Reenergized and inspired

I'm back from a wonderful vacation in hot and steamy, but inspiring Texas. I am reenergized and ready to focus on some new projects.

I signed up for The Sketchbook Project and the theme I chose is Boys and Girls. Like the paintings I've done for the Family Album series, I thought it would be fun to do some sketches from family photographs old and new. Look out Facebook friends cuz I may be invading your photo albums for sketching ideas. (if you signed up for that new "see who's viewing your profile" thing, you may see my name there!). I also saw that Boston's MFA currently has an exhibit about family. Photographer Nicholas Nixon took photos of his wife and her 3 sisters every summer for the past 35 years. Fascinating stuff. Might need to check that out for inspiration as well.

I started my sketchbook in the center.

I thought this photo that my Uncle Tommy and Aunt Arlene sent me of all of their grandkids (taken last year-it's still growing!!) would make a great centerfold.

Isn't this a hoot? I might jump around the sketchbook a little, instead of going in order, just to keep things interesting. And I can't help but want to write a little about each sketch to go along with it. Perhaps that's the blogger in me.

I've also signed up for Custom Art Framing and Gallery 9's upcoming exhibit called Looking Up. They supply you with a 10" by 10" canvas and you take it from there. What a fun idea and I can't wait to see them all together. The show goes up in November.

And finally, thanks to Kathy for the wonderful post today on her blog Weller Wishes about some of the pretty things you can find at Gallery 9. She included a photograph of one of my black and white Family Album paintings that is currently on display there. Kathy is also participating in The Sketchbook Project. Check out the cute illustrations she has done so far for her "Raining Cats and Dogs" theme.