Saying Goodbye to Rogers Park One Day at a Time

I have been living in Rogers Park for almost 4 years now.  In May I will be moving to Reedsburg, Wisconsin to be the Residency Manager at The Wormfarm Institute until the end of October.  Jacob will be moving to New York in May to pursue his Illustration career.  A long distance relationship will not be easy but I know we are doing the right thing.  

Lake Michigan is 4 blocks from my apartment.  It is one of the many perks of living in Rogers Park.  I have always been interested in the rocks at the lake for their many shapes and earthy colors.  Gradually, I have accumulated a large collection.  But now that I am moving, I am trying to get rid of as many things as possible.  I have made many paintings inspired by my collection.  Their colors have greatly influenced my choice of colors in my work.  I have done so much with them that I no longer need them.  It only felt right to give them back to the lake.  

The 4 year collection.  I have spent many hours sifting through the sand finding rocks that seemed different from the rest.

I have tried to make many painting to describe the beauty of their colors and shapes and none of the painting have ever seemed good enough.  Using the actual rocks instead of trying to paint them has finally become what I have been trying to do for years.  

The Clutch Gallery, Beach.

Beach in Clutch Gallery!

Clutch Gallery!

My piece, Beach, will be inside (and out) of the
Clutch Gallery till May 1, 2012.

Beach is a collection of earthy hues that are found
in the rocks of Lake Michigan.  Beach celebrates
the complexity of organic colors and the subtle
differences in tones from stone to stone.  At first
glance it appears to be one color, but when
we take a closer view the rock is made up of a
wide spectrum of colors. The shapes in Beach
are single colors that have been dissected from
a small number of rocks. The viewer is invited to
search through the hard shapes in Clutch and
choose one to take from the cluster of hues. 

These are examples of taking many colors from

one rock.  The rock is the top left one. 

Check out Clutch Gallery on Facebook!

Chinese Scrambled Duck Eggs, Beach, and Squirrel Eating Toast...

For breakfast today I made Chinese Scrambled Duck Eggs with Kimchi, and Spinach!

Chinese Scrambled Eggs

1 egg

1 tsp low sodium tamari or soy sauce

1/2 tsp sesame oil

1/2 TBS chives

Yesterday morning I went to the beach (and that is where I am headed after this post!) to enjoy the sunshine.

Since vegetables and fruits will be growing soon, I have started to read this wonderful book my Grandma gave me called Preserving Summer's Bounty: A Quick and Easy Guide to Freezing, Canning, Preserving and Drying What You Grow. Sometimes too many vegetables come in and I have no idea what to do with them all so I am trying to learn how to preserve them. I will be sharing what I learn as I read it.

"Once plucked from the plant, fruits and vegetables stop growing, but respiration and enzyme activities (which add up to aging) continue. The physical and chemical qualities deteriorate rapidly. As a result, appearance and flavor fade, and the nutrient content decreases, particularly fragile vitamin C. " (pg. 6)

That is why we should eat more fresh veggies from farmer's markets or our own gardens for better nutrients and quality.

I found this amazing rock that had broken into many pieces in the sand. I took every piece home with me and painted the painting below.

Seagull feets!

...and squirrel eating toast....