CMAppleton

Barbara

This is a photo taken on my mother-in-law's 90th birthday. Isn't she beautiful?

Speaking of Dogs . . .

This is our new dog Riley. He is a male yellow lab, with some hound mixed in too (according to our vet). We were told he was 5 but our vet says maybe closer to 8. We told the lab rescue person who was helping us find the right dog for us . . . "We'd like an adult dog but young, 2-4, (I wanted a puppy, Dan didn't want to go through puppyhood again, so we compromised), I'd like a female, color doesn't matter though I am a little partial to yellow, Dan wanted black since they are the hardest to adopt out, must be calm (to get along with poor old lady Molly). SO . . . . .she (lab rescue lady) says "I have the PERFECT dog for you in Norfolk." Dan was there on business a few days later so I said "Why don't you go over and take a look at Riley." He said "You know I can't just take a look and then NOT bring him home." That seemed fine, he sounded "perfect," or that's what the lab rescue lady said anyway. SO . . . . Dan said (from Riley's foster home in Norfolk) I want to bring him home but I don't thing he'll ride well in my car, he's very excited." I was a little annoyed by that since Norfolk is a three hour drive at best and I didn't fancy doing that anytime soon, and I was SO anxious to see Riley NOW. (Is he concerned Riley will scratch the leather seats of his Lexus? He's not fussy about his car; wet muddy dogs, pizza-eating teenagers, dirt-encrusted plants from the nursery, his car has seen it all with little concern from Dan.) Probably just worried that Riley will be hopping around the back seat and breathing down his neck for three hours. He opened the door to the Lexus and Riley jumped in, rolled into a ball and slept for the next three hours. They arrived at my studio in Lorton at dusk and I came out to the back parking lot and there was Riley. It was love at first sight. He is a male, yellow, very active, older mostly-lab. Not exactly what we thought we wanted but he is perfect. The bonus is he seems to be almost fully trained. We've had him for about a week now and he is completely housebroken, not one mistake. He sits, lays, fetches, comes. He is terrible on the leash and doesn't "stay" well but responds so well to training it will be easy to fix. He is an obsessive compulsive fetcher and will beg to go outside every hour or so so we can play, will actually pick up my hand from my computer with his nose (a lab thing) and INSIST I pay attention to him. When he's is not totally preoccupied with getting us to play with him, he is very calm and affectionate. He's a laugh a minute and already our house is littered with his toys. Hard to imagine this sweet guy as a stray. He was found walking the streets of Norfolk, no tag, no chip, completely infested with fleas and ticks, and starving. He was picked up by animal control and then saved from being killed by the local lab rescue people. From there he went to a foster home but was kept in a kennel because this foster (bless him) has saved so many labs, and they couldn't all stay in his house. The animal rescue people (almost all volunteers) take such good care of the dogs. They take them to the vet, neuter them, chip them, do whatever it takes to get them healthy and ready to be adopted into a forever home. Riley had an allergic reaction to his flea and tick infestation and lost much of the hair on his tummy and legs, but it is growing back nicely. He is a passive gentle dog and never would have survived on his own for very long, so it is fortunate that he was picked up when he was. Because he is so gentle and sweet, and well trained, we assume he was in a home where he was loved and well cared for. Dan is sad for the people who lost him. We are very happy with our new silly boy Riley.

Members not Allowed

I finished this painting a week or so ago. A commission - the dog's name is Trooper. He is a very handsome boxer who is sweet, happy, playful, and very well endowed. I had a couple dozen reference photos taken by me and also by the owner, and as we were looking them over she pointed to his gigantic penis in one of the photos and said "What are we going to do about that?" His penis seemed to be the center of attention no matter what. I suggested the three quarter turn of the pose and just kind of ignored it when I painted. The painting is 36" x 48" and intended for a spot in the family room above a hutch - making his penis at eye level.I don't normally emasculate the subjects in my portraits but this seemed to be a necessary exception, considering his impressive size. He was fun to do despite the rearrangements and I look forward to doing more dogs. My next dog portrait is going to be a four foot chihuahua.

