Sharing...

I have been thinking about sharing here more regularly for the next few weeks. Please let me know how you feel about that and if you think that would overwhelm you or encourage you during this time. My blog has always been a place for me to process my thoughts, struggles and victories in my creative process and sometimes about life too. I will be sharing some free video’s here over the next few weeks of some of my past lessons from my classes and some of my shared lessons from various platforms -

…. some drawing, clay, stitching and painting.

I had some projects and ideas planned for the next season and I guess now would be a good time to start with some of those projects. I have some plans coming up for #100daysofsomething and I will be sharing some new videos/tutorials during the next few weeks too. I hope we can travel together through the new few weeks and/or months. Meeting virtually to help make the days more manageable and what better way to do that than creatively and together. I will do my best not to overwhelm your inbox too much.

Sending much love, Jeanne-Marie

Waiting for some love…

We are all in this together...

Our truest response to the irrationality of the world is to paint or sing or write, for only in such a response do we find truth - Madeleine L’Engle

“The irrationality of the world” is pretty much how I feel about the world on a normal day.

Getting to paint and write really is my truest response to coping and I’m so grateful I have this to hold me on the hard days. But this I have to say feels next level. We are now in a nationwide lockdown for the next 21 days. After which I’m sure they will re-assess the situation.

I have moments of complete calm and rational and other moments of being completely afraid about so many things. Mainly the health of my family during this time as we head into the Autumn and Winter months. My extended family and not being able to see each other and so grateful for modern day communications. So much is whirling through my heart at the moment, like with all of us.

So today I’m just going to be thankful that I can paint and write and today we are healthy, we are all home and safe. And just to let you know I’m right here with you and it gives me some comfort to know that we are all in this together.

Sending you all so much love and comfort during this time.

Much love, Jeanne-Marie

Tiny love....

I have a bunch of little journals for this year. They are small, around 3.5”x5.5” . It’s my goal to fill them but I am not sure if you are anything like me, but I have journal issues. Firstly, I have a hard time starting at the the beginning of any journal and I usually flick to the middle. Secondly, I find it even more difficult keeping my images in them for two reasons because if it’s a great piece, then it’s stuck in there and if it’s a bad piece then it is stuck in there too. I wish I had the courage to just let it be, whether it’s good or bad…. but I’m working on it.

This tiny love was in my little journal but at the end of painting her, I pulled her out but mainly because I wanted to do a test run on getting her block mounted. I am so glad I did. It’s a wonderful little piece.

I have started another tiny love painting in this journal and I will see how I go about leaving her in there. I have another little journal that I’m filling with graphite drawings for practice and another will be filled with images for my ideas around #100days of something idea. I will share more about that in the next post or two.

I guess it’s more steps towards letting go and not always being bound in the final finished product but more about being in the moment and the process too.

Slowly finding my groove.....

I always find this time of year… I’m slow to find my direction and grove.

Still tired from the year prior, summer is exhausting because the heat is so sapping and boy has it been hot. It’s also still my busiest time of year, work wise… film season, tax filing season and financial year end - just to name a few things. Getting the girls back up and running into life and new routines too. It’s been big schedule adjustments for all of us this year.

So far I’ve still managed to show up albeit slowly. I am trying to get back to being in my space everyday and painting everyday. So most of January I was in studio but I was mainly spring cleaning which was brilliant. I found old canvases which you know I’ve been recycling with new works and I have totally been loving it. I’m so enjoying including figures in my work and working smallish. I’m thinking i might need to linger here a little longer and let these small canvases take me on a little journey.

I picked up some extra canvases in this size to continue working with this series.

Thank you for the love and support around these pieces.

My heart is overflowing, always.

February Love....

I love getting out into our little Cape Town towns for our birthdays, to do something special so it’s not just another moment past by but an intentional time. With us all pulling in different directions, it is hard to get us all in the same place at the same time. So I booked a morning together to go visit an old Cape Town town, called Kalk Bay (which is Dutch for Lime Bay). It’s the sweetest town, where the houses are built on the side of mountain overlooking the sea and small harbour. It’s not fancy at all but more eclectic… completely artistic. Art elements everywhere your eye lands. From handpainted patterns on the floor of every shop, creatively tiled walls and mandala patterns on pillars. It’s a visual feast. It’s a tiny town and you can easily walk from one end of the town to the other with tiny hickledy pickledy alleyways, jammed with second hand shops, galleries, artisan shops and restaurants… and you can still buy fresh fish off the harbour wall from the local fishermen.

