Acrylic on Fabric –
There is no surer method of evading the world than by following Art, and no surer method of linking oneself to it than by Art. ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
An online ‘special preview’ approaches for all of you who have patiently endured my erratic postings. My hands have been full with lots of tasks – many of them have been highly-creative ones! I’ve not had time for full-time painting, but you’ve earned a sneak peek!
Sometimes it’s easy to go into an intense focus, and studies seem to shine best against a stark background. The butterflies above illustrate when ‘all is calm’ in Zeebra’s life. Other times when distractions nudge me out of focus, I switch to a totally-different style — one that makes me smile and demands a different approach. An old Artist’s Statement of mine stated, “Two people live inside of me…” Here’s a sample of that second person:
Hippie Frogs!
..”Art is the desire of a man to express himself, to record the reactions of his personality to the world he lives in. ~Amy Lowell”
Last week’s dragonfruit flowers reminded me of how I cherish working from life; the recent rains also promise an explosion of brugmansia blossoms. I look forward to having time for some serious studies of those nocturnal beauties.
(See the previous post to appreciate the beauty of these flowers!)
No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist. ~Oscar Wilde
The artist is a receptacle for the emotions that come from all over the place: from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider’s web. ~Pablo Picasso
This image is tweaked sideways to fit the screen!
I hope you enjoyed the sneak peek; I will be offline most of this week, but wanted to send an ‘all’s fine’ smoke signal! Learning from last Aprill’s earthquake, if I do not answer your comments or emails, most likely I am fine – just away from an internet connection!
Until the next smoke signal, Z
Zeebra Designs & Destinations 
My favorite of your sneak peeks? That eye, peeking right back. (Actually, it’s peering, but never mind that. It’s a good reminder that when it comes to seeing the world, you have no peer.)
Hi Amiga! This post went out when I was on the coast and the internet was erratic. That eye painting is based on an artifact of ‘King Tut’ — which first inspired that eye I painted on the gates to Casa Loca – in an attempt to scare the thieves away! It was such fun to paint, I decided that a more-serious one should be painted in the mola stye, and next I’l like to paint one more in a surreal style.
Sigh.. so many whims and so few hours in each day! As a wise woman stated, ” Where I was born and where and how I have lived is unimportant… It is what I will do with where I have yet to be that should be of interest.’
Ethereal!
hi cindy! so sorry i’m late in acknowledging your kind support! thank you as always! lisa
always look forward to your blog posts…thanks Lisa your art in all it’s forms continue on…<3
thank you gwen! happy new year and belated merry christmas!
I like both sides of you. 🙂 Hope your week offline goes well.
janet
Your comment gave me a chuckle twice! Once when I read it in Manabi, and now as I catch up little by little in the cloud forest. Yes, it’s nice to have multiple-personality disorder, all thanks to the whims of painting!
Glad I could make you laugh. It’s good for you. 🙂
I love this little peek!
thank you! i’m watching you closely right now after that incredibly-deep earthquake hit in the Philippines… you’ve had more than your share and deserve a very long break. love, lisa
I loved your view into your art this way. I agree, an artist does see things differently. Beautiful work, Z. Love the butterflies.
thankyou donna! i suspect that it’s incredibly cold up there right now…. even with the cold, you bring warmth through your amazing photos!
Love those hippie frogs, Lisa!
Barbara, you are so sweet with your tireless support. Thank you so much!
I love the frogs! The Klu Klux Klan … or a herd of wizards? They have a strong imagery and are rather fascinating.
Sorry it took so long to reply to this.. yes, those wizard-looking folks can be creepy, especially to someone like me from the Deep South/USA… they are a polar opposite with meaning here in Ecuador, where they are part of the Holy Week/Easter festivities. There is a huge parade, and the first time I witnessed the masses of purple=caped people it was quite difficult to remember that they represented ‘goodness’ and not evil.
The painting was a way to merge those feelings and also help exorcise the KKK….
What a wonderful glimpse into all you have underway! Thank you, Lisa!
Thanks, Cindy! Like you, there’s always something — no there are always many things to keep me from being bored, but sometimes those items need to take a rest, as do I.
In another week I hope to be finished with ‘construction’ art and to go back into fine art.