Jackson Hole

Dan and I flew to Jackson Hole, WY in early July for a week. Life Drawing workshop for me, fun and relaxation (and work,always) for him. We stayed in town which was great because we could walk everywhere from our hotel. The bottom photo shows me with Raven, a dog from the local shelter. We walked by the shelter one day (also the pet supply store) and saw a sign in the window: "Going for a walk? Our homeless dogs need walks to, come get one." So we stopped by and asked for the dog who was most in need of a walk, they gave us Raven, a beautiful shepherd/lab mix who was fun-loving and gentle. Many of their dogs are fostered and get picked up every night by their temporary families. There are a few who have no foster homes as yet, Raven was one. She wore a little jacket that said "adopt me" and we walked her around town hoping that someone would fall in love with her. Many did, actually, mostly children, (Raven loves kids) but, their parents said no. Dan tried to find a guitar to rent but there were no music stores that had rentals. HOWEVER, when we were walking Raven, she pooped on a lawn that was in front of a pawn shop. I went for the plastic bag in my pocket and found that it had vanished, so Dan went in to the pawn shop for a bag, and found about 100 guitars. The owner sold him one and told him when he was finished using it to bring it back and he would give him all but $20 back for the rental fee. Dan was sure it was all Raven's doing. Karma. The middle photo above is Dan rafting down the Snake River (that's him right in front with his leg draped over). He had a great time - came home wet with a big smile on his face. Later we drove to the area on the river where they rafted. Gorgeous and overgrown with lavender, bright yellow and white wildflowers. The forest comes right down to the river edge. They (raft drivers) advised that if you fall in, swim to the right side of the river as the left is uninhabited and totally wild, no vehicle access. You could be there a long time (with the moose, elk, bears, squirrels, snakes, etc.) Many signs around warning of bear. What to do should you find one near you, etc. When we were hiking (in the Grand Teton National Forest) we (or at least I) were very aware of the fact that there are many bears here. Sightings of bear and moose are common, though the only wildlife we saw while there was a tiny frightened baby snake. The top photo is of Michael Mentler who is the artist who led the workshop I attended. Jackson Hole has a wonderful art center and the workshop took place in their spacious studio which has wide views of the Tetons from the large windows. Mentler is a very gifted artist and competent instructor of life drawing. He reminds me of some of my old art school teachers. A little nuts, enormously passionate about drawing. I came home with a long list of books, several I already owned, and a list of tools, supplies, most I have but some nice new stuff I'd never used. Best tip was the toned textured brown paper (Aquabee Bogus) he uses. Not expensive and terrific to draw on. He also inspired me to return to the study of muscles and bones. I used to know the names so well, could draw from memory all the bones and exterior muscles, and then label them. Now I can't remember anything. I can draw them, just don't know their names anymore. I can barely remember my own name half the time. Great trip but, as usual, happy to be home.

This photo is from my May trip to California for Toni's birthday. We're in a Japanese steak house (Toni loves them). Forget the name, tried something other than Kobe this time, a sports bar version of Kobe (we were in the basketball finals after all). Food was good, the usual goofy chef who tosses bits of shrimp in the air for diners to catch in their mouths (not fond of that, plus I'm always thinking that it will go into a pocket, the shirt will end up in the dry cleaning pile at the bottom of the closet, two weeks later there will be this smell . . .). He sets a little volcano on fire to everyone's oohs and ahhhs (like we haven't seen it a hundred times before). The usual but there is something comforting in these predictable little rituals. We had green tea ice cream and took photos – (Ty took this one). Earlier the three of us had our hair done together, and then went in search of flip flops – on sale at Old Navy (the soft plain rubber ones that we like). Bought some stuff but no flip flops – too many, paralyzed by an overdose of choice.

