Refuge

There is a peace that comes with painting. When I am feeling stressed, insecure, or when the world is coming against me, I seek refuge in the peace of a brush in my hand, and placing paint on a canvas. There are places I go where I can get away from the cares of the day, from the hectic pace of life.

I started this painting on the Cibolo Creek, at the Cibolo Nature Center just a couple of miles from Interstate 10, yet away from all of the noise and clamor of the city nearby. It's one of my favorite places in the world, and it's only minutes from my house. The picture of me painting  in one of the posts below is the beginning of this painting. It was finished in the quiet of my studio at home.

I was feeling especially insecure today for a number of reasons. I was to the point of being angry and frustrated at a situation I have no control of. All I could think of was my problem, and all of a sudden I said, "I need to paint." And I did. For an hour and a half I worked to complete this. (It's still not signed, but I'll do that when it dries.) I lost the entire hour and a half - completely engrossed in the music and the flow of paint being applied by my hand on the canvas. I thought about nothing - not my problems, not my stomach, or anything else - all I could think about was how the color was going to go on, where it was going to go, and what I would look like. Color... space... shape....

Perfect peace. I left my thoughts and frustrations for a while, and did what I knew would take me into another space, a perfect place - my perfect refuge. I am glad to share this with you. I hope you enjoy my expression of peace.

Summer's Refuge, Oil on canvas, 16" x 20" from the banks of the Cibolo Creek, Boerne TX September 2012