December Door

The storm door has taken a real "licking" this month (or maybe "nosing" is more accurate), and the sun is finally angling enough for me to photograph Cassie's energetic efforts. December Door has a very different palette than our previous prints - much more subdued, and softer. It's probably the total absence of black, which may be added later. It almost looks like Cassie has been studying Chinese in her spare time! Any translators out there?

Winter Solstice

Yaay - we're celebrating the winter solstice here today!! These short dark days are not to our liking - even a few more minutes of light are wonderful! In honor of the day, I am offering the print Winter Solstice for the unheard-of price of $15 (plus shipping and handling) - for one day only (Dec. 21) at PiCassieO. Don't miss this chance to own one of our loveliest works - dark and mysterious like winter, with subtle colors and a flash of brilliance when the sun made a brief appearance while I was photographing Cassie's marks 2 years ago today. It's also featured in our video, PiCassieO at Work. Wherever you are, I hope the sun is shining today!

Working Really Small!

Am having tech trouble as usual - but here are two of
the tiny abstracts from larger PiCassieOs that I'm turning into pendants. I've always thought of the works as "little jewels", but now they really are! These small pendants are $15 and may be bought at our store.

Got to get back to work on some more - these have been really popular with friends and neighbors! I work, Cassie sleeps - what a life. Would like to trade places once in a while.

Thanksgiving

Look hard at the photo - do you see the dog? Normally we don't use a tablecloth for meals, so when we do (like at Thanksgiving) Cassie has a little trouble getting in position for handouts.

Enough subtlety - gotta see the food!

Tablecloth diving did wonders for the hairdo! We had a great dinner, and a nice day (except for that surprise thunderstorm that came in with a boom!), and hope y'all did too! Cassie is now snoozing peacefully in the sun, and I have some new photos of her current art to play with. One big thing I am thankful for: that someone else who loved her had the good sense to give her up to an Airedale Rescue group, so she could come and live with me! Thank you to all those wonderful people out there who help dogs like Cassie - we love you!

Presto Change-o!

After reposting "Yikes" for Halloween, I thought I might as well show what happened to the Spook later. What you saw last time was Cassie's marks on the window, properly oriented. That creepy little monster was just for fun - not anything I wanted to print. Out came the crop tool, and "rotate", and lots of color adjustment, and then presto change-o: Cassie's Nose Garden! It's such a cheery, whimsical scene, like something from Alice in Wonderland. No Cheshire Cat, but it has a quirky little bird; maybe the Cat is hiding behind the "mushroom" (or is that another bird?). Enough reminiscing - next time back to new work!

Yikes!

(The following is a repeat of Halloween 2007)

Here it is - Cassie's Halloween "spook"! This is the second version; the first one looked like a purple elephant with a trunk deformity. I was about to delete it, but then decided to play with it some more, and this little monster appeared. I definitely don't want to bump into it in the yard!

RE: the glowing eyes in the yard, mentioned last time - it finally rained the next day, when I was all set to go critter hunting, and I haven't seen anything looking back at me since. The speculation around here is that they were (a) aliens; (b) dust fairies; or (c) an indication that someone's medication needs adjusting.

Happy Halloween from Beth and Cassie! :)

Summer Porch

Found a little time to play (work) and Summer Porch was the result. I think the original photo represented a couple of months work at the storm door by Cassie. The colors in this one are incredible! Even though I use a lot of black (traditionally associated with gloom and doom), this is a joyful, energetic work. The black makes the colored areas even more vibrant. It's very hard to judge how anyone sees these on the web - the only way to get the full impact is to actually see the print (done my way!). That means "do not attempt this at home", if you get my drift. Summer Porch will be listed on Etsy by tonight - have a look at PiCassieO . I will offer it as a full-size print and a slightly different version as an ACEO (Artist Card, Edition, or Original) - art to fit all budgets (even mine)! Come visit!

