Why DO I Paint?
By Betsy
Janeway
What a
good question! I paint partly because I'm a record-keeper, a journal writer. A
journal with sketches is livelier than one without.
I paint only with watercolor just because it's
risky: I can't predict how it will turn out; watercolor has a mind of its own,
and is very backpackable.
I paint to record a place or an event and I
love to mix colors. I am happiest outdoors, I never paint in my studio.
Having written a monthly nature column for
decades, for my town paper, keeps me looking, studying, and recording local
wildlife.
Right now I'm studying the miniature world of
mosses, through a magnifier. I think I'll never run out of topics!
Some of my paintings:
Our swimming hole in the Blackwater River runs through my little town of Webster, NH, and is where I swim every day all summer, rain or shine. Today I saw a beaver and the brilliant cardinal flowers are in bloom on the river bank.
A Maine coast island is where I often paint: landing
at the dock, here's our view.
Our son is sailing to the mooring
at the island, with the Camden Hills in the background.
A study of blue jays out of the kitchen window in winter.
