Brenda Stichter, artist

  A Real, Live Tree A Real, Live Tree is the fifth in a five painting series which tells of Christmas and of mankind at the same time. It surely falls short of this huge ideal, but the colors and techniques in each of the paintings can help to share this story.  Part of the Wordless Book piece 5 each  7" x 5" paintings mounted and framed Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Click here to view on my website. A week or two ago, our son invited my Beloved Husband and me to go with him to cut down a tree at a Christmas tree farm. Our family had done this for years, bringing the beautiful, fragrant tree into our home to celebrate Christmas, and he still loves this tradition. It was such a treat to be invited to go with him to find the perfect tree for his home. Walking through the lumpy field through many different varieties of evergreen trees in the cold is invigorating, and I really miss it when we don'

All That Glitters It is said that 'All that glitters is not gold', and it seems that this saying in various forms has been around for a very long time, even predating Shakespeare. Certainly our Christmas celebrations are a good illustration of that point! I love the gold ornaments, beads, garlands and lights of Christmas decorations, and I recognize the tie to the gifts that were given to the Christ Child by the Magi - gold, frankincense, and myrrh. In fact, I think I would like to bring in more of these three elements as part of my Christmas decorating. (Though I am not sure what frankincense smells like - I wonder whether we would like it!) Part of the Wordless Book piece 5 each  7" x 5" paintings mounted and framed Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Click here to view on my website. In the story of the saving of humanity, that people began to see at the first Christmas, the color gold repres

Snowy White  I have started a small Christmas series of paintings which so far includes A Lump of Coal  and Christmas Red .  Today's addition is Snowy White.  Several years ago, while I was homeschooling my kids, we started looking into photos of snowflakes taken under microscopes. Have you ever seen those photos? You should definitely google these images of incredible beauty and diversity! I am not one who would claim to love the snow, but I am always - or at least almost always - enthralled by its beauty! (It is a lot tougher to focus on the beauty of snow when travel is being hampered, I have to say...)  Part of the Wordless Book piece 5 each  7" x 5" paintings mounted and framed Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Click here to view on my website. In this collection of paintings about the story of Christmas / mankind, the white painting represents cleanness - the innocence that is available thro

Christmas Red This year I am finding the traditional Christmas colors more appealing than I do many years. I mentioned earlier this season that un usual decorations and colors are often more appealing to me, but this year seems different. Yesterday I began releasing a new series of paintings that tell the story of mankind, and the Christmas story of man's redemption. Today's painting is Christmas Red. There are so many ideas of why red has become a traditional Christmas color, but for my series, red represents the gift of redemption given by Jesus through His shed blood. One Christmas tradition that I find beautifully meaningful is that of the candy cane. The story of this tradition that I find so delightful is that of a candy maker who shaped the canes into a J shape to represent Jesus (or, alternatively, a hook to remind of the shepherds who came to see the baby Jesus) and added the red stripes to correspond to the blood He shed for us. For every person.  Part of the Wordless

A Lump of Coal Working on a series of paintings today, I realized that the theme was the story of Christmas, and more broadly, that of mankind. I had painted a similar series in 2014, but am excited to be finding new techniques and language to express the same things. According to some stories, naughty children used to receive coal for Christmas. I tried (briefly) to look up this lore, and found that the legendary gift giver of Holland, Sinterklass (built around the image of St. Nicholas, 270-343) is said to give gifts to nice children, and his counterpart, Black Pete gives black lumps of coal to the naughty ones. Wouldn't it be interesting to learn more of this tradition? The first painting in the series is depicting man's hopelessness and load of sin. I chose to use black as my main color, and an unbalanced composition to show the feeling of weight and menace. The overpowering heaviness of the textured black brings the eye to the focal point where iridescent gold represents G

Promise Tree  It would seem that daily prompt art challenges have come into their own in 2020. It used to be that people hadn't heard of a daily art challenge, and I participated in a bunch of them when I was first 'getting serious' about painting. Now it is not uncommon to know of someone who is producing art daily in response to prompts. It is a great way to increase skill, and to get into the habit of doing something creative every day. I keep thinking I will participate, but life and my other art pursuits keep getting in the way.  However, I saw a group of prompts lately that make me want to try again - at least to reference them now and then. The collection is called #adventwords2020 and yesterday's prompt was the word promise.  Sold 3" x 4" Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Ready to frame It had been quite a while since I walked in our woods, but I went this morning. It was crisp

The last couple weeks have been a blur. I feel like I have been checking things off of my to-do list at a slightly slower pace than I have been adding more to the list! I have very much enjoyed the end of November, but I cannot EVEN believe that it is already December!  Sold 3" x 4" Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Ready to frame However, it has been so long since I have painted much - like, weeks! - that today my Beloved Husband suggested that I ignore my unfinished tasks and paint instead. He must love me, huh? I started working on several new works, and then finished two little pieces to share.  Thick texture and interference paint add a lot of interest to this little work. And, as usual, it is so much better in person.  I am looking forward to sharing the second painting tomorrow, and to spending a lot more studio time! See you then.

