Saturday, December 22, 2012

Hand # 11 ... Peace



"Ring out the thousand wars of old, Ring in the thousand years of Peace" 
 
  from  In Memoriam A.H.H.   ... Alfred "Lord" Tennyson, 1809-1892 ...  British Poet Laureate during Queen Victoria's reign.
For more of his Poem


 Peace to All.



5" x 7" on colored card stock... pen, ink, Daler Rowney acrylic artists ink, brush
inspired by same drawing by Leonardo Da Vinci as Hand # 10    
at Desideratum Art and Jewelry studio

Saturday, December 15, 2012

Animal Sketches - Celtic Inspired


 It is usually at this time of year... most every year... that we treat ourselves with new sketchbooks...




...it doesn't mean that our old sketchbooks are full...



or that we are not going to fill them up ... 



 au contraire...



... we just want to be ready if the urge strikes... or ideas pounce...  to indulge ourselves by scrawling across the page



 .. just imagine if you got in the zone and couldn't stop...  it would be terrible to run out of paper, especially heading into the depths of winter.



Oh yes, I know, there are tons of other surfaces to draw on... walls... desktops... arms...  clothing... each other...



but Fresh Paper  ... ahhhhh...   it's almost as enticing as wafts of fresh bread straight from the oven.



 approx. 9" x 11", India Ink, dip pen, 
at Desideratum Art and Jewelry Studio,  St. Martins, New Brunswick


Tuesday, December 11, 2012

3 Earrings and a Seagull

Antiqued Copper and Crystal Bracelet and Earrings
A set of these were sent off to a customer a week or two ago.
I have a pair of these earrings on as I write this... come to think of it, I wear this design a lot.
... approx. 2 3/4" long, top of earwire to bottom of stone, $35.
Bracelet $50.

Sterling Silver Spiral with wire wrapped Labradorite.
Very light and airy with a subtle glow
...overall length about 2", $25.

Steel and Crystal.. The steel is inspired by the treble clef.
approx. 2" long from top of earwire to bottom of crystal, $25.

All jewelry designs are available, if interested my contact info is on my sidebar.

Had to post this Herring Gull. 
 He sat so long and so still, watching the boats come in... he was waiting and he knew what he was waiting for.
I like these birds.. yes I know they are scavengers...  that's why... I relate.

*

Friday, December 07, 2012

We'll be at the Christmas Art and Craft Market

Our son Max will have his original  III Thinker  hand painted t-shirts... It will be their first time at a show.
This is Max's blog


John will have many new Oil Paintings


and Desideratum Art Jewelry will have Lots of new earrings, as well as our popular whimsical and beaded designs..
 new funky bracelets, necklaces and pendants too.

Come and see us at Booth #1
at
The 38th Annual Christmas Arts and Craft Market
in Fredericton, New Brunswick

At the Exhibition Grounds on Smythe St.
 December 7, 12:00 - 9:00
December 8, 10:00 - 6:00
 December 9, 12:00 - 5:00

***

 Thank you Everyone for visiting our Booth at the Show.. 
It was great to see you all again!!!!
A Very Happy and Merry Christmas to you All!!!


Saturday, November 24, 2012

Cat 2

"Watching for the Dogs"    by Gwen Buchanan
approx.  6" x 7" charcoal, pastels on brown paper


"Cautious, like crossing a wintry stream,
Watchful, like one facing danger on every side,
Ceremonious, as one who pays a visit,
Yielding, like ice beginning to melt,
Genuine, like a piece of uncarved wood,
Open-minded, like a valley,
And mixing freely, like murky water. 

Which of you can assume such murkiness,
To become in the end still and clear;
Which of you can make yourself still,
To become in the end full of life?
Those who possess this Tao do not try to
Fill themselves to the brim,
And because they do not try to
Fill themselves to the brim,
They are like a garment that endures
All wear and need never be renewed."

 Ancient writing accredited to Lao Tzu,
 It is debated whether he was a man or men or a Philosophy...




