Sky Scape

9" x 12", oil on panel

I recently read the F. Scott Fitzgerald book, Tender is the Night. He writes, "You will feel your own reflection sliding along the eyes of those who look at you. You are no longer insulated; but I suppose you must touch life in order to spring from it." A lot of people base their self-image on being noticed and admired by others. To some degree we all need to feel appreciated. I like this quote because it so astutely puts this mirroring into words. Looking at landscape, at light, at paintings is different. Sky Scape looks a bit like the open skies of the Midwest but also like land after the snow melts heading towards the mud in April. Luminous and peaceful, it is grounded by the purple/brown/black bottom. When I look, I start with where I'm at, myself, look out, take in, and feel lighter. It's a re-energizing process - touching 'life in order to spring from it.' It is a way to feel centered, the opposite of chasing other people's ideas of perfection.

Peggy Orenstein in her new book, Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture, says that culturally it isn't enough for a woman to be smart or a good person. We're supposed to be "hot" too. It's exhausting. I think I'm ready for more wrinkles, for when time takes it out of my hands. Until then I'll try to keep perspective and focus on my own gaze.