Puppy Love for Valentines Day

“Discontent is the first step in progress. No one knows what is in him till he tries, and many would never try if they were not forced to.”
– Basil Maturin

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Puppy Love for Valentines Day

Have a very Happy Valentines Day!  My hubby got the short end of the stick this year.  I’ve been so busy that time got away from me.  He got a box of Girl Scout Cookies.  *sigh*  He actually loved them!! 

About Basil Maturin

British cleric Basil Maturin, renowned for his oratory skill, was ordained as an Anglican but later converted to Catholicism. He was born on February 15, 1847 in Ireland. He ministered in Philadelphia before returning to England in 1888 to resolve his conflict about his religious identity. He died on board the Lusitania when it was sunk by a German U-boat on May 7, 1915. He was observed giving last rites as the ship sank, looking pale but calm.

 

Inside 4 Paws Cabin – Driggs, Idaho

“Many of us, whether we are conscious of it or not, create much of the unhappiness we experience. Our disappointments are the result of our own negative or limited thoughts about ourselves and our world. What are some of those limiting thoughts, those subconscious beliefs, which keep us from experiencing joy and wholeness?

TODAY I will see each disappointment in my life as a challenge to discover the negative or limited beliefs which keep me from seeing myself as a person of unlimited resources and potential.”

–Liane Cordes

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2013

Inside 4 Paws Cabin – 6″ x 6″ Watercolor and Ink

I just booked a flight and rental car for my trip to Idaho this summer.  I’m headed there to see my mom and my brother.  I love Idaho so much and I’m particularly fond of Driggs, Idaho, on the quiet side of the Tetons.  Jackson Hole is on the busy side.  I stayed in Driggs 2 years ago at a lovely cabin called 4 Paws, after spending time with the family in Blackfoot.  The cabin was so cute!  Lots of bear themed decor and wonderful privacy, as the cabin was situated on acreage west of Driggs.  I painted this little painting for the owners of the cabin.

This year 4 Paws is booked, so I am on the search for a similar cabin to spend a few days painting and exploring.  I have a little time, since I’m not going until August, but I’m already excited! 

Liane Cordes is the author of Reflecting Pond.  The Reflecting Pond is a collection of meditations that takes one subject at a time and covers it in depth. Whether we have a concern about self-acceptance, fear, friendship, or love, there is a chapter full of understanding thoughts. Used as an extra dose of support on specific issues, this book will help us think through day-to-day living problems

 

Christmas Sock Monkeys at Antie Faye’s

“Reduce the complexity of life by eliminating the needless wants of life, and the labors of life will reduce themselves.”
–Edwin Way Teale

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Christmas Sock Monkeys

I have been painting  little Christmas things I can add to the building paintings, so that clients can make Christmas cards.  I just stuck these two little toy soldiers on this to show you how fun it can be.  They sorta blend into this building, but it’s just for an example.  I’m making wreaths and swags and trees, for example, to jazz up any card.  Fun!

Edwin Way Teale

Edwin Way Teale, (1899-1980), was a naturalist, writer, and photographer who captured the imaginations and hearts of Americans in his many books about nature. He is ranked with John Muir, Henry David Thoreau, and John Burroughs as one of the best and most influential nature writers in America.  More here…

Bahama Shopping – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Sharpie

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
– Aristotle

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Bahama Shopping – 4″ x 6″ Watercolor & Sharpie

This was painted from another reference by Lisilk at WetCanvas.  Li is a great photographer and I love it when she hosts the WDE at WetCanvas.  I’m headed out to install some signs.  Have a great day!

About Aristotle

Aristotle, the ancient Greek philosopher who is considered one of the most influential thinkers in history, wrote a number of books about science, poetry, and ethics. He was born in 384 B.C. in Macedonia. He studied with Plato in Athens and later tutored Alexander the Great. His death in 322 B.C. was rumored to be caused by hemlock poisoning.

 

Bookmark 5 – Watercolor, Inktense and Sharpie

“Vitality shows not only in the ability to persist, but in the ability to start over.”
– F. Scott Fitzgerald

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Bookmark 5 – Watercolor, Inktense and Sharpie

Are you sick of the bookmarks yet?  They are so fun and full of color.  The colors really came out bright, when I laminated them.  There is one more, which is the ends of all the other 4.  I kept that one! 

About F. Scott Fitzgerald

Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald, who wrote as F. Scott Fitzgerald, is best known for his novel The Great Gatsby. He was born in St. Paul in 1896. Fear of mortality spurred him to write the novel This Side of Paradise while in the Army. It was rejected twice by Scribner’s before they finally published it. His wife Zelda’s schizophrenia was the basis for his novel Tender Is the Night. After they separated, he moved to Los Angeles and wrote screenplays for studio films. He died in 1940.

Stuffed Olive Postcard – 8″ x 10″ Watercolor

“This I conceive to be the chemical function of humor: to change the character of our thought.”
– Lin Yutang

This must be why I often say “I needed that!” after a good belly laugh. 

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Stuffed Olive Postcard – 8″ x 10″ Watercolor

The owner of this restaurant, Debbie Gibbens,  has the best set of marketing skills!  She is always doing something original and quirky to promote her businesses.  (Besides this restaurant in Eufaula, she has 3 locations of Libby’s, a wonderful clothing store; in Eufaula, Tulsa and St. Louis.)  Debbie commissioned this postcard.  She wanted the restaurant, a VW bug and a sock monkey.  The trailer was my idea and she liked it.  I also did their sign when they first opened.  The olive is a carved, dimensional olive.

