In the privacy of my own home
I have joyfully lost my mind over blackberries.
I pour out my love to these dark and delicate jewels
in my paintings..
where I can explore
and obsess over them
to my heart’s content.
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When I paint
I put a blob of raw umber on my palette
and start drawing on the canvas.
I don’t stop to think about what I’m doing
I go wherever my paintbrush takes me.
Often it leads me into difficult territory..
Not away from it.
Hands are hard,
yet the creature that ended up on my canvas
has six of them.
So I struggle.
I fight.
I am committed to the end.
Dedicated to the direction of my gift
and the heart that guides me..
I will never give up.
Don’t avoid the hard stuff.
That’s how you grow.
Excerpt from Painting, Passion and the Art of Life by Michele Bledsoe
Another piece of illustrated personal mail
I sent to Richard while we were dating.
It has been a long time
since I’ve seen these drawings..
I was pleasantly surprised
to find my dog’s missing leg
under the sea
with the fish sticks
and goldfish crackers.
I didn’t paint much
while I was working on my book.
But now..
I am unleashed.
I painted and painted
and painted.
That night..
my hand hurt like crazy.
Muscles aching from disuse;
I smiled to myself
in the dark.
All I could think about
was more painting.
Being an introvert,
I am no stranger to social distancing.
That is an understatement.
Nevertheless,
Time is a gift..
and I have embraced this unexpected period of self-quarantine
with wild enthusiasm.
After years of false starts
self-sabotage
doubt, distraction
and failure..
my new book is about to be published.
Now, onto the next project..
Work in progress, by Michele Bledsoe
It is rare when I introduce something new
to my beloved palette of colors…
That is an understatement.
But when I returned to my easel
after finally finishing my new book..
it appears that I have wondrously
and joyfully
lost my mind.
Without hesitation
I started gathering strange tubes of paint
one after another..
And as I fearlessly applied these alien pigments
to my work in progress,
I understood the true meaning of enthusiasm:
To be possessed by God.
Cerulean Blue, Sap Green, Yellow Oxide… I had to write them down so I wouldn’t forget.
Instead of our regular raisins,
my husband and I picked up some golden raisins
during our weekly trip to the grocery store.
When we opened the box
it almost took my breath away.
We marveled at the rich colors –
an assortment of gold, deep yellow and amber
tumbling like leathery gems
into our open hands.
Since we are both painters..
we tried to identify the colors we saw
in terms of paint:
Yellow Oxide?
Turner’s yellow….?
Burnt sienna??
As artists, we can only attempt to reproduce
these beautiful objects with brush and pigment –
We might even come close..
but they would taste awful.
Being that my husband and I are both artists..
our family Christmas tradition
involves painting.
We have been working on this tree for many years.
Every December, we pull it out of storage
and get to work.
Taking turns
adding details
My sisters have also contributed..
picking up a brush to add their mark
to a tree decorating ceremony
captured on canvas.
During breaks at work
I wander around the parking lot
looking for treasure.
Pine cones,
curling leaves
twisted twigs
a dead bee
a butterfly wing..
They follow me home
and sneak into my paintings.
42 Dogs by Michele Bledsoe
There are books on my shelf that I have read dozens of times..
maybe hundreds.
I could say the same for certain movies.
Experiencing such a deep passion for something
will do that to you.
Maybe it’s just me.
The painting you see is called 42 dogs.
I wasn’t trying to be cryptic
or intentionally weird..
the title is actually quite literal.
While painting it, I listened to Pink Floyd’s “Dogs”
42 times in a row.