Walking In the Air

The title Walking In The Air came from a song on a Christmas CD. I liked the way Cassie's marks sort of march across the window in this one, although the colors and feel of it speak more of fall than winter. Right now in NC, it feels more like winter than fall! Wet and nasty for several days now - but Cassie is happy because there was finally a deer in the yard this morning. Now I have some new material to work with at last - we've been having a dry spell artistically (but not weather-wise), due to lack of wildlife. Our quince tree is presently dropping its sour fruit on the ground, so there should be a little more traffic out there soon. How anything can eat that stuff, I don't know. They smell good, but have the effect of green persimmons! Ugh.

Big Announcement: Our Etsy store is up and running! We have a dozen prints for sale, and I'm adding pendants and ACEOs ASAP. In case ACEO doesn't ring a bell, it stands for "Artist Cards, Editions, & Originals". You collect them like trading cards and can house your collection in an album. Really affordable art! Visit PiCassieO often and see what we're offering!

"Storm Door September", & Other Dogs Making Art

Summer has been a slack time for us, artistically. The weather has been so strange that I think it's affecting the wildlife, and they're evidently hanging out somewhere else. Either that or the predator population (coyotes and hawks) is increasing and scaring the bunnies and deer off! Whatever it is, Cassie's main thrill these days is barking at my brother-in-law's old hound "Miss Red" when she moseys into the yard, so we don't have a lot of fresh "nose art" to work with. It has given me time to look back at former efforts (we've come a long way from Creature From the Green Lagoon, for sure!) and play with some of them. This one is a new color version of the first Storm Door. Never being one to write down steps, I'm not sure what filters were used in the first one, so I haven't figured out yet why the image is so obviously "pixelated" - got to work on that. The temptation to translate some of these images into paintings is growing, especially when the colors are so appealing. Then pixels will be no problem at all!

Now, about other dogs making art: I just read an article about a dog in Texas "making art" to sell for the humane society. It really disturbed me, because the dog wasn't a willing participant. His paws were dipped in paint and more or less used as "brushes" while he tried to get away, and his tail was also painted so he'd wag it against the canvas. That's certainly not the way we do things around here! There is no forcing or coaching or anything else, other than Cassie's uninhibited reaction to life, that starts every "PiCassieO". We wouldn't have it any other way!

Too many people think of "abstract" art as just a bunch of paint thrown randomly at a canvas and labeled "art". It can be done that way (by animals or humans) but it's not necessarily good art! Composition and color sense are prerequisites for any kind of art in order for it to work. There - enough pontificating for one day!

West Window September

Cassie made a really wild swoosh on the left window facing west - not her usual spot for viewing, since she prefers sitting on the other end of the couch top. I haven't been able to do much with it until now - just decided to go with dense black strokes and experiment with a new gradient background. Maybe still needs work, but I LIKE the black. It goes back to my student days, when using black paint straight from the tube was frowned upon (my instructors were still hung in NeoImpressionism). Well, I love its absoluteness and strength, and have used it in everything I've done since then - my rebellious streak showing through. I can see some interesting pendant material in this one, too! Be watching at Close Encounters - I'm working on new ones now.

Back to Serious Art Here! Scat, Cat!

OK - I was a little late, but the famous pickle recipe is now history. For a refresher course in how the art in this blog starts, check out "PiCassieO at Work" - see Cassie the Crackerdog in action! One of the works in the video is Scat, Cat! This is the updated version, with a new color palette. Funny- I really liked my "Herb" colors (check archives for the Herb series) when I first started using them, but fell out of love with them at some point and am redoing all of the art in that series - artistic evolution at work!

Too Many Irons in the Fire!

I've been so busy with various other projects that "PiCassieO" has been on hiatus as far as producing any new work. Not Herb Anymore is an exception, although it really isn't exactly new: it was originally in my "Herb" series last year. After I wiped out all my custom gradients accidentally, the new ones I developed were so colorful that I decided to revisit some previous work that no longer pleased me. "Extreme Makeover" here - it's much, much better the second time around!

One thing occupying my time was closing our first Cafe Press store and opening a new one, Art by PiCassieO! , mentioned in my last post. Presently featured is our "I Love My Dog" design on a bunch of tees and assorted gift items. The heart comes from Storm Door, previously posted here. Looks great in print; below is the ceramic ornament version.
You know you need one of these! Or maybe two or three...nice gifts for dog lovers!

Branching Out!

