Beyond The Chaos

BumberShootStudio Paintings

As I glance down at my watch to estimate how much time I have left before reaching the point of no return and being late for my appointment, it dawns on me that I always do this...wait till the last moment after I had plenty of time to spare but now the pressures on and I need to rush to my destination!

Racing against traffic, annoyed by everything on the road and off (pity those who may have been in the vehicle with me), my blood pressure and anxiety level would always go through the roof.

Pondering this...not wanting to delve to deep into my psyche...I realized that part of me (a very broken part) actually craved and sought out opportunities to invoke surges of emotion. This would unfortunately effect relationships with the people around me as well. My confrontational personality seemed to set fire to everything and was always followed up by feelings of guilt.

Thankfully God has helped me over the years and pandemonium's a thing of the past. I do believe this is a large reason why watercolor originally intrigued me though. The medium is not just pretty but it's unpredictable and challenging. When the paint touches wet paper and explodes across the page, it comes alive and takes you on a journey. This wayfaring can be quite pleasing but it can also leave you with what looks like a muddled up mess!

As intimidating as it may look, be patient, the true potential is what lies beyond the chaos and it's what makes for some of the most beautiful paintings...and radiant lives.

Rain Or Shine

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2014
Logo for BumberShootStudio
Drawing of myself

My moms family all live on the East Coast in America and I still have images in my mind of dripping wet umbrellas sitting by the front door in my grandmothers house. They were kept neatly contained in an umbrella stand and when it rained...boy did they sparkle!

The Oxford English Dictionary quotes "bumbershoot" (another name for umbrella) as "originally and chiefly U.S. slang" which is contrary to popular belief that it is British...just saying. Whether you use the term umbrella or bumbershoot it always seems to transport you somewhere rainy and wet. That is mostly why I chose it as my shops logo, wet...water...watercolor and bumbershoot sounds really cool! But did you know the umbrellas design was originally created as a means to shade yourself from the sun...

Dating back over four thousand years, ancient art and artifacts from China and Egypt depict evidence of these umbrellas and parasols first being used to provide shade from the sun...because why would anybody want to go outside when it's raining!

Webster's Dictionary definition of parasol is "a light umbrella that you use to protect yourself from the sun." We have of course waterproofed them over the years...because why would anybody want to be stuck inside just because it's raining!

I recently posted a short video clip on my Instagram showing hundreds of folks walking down the street here in China using umbrellas on a sunny day. At first (to a westerner) it seems ridiculous and somewhat over the top...even vanity!

After living here a while in this sub-tropical heat where the sun is relentless and walking is your main means of transportation, you desperately reach for any type of relief you can.
That's right...

I have an umbrella with me at all times now...in my purse, in my backpack, in Marks backpack, in the outside foyer of my flat (in case one is forgotten). I have many colors and sizes...big, small, pink, aqua, red, plaids even ones with ruffles and lace. I am unashamed to say vanity follows me everywhere, rain or shine!
When in Rome.
(I mean Asia ;)

Secondary

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2014
'Simplicity'
(Sold)

While living in the Sonoran Desert (Arizona) we often described it to others as a 'green desert'...adding 'green' somehow brings the existence of life. People picture deserts as dry, barren waste lands, not beautiful vistas filled with trees, shrubs and cacti that look like jewels placed within the shimmering red sand.    

Back East in the U.S. (New England) the view is more a smorgasbord of delicious green shades ranging from cool blues to warm, bright, radiant strokes of deciduous color completely covering the landscape. A buffet of greens that change with every season!

Then there are the deep, rich greens of the Pacific Northwest (Washington/Oregon). Green is such a dominant color there that Seattle is nick named 'The Emerald City.' Massive-Jurassic size evergreens fill the horizon along with the Cascade Mountain Range making everything unbelievably picturesque.

Here in Southern China (Guangdong) the terrain is more a jungle of thick impenetrable evergreens that are dense and leafy, impossible to walk through and quite impressive. The green colors are flat and dull, lacking saturation except in areas closer to the ocean where they sparkle in comparison.  At first I thought it was a layer of dust and everything was just dirty...not so. The colors are faded because of how hard they are working to clean the air around us. Developing countries struggle in this area (America did too) learning to balance growth of industry and protection of the environment.

Green is a secondary color and most often takes back seat to other colors competing for our attention. So the next time you stop to see a sunset with it's brilliant red hues or hear the oceans aqua blue waves crashing upon the shore, take a moment...and breath in the green.

For Convenience Sake

BumberShootStudio Paintings

From the time I first sprouted a pinto bean in a plastic bag with wet paper towels, I knew I was meant to garden, it was in my blood. I was five years old then.

My dream of growing up and having a place with this garden never transpired quite like I thought. But if it had, it would have been complete with chickens who laid plenty of eggs and a cow who gave plenty of milk. This would of course mean plenty of fresh cream and butter! There would be many other animals in my little garden of Eden as well, but that is another story...

