Flying Colors

IF • Flawed

The absence of a flaw in beauty is itself the flaw. Havelock Ellis

fun

fling

flown

flowers

floored

fallen

found

flawed

flung

far off

fringe!

original painting - private collection - Guadalajara, MEXICO - "Spinster's Bouquet"
watercolor, wax, rice paper, sequins, quilted • 36"H x 36"W (detail) • © Lisa Rivas

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You see, when weaving a blanket, an Indian woman leaves a flaw in the weaving of that blanket to let the soul out.
Martha Graham

one ...

... First Blogversary give-a-way!
A set of 15 Art e-Stamps honoring the experience, the friends & joy of this blog world...

Win a sheet of Flying Colors e-Stamps that you could actually tear apart, lick and stick!
To win this custom set of e-Stamps leave me a comment at this post.

This gift/prize is a courtesy and a thank you! 100% Free!
All countries are welcomed! No shipping fees I will send it to the winner :-)
Last day to leave a comment to participate in the drawing of names will be Monday, February 9th.

15 stamps (1.75" x 2" ea.) - Flying Colors blog e-Stamp set
Printed on perforated - dry gummed paper • 8.5" x 11" • Limited Edition

A name will be drawn and the winner will be announced on Wednesday, February 11th!

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Thank you for your visit & comment... there will be 6 more gifts coming up!

1yr of shares!

...And in the end,
it's not the years in your life that count.
It's the life in your years!
Abraham Lincoln



Please, return in the next few days for I will be posting several give-away "Gifts"
for 7 days as a token of appreciation for your dear time, focused attention
and for all of your very loyal visits!
•  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  Muchas Gracias  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •

We all have our time machines. Some take us back, they're called memories.
Some take us forward, they're called dreams. Jeremy Irons

Leaves into spines...

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Cacti are distinctive and unusual plants,
which are adapted to extremely arid
and hot environments,
showing a wide range of anatomical and
physiological features which conserve water.
Their stems have expanded into green
succulent structures containing the chlorophyll
necessary for life and growth,
while the leaves have become the spines
for which cacti are so well known.
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All cacti are native to the America's and surrounding islands, with one exception: Rhipsalis baccifera.

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Green fingers are the extension of a verdant heart. Russell Page

IF • Climbing

^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^

Creating a new theory is not like
destroying an old barn and erecting
a skyscraper in its place.

It is rather like climbing a mountain,
gaining new and wider views,
discovering unexpected connections
between our starting points
and its rich environment.

But the point from which we started out
still exists and can be seen,
although it appears smaller
and forms a tiny part of our broad view
gained by the mastery of the obstacles
on our adventurous way up.

Albert Einstein

^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^

"Hypothesis" 
• digital illustration printed on canvas, 46" x 37" • Lisa Rivas © 2004

...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...^...★...

After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.
Nelson Mandela

Cacti in water!

...a correlation between Cacti and Coral?
Maybe in their appearance? Or is it "their" fantasy?

"Coral Cacti"
6" x 8.25" • watercolor, pastel, pencil on paper • Lisa Rivas © 2009 •

If you must speak ill of another, do not speak it,
write it in the sand near the water's edge.
Napoleon Hill

☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼ * ☼

IF • Pale

•••••••
Over hill, over dale,
Thorough bush, thorough brier,
Over park,
Over pale,
Thorough flood, thorough fire,
I do wander everywhere.
William Shakespeare
•••••••

1.- "Rain" (detail)   2.- "Sleet" - digital illustration / Lisa Rivas © 2009
30" x 30" / print on ricepaper, rhinestones and mounted on canvas / limited edition

* ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ * ^ *

The moon's an arrant thief, and her "pale fire" she snatches from the sun.
William Shakespeare

The Lacebug...

...is a very small insect which
has delicate wings with
numerous transparent areas.
Their wings seem like as
if they were made of lace.

Only by looking through a
magnifying glass or by taking
a macro picture is the beauty
of these tiny wings revealed!

