Happy holidays and a happy 2014 to you all across the world.  On this painting you can see my husband and I kicking back and relaxing on our farm seizing the day.  Sitting under a tree having a picnic, sipping champagne, reading a good book all whilst being watched by the kangaroos and sheep and our two dogs; Moses and Saba.  Kai and Hillivi our children are flying kites nearby whilst the birds are all feeding their young in the trees, an idyllic summer afternoon (with a bit of artistic licence of course, lol) It’s from a few years ago now as the kids are all grown up and the dogs sadly passed on but still in our hearts forever more.

THE ART OF HAPPINESS

I hope this new year will bring you all that you wish for and be the happiest yet, and for some reason it doesn’t always work that way keep this in mind “The happiest people don’t have the best of everything they just make the best of everything”.  Wise words I think by an unknown author and something I have seen many, many times during our travels, some of the happiest people I have ever met have been in third world countries.  Happiness is not something measured by the number of cars you possess, the amount of money you earn or living in the fanciest of houses, no it is something within.  The beaming smiles and laughter and giggles often come from the simplest of dwellings, overcrowded and basic but everything is shared and strangers are welcomed as one of the family.

THE ART OF CARPE DIEM

So I would like to share a few quotes about Carpe Diem which means; to enjoy the pleasures of the moment without concern for the future.

“Life is short, God’s way of encouraging a bit of focus.”

(Robert Brault)

“Enjoy yourself.  It’s later than you think.”

(Chinese Proverb)

“Do not take life too seriously.  You will never get out of it alive.”

(Elbert Hubbard)

“Dream as if you’ll live forever.  Live as if you’ll die today.”
(James Dean)

“The important thing is not how many years in your life but how much life in your years”
(Edward J. Stieglitz)

“Be happy while you’re living, for you’re a long time dead.”

(Scottish Proverb)

“To change one’s life:  Start immediately.  Do it flamboyantly.  No exceptions.”
(William James)

“You live longer once you realize that any time spent being unhappy is wasted.”
(Ruth E. Renkl)

“Most of us spend our lives as if we had another one in the bank.”

(Ben Irwin)

“Minutes are worth more than money.  Spend them wisely.”
(Thomas P. Murphy)
“If you wait, all that happens is that you get older.”
(Larry McMurtry)
“Use your health, even to the point of wearing it out.  That is what it is for.  Spend all you have before you die; do not outlive yourself.”

(George Bernard Shaw)

“We’re fools whether we dance or not, so we might as well dance.”

(Japanese Proverb)

“Don’t ever save anything for a special occasion.  Being alive is the special occasion.”

(Author Unknown)

So on that note I leave you, till next time happy painting and sculpting and just enjoying life, Carpe Diem.

Love Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

Today’s tale begins at the end of another art and travel blog in our European trip and finds us just having finished lunch in 167. THE ART OF LETTING GO. Cousin Benny and his sister Berit her partner Anders were now taking us around Sundbyberg and Solna seeing the houses and schools where my parents lived and grew up.  If you want to recap even more of our European adventures here are some links; 156. ART & FREQUENT FLYER POINTS and 157. Art & Never judge a book by it’s cover and 155 The Art of Packing Light and 164. ART, TOILETS AND TRAVEL and 166. Rondellhund, Roundabout dogs Sculptures

ACRYLIC PAINTING

This acrylic on canvas board painting is of course influenced by growing up in Sweden although I think I may have used some artistic licence as the slopes were not that full of people skiing!

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

We were now on our way to where Benny lives in Vaxholm by car although it’s often reached by boat.  By boat it is a very atmospheric trip through Stockholm’s archipelago which comprises of some 30,000 islands would you believe.  Vaxholm itself is made up of about 70 small islands so a boat is required for the most part if you want to explore further.  Benny lived on the main island of Vaxholm not too far from Vaxholm Hotel where we stopped for a drink taking in the wonderful view over the archipelago.  The old town was originally a fishing community which sold most of their catch to the big city.  Many of the old wooden houses were built on stilts, hanging out over the water.   Everywhere you look is gorgeous houses wooden houses with beautiful roofs.   There is also a fortress built there in 1549 by King Gustav Vasa, originally to defend the capital of Stockholm from invasion and later used as a prison which is now Sweden’s biggest military museum.

