The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery

......Francis Bacon

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Cha-Cha-Cha Changes

  This has been a very complicated past year for me. So much has gone down and continues to do so. I am trying to embrace these changes however and make the most of them. Change CAN be good for you!

  Losing my job was probably the beginning of it all. It has been just over a year and I find I have really grown from it. At first, there is the fear of "what am I going to do now?" , "how am I going to pay the bills?" Then, when I stopped feeling sorry for myself, there was the realization that, this is it. Moment of truth. Sink or swim. I decided to swim.

  The up-side of changes, finding yourself again. Realizing that things work out and that all it takes is a will to move on and accept those changes as a new beginning, not something to fear.

  I am still faced with more changes every day. My daughter and son-in-law, with my precious grandson are moving away. They are packing up their lives and going to Texas. This is a good change for them as they will have a much better life. They are not fearful, they are excited about this move. They are excited about a whole lifestyle change. They recently returned from a trip to Round Rock, which is just outside of Austin. They went with brave anticipation to see what Texas was all about. Three days later, Wayne was approved for a job transfer.

 Can you see his little face popping out of the water?






  I am going to miss them terribly. I am already feeling those pangs of butterflies in my gut that lets me know that letting go is not going to be easy. But I know, this a good thing. I will adjust with time. Everything is going to be just fine.

  I am embracing all these changes and more. I am looking at these changes as an adventure. I know there is a better life out there just waiting to be found and I am determined to discover it. I now spend hours in my studio, creating, where as, when I was working, I barely had time to sketch. This has led to me being able to live a much more authentic life. Living life the way I want to live it. Not dictated by the clock. Yes I have sacrificed, but they have all been good sacrifices which have lead to bigger and better things. I am embracing my life, owning it, and the best is yet to come!

"It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power" - Alan Cohen

Monday, September 27, 2010

My Intention For The Week

  Every week, I am going to post what my goals are for that particular week. It might be "art" related or personal but either way, these are things that I want to accomplish in that week.

  This week, my intention is to be as prolific as I can be in producing more work. I would like to end my week with several projects finished.

  You can try this too!............Set a goal and try to reach it. Take baby steps but really put effort into it too. You will be surprised how much you can accomplish! Now...........go for it!

Friday, September 24, 2010

It's Friday!!!

.......And I am busy in the studio. It feels so good to create. I'm finishing up several paintings and starting some brand new ones. besides painting, I really need to go through some of my supplies and see what I need to buy and what I need to let go of. I have so much stuff! I'm running out of room.











  My daughter Jaimie, her hubby Wayne and my grandson Shane, are in Texas at the Childrens Museum today. They are moving to Round Rock which is just outside Austin. I am going to miss them terribly but I know that they will have an opportunity to have a better life out of California. It's just to difficult to make a "go" of it here, especially for young families starting out. Jaimie already loves it there and has been texting me beautiful photos. They will be coming home tomorrow.

 At The Museum


  The above photo is one of my "studio buddies" Louise, who swims happily around her vase as I paint. I have 4 Bettas altogether, all spread out around the studio. And yes, I talk to them during the day. It gets lonely working in a studio all by yourself, what can I say. Speaking of studio, I had better get back to work. have a great weekend everyone!

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Biting Off More Than We Can Chew

  I am so guilty of this..........I run myself ragged sometimes thinking I am "super woman", invincible, with unlimited energy. Guess what, I'm not.

  Right now I have a lot on my plate. Home renovation, a grand baby who will be moving away soon to Texas, another daughter moving to Alaska, a son in the army who is faced with impending deployment daily, an art business to nurture, a blog and website to try and maintain, (that's a struggle),  a husband and animals to care for, not to mention just the everyday adventures of life. Boy, can our world get complicated sometimes.



  Problem is, I WANT to do everything, I really do. I want to teach, I want to create, and I want the perfect, clean and decorated house to do it in. It's just not feasible. And I find that when I do try to do it all, the only thing I get from it is tired, defeated and plain old burnt out. This isn't the life we are meant to live.



  I am learning to let some things go. To not take everything so seriously.  It's not easy, it goes against my nature but I know that right now, I must. It's important to have a balance. A time for work and a time for play. Time with the grand baby, my kids, hubby, friends  and yes my animals too. To find me...........myself again,  that has been buried under this mass of have-tos and daily burdens.



