The Finish Line – What’s the rush?

I’ve been working on this portrait of Marshmalow ( I know Marshmallow, the word has two “L”s, but this is how her human spells this kitty’s name) for a long time.

Each time I thought I might be close to finished, there was something else that wasn’t quite right. I’d work some more on it and walk away, but when I returned I could see that something else needed to be done.

The hours and everything else around me disappears when I paint. Saul Bellow said, “Art has something to do with the achievement of stillness in the midst of chaos. A stillness which characterizes prayer, too, and the eye of the storm…an arrest of attention in the midst of distraction.”

So, she’s still not finished, but I’m going to let her rest awhile. I’ll be starting on two other paintings today – it’s nice to have more than one going at a time. I can’t think of a better way to spend this very cold February day.