SWEDISH ARTISTS, AUTHORS AND POETS

Many Swedish artists, authors and poets were influenced by the archipelago of Stockholm among them August Strindberg, Astrid Lindgren and ABBA to name a few.  Pippi Longstocking’s plays are often shown in Vaxholm during the summer months and some of the scenes in the movie were actually shot there.  (For those among you with children I can thoroughly recommend Pippi Longstocking and any books or movies based on Astrid Lindgren’s books, “Emil i Lonneberga”, “Karlson pa taket” and “Vi pa Saltkrakan” just to name a few.)

THE ARTY DOLLS HOUSE

Anyway I digress – here we are with my cousins Benny and Berit and after a lovely stroll  we go home to Benny.  He lives in what is known as the Dolls House which is the most gorgeous yellow and white little wooden house, beautifully decorated in white and blue inspired by the sea and boats.  The bedroom is decked out  like a captain’s cabin on a ship and everywhere you look there are influences from the sea.  An added bonus on our visit are hundreds of newly picked Kantareller (a yellow Swedish mushroom that grows in the forest) which were lying drying on the table and floor.

THE ARTISTIC COOK

The memories of this day are really a highlight of the entire trip, maybe it was because I finally came to terms with the death of my grandparents 167. THE ART OF LETTING GO and what could have been such a sad and sombre day actually was filled with delight both at seeing their final resting place and then our little party in the Dolls House. “ Moi” who is useless in the kitchen and has not a clue how to cook actually got the job of cutting up the mushrooms, luckily this activity was fuelled by red wine, lol.  Who would have thought but I actually had so much fun helping my much more experience cousins in the kitchen whilst hubby and Anders discussed the world, universe and everything!  (Berit has great experience in hospitality and these days has her own catering company) The meal of Stewed Kantareller in a Béchamel sauce on toasted long bread with asparagus was one of the yummiest I ever had!  Casually and relaxed we sat on the floor around the coffee table eating,  drinking good wine and really, I never wanted the night to end.

Here is a quote that fits perfectly by Pierce Harris;

“Memory is a child walking along a seashore.  You never can tell what small pebble it will pick up and store away among its treasured things.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting, and making memories to you all!

Love Marie xxxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

This painting is one commissioned several years ago by my cousin Leif who lives in Sweden.  The naive art scene is of his brother Dan & Johnny’s former house here in Australia and depicts us all enjoying a day together by the pool.  As I told you in my previous art blog 156. ART & FREQUENT FLYER POINTS (there is the link if you wanna recap) we are now on our European tour and have arrived in Gothenburg where we got picked up by my gentle giant cousin Leif, his partner Lena and daughter Emma.

My cousin Leif decided early on that he wanted to work with disabled children and there he met the lovely Lena, the love of his life and they set up house together.  They both have hearts of gold and worked tirelessly to give their all to make life better for the kids in that institution where they both worked.

Eventually they decided to start a family of their own and as fate would have it when Lena finally gave birth it was to a little girl Emma, cute as a button, but severely handicapped herself with both Spina Bifida and Hydrocephalus (which is water on the brain)and several other problems too and requiring a wheelchair.

At first glance you may feel compassion and perhaps pity for this very special family unit, and yes of course that was also our first reaction.  However never judge a book by it’s cover, wait instead till you have had a good read.

ARTISTIC LICENCE

You can see Emma on my artwork on the right by the pool, with my husband and I close by.  Artistic licence of course as no aeroplane will allow her to fly, so going from Sweden to Australia has so far been out of question for her, but Lena and Leif have made the trip each with another travel partner so that the other one is home with Emma.

Emma communicates manly through noises which only her parents could properly decipher and really we did at first think that was wishful thinking on their behalf.  Well what fools we turned out to be because after spending time with them we saw Emma really does understand and can make herself understood in most instances, not only that but she understands English too!

Lena, Leif and Emma live in a gorgeous house on the outskirts of Gothenburg, just perfect for the 3 of them but as a lot of European houses no spare bedrooms so perhaps a bit harder to have people come and stay.  However they insisted that we take over their bedroom whilst they slept on trundle beds in with Emma, such lovely hosts and they spoilt us rotten.

THE ART OF LOVE

So my other observation was what a HAPPY little family they were, their little household sparkled with joy and happiness and their lives revolved around each other – not in a martyr or sacrifice type of way but in a way that showed such joy and happiness you couldn’t help but feel good in their company.  Emma had an infectious laugh and they all giggled around the clock, she did of course get upset at times particularly if it was time to get out of the car as being a passenger was her favorite pastime, but even then upset, she was gorgeous and that mood soon passed.

