The Things I Know About Mr. Lee

Day 29

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge by Leslie Saeta.

I've been thinking about this piece for a while. It's about Mr. Lee, the old man who used to live not far from us in that small run-down house, just round the corner of my kids' school. He doesn't live there anymore, and for some reason I miss him.

I've been passing by Mr. Lee's house a few times daily for seven years. If the weather was pleasant he would sit on the porch and watch the people come and go in their cars. When there was a storm brewing, I hoped he would be okay because the roof seemed not very reliable. And I always worried about him during the cold winter days.

He kept a few chairs and a card table outside, once in a while he had friends over to play dominoes.  A friend told me that he used to grow vegetables in a small plot across the street. He probably liked tomatoes. One time I noticed the bag of tomatoes that someone had left for him on his chair.

His name was not really Mr. Lee, I only called him that because he lived on Lee Avenue. I never knew his true name. We never talked. But a few years ago we started waving and smiling at each other.

After the long summer I realized that I hadn't seen Mr. Lee in a while. His house looked deserted. Some windows were opened, and it was obvious that someone had gone through his things. I wondered if Mr. Lee had died. Or maybe he is in a nursing home now, playing dominoes all day long.

Two weeks ago we found the house burnt down. The whole area smelled like barbecue. A wall had collapsed and revealed the leftovers of Mr. Lee's life. I often stop at the house for a moment which now is just a pile of debris fenced in by yellow caution tape.

Good bye, Mr. Lee. I hope you were a nice person because I miss you.

"The Things I know About Mr. Lee"
Acrylics, gesso, fly leaves, clippings from books and magazines, on canvas panel, 20" x 16" - I used an old domino for the block printing.


 

Pioneer

Day 28

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I just love how this piece has come together: Pacman is exiting the "New World" through the centerhole of the Columbia record sleeve to explore what's beyond.

I wonder, if the C in Columbia was actually meant to look like Pacman, or if that is just a funny coincidence.





"Pioneer"
Acrylics, record sleeve, book clippings, fly leaf, on canvas panel, 8" x 8"

Stand Up

Day 27

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge by Leslie Saeta.

Yesterday, I dropped off a few donation items at my favorite thrift store and, of course, I had to step into this paradise for a little while, too. I found a few very interesting things, among those an old copy of Robinson Crusoe which I already used today.

I made this little piece about the idea of liberty and the necessity and ability to stand up for your rights.

I incorporated several Robinson pages to make the house walls. I thought, the male neoclassical economic perspective reflected an accurate context for this hard working woman.
 
"Stand Up"
Watercolor, ink, pages and clippings from books and magazines, on watercolor panel, 12" x 12"

Make Contact

Day 26

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge by Leslie Saeta.

A while ago, I got a 70s cook book on "Variety Meats" at a library book sale. It's a fantastic book. Because every one of the suggested dishes looks questionable, to say the least, but the words to describe these creations are simply out of this world.

About the particular dish that I used in my piece, the caption said: "Sweetbreads and ham, with mushrooms and sherry sauce, served on toast, are elegantly presented under individual glass bells, to keep them moist and warm." Yes.

I wonder if people from outer space wouldn't confuse the glass bell with a UFO. I would, I certainly would.



"Make Contact"
Acrylics and book clippings on canvas panel, 16" x 12"

Prophylaxis

Day 25

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

It's always good to be prepared.

"Prophylaxis"
Watercolor, ink, book clippings, on watercolor panel,  8" x 10"

Hit

Day 24

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.


I used the photos of a 77 highschool yearbook for the background. I took some time looking at their faces, their crazy hairdos. I wonder about their friendships, do they still know each other? - The Smash sleeve also has "The Beat" handwritten on it. 

Inspired by my fears. 



"Hit"
Collage from yearbook pages, record sleeve, fly leaf, and book clipping, on canvas panel, 12" x 16" 

It's Not Too Late

Day 23

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge by artist Leslie Saeta.

All is said and done, it seems. But then -

"It's Not Too Late"
Acrylic, ink, book pages and clippings, on canvas panel, 9" x 12"

Skipping Dinner

Day 22

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge by artist Leslie Saeta.

So - I have made something inspirational for a change.

"Skipping Dinner"
Acrylics, ink, book clippings, on canvas panel, 12" x 16"

Desire

Day 21

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

Made a little drawing.

"Desire"
Acrylic, colored pencils, storybook clippings, on bristol paper, 9" x 12"

Find Home

Day 20

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I am making plans to go to Germany for a few weeks. My husband and I are both German, and our original families are in Germany. Since they cannot come, we go.  I usually go twice a year, often I take one of my children with me. This time, it's going to be my son. He's quite excited. I just love being on planes, he says. The chicken-or-pasta question, the bagged blankets, the movies, the hairdryer sounds, the smell, you know, Mom. Yes, I know.