Had to happen - my obsession with abstraction is taking me deeper into our previous works, and here are the latest results! These are glass pendants, 7/8" square, and will be for sale shortly in my store at One Thousand Markets, along with PiCassieO prints and my "other" art. We're also trying something different at Cafe Press - a new store with one of our "I Love My Dog" designs featured on a bunch of fun items.

The plan is to feature a different design every month or so, and eventually phase out our first store. Visit Art by PiCassieO!, because I love my dog and she needs dog food on a regular basis!

Driveway, July, #2

OK - this is version #2 of the last entry - another one of the new gradient palettes. Here's your chance to be an art critic - vote for the one you like best! Title suggestions are welcome, too - as long as they're G-rated!

BTW: Our July Sale is still on at Cafe Press. Lowest prices you'll ever see on PiCassieO items - also the widest selection of merchandise. If there's something you like, get it now (am discontinuing a bunch of designs!) Shop at www.CafePress.com/airedale_art

Driveway, July #1

Getting more colorful all the time, here! It's like opening a present, every time I try a different palette! This is a totally new look for "PiCassieO". There's another version coming up in the next post - vote for your favorite!

And don't forget - BIG Anniversary Sale at www.cafepress.com/airedale_art
You won't see these prices again! Still two weeks left - go shopping!

Milk Can, July

Wow - what looked like a total disaster turned out great! I accidentally erased ALL my custom gradients last week and had to start over, attempting to get 'em back by using previous prints for color sources. Never saw this one before - it came out totally different: wheeeeee...I love the colors! It's really good to start over, I'm sure - helps prevent redundancy. So, Milk Can, July heads off in a new direction. Eager to print this one!

Cassie is still hard at work on the glass, obviously. She had a dry spell for a few weeks, mainly because the wildlife has been a bit skimpy lately. Things are picking up, though: there are twin fawns out back, a couple of bunnies hanging out in the yard, and in spite of the hot dry weather, there was a box turtle on the path this morning. I saw it just before Cassie did and was able to grab it, but we struggled over it before I finally managed to toss it into the woods. That beats being bitten by an Airedale, I'm sure.

Just a reminder: our big July Anniversary Sale is happening at http://www.cafepress.com/airedale_art! Lowest prices you'll ever see on some really fun items with PiCassieO art all over them!

NEWS FLASH: July Sale at Our Store!!!

To celebrate our first year at Cafe Press, we're having a store-wide sale for the month of July!!!You'll never see prices this low again, so shop happy!!! We have mugs and mousepads, tees and tiles, and lots of other stuff with PiCassieO art all over, with love from Cassie and Beth!
www.cafepress.com/airedale_art

Pictured above: PiCassieo's "West Wind" Mug Sale Price $11.99 (plus S & H)

Milk Can #1 (Finally!)

After posting so many versions of Milk Can, I realized that there was no #1, so now there is. Taking a little artistic license here, I guess. Anyway, what's in a number? Mainly it's a way to distinguish one work from another, since I am totally running out of titles. There are still many different views of Cassie's marks against that milk can; sometimes the differences are very subtle, so it will be a challenge to make 'em all unique. Good thing it's still so much FUN!


We evidently have a healthy population of coyotes nearby this year. Cassie is being deprived of her entertainment at the windows, since there are very few bunnies around. Even the deer are elsewhere; to my disappointment there have been no fawns at all. If it weren't for my brother-in-law's old hound "Miss Red", the window painting might have stopped. Red has taken to following Gary as far as she can, hoping he'll put her in the truck for a ride. She usually makes it as far as our house, which sets Cassie off, and then pokes back home.


If all else fails, I could always photograph our skid marks on the road, as I struggle to keep Cassie from jumping snakes or picking a fight with Miss Red. Never a dull moment.

Singer and Door, February

You heard it right - "Singer", as in sewing machine. My dad bought an ancient treadle-powered Singer years ago, when my mom refused to let him play with her machine. His ambition was to make his own clothes; that project was quickly abandoned after making a couple of really bad neckties, so the old machine finally got a job as a porch table. It sits just outside the door (next to the previously mentioned milk can) and makes a great backdrop for Cassie's marks on the glass. If you look closely you can see the top and part of a treadle wheel. "PiCassieO" continues to evolve in unexpected ways! Just go back and look in the archives if you want proof.

