Do Not Tame the Wild Within You

"Do not tame the wild within you;

embrace your passions; 

be a savage to your dreams; seize the day;

embrace the restless warrior in you;

this is your life; find your inner strength;

you're free to choose."

-dch 

This canvas has had several lives. In 2017 when #metoo was in the news I'd painted a young woman, owning both her fear and bravery. I'd used gesso and charcoal and you can still see some of her in the background. A couple of weeks ago I decided to paint over this piece and began using the canvas as a palette for a commissioned piece I'm working on. As I used more and more colors it became more and more powerful. I could feel the life force of the woman in the background coming through and I knew it was time to have this canvas become its own piece. 

"Do Not Tame the Wild Within You"

Image description: an abstract painting with oranges, browns, whites, and golds. The gold paint shimmers and some of the white has black spots of different sizes and shapes painted on it. There are drips of India ink flowing down the canvas and squiggles/dots created with ink around some of the shapes created by the paint in the background. The India ink also shimmers.

Mixed Media - acrylic, charcoal, ink, India ink

11"x14" on Canvas

My original paintings are available in my online gallery.

  I welcome commissions.

Please click the links below to share my blog. 

My Bliss

I just registered to be a participating artist in the West Austin Studio Tour. It was a great opportunity to rework my artist bio.

"I'm endlessly inspired by nature and creating art is my way of celebrating all that is beautiful in this world. I use acrylic, collage, ink, watercolor, and anything else I get my hands on and much of my work is created using things that otherwise would have been discarded. Art is my bliss and I love sharing it."

The video below shows how it sparkles.

"My Bliss"

It sparkles!

Mixed Media

Original available here for $35.

11"x14" on canvas

Prints available on request.

(Printed image may be slightly cropped for printing purposes.)

My original paintings are available in my online gallery.

Let me know if you're interested in prints of my paintings.

  I welcome commissions.

Please click the links below to share my blog.

She Wore a Flower in her Hair

I very seldom use watercolor these days, but when I do it's always such an amazing experience. This sweet one is almost all watercolor with just a touch of ink here and there. Watercolor is so deliciously ethereal. And I did it on canvas....loved that that actually worked!

"She Wore a Flower in her Hair"

This painting is part of a year-long online art class (instructor Jane Davenport).

 

  

7 Day Challenge - Day 3

It was calling out for yellow. I get that.

Click here to view my gallery 
Most of my paintings are for sale and I welcome commissions.
Please click the links below to share my blog.
I'd love to hear from you...feel free to leave me a comment. 

Joyful

Layers upon layers upon layers. This was a wonderful revisiting of the whimsical style I first fell in love with. Such joy!

 Click here to view my gallery 

Most of my paintings are for sale and I welcome commissions.

Please click the links below to share my blog.

I'd love to hear from you...feel free to leave me a comment.

This painting is part of a year-long online art class (instructor Rae Missigman).

Whoooo's that, Mama?

And...in honor of Superb Owl Sunday!

This started as a painting in the class I'm currently taking but I wasn't grooving on the lesson so I went a different direction and ended up with these two cuties. I adore owls.

"Whoooo's that, Mama?"

Click here to view my gallery 

Most of my paintings are for sale and I welcome commissions.

Please click the links below to share my blog.

I'd love to hear from you...feel free to leave me a comment.

Field of Blue - Part 3

A couple of days ago Dave, our little guy, and I went to go visit our big guy's apartment that he shares with his wonderful girlfriend. Our big guy moved out a couple of weeks ago and this was our first trip there. The apartment is fabulous, the food we ate after seeing it was fabulous, and then some sweet awesomeness happened.

We went to a small shop downtown and they had a chest full of photo props. Well, the boys and I each put on pink bob wigs...and my, oh my, did they ever rock that look. They were downright pretty! And while they have maintained their given hair color, I, by the time I was their ages, had dyed my hair every color of the rainbow, literally. Pink being one of those colors (though I don't think that pink is officially a rainbow color).

It was nice to have a glimpse of my little apples not falling too far from their mama tree.


I finished my bluebonnet painting. It's on the abstract side and I'm happy with it. I hope Dave thinks I did his beautiful photo justice. Here's the finished painting and below are a couple of the last stages.

"Field of Blue"

I felt it absolutely, positively needed more flowers.

I added details to the flowers and darkened some of the
trees in the far background. All that was left was to
detail the grass, add some clouds and other kinds of flowers,
and paint the edges of the canvas.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale and I welcome commissions.

I'd love for you to share my art and blog with the links below.  Thanks!

Field of Blue - Part 2

Dave's been teaching our dog, Hazel, to play dead. It's supposed to go like this.

"Sit" - Hazel sits.

"Down" - Hazel lies down.

"Bang!" - Hazel rolls to the side and plays dead.


Here's what actually happens.

"Sit" - Hazel sits.

"Down" - Hazel lies down.

"Bang!" - Hazel looks at Dave like he's crazy.

