art and music

I had lots to do this morning so I didn't begin this picture of Yakov until I got home from the shower when it was getting dim and very foggy. I never tire of the fog, the way the world seems soft and different. I was better today as far as the sadness went, the music that made me desperate two days ago filled me with appreciation today. I have tons of it saved on my computer and play it on "shuffle" so it surprises me - all of the Putamayo stuff, Joni Mitchell, Tupac, Iron & Wine, lots of Spanish stuff and so on. I was thrilled at how happy beginning this picture made me. I am posting it in the underpainting stage because it is interesting to see and because I am too tired to go any further tonight. I have never before painted a picture of an animal - this is from a photo of Y. sitting in pans on the stove. It was impossible to take a picture due to the lack of light but I did capture the sense of her. Pain and sadness are quite exhausting and I feel blessed to have the ability to process the world through art. In a world that seems to value art and music less and less I am grateful for them, more than I could ever have understood only a few years ago.