Monarch almost ready to launch a new life…
PS, this isn’t done, I will finish it soon.
metamorph con’t 4
For the next half hour the butterfly continues to rest and let her wings completely dry while clinging to a flower. 
Again, for comparison here you will find the photo my wife took.
metamorph con’t 3
Here I worked the background of the chrysalis.
Let it be noted that a fascinating series of transformations occurred after the caterpillar pitched himself and before this stage of the chrysalis – and I intend to draw them — but will probably put them to their own page with a link to view it.
In the last two images I brought out a charcoal pencil and eraser for the black areas. Not only do I mix my media but I take a departure from simply representing the image to interpreting it in a way that isn’t too abstract, just playful.
metamorph
I decided (rather, Adonai prompted me) to make my own story without words using the photos taken by my wife of a caterpillar morphing into a monarch. Here are a few of the thumbnail panels.
endearing canine friends
Endearing because the owner had these dogs at different periods over a 20-year span of time. The composite drawing was made from 4 photos. I used a mix of color pencils and watercolor.
menorah and light
The menorah … “is to be made of sixty-six pounds of pure gold. See that you make them according to the design being shown you on the mountain.” Sh’mot (Exodus) 25:39-40.
On one level the construction of the menorah is exact, and drawing an image of it is relatively easier than drawing light — for light is not static, it is a phenomena, its ethereal; it has an effect on what it shines on. Hence when we realize that the Shekinah of G-d — represented as the menorah’s light — is present, we cannot avoid it having a profound effect on us.
These two paintings were done in May-July 2015.
G-d’s lamp
Since the time I took up the pen and brush again I have been drawn to the menorah as a subject, and studied the Torah for its description — mainly in Exodus 25, and Exodus 37. Here is a concise entry of the menorah by Tracey R. Rich at Judaism 101.
I found it intriguing that the almond blossom is used to describe the bulbs and branches. The almond staff of Aaron that budded a branch has great significance. While there is no longer a temple in Jerusalem for the menorah to rest, one enduring purpose is to give light to humankind of the presence of Hashem throughout the world.
local resources in Twin Cities
I want to give credit where its due. the first big help came last month (Feb 2015) when I walked in at Spring Board for the Arts offices in Lowertown St Paul, Minn. I met one of their resource directors, Zar M, and he showed me their free courses on Work of Art, Business Skills for Artists, which I enrolled in promptly. After meeting a co-attendee at the 3rd workshop, he gave me the Artist Directory & Guide for Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association (NEMAA). My eyes popped as I realized this community of 700 artists (in both Minneapolis and St Paul) have their collective studios or home in a 1-mile square neighborhood next to the Mississippi River. I’ve known of the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, U of M, Minneapolis College of Art & Design, Walker Art center, Weisman Art Museum, etc, but that’s a different kind of community; its more like the education phase–if you look at a continuum– where the business end is a gallery and patrons, and customers ranging from individual to corporations. I have definite plans to follow the map in this directory and get familiar with the artists there in NE Minneapolis, even take the Art-a-Whirl tour to get a lay of the land. I’m just so sure this will be the type of influence and encouragement I know I’ve been lacking for 25 years.
what road am I on
The caterpillar may or not know what he will change into (what do you believe?), but the symbolism is what I’m reaching for here. As an artist I’m aiming to get back on the road my Creator seems to have laid out for me, hence this image. I made it mainly to get a sense of what color pencils will do to evoke the soft texture and subtle shift of colors of the monarch’s wings.
why blog
It’s never too late to start something new. I’m an artist, but for a couple decades I hesitated to see myself that way, even if it was first obvious to everyone else as early as the 1st grade. So this blog will document my journey back up to what Adonai, G-d of the universe, would probably have wanted me to be doing years ago.
This self portrait was done near my last year of college (1979). I’ll put up more art from that period from time to time, but my real reason to have a blog is to get me posting new things regularly. I welcome your comments and candor.
The paper I painted on with oils is 18 x 24, so the head is larger than life. Often I find a surprising result when I venture beyond what I’m accustomed to doing, like moving from mono to stereo, and later to surround sound.