  And it's okay to take some "Me" time. A chance to regroup. Think about less important things that you can put on the back burner for awhile. Take time out to enjoy this life instead of just feeling overwhelmed by it.



  So, that's what I did this week so far, I let one thing go. I will miss it but I also know that it will free me up to move in another direction. One that will be life changing for the better.

   





Friday, September 17, 2010

Renovation Blues

We are in the process of renovating our house. It can be very overwhelming. Just as we finish one project, more seem to pop up. Also one thing leads to another, have you ever noticed that?

  For instance, have you ever bought, lets say, a vase of flowers to put on your table. You bring them home, find your favorite vase and lovingly set them on your kitchen table. You stand back to admire your creativity and then you realize that you have a stack of bills on your table too. Of course that takes away from the beauty of your new flower arrangement so you have to go through that stack of bills and either pay them, or get rid of them.



 Ok, so now your table is cleared but you notice that the dishes are piling up in the sink so you have to get those washed or your flowers won't look beautiful. After the dishes are cleaned, you notice some spots on the floor so you run off to find the mop because after all, a dirty floor takes away from your flower art. And it goes on and on and on like this until your entire house is clean and you are exhausted. 

  So, I suppose if you want your house clean, go buy some flowers.



  It's the same with this renovation of ours. Things we really were not going to fix or change, just look terrible next to all the things we have done. It has turned out to be a major,  total overhaul!

Yes I know it will be worth it in the end, but right now it is just sooo much work and it is taking me away from my beloved studio where the unfinished paintings are waiting for attention from me.


I miss my studio...........................

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

The Joy Of Being A Koi

Good morning and happy hump day!

I had a very productive evening last night I'm happy to say, I managed to finish two paintings and start another. I took a small break in between, watching a little tv and then it was back to the studio.

I like how my painting "Joy Koi" turned out. I can let you all in on a little story about how I was inspired to paint this one.

I am an animal lover. Always have been as far back as I can remember. I really think I would own a zoo if I could!

Our local mall, here in my town, has a koi pond at one end. I thought, what a great photo op so, grabbing my camera, I decide to go take some photos of the beautiful pond and it's inhabitants.



I must have been taking pictures for an hour........sitting on the side of that pond, really close to the edge, kinda dangerously close to the edge. All of a sudden, this one, huge, and I mean huge! beautiful koi starts leaping out of the water right in front of me. He's leaping just like a dolphin would, with his whole body out of 
the water. 



I had never seen a koi act like this before. He leaped all the way from one end of the pond to the other, one leap after another. Now of course, I am so enthralled watching this animal that I have stopped taking photos so I never got any shots of this taking place.



This Koi was genuinely joyful! Something in him made him so happy he couldn't contain himself. It was beautiful to watch and really inspiring to see that creature so full of happiness. I couldn't wait to get that feeling onto canvas.


I created this painting with very vibrant shades of orange and reds, depicting this animals spirit in vibrant shades of color. To purchase this painting or to see more of my work, visit my website/portfolio at www.mesart.com/ebelshin

ENJOY LIFE  

Ellen

Monday, September 13, 2010

Welcome To My New Art Blog


It's been a while since I have blogged and I really do miss it. I just wish I had more time to make use of it but I am going to try again and keep up this time.

  I am a working artist in so. California. I have been creating art and teaching for years. I am running a little behind as to having a web presence but that all changes now. This blog is for my art and on occasion, my daily happenings, and let me tell you, a lot goes on in my day! I will be showing you all,  with videos and talking about my creative processes, my ups and downs and ins and outs of being an artist.

  I actually took the time to upload a couple of videos today, one of which is an outtake or blooper as it seems my four legged friends couldn't mind their manners. They were all fine until I turned the camera on and then all of a sudden, it was sheer pandemonium! The only part you can't see is my tripod and camera as it went flying across the room.   I thought I would show that video on here as it just proves that things do go wrong at times and you just have to move beyond it and start over. 

  I still have a lot of work to do to get this blog looking and feeling the way I want it to, but in the meantime, enjoy the  videos below . And if you have any questions for me, don't hesitate to contact me at any time. You can email me at www.ellenbelshin@ymail.com and to view my art portfolio or to purchase my paintings, you can visit my website at http://www.mesart.com/ebelshin

Ellen