Milk Can May #2 (I think!)

Help - I just can't stop! There's already a #3, plus the plain old Milk Can that was posted first. This one prints beautifully, as have the others. It's becoming more and more like painting, especially with the "hands-on" involvement that the stylus affords. I salute my new medium! Have to admit, this form of my art is not getting the reception that my earlier paintings did; I'm hoping (and do believe) that attitudes toward "computer art" are changing, and that pretty soon it will be accepted as just another medium of expression. Thoughts on that? or anything else? Let me hear from you!

Cassie is blissfully unaware that a haircut is impending. So far we've had three ticks between us, so the woolly one is going to get buzzed. If you aren't familiar with ticks, I want to move wherever you are! This wet, sticky weather is their favorite, and they're out for blood. Double ugh.

Milk Can #2

Sometimes my camera just won't focus on Cassie's marks, especially when they've been rubbed a little by her fuzzy head. In this instance it didn't focus on much of anything; you'll just have to take my word for it that there was a milk can in the background. I didn't posterize the photo; instead I just drew over the marks with the stylus and then applied a custom gradient (my current favorite) and this is what happened. The background, which was out of focus, got soft and luminous so the bold black marks seem to float on top. Very satisfying! Milk Can is going to be a loooong series, I think.

East Window With Boat

Whee - more fun! That's my sailboat at the bottom of this one; I'm really loving how the strokes, once enhanced with the stylus, merge so well with the background. Since I'm still out of ink (due to buying black instead of the tri-color cartridge) I can't proof it, so there may be more work to do.


Cassie's chief obsession at the moment is toads, which are super-abundant this year already. I am living proof that they don't give you warts - have handled hundreds of the warty things, and not one bump on my hands. In my first career, I was a pre-vet and zoology major, and did my parasitology research project with the help of six unfortunate toads. Since then as penance I've rescued them from my canine "Jaws of Death" at every opportunity. Should have started a tally sheet in April - I think this year is going to break the record. And yes, my neighbors (and family) think I'm totally nuts!

Milk Can (No Kidding!)

I'm like a kid in a candy store, here! That mark that Cassie made on the storm door is one of her best, so Ive been photographing it from every angle : against the walk, the porch rails and posts, and the old sewing machine (porch table, now) and milk can near the door, which is where this composition happened. Last week I developed a new gradient which worked great for Milk Can - I love the bright colors and the shapes that came out. It was so exciting that I couldn't wait to post it, but it needs a little more work with the stylus before I'll print it. So much fun!


Cassie is totally unimpressed - she still has toads and turtles on her mind, not art. She's also been enjoying doing duets with our new neighbor, Champion. It's OK except when they get to singing at midnight or early in the morning - then I'd like to gag both of 'em!

I Love My Dog!

Yep, it's about time to redo that little red heart with a bit of PiCassieO. I just finished adding dog and human tees with an "art heart" to our Cafe Press store
(www.cafepress.com/airedale_art) - featuring one from Sidewalk Spirits and another from All Stirred Up!. More to come, soon.

This One Takes the Cake!

No picture today, except for "Don Quixote" at the bottom (May 1), which again reminds me of the previous entry from "PiCassieO"! You'll have to make this picture in your mind. On our morning walk, Cassie and I had a close (too close!) encounter with a box turtle. I'm not really functional until that second cup of coffee, which comes after we walk, so before I could react, Cassie had that turtle locked in her jaws. She must have expandable hinges in there, because that was more than a mouthful! When I tried to wrestle it out, she shook her head and whopped me on the shin with the turtle - felt like a big fat rock! I threatened and yelled and squeezed her mouth and she finally let go so I could grab it and toss it back in the woods. I figured a slight concussion was better than being crunched. As it was, it was a soft landing, and the turtle came out better than I did; by then there was a good sized swelling on my leg. The thought of my dog hitting me with a turtle was so hilarious that the pain was nullified. Bet I'm the only person with that claim to fame!

Pablo Had A Hand In This!