I kind of like flying, too. I think, what I enjoy most is the time. The time that I have for myself without any commitment. I can just sit and do nothing.

I often get the comment that I must be happy to go home. Indeed, I am always looking forward to come back to what I left behind, especially to family and friends, but also to all the sweet little things that make Germany Germany, like unique cafes, fabulous book stores, street musicians, the walking and biking mentality, the chocolate, the cheeses and breads, the sitting outside for hours. Men holding hands, women holding hands, and nobody is looking. And then all these different voices and faces; a bus driver with a turban said to me once that he never thought that Germany would be like this: a little United Nations.

I grew up with the diversity of people. In Germany you are physically much closer together than here in the States. This comes with problems sometimes, but nevertheless - being closer makes you more connected simply because you have to be. You have to get along because Germany is a small country. You have to make it work.

Yes, I am happy to go home. Whatever that means. Home doesn't seem to be a mere place, a location. I wouldn't want to live in my old hometown again, not even in Hamburg, the city I enjoyed so much and where I lived last before I came to the States. Where I live now doesn't feel like home either, even though I love our life here, I love the way how our family is here.

"Home" for me feels more like a google cloud, it is a vague conglomerate of strong memories and strong desires. The moment that beholds the very essence of this cloud is remembering myself as a young child sitting with my sister at my grandmother's kitchen table. We were having breakfast, sourdough bread with butter and sugarbeet syrup. And milk with a little bit of coffee. My grandmother never sat with us because she was always stirring in some pots. I remember her happy face while she was cooking, the apron she was wearing, sewn on her old Pfaff sewing machine like all the dresses that she had been sewing for us. The lids of the large aluminum pots were moving releasing steam and smells and bubbly sounds. The burnt matches on the stove, I liked how they tasted. Sometimes the radio was on. We were sitting at the heavy kitchen table with that screechy big drawer containing some nesting enamel bowls. I don't remember what we talked about during the times at the table, or if we did talk at all. I remember observing my grandmother, I see her back. And I remember feeling loved and complete.

All these thoughts I placed into this painting. The shapes and the lines of the city map that this little mouse is holding, reminded me of the pattern of the curtains  that were hanging in my grandmother's kitchen when my sister and I were with her. Maybe the colors were different but it was in just that delicate 50s style. My mom just asked me if I would like to have my grandmother's kitchen curtains but it turned out that she meant the ones that came on to replace the ones that I remember so well. Brown ones with bold orange flowers.  I will have a look at them in a few weeks.

"Find Home"
Acrylics, storybook cutouts and snippets, on canvas panel, 14" x 18"

Hide and Seek

Day 19

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge by artist Leslie Saeta.

I have a lot of works in progress but for some reason I have been struggling with little details here and there and cannot finish the pieces as fast as I thought I would. Sometimes I get overwhelmed with the multitude of all those fantastic possibilities.

Anyways, I made "Hide and Seek," which is an homage to one of my favorite artists, Paul Klee.

In one of his famous paintings, a "Red Balloon" ascends from a cubist city. I wanted to do the opposite and made a fish plopping into the sea of houses.

The most part of my life I lived in big cities. I loved it, even though I didn't always find what I was seeking there. But I could hide when I wanted to.

"Hide and Seek"
Oil pastels, acrylic, book clippings, on watercolor paper,  8.5" x 11"

Wall of Fame

Day 18

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I used one of my dear Humpty Dumptys for this one, and one not so common vintage record sleeve. I just love how this poor, pitiful thing is dropping so helplessly from the wall of fame.

I could say a lot about walls. I don't like them, and I am happy about every one that comes down, especially those in the heads.

"Wall of Fame"
Acrylics, inkpen, record sleeve, storybook clippings, on canvas panel, 9" x 12"

See the World

Day 17

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

Yes, again, I am one day behind, but I am catching up nicely. I think. I hope.

"See the World"
Watercolor, storybook clippings, on watercolor paper, 4.5" x 5.5"

Bless You

Day 16

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge, thought up and hosted by artist Leslie Saeta.

I always wondered why people would bless a big sneeze!

However, in this country, Bless you seems to be the thing to say when someone is suddenly having a very loud and scary outburst, shaking up the surroundings, and spreading tons of germs on top of that.

Well, if a big sneeze deserves a lovely blessing, then quite a few of the disturbing things that are happening here make much more sense to me. Anyways, Gesundheit!