In a way I envied them – now don’t get me wrong I am eternally grateful that my two children were born healthy and I wish and pray that they will always be so.  No what I mean is when Kai and Hillivi were little I wished that they would never grow up and leave us, just be our little darlings forever.

That is what Leif and Lena have got – they have their little girl still cute as a button even though now she is 37 years old,  sharing their lives together the three of them.   What more can you wish for in life then to be loved and to truly love in return!

So here is a quote I think fits well here by an unknown author;

“A bend in the road is not the end of the road… unless you fail to make the turn”

Till next time, happy painting and sculpting to you.

Love Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

There is always a joke or two about the mother-in-law, isn’t there?  Here is one to get us started;

“I haven’t spoken to my mother-in-law for eighteen months.  I don’t like to interrupt her”  or how about ;  “ Honolulu, well it’s got everything: sand for the children, sun for the wife and sharks for the wife’s mother.”  (Both by Ken Dodd)

The acrylic on canvas painting above is a subject matter I have visited many times, happy memories from my childhood with artistic licence of course.

THE ART OF ALWAYS BEING THERE

Well I am very pleased to say that I actually like my mother-in-law, as a matter of fact LOVE her.  Her name is Avis (as in rent a car, lol) and she has been a constant influence and full of love and advice and always been ready to lend a hand no matter what.  She is one of these people that you can truly rely on.

So that said and made clear, she also drives us nuts, LOL.  Yes I know, I do always say that it is a wife’s job to drive her husband nuts and I do a good job of that myself, so I don’t need any help on that front.

Let’s just say that over the last 30 or so years my husband or I have called Nanna up in the week or 2 leading up to an important occasion, like a birthday, Easter, Christmas, Mother’s day, Father’s day or the like.  Asking very sweetly what the plans are for this occasion so we can put it in the diary.

You see we live very busy lives with the diary full of work commitments and social engagements of our own or the kids and also some time reserved for just chilling too.  So we like to know ahead of time so we are prepared.

THE ART OF MOTHERS DAY

Let’s take Mothers Day this year; I made the call to my mum and to Nanna.  Dinner with my side of the family at 7pm, however Nanna said “No I am not going to have anything this year, but if you want to pop in your welcome”.   That suited us, stop and see Nanna and Pa late afternoon on our way out for dinner.

So with that in mind we planned a lovely day, I got brekky in bed, leisurely got ready and went to the Botanical gardens where we planned on having lunch and seeing an art exhibition and looking at all the botanical exhibits too.    We had only just got there when we received a rather frantic call from our daughter asking where we were.  Nanna had lunch ready and were waiting for us!  What the!!!

THE ART OF FATHERS DAY

So much for the lovely day right!!! Mmmm… then it’s Fathers day,  I make the phone call again, same deal,  Nanna says she ain’t having anything, as she is feeling a little tired.  So I said ok that’s fine, we will just pop in on our way to my mum and dad’s around 4PM for a coffee.

Father’s day comes around, hubby gets brekky in bed,  big treat for him, I am very fortunate to get that rather often (yes I know, I am spoiled!)  Anyway hubby was lapping it up and planning to do boys stuff that day, potter around and play with his new cordless drill and other exciting things like that (you have to be of the male sex persuasion to understand the joys of power tools I think, beats me!)

Well you guessed it come eleven o’clock in the morning  and I get a call from Nanna who says “I am feeling better today so got up at 9am and have been cooking up a storm since then, so you have to come for LUNCH now!

Lol you should have seen me trying to tell hubby that his lovely plans for his Father’s day had gone out the window yet again.  The added problem we have is the four heart attacks and one stroke that Nanna has had, so we don’t want to upset the apple cart so to speak either.

THE ARTFUL SURPRISE

Anyway yesterday we were all invited for a BBQ at Hillivis boyfriend’s house.   Both sets of grandparents were coming up, hubby and I were picking up Nanna and Pa originally but they decided to instead take their own car.  We were expected to arrive  at 5.30 and had set off for the drive up to the country when Hillivi called in a panic from the shower “Mum what’s going on its 4.15 and Nanna and Pa are outside,  the house is a mess, dishes everywhere and I am washing my hair, why are Nanna and Pa here already?”

Well beats me, but I was glad it wasn’t us this time.