Pablo's Surprise really was unexpected: I was playing with the stylus again, and started with a really bad photo in which Cassie's marks were out of focus against a crepe myrtle in the yard. The leaf pattern was much too busy, so the intent was to draw over the marks, invert the image, and then erase what was left of the background. I intended to then fill the blank space with color. What I didn't realize was that my "eraser color" wasn't pure white, so when a gradient was applied, my eraser marks showed as random scribbles. It looked very "Picasso" to me; reminds me of the "Bullfighter" that appears in our "Daily Picasso" at the bottom of this column.


Be sure to check that feature today: my physical therapist would have her work cut out with the poor guy! Makes me hurt to look at him. Maybe that was the intention?

Storm Door April, #2

I liked #1 so much that I decided to play with it some more. This is the first alteration - a different gradient was applied, which totally changed the feel of the work. The printed version really glows!

Summer has replaced spring here with a vengeance. It's probably 90 out there at the moment; when it's that hot, Miss Cassie prefers snoozing in the AC to doing anything outdoors. Until evening, that is. I can't believe we have a yard full of toads already (minus 2 last night!). Since the dog is now 10, I seriously doubt she'll ever learn to leave 'em alone. It's going to be a looong season.

Fired Up!

Wow - have I ever had a productive spurt here! After I cleaned the windows and door last week, Cassie was taking her time getting back to business, but once the deer made a reappearance, there was art on the glass again! For this one (Storm Door April, #1), I decided to angle the shot so her marks would be visible against the porch support for contrast. Since the mark was "ghostly" again, the stylus was used first to capture the strokes, and then I posterized it and applied my favorite custom gradient. I love the colors, especially that yellow! Cassie gives it her seal of approval (give her enough Goldfish and she'll approve anything!). Got at least three more to post, so stay tuned!

Now for a warning for all you dog people out there: do NOT visit a site called "Laurel Canyon Animal Company." Supposedly they make CDs of music for animals and people, and had a video on YouTube of a dog named Eliza Dolittle tearing up plastic bags, which were photographed and processed in a similar manner as "PiCassieO" art (not nearly as good!). BUT- their email is bogus, and the links section is full of attack sites. My firewall got me out of there, thank goodness. Just passing the word along - I hate to see the bad guys get their kicks at the expense of others.

All Stirred Up!

Yeah, I know this looks a little different, with the signature and all, but "All Stirred Up" is one of those really versatile works that can be stretched and cut and otherwise altered to fit some fun stuff like mugs and dog bowls at our Cafe Press store (that's http://www.CafePress.com/airedale_art), so we really hope you like it!

The resolution is high, so you need to click on it to get the sharper image. Sorry about that. By the way, check out our "Picasso of the Day" at the bottom. And some folks think he couldn't draw...

Far Out!

Here we go again: sometimes I just keep going in for a closer and closer look, and then BOOM! - a surprise pops up! This little jewel is from one I posted two weeks ago. It has the appearance of "something" (a horned creature, maybe?), but is really a celebration of color and interesting shapes. I used it as a sketch for a square canvas that had been gathering dust in the corner, so we'll see what happens now.

Cassie has now reached the venerable age of 10, as of April 12th. She got a pink bunny (needs surgery already) and a green teddy (lost an eye yesterday), and the usual love and adoration. Who could resist a face like that?

(Photo courtesy of Lukas Johnson, www.zoto.com/site/#USR.photopoetry )

Going Green!

I am having 'way too much fun with my new toy! Green Strokes could also be Porch Spirits, since Cassie drew them on the storm door at the front. That porch is keeping the sun off the door and I'm so far unable to photograph her latest efforts - would hate to lose all that work, so I need to figure out a way to capture them.


As I worked on this one, I had to zoom in to see what was happening with the stylus, and discovered some really interesting abstracts hiding there. Figured this would happen at some point, that my dormant passion for using real, messy, wet paint would surface again, so I'm off to get physical with it.


Hey - don't forget our daily Picasso (down below)!

Sidewalk Spirits

Cassie did this one on the storm door; the strokes reminded me of ghostly figures, but after applying my usual filters the "ghosts" disappeared. My first experiment with the stylus (last post) turned out OK so I decided to have another go at it - what FUN!! The work is definitely changing (for the better?). There are hundreds of photos to recheck - no boredom here, for sure!

