If we believe the best is yet to come, that all things are possible with God (whichever iteration you choose to believe or not believe in), that we each need to follow our own path, that being nice still matters, that retaining our personal freedom to make our own decisions is valuable, that loving our neighbor as ourself is kindness in action, that peacefully coexisting in an increasingly diverse society is important, that solving differences does not need to lead to violence of any kind, that giving and receiving a sincere hug is a warm gift, then maybe we can –I will– begin the new year with a renewed heart and open mind and be the help someone else needs to find their joy again. I hope you make it a Happy New Year and find your own Peace.
Lesson learned: One timid step leads to another more confident step in the right direction.
“… home was not just a cabin in a deep woods that overlooked a placid cove. Home was a state of mind, the peace that came from being who you were and living an honest life.” ― Kristin Hannah, The Great Alone
Detail of ‘Village in the Pursuit of Happiness 2’, acrylic on canvas
We all have such different ideas of what home is. The quote above was one I found while doing a bit of searching for a quote by an author that resonated with me and reflected the small family vignette of one of my large paintings I have selected for this post.
This image is part of a 40″x60″ acrylic painting titled ‘Village in the Pursuit of Happiness’. In this ‘village’ series I have incorporated several different visual ideas of what living in a village feels like for me. I am careful to not be too precious with shapes and color and detail rather letting all the vignettes live together peacefully as a painting. View a full image of ‘Village in the Pursuit of Happiness’ with this link.https://anntrainordomingue.com/Art/Detail.php?artid=1211296
Lesson Learned: Home is not only the shelter we live in, but also how we create a life together in the shelter of home.
We all would love to celebrate Thanksgiving in the way we each have enjoyed over many years. The Covid19 virus has been forcing us all to not only change but completely stop doing so many ordinary things while causing great divides in families, and among friends and coworkers. The local and national political atmosphere is also pressuring regular Americans to submit to behaviors that cause even more stress.
Not only are we dealing with maintaining the health of our families while Covid rages on, we are also concerned for the viability of family-owned and friend-owned local small businesses. And how they will survive during this disruptive pandemic including the period of time after a vaccine has been distributed. So many aspects of living have been infiltrated by Covid19. But sadly many lives have also been infiltrated by pressure to evaluate one another in ugly, personal, political, demeaning points of view. It hurts my heart and soul.
I’ll not be one who maligns or dismisses or denigrates or belittles someone because they believe differently than me. I respect other’s opinions and will expect the same in return. I love the interwoven aspects of my community and I’ll continue to be a respectful part of it no matter which political party is in the White House or state house. The ebb and flow of change is a healthy thing so we each have the opportunity to experience different ways of thinking and living. Honesty and truth at the highest levels need to be held as precious things. Without them, we only have opinions of fallible human beings.
I wish you a grateful Thanksgiving and hope you celebrate in a way that is safe, healthy and hopeful for you and those you love. Peace and Blessings to you.
Lesson learned: Thanksgiving cannot be cancelled due to a virus.
In this new painting, ‘Village Under the Sun’, the imagery is filled with all kinds of transitions— from line to gradient, warm to cool colors, curves to angles, light to dark values, textured to smooth surface, not to mention the imagined overlapping and off-kilter architecture. And the changing unreal scale of buildings and people. Yet if handled well, all these juxtapostions can live peacefully together. Creating a kind of balance that despite its quirkiness and unusual views, still does create a recognizable world where we live well in the peacefulness of a place we call home. Contact Kennedy Gallery in Portsmouth NH for more information. Visit Ann Trainor Domingue website for more info.
Lesson learned: Living together in peace despite differences matters most. Let’s hope the upcoming election results in a peaceful transition or continuation for America’s sake.
‘It Takes a Village,’ a few words from an African proverb, was the inspiration for developing this new series of work. The first in the series is shown above–an imagined area of a small fishing village where activity is the norm and people know each other. By the sound of voices, dogs barking, children playing, and engines running. Subtle sounds of life happening as it does day after day in small American villages all over our country.
Preliminary drawing to design the square canvas shape.
I have taken this theme and worked to bring aspects of different villages in New England together in individual paintings. One painting may have a cupola from Monhegan or Portland and a fish shack from Kittery or Camden, or a beautiful home in Goffstown to a Victorian era mansion in Laconia or New Boston or Cape Cod. There are many ideas rolling around in my head to create new ‘villages’ this summer. Stay tuned.
Drawn line using fluid acrylic with red wash under painting.
Lesson learned: A pair of historic fishing shacks on Monhegan Island, Maine has proven to contain a watershed of ideas for my art journey. Little did I know my first painting trip there in 2003 would offer such a huge amount of inspiration and direction. A big thank you to Stan Moeller a wonderful plein air painter from Kittery Maine was the instructor who opened the door to plein air painting and studio painting. www.anntrainordomingue.com
Ann Trainor Domingue art 