The three of us had such a beautiful day together. Corkzi girl was out of town riding SA Champs, we missed her terribly. Her riding and racing is taking her across the country at the moment and exciting things are happening for her in this space.

Upcycling old canvases…

In 2015 when I did the #365faceaday challenge, I sold some of those paintings from that year and the ones I didn’t feel worthy of being seen or going out into the world either got thrown away or stored away for more work. I finally took them out last year and Courteney and myself painted over them with left over paints and I’ve had this little pile of small canvases on my desk waiting for me to recycle or upcycle. I started at the end of last year after my auction… and I’m carrying on this year before I start any new canvases.

Secret Garden Hidden Within

Sold

The Home Hidden Within

So I have a bunch these 6”x8” size canvases and I’m doing a little series just for fun, while I’m still deciding how my year will unfold.

I will be listing them in Etsy as I go… if you are keen to follow along, please follow my button below.

Thank you for the love I have already been receiving for these small, sweet pieces.

Much love, always Jeanne-Marie

Continued love and support...

Last year I shared about Chrissie’s beautiful daughter, Brittany England who hadn’t been well, which had affected her work and living arrangements. I checked in with her last night and although things are looking better she is still needing support to help her through recovery for the next while. For her wellbeing and self-care she’s gone more private this year, which I fully understand and respect. Social media can be quite draining when you are already vulnerable.

Thinking about you Brittany and family as you continue to heal and recover and please can I ask you too, to keep Brittany in your heart and mind during the next while. Every tiny bit of contribution will help. Now the real work begins quietly in the trenches as she walks out the treatments and recovery.

So much love and healing for you Brittany.

Little stones of love….

I’m so touched and humbled by this finished piece.

I know framing can fully resolve a piece of art and this was so the case with my little stones of love. I had the idea of the dark blue background before I left the beach and I also knew I wanted a driftwood like feel to the frame. My choice of frame was the closest I could find.

I had started collecting these rocks on every walk I did on the beach over the last two years and on my last day on the beach in early January, I found a large amount. Big storms and rough seas had brought much to the shores but as I was packing up the girls brought out a whole bunch more from what they had collected too and when I got home I found even more. It made me realize I have be collecting them in my subconscious for years. It also made me realize that things of value, take time. I love that so much.

When we were spring cleaning now during January, I found pebbles from my travels in my early 20’s. I also picked up a pebble when I was with Chrissie in Encinitas. I walked down to the Pacific Ocean and took a pebble from the beach home with me. I guess it’s just something I’ve always done.

Miss Kitty is like this… we call her our little Scrat (from IceAge, the movie) because no matter where we went, she was always filling her pockets with stuff… rocks, seeds, pods and other things from our walks and visits. What I didn’t know was that I was a Scrat too, maybe I was just a little neater about it.

I am learning more about the concept of collecting and holding and storing creative data from that beautiful book I have been slowly working through, Conscious Creativity…. and I think our Scratiness is kind of part of it. I’m still learning and I can’t wait to understand more.

ArtforFires, thank you so much

I totally love seeing community come together to make a difference and wow… how crazy amazing is this.

Thank you Natalie and Kat for including me in this initiative and thank you to my bidders. I was able to send 3 pieces to their new homes. I’m so grateful to you and us to have added to this incredible cause.

And thank you to all who came together to share art and bid and buy so willingly. I feel so honored to have started my year with so much love. Thank you for giving me that…. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

Love
Jeanne-Marie

"The Village Within... "

I finished this piece just before I left on holiday in December and I realized I forgot to share it here.

I actually started this piece in Ivy’s class in Italy in 2017 as a transferred image. I abandoned it as you can tell because 2 years had passed. I kept it because I loved the collage work I had done on the lower part of the piece. When I was sorting through pieces for my auction, I stumbled upon it and I thought it might be time to finish this piece. I love how patient my pieces can be… waiting for me to return and how they come into fruition right when they are meant to. I love trusting the process.

