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Especially when feeling discouraged or unsure, remember to keep the heart, senses, and mind open. With a bit of patience, the path becomes brighter.

With the unsettling proliferation of crazy politics, I am more aware of the need to keep in touch with what really matters in life. Being attentive to all of nature is a big part of my staying grounded. Humbly listening; dropping agendas.
Accepting the fact that, alone, I am not able to make much of a difference in, let's say, healing humanity's relationship to the earth. Alone, it feels overwhelming. Joining together with others is the antidote. So is simply tending to a garden, and being open to its wonder.

Painting spontaneously can take time, to ensure that it only proceeds when truly free enough. This painting took about a year. Although I admit there were other pressing matters; like working a lot on restoring a local Botanical Garden. This community driven garden favors native plants in an attempt to support local biodiversity...a meaningful project in itself. A garden that also seems to influence the organic flow of my painting.

Another painting in search of a way to go with the flow of our crazy world: Wild 2. This is a detail of a 48"x24" canvas. (A good photo of it will be taken as soon as the rest of my life slows down a bit.)
I had no idea how this painting would turn out. Spontaneous and difficult, it became a study in color combinations and relentless rhythm; balancing it all out without compromising the spirit of the piece. Such is the challenge and beauty of chaos.

This scrap of an original artwork with watercolor and ink may be a basis for a fabric design; a new kind of project for me to be sure.
Branching out into a creative experiment which could become less-than-brilliant. I'll learn something regardless of the outcome!

Upon committing myself to a freer approach to painting, I let it loose with this 48" x 24" painting. Appropriately called "Wild 1". It actually was quite the challenge as acrylic paint dries quickly, and the color decisions were many and complex.

A spontaneous session of playing with digital images ended up with this montage. Just for fun. Time to smile more.

Humankind is a part of nature too. We share obvious traits and many not so obvious, like the ability of trees to communicate (they have tiny underground networks). We respond instinctively to animals. We feel at peace in gardens. The connections to the earth and the sky are deep inside us, if we take the time to notice.

With the climate crisis in particular, I had struggled to come to terms with its negative impacts and the slowness of viable human actions to stop the destruction of earth's biosphere. Realistically, I am not counting on a big turn-around. I am learning one way to cope with this: I will live my life by staying true to my personal values and priorities. This includes compassion, creativity, and respect for nature.

After a protracted search for a new home, I succeeded and got to lovely Humboldt. Then, I broke my leg (not too badly but still a pain to get around). Was already settled more or less, so life has been going on, albeit slowly.
Here is a digital art piece created from a photo of an old kimono.

A new pastel drawing, which speaks of everything being connected. A feeling which can be most prominent at night, under the stars, when boundaries are blurred.

After many hours at the computer, this crazy quilt like symmetry reached a final conclusion. Had no idea it would turn out this way; that's how art is like a journey. Even if the end result does not become a time-proven success, it moved the artist along during a pandemic.

Once in a while I paint, as opposed to making digital photo-art. Here is the latest. It is 48" x 36". I titled it "Elemental", referring to the universe-wide elements and to the simple-cell beginning of life on earth and in the ocean. Our bodies will someday die, but our basic elements will not.

Whatever the type of creativity, it is a sure-fire cure for Covid-19 restlessness. This digital tile design was the ticket today.

The current coronavirus crisis can make it hard to be lighthearted at times. There is relief though as spring brings smiles with its tender greens and a reminder of the coming burst of blooms.

Creativity unleashed at the computer!

My new homepage photo is a strong visual shot in the arm. There's a lot of special energy as I look to the coming year.

Due to one too many wildfires, evacuations, power outages, and bad-air days, I will be moving to the coast in Mendocino County. So, creating art for now is at a minimum. Will get back in high gear in the new year.

There are new paintings posted in the Original Art section. Some of these are re-makes of old canvases. Pictured below is a detail of a painting called "Glimpses".

WallpaperFusion has accepted some of my photo-art, readied them for download and posted them at https://www.wallpaperfusion.com/. Enter artistunique in the search box to see them.
Their website offers free photos from many countries. The images are high resolution for the most part, and make good background pics for your digital devices.
Pictured here is another piece that I recently submitted to them. It can take a while for them to get through the selection process, so I have not heard yet if this one has been approved.