Brenda Stichter, artist

Christmas Glory This morning I prepared and underpainted six substrates for new work. I don’t know why, but I feel an urgency to continue painting at a more intense pace than I have in the past year or so. Of course, in the last year I was sidelined for quite a while with an injury, and spent several months working on a large commission, the Hope Project, which I loved!  This small painting is my first new release since I finished the Hope Project. I am releasing it here on my blog and on my website, but it might not be available for long. This little work is what I call a progressive painting; a painting that I paint, release, and then, if it has not been purchased, paint a new layer, which usually completely changes it. This one has already been through two layers, and was released on social media only. Do you see how different it looks in different lighting? I think that is so beautiful. (By the way, if you would like to follow me on social media, my Facebook business page is Brenda

the Hope Projec t  We finally have a date and time for the Parkview Health Warsaw hospital open house! We will be so excited to be able to show you, in person, how our paintings express hope.  Parkview Health open house will be held Saturday, December 16 from 11:00 - 3:00.  We don't have any further information about what to expect from the open house at this time, but we know that our paintings as well as the work of many local photographers will be on display in this new hospital space.  Hope to see many friends there.  Coram Deo. Brenda

Winter Sunrise   On Sunday, my Beloved Husband and I attended the delayed reception for the Autumn Member Show at Lakeland Art Association, which is the local-est art group that I attend. It had been postponed due to a failed furnace - brr! This painting, Winter Sunrise , was awarded third prize there, which seems fitting since it is a chilly scene. It does surprise me when my more representational paintings win awards.  6" x 6" Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper Framed to 12" x 12" Click here to view or purchase on my website. The painting is currently available at the Lakeland Art Association gallery, through mid-December (though if you REALLY want to get it for a Christmas gift, you could contact me and I can try to work that out!) The photo reference that I painted from is from frigid Minnesota where I still have family living. I feel the cold just looking at it! Chronicles And just today

Esperanza 1 For the last two paintings of The Hope Project*, I decided to use a verse about hope in Spanish.  Salmo 38:15 En ti, Señor, pongo mi esperanza,  atiéndeme tú, Señor y Dios mío.   (Note: my Spanish translation on my computer calls this verse 16, so I am not sure which it should be. In my English versions, it is verse 15.) I only have very elementary Spanish translation skills, but I found this to be beautiful! In my way of reading it, I see "On You, LORD, I place my hope; please pay attention to me, LORD and my God." Those who know what they are doing translate it this way.  Psalm 38:15  For I hope in You, O Lord; You will answer, O Lord my God. Each painting is 40" x 30" Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas Edges painted black Esperanza 2 When these two paintings were in progress, I got to one stage of the work and I did NOT want to continue! I thought the paintings were beautiful at that point, though

Rejoice in Hope the Hope Project This work actually scares me just a little. As part of the Hope Project*, there is one spot on the third floor of the hospital that will be filed with a triptych - three paintings that hang together as one work of art. And each of the paintings is done by a different artist in this case. This is my part of the triptych. The thing that is a little scary, though, is that we three have not seen or talked about our parts of the grouping before working on them! What if they don't coordinate? 48" x 24" Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas Edges painted black With each of the five paintings, I worked from "sketches" - black and white, cropped copies from my own work. It was actually pretty fun to work that way, once I figured out my work flow. I painted my normal bright colors on one of the earliest layers for each painting, and then began toning them down. And it seems to me that the

The Power of Hope The Hope Project  A companion piece with Hope Filled , The Power of Hope is the second of five paintings commissioned for a local hospital. Oh, I do love this painting! I can feel hope against the storm, and the comforting care of the Heavenly Father, particularly when the two paintings are seen together.  36" x 48" Painted with artist quality heavy-body acrylic paint on 1.5” deep gallery wrapped canvas Edges painted black Right about the time this project got underway in earnest, I personally experienced a couple of circumstances that cannot be fixed. I have told you in this blog, probably way too many times, about the devastation in our woods. There is still trouble in my heart when I go back there to walk, or when I see the sun shining through in places where there were trees before. But at that time, I started to ask God to somehow redeem the situation. Though I do not expect to see Him place huge old trees back on their feet there in that gash, I have b