Day 39

So, Joe's work has been flourishing this week despite birthday events and many, many interruptions. He has always wanted to draw a rose and finally had the opportunity to because of this time in New York. We are very aware of God's hand in directing this endeavor even though we can't see the finished product of it.

What a refreshing time we are having too! Our parents have been so very helpful in caring for our children with us and fully supportive of us as artists (not many struggling artists will tell you that). Their love for us and encouragement is just one more facet of God's love for us and encouragement in using our artistic gifts to provide for our family.

And that is our prayer in this creative experiment: that God would enable us to use our talents to simply supplement Joe's income. From experience though, we expect He will do more. Please continue to pray for us specifically that God would provide buyers for our work and further commissions throughout the year. There will be more images in a few days as Joe begins his final series of seashells.

Thank you for reading, enjoy the work, and may God bless and keep you.



Begun... Completed Calla Lilly.

Day 34

Two more! An oak leaf and a maple leaf. He rendered the stem so well on the oak that I feel like I could pluck it from the page. And the maple leaf suffered alteration by our almost two year old son, who in emulating his daddy, tried to use a paper blending stump over most of the drawing. Joe very patiently corrected Joey and his work and the outcome is all the better for both. Now we keep a gate across the living room where the studio is to avoid further "artistic endeavors" upon Joe's work. Our little guy can keep practicing at the kitchen table with crayons for now.

Yesterday Joe had about two or three hours of uninterrupted work time and was able to complete a rendering of a pear. It is unphotographed, but once he has a few more I'll post them.

Have a blessed Lord's Day!

Day 32

Happy 32nd Birthday Joe!!!!
It is a sunny, breezy day (would you expect anything else for his birthday?) and full of fun and giggles. The girls were very excited to celebrate and give him his gift from them. Joey, our son, was just happy to tackle him with hugs and big kisses. Here are a few pictures from this morning's festivities.

And since it is his birthday, he's taking the day off from drawing. I'll post the new studies tomorrow.

Day 29

Here are some pictures of Joe's completed work. Please excuse the amateur photography...there is a lot more contrast in the actual pieces. We hope to have the fruit and future nature studies professionally scanned and printed when Joe is done. Enjoy!

Day 27

To all of our faithful readers: Sorry for the delay in our next entry. The change of hands in blogging took a bit of time with inexperienced me (Jessie) taking the wheel. I hope you enjoy my portion of this experiment, though I make no promises of beautifully edited videos with a score. There will be pictures though! Once I learn how to add them. :)

We arrived in New York safely after a brief stop-over in Philadelphia. Joe took his motorcycle and I followed at a distance with the minivan full of children, luggage, and our dog. We had a perfect ride with beautiful weather all the way.

Now, being here since the fifteenth of July, Joe has completed the commissioned piece from last summer and begun his work of nature studies. He launched his first attempt today by photographing a plum, an apple, and a cherry. By midafternoon he astonished us all by displaying a finished 5X7 plum study...it is such a delicious rendering that Rosemary was tempted to pluck it from the page. Joe feels these type of drawings will not take much time to do because compared to a face, the fruit is just a lump with a stem. Good point, but what an accomplishment for his growth as a artist to crank out a drawing that a few years ago would have taken him much longer.

As for the children and myself we are happy to play in the yard at Grandma and Papa's, splash in the pool, slide down the slide, and just enjoy the time here. I don't think we've completely turned the house upside down, but we've definitly loosened the look of Dad's carefully manicured house. Since Friday we've also enjoyed having Grandma Oreste, Joe's grandmother, here to stay. We've had two cookie fringed visits with Uncle Dom, her son and Joe's mom's brother, who brought the girls black and whites cookies on Friday and rainbow cookies yesterday for Joe. Yummy Italian cooking abounds with sausage and peppers one night and meatballs and ravioli tonight (the girls helped Joe's mom make the meatballs...Carmellina especially takes an interest in cooking). We are definitly well fed-even unborn baby Sinagra.

More soon!

Day 22

Day 18

Day 17

Day 15...take two

Day 15

So it's almost 12:20am on Tuesday and I'm still waiting for this stupid video to upload to the blog site.
I'm watching a Malcolm in the Middle marathon.
I'm tired.
I'm going to bed.
Maybe there'll be a video tomorrow.

Artists' Birthdays

In case you haven't noticed yet, we've been posting the birthdays of artists as come. Keep an eye on how many birthdays are in July. There's almost an artist a day born in the month of July. Maybe there's something in the air that makes July babies extra talented...not that I'm implying anything.
Anyway, in some cases there are no accurate records of the artist's birth. I guess birth certificates were not common back in the 1400's. So while Botticelli's mom and dad must have been happy when he was born, no one else knew, or cared, who he was. By the time he died, of course, he was famous so we do have a record of their death. So in those cases, while I can't post their birthday, I will post their deathday. Hope that's not too morbid.

Happy 4th!

No art work today. Just lots of food, family and fireworks! Happy Independence Day, everyone.
Try to remember the truly remarkable thing it is to live in a country that fought the good fight to ensure your freedom.
God has blessed us immeasurably.


The Star Spangled Banner
Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and bright stars thru the perilous fight,
O'er the ramparts we watched were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
Oh, say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

On the shore, dimly seen through the mists of the deep,
Where the foe's haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o'er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning's first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines in the stream:
'Tis the star-spangled banner! Oh long may it wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

And where is that band who so vauntingly swore
That the havoc of war and the battle's confusion,
A home and a country should leave us no more!
Their blood has washed out their foul footsteps' pollution.
No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

-Francis Scott Key, 1814

Day 12

Jess has been moving fast. Today she threw 8 more pieces and spent a while putting handles on things. She's already used 5o lbs. of clay and she's going to start on a third 25 lb. bag now.
Things are getting pretty exciting around here!

Day 10

As I mentioned yesterday, Jessie has hit her quota of bowls; 25 to be exact. Apparently (and this is all new to me since I have never worked in clay) there are still a LOT of steps involved before we can put them to such noble uses as holding cheese-puffs and feeding the dog (just kidding Jess!).
Now that they have all been thrown (made on the wheel):
1. They need to air dry until they are greenware (not really green in color [again, news to me]) at which point they are highly breakable.
2. Once they are dry, we need to carefully load them into out minivan and drive them to the ceramic studio.
3. Once at the studio they will have a "bisque firing". Despite what it sounds like this not a lay-off at the Milk-Bone plant. The bisque firing is the first time the pots will go into a kiln to really dry them out and harden them.
4. Once they are bisque'd they need to cool (for one or two days).
5. Once cooled Jess will paint the glazes on.
6. After the glazes dry the bowls will be fired again and once cooled they will be completed.
Since she has to wait for the drying process, Jessie is using the time now to start throwing some mugs. Her goal is to make 25 of them by the middle of next week. But with the holiday weekend and a mid-wife appointment in Philly on the 6th, it will be difficult at best.
Keep praying that the Lord will give her speed and bless her work!