Falling Back in Love with Art featuring Artist Ashley Baldwin

When we are children, we express everything without censorship, we write out our own and others' imperfections and stories without a care in the world.  We splat them across a page in a diary or draw and paint them on a canvas.  Somewhere along the way, some of us lose that passion when we transition into adulthood.  This occurred to me recently when I found myself picking up a pencil and drawing pad and sketching things out of the blue.  This even surprised my husband as he turned to me and asked, "Since when do you draw?" I just looked at him with goofy smile and shrug.  As a child, I never cared who liked my work, I just did it because it felt good, it was therapeutic.  In this recent case, I believe it was after I went to my sister-in-law's Painting with a Twist birthday event that lit the spark I needed to find my inner artist once again.  It was fun, it was helping me heal, and I didn't care who liked it.  All I cared about was bringing out that passion of uncensored self expression and sharing it with the world regardless of the outcome.

I will not hide the pain I have been in the last couple of years, only God knows what I have had to endure and all the tears that I have shed.  All the while still trying to live day by day, because when our loved ones pass away, we still are here with the memories.  This last November, Jason lost his mom, Linda, after her battle with pancreatic cancer.  We were blessed to have had the opportunity to move back to Michigan to spend some time with her before her passing and that our children were able to give her some joy in her last days of struggle.  She never showed any sign of weakness even though it was apparent that she was in a lot of pain.  Not once did she intentionally cry in front of us, which if she did, we would have completely understood.  She was by far one of the best examples of an independent, strong, loving woman and mother.  I truly miss her .  I do not know what is more painful, knowing when death is knocking at the door or having it happen suddenly; I have experienced loss in both ways and it pierces the heart equally.  It has almost been 2 years since I suddenly lost my Dad, Bing, to interstitial lung disease.  I remember it like yesterday, he went into the ER during Father's Day weekend for what we thought was just a really bad case of pneumonia, but was so much worse.  He was in the ICU for almost 2 weeks, getting weaker and weaker before he left us.  My world felt like it was falling apart, I could hardly sleep, I did not want to get up out of bed, I just wanted to stay laying in the fetal position as the tightness of my chest kept growing and growing.  I am still grieving today, and I know that it is OK.  It takes time to heal and falling back in love with my art really helps with the process.  Never to forget him, but to put it on paper to capture the moments that will never be lost, the feelings whether sad or happy that is a part of me.

An artists' feelings will always show through their work.  It will show through their photos, paintings, drawings, crafts, or words.  With that said, I have had the pleasure of viewing some wonderful pieces through social network.  Works from artists like Travis Bedel, Lisa Walker, and Ashley Baldwin blow my mind.  I always look forward to when they post their latest work on Instagram.

This is where I connected with fellow artist, Ashley Baldwin.  Ashley commented on how much she liked my midnight moon painting (first painting at the top of the post) that I created at Painting with a Twist (which I am really proud of, being a novice artist, and all).  This lead me to check out her page, which I completely adored instantly.  I have 3 kiddos and I was already thinking of decorating their rooms with Ashley's work. Ashley's pieces are vibrant, colorful, and fun!  She is truly a talented soul and I am so honored that she agreed to be featured on Emerald City Swag.  I look forward to Ashley's future creations and a friendship fueled by a love of the arts.

Below are some of my favorites from Ashley's collection.  Hand-embellished prints are available of these works at her Etsy shop at ArtbyAshleyBaldwin.  E-mail her at ashley@ashleybaldwin.com for art and commission inquires.

“Ornithophobia" (Fear of Birds) by Ashley Baldwin, Watercolor and Ink on paper, 2012

"Something's Fishy," by Ashley Baldwin, Oil Pastel on canvas, 2013

“Giraffes with Hidden Mickey,” by Ashley Baldwin, Watercolor on paper, 2014