This may be true (..”Art is the desire of a man to express himself, to record the reactions of his personality to the world he lives in. ~Amy Lowell”) but I think art is a great deal more than self-expression. It reveals to us aspects of our world that we would otherwise miss. Artists are the “creators of culture.”
Hugh, you are such a great supporter of the arts, and you also encourage those artists with kindness… Long ago I noted how most did not notice how much the arts influence other parts of a student’s skills – from learning to meditate to improving math skills by analytical studies to ==== the benefits domino in many directions.. Here in Ecuador, the young artists are encouraged and are praised for their talents, which is a delight to witness.
Well Sis, you KNOW I prefer the wild colored frogs!! I prefer that almost always over the “normal” but still love all you do, photos, drawings, paintings, writings!! The talent is all yours, this old girl can’t even draw “stick people”!! Love you !! Take care and have a GREAT CHRISTMAS, that is, if it’s celebrated there. Anyway, stay safe and keep on writing!!
I’m glad you like those wild-colored frogs! If they make you smile, their purpose works!
Hope you’re surviving that cold weather and are mending! Love, Lees
I love seeing all your work (well, not ALL of it!) scattered there, with the tools in the middle. But what’s with the Klan? That’s so strange to see amidst the flora and fauna. Or is it not the Klan? I know they’re not in white, but…
i’m in a sunny garden space in ‘earthquake zone’ so can barely see the screen.. will be offline again til late tonight, then off til late tomorrow night. will expand on the kkk effect soon — it’s the traditional dress worn during holy week, and yes, it gave me a visual shock/the creeps and still does,, but i am working through it, one way thru the painting!
thanks! lisa
This is the post I meant to share with you and am just now getting back to it… Here’s the KKK effect is about:
https://playamart.wordpress.com/2015/04/04/the-irony-of-costume/
Dig those hippie frogs. Far out, man.
Ja! Thanks, Steve! Here’s the ‘Hippie Frog” that inspired the first one that was on a trail sign for ‘edemic species’ and these morphed from that one.. Darwin would be proud!:
http://natureinstock.com/en/photos/151762-Fraser-s-Anole-Anolis-fraseri-male
So Darwin was a hippie?
more chuckles! thanks!
Do you remember Chuckles the Clown from the Mary Tyler Moore television show?
Here’s a link:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuckles_the_Clown
ha! yes! speaking of chuckles, Professor, does the Risa in sonrisa have any connection to risita? if nothing else, there’s good syntax and could be worked into a poem!
Yes, it’s the same risa. The verb sonreír developed from Latin subridēre, literally ‘to under-laugh’, i.e. ‘to smile’. The phonetic change from sub- to son- obscured the meaning of the prefix.
Thank you so much!
De nada. And if you want an unexpected etymology, nada offers one:
https://wordconnections.wordpress.com/2014/07/09/nada-2/
Happy New Year Lisa!
Hi Amiga, and so glad that you enjoyed your immersion in CR’… It’s beautiful down there – — or from Ecuador I suppose that’s ‘up there!’
One day you’ll make it here in Ecuador!!!
I hope to Lisa! I would love to go to Ecuador and see your part of the world. 🙂
i am sure that will happen! you’ll be smiling from the tip of chimborazo to the species-rich cloud forest to a classic sunset at sea level on the pacific coast!!!!
Sounds like it would be a nice place to bring my kids too!
Oh yes.. lots of things of interest for the young ones… the various ‘mitad del mundo’ options, butterfly gardens, tubing, canopy, the colors of the Indigenous in the Andes, etc etc..
Will have to get to Ecuador! So many places I would love to visit!
Hi Lisa — sounds like you’ve had a busy year and been in and out of touch with your readers. I, on the other hand have been plain out of touch for most of this year. Thanks for the smoke signal and the sneak preview. I’ll look for those ‘Hippie Frogs” here at Lost Valley. It might be a bit too cold for those particular ones but I’m sure I’ll find their northern cousins here somewhere. They’s fit right in. Blessings always, Alia
Hey Amiga! So glad that you and Tom have made a full circle – reminds me of Coehlo’s story The Alchemist…. Each place prepped you for the next, and you returned with lots to share with others.
Who knows, perhaps you have a cute unique hippie-something just waiting for discovery!