Purple Cone Flowers Acrylic Painting

Untitled painting featuring cone flowers. Painting is 24 x 36 inches on stretched canvas. It was inspired by photos I took in my backyard garden. These are not the usual wild echinacea, but a cultivated variety that a friend shared with me. I love their glorious texture!

This is what I will be painting at the fundraiser, "Unforgettable Art: An Affair for Alzheimer's!" in Rockford, IL.
It's exciting to share my art and help a cause that is so important to my family. I am also very happy to be meeting Janet Nelson, a fellow blogger, who introduced me to this event. Watch out Rockford!

I will be thinking of my late dad and grandmother while I paint. There are others in my husband's and my life who are also suffering because of this disease. They will be in my heart as well. Then there are the caretakers... Mom and my brother were steadfast in caring for Dad before he had to live at a care facility.

I look forward to the day when no one will suffer any more. Today I read these words:

Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;
let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
before the Lord, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
and the peoples in his faithfulness.
Psalm 96: 11-13 ESV

Earlier this week I was inspire by the following quote by Mary Todd Beam:

"Our goal as artists may be to live with the fact of death. What we gain along the way is not necessarily an accumulation of beautiful paintings, but a greater awareness of what it means to be alive."

As I paint this Saturday, I will be very aware of the fragility of our lives, but my prayer is that I will express my hope and appreciation for the life given me by creating a beautiful painting.