Christmas Card, Ashley, Degas' Ballerinas in Blue
Well, the Christmas cards are finally done. I wanted this year's handmade card (shown at left) to reflect my belief that it's okay to acknowledge the meaning of Christmas as the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, without fear of offending someone. It's okay to say "Merry Christmas," and not just "Happy Holidays." I wouldn't say it to my Jewish friends, of course, but you get the idea. The press makes us think people are so very sensitive...
...and although I wanted to emphasize the religious rather than commercial character of Christmas in my card, I still 
placed an old drawing of a Christmas tree inside!
On a quite different topic... Nineteenth-Century impressionists Edgar Degas and Mary Cassatt got me started drawing with soft pastels (pastel sticks). Degas drew dozens of groupings of ballerinas in various poses and different colored dresses. I tried my hand at one, based on his rendering of four ballerinas in blue. Here's my 11x14" drawing which a friend asked me to do for her daughter's bedroom:
Last, do you remember Ashley Smith, the woman who was kidnapped and released by Brian Nichols a while back? I painted a small watercolor of her at the time.
So I've posted examples of four different art media in today's posting: pen and ink, markers and ink, soft pastels, and watercolor. Until next time......
3 comments:
It's extraordinary. It's beautiful. I see the baby has adult features. I'm always interested in that. I assume it was purposeful?
Greetings of the Season to you, artist.
Your work is marvelous.
Thank you for presenting it to us.
I have to rely on the old digital camera.
Joy to the World
I keep coming back to this post to revisit the Degas and the Christmas pics. Different styles, yet all three so good! I'd buy the cards and the print of the ballerinas.
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