"Bang!" - Hazel begins to sloooooowly ooze over just a tad.

"Bang!" - Hazel rolls to the side but keeps her head up.

"Bang!" - Hazel slooooooowly lays her head down and sighs.


So it's not an instant gratification thing for Dave, that's for sure, but I believe that Hazel has a good chance of winning an Oscar this year. Best death scene ever!


I continued working on my bluebonnets. I'm excited about doing layer upon layer of them!

I added some white over the black so the blue of
the bluebonnets would be brighter.

I painted the flower shapes a blue/purple combo.

I added white/green tops and white speckles to the flowers.
This is just the first layer of bluebonnets. More to come!

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale and I welcome commissions.

I'd love for you to share my art and blog with the links below.  Thanks!

Field of Blue - Part 1

I got home today and found our cat, Tommy, asleep in one of our chairs. I picked him up and cuddled him for a bit and then let him sit on my lap. That little guy went right back to sleep...sitting up! He reminded me of my grandfather who I once saw sleeping while standing up leaning against a wall. Mad sleeping skills!


I started a new painting. Dave suggested that I use one of his photographs as inspiration. It's a lovely photo of a field of bluebonnets. I hope I'll do it justice.

I started by doing just a basic horizon, ground and sky.

I roughed in some trees and brush in the far background
and lay in some spots where bluebonnet flowers will go.

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale and I welcome commissions.

I'd love for you to share my art and blog with the links below.  Thanks!

I'm running a big sale on my paintings through the end of August. Almost everything in my gallery is 60% off. I'm only keeping my most current work (paintings on page 1) at the listed prices. If there's something you'd like, please let me know by message or comment so I can manually adjust the price. Thanks!!! http://www.dailypaintworks.com/artists/kali-parsons-3935/artwork

The Early Bird

Didn't get the worm...this time.

But the little guy and I got up super early today, at his insistence, and went to the gym before 6am. While I'm an early riser, I tend to poke about rather than get 'er goin'. And he's the kid who will sleep till noon given the chance. But up we got and off we went and we had such a great time in that big old almost empty gym. 

And by 5pm the kid and I were both taking a nap.

Me: "Do you want to do it again?"

Little guy: "I dunno."

Thinking we'll stick to our evening workouts and let the rest of you be the early birds.

Here's my third piece inspired by Joan Miró. 

Click here to view my gallery.  Most of my paintings are for sale.

I'd love for you to share my art and blog with the links below.  Thanks!

Together

My kid gets to live in poverty for the next couple of days...and I'm so excited!  I know, sounds odd, but I wish all kids in our country could experience something like this.  He's a couple states away experiencing a simulation (a very accurate one, I hear) of a village somewhere on this planet of ours the subsists on far, far less than you and I.

He may be sleeping in a hut tonight in the below-freezing temps.  He may be outside.  He may only consume a teeny, tiny serving of grain for each of his meals.  He may care for animals and drink the milk they produce.  He may toil for hours until he blisters his hands.  He will feel hunger and cold.  And he will definitely come back home later this week with a new perspective that he'll likely reflect upon for many years to come.

And while I'm super curious about what he's doing at this very moment, I'm grateful that he absolutely, positively cannot text me to let me know...as cell phones are not permitted.

Will he come back and play video games a little less?  Doubtful.  Will he spend less time staring at his phone?  Highly unlikely.  Will he have an awareness that will reside in his mind forever that we're all together on this planet of ours, so very similar in spite of the fact that we find ourselves in very different circumstances?  I'm pretty darn sure.

Click here to check out my gallery.

Stop and Smell the Bats

OK, perhaps not literally smell them, that could be very dangerous, but metaphorically...like when you're supposed to stop and smell the roses.

Well, today I stopped and smelled the bats.  I woke up super early (summer schedule-wise) and found myself on the Congress Bridge at 7:25 this morning.  Turns out it was just the right time to show up and experience all the bats coming home after a long night of flying and feeding.  And it was amazing!  I've seen them stream out when they're departing, but that had nothing on this.  "Why?" you ask?


•  No crowds...just little old me and a scant number of runners who seemed oblivious to the wonder they were ignoring.

•  The bats flew in at seemingly kamikaze speeds and managed to dart directly into their specific slit under the bridge.  Wowza!

•  The air was fresher...something lovely about morning air over the river with very little traffic exhaust smell and bats who had likely done their business elsewhere.

•  It was over 20° cooler than when you watch in the evening.


I recommend it highly.  And while you're out there first thing some morning, be sure to wish all the homeless folks a cheerful, "Good morning."  Does your and their hearts good.

Click here to purchase this painting.

And here's something batty that I've been working on.  I'm creating a piece to go in the "Bat Cave" at the elementary school where I work.  The cave is filled with many other pieces created by artists that didn't procrastinate as much as I.  Painting will commence later this week!  And I've said it...so now I'm accountable.

Thanks for "liking" my blog posts!!