Must Love Cats and Dogs

This is Gizmo. He is sweet and a bit of a clown. He hates to be restricted in any way (like Toni) so if you pick him up when he's not in the mood he will whine and complain (like Toni). I am here at the Bermuda Dunes house (aka animal house) for a week of hanging out with Toni and Nat. We have done a lot of eating, a little movie-going, visiting with Judy, shopping, and stuff like that. Yesterday Judy came and we barbecued carne asada and chicken and had the most wonderful tostadas. Toni made a strawberry pie which was yummy. Natalie missed out since she was working, but we'll see her later today. Missing Georgannae a lot. We all are but with a tiny bit of healing under our belts we have been able to tell a few stories with her in them with smiles of happy remembering. There is a giant hole in our family. She would have so loved this past week. She also would have been able to make an assessment of Max's condition. He is 15, 16 in November and has arthritis. It is impossible to know if he is in pain and if so how much. He is stoic and gentle and quiet, and of course has no way of letting us know. He amazingly still has the heart and enthusiasm of a puppy. I wish I could take him home with me but that would only be possible if I were driving (which of course would take a car and ten days). Toni has two other cats named Koi and Milo (Milo actually belongs to Natalie but she has a cat who doesn't like Milo so he is here for now). Natalie has three cats (what's with all the cats, we went our whole lives having dogs and suddenly everyone wants multiple cats!) Her cats are Jinx (who actually belongs to Toni, not sure why Nat has him except that he is a bit of a bully), Pancho, and Bob. Bob lives under the bed for the most part because he is timid and not very fond of cats in general. Toni also has Brandy, a sweet furry lovable little girl she brought home one day when she was in high school. I didn't want another dog (at that time I had three already) so Georganne took Brandy and had her for years. When Georganne moved to the Chicago area Toni took Brandy back and she's lived at the BD house ever since. Almost forgot about Jixxer who belongs to Ty who is Toni's boyfriend. Jixxer is an American Bulldog and must be separated at all times from all the animals since she doesn't get along with them, especially the cats, whom she would just as soon eat as look at. Though, ironically, Milo seems to be smitten with Jixxer and seductively struts along the length of the sliding glass door when Jixxer is on the other side of it in the patio. They both seem to be in on this, occasionally throwing themselves on the ground and rolling on their backs while looking at each other with goofy looks on their faces. Odd. Below is the painting I did of Max several years ago. It's acrylic and four feet by five feet, it lives at the end of the hall in Studio 4 at Lorton.

Spring Deer

The deer seem to love the arrival of spring as much as we do. They rush to eat the flowers as soon as they rear their tiny bud heads. My first year here I was naive enough about the possibility of having lilys in my wild kingdom backyard, that I actually planted one smack in the middle of the flower bed in back, very close to where the deer are in this photo. They were there about five minutes. I'm sure it could be compared to say . . . if Dan were to leave a Hersey's kiss on the kitchen counter. (as if). We have a sweet lonely Canadian Goose wandering around the meadow next to the woods. There were two, they walked around the grassy areas together. Often they were on the driveway when I was trying to drive out and I just had to wait for them to waddle their fat butts off the road before I could pass. Suddenly there was only one goose. It was sad. Dan suggested we go find a goose someplace and bring it here for this goose. I was disturbed that he could kidnap a goose from it's own home and family. Then, after two weeks of loneliness, suddenly there were two again! But today we were back to one. I was thinking that maybe friends from the gaggle drop in and check on him. Maybe he lost his mate? There are also several fox sneaking around that part of the meadow but I am sure that if a fox was actually a threat to a goose, no geese would be there. We've had so much rain and every time it rains a lot, like now, we find toads on our deck. Almost like it's just too wet even for them. Last spring I picked up a fat American Toad off (I know their names now having painted a bunch of them recently) our deck and took him down to the creek, thinking he must be lost. But then a few days later, his twin (or maybe him) reappeared so I just left him there. He was gone in a day or so. The frog-singing from the creek is so loud when you're outside you can't hear yourself think. And then there's the cicada. And the sex crazed fox who scream weirdly when mating (Toni and I were watching them from the window). In the five years we've been here I've seen one turtle, and that was in the first six months. Never again did I see one but Dan did stop his car once on Fox Mill so that he could move a turtle out of the middle of the road. I wonder if turtles and frogs get along? Turtles seem like loners. Introverted. I'm kind of a turtle.

