Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Dupuisian Art

Yes, we have dubbed my husband's painting style as "Dupuisian". He has created his own niche, which is continuing to evolve through the years. *Shameless plug in 3..2..1...*Check out his website www.dupuisian.com to see some of his work. {It will be updated with his newer inventory through out the year.} *End plug* Let me start at the beginning of this journey, though.

Craig is an architect by trade, and was still in school for his second degree the year we were to be married. One of the credit classes offered was a 10 day trip to Spain, specifically Barcelona, Tibidabo & Montserrat, Valencia, and Tarragona  to study architecture and I was lucky enough to be able to travel with him. That trip was a turning point for both of us in so many ways. You see, it was Craig's first time out of the country and although it wasn't mine, it solidified the wanderlust in both of us. It unlocked my passion for photography, and it unleashed Craig's love of painting. He spent the entire time we were there sketching - buildings, trees, people, everything. He has notebooks full of pen and ink that are beautiful on their own, but he came home and put acrylic on canvas to give them life. The results have been amazing. Here are a few examples of previous work, but check out his website for so much more.




He painted like a mad man for several years, but in 2010 put down the brushes. Many reasons contributed to that decision, but suffice it to say that it has been a long time coming that he begin creating again. The spark has been rekindled - he is painting again every night. He is building an inventory for the future, when he can showcase his work through a gallery, art shows, or his own shop.

The only difference this time is that Canon now wants to join in. Craig has given him several old paintings that he never finished and allowed Canon to "complete them" however he chose.




He began painting inside the lines, trying to simply complete what Craig had started. Soon though, he realized that he preferred to paint over the original and create his own masterpiece.







I posted this photo on Instagram a while back and it was taken by my phone, which is the reason the quality is so poor. This shows the finished product that has now found a home in our living room.


Canon seems to be following in his father's footsteps in the desire to paint, but is definitely taking a different approach to style. Nevertheless, another artist is being cultivated in this household. Dupuisian art is alive and well and will take the world by storm.


P.S. - 
If you are interested in Craig's work, you may email me or contact him directly through his website. If you are interested in Canon's work, you will have to wait in line because I am not parting with his first painting - ever. :)






Monday, December 9, 2013

Writer's Block

I usually have such a clear idea about what I am going to write about throughout the week, but I have found myself in a rut today and I don't know how to get out of it. I guess I have what they call writer's block. So how do I fix it?

I could write about llamas or cocoa beans or coal mining, but I won't. I mean, regardless of the fact that I don't know anything about those topics, it seems fairly boring. Who would want to read that anyway?!

So instead, today I will leave you with a few photos of flowers that I took at home {hence the horrible lighting} and hope that you will return tomorrow for an actual post. Actually I hope that I can write an actual post tomorrow. Wish me luck.





 Thanks for your patience.





Friday, December 6, 2013

Wanderlust : Thanksgiving in Naples, FL 11.27.13 - 12.1.13 - Day 4

As I am sure you have figured out by now, I kind of love our family. Sure we all may be completely crazy {except for me, of course}, but I have learned to overlook that and instead focus on the fun we have together.

Every year, my side of the family gets together for family photos. Sure it may seem dumb to some, but I love having this collection of shots to see how our family changes throughout the years. Plus, it gives us a chance to act really ridiculous. That happens every time. Oh, who am I kidding - we don't need an excuse to do that.

Because of this event only happening on my side of the family thus far, I started to think that it was high time to torture the husband's side of the family a little unfair to Craig to exclude his family from this wonderful tradition. Unsurprisingly, Craig and Kurt were less than enthused, but the rest of us dominated the vote so we made it happen.

We started out with the standard "everyone smile for the camera" shot, but I found that boring...


...so I tried to make things a little more interesting with spacing...


...but I finally succumbed to the natural order of things. You will notice that while both couples are very romantic, our immediate family is acting crazy. Like I said, natural.


For a first shot, I'd say we did an ok job but I will expect a better quality next time. Oh yes Kurt, there will be a next time.





Thursday, December 5, 2013

Wanderlust : Thanksgiving in Naples, FL 11.27.13 - 12.1.13 - Day 3

On our third vacation day, we decided to head to the beach to let our Pittsburgh resident-living family get some vitamin D. We assumed that it would be nice and cool since there had been rain earlier in the week and because well, it's November. Not so. The sun was bearing down on hard and it was so hot that we all had to wear sunscreen. South Florida, man...

Canon and Uncle Kurt - two peas in a pod


Oh, how Canon loves his Uncle Kurt and Aunt Kara. I mean, when we are down there it is all K&K all the time. I would feel bad for their lack of alone time, but well no I don't. I am more than excited that he loves them and wants to hang out with them. Plus, it means I get a break for a couple of minutes...to take a couple of photos of course.





