Nothing beats a cold winters day by reading a good book. I've been reading the book deKooning - an American Master by Mark Stevens and Annalyn Swan for weeks now (it's700 pages or so) and I am really enjoying the story of willem dekooning's life. From his difficult starts and coming to America and the depression all the way to his success as an artist. One thing is for sure he never quit, there was no other option for him than his art. What a great decision! Would love to share one of my favorite/inspiring quotes from the book. "At his easel, deKooning was too strong-minded to be swayed by the critical perspectives of the time. He would do what he would do; success and failure were not measured by others." So we must all keep on following our heart!

This cold, windy weather has kept me locked in for two days, painting. These two pieces are almost finished, I Believe. I will hang them and study them for the next couple weeks. I especially like "in a french cafe" with the reds and realize I need to introduce some lighter values/colors to my work.

Along with the many new year resolutions I have made, I've added a dedication to my artwork and a new passion to create some awesome pieces. These are the two latest that I just started, both need lots of work.