 Whew! We did it! Having worked hard at setting up our home for an in-person-but-only-by-appointment exhibit of my artwork, we tackled the unfamiliar ground of a virtual tour, hosted on Instagram Live! For about an hour, my Beloved Husband videoed my paintings and me. If you are on Instagram, you can find this Virtual Tour saved to IGTV and posted on my feed. The good news is, I was able (surprisingly) to figure out how to post the saved video to YouTube as well! So get your coffee and your most comfy slippers, and settle down to watch the show.  We didn't get everything right, of course - it was a steep learning curve for us - but I am pretty happy with the results of our work. The special code mentioned in the video, obviously, is no longer active on my website, but please contact me with questions or comments that you may have about any of the pieces we discussed. Also, please feel free to share the video with others! Click here to watch , and have a very happy Thanksgiving! P.S

Need a Little Christmas "For we need a little Christmas Right this very minute Candles in the window Carols at the spinet..." It will be a few days yet before we get our Christmas tree and decorations out, but I have to admit, I am feeling Christmas early this year, like so many seem to be. (Don't tell my Beloved Husband!) I have put Christmas music on my playlist and love seeing the Christmas lights already as we are out driving in the evening.  I kind of wonder what exactly it is that draws me to Christmas this year. It is different than most years for me, in that I am more interested in a 'traditional' Christmas than usual. I generally prefer unusual songs, decorations, and would rather wait a little longer before decorating and hearing the music of the season, but this year almost everything seems to remind me of Christmas.  I have noticed I see even two-story white farmhouses and country roads as Christmas-y and I feel an unfamiliar tug in my emotions.  NLA 6

  Abstract 026 diptych Sunday afternoon my Beloved Husband and I attended one of the very few live art events of this year, an artist reception and award ceremony. I was excited that my diptych, Abstract 026 was chosen as the first prize winner! The gathering was quite small, and we were all masked, and lots of protocols were in place to keep us as virus-free as possible.  SOLD 22"  x 44" for diptych Painted with the finest quality acrylic heavy-body paint on acid-free watercolor paper Framed in simple frames (For purchasing options, contact me.) Oh my goodness, it was so good to "talk shop" with a couple of the other artists! We talked about our businesses as artists, and how the pandemic has impacted us. As you probably would guess, the repercussions are broad and varied.  Abstract 026b (click here for original blog post  for this part of the diptych) One of the things I have decided to do as I try to combat the negative effects of the lock-downs is to offer an op

We kissed autumn goodbye in a fabulous way this weekend! The weather was so surprisingly pleasant, so we went camping right in our own woods. Of course, the trees are nearly bare, and the woods seems so small, but it was warm enough for just a jacket during the day, and so cold at night that the sleeping bags felt great! 10" x 8" Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Ready to frame Click here to purchase via my website. This week has been SO LOUD. US election news is almost inescapable. We have friends in both Honduras and Guatemala who have been impacted by Hurricane Eta, but have not heard much of their status because of 'stormy' news on all of the US news outlets.  This morning, I got up even earlier than usual to accompany my Beloved Husband to moooove cattle. (Get it?) On our way back toward home, we stopped in a church parking lot so that I could take a couple of photos, and he could clean s

Prayer. Petition. Peace. These have been the starting point for today's painting, which I am delighted to share! For months now, I have had a paper hanging on my studio wall, right next to my easel. "Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing , but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God , which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus ." Philippians 4:5 - 7  Several of these phrases have been important to me during these trying times.  Recently I have begun "activating my canvas" with words of hope (as you might have seen if you follow me on social media). A blank white canvas can be paralyzing to face, so many artists have different techniques for conquering that scary beast. Though I have used many different things to start getting a painting on the surface, I am sure loving using Bible phrases a

My computer is in the shop, and I am having a tough time getting all of my online work done using my Beloved Husband's computer! I feel like it shouldn't be so hard...  Over the weekend, while working sans computer, I painted another really fun little work that I called All Dressed Up. There are several things that the title brings to mind, and each seems to fit with the painting quite well. 11" x 14" Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Ready to frame Click here to view or purchase via my website.  First, it is just such a fun painting, with colors and shapes that remind me of play. And it was fun to paint, believe me! What memories come to your mind when you think of dressing up?  I have my sister and brother in mind, and black and white photos of the three of us with my poor brother having been adorned as "the bride" by my sister and me. I don't remember a lot of dressing up as a

