Thursday, January 14, 2010

inside story - Weasel & Crow

One day last summer la Belette Rouge asked if I could do a portrait of Weasel & Crow so I drew this picture and sent it off the next day. She liked it and so did I - and so did Crow.
Then some time went by (as it usually does) until the day came when I mixed up some colors and my table looked like this and continued looking like this for a while.
The painting was begun and it looked like this. Then there was more painting (lots more) then steaming and washing and sewing and beading until one day it was finally done.
On the inside there is another little painting. You see She-Weasel has a dear little friend called Lily (a West Highland White Terrier) who is always there to keep la Belette company no matter who flies by for a visit and flies away again. Crow never stays anywhere long - except here.. sometimes.

11 comments:

  1. it's just like you, to delight and do something special.
    crow's shoes make me giggle. i have crow's feet too.
    i love your workspace. it has great light. but it's the light *you* bring that makes all the difference.

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  2. What a lovely studio, no wonder you produce such exquisite work! Is that a light table upon which you work? I love the windows looking onto the green outdoors.

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  3. I hope She-Weasel and Lily realize that lurking below the surface is Cthulhu. Still, lovely work, but we wouldn't expect anything less.

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  4. Beautiful! Cute too. So are you...

    Thanks for you know what for Christmas. What a great gift.

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  5. I love this story. And some thought it a fox until disclosed it was a weasel, (I did). You are the fox who out foxed everyone and kept the secret until la Belette Rouge gave it away.
    Honestly, very nice work, beautiful colors and the secret. I love it all.

    Peace.

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  6. heh. i just weaseled google and crow. err... googled crow and weasel. barry lopez wrote a book with that name.
    in a social studies lesson, a classroom is asked to design an animal.
    here's what i designed: my animal is orange with triangle designs in its fur. it has six legs, so it can run fast for short distances. my animal has two big eyes and lives on the ceiling so i can watch it when i'm laying in bed.
    with six legs, i don't have to worry about it falling on me. and if the world turns upside down in my sleep, my animal can carry me outside, so i can can fall into the stars.
    when my animal looks up at night, i'll be waving from the bubble nebula of cassiopeia.

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  7. Beautiful work, Susan. I love weasel and crow. The little terrior is so cute. A little something, as a additional treat, on the inside.

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  8. sera - As you well know one must always try to open the door wide when inspiration knocks. It's also nice to offer it a cup of tea and a delicious piece of spice cake made by a friend for a special occasion.

    marja-leena - I have a table and shelves in a corner of our living room which is usually enough.. except if I'm painting silk scarves. Yes, the light box is a fairly new addition and it's wonderful.

    randal - A lurking Cthulu keeps life interesting..

    gary - Nice of you to say so. You know I admire you too and your wonderful taste in films :-)

    spadoman - It's the result of a serendipitous suggestion at the right time. Every so often things do work out nicely for all.

    sera - I'm sure you'd enjoy the book too if you ever run across a copy. It's about a Native American traditional spirit walk in a time long before you know who arrived.
    I like the idea of your Safety Beast and wonder now what s/he would look like in picture form? Hmmm.. Perhaps one day I'll be able to wave back from the heart nebula in cassiopeia. We could be neighbors :-)

    nancy - I'm glad you like them. Having the terrier silhouette not look like a cat was the best part ;-)

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  9. I am so grateful that you accepted my commission. It is so lovely to hang out with crow and have a talisman of our friendship even when he is not near. I am so thrilled with the bag. It is more beautiful than I could have imagined. And, le sigh, I adore the secret surprise of Lily and I watching crow fly off into the sunset. Each and everyday Lily looks for crow and chases after him. She hopes some day to be able to fly with him. Who am I to tell her she can't?
    Thank you, dear Susan. I treasure your friendship and this beautiful symbol of it.
    Much love,
    Belette ( and kisses from Lily)

    Randal: Should Cthulhu approach, I feel sure that there is enough crow magic in this bag to protect us from any harm.;-)

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  10. i have some old oil paints in the closet somewhere. they are surely dried up now. one of these days, when i'm eating cookies, i'll take them out. with enough wine, smearing dried paint and cookies on canvas sounds appealing.

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  11. belette - I'm glad you asked and very very glad you liked the result. From the moment you asked everything else just fell into place which can only mean it was meant to be.. but I've hidden those pants where Crow will never find them again :-) He sends you and Lily both a kiss and a wink because he knows we'll all fly together one day.

    sera - I think if you mixed it all up with some clear varnish you might wake up next morning to find something very interesting on that canvas :-)

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