"Bless You"
Acrylics, ink, pages from an old German Theodor Storm book, storybook clippings, 12" x 16", on canvas panel

Faux Pas

Day 15

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge, hosted by artist Leslie Saeta.

I spent this day on lots of details of future works and barely got this one finished. It actually is the piece that I should have done yesterday, so today's work is still on my to-do list ...

Well, here is "Faux Pas" - wooden shoes meet fancy-pants.  One example for many out-of-place scenarios.

Watercolor, ink, storybook clippings, on watercolor paper, 7.5" x 11"

Screen Time

Day 14

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge, yes! And, so far things have been going well. Two intense weeks, I knew it would be like this, but it has been a very productive time, and that's the important aspect.

This little piece I made about the modern concept of "Screen Time." Our kids don't really have an issue with getting too much of it, not on a daily basis at least. Once in a while they certainly would watch one Teen Titans Go episode too many, which is excusable because it's a really funny cartoon. And I have to admit that we let the kids chase something or someone on their nintendos during those precious Saturday morning hours when my husband Markus and I are trying to sleep in.

If someone in our family has screen time issues it's probably Markus and I, because we are consuming way too much news these days.

Now look at this little guy throwing a fit when his mom (or wife?) tells him that he is not going to find out if Tinman will finally get his heart simply because screen time's up. Not fair!

"Screen Time"
Watercolor, ink, book clippings, on watercolor paper, 17" x 5.5"

Is That You?

Day 13

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

After yesterday's Musical Chairs I had to breathe, so I made  something small. Here it is: something small - yet with big content. Because it has to do with identity, and with this awkward situation of when you run into someone that you haven't seen for a very long time, and the first thing you hear is about your appearance. Wow, you are looking good, that's probably a compliment. Or - hey, look at you, how have you been, which translates into: you are looking terrible. Anyways, situations like these always make me think about what I have in common with the me from let's say twenty years ago. What makes me me and you you are certainly interesting matters to think about and questions that never get old. 

"Is That You?"
Watercolor, ink, book clippings, on watercolor paper, 9.5" x 5.5"

Musical Chairs

Day 12

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge hosted by California artist Leslie Saeta. Leslie's work is quite fantastic, and so are the pieces posted daily by all kinds of artists from lots of countries around the globe. Have a look some time!

I have spent nearly all day on these Musical Chairs, and I am thrilled that I am finally done and that I actually like them. All of a sudden, species extinction looks like a fun thing!

I used sheet music from around 1920, a collection of Franz Schubert songs, that I recently found at an estate sale. I had tons of sheet music in my studio already but I couldn't resist getting these anyway because Schubert's songs are book-bound with a beautiful printed red edge and occasional pencil notes, besides the natural yellowing of the pages. The beautiful book is falling apart though, the paper is very brittle and tears and crumbles immediately when I turn the pages. I love the opportunity to honor this old document by using it for my piece.

"Musical Chairs"
Acrylics, sheet music, book clippings, on canvas panel, 16" x 20"

Coming Out

Day 11

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I'm back on track, yes! Here is my 11th piece for Day 11: "Coming Out."

Again, I used a record sleeve as an anchor. I really enjoyed using that old RCA record sleeve recently for my "Night and Day" (Day 7) , and I have so many ideas of how I want to use the other beautiful sleeves that I have collected over the years. For "Coming Out" I chose a Capital sleeve. I remember that I found it in the musty corner of a tiny thrift store somewhere in the South of this country, and I also remember that it was surprisingly pricy, oh well. So I thought I would use it for something special one day.

I think, "Coming Out" may be that special occasion, because I believe that one of the most important things in life is to find out who you are and be okay with it. People may not like it but that's alright.

"Coming Out"
Acrylics, record sleeve, book clippings, on canvas panel, 12" x 12"

Gossip

Day 10

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I've been working on several pieces today, and I have been quite productive even though I took significant time off to do my CrossFit workout and also for a very long phone call with my parents who live in Germany. They are doing fairly well, thanks for asking. - So here is one of the fruits of my labor, "Gossip." 

I think, the greenish tone of the water goes quite well with the Klimtish fish talk.

"Gossip"
Watercolor, book clippings, on watercolor paper, 15" x 11"

Catch Up

Day 9

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge by Leslie Saeta.

Today is Day 10 but I have just finished yesterday's piece. Oh my, I am behind!

So, here is my piece "Catch Up." Need to go now! - No time to say hello, goodbye! I'm late! I'm late! I'm late!

Watercolor, ink, snippets and cutouts from storybooks, on watercolor canvas panel, 12" x 12"

Seeds

Day 8

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I've made a small piece, "Seeds." I think, it says it all.

