Exhibit Poster

Last weekend was a flurry of artistic activities. We hung my exhibit “The Nature of Flowers”  at Texas Discovery Gardens Sunday before the opening on Monday the 22nd. After a ton of things to make it happen, Friday night was upon us, and the reception for the exhibit. I’m not going to lie, I was pretty nervous, flashbacks of a Christmas Caroling party Karen and I had as kids, where no one showed up, except our best friend, kept raising its ugly head.  All the worry was for nothing, it was a “fantabulous” night. There was such a great turn out, I meet so many wonderful people, all of whom really loved my work. So many of them said the paintings brought smiles to their faces, they truly made them happy. Exactly what I was hoping for, each piece has been my attempt to capture the beauty created by the Master Artist.  I had such wonderful support from my family and friends. My husband seemed to be everywhere, helping out, my son in law took pictures, my mom got everyone to sign the guest book. There are just not enough thank you’s to show my appreciation to my family for their support. I also appreciate everyone who came out, I meet so many nice people. Elsie and her daughter, Penelope and her Dad, Alma and her husband, and so many others. Thank each of you for braving the traffic to spend the evening visiting and viewing my art. Saturday morning I did a little painting and visiting in the Gallery. What a joy to share my work and get the added bonus of meeting and speaking with so many different folks.  Enjoy the photos from my week.

Sunny and Monarch

Great Food

A few of the wonderful people who came out

Elsie and Daughter

Great conversation

Saturday Demo Painting at the Gallery

You are Invited

It feels like Christmas! Having my work on exhibit in the Gallery at Texas Discovery Gardens is so amazing. I feel so very blessed to be able to intertwine my art with such a beautiful venue that supports our environment. My work will be on exhibition beginning March 22 and ending July 31, 2010. There will be an Opening Reception for the Exhibit on March 26th from 6:00 pm until 8:00 pm at the Gallery. Texas Discovery Gardens’ 7.5 acres offer a wonderful diversity of garden styles and botanical collections. The Gardens feature native plants and plant species from other regions of the world that are adapted to the challenging climate and soils of North Texas. Plants are also selected for their benefits in providing habitat for native wildlife, including butterflies, bugs, and birds. You can also enjoy more than 15 native species of butterflies in the Rosine Smith Sammons Butterfly House and Insectarium, as well as many new tropical butterflies. They offer many fun, hands-on environmental education programs for children and adults. What a great place to spend a Saturday enjoying art, flowers, butterflies and fun!

To view more about the exhibit click on the following link: http://www.texasdiscoverygardens.org/upcoming_events.shtml

Almost finished

I have almost finished my piece “Zebra Longwing and Jatropha”. This is the piece I am doing for the Organic in the City event for Texas Discovery Gardens. I was able to get pictures of the Zebra Longwing and the Jatropha plant on one of my visits to the Butterfly House and Gardens at Texas Discovery Gardens. The Zebra Longwing is the mascot butterfly for Texas Discovery Gardens. It is actually a poisonous species due to the host plant it feeds on, they advertise this with their brilliant black and yellow- white markings. Slow but dignified, the Zebra Longwing is a weak flier. Long antennae and a slender body are typical of these butterflies, which are at home in the tropics, but can sometimes be found as far north as Kansas. According to Wikipedia, Jatropha is a genus of approximately 175 succulent plants, shrubs and trees, from the family Euphorbiaceae. The name is derived from (Greek iatros = physician and trophe = nutrition), hence the common name physic nut. Jatropha is native to Central America and has become naturalized in many tropical and subtropical areas, including India, Africa, and North America. As with many members of the family Euphorbiaceae, Jatropha contains compounds that are highly toxic. Below is a glimpse into the work in progress:

Filling in colorAbout 1/3 of the way

In the beginning