Saturday, May 14, 2011

My love/hate relationship with my computer

Dottie's Gifts
20x20 oil on gallery wrapped canvas

I've been AWOL from my blog. I'm so proud of not committing PC homicide on my desktop because its been giving me so much trouble. After not being able to upload photos, it is still crashing without warning and what used to take me a half hour will sometimes take a whole day. Okay, enough of that!

I just got back from Michigan where I got to deliver a birthday present to a very special lady. Mrs St. Pierre is the mother of my high school boyfriend with whom I have been blessed to rekindle a relationship with after forty years. This painting is based on a B&W photo that my friend Terry took. He explained he set up his camera on a timer and ran back up to stand with his younger siblings Cheryl and Mark at the mouth of a cave they were exploring in Japan. I've talked about being raised in Japan and his father Wayne was stationed at the same US Army HDQRS I was at. The St Pierres were there for 3 years. I cropped and glazed the background to what I thought it might look like on a late hot afternoon as he described it. When Mrs St. Pierre opened the present, she said, "Oh, my Babies!" I see her "Babies" as very special gifts she has given the world.

14 comments:

Sandy Sandy Art said...

BREATHTAKING SHEILA!!

Carol Horzempa said...

I am speechless Sheila! This is beautiful...I LOVE it!!

Sorry about your computer troubles. Did you ever try a Mac?

Lokelani Forrest said...

Sheila...I love this painting. For the figures just being silhouettes, it comes alive when viewed in the whole. It conveys a lot of emotion.

Art By Erika said...

Always a wonderful story to go with your paintings :) I like the figural gestures so full of life!

Darn those computers! Sorry about that :(

-Don said...

Computers can make our lives so much easier, or they can make them a living hell... I'm sorry yours is doing the latter to you right now.

"Dottie's Gifts" is an outstanding work. I had to sit and just absorb it for a while before reading about it. I love how those yellows just glow and the way the silhouettes are softened by the orange outlines. Hot!

-Don

Autumn Leaves said...

This is so beautiful, Sheila! What a special gift for a special lady! So glad you posted too; I was about to email you again, truth be told. Computers are both fabulous and a bane. LOL Michael has hung Dominic's paintings, by the way. They lend such a masculine air to Michael's lair.

Elizabeth Seaver said...

What a great gift you gave her! I'm glad you are back and wish you the best in PC hell!

Nicki said...

What a wonderful gift. I love the choices you made to take this from a black and white photo a coloured piece of art.

Mark Sheeky said...

This is beautiful... it evokes Australia for me because it reminds me of the (also beautiful) film Walkabout!

Anonymous said...

This is Perfect! By the way, I lived in Iwakuni City, Japan in the Yamaguchi prefecture in 1983.

Kind Thoughts,

Linny D. Vine said...

Wonderful piece, Sheila!

Carol Schiff Daily Painting said...

The silhouettes are so effective with their unusual poses against the blazing sunset.

Shelia, your work has evolved so much. It has been thrilling to watch your journey.

Dean H. said...

This is breathtaking, Sheila!
Perfect silhouettes against the colorful, smoothly, gradated sky.

Unknown said...

Love the silhouettes Sheila, very striking.