So with affection Nanna and with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek, here is another quote that amused me on the topic, by Henny Youngman;

“Just got back from a pleasure trip: I took my mother-in-law to the airport.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all,

Love Marie xxx   (C)

If you enjoyed this art blog you may enjoy this one too about my mother 123 Still Smoking Hot

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

I painted this acrylic on canvas board painting several years ago after going to the Manpower show.  For those of you who are uninitiated in the goings on of Manpower, let me fill you in; they were a highly successful male striptease dance troupe here in Australia similar to the Chippendales, all male, all very good looking and all great dancers.   Jamie Durie was one of the members who later made his fame and fortune on the Oprah show as a Life Style Guru and outdoor makeover man.

SACRIFICE FOR THE SAKE OF ART

So it goes without saying that when my girlfriend suggested we should go I said yes.  We had a 3 hour round trip to get there from the country but that was a small price to pay the three of us thought – the other enthusiastic member to our evening was a lovely male gay friend of ours.  Don’t know who was the most excited him or us,lol. Anyway we finally got there and had to line up, it was packed and what struck me was the crowd:  they were ordinary women, short, skinny, tall, plump, old, young, all dressed in their finest frocks, faces full of makeup with hair that looked professionally styled.  The age bracket was also an eye-opener as it reached from 18-70 something! However that revelation was nothing, my biggest surprise was just before the show started when this group of mainly middle age women got excited and started hollering and whistling for the show to start.  These women then went completely nuts, randomly leaping from their chairs to touch and fondle these poor dancers; I had never seen anything like it.  Manpower took it all in their stride and did a fab job and kept smiling whilst they tried to complete their very well choreographed dance routines.

If you liked this topic you may also enjoy a look at these art blogs 53. Art & Bachelorette – A Hens night out and 72. Mae West “Come up and see me some time” & Art and 158. Fifty Shades of Grey in Art

ARTISTIC INSPIRATIONS

As you know I don’t mind a bit of eye-candy but I almost forgot to look at these handsome men as I was totally fascinated by the behavior of what looked like everybody’s mothers and grandmothers turning into crazed sex maniacs. I laughed when I found this article on the net from the Telegraph Herald ( Dubuque Iowa 9.3.87) which describes what happened when the Manpower show was cancelled, lol and after my experience I am not surprised.  (I have shortened the article slightly but not altered it otherwise)

NO STRIPPERS; WOMEN GO ON RAMPAGE

Pittsburg – Wine and beer bottles shattered on the dance floor.  Beer bottles and chairs turned into missiles.  Some women swung purses into the air, striking anything and everyone in their way.  The word was out: a group of male strippers left shortly before they were to entertain about 600 women in the motels Ritz disco Saturday night.

“Those weren’t ladies – they were animals” said the motel owner Al Monzo.  Officers from seven police agencies – several with canines, responded to the two hour mele that began at 10pm.Saturday.  Three ambulances arrived one taking a women to a nearby hospital for cuts and suspected back and neck injuries.

There were no arrests. But hundreds of women were angry they got nothing but frustration for their $10 and $12 tickets they bought to see five featured dancers come out in assorted costumes then strip down to their briefs doing the bump and grind routines.  They were demanding a refund.

Here then is a wit and wisdom from Oscar Wilde (from The mammoth book of useless information) perhaps this is food for thought.

“Woman begins by resisting a man’s advances and ends by blocking his retreat.”

Till next time happy painting and sculpting to you all,

Love Marie xxx           (c)

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

This painting is one I painted early on in my career (which sold in America) which was  inspired by our new life on the farm, and what a lovely time it has been too.

Here we are unloading the truck with the dairy cows that we had on agistment each summer, they actually came on foot so the red truck is artistic licence.

We have lived here for the last 17 years and loved every minute of  it, if  it wasn’t for the fact that our children both now need to live in the city and find it hard to work such long hours and study at uni at the same time we would probably never have thought about leaving the country.  I must admit I have had quite a few changes in my life from international model to artist for one!  Leaving the farm though will be hard.

Now however it has finally happened and we don’t know whether to be happy or sad about the next chapter of our lives by the sea and with only 30 minutes to the city centre.

To wake up to the twitter of little birds and loud screeching of Galahs and Corellas is something that we will miss (oh maybe not the screeching bit, lol)

Speaking of Twitter if you would like to follow me there, here is a link https://twitter.com/Naiveview

Other things we will miss is the serene 40 minute river walk on our own property that we do each morning, often seeing the kangaroo who lives part time in our paddock and also ducks and other river birds that visit from far flung places.

