These kittens are innocent, take a closer look, see the utmost focus in their eyes, they are killers. They have all the instincts to survive, their mother taught them well. They bless us every day with their pure spirit and at this time of year we are grateful for the work they do, killing mice.
This is my grandson Cole, he and his dad go fishing often and cook up the catch right on the shore. This is a long time tradition around Manitoulin. In Oct 2021 I started Alla Prima Bootcamp with Chelsea Lang and this was the first pleasing painting where i feel i was getting the loose style. It was painted in Nov 2021. I have been painting a lot of master copies and getting a lot of brush miles but have missed sharing on this website and will remedy that now so stay tuned.
When my friend submitted a photo of her grandkids the look of surprise on the little girl face made me laugh. This brother and sister are truly loving companions even tho the painting doesn’t exactly describe them that way.
“Spiritual souls! Tender souls! The hearts of all children are of the utmost purity. They are mirrors upon which no dust has fallen. But this purity is on account of weakness and innocence, not on account of any strength and testing, for as this is the early period of their childhood, their hearts and minds are unsullied by the world. They cannot display any great intelligence. They have neither hypocrisy nor deceit. This is on account of the child’s weakness, whereas the man becomes pure through his strength. Through the power of intelligence he becomes simple; through the great power of reason and understanding and not through the power of weakness he becomes sincere. When he attains to the state of perfection, he will receive these qualities; his heart becomes purified, his spirit enlightened, his soul is sensitized and tender — all through his great strength. This is the difference between the perfect man and the child. Both have the underlying qualities of simplicity and sincerity — the child through the power of weakness and the man through the power of strength.”
— ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
For a self-directed art education challenge in July, friends were invited to send me a photo of themselves or a loved one for me to sketch or paint. There were five drawings and 26 paintings completing this challenge. Some were a good likeness and others just didn’t get there. A lot of learning happened for me in a short period of time. All of the portraits were 8″ x 8″ except one. The cedar frames were made by Jay Swain in Kagawong.
This group of six portraits are the children form the Sudbury Baha’i Children’s Class. The boy with the fish is my grandson Cole. It was a delight to study their shining faces.
“Children are the most precious treasure a community can possess, for in them are the promise and guarantee of the future. They bear the seeds of the character of future society which is largely shaped by what the adults constituting the community do or fail to do with respect to children. They are a trust no community can neglect with impunity.”
— The Universal House of Justice
Back in April, the early days of C-19, I was doing a painting a day that was evolving into a story about the origins of the virus. Prior to Covid we were used to hanging out with friends having potluck movie nights and getting together when interesting friends visit the Island. None of that was happening anymore. We missed our friends so gary and me went for a social distance hike with ger & gg. It was an awkward time stumbling through the woods doing our best to keep our distance and offering air hugs.
Pam Jackson 