Rejoice

“Rejoice” for World Watercolor Month 2020 – 01 July. Watercolour by Liz. Only the 2nd watercolour I’ve done! Inspired to participate by Mike Powell who tweeted a joyful bird.

Unfolding Life

Moments of beauty are especially cherished in these troubled times, that's why I want to remind you about one of my favourite bloggers. Jean Mackay shares her delightful observations of nature via exquisite journal pages at Drawn In. Her subject material is generally local to where she lives in New York State but elsewhere when...

Having New Eyes

I'm all enthused about 'landscapes' which is unusual for me. The word 'landscape' gets way overused, appearing in all sorts of contexts that have nothing to do with real landscapes.  November Square-A-Day Landscapes  by Jill Kuhn is a wonderful exception - this is my reblog of her 02 Dec post. Thank you Jill Kuhn for...

Autumn Colours

Although currently Spring in New Zealand I want to share with you this gorgeous Autumn watercolour painting that I viewed on my birthday visit to the 2019 Arts Gold Finalists Exhibition at Central Stories Museum and Art Gallery, Alexandra, Central Otago. Dorothy Piper  |  Reflections of Autumn Dorothy Piper is from Alexandra. Photos taken October...

What a Hullabaloo!

Yesterday I whiled away many happy hours in the Cromwell Heritage Precinct while Nigel was away in Queenstown. This area is an absolute gem with lovely cafes, art gallery, gift shop and much more. It's well away from the highway and offers a beautiful respite from the busyness of Central Otago. New Zealand. "When the...

Botanical Charts

These hand-painted botanical teaching charts were produced for the Imperial College of Japan. Imperial Universities were founded by the Empire of Japan between 1886 and 1939, and were Japan's most prestigious institutions during Imperial rule. From:  A Garden of Earthly Delights (exhibition) At:        Hocken Library, Dunedin, New Zealand The exhibition runs until August 11, 2019...

Shades of Blue

Blue is commonly associated with sadness yet I've noticed that many bloggers will respond to a photo of beautiful blue flowers by enthusiastically proclaiming that blue is their favourite colour! Here is a stunning watercolour painting of blue irises recently posted on her blog by Jodi McKinney and used here with Jodi's permission. Aren't they...

Introducing Ms Liz

Liz the Lizard, created by Jodi McKinney from Mars (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania USA) for a friend's granddaughter. What a glamorous Liz this is!

Melting Moments

I really like this poem by Damien B. Donnelly about seasons, change and time. I've affectionately dubbed it the Melting Moments poem... what I'm referring to are the melt-in-your-mouth buttery, soft biscuits sandwiched together with buttercream filling. Same or similar are Yo-yo's or Kisses. You take a bite and in a moment it's dissolved; a...

Sketching, LandArt and Unicorns

This post brings some cool to those of you in the northern hemisphere who are suffering in the heat. The photos below were taken in March 2018 in the UK when temperatures were a lot more chilly. The story and photos are by Katherine Owen whom I've only just started following. I just loved, Loved,...

Whale Rider

On Monday when we were in Dunedin I asked Nigel to take me to the Otago Art Society Annual Exhibition. As always there was a wonderful variety of art on display but this was my favourite. This is a watercolour by Doug Hart simply called Whale Rider. ** Click on the photo to enlarge **...

Shades of Pink

Some very interesting images containing 'pink' have caught my attention recently. It all started with this amazing photo of a Roseate Spoonbill taken by Ted Jennings (South Carolina Lowcountry, USA). Such an array of pinks through to red, incredible! Note that there are pale orange highlights as well - on the tail and under the...