AWOL

I've been AWOL awhile due to a pretty significant move in our lives.  Idaho to Arizona.  From the land of 120 inches of snow in the winter to a 120 degrees of heat in the summer.  hmmn . . .  Well, fortunately I haven't actually experienced either myself, and hopefully don't intend to!  It will still be winters in Arizona and summers in Idaho for us.  We are just going to be doing a reverse Snowbird thing.  Our homebase will now be in Arizona and we will be RVing up in Idaho in the summer. 

We were totally unprepared for the ultra quick sale of our home so my Idaho 'studio' is all crammed into this little 5 x 8' red trailer.  It was JUST suppose to have my studio furniture and all my Art supplies. 

When I opened it to try to get to my supplies I found that a couple of  'extras' had been stuffed into the trailer on packing day.  :/ This chair and bookcase, a large 3-panel wood louvred screen, assorted totes with household goodies, and . . . my husbands chain saw.  (No, I'm not into tree stump carving . . yet.)  Some of it I could maybe understand, but the chainsaw was a puzzle.  It surprised my husband too, because that is not at all where he thought his chainsaw was!  Anyway, there is some definite straightening around in my little 'studio on wheels' before I can actually tackle a paintbrush, paint and canvas.  But, I will persevere! :)  (It will definitely be nice to get down to my 'real' studio in Ajo.)

Here are two pieces I don't think I have shared yet.

SPRING RUN-OFF

6 x 6 Acrylic over an Acrylic Pour

CARROT TOP AND FRIENDS

12 x 12 Acrylic over an Acrylic Pour

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

I love this sky.  The dark against the light, and that shot of white cloud that looks almost like lightening coming down and caressing the top of the hill.  But, most interesting, is the Pine tree.  That perfectly symmetrical shape, standing like a lone sentry guarding the darkness of those hills.

But wait.  Here they go trying to fool us again.  What Pine tree is ever that so symmetrical?  What Pine tree stands alone like that, towering over its cousins who already tower over everything else?  Oh yes, it's the 'Cell Pine'!  I applaud the effort, but do think they could have been just a wee more creative in dressing this 'tree', and the many others around like it.  The beauty of nature is in its imperfections.  

There is beauty and humility in imperfection.

~  guillermo del toro

See you soon!

Charleen

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY . . .

Things have been busy since we returned to Idaho from Arizona last month.  We've put our house on the market here after making the decision to make Ajo our main residence. Then, starting next year, we plan to do reverse snowbirding to Idaho in the summer.  It took a whole 4 hours on MLS before we had the first request for a showing (and subsequent offer!) so now it's packing time. I tell you this because my blogging has been a little sparse lately, and just may get sparser for a while.  

In the meantime . . .

'CONVERSATION WITH DUSK'

'IN THE HOURS JUST BEFORE'

Both of these pieces are 

12 x 12 Acrylic on textured canvas.

I love working on textured canvas.  It helps add a little surprise to the finished piece.  Photographing the work though adds some challenges as it's hard not to wind up with some unwanted white highlights.  You'll have to take my word that they do look better in real life. :)

Both of these pieces are available on my website at:  www.charleenmartin.com

I love Lilacs. These are from our yard and I dressed them up in a Vase given to me about 30 years ago by my oldest daughter.  I also love this vase.  The problem is, Lilacs last all of about a half a day before they start to become Cinderella at midnight. Unfortunately, there is no glass slipper that turns them back to being Princess worthy once they drink from the slipper.   I still love them though.

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

Hmmm . . .

"At no time, when the astronauts were in space were they alone: there was a constant surveillance by UFOs."

~  Astronaut Scott Carpenter

Carpenter photographed a UFO while in Orbit in May 1962.  NASA still has not released the photo.

SO . . . A LITTLE SOMETHING DIFFERENT

PHOTOGRAPHS.

I decided to put my new camera to good use.  I've added an additional category to my Website called

'PHOTOGRAPHY: 
THE BEAUTIFUL AND THE CURIOUS'

There's so much Beauty out there.  I take a lot of photographs which I predominantly use for reference.  I thought I would take them to the next level, sharing them, so if you would like, you could enjoy them in your own home.  Below is my Piece 'Sonoran Beauty' shown used 3 different ways.

SONORAN BEAUTY

To get more information on this Piece as a Throw Pillow,
(available in several sizes)
Please click HERE

To get more information on Sonoran Beauty as a Print
(above example is on canvas)
Please click HERE

AND . . .

If you are in the market for a new Tote Bag and think you might like Sonoran Beauty on yours, you can get more information HERE

(Other products also available)

Advice from a Cactus:

Emphasize your strong points
Be patient during dry spells
You will bloom when it's your time
Always stay sharp                                ~ unknown

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

This is an Ajo Mountainscape but it almost looks like it could be a distant shot of the Pyramids.  I love the sky, because as a painter, those low clouds look like they could have been painted on with thick paint and a palette knife.  Very 3-dimensional.  And, very beautiful.

Charleen

GRAB YOUR SLIPPERS . . .

AND GET OUT IN THE GARDEN.  OTHERWISE YOU MIGHT MISS SOME GOOD GOSSIP!