Acrylics, storybook clippings, on canvas panel, "5 x 5"

Night and Day

Day 7

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I had Billie Holiday on, while I was working in my studio yesterday, and she was singing "Night and Day." I love this song, in particular because it reflects a much slower pace of life than we have nowadays, especially here in the States. A few decades ago the lyrics of this sweet Cole Porter song were still thinkable and sort of convincing. I mean, the idea of being able to withdraw from all the surrounding traffic and noise and to forget all about your own business, just to hold on and to completely indulge in your yearnings. How beautiful and how luxurious. It seems, that lovesickness is no longer a very accepted state of mind. Come on, snap out of it, there are other fish in the sea, don't waste your time. Yes, time. We are rushing through all aspects of life. 

So, my "Night and Day" here is the remastered version of the song.  See the little man in his hamster wheel. No need to ever take his pajamas off because time has shrunk, and morning alarm and bedtime have gotten much closer together. There's still some longing for something, but no time for schmaltziness.

"Night and Day"
Acrylics, 45rpm record sleeve, storybook clipping, on canvas panel, 8" x 8"

Yin and Yang

Day 6

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge, hosted by Leslie Saeta.

These two things are on the path to finding the equilibrium of their wholeness.






The "Yin and Yang" are held together by the front and back flyleaves of an old poetry book. I actually love how it all came together - literally.

"Yin and Yang"
Acrylics, book pages and clippings, on canvas panel, 12" x 16"

Make Room

Day 5

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

My daughter woke me up early in the morning to let me know that there was something really disgusting in the living room. Half of a gecko was lying there, neatly placed between the half-done spiderman puzzle on the floor and the old black collapsible chair with the half-attached seat cushion that has already lost half of its plushy filling. I loved the obvious "half" theme here, so intriguing, and I think I will do a "half" theme piece very soon. I already have a clear picture in my head.

Anyways, this is my piece for today: "Make Room." I wanted to do something based on the concept that a room is constructed by the person creating the room by placing herself or himself in it. In this case by the tiny dancer.

"Make Room"
Acrylics, ink, book clippings, on canvas panel, 9" x 12"

You Better Believe It

Day 4

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.

I just loved finding these little sugar and spice jars!

I immediately knew that I had to make them into a piece about the idea of Creation. And about the flabbergasting arguments defending this concept.


"You Better Believe It"

Watercolor, acrylic, storybook clippings, on canvas panel, 12" x 12"

Another Good Trick

Day 3

of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge.
 
I have been working on several pieces today. Once in a while my 8-year old daughter came into my studio and gave me her opinion on things. I like her ideas and insights a lot. We talked about a certain piece I want to do and that I would like to incorporate a tiny drawing of hers. She agreed but said that she will have to buy it from me for five dollars. I guess, it's a deal.

Anyways, I finished this small piece today, inspired by what has been in the news. I have to be cute with my worries, otherwise I would just sit and cry.

"Another Good Trick"
Watercolor, ink, storybook clippings, on canvas panel, 5"x5"

Last Supper

Day 2

of the "30 Paintings in 30 Days" challenge!

The chickens are having dinner, or better: One chicken is having dinner, while the others are serving - happily or not. Quite soon, they will all end up as dinner themselves, so their happiness and roles don't really matter - or do they?

By the way, I enjoyed including the little humpty dumpty here because he always reminds me of this very odd dream that I had just before I gave birth to my son Jacob ten years ago. I dreamed that I would give birth not to an actual baby but to a gigantic sperm cell with arms and legs. Hobby psychiatrists, feel free to analyze.

"Last Supper"
Watercolor, ink, storybook clippings on canvas panel, 12"x16"

Fortune

Day 1

So, I have signed up again for the "30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge" hosted by artist Leslie Saeta. I really enjoyed doing it last year, it was a very intense and very valuable experience. I learned so much, I found my process and my style. And I will say, I have been quite successful ever since. I have sold nearly all of my 30 paintings and more, and I had the chance to have a few small pieces in a group exhibit a few months ago. Next Spring I am going to have a solo show even. And did I say, that I received an Honorary Mention for my sculpture "Undo?" Needless to say that all this makes me very happy. I am a visual writer, a storyteller, and I found my listeners. I found my art home, that's a good place to be.

Inspired by all this, I made "Fortune." For years I have been keeping this wisdom in my wallet that came from a fortune cookie: "Fear is just excitement in need of an attitude adjustment." This "fortune" - being in control of your fear - has got so relevant these days. To consider fear a rational choice and not an emotional state of mind, didn't quite occur to me before for some reason, at least I wasn't applying it to myself or my own life. I keep reminding myself.

"Fortune" - acrylics, ink, book clippings, fortune cookie fortune, on canvas panel, 12"x9".