The longest daze.

Happy Solstice from Iowa

Hello from a little cabin in the western hills of Iowa where Neon & I are celebrating the Summer Solstice.

We look forward to this getaway every year & though the locations change, the mood is the same: Pack up the sketchbooks, swimsuits, art supplies, tarot cards, good snacks, field mic & hiking shoes then turn on, tune in & drop out (of email contact— I scheduled this email yesterday like a business professional who takes her time off seriously).

We will make art with the clouds, write poetry with the fire, float in the loving arms of a large body of water & dream to the sounds of the crickets … and hopefully take some of this peace with us when we re-emerge next week.

Updates on my roll-yer-own “retreat” coming soon— but for now, I’ll share some very soothing moments from another art-camping trip. The soundscape of summer is as lush as the landscape here!

Process notes: This piece started with masking fluid where the flowers would be— I painted the whole background while on-location (first pic) then, back at our campsite, I removed the mask and painted the flowers from preparatory drawings.

Painting & writing outside is the perfect excuse to be still & soak it all in. My prompt for you this week, as ever, is the same advice I give myself: Go outside and drop into creative process! See what happens!

xo,