Here are some of the practice steps I took on the way to the final painting…

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

About Lin Yutang

Chinese author Lin Yutang wrote more than 35 books in English and Chinese, including My Country and My People and The Importance of Living, which brought him international fame. He was born in 1895 in the Fujian province in China. He created a Chinese-American dictionary, an indexing system for Chinese letters, and translated many classic Chinese texts. Written in a humorous, accessible style, his books bridged European and Chinese cultures. He died in 1976.

“Hurry! Throw the ball! Throw the ball!”

“Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.”
– T.S. Eliot

Hurry Home – 6″ x 6″ Watercolor and a wee bit of Sharpie

This is my contribution to Illustration Friday, where the word is Hurry.  If you have pets, you know this could be:

“Hurry home, Mom. I miss you when you’re gone!”

“Hurry!  I gotta peeeeeeee!”

“Hurry with that food, please.  I’m hungry!”

“Hurry!  Throw the ball!  Throw the ball!”

“Hurry and get situated.  I neeeeed to sit on your lap.”

“Hurry!  Get the leash already!  I wanna go for a walk!”

“Hurry!  I need a doggie biscuit…  right now!”

“Hurry, would you?  You walk too slow!”

I could go on.  Everything seems to have a sense of urgency when they have to communicate with their expressions.    I painted it from a photo by Valri Ary at WetCanvas.

About T.S. Eliot

T.S. Eliot, the Nobel Prize–winning poet, is perhaps best known today for a light book of rhymes that became the Broadway hit Cats. He penned such weightier poems as “The Waste Land,” “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” and “Four Quartets.” His work is rich with deeply felt religious meditations, but he never wanted to be perceived as a religious poet. He was born in 1888 in St. Louis and made his adult home in England, where he worked as an editor at the publisher Faber & Faber. He died in 1965.

Bookmark 4 – Watercolor & Sharpie

“Today I am focusing on all the goodness in life,
all the blessings I have been given and all the richness
of all the friends I have, and I feel great joy.
Everything you think, you feel; and all that you feel
manifests to create the conditions of your life.”

–Ramtha

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

I LOVE that quote!!

Bookmark 4 – Watercolor & Sharpie

You can see the shadows a little better in this one.  That’s what I think makes them fun… the depth and shadows.  Oh, and the pen “stitching”. 

Ramtha’s School of Enlightenment, created by Ramtha the Enlightened One, is an academy of the mind that offers retreats and workshops to people of all ages and cultures.

Using ancient wisdom and the latest discoveries in neuroscience and quantum physics, RSE teaches students how to access the extraordinary abilities of the brain to “Become a Remarkable Life®.” RSE facilitates live events and streaming over the Internet in many languages.

JZ Knight began publically channeling Ramtha in 1979. RSE was established in 1988 in Yelm, Washington. More than 100,000 people from around the world have attended Ramtha’s events.

RSE’s unique, innovative approach combines many threads of contemporary scientific research to support the principle that God lives within each of us. The message that you are divine means that you have a direct experience with God, a direct channel. You do not need priests or missionaries to intervene on your behalf to deter you from a direct communion with God.

Read more »

So This Is Where Pink Sweaters Come From

“Make me strong in spirit,
courageous in action,
gentle at heart.
Help me act in wisdom,
conquer fear and doubt,
discover the hidden gifts within me,
meet others with compassion,
be a source of healing energy,
and greet each day with Hope and Joy.”

–Kana Tyler

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

So This Is Where Pink Sweaters Come From – 8″ x 10″ Watercolor and .01 Prismacolor fine art pen

Gail(Ruby Red Dog) at WetCanvas had the best sheep photo to paint from over the weekend!  They each seemed to have their own personality and I had a great time painting them.   Oh… my WordPress blog is letting me add links and tags again!  Yay!!!

About Kana

Kana writes the best blog!  I love reading it every time it pops into my inbox.  Here is what it says on her about page.

 When faced with a fill-in-the-blank statement of “I am a _____”… What’s YOUR answer?

 I am… a writer, an explorer, a coffee-drinker, a recovering addict, a barefoot linguist, a book-dragon (“bookworm” doesn’t cover it), a raconteur, a minister, a sailboat skipper, a research diver, a tattooed scholar, a pirate, a poet, a spiritual adventurer, a photographer, a cartographer, a joyful wife, a mom (and Granny), an island-girl at heart… A list-maker!

 And pleased to meet you! Kana

http://kanatyler.com/

Bookmark 2 – Watercolor, Inktense and Sharpie

“Happiness always looks small while you hold it in your hands, but let it go, and you learn at once how big and precious it is.”
– Aleksei Peshkov

Copyright Beth Parker Art 2012

Bookmark 2 – Watercolor, Inktense and Sharpie

So much fun!  I used a green sharpie to do the mesh in the background.  I put shadows behind everything to give it some depth, but it doesn’t show up well in the scan.  Only 2 more work days until a 3 day weekend!  Yay!  I haven’t taken many days off this month.  I’m not sure I’m going to know how to act. 

WordPress tags still not working!   grrrrrrrrr

About Aleksei Peshkov

Russian social realist author Aleksei Peshkov, known as Maxim Gorky, was so esteemed that his birthplace, Nizhny Novgorod, was renamed Gorky in his honor. He was born in 1868. His parents died when he was young, and he left his home at age 12. He was arrested in the late 1880′s as a revolutionary. His writing, including his best-known novel, The Mother, portrayed a decadent society and immense poverty. He became disillusioned after the Russian Revolution, feeling Lenin’s Communism was little better. He died in 1936.