Brenda Stichter, artist

Things Unseen "My business is practically on life-support," I told a family member as we talked about the last several months. (I know - I don't plan to keep harping on it! But you gotta hear this!) "My website views are way down, I am not painting very often so I have very few new paintings, and I definitely don't have time to market right now." She and I were comparing notes on trying to keep things running as we worked through illness and family responsibilities with aging and ailing parents. "Still, I sold a lot at my open house, and I have been surprised by some other sales lately..." I told her.  What I didn't talk to her about was how difficult it has been to get back into painting. For most artists, their work is a portrayal of their souls, and when the soul is murky, it can be so difficult to produce new work. I think that discipline - going into the studio every day anyway, and at least TRYING to paint - is important for an ar...

I Will Arise, award winner! I have enormous news! I found out this afternoon that I have won the BoldBrush Award for Abstract painting , which is essentially the Best in Show award for this monthly competition. As I mentioned once before, this competition is huge, and my painting, I Will Arise was selected from over 2300 entries. I am just so VERY excited!  This painting can be seen here on my website, and the original blog post about it is here .  It is so overwhelmingly exciting to me that I just had to share with you. Celebrate with me! 

Selah When I am in the Psalms during my Bible reading time, I almost feel like I am eating an extremely rich meal. There is so much emotion and often I feel like the psalmist was talking to God in ways that I would like to talk to Him - his prayers are mine, too. But, like a rich meal, I cannot just rush through from one end to the other and still appreciate it. In fact, I might get too much - get a stomach ache - if I don't slow down.  SOLD 12" x 36" Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas Click here to view on my website.  The word selah is a Hebrew word that is not absolutely understood by translators, if I have my facts straight. It shows up quite often in the Psalms, and one of the ways I have heard it to be understood is "pause, stop and think about that for a moment" or something along those lines.  One of the things that has been so necessary for me this last while is to pause, stop and think a...

Again With the Roses...  Well, I had a short time to paint today, and I have been watching the wind and rain take a toll on my rose bush outside. I suppose that is what got into me. Ha! As you might be able to tell, the paint is still wet in this photo. I hope you still get the feel for the beauty of these old fashioned summer roses. Oh, they smell SO good!  Sold 6" x 6" Painted with the finest quality acrylic heavy-body paint on hand-made, prepared wood panel Ready to frame Click here to view on my website. Once again I am using modeling paste to prep the plywood panel, and I am still learning how to interact with it as I paint.  Next time, back to abstract painting!

Bittersweet This has been a gorgeous day in Northern Indiana! We actually used our fireplace this morning because of the cool temperatures - so uncommon for this time of year! SOLD 16" x 20" Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Ready to frame Click here to view on my website.  I have  two   nearly finished  paintings from my studio  today , and one I want to hold on to and make sure it is really finished. But this one , Bittersweet,    has been on my easel for probably 6 months in various stages, and I am finally considering it done. An artist friend of mine refers to art "stopping in an interesting place", which I think may be a quote, but I am not sure...  I almost always stop working when I really like (or occasionally really do NOT like) what I am seeing, and I like to set the work back and look at it for a while to see whether I am satisfied, or whether it i...

New Every Morning #21 If you have been with me for a while, then you know that my New Every Morning series is the name I have given my daily warm-up paintings. This time around, this painting is so important for getting a brush back in my hand, remembering the truth of the verse on which the series is based, and to getting me back online, sharing my work with you!  6" x 6" Painted with the finest quality acrylic heavy-body paint on hand-made, prepared wood panel Ready to frame Click here to purchase on my website.  I have started work on a new bigger painting that has me excited to get painting, but I am waiting on layers drying, so it is a great time to tell you about what I am doing with the next few New Every Morning paintings. I have taken four plywood panels that we have cut and sanded for paintings, and have prepared them using acrylic modeling paste. I have intentionally spread the paste unevenly on the board to give myself different textures...

I Will Arise - BoldBrush Fav15%  Since I am still working on getting back into the studio, and am planning work on paintings that take longer to finish, I thought I would share with you some good news I received from the BoldBrush painting competition. I Will Arise is one of the Fav15%, which means top 15% of the jurors picks for the month of May 2019. It is a pretty big deal to me, because there are literally HUNDREDS of paintings in this competition! Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper, mounted on cradled panel This past Sunday, a friend requested this hymn in our morning worship service, and it brought me to tears. The beautiful music is just right for the words, and my heart was moved. I was so grateful! Click here for the original post about I Will Arise on my blog, and click here to visit it on my website. 

Sketches made while we traveled in Alaska You may not have missed me, but my family and I have been gone for the last half of May. So much has happened, and I think the time has come to let you know more of the story.  I am actually going to start clear back in August of 2018 when I had the privilege of attending a workshop given by Makoto Fujimura. It was a 'bucket list' opportunity for me, and I was so honored to be one of the 15 artists who were accepted for this event. My Beloved Husband and I drove to Cape Cod, and when I returned, exhausted but inspired, I thought, "OK, time to rest a bit and then hit the studio."  Well, evidently that is not what GOD had planned for me.  September included two unexpected trips, and when I got home, I prepared to rest, then get into the studio. But during my trip home, I realized a need to spend some time helping my mom downsize, moving from her home of 30-some years to a condo. So starting in October, I traveled to Min...