American Beauty II

This painting is 48" x 60" and is done with acrylic, collage of printed material, my drawings, and misc. debris of all kinds. I am not sure it's done. I have wanted to put a figure near the top, drawn in as I did in American Beauty I. (AMI sold, and hangs in a boutique hotel's lobby in Maryland, despite the subtle pattern of tiny printed words which are all of the foul names women have been called throughout history that I could find on the internet -- I keep expecting a phone call with words like "Er, about that painting of yours, we didn't realize . . . our guests . . . offensive . . . er, misrepresented, . . . refund, . . .?") Like my first American Beauty painting, this painting deals with women's rights, body issues, etc. After doing a lot of research for this piece, it just felt sad to me that women, here and around the world, from present time to over a thousand years ago, have been trying so hard to make themselves thinner, prettier, more appealing, wanted; yet have often been restricted the right to education, freedom of movement, jobs, property ownership, votes, even freedom over their own bodies. Recently in the middle east a woman (another woman) was murdered by her own father for speaking to a man who was not her husband or father or brother. How do we, as western women, respond to that? It is beyond comprehension. Women have been controlled by not allowing them to learn to read, draping them in burkas, attaching chastity belts or slave bracelets, forcing circumcism, locking them up, physical violence, social alienation, the list goes on and on and is just so sad. Now I'm depressed and totally drifting off the subject. Well, the painting deals mostly with all the ways women try to make themselves younger and prettier, to be more of a contender in today's world ala the standards set by TV, movies, celebrity awe, etc. I was attempting to put all these things together, the advertising for the creams, the waist cinchers, the get pretty fast schemes, to show how ridiculous they all are.

Breaking Through to Blue

These six paintings were intended to be hung very close together, rather than as shown here. They are each ten inches by ten inches and I did them very quickly. I was trying to change my palette. I always use the same old colors over and over. My studio is filled with orange, red, yellow and smaller amounts of cool colors. I had to force myself to use mostly blues. These paintings all have deep sides and the paintings go around the edges to the sides. As I was painting them I would put two at at time together, and connect shapes and colors, select another two, and kept turning them and varying what I put side by side, in the hope that in the end all of the pieces would work together. Well, most work well together. I really loved doing them because it just felt right, came together, things were working plus I did a lot of drawing on them and that was fun. I am working on another blue palette painting now that's 48 x 48 and will also have a lot of drawing. It's staring at me right nowbut I have another painting in line in front of it so it will just have to wait it's turn.

Lorton Suffragette Series

These paintings were hung in the Lorton Arts Center Small Works Show over the holidays. The top painting was selected to be on the calendar they are going to print, hopefully before the end of the year. It's title is Metamorphosis, and intended to reflect the transition from prison to art center, to show that the physical structure, though the same, now houses a creative and positive spirit without completely forgetting the minds and bodies that once spent every waking moment behind those walls. My focus is mainly directed to those women imprisoned for standing up for equal rights. Seems so odd today that women were once not able to vote. Especially when a woman was so close to actually becoming the president, and is now the third female Secretary of State. So much can happen in so little time. The second photo is of eight paintings on the same subject, and again focusing on the suffragettes. Creating these pieces was an interesting process as I went online to find information on the women who were actually housed at the Lorton prison. These women were arrested for marching in Washington D.C. Many then refused to eat and were force fed with tubes and such. I also ran across political cartoons depicting the plight of the poor husbands of these activist women. One shows a man, the poor guy walks in the disheveled house where there is laundry everywhere and no dinner and he's tired after his day's work; and where, oh where, is his personal slave? Off galavanting around in front of the White House with her friends putting her nose where it doesn't belong. We've come a long way, at least in this country.