Over the years I have seen eggs become artificial, margarine take the place of butter...and milk, well who needs milk anymore! Everything is processed now, even our fruits and vegetables have been tampered with. All in the name of convenience (and money).

The idea behind saving time and simplifying our work sounds good but somehow always seems to come at a cost.

As I sit in a foreign country that is literally riddled with cancer...dutifully soaking my fruits and vegetables in vinegar water because of the amounts of pesticides used on them...I can't help but think about the consequences for convenience sake that seem to plague us all,

no matter where we reside. 

True Color

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2016
'Mirror, Mirror'

Mirror, mirror on the wall...
It was the day before a routine hair appointment to color my gray roots
when I glanced in the mirror and saw something I had never seen before. It looked like someone had dumped glitter all over my head!

It was a couple weeks passed the normal time I usually had my hair dyed to cover the monthly growth, so the silver was long enough to catch the light...it actually sparkled!

In nineteen-ninety-four my family and I moved to China, within three years I had gone prematurely gray. I was in my twenties when I had to start coloring my hair. I have been dying my hair every month since without giving it a second thought, never once have I questioned it...

Covering your gray hair is what we do, especially if your a woman,
my time just came sooner then others and that is as deep in thought about it as I went. Which is strange for me because I'm not the status quo kinda gal.
The stigma that comes with the gray hair is quite powerful.

Staring in that mirror, twenty years and over two-hundred bottles of dye later,
I saw a glimpse of the real me for the first time...
and I love it!

The Beauty In Joy

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2016
'Lotus'

Within the murky, muddy waters....
Lotus grow.

It's custom here in China to not smile at strangers when walking on the street, taught this from childhood...why would you smile at someone you don't know?  As Americans...we do smile at strangers and the responses I find here are quite interesting.

Almost all the young people will smile back at me and almost all the middle aged men will also (being that I'm a woman and a foreigner may have a slight bearing on that second one).  Interesting though, I receive fewer smiles from the middle aged women.

The older folks are more of a mixed group...some will, some won't, but those who do, it's their expressions I love the most!  When they smile back at you a complete transformation takes place.  The cold hard exterior that's been left behind from a life of struggle and hardship melts away to pour joy.  Beauty so genuine it moves my heart every time I see it.

Joy is the expression of glad feelings, a state of happiness...it's also a choice.  I've found some of the most beautiful things grow in the most difficult places.

Perspective

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Work In Progress

"The well water is good for drinking."

"But there are fish swimming in it" I said.

"Yes of course, the fish show us the water is good" they said.

"If the fish are dead...don't drink it."

Passion

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2014
'Old Timer'

Years ago someone asked me what my passion was, I am very passionate about my marriage and my faith but they were not just referring to these areas.

Life is busy, it's busy for all of us. Jobs, children, ministry, we seldom take time to relax and have a moment for ourselves...there's just not enough of time in one day.
People who are 'passionate' about something though...will make the time for it, television and video games are not what we are talking about here.

This resonated with me because my brain seems permanently stuck in high gear with the adrenaline flow switch calibrated to maximum output. So I asked myself does anything else I know function at a quality level and at it's utmost capacity for a long period of time like this?

I had already been painting and really enjoyed it for many years, but only painted when I had free time. I decided to change that and make the time on a regular basis...taking time out of my calendar to do something that I find relaxing and enjoyable has benefited my health greatly.
Going through life in overdrive is a formula for disaster!

There is a fervor and longing that comes from developing a passion for something, you won't be looking for spare time to squeeze it in...It becomes a must!

'Old Wives' Tell No Lies

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2016
'Betula'

If you didn't already know this by now then it's my duty to tell you,
you should never give iced drinks to children and it will also give you a stomach ache, actually all cold drinks are bad for your health.

I know this because I hear it everyday living in China, so it must be true.

Then, when I drink hot tea, I am told to not drink to much because that will take my heat away...

Don't ask!

It doesn't matter where your from in the world we've all got our share of urban legends we love to dig up now and again.  Eating the breads crust will give you curly hair, leather worn on your wrist will make you strong and coffee will stunt your growth.  Everyone's heard feed a cold, starve a fever, in fact many still swear by it!  I know it's hard to believe...but Shirley Temple didn't get her rolling ringlets from never leaving her sandwich bones behind.

I think it's safe to say though, that most of us in the West understand the idea that folklore happens and we all can have a good laugh about it.

But here in the East...

'old wives tales' go by the name 'custom' or 'tradition' and many are observed in everyday life.

So with that said, toxic poisoning from eating seafood with fruit,
chronic bad health from all the cold drinks I consume,

dancing with death by running the fan in a closed room with no open windows

and blindness from going to bed after washing my hair...
are all in a normal days life and times for me in the Middle Kingdom.

