Summary: February Art

We can't believe it's only the second month of Inspiration Collaboration!  What fun it is to see and read about all these beautiful creations!
It's never too late to join in. If you're inspired to create based on any of our monthly Inspiration Images, we want you to submit your creation anytime! Send us your art and we'll add it to our monthly summary.

Here is a recap of the Inspiration Collaboration art created this month in order of receipt:

"Sweet Treat" by Whitney Eaton
Instagram: whitneykay93@yahoo.com

I've tried doing a lot of hobbies... I did woodworking for a bit... then DIY home decor... tried my hand at baking... Then I asked my mother-in-law-painter-friend to teach me how to paint.  Boy, am I glad!  I think I've settled on a good hobby!  And, I'm glad I tried baking too, otherwise I wouldn't have had such a beautiful cupcake to paint to go along with a great mug of hot chocolate!

"Small Town Music" by Deidre Townsend
When I first saw "Hibernation", I thought "purple" because of the lavender color it seems to have even though it's snow.  The, of course, the telephone poles drew my eye, and with the electric lines, I thought, "That looks like sheet music."  Reading Sara's words made me think of John Mellencamp's "Small Town," and there you go! Drawing it, I thought the notes were flowers that might bloom in her small town after all that snow is gone. 

"Cocoon" by Nelvia McGrath

Instagram: nelviamcgrath

Dried acrylic inks laid out a space perfect for a figure/head.  Combined the ink colors to do a tonal painting.  Brown flow on the right side reminded me of the right flow off the figure in my reference piece.  The cocoon is a form of hibernation, so hence the title.

"Just Down The Road" by Helen Eaton
Blog: https://wordweaverart.blogspot.com/
Just down the road, just around the bend...
You'll see my veggie garden and my 12 little hens.

Just down the road, just past the hill...
You'll see purple irises and yellow daffodils.

You can watch the squirrels and cardinals in my favorite dogwood tree
or sit on my red benches and visit there with me.

Just down the road, my yard will be your view.
Come right on over!  I'll be waiting there for you.

"Tea For Two" by Sara Harley
Blog: saraharleyphotos.blogspot.com
There is something soothing about the thought of afternoon tea. Shouldn't we all treat ourselves to the slow comfort of tea brewed in a teapot and poured into china teacups? Add a friend to share it with, perhaps a cozy chat in a special place where contentment grows and friendship strengthens.

"Ruby Red Grapefruit" by Helen Eaton
Instagram: helenpowelleaton
So simple... so mundane... so everyday... 
     Yet beautiful if only you'll take a moment see it.
          Next time you slice your grapefruit in half, look closely... 

"The Grass Is Not Greener" by Sara Harley
Blog: saraharleyphotos.blogspot.com
I have two dogs who are restless souls if they don't get their daily walk. 
If they are in, they want out.
If they are out, they want in...especially when it's cold outside.
The grass is not always greener on the other side.

"Looking for Comfort" by Nancy MacDonald

Instagram: nancy.m.artist

When I think of comfort food in February, I think of a nice big bowl of homemade soup which makes me think of my favourite spoon.  This single vintage spoon was a gift given to me at a Christmas exchange a few years ago.  I think it's one of the simplest, probably the least expensive, most useful things I've ever received as a gift. It's not fancy but it just seems to be the perfect weight and size.  Do you have a favourite spoon?

"Little Green Teapot" by Lynn Hanousek
Facebook: Lynn Hanousek Designs
I like tea, but it's not something I look to for comfort. But I have to say this green teapot has been a constant companion all winter.  It has seen me through 2 colds and chilly days when the only way I could get warm was to have another cup of tea.  So, in a way it was a comfort.  Of course, I took my inspiration from "Hot Chocolate" but there's a bit of a nod to "Roundabout" too.

"Lens" by Nelvia McGrath

Instagram: nelviamcgrath

Lens is a quick sketch marker/acrylic/color pencil piece.  Seeing Sara's abstract photo made me immediately think of a light house lens.  Brainchild of French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnelrainchild, these complex facets truly were indispensable for naval safety and expanded global trade.  The oldest lens today is the Boston Light which turned 300 in 2016.  The 336 individual facets turn on metal wheels and can generate 1,000 watts which can be seen 27 nautical miles away.

"I Celebrate You, Mom" by Darlene Awalt
Instagram: dream.imagine.believe
This month was a little harder for me.  I used the Hot Chocolate and words Comfort Foods to come up with a gratitude poem in honor of my mom.  My mom would have been married 61 years on the 14th of February.  She passed away from Alzheimer's 12 February 2017.  I try to do something special in honour of her by volunteering at the Seniors Home and walking the beach collecting glass.

Summary: January Art

Our first month of Inspiration Collaboration was a great success! It's never too late to join in. If you're inspired to create based on any of our monthly Inspiration Images, we want you to submit your creation anytime! Send us your art and we'll add it to our monthly summary.

Here is a recap of the Inspiration Collaboration art created this month in order of receipt:

"Sentimental Stargazer Lilies" by Helen Eaton
blog:   wordweaverart.blogspot.com
  Stargazer Lilies will always remind me of my momma.  She had a long row of flowers that she loved... irises, day lilies, tiger lilies... One year I bought her a pot of blooming stargazer lilies for Mother's Day.  After they finished flowering inside, she replanted them into her row, and they bloomed again every year.  We dug those stargazer lilies up when they moved to Northwest Arkansas and replanted them beside the porch where she continued to enjoy their beautiful pink blooms each summer. 
 This particular stargazer grew in my own flower bed.

"Visions of Unspoken Stories" by Darlene Awalt
instagram: dream.imagine.believe
 If a tree could talk, oh what joys and sorrows it would have to share.  
What story do you have untold under the tree?

