Time for new beginnings. Oh my dear paints and brushes, I have been neglecting you. Swept up by the flurry of holiday commitments, I have certainly spread myself a little thin.

In getting reacquainted with my art materials and studio, I began this landscape last night. This is just the underpainting.

Establishing form, value, movement, a basis for the paint layers to come. This is where I like to try to capture the essence of this wip painting.

A well layered painting, once finished, seems to vary with the differences in the natural light. When that happens, I feel something special has been achieved. My reward for all the hard work this past few months was a new digital camera. Bear with me as I explore the settings and editing formats. This is as realistic as I could get for the moment.

A grievous feeling gripped my heart yesterday, though I tried so not to let it in. Perhaps it is the let down after all the excitement. This too shall pass. I am going to try to maintain my focus this year, and that shall require tenacity on my part.

Every garden requires weeding and maintenance to allow for optimum growth, so I will continue to prune things which are no longer necessary in order to make room for the new. 2008 is going to be a good year. Cheers everyone!