Legacy Stuff
“We are such stuff as dreams are made on;” —Shakespeare.
At this time of my life a lot of STUFF has accumulated in the studio. It’s a cozy environment to work in. But sometimes I feel the need to ‘clean out’ and ‘organize’–which always tempts me to wonder what it would be like to have a personal librarian, executive secretary, curator, accountant, and housekeeper for my STUFF. It is very satisfying to sell a piece of work. I am grateful to and for every collector of my art! And then, sometimes, a magical thing happens: some of my art becomes a LEGACY. A painting or a book I have illustrated goes into a permanent collection by an institution that has all of those librarians, secretaries, curators, accountants, and housekeeping designed specifically to preserve art and books. Just two days ago that happened again.
“She Leaned In” is the title of this piece (above). It is an 18 x 24 inch oil painting on a wooden panel. It was juried into the 13th International Art Competition at the LDS Church History Museum and received a purchase award. That means that an idea of compassion that I executed will be cared for by experts and every once in a while will come out of the basement or attic to be put on display for a wider public. How cool is that???!!! I feel a kinship with Michelangelo and Da Vinci, lol!
There have been a few others. This one (above) is titled “IMAX in Real Time”. Also an oil painting, 18 x 24 inches on board, this is a nod to honoring the world we are privileged to live in. It was purchased by the St. George Museum of Art in their National Parks II juried show in 2016. Aah, it’s a relief to know it will be dusted off by professionals and used for a good public purpose.
These two paintings (left) “He Was Just Here”, 8 x 10 inch oil on panel, and (right) “Children Are Watching”, 9 x 12 inch oil on panel, were purchased by the owners of the Bingham Gallery in Mt. Carmel, Utah. The boots are on permanent display in the home that Maynard Dixon built. Again, skilled curators and protectors of the ideas of: 1) honoring an art icon who captured the culture of the west and the distress of The Great Depression and 2) reminding us to behave and have compassion for marginalized groups–because children are watching.
Today I am feeling some peace that a few bits of good purpose LEGACY are being preserved and that the disposition of some of my STUFF has freed up space in the studio.
Before I Die
A little humor here–to soften the direct title of this post. These are my eyes in a self-portrait that started as a blind contour drawing and exploded with color and texture from there. But they seem to match the introspection that follows.
Before I Die–what do I want to get done?
Thirteen years after my first blog post on this site I am revisiting my unfinished projects and my original mission possibility: that I would NOT be too busy, too shy, too tired to engage and share my art life with others.
There are the PAINTINGS:
Two trains of thought pass through my art brain: Representational and Stylized. So many unfinished!
And the SKETCHES:
For me, there is pure pleasure in scratching a pen or pencil across paper and watching the image appear. The list of people, things, and places I’d like to explore with a drawing just keeps growing.
And then THE STORIES:
Storyboards and color sketches WAITING for a follow-through.
And finished pieces WAITING for a follow-through. Do you think these ideas and visuals are looking back at me and asking: WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? It would be a shame to NOT finish these products of my heart and mind and be able to share a complete IDEA. As I move ahead I will keep you posted. Good luck with YOUR bucket-list. Art On!!!
dilleenmarshwomanartistrenaissance 