Embroidered Cardinal Dish Towel by AJ
 I saw the picture of the cardinal and thought a cardinal would be just the thing to brighten up my old grey dish towels.  I did these completely freehand.

"Primary Colors" by Nelvia's Fine Art
instagram: nelviamcgrath
For inspiration I used a combination of Helen's crayons and Sara's foggy landscape description.  The crayons made me think primary colors - so painted in shades /tints of primary colors.  Sara's comment we are past and future is yet to be determined - so thought this man was representative of his choices - you get to determine what his future might be. 

"Kaguya's Virtue" by Nelvia's Fine Art
 instagram: nelviamcgrath

Bamboo is very symbolic in Chinese and other Oriental cultures, representing moral character/virtue, strength/resilience, modesty and loyalty. However, this is based on the Japanese legend of the princess Kaguya, a moon goddess.

"Om" by Sandra Walker
 mmmquilts.com
 I've wanted to make a couple of my extra-special yoga students a little something for a while now; each year they bring me a Christmas gift and they both have written and said some truly beautiful words to me that I treasure. This Sanskrit sign for 'om' or 'aum' , drawn out slowly,' ah-oo-mmm' is said to be the sound of The Universe and that all living beings/organisms emit this deep hum.
You can read more about the project on my blog:
 https://www.mmmquilts.com/2020/01/project-quilting-111-notably-numeric.html

"I Like Fat Birds" by Whitney Eaton

@whitneykay93

"Snow Berries" by Sara Harley
instagram: saraharley.photos
I love photographing birds and trees, they are my favourite things to capture with my camera. It was to my great surprise that Helen's painting "Snow Cardinal" inspired me to work with the colour red rather than the subject of birds. I spent a couple of weeks taking photographs of different red subjects (a difficult task in a grey Nova Scotia winter) and experimenting with my photo library on my computer. In the end, I settled on the simple, but beautiful, subject of winterberry branches. Nova Scotia winters aren't so dull after all.

"Lady Bird" by Nancy MacDonald
instagram: nancy.m.artist
 Recently I spied a plump little female Cardinal and her partner sitting in the quince bush outside my window. I don't think I'd ever seen a female up close before and I fell in love with her colours. Her bright red partner was pretty impressive but the female had a little red cap, some beautiful red in her wings and tail feathers but most of her body was covered with creams, yellows and greys with a hint of red on the edges that made her look like she was blushing. When a little painting of a red Cardinal popped up as inspiration for the #inspirationcollaboration I had no doubt that I wanted to give this little lady some attention.
 

"Journey" by Cheryl McMickle 

web: cherylmcmickleart.weebly.com

 When I saw the prompt for "Sentimental Journey" I knew that I was already working on the same theme in my journal. This journal entry is a mixed media piece that includes collage, stamping, watercolor and transfer. Each journal page is its own journey so this work is a creative journey about my life journey.

"Manhattan Squall" by Lynn Hanousek
Facebook: Lynn Hanousek Designs
My paintings are generally quite colorful. When I saw “Barely There” I felt the challenge to paint something with a minimal use of color. I’ve done several silhouetted NYC skylines that have included beautifully colored sunsets that I recall from driving back home over one of the city bridges. In December we had a squall and when I saw the satellite footage, it was amazing how it rolled in. I imagine this is what it might have looked like if I was in Manhattan that day.

"Let's Stick Together" by Sara Harley
instagram: saraharley.photos
When I saw Helen's "Scattered Crayons" painting, I thought of two things...childhood and colour. Then I thought of life savers. Every Christmas, Santa used to bring me a "story book" filled with 5 rolls of life savers candy. I searched high and low this month so I could buy a roll of life savers for a photo shoot. It took me weeks, but I finally found some in a store I seldom go to. And, just like a child, I played with my candy.

"Everyone's There" by Lindsey Gann
instagram: lindesy_g

"Color Names" by Jeanne King
You can’t have been an elementary  school teacher without developing a special relationship with crayons. Forty years ago, they were the medium of choice in the classroom. Now, they’re something of a novelty as markers seem to have taken their place. I carried a tub of crayons from one classroom to another over the years. Although I’m now retired, I can still smell them, still see the waxy stain on the  paper if they’ve been left in the heat, still remember the pleasure of tearing off the wrapper, and still enjoy the many effects that can be achieved with the simple crayon . I’ve always delighted in the imaginative, descriptive names given to the colors and this piece celebrates that delight. 

"Color of Friendship" by Julie Brandt
web: https://www.etsy.com/shop/JujuBeePaints

Bouquet jolie! 

So many colors of a friendship.

Blue daisies given to temper the blues.

Brilliant yellows, and a soft orange to warm your spirit by.

Purple-lavender petals say what is true,

I care about you.

Sturdy stems for these beautiful blooms urge you on,

Despite your grief or sorrow.

Sweet leaves to rest upon sustain me.

I care about you.

Fuchsia powers through the dark times,

Radiating light and love,

Meditations on this brilliant palette of friendship.

Someone cares.

 I care.

By Julie Brandt

"You Can't Miss It!" by Helen Eaton
https://wordweaverart.blogspot.com/

When I first saw Sara's photo, I thought, "Wait... I don't see anything!"  Then I looked closely.  There's much to notice, but it's Barely There."  There's a shoreline with trees and houses all subtly reflected in the water.  Sky and water seemingly one in the same but divided by the strip of life.
My mind veered the opposite direction from subtle.  I'm fascinated by people who paint their houses with loud colors... brightly colored houses in Scandinavia where much of their year is white... rows of happily colored beach houses... the random orange or purple house on an otherwise normal-colored-house neighborhood street.