I’m baaaaaack!!!

Good morning and a very Happy Easter to all of you! I am experiencing some insomnia and decided to stop my anxiety over not being able to sleep in my bed and just get up and get to it! It is a pre-dawn 4:45 am on Easter Sunday and already a beautiful morning. I let my best friend of 14.5 years, Benny the Rat Terrier, out for a potty break and the birds are already singing away! I have always loved the peace, stillness and tranquility that is to be found in the early, early mornings. There is just something so quiet and magical about this time of day.

So….I am thrilled to report that this blog entry is my first since around 2013. Yes folks, that’s over eight years of deafening silence from your old friend Kimby. I won’t bore you with the details but life’s obligations, trials and tribulations took over and I stopped painting and stopped contributing to my blog. Oh how I have missed writing my daily musings to share with you all.

In summation, and I will make it brief, I left my home of 18 years in beautiful San Francisco in 2015. I moved to Durham, North Carolina….from West Coast, USA to East Coast….only a mere 3,000 miles give or take! I relocated to be close to my simply AMAZING parents, Lynda and Bruce. I hadn’t lived in the same state with them since 1989. Oh how I am dating myself! We now live twenty minutes apart from one another, which is so wonderful. I had missed them so. I have been living here in Durham for almost six years and boy has time flown!

After putting down my brushes for almost four years I decided that my life was missing something…deeply missing something. Painting and making art was a passion that I found, and learned, around the age of 30. It was hit or miss in regard to daily painting until 2010. This was when I started my blog and website http://www.FairesFineArt.com. I took a so-called “break” from doing what made my heart sing. It wasn’t intended however. My life, as I knew it, had drastically changed and not necessarily for the better. I won’t bore you with the details in this post, I promise, but let’s just say that my creativity slumped and making art was not a priority any longer. A piece of me was missing for too many years.

Now back to today: my AMAZING partner Tencia left her life behind in California and moved to NC to be with me in June of 2019. We have a second bedroom that I used as a guest room. For over ten years, “T” has always been a steadfast and loving supporter of my art. After some discussion, she convinced me that we needed to transform the guest room into a studio/office. Let me say, it made ALL THE DIFFERENCE in my life!!! I finally got out all of my many and treasured art supplies and we created the sweetest little art studio all for ME!!! I am so blessed to have her unwavering support and love for what is one of my biggest passions. And so…my love affair with creating art began once again!

Which brings me to today, finally!!! I wanted to make my first blog post in years focus on sharing my studio with you all. I have an older post of my “studio” in San Francisco, if you are so inclined to view. I say “studio” in quotations because back then my studio was my living and dining room of my flat in SF. It was spacious and lovely; however, it gradually took over and I wanted a designated and contained space to make art. So there you have it!

I hope you enjoy perusing my photos, provided I can remember how to post photos. If this post is a little “wonky” be gentle…it’s my first go-round in years.

Enjoy the pics and have a blessed and beautiful Easter Sundayj!

With love,

k i m b y

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Cow 2

Hello blogland bloggers!  Thank you for visiting my site and supporting my artistic endeavors.  I appreciate all of the loyal followers of my blog.  You all help keep me accountable.  I am so happy to finally feel back on track in regard to fairly regular blog posts.  I had a few months of limited posts…thanks for hanging in there with me.

This painting is the second abstract cow I have painted.  I finished this one last weekend.  It is painted entirely in acrylics on a 9 x 12 inch gesso board.  Below are some of the progression photos of my sweet, little cow.  I hope you enjoy viewing it as much as I enjoyed painting it.

Warmly,

k  i  m  b  y

“Wild Abandon”

Greetings from sunny and beautiful San Francisco!  I hope you are all doing well and looking forward to the weekend.  I know I am.  

I wanted to share some progression photos of a painting I just finished last night entitled “Wild Abandon”.  It was done entirely in acrylics.  As some of you may know, I typically paint exclusively in oils; however, I have been experimenting with acrylics quite a bit of late.  I am starting to really understand how to manipulate the paint effectively and I am thoroughly enjoying myself.  Acrylics are so versatile and the fact that they dry quickly is wonderful, especially after dealing with slow drying oils for so long.  

This painting is a small one, 6 x 6 inches, on gesso board.  I would have preferred to paint it much larger however I am running out of large canvas.  Time to make a trip to the art store…which is my favorite pastime, aside from painting.  This was a challenging piece for me in that I had never even sketched a horse, let alone paint one.  It took me three tries to create a realistic looking horse.  Thank goodness my mother supplied me with some very helpful constructive criticism regarding my first sketch attempt otherwise I would have ended up with a horse that had an excessively lonnnnng snout.

Enjoy the photos and let me know what you think of “Wild Abandon”.

Be well,

k  i  m  b  y

SOLIPSIST

This video is mind-blowing to me.  Disturbingly haunting and beautiful at the same time.  I had to share it!  You be the judge.  Here is the link…let me know what you think.

 

To try or not to try?

Hello blog-land!  I am happy to say that hopefully, with this post, I will get back on track with my regular blog posts.  I have been on somewhat of a sabbatical for the last couple of months.  I have had a multitude of technical/computer/Wordpress administration issues and problems that have made blogging and posting pictures kind of a drag….a long and arduous drag…and a bit of a creative slump.  This makes me sad because blogging has helped to make me accountable over the last year.  When I know that I have faithful and regular followers, then I know that I have to keep writing and producing art to share with the world…

Thus the reason for today’s post title:  “To Try or Not to Try”….that is the question!  It is a question that I sometimes struggle with as I am sure most of do as well.  I know I am not alone but the knowledge of this just isn’t enough sometimes.

