A couple of weeks ago, I asked for your help naming my new dahlia painting, the one with a couple of little surprises hiding in the petals. Thank you to everyone who sent ideas! The name that stuck to the wall came from Janine Thompson: Tiny Houses.
On a rainy summer night, the tree frogs that live on the property with me serenade each other with such volume that you can barely hear yourself think. They often deposit their progeny in the worst possible places. Last year, I relocated several rounds of doomed tadpoles from watery spots in my garden to a fish tank in my house. I like to ensure they return each year, and happily, they do!
The dahlias in this painting came from the same garden. Here they sit in a bottle on my deck, where the mid-morning sun pours in. The petals light up with an otherworldly glow, but my favorite part of the painting is finding the little green creatures hidden in the bloom. Tiny Houses shows them at rest and owns up to my complete adoration of these elegant little amphibians.
I’ll be taking this piece, along with many others, to Evanston, Illinois (just north of Chicago) the second week of November for the North Shore Fine Art Expo. This curated show features invited artists from around the country and will be held at the landmark Orrington Hotel from Friday evening, November 13, through Sunday, November 15. If you're nearby, please come on out.
I know the Chicago area is quite a distance for most of the folks receiving this email, but if you’re in the Birmingham area, you can check out the work of many Birmingham artists, myself included, at:
Birmingham Art Alliance Small Works Show
The opening is Friday, November 6, from 5 pm to 8 pm, at 221 20th St N. The show hangs through December 20, so you’ve got plenty of time if you can’t make the opening.
Whew! Things are getting busy, and it’s time for me to get it in gear. I think I’ll borrow this rallying cry from Jean-Luc: “Engage.”
Rest in peace, Sir Patrick.