The possum who comes to visit us at night looking for an apple or some bread, a wild animal who reaches out and grabs the treats with his little hands so trusting that we won’t harm him (we won’t miss the little brown pellets he leaves behind though lol)

HORSES AND ART

Our two remaining horses Pringles and Zipper, miniature ponies, have already found a wonderful place to live, with rolling hills and lovely people who spoil them with treats.

Our horses inspired many paintings and art blogs and here is a link to one of those with some artworks 61. Can Horses Write ?

I will sorely miss the open fires, the rain on the iron roof, the smell of the freshly cut lawns and rain, the peace and quiet and not a neighbour in sight.  Not to mention; our permanent waterhole and the river when it flows and the whole area rebirths with new life and the trees full of figs, apricots and oranges.

Our 2 dogs and the birds will be coming with us and also Milo the cat,  however we are going to have to plead our case with the new owners for Ozzy (yes named after Ozzy Osborne) our other cat, as he never took to being inside and likes roaming the country side.  I must say that it is very rarely that we find a bird eaten, he is however quite the Mouser so he earns his keep so to speak, and with the current mouse plague that is quite an asset.

This saying by Titus Livy (Historian) fits well here I think.

“In difficult and hopeless situations the boldest plans are the safest.”

Till Next time happy painting and sculpting to you all.

Love Marie                                        (c)

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

]]> https://mariejonssonharrison.com.au/40-tree-change-for-a-sea-change/feed/ 1 https://mariejonssonharrison.com.au/24-noodles-anyone/ https://mariejonssonharrison.com.au/24-noodles-anyone/#comments Tue, 22 Jun 2010 01:25:17 +0000 http://www.mariejonssonharrison.com.au/new/?p=778 COUNTRY ARTS

I had so much fun painting this painting “Noodles Anyone” which depicts Francis and Putu , a couple who run this fantastic restaurant in the small mid north town of Burra called White Cedars Indonesian  Cafe and Gallery.

ART & BALI

It is the last place on earth that you would expect to find a gorgeous little Balinese place, but once you’ve been there you have to return.

I don’t remember how I was initially introduce to them, but what I did know right away was that I really liked them both and we had so much in common particularly as we go nearly every year to Bali.

They asked me a couple of years ago to have an ART exhibition there for the Sala Festival and a great success it was too, they do not do things by half.

White Cedars was filled to overflowing with people and both the food and the wine were too.  It is the people that make a town great so hats off guys!

You see Putu is from Bali and Francis after spending 32 years as a Primary school teacher built his ultra-modern minimalist dream house at Maslin Beach SA.

Four years later the adventure bug bit and Francis moved to Bali where he met Putu and together they built another dream house but this time in the Balinese traditional style with grass roof and open to the elements surrounded by a vibrant tropical garden, jungle and fast flowing streams and art of course.

They eventually decided to pick up stumps and settled in Burra where despite the cold they have made a wonderful go of it.  So much so that Putu is now becoming a true blue Aussie this coming Saturday.

ARTISTIC LICENCE

On this painting it is Putu dancing on the table in their establishment, he actually does a stunning Balinese performance and has even done so at several major events around the state although I must claim artistic licence to the noodles between the toes, I never did see him do that, lol.

Putu also doubles as the head chef, whilst Francis handles front of house with nothing being too much trouble for his guests.   So if you are in Burra look them up!

This exhibition has now come and gone but went very well and I thank you all for attending Naive View.

Apart from my artworks in the main gallery, there was also artworks on show by the Ladies from the Valley showing Pots ‘n’ Paints and also Parallel 1930 by Gaara Arts showing works by Broken Hill Women Artists.

AUTHOR & jOURNALIST

It is being opened by Nadine Williams, acclaimed international journalist and author of the bestseller “From France with Love” which has now also been optioned to be made into a movie.  So it should be quite a swell affair.  Here is an art blog 101 From France with Love on Nadine.

I know for most of you spread across the world that is way too far to go, maybe next time.

Here is another quote I like by Ernestine Ulmer (writer)

“Life is uncertain.  Eat dessert first.”

Happy painting and Sculpting everyone.

Love Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

This painting “Antonis Tivoli” is one I painted for my father SCULPTOR Ted Jonsson and depicts him and his family, my grandparents.  They spent nearly all their lives travelling around Sweden and nearby countries with their side shows and entertainments which also had a dance venue with a live band.

CIRCUS LIFE

They usually travelled for 6 months during the warmer weather then came back to Stockholm where they spent the winter months doing repairs on the sideshows trucks and tents.