I can so see how my style has changed over the years and I know how different she would have looked in 2017. I love who she is today and I was so grateful to have finally found my way.

I love this theme so much about finding “home”. I want to dig a little deep with this theme, it’s very close to my heart. As someone who moved around so much through my life, home has at times felt like a liminal space and maybe something I have silently been searching for, for as long as I can remember. As I’m getting older, I’m beginning to think more about maybe it’s what’s within vs a physical space.

Painting again...

Gosh I missed it… my brushes, my paints and creating.

I took the most of December off to rest and definitely for the holidays… to rest and be with my family undistracted. It did us all good. I know how good it is for me and my creative process too.

Over the past few years, I have been learning to not fight it but rather work with it. It is our summer months and our longest holiday period because it’s the end of the school and university year and mostly, we are tired. I think not fighting myself about my lack of creativity during this time was sound… I am learning, to read the signs, to understand my creative cycles and to listen and respond accordingly. The beautiful thing is that I’ve come home refreshed and not struggling and I’m feeling so ready to paint….

I’m even excited to back #inmystudio

I am not overwhelming myself with too many plans, for now just showing up and working on old recycled canvases first. It feels less intimidating and a gentle way to start the year.

Looking forward to sharing more… Happy creating.

No frequency...

We had planned this weekend away in the mountains a few months ago and I have to tell you how hard it was for me follow through and go. I felt like we had just got home and we hadn’t even settled down yet, only to pack our bags and head out the door. My heart wasn’t ready. Everything in me wanted to cancel and stay home but we didn’t want to let our friends down.

We followed through with our commitment, and I have to say it was a delightful surprise. Not only was it visually beautiful but the quiet was rather wonderful. I didn’t have this big need to get out of the city because we just got back, but switching off completely from comms was a much needed and delightful surprise. I’m so grateful for the interruption in frequency. I slept a lot. I was more tired than I realised… my first week back to life was a little brutal.

It was a wonderful weekend with friends.

Inspiration...

I found a new artist, to me on Pinterest… Jennifer Pochinski.

I’m so moved by her use of color and texture and of course the beautiful expressive hands.

So inspired.

Starting the year off with love...

We are back home from our holiday and are busy unpacking and settling back in to our sweet little life. We had the most precious time together, just the four of us and I am so grateful for this time we had. It came along at the time when we really needed it the most.

We are feeling rested and ready to start our usual routine. Back to the office for all of us tomorrow. Before life starts and we fully get back into the swing of things, I wanted to pop over and say Happy New Year.

Trusting the start of this year and decade will be kind, precious and your best year yet. I have been thinking so much about the past year and more so, the past decade and I’m so deeply moved by all that has happened. I will unpack that more in the next few posts, but for now…

Sending you so much love for 2020.

Love, Jeanne-Marie

ArtforFires

Oh I’m so sad about the devastation happening in Aussie right now, I know we are all feeling it, the loss, the utter devastation. I know a bunch of us have come together to raise funds for WIRE. Read all about it here.

Thank you Natalie and Kat for all you are doing.

Being so far away certainly makes one feel helpless, but being part of this online community using our art to help just a little, feels precious. Bidding is open on this piece and current bid is on $160 including shipping. If you would like to bid please head over to my Instagram to place your bid in the comments. BIN price is $300 so unless that amount is reached piece will remain available until next Sunday.

Please feel free to DM if you have any questions.

I loved finishing this piece and this cause definitely got me out of my holiday rest to finally start painting again and my first finished piece for 2020. I’m so grateful for that. May it be the start of much goodness.

I will also be including 1 print and 1 block mount print in the next day or two.

Thank you so much for the love and support already,

Much love, Jeannie

Something glorious to look forward to...

We have so much goodness to look forward to this year and this trip is one of them. Our little class is full. We are so thrilled with this news. I know it’s a massive decision and commitment to travel for your art. It’s such a precious time and gift to give yourself for your practice and I can’t express enough the growth that comes from doing so.

