Hard to believe that my last entry was over a week ago! The painting you see above is called You Never Know What You Might Find on the Other Side of the Fence. I created it for a show called Borders, Fences, & Gates, which is located at the Curley School in Ajo, Arizona, where I live. It is accompanying an exhibit from the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibition Series, and it's very exciting to have this beautiful show located in the beautiful auditorium of the old school.

The title of the painting has a couple meanings. Literally, you can find beauty anywhere, even on an old wooden fence, if you take the time to look. It also refers to neighbors. This fence separated us from our next door neighbors for 20 years. While we knew them as acquaintances, it was only in the last 3 years or so that I really began to know my neighbor, Jill. I came to cherish her friendship, and found it a wonderful comfort to have such a good person living right next door. Who knows whether we would have gotten to know each other sooner without the fence. At any rate, I'm grateful that I know her now and expect to remain lifetime friends with her despite the fact that we now live 2 hours apart.

Here is another big box. This one has 6 narrow drawers and one large drawer. I discovered that by rearranging the order of the drawers, the design changes. The big drawer can be on top, on the bottom or in the middle. The shapes in the little boxes join together differently when you switch their order. My paintings are realistic. The boxes are abstract. I've tried doing abstract paintings and find it frustrating. I'm thrilled that within the context of boxes, I can have fun playing with abstract art. I love painting these!