Have a Happy Little Easter!

This is the first oil painting that I did when I was twelve. I'd like to tell you a little story behind this painting, which hung proudly in my grandparents' house for many years.

Remember Bob Ross? You know, the happy little trees guy? His mentor was William Alexander and he was also a happy little trees kinda guy. Many years ago he had a TV show and came out with a full product line of canvases, paints, brushes & easels.  These are some of my old William Alexander oil brushes.....I have since switched to synthetic brushes for humane reasons. I even use a toothbrush in my watercolors!

My grandmother was a big William Alexander and Bob Ross fan and she bought the whole William Alexander enchilada for herself - only to give it all me. She was not the normal grandmother by any account. My mom says growing up, grandma was like a kid, only she had money and a driver's license. This is also my recollection of her. When she (and my grandpa) would watch us for the weekend, the first thing we did was go to the IGA foodstore and fill the cart with anything we wanted! I'd eat a creamsicle bar for dinner with no repercussions!

We'd watch rated R movies (strictly forbidden in our house) on HBO (which nobody had at the time) and then we'd stay up until midnight playing Monopoly (and she always let us win). At bedtime she would sing and tell fantastical stories (sometimes they were scary) and remind us that she'd make anything we wanted for breakfast in the morning. When I was a teenager, she would watch MTV with us and I swear it was like watching with a girlfriend. Despite living in a little town 8 miles west of Manhattan for 40 years, she held on to her Western Virginian drawl and we would howl with laughter when she pronounced "hot dog", "hot dowwwwwwg". 

She was also a compulsive shopper (and also happened to be my biggest fan). I was the "artistic" one in the family.  We would watch William Alexander and Bob Ross together on TV all the time. One day, I remember her elaborately setting up all the oils, the turpentine (to clean the brushes), smocks, rags, the easel .... the whole thing in the guest bedroom in their little suburban house. The above painting is what I created that day - and that was also the day she decided to give me all of her William Alexander art materials (although I have since switched to acrylic and watercolor as my preferred mediums) She always encouraged my imagination, which is such an amazing gift to a child.

Did I mention her piano ... that she gave me?? Years of piano lessons followed that "gift", but that's another story. Happy Easter everyone - love your family while you have 'em!