'THE EARLY MORNING SLIPPER CLUB:  

GARDEN GOSSIP'

I recently brought The Early Morning Slipper Club back.  I haven't brought them to life for quite a few years but I had a recent request for some ladies along this line so I thought who better than the Slipper Club.  This is the second in the series.  They are fun ladies to play with. You just never know what kind of gossip they might be spreading now. :)

 You can find both on my website at www.charleenmartin.com

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We recently went out for an evening ride with friends to have dinner in the desert.  Thought I would share a few photos with you.

you just never know what you might find

a 'cristate' which is a deformed saguaro. nobody knows why this happens

superbloom of orange mallow after the heavy winter rains

an old well

i saw a dog. my friend saw an elephant.  i think she was right. :)

mexican poppies growing in the roadway

CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

and the western sunset reflecting off these mountains ended our day

Happiest of Easters Everyone!

Charleen

Gossip can be entertaining: occasionally, I've heard the most fascinating things about myself I never knew

~ vanna bonta

www.charleenmartin.com

i SMELL CHANEL . . .

DO YOU?

"IS THAT CHANEL NO. 5 

I SMELL?"

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Last weekend was 'Art Weekend' in Ajo.  Painters came out and participated in several different events, including painting more murals.  These murals are painted on the backsides of buildings surrounding the downtown Plaza.  How great is that!  Most of the time, the backs of buildings anywhere are ugly and uninviting places to be.  Not in Ajo.

Welcome to . . .

this is just a small sampling. . .
and these are all big murals!

they worked into the night under big lights

 the hand detail on this is incredible.

these faces you see are of actual residents taken from old historical photos

this one is not new, but remains one of my favorites.

it is done by an artist known locally as 'Wolf'

He has painted murals on several buildings here and has just brought the buildings to life.

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

NIGHT SKY OVER AJO, AZ.

"IF YOU ARE SAD,
ADD MORE LIPSTICK AND ATTACK."

~ coco chanel

LET'S RAVE!

CAN YOU IMAGINE THESE GUYS OUT ON A DANCE FLOOR?  PICTURE IT.  THE DJ (another raven of course) BLARING THE MUSIC AND THESE CHARACTERS  STRUTTING THEIR STUFF.  I FEEL A PAINTING COMING ON!  :)

                                                        sold

"THE LAST THING THAT BLEW MY MIND WAS THE WIND."

"I KNOW IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE!"

"WHADDA YA MEAN THERE'S SOMEONE BEHIND ME?"

These pieces are all 6 x 6
and can be found on my website at
www.charleenmartin.com

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

At first I thought this bright blue guy was a Sun dog (mock sun/parhelion) but upon looking it up, a Sun dog is normally on the same level as the sun.   So . . . I can't answer your questions about what it actually is, but I thought it very interesting and so I am sharing it.  If you have any thoughts, please let me know.

And now, a real dog . . .

This is Gus, and when Gus isn't busy sunbathing, he is usually running in circles chasing baby geckos.  He hasn't learned yet that they are just way too fast for him.

After going in circles chasing a gecko around that tree stump, (that gecko had to be toying with him!) he's pensively waiting for the gecko to make another appearance.  'Determined.'

Have a great week . . .

Charleen

OPPORTUNITY DANCES . . .

WITH THOSE ALREADY ON THE DANCE FLOOR.
~ h. jackson brown, jr.

"MAMA SAYS THE BIRDS ARE SPECIAL ANGELS SENT HERE TO SHARE THEIR MUSIC."

'HERMOSA MUJER'

A little color.  A little influence influence from the sights and sounds down here in Ajo.  The last 2 weekends at the Saturday Farmers Market the local Folklorico Dancers performed.  Their costumes are beautiful ~ full of color. I think the littlest dancer was probably about 3 and she was simply adorable. Unfortunately, I didn't have a good vantage point to be able to catch her in a photo.  

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Ajo 

During the Market this coming Saturday, Artists will be coming from all over to paint murals on the back walls of several of the buildings here in the plaza.  These will be added to the array of vibrant, multi-cultural murals already adorning the walls of several other buildings.  New white under-coating was applied to the buildings and now they wait to be filled with color. Below is one of the existing murals.  I love this piece.  It is so indicative of the area. The Artists name is on the bottom but unfortunately I can't read it so I'm unable to give them credit.

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

A Sunset, if you want to call it that, from the other evening here.  This is across the road from our property.  I like how this photo turned out because, without doing anything, it has the look of an old black and white photo.  This was the actual color of the evening sky. 
And yes, we did get rain during the night.
And yes, when I squint a see a puppy dogs face.

Have a great week!

Charleen

CATCH YOUR DREAM . . .

REACH OUT. THEY ARE WAITING.

'THE TREES WATCH AS
THE DREAMS FLOAT AROUND THEM'

12 x 12" Acrylic over an Acrylic pour

for more information on this piece
please visit my website at:

www.charleenmartin.com

We were out for a desert ride Sunday with some friends and came upon this fellow.  I'm pretty sure I posted a similar photo about 2 years ago when we first found this Cristate.  It's a Saguaro with a deformity at the top.  Or, maybe all the others are deformed with their perfectly round tops, and this is how they are suppose to be.  :)  But, there are only 4 (that we know of) in the area of the Sonoran desert right around Ajo.  They don't know what causes this ... lightening, a cancer, or possibly even frost.  This is two angles on the same saguaro.  They are considered Iconic symbols of the Sonoran Desert.

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CLOUDS OF THE DAY . . .

                                             indi behrendt

No, that's not me.  :) 
It tells a great story though, don't you think.

Photography takes an instant out of time,
altering life by holding it still.
~  dorothea lange

Charleen