A rainy afternoon ~ the perfect chance to sit inside and work on a new blog post!  We’ve had some drier weather than average the last two months, which has meant lots of time in the out-of-doors and not so much time at the computer.  So it goes… blogging falls down the list behind planting and mowing and weeding and watering.

Putting my head back in the artist universe, I am entertained this day with paging through notecards and prints and making note of some of my more fanciful titles.  You may have noticed I have some fun with that!  There’s a favorite local bumper sticker that says, “What’s the hurry?  You’re already here!” the first part of which I use as the title for this image of a flock of geese in flight.  The kicker is the group of geese still on the ground, watching their friends take off.  Are they hanging back to continue feeding and gathering strength for a long flight?  Similarly, we see a hundred gulls or so perched on a sandbar with the Fairweather Mountain Range in the background.  This image is titled “Fairweather Friends,” to acknowledge the magnificent backdrop to this ordinary group of seabirds, not to mention the fact the weather is not often fair up there.

Then there’s “Shelf Life,” an image of trees and vegetation clinging to a rocky hillside in Glacier Bay National Park.  The trees are each perched on a slim shelf of rock, to the point one wonders how could they possibly be getting enough purchase to live and grow?  And yet they do live and grow, and build the soil at their feet for other seeds to potentially fall into and begin their life journey.  It’s all part of the geology of this place, a fascinating tapestry of plate tectonics, volcanic action and earthquakes.  This image title is of course another take on the more common usage of the phrase ‘shelf life’ generally used to refer to the time period some food items can sit on a shelf and still provide nutritional benefits.  Another Glacier Bay image “Going With the Floe” shows kayakers out in the West Arm of the bay amongst the ice floes. This title brings to mind the advice to ‘go with the flow’ for those needing to chill out, or at least to NOT make waves.  The floes we see here do sometimes make waves when they melt and roll, so it takes care and attention to be around them.

For the image called “Fireweed Fizzle,” I was inspired first with the name of the piece.  The fireweed was fluffing out in a big way all over town; at the same time the leaves were beginning to turn color with the cool fall weather.  The sight reminded me of sparklers on the Fourth of July, but since we’re talking fireweed, I went with fizzle!  Then it was a matter of driving up and down all the roads to find the perfect example of fluff and color.

Last but not least, I must mention “Winding Stream, Trailing Branches.”  This print has such a Japanese flavor, it seemed totally appropriate to give it a title that could also be part of a haiku poem.

“Winter light glows blue/Winding stream, trailing branches/Quiet afternoon.”

Original Alaska art notecards and prints by Lillian Ruedrich.  Click here to purchase 2025 calendars, 5X7 notecards, or 11X14 matted giclee prints.