Rise

As a gift, Rich took me to see the Georgia O'Keeffe show at the Peabody Essex Museum. I was greatly inspired by her when I was young and in high school. She will always be a great, strong woman icon in my life - she is one of the reasons I paint. She was always so bold and was never afraid to represent herself in her own way; not conforming to society standards. Her strong spirit is felt in all of her work. As an artist, I felt at times that I had to conform to what is popular, or what is selling, or what is "on trend". I have realized now, it is perfectly fine to be different, to rise up and stay true to your heart. God wants each and every one of us to rise and share our own gift with others. I do not understand why we have fear, that sometimes hold us back in our lives. We have to release this fear and let God and nature in. Due to this reawakening of artistic spirit, I broke out my old calligraphy set and starting lettering again. Once my still-life study painting was complete, I superimposed the lettering over the painting to make cards. Keep painting and keep rising. God bless.