There are so many different things that I love to create!  Jewelry, photography, drawings, ceramic sculptures, polymer clay goodies and several other things peak my interest. And what I have noticed over the past couple of years is that I don't have one set focus.  One minute I love this, the next minute I love something else. However, all of my different hobbies, interests, and skill sets always have one common denominator...Mother Nature!  The Great Outdoors have inspired me as far back as I can remember! I remember being 7 or 8 years old and spending hours upon hours playing outside, and I was completely mesmerized by all of the interesting creatures outside.  I would climb this huge tree next to our house, and watch all the bugs crawl on or around me. I felt ONE with my surroundings. I felt like I truly belonged in that tree. I wanted to live among the animals and wake up with them by my side.  We lived in front of a field, and occasionally horses would trample by or cows would look over at me from the other side of the fence. I always wanted to have conversations with them, and I wished they would talk to me about anything. It's not like I didn't have friends or was a lonely child, because I had a playmate 24/7 if I felt like playing with my sister.  I just wanted to be out there with all of the creatures.  There was also a very large turtle that had an underground home in the sandy yard of our Florida home, and I used to sit outside of his buried home and patiently wait for him to emerge. Even though my presence kept him down there, I was still hopeful to just catch a glimpse of his big smiling face. I remember being very curious about where all the underground holes led to.  I imagined tiny underground lunchrooms and play areas for the baby insects or animals, and little home-made beds for them to sleep on at night. I tried to camp outside at night all the time, but was constantly reminded to come inside to sleep so I wouldn't get eaten alive by mosquitoes. 

What is the point of all these memories? Well this is a realization for me. I have finally realized that my yearning to be one with nature, always surrounding myself with beautiful hidden getaways, and this huge desire to connect with the Earth serves as my MAIN inspiration for my art.  I have always known that Mother Earth has served as a major inspiration for me, but I am just now realizing that it is the driving force for almost everything I do in life. I love our life here on Earth, I love all of it's creatures, and I plan to share my reflection of this wonderful experience with you.  Please keep your eyes peeled for my ART section to become filled with more Art from the Earth.   

This is a fun photo of a blast from the past!! I made these metal pendants and bracelet in my Intro to Jewelry class in college. We learned to solder, cut and shape metal, rivets, making jump rings, oxidizing, pickling, and polishing by hand and on the polishing wheel. Intro to Jewelry was such a great class, and I was able to apply these useful skills later on when benchwork jeweler at NightRider Jewelry. If there is something you love doing as a hobby and want to learn more about it, I encourage you to sign up for a workshop or class on that topic. It definitely changed my life for the better. and I'm sure it will benefit you as well.

Well, Monday is finally here!!!! I know, I have a little bit too much excitement for a Monday afternoon, but there is something to be excited about.  Today I have decided to giveaway an original abstract watercolor portrait! This piece of art will definitely be a topic of conversation at your next house party. This 8x10 image, made to fit in a 11x14 frame, is an example of a blind drawing that was later filled in with color. (The image shown online has be edited to protect from piracy. Actual coloring and clarity will be more clear in the original artwork.)

If you are interested in winning this FREE piece of art today, then please follow these two simple rules: 

1. LIKE this actual BLOG post by clicking the social icons at the bottom of the posting. AND...

2. COMMENT below with your favorite color!  (the comments are open and you do not need to login)

And that's all you need to do! This time tomorrow I will announce the winner of this week's Fine Art Giveaway! 

For the past few weeks, I have been reading up on yoga and yogic traditions. It's always refreshing to me to brush up my knowledge on the things I embrace in my life. Ever since the move here, I have been inspired to read more, research more, and try new things.  It's amazing how certain places or things can inspire us. Anyway, today I stumbled upon this youtube video that was posted by one of my favorite Art History professors. 

I really was pleased to see this newly discovered form of art. It took me back to my middle school days of being bored and class and drawing pictures and designs on the edges of my books. Of course, my drawings were not anywhere near as elaborate as these paintings, but I felt like I could relate to those artists. Were these artists so inspired by what they were reading that they felt the need to reward the book with some artwork? Were these artists taking reading breaks from a wondering mind or tired eyes? Or were these artists just poor and in need of some free canvases? Whatever their reasons, no one will ever know why they decided to paint on these specific books.  It is interesting to say the least. Books contain such powerful words to help inform, entertain, inspire, or to help us escape our own realities. What a beautiful setting for inspired imagery!  This video really makes me wonder what inspires me and why?  What inspires you?     

So here's the scoop: All you need to do right now, is sign into your fb account and comment on Lorel Lee's profile picture stating which print you like the best!!  These prints are all "Artist Proofs" and not from an actual edition.  

PRINT #1 is a drawing of a surrealistic set of legs wearing a short skirt titled "Thigh High".  This print was created using a copper etching plate and  ran through the print press twice. The underlayer color is a brilliant peach with a forest green overlay of the actual drawing. 

PRINT #2 titled "Treyshville" is a photo etching print of a Trey Anastasio concert using photos that I took at the concert to create this double exposure effect. 

PRINT #3 titled "Happiness" is a cartoon-like drawing of myself using the acid etching technique on a copper plate to create varying tones from a light to dark shade of blue.

Please go vote  for your favorite print for your chance to WIN FREE ART! 
One lucky winner will be selected tonight at 10pm and announced on this blog. Happy Commenting!!!!! -Lorel

I haven't blogged in a while, so perhaps today is a good day to do so. I started my morning off with a nice gentle yoga practice taught by my friend, Pamela Greenough. My husband joined me for the first time, and it was very relaxing and brought calm energy into my day. Huge thank you to Pam for the class and for everything else you have done. You are great friend. 

On a side note, I would like to thank everyone that tolerated my coupon extravaganza promotions. I normally don't enjoy posting a million things to try and promote a sale. I am just really hoping to dwindle down my inventory at this point. I would really love to get rid of some of my large prints. If anyone knows anything about displaying really large prints somewhere permanently, so they don't have to be moved around all the time... please feel free to let me know. I mean they are stored in a large concrete pouring tube, and they need to be on wall. HELP!