 

"Lace Bug" e-Stamp
• "FUSED GLASS - illustration" printed as an archival pigment print, 100% rag paper

Veni, Vidi, Velcro...  I came, I saw and I stuck around...
~Author Unknown

Saguaro

Putting up your laundry was never so exotic!

Design by Davy Grosemans

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I have been out of town all this last week and I'm still in Chicago for an exhibit, so didn't have time to create artwork for this Monday post. But I found this "sophisticated Saguaro clothesline" and thought it be a perfect showpiece for the "cactuteers" of Monday Cactus :-) Enjoy!

IF - Contained

A reader and friend asks, What is a "Pie Bird"?

Pie Birds date back to quaint Victorian times and are used when baking pies, to prevent the pie filling from boiling over into your oven.

Made of ceramic, these bird-shaped devices act as a clever vent, allowing the steam created from the fruit or other filling to escape from inside the pie.
They also support the pastry crust in the center of the pie so it does not sink in the middle.

"Pie Bird" • digital illustration - Lisa Rivas © 2008

To Use the Pie Bird:
First, line the pie dish with pastry, placing the "bird" in the center. Pour the filling around the pie bird. Cut a hole in your pastry top and place it on top of the pie, allowing the pie bird to stick out of the hole. Pinch the crust around the bird's shoulder, allowing the head to stick through the pastry.

Happy baking!

If you want to make an apple pie from scratch,
you must first create the universe.
Carl Sagan

A Blue Whisper,

The poplar, or aspen leaf, famed for its trembling movements, was called the talking, whispering, quivering leaf. In Native American folklore, the poplar is seen as a tree whose leaves may tremble, yet the tree does not bow, even to the Great Spirit. That leaf symbolizes courage and respect.

• 10" x 10" • © Lisa Rivas • "Leaf"
• watercolor, digital, printed on ricepaper and mounted on canvas

The simple leaf is so very important to life on earth. Light is processed through the cells of a leaf to create energy. The process is called photosynthesis, during which oxygen is released into the atmosphere. Leaves are a food source for just about all living creatures including ourselves.

How beautifully leaves grow old. How full of light and color are their last days.
John Burroughs

Beauty in the Simple...

I will be exhibiting 6 original "quilted" paintings in this exhibit at DANK HAUS in Chicago.

“Beauty in the Simple” is a fine art textile exhibition held in the Scharpenberg Gallery.
An exhibit featuring contemporary textile artists who use traditional quilting techniques in their artwork.
The exhibition will highlight craftsmanship and individuality of design.

You are cordially invited to the Opening Reception: I will be there!
Friday, January 09, 2009  •  At 6:00 to 9:00 PM

 

ADDRESS: 4740 N. Western Ave. Chicago IL 60625 • PHONE: 773.561.9181
CONTACT: Susan Barton - 773.633.6009

"Green" ROCKS!

Living Stones...were originally discovered by William John Burchell (English explorer - naturalist) in 1811 when he picked up a curiously shaped pebble and it turned out to be a plant!

Lithops is a genus of succulent plants native to Africa, their bodies are in fact a pair of leaves that have evolved to efficiently retain whatever moisture becomes available to the plant. To minimize any evaporation the leaves have become so truncated that they have lost the appearance of a normal leaf and have become rounded like a pebble! This has made them less obvious to foraging animals since they mimic the color and appearance of the soil and stones in their surroundings thus standing a great chance of survival.

 
The "Split Rock" plant looks like a green speckled rock split open in half.

"Lithos" means "stone" and "opsis" is "face" in Ancient Greek;
therefore, "Lithops" means "stone-face".

The pebble in the brook secretly thinks itself a precious stone.
Japanese proverb

Love this year!

Another fresh new year is here!
Another year to live!
To banish worry, doubt, and fear,
To love and laugh and give!

 

This bright new year is given me
To live each day with zest!
To daily grow and try to be,
My highest and my best!

•  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  ♥  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •

I have the opportunity
Once more to right some wrongs,
To pray for peace, to plant a tree,
And sing more joyful songs!

William Arthur Ward

She said she usually cried at least once each day not because she was sad,
but because the world was so beautiful and life was so short.