Maria Sanchez

A         I am thankful for Art that colors my life. B         I am thankful for my body that puts up with the torture that I put it through. C         I am thankful for my children who I love with every ounce of my soul. D          I am thankful for the dreams I have that remind me to never give up.    E          I am thankful for the energy and rush I feel when I’ve finished a painting. F          I am thankful for my faith, family and friends who keep me grounded.                (and flowers… I love flowers ) G         I am thankful for God’s Grace , without it I would not be here today. H         I am thankful for good health , my home and hope for a better tomorrow. I          I am thankful for the things that inspire me. J          I am thankful for everything on this list that brings joy to my life. K         I am thankful for kind emails and comments I get from complete strangers. L         I am thankful for Love M        I am thankful for

Great Pumpkin! is growing in my yard. Last years halloween pumpkin fell apart and a few seeds have sprouted. Isn't it beautiful. I think I can make pumpkin flower soup or cook it in an omlette or something? Maybe I'll just let the pumpkin grow and won't have to treck to Half Moon Bay for our annual pumpkin picking. 

Another picture from the garden.. my bouganvilla is in full bloom, must be the keys I think I left in the pot right before planting. ( I lost a set of keys the day I was potting it and somehow think the keys are at the bottom of the pot.)  

My garden is full of color right now. Here are a few snap shots. This is my "living" canvas. 

Yes another Frida...perhaps she's just been presented to an audience and instead of smiling she lifts a brow because, she can see Diego flirting with another woman a the back of the theatre.   (This is only my idea of what she could be thinking...I love how art is open to the interpretation of the person viewing the work. And different people see different things happening in a painting.) I'm not so sure about giving it up so easily on Ebay yet. I think I'll live with it for a while... or maybe not?...aaaargghh I hate not being able to make up my mind when it comes to letting go. I guess I could let it go and just do another I don't think I'll ever stop painting Fridas. UPDATE... I just listed her. I guess this means I'll have to do another.  

Like my house my office space is also always evolving... What's on my desk today... a red flowering lily thing growing out of a lava rock surrounded by black river stones (a gift to myself back in March that I spent a fortune on, only to find out Trader Joes had them for $10), a blue african violet that Joy gave me, (I actually don't know if it's blue since I've never seen it in bloom) a live sprig of choleus that Lynn gave me, (sitting water filled glass vase with more black river rocks)  a non flowering orchid that Celeste gave, (I guess my love for gardening has creeped into my office, or my office has become the land of misfit plants... no longer blooming for their previous owners and I am giving them that final chance to bloom, or it's off to the compost pile or Lynns worm farm ... do worms eat plants?)   a sandia painted egg from my Casa Collection... I love it, the red inspires me and reminds me of my other life as an artist.  a mini trinket b

A few months ago I mentioned in this blog that I wanted to paint "3 Marias" which are me, my mom and grandmother, were all share the same name. I haven't really sat down to paint it yet, but I did do a photo collage. Here it is... isn't the resemblance creepy? In these photos we are all about the same age I am now...eh em... (30 something or other). We all have the same eyes and even the same hairline and heart shaped face, pointy chin and all. I get goosebumps when I see this. My mom never knew her mom. Abuela died of pneumonia when my mom was only 3 years old. I grew up with out a grandmother, but mom made up for it.   My mom has helped me raise the kids and I am so blessed to have her as my mom. She is the best "mami" I could ever ask for. 

Yesterday I was feeling a little blue... I am missing Tim. He is away doing his service for the country. In my blue moment I painted "Frida Blue".  

This is the back side of the Frida mini manniquin. Frida tatoo and all!. backside 

I've really wanted to try something 3d so I found these really neat looking mini manniquins and painted them in (what else) a Frida dress. This one is available on Ebay and if I get no bids I am keeping it for my own Frida collection.     

Ok... so I guess I should stop goofing off but I am having so much fun. Isn't that what doing what you like is suppose to be... fun! Painting is my passion and I'm glad I don't take it so serious that I stress about it. I started a new series of minis. This one is called "El Gato" yup describes him pretty good. No question this is A CAT. A pretty chunky one at that. I guess he had too many ratonsitos and now has to go on the Dr. Phil diet. So much for serious writing.  

