Windy, 60 degrees

Today is the first day it has actually felt like fall.  I have long pants AND a sweatshirt on, and I have been drinking hot tea.  (Those of you who know me well won't be surprised by any of this information.)  I am known for being cold, generally speaking.  The wind has actually died down a bit from earlier today, but it's still windy enough that being outside isn't especially pleasant.  I have been awake since 5:30 am.  I thought I needed extra sleep, so I went to bed early last night. 

It might just be one of those curl-up-with-a-good-book kind of days.  I am currently reading a book called Started Early, Took my Dog by Kate Atkinson.  It is a mystery, which I don't usually read.  I checked it out because of the title.  It's a thoroughly enjoyable book.  I was going to find a good quote for you, but if I open the book, I will end up just reading it instead of finishing today's post.  You'll have to take my word for it when I say it's worth the read.  What are you reading right now? 

"Attraction."  Oil on canvas, 20 x 16 inches.  ©Karine Swenson 2011

Books

What I have been reading:

1. Georgia O'Keeffe - A Life. Roxana Robinson. This book was generously lent to me by my friend and fellow artist, Lily Stockman. (Thanks, Lily!) It is a thick book, but I am enjoying it. I can tell that Ms. Robinson did a TON of research for this book. I once hated O'Keeffe's art! As I spent more time developing my own art and studying O'Keeffe and other great artists, I also began to respect and even love her art. One of the largest paintings I ever painted was a tribute to O'Keeffe. Here is a photo of it. It measured about 5 by 7 feet. Oil on canvas.



2. Jasper Johns - Gray. James Rondeau & Douglas Druick. This book was published along with an exhibition of the same title that was organized by the Art Institute of Chicago in November of 2007. A favorite quote: "I have attempted to develop my thinking in such a way that the work I have done is not me - not to confuse my feelings with what I produced. I didn't want my work to be an exposure of my feelings. Abstract Expressionism was so lively - personal identity and painting were more or less the same, and I tried to operate the same way. But I found I couldn't do anything that would be identical to my feelings. So I worked in such a way that I could say that it's not me. That accounts for the separation." J.Johns
This book was lent to me by another friend and artist, Tina Bluefield. (thanks, Tina!)

3. The War of Art. Steven Pressfield. Another borrowed book from the divine Tina Bluefield. I just started it this morning, since I just got it this morning.

Interestingly enough, I normally read fiction. I love the way a work of quality fiction transports me to another time and place. This reading of non-fiction is something new. Or maybe not NEW, but something I haven't done consistently since college.

I am an avid reader. Growing up, my family really didn't watch much television. To this day, I find reading to be a much more interesting past time for me than watching TV. In some ways, I realize this makes me a bit of an oddball. It's almost as though I am actually intended for a different era, when people didn't watch tv, but read books, wrote letters and made clothing by hand. Okay, so i don't make my own clothes, but in many ways I think there is something extremely rewarding to many of these kinds of tasks that we are missing out on in our present day lives. I love writing letters by hand. Even more so, receiving letters written by hand is the most delicious of gifts. See, I told you I was an oddball!!!

Fine by me.

What good books have you read lately?