My partner is napping at the moment, recuperating from a weekend of deer-chasing, with a side order of bird watching! Buzzards drive her crazy - there was one wheeling low over the back yard yesterday, and Crackerdog was running and barking furiously, following the bird instead of watching where she was going! Fortunately she missed the fence posts and other obstacles - whew.

Back in Action!

Hot off the Wacom tablet! Cassie does so much "brushwork" that won't show up when I start filtering (not to mention claw marks and other refinements). I decided to try the stylus over a lightly filtered photo to capture the marks and scratches on this one, then filtered more, used one of my custom gradients, and finally used the stylus again to add color and more lines. It opens all sorts of new possibilities!

One of Cassie's favorite tricks, when she was a bit younger, was to bang on the window with her front paws for added emphasis. I expected the window to break on many occasions, but it never did. She has scratched the glass - guess there was grit under her claws that did it. Evidently from this photo, she can still do it when she gets sufficiently riled!

Something New

Since "PiCassieO" is not in an art-making mood at the moment, we've added a tribute to our inspiration, Pablo Picasso. Scroll all the way down and see a different masterpiece every day!

Getting Lazy

What can I say - at this point I'd gladly trade places with my dog. We've had three straight days of rain and gloom, which is two days past my limit, and all I want to do is curl up and sleep until it's over. One of Cassie's favorite tricks is to wait until I get out of bed, throw the covers over it, and head for the head in the morning: as soon as I'm out of sight, she jumps up and scrambles the covers and sacks out in my warm spot until she hears me coming. Usually she's sitting on the back of the couch looking out the window (and looking really innocent) by the time I get back, but this time I caught her in the act! She's entirely too cute to be fussed at, a fact of which I'm quite sure she's aware. Art later - sleep now.

Cassie's Nose Garden, Updated!

After a few days of extreme winter, it's suddenly spring again; we're talkin' tee shirts and flowers here! Cassie's Nose Garden has been here before, but I like it so much I decided to revise it a little and post it in honor of the season. Now I see more that I'd like to change, so it'll probably be back again.

The deer have been running all over our property and Cassie has been working hard at her "window painting." Lots of new material there - but the light this time of year is not cooperative for photographing it. At some point I'm going to be forced to clean the glass so we can see out!

"Snowy Day"

Yeah, I know this doesn't look like snow, but this is what resulted when I photographed Cassie's marks against the snowy trees in the afternoon. We had a really wild ride this weekend, weather-wise, with torrential rains and a flood watch on Sunday, followed by falling temps and about 6 inches of wet, heavy snow that night. Of course Cassie, in her all-weather coat, enjoyed it immensely - especially when she was playing snow-plow. That's when she runs with her mouth open, scooping up snow as she goes! My previous Airedale Daisy liked that too, except after a few mouthfuls of the ice - cold flakes, she would always barf. Cassie's tum is evidently made of stronger stuff.

Spring Song, Second Verse!

Here we go again with more wishful thinking! The wind has been so cold for the past three days that my right thumb has cracked again - gives a lot more meaning to the old phrase "sticks out like a sore thumb." Not a good thing for an artist, or a dog owner for that matter! Anyway, Cassie drew this on the east window a while back and I'm just now figuring out what to do with it. It would be so easy to just stick to a formula with these works, but that would take all the fun out of it (and the challenge!). For now, I love the new colors and textures that are happening.

Cassie doesn't like the cold much, either. When we walk, her nose starts running and she puts on brakes, then makes a dive between my knees to wipe it. She regards me as her personal Kleenex. One of these days we're going to wind up in a tangled heap on the road!

Spring Song

Time for a little change of pace - we're looking for spring here! Cassie has been working overtime on the east window while I've been trying to figure out Facebook and YouTube. I'd say her time has been spent better than mine has! Here's our latest effort: reminds me of warm days and perfumed air, coming soon! Not today, though; it's still chilly and windy out there.

Cassie went "crackerdog" while ago: there was a strange dog trotting through the yard. From the racket I thought it must be a deer out there! You can see her doing what she does best on our video (link in last entry), "PiCassieO At Work".