I am beside myself to not only be teaching again with my gorgeous friend, Ivy Newport but also to be heading to this incredibly beautiful part of the world. Thank you for all those who have already signed up. I know we are going to have the most remarkable time together.

Please follow the button below to read more about it and would like to leave your name on the waitlist. Sometimes spaces become available.

A little shout out…

My very beautiful and special friend’s lovely daughter, Brittany England hasn’t been well, which has affected her home and living arrangements, as well as her working practice. That must be pretty scary for all of them right now especial at this time of year. I’m so sorry that they are going through this but that being said I’m so grateful they have the answers they need to heal too.

The most incredible part of their story is that they have asked for help. I can’t tell you how much I admire that. I think that’s not easy for any of us to do because we have to admit that we can’t do this alone and I find that so beautifully humble and human.

I’ve been so blown away to see the love pouring in for this beautiful one.

I’m sharing Brittany’s story here on my blog because she’s asked us to keep sharing her story so please feel free to follow the button below to read her story and journey so far and also to help walk along side her during this time.

Thinking about you all during this time and trusting you find sacred rest, beautiful family!

In the day of a life of Courteney…

Corks was turning 21, and in this part of the world, it is a big deal and most who do turn 21 have a celebration. It’s a coming of age party where we get to stop and take stock of how far they have come and officially give them a set of keys to the front door. We know this is symbolic, of course, because she’s had a key for a very long time already but it’s a sweet sentiment.

It is a moment when we acknowledge that she is now legally an adult and can officially make all her own decisions and sign all her own documents. It’s a strange notion and concept and we are excited to move into this next phase of young adulthood and what it will mean for all of us.

When she saw the garden coming together the past few months, she thought it would be lovely to have a little garden party. We haven’t had a party in our home for one of the girls since junior school so this was a biggie. I’m very private in my home and having 40+ people over is a full body experience for me. I wanted to do it for her and I hadn’t seen her this excited about a party before. She was fully in. We put lights up, made beautiful food and reminisced about her 21 years of life. We spent the week before going through years and years of photos of our life and it was beautifully nostalgic… it was wonderfully distracting from the challenges of the month. A mixture of so much love mingled in with sadness and so much joy for the bitter sweetness of time, her time… into a beautiful young woman.

It reminded us about the crazy beautiful life we have all shared together.

We know this, right? Of course we do. Sometimes life gets in the way and we get bogged down by the heaviness that each year brings. Then one day we wake up and we breathlessly notice that 21 years have passed us by. I am so grateful that we took this moment this week to seek, find and remember in our sacred captured photographs what a beautiful life we have lived and shared together. Far from perfect, beautifully flawed and unbelievably messy and complicated.

Yet I am feeling so utterly grateful…. for her and her contagious smile.

Thank you, beautiful girl, for giving me my title of Momma. Thank you for your incredible relationship with your Dad. Thank you for choosing life every single day, holding it with both hands and moving courageously through every moment. Thank you for making me a better person everyday just to keep up with you. Most of all, thank you for just being you!

What an incredible group of people who came over and those who shared words, thank you. The love was tangible. We have had the privilege of having her friends pass through our home through the years and we are so grateful for the role her friends, family and others have played in her life. - most of who have had such a profound affect of who she is today. We know we couldn’t have raised her without you!

Deeply known…

I’ve gone back to her a good few times already.

She keeps calling me back for more details. Well a mixture of finding her story, her details but her quiet spaces too. I love where we have got to together and maybe we still have some places to go but for now we find rest…. well at least until she calls me back for more.

A few Giclee Prints for Sale...

During my Auction, I had a few requests for print options, so afterwards I selected 5 pieces to be professionally scanned and had Giclee prints made. I’ll mostly be offering two sizes this time.

All my prints will be limited.

I have also been working together with my framers who do my block mounting for me so beautifully. So each print has an option for their print to be block mounted, making them ready to hang. However, their factory closes on Friday so my orders for the block mounts will close on Wednesday. So I’ve updated my little online shop with a these prints and block mounts.

I hope you will find something there for you!

Much Love, Jeanne-Marie