Mid-Autumn Studio Update 2026

Whether you celebrate The Night of the Ancestors, All Saints Day, Dias de la Muertos, Halloween, or all of them, Happy Mid-Autumn Celebrations! Along with peoples of many cultures, I celebrate the Night of the Ancestors by remembering my parents and grandparents. In the Celtic tradition we believe that by telling stories about them, placing their beloved objects out, offering some special treats and lighting candles to guide their way to us, we will not be tricked by forgetting them. This comforts me.

In the flow with the seasons, I prepare for the 18th Annual Autumn Open Studio. I am excited to show several collections on wood panels and paper, on this year’s theme – Celebrate. The Glow of the Singing Spirits is one that I am particularly fond of. All together there are 32 new artworks created since this time last year from series titled June Celebrations, Liminal Landscapes, Going in Circles and Love Letters to Henry Miller revisited. My website has been updated with these new items on the new page!

Often my ideas begin in my journal through my Daily Art Practice. It is an efficient way to work out pallet choices. You may want to look through them at the open studio.

See new rare beads jewelry and new cards sets with beautiful sage envelopes. I also have a few surprises for the occasion.

Illuminated Evenings

I’m excited to announce that I will be at the Illuminated Evenings at Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, Saturday December 5 and 12, showing jewelry, new art and cards in the Welcome Center from 2 – 8 pm.

During the holiday season, the Village will bustle with light-hearted moments that remind us of long-ago winter days filled with wonder and laughter. Make time to delight in life’s simple gifts with family and friends, as lively music, merriment and candlelight illuminate the Village.

The Garden

It has been a wonderful growing season. We had plenty of rain early on, so all our vegetables were abundant. The fig trees are still bearing fruit. The dehydrator has been going nonstop drying herbs, figs (and fig leaves to powder) and Anaheim chilies. Marigolds have been so generous, and for the first time, I am appreciating them. Always, nature inspires my art making.

I’ve been saving these seeds and also from Royal Lilies and Blackberry Lilies. Get them at the open studio! There are still morning glories blooming. It’s always a guess if we will have a freeze before the open studio and then have to take down the morning glory wall on the porch.

 

 

 

 

In early September our son came and helped Greg with the greenhouse project. The only downside to the wonderful times we had was the heat. The first stage was to dismantle the former well-built structure. It was constructed with Greg’s dad’s glass greenhouse panels. The weather was cooperative which allowed the next stages to progress steadily. It is now closed in except for the door. When it is complete, the polycarbonate panels will open and close based on desired temperature. It involves the system he designed using under brick floor pipes and solar fans. What was your season like?

The Berry Center

In Kentucky we mourned the passing of Wendell E. Berry our great advocate for small farmers, land-conserving communities, and healthy regional economies. Soon after his passing, The Berry Center in New Castle, had their fall festival, a most pleasant event. As we entered the tree shaded lawn, we were given the 50th anniversary edition of The Unsettling of America; Culture and Agriculture. Inside the 1820 Oldham House people told their own stories about Berry, as they were being filmed. The bookstore loaded with his and many rare agrarian titles are in a log cabin on its original site. It is an important destination for agrarian researchers.

Summer Celebrations

After the Gallery Hop showing of “Summer Celebrations”, I have a great sense of fulfillment. When an art lover says they noticed my art from a distance and were pulled in, then became engaged with the details and dimensions within the frame, I know I am successful.

A steady stream of visitors looked deeply at the 16 paintings and conversed about feeling uplifted by the art. I am grateful for all the new friends and especially longtime friends from far away and collectors whose interest in the trajectory of my art practice sustains me! And thanks to Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center for hosting. By their count 1492 people visited the show.

This show was the first gallery exhibit in six years due to covid and switching mediums. Few people realize how vulnerable it is for an artist to change direction and then share it. Maybe the biggest gift was when a collector commented that it was all so new and different, but obviously Kathleen O’Brien. To be recognized in this way affirms that my direction is always in the right place at the right time.

Sunwise Art Center

I have come to think of Sunwise Art Center at this time being Liminal and virtual, a work in progress. A clarifying thought came that it includes Art, Architecture, Agriculture and Archeology. We have ideas about how to create offerings in these foundational areas. Stay tuned! When I thought about a symbolic logo the compass rose came to mind, as it synchronizes the four directions – four seasons that have guided my purpose as an artist for many years.  It also worked well for Greg’s Mercer Mappers business.

As we enter the dark half of the year, I think of you with gratitude for the loving kindness you send to me. For your enjoyment, “Celebrate” by Kool &The Gang on Spotify.