Category Archives: Mountains

February 2022 30-Day Creative Gathering Collage

FEB 22 30-Day Collage. © 2022 Sheila Delgado.

No surprises here. Flowers and Cacti. Cacti and flowers. I have a tiny sliver of Sap green left in my palette. Made it to the end, by the hair on my chinny, chin chin. 🙂 I am very happy with the work I produced. Hallelujah!

I’ve been hoping and praying for precipitation all month. You would never know it by looking at these sunny settings. The influence of the warm desert air no doubt.

Challenges make you discover things about yourself
that you never really knew.
Cicely Tyson

This event kicked off our fourth year of the gathering. We welcomed many new members, a great way to begin! There were over 665 works of art created in our international group this month. An abundance of light being sent out into the world! We have members in England, Canada, Spain, Hungary, Australia, France, and Scotland. And of course from all over the US.

Do not let what you cannot do
interfere with what you can do.
John Wooden

I worked in several small series this month. Cacti, wildflowers, abstracted flowers, potted plants, and my simplified floral still life. Each day what I sat down to paint was posted for viewing. Only one early painting failed so badly that I had to start over. There are two that made me cringe when I posted them. A few others I thought were mistakes, but they received the most comments. Proving again, I am not always a reliable judge of my work. 🙂

Below are my favorites. You can clearly see why my sap green is depleted. Haha. I always love hearing what your favorites are. One reason I number my collage.
Which did you like best, and why?

FEB 22 30-Day Favorites Collage. © 2022 Sheila Delgado.

I am so grateful to have you follow along this month. Your encouragement and considerate critiquing will stay with me long after the challenge has ended. I pushed myself, because I did not want to let myself down. I did not want to miss participating. But I confess, I was reminded each day how many of you prayed for me (are praying). I did not want to let you down either.

You are the wind beneath my wings! Thank you, my friends!

In a few days, I will share art and collages from the many who took part in this round of the Creative Gathering. We are fortunate to have so many gifted artists, who work in a variety of mediums and styles. I am so honored to have the opportunity to see their work each day. And learn from their strengths.

You will love a virtual stroll through the Gathering’s Gallery!

Day 19 of February’s 30-Day Creative Gathering

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Day 19, 8 x 8 watercolor on Fabriano paper. © 2022 Sheila Delgado.

I was fighting with this one, and then I realized why it was not working. I was not using Arches paper. You can see in the sky, how spotty the paint settled. In the cactus as well, but the texture works there. I did nave fun with the saguaro. But I always do. Haha.

I’m like the trunk of a cactus…
I take in a dose of culture and time with friends,
then I retreat and go live on it for a while
until I get thirsty again.
Nancy Horan

The canyon country does not always inspire love.
To many it appears barren, hostile, repellent –
a fearsome mostly waterless land of rock and heat,
sand dunes and quicksand, cactus, thornbrush, scorpion, rattlesnake, and agaraphobic distances.
To those who see our land in that manner,
the best reply is, yes, you are right,
it is a dangerous and terrible place.
Enter at your own risk.
Carry water.
Avoid the noonday sun.
Try to ignore the vultures.
Pray frequently.
Edward Abbey

Smooth The Way

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I’m not surprised. But I still feel guilty. This usually happens after the Gathering. And I always feel guilty. This is the first art I have created in October. After a month of daily art making.

It’s not that I was stuck or uninspired. I’ve just been busy behind the scenes. It seems the tech stuff is never ending. And since it is not always fun, well, sometimes it just seems to take forever.

For the last couple of days, I have had supplies at the ready. Colored pencils, watercolor crayons, markers, paper. On my desk. And yet, I didn’t start. Then a nudge came to my inbox. Carla Sonheim to the rescue. She spoke about “smoothing the way” for creativity. How her plans to create were replaced with to-dos. She reminded herself, to just get in the studio and make something. Anything.