Inspirations

I have never seen so much "Sue Tirrell" in one place.  What a fine fun intensive batch of new works in her solo show at the Red Lodge Clay center.  Sue lives "in my hood" - just upriver in Paradise Valley.  The Red Lodge Clay Center is gem of a place sporting a world-wide footprint of top notch ceramists tucked into the small magical mountain town.  I am happy to report that after more than a decade of being a Sue Tirrell fan, I will finally get to have a small piece of her work all of which has an "Old World meets local storyteller" feel to it.  I was swayed by my usual tendency toward birds, bunnies and frogs by this compelling ethereal goat.  The date of my birthday in the year of 2015 launches the Year of the Goat (sheep) in the Chinese Zodiac.  Come visit me and you may enjoy a scrumptious snack from this little desert plate: White Goat Desert Plate by Sue Tirrell

Blue eye baby

Blue eye babySeriously?!!!  I am blown away by my little blue eye baby.  Tala's other eye is darling too - a deep purple/blue/black eye with a little rusty round eyebrow above it.  I have never had a puppy.  Zaydee was a rescue dog (about 2-ish) when she came into my life and Shiva was about the same age when she showed up at the cabin with bullet wounds and a collar with no name.  Tala likes to put all of her toys (and whatever else she claims as a toy) in her bed in my office.  She doesn't sleep in the bed (she sleeps under the desk at or on my feet).  

Office Entertainment

Did I get any work done my first week with Tala?  Barely...  But she is good at entertaining herself and luckily 6-week-old puppies sleep a LOT.  But even while sleeping Tala can be a distraction because she is soooooo dang cute!  She runs in her sleep, squirms and suckles.  She prefers to nap right at my feet, holding me captive in my desk chair for fear of running over her fluffy little paws. [embed]http://youtu.be/_Z-xUqlmq7A[/embed]

Happy Birthday and Valentine's to me...!

IMG_0167 Meet Tala - the best little soft fluffy fat enchanting Birthday present ever...!

I have never actually had a puppy...!  Zaydee was a rescue dog and Shiva found me by showing up at my door with scabs from a gunshot wound.

Would you believe this winter wonderland photo was taken 24 hours after my hot day of rock climbing in the sun?

Born January 2 on a ranch near the Judith River, this BIG spirited little being arrived in my life last Sunday.  She landed in my lap the day after Valentines.  We arrived at her name the day before my birthday.  I am in love with my precious 6 week old klutzy bundle of joy.

Unseasonable Valentine's Day

Weeks of untypically warm weather have shocked our mountains with spring-like temps. I grew up here and have never experienced warm winter weather of this intensity and length. But Valentine’s Day was surreal.  I joined friends visiting from Jackson for an afternoon climbing rock at the local crag. I actually peeled off the long sleeve shirt I was wearing and climbed in a sports bra….! Crazy to climb right here above the Yellowstone River during 70 degree temps in February!

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As if climbing hot rock in February isn't surreal enough, by the time I got home, made dinner and soaked in my claw foot tub the view from my cabin had transpired back into a winter wonderland since a storm dropped a blanket of snow after the sun went down.

Raising funds for the airport sculpture project

Bison Bench Thanks to a generous pledge of $10,000 – the Bison Bench “Sojourn” is one step closer to being placed permanently at the Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport. Three pledges totaling $26,000 have been promised for the project. I carved the life size bison in black walnut before casting it in bronze. The sculptural bench will be at the top of the stairs near the fireplace to greet people arriving in Bozeman.

Making sawdust without Zaydee

Zaydee sunning her face while laying on the studio floor (taken in autumn) I have never created in this studio on my mountain without Zaydee curled up nearby. I find it difficult to return to work without her. Creating the frog sculpture at home helped keep me from the sadness of walking to my studio without Zaydee. I cried while I swept up the sawdust from our last project together. Tears dropped on lids of cans filled with stain as I put things away and readied for the next chapter - the next project - the next inspiration. Patience. Grief. Baby steps…

Finally - back to work...!

A new month and a sunshine-filled studio beckoned me into work without tears. The satisfying smell of sawdust and a head full of ideas helps drive me forward.

Celebration of the Arts

The Emerson Center’s biggest gala of the year includes a Quick Draw event. I was honored to join 3 other artists on a bright-lit stage to whip out an artwork for the auction. I was so busy chatting with people during the 2 hours I was creating on stage that I imagine the drawing only got about 20 minutes of my time (but that didn’t keep me from getting plenty dirty in the process). The drawing was slipped into a frame and sold along with the bronze “Munch” during the live auction. I love the crazy energy shared during a live Quick Draw event. The money raised adds warm fuzzies.