I currently have a commission of 6 paintings to do for the Hendrick Hospital Executive Boardroom in October/November. I started working on them in July. I have other paintings in the works as well. There are 10 paintings with various layers of paint on them. I've had to spread them out in several locations. I have the largest canvas in my formal living room, one large one in the den on my husband's easel. I've invaded his space once again! There are two canvases set up in my studio at Legacy Gallery and Studios, that are nearest to completion. I've set up two on easels at the studio downtown at the Center for Contemporary Arts. The other paintings will be going into various upcoming shows . It's not work to me. This is what I've always dreamed of doing.
Today is my birthday. Yesterday was my Dad's birthday. He would have been 90 today. I learned so much about having a strong work ethic and settings goals and starting projects and working on them to completion. When he was a young boy, working in his mother's garden on a farm in Deep South Louisiana, he would see planes fly overhead and vow that one day he would fly planes. He realized his dream by joining the Air Force. He was an airplane mechanic first, but in the meantime was learning to fly small planes. Eventually, he became a flight engineer on Cargo Planes. My son, Scott, just became an Army Aviator. He'll be flying Blackhawks. He started the same way; flying small planes. I still have my Dad's Flight Log and Scott was very excited to get to thumb threw it. I was thrilled to get to ride in a helicopter on family day after his graduation ceremony. The doors were open and I got to sit in the gunner's seat!
I decided as a young girl that I am an artist and someday I would learn how to paint. I learned how to plan things that I wanted to accomplish from him. I was Dad's shadow. When he was working on a project, I was right there with him. We planted fields of Kentucky Wonders and Corn in Hawaii; harvested and bagged it and had our neighbor sell it to his co-workers in Pearl Harbor. It was Dad's plan to raise enough money to fly all 9 of us home to Louisiana to see our relatives. He did it. There were so many things I could list; like building a skating rink in North Dakota to building fences on our land in Texas.
I have a job to do. It will be a challenge to get it done but, it'll be fun.
Upcoming Shows
September 23, 2023 5:30-7:30
I'll be a part of the show at
1117 Gallery and Studios
Abilene, Texas
November 4 - November 28
Jo and Tom Henderson Gallery
Sweetwater Municipal Auditorium
400 Locust St
Sweetwater, Texas
Opening Reception November 4, 2023 6:00pm