 I am certain that I did not expect to be painting over 40 of these little paintings, but here we are at number 44! Honestly, I think the combination of the basic composition that I start with on each of these, along with the meaning in the verses that inspire them is something that keeps impacting me almost daily. I love using the cruciform composition for a starting point, and I absolutely need to remember that GOD's mercies are new every single day.  Lamentations 3:22-23 (Amplified Bible) It is because of the Lord’s lovingkindnesses that we are not consumed, Because His [tender] compassions never fail. They are new every morning; Great and beyond measure is Your faithfulness. In this Autumn version of New Every Morning, I love how the texture, colors, and movement feel like a blustery fall day with leaves swirling to the ground. I have added copper paint to bring the sparkle and attention to the focal point. I find the painting itself to be refreshing and hopeful.  Sold 6"

Today I am re-sharing these two little works which are now framed. They can be purchased on my website, or you can email me if you are interested in them as a pair. I am also sharing a journal entry from a week or two ago.  Singing to the Trees My quiet time was different today. I will probably still take time to read my Bible after while, but as my Beloved Husband was leaving for work, (and I was outside giving him a good send off) I saw the beautiful leaves swirling down from the sky. When I looked back toward the woods, I saw a deer in the lane. The invitation to go back there was just too strong, so I headed back for my walk.  As I walked toward the woods, I was noticing more swirling leaves falling. Not a lot of them, but I thought how beautiful it is that God designed them to dance as they fall …and they are in their best clothes as they do.  I entered the woods and took the first trail on the right – the prayer walk trail, a friend once called it. I didn’t notice much as I walke

Restore Me  I definitely woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. I snapped at my Beloved Husband before he really even got his eyes open! After he left for work, I opened my Bible (with coffee beside me) and read a chapter in the Old Testament book of 2 Kings that made me cry. I just couldn't keep the tears from falling as I read, and I felt my heart beginning to complain to GOD that I didn't understand His actions in that chapter. Then I (foolishly) looked at my social media - or maybe unsocial media - and saw a couple of posts that just slammed into me. Ugh.  12" x 12" Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas Click here to purchase via my website. You know, when I read about the kings of ancient Israel in the Bible, I know very well that the story I am reading is not about me, in the sense of the phrase "I'm all about that". I know the Bible gives the overall story of GOD's purpose in His creation

Hear My Cry  My rate of releasing new paintings has slowed this autumn, and you may remember that I posted last time from a hospital. Well, actually from the guest house that was connected with the hospital where my mother was being treated. She got to go home, only to be taken back again for a few more days and more new medicine. I am absolutely delighted to tell you she is home and doing well! 12" x 12" Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas Click here to purchase via my website. My autumn has also held some beautiful experiences, in contrast to the time in hospitals and traffic jams. Last weekend we were able to go camping for the first time in a couple of years. We only got to go for one night, and only as far as our own woods, but it was a perfect day for it, and we had delightful company there too. It is the first time I remember listening to leaves landing over my head on the canvas of the pop-up camper... I am way too

Come To Me I am blogging from a guest house connected to a hospital, where I am staying as I wait to hear whether my loved one will be released today. The hospital locked down this morning, so I cannot visit her, but I am very thankful for the pleasant guest house. A few days ago, I got word that she was airlifted to this hospital, so I left from home right away to try to get here to see her. I was able to get here yesterday so that I could at least see her for one day before the lock-down, which is another thing I that makes me thankful! 12" x 12" Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas Click here to purchase via my website. I have been working on a series of paintings which all include a collaged paper with a passage of scripture included. The series is not going quite in the direction I had expected as far as the painting itself is concerned, but isn’t that just about right for 2020? And, truth be told, every year … The

Shadowed With this second tiny landscape, I want to share the second guest blog post (of three) written by my son! I love his writing and his thoughts, and I hope you do too.  4" x 4" framed Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Click here to purchase via my website. Hey; this is Jake Stichter. I'm Brenda's son. I'm a musician, a woodworker, a guitar builder... I am a maker. I'm also a recent seminary graduate – I received my Master's degree in Media Arts and Worship from Dallas Theological Seminary a few weeks ago. My wonderful mother offered to let me serve as a guest author on this blog space to discuss some ideas that have been percolating in my head for the last little while as I've been progressing through my degree. I'm sure this audience doesn't need to be reminded of how difficult it is to promote your art. We live in an era where the internet has truly permeated o