SPRING

....to our readers today...

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...spring and/or summer weather is here.....
the once bare tree a few weeks ago at Stonestown mall....
is now showing signs of life....the leaves are growing back...

but weather in the 70s is a little bit too warm

for these ladies by the bus stop...

i did a second session for my seascape....

seascape painting in progress...2nd session

painting is a great therapy and a very creative 

endeavor for me....i'm sure it had been the great

excuse for a lot of people like Churchill.... in those

days when he had his share of troubles before and

during the war....

and probably saw painting as a way to

pack up his troubles.....

there's something to learn each day...

i'm sure...

and Putin's hyper...ism...

 might find this helpful nowadays...

coupled with soothing and peaceful music

....his troubles

will vanish like bubbles....

Marge....a Pacifica artist

Marge a Pacifica artist who happened to be driving by 

from her plein air

session dropped by to say Hi...

that's all folks!!!

jt

The Promise

)

HOW DO ARTISTS SPARK THEIR CREATIVITY?....

...... this question has been raised a million times...

and one of the answers that rings a bell is.....

INSPIRATION....

sometimes it comes from nowhere ....

meaning it comes from somewhere....

a certain source that kicks the artist's power to imagine

or conceive what ordinary mortals don't normally do

or claim are devoid of....

to a painter .....

it can mean a simple glance from a woman ...

Catherine Spaak

Suzanne Pleshette

a pose that creates a sultry look

Eleanor Parker

...a hand gesture...

Kathleen Quinlan

Ingrid Bergman

Claudia Cardinale

something that fascinates.... even just the voice

often described as "sweet" or womanly...

a certain smile 

Gloria Romero

.... or a caring word ....

or a mysterious look...

etc.... 

can make lightning to strike again...

only artists with sagacity can sense it ....

not everyone is born with it ....unfortunately...

even a psychologist may have difficulty 

but to an artist it's easy picking...

that's all folks !

it's almost midnight...

i'll catch up with the latest on Ukraine
and the missing Malaysian plane...

we might all be wearing gas masks....
hope not...

jt

WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN YOU FALL IN LOVE....

.....this song was composed by Burt Bacharach....

....i usually start my day listening to a string of bouncy and lively tunes like "what do you get....,

Up, up and away , the Age of Aquarius, Downtown"  and then segue to romantic and mellow

ones like Two for the Road,  The Seekers music, then to the instrumentals of the

101 strings and Mantovani to classical.....

Somehow when i do this ....my creativity is revved up....

and off i can tackle my work with plenty of focus...

i get inspired in doing portraits particularly those with

mystical personalities.....

"the lady with a mysterious look"
This charcoal portraiture is still in progress...
drew it while listening to "If You Go Away"
the French version by Mireille Mathieu ...Ne Me quitte pas ...
on KALW/KCSM 91.1 FM

i just love it when i have these kind of sitters....

it's my antidote for the  "artist block"...
i can do greater works if i'm surrounded by
a woman like her...

... i can play Bacharach's ..."what do you get when you fall in love"...

a thousand times and not get persuaded by its cynical message ...
and follow it up with Spanky and Our Gang's
"Cause I'd like to get to know you"...

there are two romantic songs i know apropo to portraiture....

i hope you will youtube these songs to see what i mean...

"Portrait of my Love" sung by Matt Monro, and "IF" by the Bread 
or Frank Sinatra's version...

and if i were to think of poetry partner to these songs...

 ...i would not hesitate to mention

Ben Johnson's "Song to Celia" 

the first line is a killer....

                  "drink to me with thine eyes...

                  ......and I will pledge with mine"

                   .....ay yay yay !!!!!

let me know if you folks have your

own version of mystery partner...

it's Sunday folks !!!

it's a day to relax...

i'll see you in the cafe nearby...

jt

CROSS COUNTRY

..... sometime in the future after my Philippine project

is finished i'd embark on a cross country trip and make stop overs

to scenic places ....

to do plein air paintings....

I'd probably play the music of....

 Eumir Deodato

 while on the road....

particularly his version of "Sprach Zaratustra"....

it's one that's lively and will keep me alert while driving...

this piece of music used the "moog" machine for sound effects...

i will line up additional music of Bacharach, Sergio Mendes, the 5th

dimension along with Astor Piazolla, J Rodrigo's Concerto de Aranjuez,

and some Mediteranean sounds....

I'll organize the SF PEBS to join the trip so that it will be a lot of fun...

we can start from Yosemite.....

giant sequoia trees

campers and bikers at the park

 to Yellowstone Park...

Thomas Moran painted this scenery

a herd of bisons on the prairie

and in between check out scenic spots of Oregon

this trip i'm sure will be very art productive....

anyway....it's just a thought for the meantime....

but it's an intention that will be acted upon...

hope you folks have a similar project...

that's it for now...

catch you later...

jt

LONG LONG TIME

.....went to Trader Joe's....

ladies chatting over a moped

and somehow i forgot to grab my supply of

purified water...

so on the way home...

i dropped by Lucky's supermarket.....

to pick up a gallon of water....
on aisle 11 ...

when i heard the 

music of Linda Ronstadt...

"long, long time"

this is one great music which i think a lot of women

had at one point or another in their romantic moments

have done and therefore can relate to...

"Long Long Time"

Love will abide, take things in stride
Sounds like good advice but there's no one at my side
And time washes clean love's wounds unseen
That's what someone told me but I don't know what it means.

Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think I'm gonna love you for a long long time

Caught in my fears
Blinking back the tears
I can't say you hurt me when you never let me near
And I never drew one response from you
All the while you fell all over girls you never knew
Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think it's gonna hurt me for a long long time

Wait for the day
You'll go away
Knowing that you warned me of the price I'd have to pay
And life's full of flaws
Who knows the cause?
Living in the memory of a love that never was
Cause I've done everything I know to try and change your mind
and I think I'm gonna miss you for a long long time
Cause I've done everything I know to try and make you mine
And I think I'm gonna love you for a long long time.

check the music out on youtube

that's all for now folks!

jt

TWO MUSICIANS WENT BY...

....two world renowned musicians ...

will be missed by those whom they've touched

and will touch with their music and thankfully

their passion for it....

Pete Seeger....

The black and white years 

Pete Seeger gave us many decades of his music through his live concerts

folk singer and composer of those nice calm and soothing

melodies i.e. Turn, turn, turn ....check out

 Judy Collins version....

and Paco de Lucia...

heralding the tradition of flamenco music....

He had a profound influence to a friend of mine ...

Grisha

Photo I took for Grisha's cd cover produced by VGO

These musicians brought meaning to our lives....

"...totally!!!" as the valley lingo goes...

check their music on youtube when you have time....

that's all for now, folks.....

gotta get my dinner and watch late news...

Hope Putin listens to these musicians

music to calm him down...he's a bit

hyper these days...

jt