But don't worry, I've got this...
I come from a far away land, where the women are strong and my name is Diana,
yours truly...WW

Life In Contrast

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2015
'Midnight Dance'
(Sold)

What's your favorite color? Blue, green maybe magenta? Color brings beauty to what otherwise would be dull and mundane, saturating the world around us with a celebration for the eyes. I also find color to have a musical allure.

When I see color I actually think of sound! When put together correctly color creates a melody. Warm colors to me are higher in pitch while cool colors are lower. Some people relate sound to color intensity, lighter pastels being higher (with more light reflection) and dark richer hues hit lower. Music is harmonization, the sound should flow and unify...same with color.

But good harmony and united color tones alone are not what makes a piece noteworthy. Believe it or not...contrast is where the energy lies, it creates emotion and is what makes something memorable, drawing us in time and time again. It brings depth and in doing so...'life' to the subject.

Too much contrast though, can bring the inverse effect and certainly snuff the 'life' out as well.

As an artist I am constantly trying to better this technique in my paintings but also in my own 'life' striving to make a difference...without disparity.

Time Conceptualization

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Copyright 2016
'Long Life'
(Sold)

As an American, living overseas has many challenges, simple tasks are never straightforward and the concept of time has an entirely different meaning.

China 1994...

You seriously could not get more than one thing done a day, if you needed to do some banking, pay a bill and mail a letter...forget it!

Transportation was horrendous, by the time you made it to your destination it would be lunch and then everybody closed up shop for the next three hours to sleep.

China 2016...

Thankfully it is possible to knock out several things now in one day, you can do your banking, pay a bill and mail a letter...no problem.

Transportation does still have delays but nothing like before and lunch is down to one hour.

The years have brought growth and development but the understanding of what timing is has been misfiled somewhere between 'we should get to that' and 'not so much'.

So to my family and friends who are just now receiving my cards in the mail from China...

Merry Christmas!

The Real Deal

BumberShootStudio Paintings
Work In Progress

"It's from the Qing Dynasty" he said and continued to explain how he came to acquire it. With his poor pronunciation of Mandarin (he spoke a different dialect) and our limited grasp of the language, we understood very little.

He kept saying "it was worth much" pointing to a wad of crumpled newspaper under his jacket. He went on to reveal what seemed to be a solid gold Chinese bullion.

He wanted to get rid of it fast, we could have it "cheap" he kept saying, only two-thousand US dollars. This was twenty-two years ago and we hadn't been in China long...the gold actually looked authentic.

By the time my husband finished haggling the price and we walked away with the gold in our hands for only two US dollars...we knew it wasn't.

It turned black shortly after that.

The real deal can only come from something genuine.

The outside may look and feel legitimate but what's on the inside...it's true substance, is what really matters.

Tools Of The Trade

BumberShootStudio Paintings

Painting in watercolor requires different equipment then painting in oil. They are both beautiful but distinctly unique mediums. Yes, the end result is a painted picture but the means used to achieve those paintings are not the same.

The paintings I've done over the years have been for my own enjoyment. Sharing with others, whether it be art, photographs or writing, removes you from that personal arena and places you in a very public one.

Since I have started a small business with my art, using the web and social media is a must in today's landscape. Store fronts are made of fonts and pixels not brick and mortar.

Thus...the blog.
Honestly folks, this is so not me and I really do struggle with it. But I have been told it's a valuable tool and I hope it will help you get to know the person behind the painting.

Remember The Flowers

BumberShootStudio Paintings

This painting is far from finished and the flowers have no details in them.

It looks like they may represent some sort of white daisy, but could actually be any number of flowers like Cosmos, Zinnia or Dahlia.

Memories are often like that, blurry, vague images of days gone bye.

There are times in my own life where I look back and can't remember a thing or the memory is foggy at best. Yet other times it's all so crystal clear.

In the nineties my family and I lived in China for a number of years but my memories of that period are cloudy. It was a difficult time, for both locals and foreigners.

I don't remember any of the flowers back then...not a one.

Experience has taught me that even under the hardest of circumstances...there is a huge difference between really living and simply existing.

I never thought I'd go back to China, outside of a visit now and again, it was never my plan.

But I did

and the flowers...they are beautiful!

Heart Reflections

BumberShootStudio Paintings

My very first apartment was mostly decorated with hearts. I loved what they represented. We've seen all sorts of pictures portraying what the heart looks like. Everything from simple drawings to detailed photographs. Even now I love painting them, just like this one in the side box.

Hearts are a symbol we often use when showing feelings of love and romance, we give these images to parents, children and lovers.

People are described by what type of heart they have as well...said to be 'good-hearted' or have a 'heart of gold.' Let's not forget the 'bleeding hearts' of the world and how life would be boring without them.

But it is also out of the heart that evil proceeds, it can be deceitful and desperately wicked. This particular imagery though, is not what's commonly illustrated. Most of us would not pick up a greeting card with such dark sentiments.

The real-estate of our heart is priceless, valued beyond measure, yet we allow it to be plundered and poisoned so easily. Guard your hearts above all else...because that which resides therein is what will determine the course of your life.