They had 5 children, 4 of whom joined the Tivoli, however my Dad was the youngest and he had to stay at home and go to school.  He would live in their large 2 story home all by himself from the age of around 10, for six months at a time.

PAINTING IDEAS

My father describes this time as very scary and also very exciting as he got older.  His parents would leave him bags and bags full of coins (small change from the Tivoli) to use for food and whatever he needed. They also arranged for the local deli owner to give him credit.

Can you imagine nowadays leaving a child of 10 alone for half a year, however in those days things were different and when my grandparents were home they were great parents from what I can understand.

My dad would come home and check the whole house for ghosts and burglars with a large knife in his hand, walking from room to room.  His nutritional value count could well have been low lol, as he remembers eating a lot of cornflakes during those months.

My grandfather Anton joined the circus at the age of 16, working as an acrobat artist and did a high-wire act.  My grandmother Vera ran away from home at 15 (as I did when I was 14 but that’s another story) and she went out to sea, joined on as a kitchen hand.  They eventually met and ran away to join the circus, well made a circus in their case!

On this painting my grandmother is tied to a spinning wheel although that may be my artistic licence, what is true however is that she was blind folded and tied up and my grandfather also blind folded, would throw knives around her.  My father describes their marriage as a good one but very volatile and remembers many a time when they would have big fights just as their music would start up and their names were announced to go on stage.  He remembers holding his breath hoping that his mother would not get hurt.  She herself had no such qualms however knowing and trusting that Anton would keep her safe, such faith!!    (to be continued)

So I am very glad this next quote was said by Thomas Hart Benton (politician) and not my grandfather!

“I never quarrel, sir.  But sometimes fight, sir, and whenever I fight, sir, a funeral follows”

Hope you come back and visit me again, till then happy painting and sculpting everyone!

Love Marie xx   (c)

The continuation of this art blog here 21. Life in a Circus Tent

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALEand SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.

Mmmm First Day First Art Blog, where to begin….Perhaps with my Passions and I have lots, lol, but my two first loves are my Family and Art, and another would have to be travelling. That said, here is my painting of the Monkey Forest in Ubud, BALI, painted perhaps 13 ish years ago, when the kids were little.

MONKEY FOREST AN INSPIRATION FOR A PAINTING

Our holidays have always been fantastic and this was no exception.  We decided to have lunch in this pretty little cafe surrounded by the luscious nature and cute little monkeys, and on one side a rice field.  Our waiter gave us our menus and pulled out the chairs for us to sit down.  It was lunch time but we were the only customers there. Mmm maybe that should have been a clue….

We had just motioned for the waiter to take our order, when a very large male monkey with big teeth came slowly walking into the cafe from the rice field and our waiter very quickly, ran and shut the door behind him to the kitchen.  I told the kids under my breath to “SIT VERY STILL, DONT MOVE A MUSCLE AND DON’T MAKE EYE CONTACT”. So there the 4 of us sat like statues, whilst this teeth baring large male monkey walked very slowly around our table looking very intently at us, sniffing the air, stopping every now and then.  After what seemed like the longest time he finally decided that as we did not have any food or anything else he fancied, he walked around the corner.

Not sure of whether he would come back we sat still for a little longer but now at least we were breathing again.  It took a full 2 more minutes before our waiter with a big broom opened the door and peaked out and asked if the monkey had gone yet- so much for customer relation.lol.  Needless to say we had lost our appetite and found another place for lunch later on. Lol.

ARTISTIC LICENCE

Lucky for me that supplied me with a perfect topic for another painting. I must confess to artistic licence though as the other monkeys were not all inside the cafe.  You will find my son Kai, daughter Hillivi and husband Bryan, in a lot of my artwork. Even thought they are now 22 and 18 I often still paint them as little.  They will always be my little “Sweethearts”.

Here is a thought for you from Oscar Wild to contemplate,

‘They afterwards took me to a dancing saloon where I saw the only rational method of art criticism I have ever come across.  Over the piano was printed a notice “Please do not shoot the pianist.  He is doing his best.” ‘

Hope you come and visit me again.

Happy painting and sculpting to everyone!

Love

Marie xxx

Why not come and have a look at Marie Jonsson-Harrison’s PAINTINGS FOR SALE, GICLEE PRINTS FOR SALE and SCULPTURES for sale or WALLBASED SCULPTURES.  Enjoy an original artwork on your walls or perhaps one on your bed ARTnBED.