Bagel Painting Part Deux

So on Friday I worked on the small bagel paintings based on my photos.  I worked at my kitchen table...

which is now my workspace of choice since I can listen to the TV and paint at the same time.  For me the TV thing works mainly because I use it as a motivational trick to get me to start painting.  If I didn't have the pull of Regis &Wendy Williams I might procrastinate my studio time.  It also provides me with needed breaks while I am painting.  I almost never get up to watch it unless something really juicy is going on.

For now, my kitchen is my primary studio space.  What does your studio space look like??

Bagels on The Brain

While I've been painting bagels all day my mind has been jogging down bagel memory lane.  I have a long history with bagels as serving them was my first job ever.  I was gainfully employed at age 16 at the DeWitt Bagelry in my hometown of DeWitt, NY.  The bagels we sold there were FOR REAL, east coast, water boiled bagels with a crisp crust and a soft, chewy inside.  Not bread-y or cake-y at all!  I probably ate 1 or 2 a day back in HS.  Unfortunately the DeWitt Bagelry closed about 10 years ago due to the low carb craze and our enormous and amazing home town grocery store, Wegmans.  Wegmans bagels are not FOR REAL but you can't help but love everything that comes from Wegs if you are from Central New York.

  Wegmans - the place to BE in DeWitt, NY

My second encounter with amazing bagels were the steamed bagel sandwiches at CBA (Chicago Bagel Authority) in Lincoln Park, Chicago.  I frequented this place in college and after college when I lived just north of downtown Chicago.  Nothing cured a hanover like a soft bagel oozing with cream cheese AND regular cheese all melted together.  Yum.  Hmmm, how did I ever stay trim back in the day?  

Most recently I've been sans bagels since I quit the rat race to become an artist.  Back at my old radio sales job at KyXy 96.5, Friday was bagel day.  If you didn't mind germs and torn apart bagel remnants (I didn't) the bagel box was a life saver in the office!  

July 4th Food

One of my favorite food memories from July 4th is Blueberry Buckle.  Growing up, my best friend Emily's mom was a great cook and I loved being at their lake house in the summer for many reasons but partially because of the yummy homemade food.  I remember coming back from a swim in the lake excited to sneak into the kitchen to see what Mrs. Taylor had been cooking.  Sometimes there were homemade chocolate chip cookies and usually around the 4th there was Blueberry Buckle.  Being from a primarily frozen-food household, I had never heard of Blueberry Buckle and loved the name almost as much as the taste.  I have fond memories of the dessert and this year I'm going to try my hand at it.   Mrs. Taylor was nice enough to email me her recipe:

Blueberry Buckle

3/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. Crisco (or oil)

1 egg

Combine sugar, crisco and egg; beat until smooth.  

Combine dry ingredients as follows:

2 c. flour

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

Then, after mixing the dry ingredients thoroughly (so baking powder blends well),  

add these to the creamed sugar mixture. 

Then stir in 1/2 cup milk and

fold gently in 2 c. blueberries (washed & drained).

Spoon into a 9" square pan -- Sprinkle with topping.

Topping:  

1/2 c. sugar

1/3 c. flour

1/4 c. soft butter (cut butter in with pastry blender until topping looks somewhat like cornmeal.

Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.

Enjoy!!!      

My Regards To The 4th Of July

The timing of this painting couldn't be better.  Just in time for July 4th, I am brushing up on my flag painting skills!

July 4th is one of my favorite holidays because it ignites the spirit of summer and brings together family, good food and fun!  Not to mention fireworks!  Woo hoo!  All this week until the 4th of July I'll be posting items related to July 4th.

My favorite memories of July 4th include Adirondack chairs lined up on the shores of The St. Lawrence River, pot-luck dinner parties on the docks, drinks that include tonic water, Carole Taylor's Blueberry Buckle, and of course sparklers!!

What are some of your favorite 4th of July memories?

Dear Weekend

Dear Weekend,
I am ready for you to begin!  Here are some things I love about the weekends:

1.  Sleeping in with my hubby

2.   Starting new books like Cutting For Stone, by Abraham Verghese 

3.  Long runs near the ocean with my Garmin Forerunner GPS watch so I can check my pace.  Love this thing!

4.  Going to movies.  Last weekend was La Mission and this weekend is The Back Up Plan

5.  Eating lunch with Brad at a cute cafe near our house like Claire's on Cedros.  I love their Sweet Potato Fries!  

Photo Sources:  1.  Flickr.com, Gui o Gato,  5.  Sdcitybeat.com

brOTHER ART

My brother, Michael Hession, is also an artist and recently started his own blog called Other Art.  (Do you get my post title now??)  Below is one of his recent paintings.  To create his work he takes pictures of obscure parts of buildings and found objects in San Francisco and then draws/paints just a portion of the photo.

While his work is definitely different than mine, Michael and I love to compare notes on paint, current projects, frustrations, and the excitement of doing what we love.  I am really proud of my brother because he's gone after his passion since undergrad and has since received an MFA!

Here is a picture of me and both of my awesome brothers at my wedding in September.  The artist is on the right...