PiCassieO At Work!

After an incredible amount of blood, sweat, and tears, our video is finally online!!! Check it out here:
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=PiCassieO+At+Work&emb=0&aq=f#

Got to get back to making art now!

Storm Door, February

I should call it Stormy Weather after the morning I've had! Absolutely NOTHING I've tried to do on this computer has worked, due to a bunch of snafus with Facebook and YouTube - and Blogger. There are bugs and glitches and gremlins everywhere - not my fault this time! For a while it looked like this blog was inaccessible, too - that was about the last straw. Really drove me to tears (no kidding).

Anyway, we're still making art, so life's not all bad (not by a longshot). Storm Door is another step in our artistic evolution: instead of trying for little detail in the background so Cassie's strokes would be isolated, I recently decided to use the objects outside as part of the composition. Most of my art before 2000 had a lot of straight lines in it, from buildings mostly. Then I got bored with the rigidity and switched to flowers and other organic shapes instead, and THEN Cassie took me beyond all that. And here I am, using lines again. I wonder, does this mean I'm going in circles?

All these technical difficulties have me running late - "Cassandra, Queen of the Universe" is needing a walk. I hear and obey.

A Little Matisse For a Change!

Wow - total change in direction here! I was playing with a previous PiCassieO for a little fun after an absolutely exasperating day working on a Facebook application, and this is the result. I think it was a "Herb" palette again, but the look is definitely Matisse! It's square because I was thinking about using it for a Cafe Press design (remember our store?). In keeping with the way things are going with me and the internet, I can't put a link here, so check the sidebar if you want to do some shopping. I give up.

We did get a light snow, and Cassie was running in it and eating it at the same time. Time to go out there and freeze again - brrr...

A New Twist

Actually, two new twists - a different "Herb" palette, and a new look at West Wind (check Archives). Since I'm really running short on titles, this one is West Wind 2. It looks terrific in a mat and frame! These prints are small, but they really light up a room.

Cassie and I are both a little stiff from an uphill run in pursuit of deer. Good thing it's raining so we can rest! Maybe we'll have Osteo-Biflex for supper.

Back to Herb!

The Herb series is still going strong - this is Herb Seven. Right now I'm really enjoying these colors. The palette I used in the previous post is interesting also; it came from an altered digital shot of my Betta fish, "Blue Max." He only lived a week, but his short time here was very well-documented. I am totally burned out from several days of "social networking" - Murphy's Law has been in full effect - and a physical wreck from chasing deer with that insane dog of mine, so that's all, folks! Tune in next time.

Wild Dog 3

Thought we'd take a break from the "Herbs" and post something totally different. This one was started two years ago and I never could be satisfied with the outcome. Since I started playing with creating my own gradients, some of the old works have been redone with surprising results. Wild Dog 3 is one of them.

Cassie has been supplying me with so much new material lately that I'd better not spend too much time on "Memory Lane"! This morning she started roaring as soon as I raised the blinds: the deer herd was streaking through the back yard and she went totally "cracker dog". There is probably some new art on the bathroom window as well - not her usual venue, but she knew that was the direction they went. Never a dull moment around here, for sure.

Another "Herb"!

Here we go with another Herb! This could be a really big series. I've used this one on a bunch of new items in our store at www.CafePress.com/airedale_art ; check 'em out if you have time.

Cassie is ready to go out - duty calls. It's so cold here that she doesn't linger out in the yard at night now; she just does her rounds and then takes a flying run across the yard with a big "Rufff!", and beats me back to the porch. Fine with me! Good night.

The Herb Series

No, that's not herb as in plant; there is an artist nearby named Herb Jackson whose works I greatly admire. The incredible colors in his heavily textured and scraped paintings just blow me away. While cleaning up my teaching space I found an old article about one of his series and got the idea to make some custom gradients using his colors and apply them to my photo manipulations, since someone once told me that Cassie's style was similar to Herb's! Wow, is this ever a change from the Winter Works. Here we go with Herb One through Three; comments welcomed! Note: the order is reversed. I did load them in sequence, for the record.