wood

6"X8"

For Jessica Keane, my amazing and dedicated doctor, the voice of reason and calm. She managed my medical care from 3,000 miles away and talked me

down more than once. Doctors do what they do so we can survive another day to do what we do. I am grateful beyond measure.

Down East

Down East

Oil on Canvas Mounted on Wood

6"X8"

Heading out.

Maine Beach 1

Maine Beach 1

Oil on Wood

12"X12"
A word about friends, relatives, and perfect strangers who keep the likes of me going.
Thanks.
Your notes of appreciation for what goes on here are appreciated more than you know. This is a solitary business. Aside from the dog's comings and goings, it's mostly Me, Myself, and I in the studio. And much of the time I am not at all sure what I am doing. It's good to know you are there. Seeing, Reading, and Responding.

Light Rain

Light Rain

Oil on Wood

18"X18"

Welcoming the rain. 

Ebb Tide

Ebb Tide

Oil on Canvas

18"X36"

"Ebb tide -  the period between high water and the succeeding low water." 

Fog 3

Fog 3

Oil on Wood

12"X12"
SOLD
The wind has shifted East and a light drizzle has been falling all day. The sailor says, "nothing good ever comes out of the East." But that depends what your definition of "good" is. I could wander around in the grayness of it all for a long time happily,  finally having found a way to soften the color without everything turning to mush. Am going to continue on in this vein. Until the sun comes out.

Fog 2

Fog 2

Oil on Wood

12"X12"
SOLD
The light couldn't be more beautiful. Warm grays, everything soft and dreamy. Suits my quiet mood but I am sorry for the sailors who are out somewhere wishing for a raucous wind. 

Fog

Fog

Oil on Wood

12"X12"
SOLD

Squall at Sundown

Squall at Sundown

Oil on Wood

10"X10"

The last two evenings have brought squalls just as the sun was setting. 

Morning in June

Morning in June

Oil on Wood

10"X10"

Just getting started. More to come next week.

Connecticut Reserve

Connecticut Reserve

Oil on Cigar Box

6"X8.5"

I let the blond wood of this cigar box dictate the painting. Warm and light, calm and quiet. That has summer written all over it. 

Charlie

Charlie

Oil on Cigar Box

7.5"X8.5"

For Alice, on her 65th birthday.  "Charlie." Built to last. Like the friendship it spawned.

On the Horizon

On the Horizon

Oil on Wood

4"X4"

 Saturday brought a steady stream of  people through my studio. I enjoyed seeing each and every one and  I  have been reveling in their attention and appreciation of what I do.  It took some days to mess up my space again. There are gaps on the walls where paintings once hung, and unfinished business is piling up as I turn my attention to Maine on the horizon. 

Sand Beach

Sand Beach

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

This is and isn't Sand Beach. Started last year sometime it has crossed the country twice and had quite a makeover in recent weeks. More than anything, it's a memory of summer in Maine. The kind we dream about. Without rain and mosquitoes. Warm and enveloping and a step away from the worries of the real world.

Speaking of the real world, last night I watched "Pressure Cooker," a documentary about a Philadelphia high school course in culinary arts. What it's really about is committed, caring, teaching and motivated, resilient young people. It makes you just want to go out and do some good in the world.

City Shore March, 2011

City Shore March, 2011

Oil on Wood

12"X12"

Weather Moving Through

Weather Moving Through

Oil on Wood

10"X10"

Seeing so many wonderful people in one place at one time at Tuesday night's "Out of Print" show at the Mill Valley Library filled me up to over flowing. I am still recovering.

In the meantime, the weather has been putting on quite a show. Fast moving clouds and a vast array of grays have caught my attention. I just might concentrate on this for awhile. But you never know.

Race Day Cigar Box 2

Race Day Cigar Box 2
Oil on Wood Cigar Box
4"X8"4"

Race Day Cigar Box

Race Day Cigar Box
Oil on Wood Cigar Box
6.5"X6.5"X2.5"
Imagining a summer morning in Maine. Soft, warm, still. Downright dreamy.

Sutton Island

Sutton Island West
Oil on Wood Panel
2"X3"

Sutton Island East
Oil on Wood Panel
2"X3"
It was clear from first light that yesterday morning was meant for rowing. Calm, sunny, smooth.
Rosie and I set off across the bay to Sutton Island. First around the west end of the island where an abandoned Osprey nest sits up on a high rock. A substantial bush has taken root right in the middle of the nest. Nature doing it's tenacious thing. I thought about circumnavigating the whole island, but instead I came back around and rowed, hugging the shore, all the way to the east end where birds were sunning themselves on the rocks. By then the breeze had come up so I headed for home, feeling as if I had been in a different world. Slow. Calm. Peaceful.