a shopping trip and a bunny

We decided to visit a fun grocery store called Wegmans yesterday... it is about 35 minutes from here, and got in my adventuremobile to leave. I pulled out of my parking spot and there was a black bunny, right on the grass in front of my spot. With rich black fur he was lovely, and I automatically said, "oh! A bunny!!" Virginia immediately got out of the car to go after him and he took off like a shot under a car. After several tries we realized we weren't going to catch him, and decided to get bunny treats to lure him at the grocery.

When we returned Virginia found him right away under a car, and began talking to him and tempting him with a carrot. Somehow, after about 20 minutes, she managed to catch him safely and he just immediately nestled up against her. He was clean and well fed, and we debated taking him to the Montgomery County Humane Society..... I once had a lop named Cadberry and have talked about getting a pet rabbit again..... but it seemed the wisest thing to do was to take him so that vets could check him out and if people were looking for him, they would call the humane society. His temporary name there is "Fennel" and a sweeter rabbit you will never meet! Virginia is the rabbit whisperer.

a little more on the cinnamon bear

I spent a quiet day at the studio yesterday.... sweeping away the fall leaves, watering plants, making an iced decaf coffee (soon it will be too cold there for that) and working on the bear and a couple of other studio projects. Several people came by and some regular visitors were so charmed by the copper birds that I made with artist Mimi Harris that they asked for her contact information to buy some.... delightful!!!!

I cut in around the bear to begin to show off his chunky wonderful fur, and a base of Payne's Gray on his foot pads will be covered with a pattern of grooved and crevasses. I have been studying a lot of bear paws online and in reference books. More to do with his fur, but this is a good start.... I want to keep these portraits loose and washy (sometimes with drips, like the tiger.... that drip in the lower left corner is my favorite part of the painting!) and I am so looking forward to finishing this piece. Who will be next?

I will need a wonderful font for the ABC letters in the book that I will create from these portraits.... you know:

B is for Bear

with a great font style for the alphabet letter.... does anyone have any ideas for a font?

the cinnamon bear

A marathon painting session has moved the progress of the bear forward. After a lot of thought about this bear I had decided to make him cinnamon-colored to make him more playful and engaging....... there will be no scary animals in this series, surreal yes - scary no. I cannot wait to get back to work on him.

starlings in flight

Murmuration from Sophie Windsor Clive on Vimeo.
A chance encounter and shared moment with one of natures greatest and most fleeting phenomena.


We saw a mumuration three or four years ago..... at Blackwater Wildlife Refuge. The birds formed one long, seemingly endless undulating ribbon in the sky. It was one of the more stunning wildlife experiences I have enjoyed. What would we do without the birds??????

wssc clean water poster contest for a 2012 calendar

A trip to Laurel last night to help judge the entries for the 2nd Annual WSSC Clean Water Poster Contest, with a theme of “Our Part of the Chesapeake Bay: Let’s Keep Our Water Clean.” The winning entries will be featured in a calendar available for purchase, and it was wonderful to see all of the creative and thoughtful entries from second through fifth grade artists. Winners will be announced soon!

calendars... lovely little bits

I like calendars. I keep big ones here and there, even a desk blotter size one where I keep schedules and appointments. I keep one in my planner that is with me most of the time, and several in the different locales that I inhabit. Truth be told, I LOVE calendars. Oh the visuals!!! Several artists that I know put out calendars... some more successfully than others. One calendar I always look forward to is put out by Teresa McCue and she now sells notecards as well! It is time to go shopping for a calendar, and I cannot wait!

whew..... we made it to November!

I had my doubts there for a while! With a lot of events and things going on, October roared through. We spent Halloween with Dear Ones and got to catch up a bit..... it was a great family evening. I am looking forward to getting back in the studio to work on the animal series, and as Fall moves into Winter I look forward to slowing down some and just having an abundance of studio time.

I need to start my search for the perfect calendar for next year!