Isn't it funny how people who use aim instant messenger pick a picture to best describe them. I really like this one for me. It reminds me of me as a kid. I think I actually had a pair of these. too funny.. I laugh every time I look at it. 

Since I so love Matisse and his impressionist style I thought I would paint Frida in that type of setting. I can't seem to get away from the checker board floor... it seems to come up alot in my painting. I guess because the house we used to live in had checkerboard floor in the kitchen. I loved it. I hope I can put them in my new house. But that may have to wait a bit. Still working on the curb appeal, and other stuff before I can get to the kitchen remodel.  

Just in case anyone is curious here is a picture of Japanese artist Yasumasa Morimura as Frida Kahlo Widely known as the artist who transforms himself into the Mona Lisa and movie actresses. Yasumasa Morimura in 2001 created a work that payed homage to Frida. The exhibition named "An Inner Dialogue with Frida Kahlo" is the crystallization of a project that took him 10 years to complete. Inspired by her way of life, Morimura becomes Frida Kahlo in this exhibition to reveal her world of joy, suffering, and mental and physical pain, and to seek a process by which healing may occur. In the words of Morimura himself, Frida's art is a "fierce and intense manifestation of human sentiments and universal themes, such as joy, anger, sorrow, happiness, beauty, life, and love."  image: ©Hara Museum of Contemporary Art   

I couldn't let this weekend pass without doing another Frida. I thought I would dress her up in something completely different. I was doing some research on Frida and come a across this Japanese male artist Japanese artist Yasumasa Morimura, that dresses up like Frida and then takes photos of himself and manipulates the photos in way that it looks like a painting. Anyways it was pretty bizarre to see Frida depicted in this way (cross dressing man and all), but I liked the idea of her in a kimono. Different from her normal Mexican traditional dress.   Well now come to think of it Frida did a little cross dressing her self. She did pose for a family portrait dressed in a mens suit. So maybe Morimura is not so bizzare after all. Kind of ironic don't you think?   

A new painting! Yellow Tulips. This is a painting that I started months ago and put a side a for while. I think that a lot of artists do this sometimes. Start a painting, walk away from it and then go back to it. For some reason today was the day to finish it. I love the contrasting colors. I am feeling like I accomplished a lot this weekend and now I can relax a bit. Although I feel like I am on a painting roll ... I think I will finish up a kitty mini and then go to bed. Hasta tomorrow.  

Erika and Timmy both asked why I had not posted or talked about them in my blog. Here is the a picture of the three of them. I am so proud of them and so lucky to be their mom. 

Happy flores! can you find the lady bug? Update: Geranio Rojo found a great home. I am really going to miss it! : (   ... but happy it now has a new owner. : )

So last night Timmy asked me if I had ever heard of the movie called "The Birds". Well of course I have that movie used to freak me out as a kid. In fact I can remember not wanting to go outside after watching it. I am the biggest chicken when it comes to scarey movies. I can't even be in the same room when scarey movie is on, much less watch one. ... well when I a sat down to do yet another Frida Kahlo I was thinking of that dang movie and this was the result. Okay I said I didn't want to paint her in dark or dreary way so I added the flower to brighten it up a bit. I like how it turned out.. although now she kind of looks like madusa.  

I was up last night painting and this was the end result. I am such a Frida fan and have been on a Frida painting frenzy lately. So I painted her as a doll, holding an ornate fan and a white dove on her shoulder. Kind of silly, but fun none the less. Frida has for the most part has alway been portrayed as a very dark figure, maybe because her artwork reflected her personal pain. I prefer to paint her in a friendlier light and even with a smile. Something that she did not do much in real life. I think I may to do one a little larger next time. But the minis are so fun, I can finish a painting in a few hours instead of weeks. I put her on Ebay, let's see how she does. Ebay is still a new venue for me, but I am going to give it a chance. It also allows more people to come into contact with my artwork and website. Now I am off to work in the yard... to pull weeds and if can find batteries for the camera, take some pictures of the flowers that are in bloom.  

Here is a glimpse at my new mini art collection. I've started to sell them on ebay. It's a fun way to put my artwork out and introduce Sandiafria.com to the ebay community. The mini canvases and wood blocks are so colorful I may not want to sell them. They are small 5x7 inches and 3.5 x 5 inches. The minis are helping me learn and explore my techniques and play with color.  

Silly Sarah on her birthday. I love that dress. I may have to paint her in it.