Portland: The Portland of the East Coast

As you can guess I get really attached to things. People, places, things, food, feelings... I hold onto something and I just cant get enough. One of these places is a jewel of a city in Maine.

I love Portland Maine. It is a fantastic city with awesome food, great art, and wonderful people. If I could just pick up and move there without any consequences I would do so in a heartbeat. It's the perfect combination of historical and contemporary, with a laid back and slightly hipster feel. I first visited a year ago with my husband as an anniversary weekend. We both fell in love with the city... and the donuts... and the poutine. So when we had the opportunity to have a go away weekend, Portland was the first place on our minds.

We got to visit all of the old places we love... Holy Donut, Blue Rooster, Speckled Ax.. and we got to visit some new places too... Silly's and Grace. If you are ever in Portland make sure you at least get to Blue Rooster and order the Rooster Blue with tator tot poutine. It is my "last meal on this earth" selection. Its that good. Scott and I once drove over 3 hours to get to Melt in Cleveland for a grilled cheese craving... I would do the same for this sandwich. Grace is an old church that was converted into a high end restaurant. The menu was very creative and the space is amazing. I went in thinking about Church Brewworks in Pittsburgh, PA (another church turned eatery) which was actually not a good idea. The food was great but very spendy and I kept thinking about CBW and how much I loved that... So is it a place to go to? Sure.. but for us its a one time visit!

The one downside of the trip was that I was getting over an unknown sickness, so I didn't take as many photos as I would have liked and my head wasn't clear the entire trip. Miraculously I did manage to capture a few shots that I love. Funny enough four of these are of the same three little huts on the edge of the sea but when something is so beautiful you have to take a lot of photos. Some will remain as is, but I feel a few will turn into something else... I am thinking about transfers and more mixed media.

Black and White photograph of the Portland Lighthouse

Three huts peaking out through the fog

A closer look at the huts. I am in love with that shape right now

A single kayak paddling through the fog

A peaceful spot to stop and think

Working on something a tad different

If I were asked to name the chief benefit of the house, I should say: the house shelters day-dreaming, the house protects the dreamer, the house allows one to dream in peace.

Gaston Bachelard

Recently I have had this obsession with houses. What they are made of, who lives in them, why they were created, and how they become forgotten in some cases. They are completely inanimate and yet so full of stories. Most people move about 16 times in their life. That means 16 different homes or apartments. 16 places each person is attached too. Just think about how many families those homes can claim! 

Anyway, I have been a bit occupied with thinking about homes and our relationships with them that I decided to do a new series. Inspired by my abandoned homes series this one is more abstract and simplistic. Instead of focusing on the characteristics of different homes I'm using an abstracted house shape to represent homes and the emotions that people tie into their living quarters. Some of these homes are tightly assembled, some are alone in a field, others seem to drift away at sea… but each has a story. 

On a practical level this project is allowing me to work both on my digital work while dabbling back into acrylic painting. I took a few painting classes in and out of school but I tended to shy away from them. It was only after following a few painters online (via instagram) that I decided that I needed to give it another go. While I hope to get more into painting, right now, it is acting as just an accent to my work.

Here are a few of the images i'm working on. 

New News!

I've also decided that in order to get back into painting I am going to attempt to paint in the style of different artists. About once a month I will select an artist on instagram and feature their work along side a piece that I attempted. ATTEMPT is the key work. I am not a painter and this project is not to rip off an artist but to show the artists that inspire me, while learning from their work. If you have an artist you think I should feature or try please let me know! I would love to here from you!