Daybreak this morning from the studio




...Blooming Cornflower by our front step on November 24 ... hardy little plant, self-seeds too


Our dog Pirate, whom cats should be warned of... with the CornFlower in mild temperatures by the Bay of Fundy today. All the leaves have fallen now, only the evergreens give color in the forest and bluff-edge.


at Desideratum Art and Jewelry Studio, St. Martins, NB

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Hand # 10

Wait and Listen......  by Gwen Buchanan


"Dost Thou Love Life?   Then do not squander Time;
 for that's the stuff  Life is Made of."
Benjamin Franklin, 1706-1790....   American Scientist, Diplomat, Publisher



Approx. 5" x 7"  pen, brush, Red Earth FW acrylic artists ink, inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci's drawings
 created at Desideratum Studio, St. Martins, New Brunswick

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Slumber..... Cat 1

Slumber  by Gwen Buchanan


Know that, if you have a warm cozy spot in your house... and... you have a cat... the two shall meet.
Cats can sleep up to 16 hours a day.. anyone who has ever had a cat will testify to this...
 and studies have shown that cats dream... or at least they show the same kind of brain activity that humans produce when they dream.  
They have phases of REM sleep, which is dream time and non REM sleep which is body repair time....
 and why shouldn't they?


Mark Twain, author of the Adventures of  Huckleberry Finn,
 penned a little cat trivia..

"The cat, having sat upon a hot stove lid,
will not sit on a hot stove lid again.
Nor a cold stove lid."


"Slumber"  approx. 11" x 14" charcoal and bistre conte, from my sketchbook.
Desideratum Art and Jewelry studios, St. Martins, New Brunswick,  overlooking the Bay of Fundy

Saturday, October 13, 2012

Pearls and Swirls

  

Plump and Round Fresh Water Pearls, hung by wrapped silver on shaped and hammered earwires.
I like to think these little darlings are a Classic.
... they are lying on a pretty Bay of Fundy beach stone which in turn is lying on a flea market knotted lace tablecloth... two more things I can't resist.
$22.00 pr.



Earth Stone (properly called Bauxite) Sterling and Copper
on a little pen and ink leaf  from my sketchbook.
I like the irregularity of these stones and that they feel cool to  the touch... 
$18.00 pr.



Airy Sterling Silver Spirals with Amethyst hung by twisted and twirled Silver,  
 $25.00 pr.



Turquoise Jasper, Patinated and Antiqued Copper
(hanging on the side of a bowl I made many years ago as a student... why does it seems like yesterday) 
$25.00



One of my favourite paintings with a Pearl as the Vocal point is  The Girl with the Pearl Earring  by Johannes Vermeer (love the look in her eyes)    .... which brings me to mention the novel,  The Girl with the Pearl Earring  by Tracey Chevalier.. I really loved this book... a fictional account on the 17th century household of the Dutch painter Vermeer.. There is also a movie.
Thanks and Cheers***

Tuesday, October 09, 2012

There is a Remedy for all things but Death

"Alias, Old Fool"
 by Gwen Buchanan
10" x 10" charcoal and conte sketch, pardon my imperfection.


 I am staring at a drawing of a Friend... it is at a drawing that I stare...
I had never met this friend in real life... only on this mechanical screen in front of me.
A Friend I respected, who made me laugh, who worked hard all his life and lived a good life while he was at it... who shared, who made his own kilts and wore them... spoke out about things that weren't right with the world...  an inventor... a bicycle magician... sailed on battleships,  flew airplanes, drove  transport, knew the bayou blue and the country inside out...
 He was frugal... but never with his friendship......... he was humble, possibly a hermit
and Now he is gone from walking on this earth.
We never met... but we knew each other.  How do I say Good-bye?...... I can't.




.... this previous post was dedicated to him.


Old Fool had a blog or two

Friday, September 28, 2012

Beauty of a Place



























Photos taken along the Bay of Fundy Coast, on the ocean floor and/or with full tide,
 at St. Martins, Duck Pond Road, Gardener Creek, and Tynemouth Creek...
It's all about the Nature of the Place.
It's all about the Beauty. New Brunswick, Canada