18X24 oil on canvas
To Grandmothers house we go. I have my posts out of order. We went to my parents place before my sisters, we stayed in Ukiah at my parents house for 5 days and took day trips from there. Just like my sister who lives in a vineyard, my parents live in one of the most beautiful places you can imagine, although not in a vineyard. They are on the other side of the valley from my sister.
I grew up here on this property in Ukiah. I like to call it a “farmette.” When I was little one of my summer jobs was to scape the paint off this fence around the pasture and repaint. I was a gymnast and usually ended up walking along the top edge of the fence from one end to the other. I can image that I was not terribly effective at scraping. I could paint a picture of this place in any direction and there would be some memory connected to it for me. There’s this lovely pasture where my parents raise cows, an organic garden and orchard, a hillside, a creek full of salamanders and natural clay, a barn with chickens, turkeys, pigs, etc., beehives, berry bushes, wild turkeys, what looks like a rainforest complete with hanging vines that Tarzan could swing through), and lots of space to run around. My kids love to come here.
I actually painted this painting last spring after spring break. (I’m working on this years spring break at grandmas house painting). I have another painting of my parents place that I painted last year that I will post tomorrow. It’s of the other end of the pasture down in what feels like the jungle.
I have in mind that someday I will paint a picture of my kids flying through the air down the driveway to my parents house. Sort of like Faith Ringgold’s flying children.
Here are my spring break paintings so far.
As I said I did this painting almost exactly one year ago. It’s interesting for me to see how my style and subjects have evolved. No matter who you are or what you paint or make, there is always a wonderful evolution that comes through simply creating things, one idea evolving in to a new idea.
Keep creating!
Jill Millward Artwork 