artsy forager

Tag: The Artsy Nature

  • Sunsetting.

    Sunsetting.

    I’ve never been an early riser.  So catching the sun rise over the Atlantic when I lived in Florida didn’t happen often.  But being on the West Coast, sunsets have become my happy place.  At least three evenings a week, the Mr. and I walk the mile and a half from our apartment then down (and back up, ugh!) 188 steps to Richmond Beach on Puget Sound.  Many Friday evenings we take a bottle of wine and end the week watching the colors slowly shift over the Sound.  It is an incredibly peaceful and lovely way to begin the weekend.

    Sunset over Richmond Beach

    Last night’s display was so incredible that Instagrammers all over the Seattle area were posting their sunset views.  We were all taking in and experiencing the same collective beauty but each from our own unique perspective.  What a gift of a communal yet individual experience!

    These magical sunset views are informing my new work in the VENTERS series– not always literally, but in the way the light becomes soft and dreamy, how the sun melts into the horizon, the way the colors morph and move one into another.

    See the current VENTERS paintings on my website here.  The newer paintings are even softer and more dreamy, if you can believe it!  Can’t wait to show you.

    Image by me.

  • The Artsy Nature: Joshua Tree & Karen Silve

    The Artsy Nature: Joshua Tree & Karen Silve

    While Mr. F and I were reluctant desert-dwellers and are sure to steer clear in the summer months, I’ll be the first to admit that spring in the desert is absolutely enchanting.  What has been dry and dormant for months on end comes to life with color!

    This post is the second in a new series, The Artsy Nature, in which I pair a photograph from our travels and forays into the wild with a work of art in which I find a reminder of that moment.

    The Artsy Nature: Joshua Tree & Karen Silve | artsy forager #art #artists #abstractart #paintings #contemporaryart

     

    photo | cholla blooming in Joshua Tree, CA

    art | Wildflowers 1 by Karen Silve

     

    Though I have no idea the original inspiration for Karen Silve‘s Wildflowers 1 ( cropped above ), the palette of yellows and greens instantly takes me back to our desert spring.  It was a time when we knew our own arid wandering would soon come to end and life was filled with dreaming of new beginnings.  That spring was also a time of renewal for both of us, I remember us both brimming with energy and creativity, just as Silve’s painting is awash in lively movement.

    Check out The Artsy Nature archives for more in the series!

    Photo by Artsy Forager, art image credit linked above.

  • The Artsy Nature: Yellowstone & Amy Donaldson

    The Artsy Nature: Yellowstone & Amy Donaldson

    Judging from the blog’s title & if you’ve been reading for awhile, you’ve probably guessed that Mr. F and I are the outdoorsy types.  We both thrive on time spent among the quiet beauty of the outdoors, whether surrounded by snow-capped mountains or digging our toes into the black sand of Northwest beaches.  I’m finding artistic inspiration in nature for my own series of work, so why not find it in the work of other artists, too?  Often when I see an artist’s work, my mind connects it to the memory of a place I’ve been or a detail observed or sometimes, an outdoor scene will call the artist’s work to mind.  It’s the whole chicken vs. egg thing, but this time, with art and nature.

    So with this post, I’m launching a new series, The Artsy Nature, in which I pair a photograph from our traverses in the great outdoors with a piece of artwork.

    TAN_Donaldson collage

    photo | spring at The Black Sand Basin, Yellowstone National Park by Artsy Forager

    art | Purpose by Amy Donalson

    One of my absolute favorite features in the wondrous beauty that is Yellowstone were the geysers and hot springs.  Algae and micro bacteria create gorgeously saturated coloration in the most heavenly palette.

    Nature is the most spectacular of canvases, isn’t it?  Look for more The Artsy Nature posts coming your way!

    Photo by Artsy Forager, art image credit linked above.

  • Friday Finds: Natural Abstractions

    Friday Finds: Natural Abstractions

    As you may recall, Mr. Forager and I recently returned from a long camping trip in Glacier National Park and Yellowstone ( and we threw in the Lewis & Clark Caverns on the way home ‘cuz we weren’t nearly exhausted enough already ).  We both love the outdoors and as I told Christina Baker in our Artist Takeover interview, I find the natural world to be incredibly inspiring in its artistry.  I thought you might enjoy a few of examples of nature’s artsiness I found while traversing through two of the US’s most beautiful places!

    Glacier National Park
    Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park
    Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone National Park
    Thermophiles in hot spring, Yellowstone National Park
    Hot spring flow, Yellowstone National Park
    Treeline on the drive to the East Entrance, Yellowstone National Park
    Inside the Lewis & Clark Caverns, Whitehall, MT

    Isn’t nature the most incredible abstract artist?  What are some of your favorite natural abstractions?

    All images by Artsy Forager.