Where I've Been...

Since returning from London last month, my travels have continued. I've visited a number of great places over the past few weeks and perhaps I haven't spent as much time in front of my easel as I should (blush), but the reality is that I needed this break. And these travels have only augmented my source material and inspiration for this winter.

Beginning in late October, my husband and I spent time in Gettysburg. It's only a 2.5 hour drive from our home, but it took many years of living in Pennsylvania for us to finally make it there.

I was blown away.

Totally blown away.

The scale and the scope of what transpired there are just mind-boggling. Even as someone who's visually "gifted," it was difficult for me to envision the thousands of people who fought and died there.

Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC

The following weekend, we traveled to the Washington, DC to visit some dear friends and to attend a concert by our favorite singer / songwriter, Dar Williams. During that visit, I had the opportunity to peruse the latest exhibitions at the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur Sackler Gallery, where I especially enjoyed an exhibition of Dwight Tryon's pastel seascapes. Dazzling!

This past weekend, my husband and I traveled to Hyde Park, New York to take a "bootcamp" class at the Culinary Institute of America. When he's not doing research, my husband's second passion is cooking. In fact, he does all of the cooking at our house. I'm allowed to chop onions. That's about it. We had great meals at the campus restaurants, we learned a lot, and we'll definitely go back again.

Oh, and two days ago, I ventured off to Indianapolis to pick up some picture framing equipment that I bought off of eBay (Hooray for eBay). It was a quick two-day trip, in and out, but it was fun to gaze upon the midwest farmland along I-70 during these crisp November afternoons.

Now, finally, I'm back to work on some commissioned paintings for the holiday season. It's been a hectic fall / early winter, but these travels have been a great way for me to recharge my creative batteries and I'm pleased to report that I'm now getting back into the groove of painting. Some of the first things that you'll see will be landscapes from Gettysburg, which leapfrogged over London in the queue of my source material. I'm also thrilled with the new lighting in my studio. This is paying huge dividends already because winter has come early this year. The snow is already flying outside my window and I'm wondering with this portends a long winter or -- hopefully -- an early spring.

We shall see....