Making art is a solitary activity and most of the time that is precisely why I paint…to be alone, to be quiet, to be ‘not in my head’, to get lost in the paint and canvas; however, sometimes this solitary act can cause me to feel a deep and palpable loneliness.  It is at this point that I believe my subconscious is craving human interaction.  It is during these time periods that I have come to learn that it is ALL THE MORE CRUCIAL to get into the studio and start….just START to create and paint.  It is the start and the blank canvas that can be daunting.  I know you know what I am referring to.

So…..so…I have been working on forcing myself to just begin the process even if I have no conceptual idea where my brush will take me.  For me just dipping my brush into a lovely and vibrant color is all I need to find the motivation that is hiding deep within.  Just the sound of the brush as it places the oil onto the canvas is enough to hook me…most of the time.  Many times what I paint falls deeply short of something beautiful.  It may be hideous…but at least it is not a total loss because I am learning to appreciate and love the process of doing….the journey of trying.  I have to constantly speak to my inner critic and say, “Just TRY Kimby….TRY!”  Silencing my inner demons is one of the primary reasons I began (and continue to) paint in the first place.

Thomas Edison said long ago:  “I have not failed 10,000 times, I have successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work.”  

I love this quote because it is really speaking to our perception of our unique and individual realities.  If we can just learn to tweak our perceptions, our world and life views can be utterly fantastic.  This is what I am working on:  Trying…trying to shift my perspective from the silent voices of inner criticism to one that embraces the fact that there is really no failure, only growth.  It is all in how we look at it.

With that, I am going to share some pictures of some pieces I have been working on of late.  I hope you enjoy my paintings.  When all was said and done, I love them…I really, really love them.  

Blessings and peace to you and yours.

Warmly,

k  i  m  b  y in San Francisco

 

My “studio”

I’m baaaaaccckkk! “Living Out Loud”

This gallery contains 14 photos.

“Here’s to the Crazy Ones” Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits.  The rebels. The troublemakers.  The round pegs in the square holes.  The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules and they have no respect for the status quo.  You can praise them, disagree with them, quote them, disbelieve them, glorify […]

“Suspended in Animation”…progression photo update

I wanted to share some of the progress I am making on my latest oil painting on canvas “Suspended in Animation”. I have been working on this for over a month. I like the way it is coming along although it still has a long way to go…problem is….I just don’t know which way to go from here. I do love the palette that I chose. It is even more vibrant in person. Its dimensions are 15 x 30 inches.

Initially, I had started an acrylic painting of a forest. This was my first attempt at using acrylic and it just wasn’t working for me……so the acrylic base provided a nice underpainting. I then painted over it in oils that were pale, pale cobalt blue and a fleshy pink. The upper colors that you see now are actually 3-4 different layers of oils. I have been using Liquin as my medium so it has a nice, glossy finish to it thus far.

Stay tuned for more! Who knows, the next time you see it, it very well may be unrecognizable.

Have a wonderful weekend!

k i m b y

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Dia de los Muertos

Dia de los Muertos is a traditional Meso-American holiday dedicated to the ancestors; it honors both death and the cycle of life. In Mexico, neighbors gather in local cemeteries to share food, music, and fun with their extended community, both living and departed. The celebration acknowledges that we still have a relationship with our ancestors and loved ones that have passed away.

In San Francisco, Day of the Dead has been celebrated in the Mission district since the early 70s with art, music, performances and a walking procession, which help us contemplate our existence and mortality — a moment to remember deceased friends and family, and our connections beyond our immediate concerns.

Today, I honored several of my loved ones whom have passed over to a new dimension.  I honored them in my heart, my mind, and my prayers.  I wanted to share a picture of my late partner Mona Lucero. She sadly committed suicide on January 5th, 2010. She left an indelible imprint upon both my life and my heart.

The picture you see below is one of the last photos I have of Mo that I took one month before her untimely death. The sketch is something that I drew while at a work training. Ironically, the topic of the training dealt with suicide. I immediately became uncomfortable and emotional when the ‘suicide powerpoint’ went up. Doodling helps me focus, listen, and concentrate sometimes. After our training, we had a Dios de los Muertos ceremony where we acknowledged some of our loved ones. I was unable to share with my co-workers at that time; however, she was in my heart….I just was too emotional to verbalize and share in that forum….so I am sharing her with you now.

Mona was an amazing, tragic, troubled, crazy-beautiful, complex soul who was too sensitive and traumatized to remain on this earth. I know she is at peace now. I know she is no longer struggling. She has finally found the rest which evaded her in this earthly dimension.  I will miss her for the rest of my life.

Rest well world….

k i m b y

 

 

Australian Gum Tree for a Jiltaroo I know…

This gallery contains 12 photos.

Good evening to all.  Welcome to November!  What a crazy few days it has been here in San Francisco, my life, the Middle East, and here at home in the United States. My first order of business is to send my thoughts, prayers, and love to those affected by Hurricane Sandy on the east coast…3,000 […]