No Shelves Today- Sunday Adveture Part 3

Our Sunday adventure continued after lunch as we strolled through Market Square in Portsmouth. Just off the Square is Kennedy Gallery & Custom Framing, which was featuring their Art Around Town artist of the month, Meg Shoen.  Meg happens to double as the laundry lady on Star Island (which is part of the Isles of Shoals, just off our coast).  I just loved this watercolor that was hanging in the window........laundry blowing in the breeze on island. Wish you could see it better through the glass. Did I say I loved it?

Meg also uses the linocut 'reduction' method to create her art.  Kennedy Gallery had a wonderful display showing the process, step by step, that Meg uses to create her art by this method. 

Step 1- a sketch is drawn and it's reverse image is transferred onto the linoblock.  This will ensure that when it is printed, its orientation is the same as the original.

Step 2- Artist makes intial cuts in block and begins inking a portion to control color overlap.

Step 3-7- Artist continues making cuts and applying ink to select areas.

Step 8- The final image is produced when the artist inks the remaining image on the block and hand coloring is added for additional depth.

Picasso used the reduction method as well and call it the 'suicide method', because after inking and reinking to produce each separate color, there is very little of the original block left.  Production has to be planned carefully for this reason. 

Kennedy Gallery also had many other wonderful works of art. So many talented and inspiring artists.

This painting was done by Kennedy's next Art Around Town artist, who's name I neglected to write down. Terribly sorry. Really wonderful work though.

I could browse all day in a gallery or bookstore.

Spied this fun green fabric display on our way to back to the car. I know the glass is shiny and makes it hard to see the fabric in it's full glory, but I like the way
some of the pretty waterfront buildings are reflected (bottom right corner).

Headed out of town (couldn't convince Gar to get an ice cream.......bummer) and drove through Pease Tradeport (which used to be Pease Air Force base but as been redevoloped after closure). 

Just look at what is being stored at a warehousing facility at there...............

............the gigantic blades for enormous windmills/turbines. Pretty cool.

The sunny blue skies continued when we got home. Sunday was as gorgeous as it gets.

So long and farewell R2

Our dear friend Cindy (my sister's best pal since high school), who is really  family, called to tell us her husband Ron had died suddenly.  We're in shock. R2 (what I called 'Ronnie Ray' for short) was crazy, and that's why we loved him. They found each other later in life, but were a perfect match. Our hearts go out to Cin. Ron will be missed. If you didn't know it already, live each day to the fullest. Each day.

Ron & DiddleBain (that's me) at our MardiGras festivities a few years ago.

Sunset Meadows

I think Ron still had something else to say last night.

Mommahoohoo Ron. Love P & G.

No Shelves Today- Sunday Adventure Part 1

Great Bay

Oh the weekend......it's never long enough. The one thing on the 'to do' list, didn't get done. Nope. Still no shelves in my office. Saturday I spent weeding and in the pool since it was hot, and Gar was zonked from working in the heat. Sunday we ignored the little to do list, hopped in the car, and went in search of the buffalo farm on Great Bay.

Here's our first view of the bay as we head into the next town, Newfields, New Hampshire.

We continued into Newmarket and the mill, which has been renovated into condos, was looking beautiful against the blue sky.



I was really happy to see they've started to renovate the other mill on Main Street. It looks like they're in the process of gutting the interior. Just look at the stonework....gorgeous.

Then off of Main Street and onto a long winding country road on our way to the buffalo farm.  We were lucky to have many glimpses of the bay.

This was one big field, swooping right down to water's edge.



Then we found the road to the farm. Lots of twists and turns to the end, and lo and behold, no buffalo farm anymore. We were disappointed. I remember when I was there before, that the sight of the buffalo roaming the field and the bay in the back was really striking.  We made the best of it though, and decided to see if we could find Durham Marketplace, a small local grocer. But before we hit town, there was still more country road to travel.

This cemetery was right across from where the buffalo used to roam (sorry, couldn't resist.......how often will I be able to say that?).

Such lovely details in the iron gate. 

Just up the road a bit, this view peaking through the trees. You have to love the beauty of a working farm, though this one was pretty quiet since it was Sunday.  There were many hay bale rolls in the field, proving someone had been hard at work recently.

And our last view of the bay before we hit the center of Durham (home of the University of New Hampshire).

Tomorrow, the downtown side of our adventure. After finding a lot of good food at the marketplace we swung over to Portsmouth (don't worry, we were prepared and kept the food cold) and enjoyed art, architecture, and everything else that makes Portsmouth what it is.

Sunset Meadows

This summer has been a real show stopper here at Sunset Meadows.

Lovely purple, pink, swirly whirly clouds.

I hope you had a relaxing and enjoyable weekend in your part of the world. Did you get your to-do list done? Or did you throw caution to the wind and do something just for the fun of it? 

Have a great Monday in your corner of the world.