Origin Story ~ Slow Time (and the Joy Within)

#NoPanelLeftBehind, Origin story, Works In Progress
Sept. 17, 2019: Hitting the reset button by scribbling on and laying down tons of color on old encaustic paintings that were going nowhere.  #NoPanelLeftBehind

September 18: Not my plan at all. But hunting through my doodle scaps, I found my elephant silhouette and couldn’t resist. This will likely get painted over on Friday,..but I’m leaving it today, because it’s bringing me joy.

December 1: Dreaming of going home to Tanzania so much lately.  It’s been 4+ years since our last family trip to Mt Kilimanjaro to see my parents.  Counting down the days…

December 5: The elephant silhouette has disappeared under layers metallic graphite, silver and gold.  And today, with the addition of several whites, this Quiet emerged.  Letting it rest here for now.


December 7:  Adding layers of quiet tinted whites.

January 13, 2020: Seeing the piece with fresh eyes, the piece felt like it was suffocating under the whites.  So I pulled out my oil pastels to disrupt the preciousness and force me to find a new way forward.

January 21:  After several day of laying down paint then scraping it off, I finally feel like this piece can breathe.  Love seeing the trace remains of the elephant silhouette below the surface.  Now I need to set this painting aside…hang it on my wall, out of harm’s way, until the next steps become clear.

January 24:  Looking at this piece on my kitchen wall, I kept seeing weathered fence boards.  So I painted the boards varying shades of white…and a pop of blue for good measure.

February 1: As I stain the edges, I’m struck by the visual texture vs. flat surface of this painting.
February 11: Last Thursday, I shared my freshly finished piece, “Slow Time (and the Joy Within)”. That night, Jennifer reached out to me via IG asking if the piece was still available. She wanted to buy it for her husband’s birthday, so we scheduled a time for her to come see it in person. She fell in love with it, but was worried it might not work in the spot she had in mind. Since she had bought work from me in the past, I let her take it home to try it out. Happy to say, her husband loved his gift, and they ended up finding the perfect place for it.

❤️ So long, “Slow Time”. I’m smiling at the irony of your name given that this is the shortest amount of time I’ve ever spent with a completed piece! What a joy knowing you will be well-loved in your new home. Shine On!

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