little squares for you.

"Be Among the Things You Love (the words of Saint de Luna)" 8x8" acrylic on masonite. "There's Alchemy in Her Evergreens" 8x8" acrylic on masonite. Hi everyone! The 8x8 show is tonight and I'm very excited. Here are my two pieces which can be seen and purchased at the show tonight! Both sit in black wooden frames, the same ones I had at my senior show and in the previous glovebox show. I'm so excited to see all my friends and be back in the city for an opening. Lots of love, Amanda

for animal lovers..

among the hollyhocks

I finally have my first ever pair of glasses! Sometime this past winter, I realized I couldn't read or be on the computer for long without tiring my eyes out. I finally got my eyes checked and found out I have astigmatism. (I was secretly glad because I've always loved glasses and always wanted to have some, just for reading.) I adoreee my new glasses and can now read, paint, and type comfortably! Yay! I'm finishing up my pieces for the 8x8 show and can't wait to see people I haven't seen in a couple of months (or a couple of weeks, or a couple of nights). Tonight I watched 'America's Greatest Dog' (I believe it is called) with Rachel and her friend Rachel, and I am hoooooked. I need dogs in my life! I miss O'Malley and Gizmo so much. I'm heading back to Buddy Dog Humane Society in Sudbury to begin dog walking again. It's been far too long. I hope to see you all soon at the show, or whenever! Love, Amanda.

mid-summer update.

Hi everyone! I'm sorry it's been so long since I've updated. I graduated college. yay! And now I am entering this really lovely period of time in which I am able to create without feeling any pressure (from classes, etc.). This summer, I've been building a body of work including paintings and writings. This collection is entitled "Depending Upon the Nature of the Beast." I've written a few new short stories and am busy reworking several old ones. A book is in the works, possibly including paintings as well.
This new painting is currently titled "For Antoine," until I can more aptly name it. It's for Anoine de Saint Exupery, in thanks for The Little Prince and his tender understanding of women which is displayed so beautifully in the character of the Flower. I don't ever remember openly crying at a book so much, aside from "Good Dog, Stay" by Anna Quinlan after O'Malley was put to sleep. No scans for now, just a photo. So, this nautical opera girl is for you, Antoine. Wherever you are.
Right now I am enjoying feeding hour in the backyard. Lots of fat bluejays, squirrels, and chipmunks come for unsalted peanuts. There is one squirrel in particular who is not afraid at all. I am hoping that soon I will be able to pet him...perhaps...
And last but not least, please come to the July Glovebox 8x8 show! Kate, Nicole, and I are showing in it, plus many many more. I'll have two originals for sale. The opening is at Goody Glover's in the North End, July 29th from 7 to 9 pm. The last one was so much fun, and I know this one will be too. I'd love to see you there!

Nicole is coming to visit tonight. I'm very excited. It's back to writing now for me. I'll be updating more often from now on, so check back soon. Enoy the beautiful weather! - Amanda

animals strike curious poses. they feel the heat between me and you.

I have been busy spending my time with creatures, and it makes me quite happy. I've been making art, too! And I promise it will come soon. Along with Kate and Kevin, I will be in the Glovebox 8x8 show at Goody Glovers in the North End on July 29th. New prints will be for sale there! The summer has been good. It's hard to come to terms with the fact that college is over. I miss all my friends so much. I miss the city. I miss seeing a certain boy more often than I get to now. But I'm very lucky, and I'm looking forward to what the summer has to offer. The other morning I saw a wood pecker do a mating dance, and, as you can see, tamed a chipmunk. I hope to go horse back riding soon. I love connecting with animals, and I feel like riding a horse is one of the special chances a person gets to literally work with an animal towards a common goal. I've been missing my dogs so much lately. The next time I have a dog, it will probably be my own! So, with all that said, new paintings soon! I hope you're all enjoying fields and sun and rows of birch trees and summer moonlight.

my friend flicka.

Ann Kirchner, who mans the front desk at AIB these days, has created a Flickr acount for AIB! My work, along with the work of many others, is viewable now! Visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/aiboston to see the gallery. Ann's show, "Portraits and Pages", is being held at the Brookline Arts Center on 86 Monmouth Street in Brookline, MA. The opening is Friday June 27th from 6 to 8 pm. You should all go!!

down the rabbit hole for another summer.

camera obscura

An update in pictures. When life is less crazy, I will put up new art! (finally.)

if I could only get you oceanside.

I plague myself with an image of idealized love. It comes out of my fingertips in almost everything that I do - painting, writing, even underlining the writing of others. I've been called a hopeless romantic more times than I can count and it never bothered me because I know that's what I am. The problem, for me, comes when I am forced to realize that perhaps my idea of love is not realistic, or that the loves that I have thought to be perfect were not as perfect as they seemed. The relationship of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera is one that has fascinated me. While I did not find that to be completely ideal, seeing as he cheated on her regularly and she herself took many other lovers, Frida and Diego could not stay away from each other. They needed each other. Life wasn't life without the other one. I fell in love with the relationship of Henry Miller and Anais Nin when I read Henry and June, but even he cheated on her (as he was cheating on his own wife with Anais). What gets me about these couples is the intellectual connection and passion that they shared. Is it too much to ask for fidelity and a passionate and creative relationship? And if you're lucky enough to have such a relationship in the palm of your hands, how do you keep your crazy creative mind from becoming paranoid? These are things I think about a lot, and too much. Thinking too much is a problem of mine. I heard someone say once, "She doesn't allow weaknesses in others because she doesn't allow them in herself." I'm thinking about the last scene of Breakfast at Tiffany's, when Paul Varjek leaves Holly in the cab and tells her she's scared of being in a cage but she's already in a cage and she built it herself. I am building cages. Sometimes I think I wait for things that don't exist and miss out on what is earthly perfection when it's right in front of me. I am trying to learn. I am trying to grow. I am trying to value my own worth. I've found myself untamable. I am ready to be tamed, should someone know how to tame me.

lover, you should've come over.

With everyday that passes lately, I feel like something new happens to make me appreciate how delicate and precious life is. We are not on this earth long enough, and I don't want to waste a single second of it. I hope to keep this in mind every day and I wish the same for others, that we may enjoy every moment of this journey we're lucky enough to be a part of. Love. xo