Hi there, friends! How are you? I’m sorry it’s been a bit since I’ve checked in here, but I needed a break– and then ‘stuff’ kept on happening! And breaking! Haha! Last week we had some pretty serious plumbing work done (ahhhh, old houses….sigh) but– knock on wood– we’ve got things under control now, and I can get back to the business of painting and not watching an 8 foot deep trench being dug in my yard!

I did manage to get a very fun piece painted recently, inspired by Washington Irving’s story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”– this is Katrina Van Tassel! I’ve always thought she was an interesting character that needed exploring. How much did she know about The Headless Horseman who ran off her scheming suitor on a dark autumn night? From the look on her face in this piece, I think she may have had an idea….

The original painting has sold, I but I do have 8×10″ prints and notecards available!

I’ve always had a soft spot for Washington Irving because before I was a Sleightholm I was a Van Winkle! My grandparents had a book about Rip Van Winkle at their house and I always liked reading about it and marveling that the funny man in the story had our name. Later on in life I was thrilled to find out that my Van Winkle ancestors had actually settled along the Hudson River in the 17th century, much like the characters in Irving’s work. And a little known fact– Washington Irving actually toured through this area of Oklahoma on an exploration of the American West, and wrote (not so happily) about it in his book “A Tour on the Prairies.” Irving had dreams of riding through beautiful tall grass and going on buffalo hunt expeditions, but met the harsh reality of a dense cross timber woodland now known as The Keystone Ancient Forest of which he wrote “ “I shall not easily forget the mortal toil, and the vexations of flesh and spirit, that we underwent occasionally, in our wanderings through the Cross Timber. It was like struggling through forests of cast iron.”

It is my hope that next year I’ll be able to return to my favorite places in the northeast, and my friend Patricia and I are scheming about exploring the Old Dutch places in New York. I’d love to visit Sleepy Hollow, and I’m hoping things align so that it’s possible (still sad that everything got cancelled in 2020!)

Anyhow…this summer I’ll be working on art for autumn and Christmas art, and I’ve started a little instagram account dedicated specifically to my faith-inspired art.

I’m hoping to get some painting time soon so I can work on more art!

Hope all is well with you!

Take Joy–

H