Our walk back to the house from the beach proved pretty interesting - for me at least. The vegetation in south Florida is lush and beautiful all year so I have my pick of beautiful things to capture. I try to photograph things differently every time I am there, to keep challenging myself and to keep things interesting for anyone that is taking the time to look at my photos. Or least I try to keep it interesting. :)


This tree wrinkles at the creases, just like human skin. It was so beautiful and interesting to me that I couldn't stop taking photos. Wait, that is all the time. For everything.




Oh, what's this? Fall-looking leaves in Naples?! Don't mind if I do.


So yes, Naples is H-O-T, but it is also beautiful. There is always something to admire and take in. And of course, spending time with family just tops the cake. 


Come back tomorrow for family portraits! Oh yeah, that happened.






Wednesday, December 4, 2013

Wanderlust : Thanksgiving in Naples, FL 11.27.13 - 12.1.13 - Day 2


Technically this is a day 3 recap of our trip because I didn't take any pictures of our actual Thanksgiving day in Naples. You see, I was too busy enjoying the company and the food to remember to take pictures, and that says a lot for me! However, for the sake of posterity and lack of confusion on everyone's part we will stick with a "Day 2" title.

Naples, FL is known for being a hub of money. I mean MONEY. People that are multi-millionaires or even billionaires keep their 7th home mansion there. That means the shopping there is ridiculous. I am talking a $300 blouse is a steal. Stupid money. My father-in-law and his girlfriend decided to take advantage of this little fact and they now own a women's clothing boutique called Whispers of Naples. It has become tradition to take my now sister-in-law and me there for a shopping spree when we visit. It becomes our Christmas/birthday presents and it is so much fun since I don't normally buy myself clothes, much less clothes that are that nice. I mean, let's be honest - thrift stores and Target are usually my spot once every few years. I'm a high roller, what can I say? And while the girls are playing dress-up, the boys entertain themselves with running around the shopping center and getting food and drinks.


This year, I found faux leather-esque jeans {they don't look like pleather, but I don't know how to describe them. trust me - they are amazing}, a gorgeous royal blue chiffon shirt, and some beautiful multi-metal earrings {one of a kind creations, made by my FIL's girlfriend's sister. yup, six degrees for you to follow.} Of course, I am what they like to call vertically challenged so both of my clothing findings had to be altered which means I will have to wait a while before I get to wear them. Yep, professionally tailored. I definitely tried to insist against it since it wasn't completely necessary, but they wouldn't listen to me. They insisted that the clothes didn't look perfect, and that was unacceptable. I didn't even have a chance to argue, and for me, that's really saying something.

After reveling in the one-on-one shopping experience, I took over Canon duty and we found a Christmas scene that he fell in love with. Ok, I fell in love with the scene - he fell in love with Santa's chair. He was genuinely enthralled that he got to sit there and stayed there for about 20 minutes. If you know any 3 year olds, you know that is an amazing feat because they don't sit still for anything. For me, that meant a Christmas-styled photo shoot so...yay me!







When Grandpa came over, Canon decided that he should share - you know, in the spirit of Christmas and all. I swear that these photos were not staged. They were chatting and finding out what Canon wanted for Christmas and I was just snapping away.



I am so excited that I got this though. I think it is the sweetest picture. This baby loves his Grandpa and I know they will both cherish this photo for years to come.

Come back tomorrow for some beach fun. Yes, we visited the beach. For Christmas. Don't be jealous though. It is unbelievably hard to get into the Christmas spirit when it is 80 degrees outside.




Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Wanderlust : Thanksgiving in Naples, FL 11.27.13 - 12.1.13 - Day 1

 As is our tradition, we spent the Thanksgiving week in Naples, FL and experienced one of the warmer Thanksgivings that the US has to offer. We actually drove through the night for 10 hours on Tuesday night - we arrived at around 4:30 am local time. To say that we were tired on Wednesday was an understatement so we took it easy all day. I spent my time getting my photography fix in my father-in-law's luscious gardens.









We did take advantage of the beautiful weather and played at the park for a while in the afternoon. All of the boys took a ride down the firehouse pole, but I was only able to capture Craig. Boy am I glad I did. Just look at that face. Priceless.








Of course, I can't stay away from the flowers so when the boys decided to play football, I got to work again. Besides, any time your lens doesn't auto focus anymore, it is really difficult to get action shots going. Thus, the flowers.






You had to know that I couldn't resist the scrimage though. What can I say, I am boy crazy AND I love football. I love that Craig and his Dad have the tackle in the back and Canon is running straight for me. Oh, and for the record, all weekend long Canon claimed that he was 'Alabama' and everyone else was either 'LSU' or 'Auburn'. I swear I never push it on him, but the boy is smart. What can I say other than 'he comes about it honest'.


It was definitely a nice start to the holiday weekend, and I can't wait to share the rest of it with you. It involves more family and loads of food so get yourself ready. We are a wild bunch. Har har.