It's been a long time since I've posted to this site. Fortunately for me, that's because my "Pebble Art" is enjoying a lot of success at Arts & Crafts festivals and similar venues, so the focus has been on 'production' rather than 'promotion.' But, I just finished a few items today that point out the way my creative process has evolved. I'll call the first example "Same but Different." 

There's a certain efficiency to producing end products in a repetitive manner (ask Henry Ford). Every time I carry a "Daisies with Bee" to a show, it sells. So this time, I decided to make two examples in tandem. The nature of the found materials that I use mean that each is still distinctive. But, in searching through my collection of "possible petals," I was able to group a number of 'bright white' pieces and a number of 'creamy white' pieces together, and painting the background for more than once piece at a time also made sense. I will probably only present one at a time at my next show, but will know that another is already made and ready for the following show. 

Here in Colonial Beach, we love our ospreys. A small town on the tidal Potomac River, Colonial Beach has over 40 osprey platforms (mostly built of wood, as suggested in the pebble art piece pictured) and many tree nests as well. We have an annual Osprey Festival celebrating their return each spring, and a group of dedicated "osprey nest watchers" who share their observations on the Center for Conservation Biology's website and on social media. Recently, I began preparing to participate with a booth at this year's Festival by starting to make osprey scenes utilizing pebbles, driftwood, and other materials personally collected along the Potomac River shoreline during my daily walks.

Here in Colonial Beach, Virginia, we love our osprey. 

This coming week, I will be participating in an  event at the Red Dragon, a micro-brewery in Fredericksburg VA. The Red Dragon and a nearby gallery, Canal Quarter Arts, have been collaborating for some time on these themed shows. This month, the theme is "the color of RED." Fortunately, while the piece must have red, the prospectus states, "as little or as much as you want." So, I'm hoping that my red-winged blackbird pebble piece will work!

We recently had a damaging storm here, with a lot of flooding. Left behind along the shoreline, along with "debris," were the pieces of beach glass and wood that I used in this new pebble art piece.