Today I’ve decided to combine the Wednesday columns, Wednesday’s Works & Wordless Wednesday (though I guess this makes it not so wordless…… Oh, well), because I just have too many things to get done today. So, my artist today is my daughter. I have posted previously about how much she loves anything art-related and how good she is at it. These are a few of her pictures from a while back (I really need to get on the picture-taking ball here).

One of her tub crayon doodles

An imaginative little character.

Another little cute guy.

She told me when she finished this was “Plankton” (from SpongeBob)

This was another of her “Plankton” drawings

The ladies at 5 minutes for mom have a photo contest going on right now, and they are asking their readers to post a picture showing what motherhood means to them. This seems like it would be an easy task, right? Once I started looking through our digital photo albums though, it seemed nearly impossible to find only one image to describe what being a mother means. Motherhood has so many aspects: ideas, feelings, traditions, teachings, experiences, and of course, love. Every sweet little photo I found expressed some part of that. Rather than finding one, I found many.

I chose this image because I just kept coming back to it. I think this must be one of my favorite parts of being a mom. Being able to share new experiences with your child. The wonder and delight, surprise, and magic of new discoveries. This is my daughter outside when I put on the bubble machine. The expression on her face says it all.

There are things about motherhood you learn that you just can’t imagine before you are a mom. One of which is how much you’ll love your child. You always know you’ll love them, but don’t understand the extent you can love another being until your child is born. It’s amazing how strong those feelings are for someone you’ve known a shorter time than anyone else in your life.

You learn how quickly time passes. How the baby you just brought home from the hospital has grown overnight into a toddler, and the time passed in the blink of an eye. You learn how precious every moment is, even the hard days pass by so fast, and before you know it your child has grown. You learn how to speak up, even if you’re the type who doesn’t want to ruffle any feathers, because your child is more important. You become fiercely protective, and more worried than you could ever imagine. You are also more proud than you’ve ever been before. Every small accomplishment and milestone your child reaches is an amazing feat.

I think motherhood gives you a new perspective on life.

This is the phrase I hear over (and over) from my daughter throughout the day. Usually it’s “Mama? What you do?”, sometimes though I get a “What you do, Mama?”, apparently just to mix things up a bit. It’s not as though she can’t see what indeed I am doing at any given moment, or that she is unable to remember the answer 3o seconds later. I would say it’s just filler for when she needs to talk but has nothing else to say, but she expects my answer every time (you will incur her wrath otherwise).

I sat down to think about the frequency this phrase is used everyday, and have estimated it to be in the hundreds. I hear this an average of 1-2 times per minute. I think that the average person on the street would view this as torture and eventually go mad from such repetitive harassment, but being a Mom seems to give you superpowers that mere mortals do not possess. These powers must come from the same source that enables you to function on 45 minutes sleep a night, wipe someone else’s poopy butt, withstand blows from a toddler in the throes of an absolute meltdown, understand the slurred half words and gestures of your child trying to communicate that no one else (other than another Mom) seems to get, and every other thing that makes Moms the super heroes they are. All the same, I will be glad when she is out of this phase.

The beautifully drawn and painted figures of long limbed delicate women are the mark of Stella Im Hultberg’s work. The elegance of the ladies with their long necks, pouty full lips, and fragile demeanor; they are made all the more striking for the melancholy air that surrounds them. As a perfect balance to the sophistication of the beauties, the canvas are stained, splotched, and tinted making the overall effect ethereal.

Popularity of her work has forced the closure of her main online store momomoogie, however there are a few sources to buy prints if you do a little research. Art Star, Gallery 1988, and Thinkspace did have some prints available (though they do go quickly!). The main Stella Im Hultberg website. She also has a myspace page here, and a blog here.

Wednesday

According to her blog page, this is her gallery schedule for the next few years:

2008.

january 19th - group show. Sundance X presented by Shooting Gallery, at Mary Jane’s, Park City, Utah.

march - solo show. Gallery 1988, San Francisco.

august - solo show. Thinkspace gallery, Los Angeles.

november - groups shows TBA.

2009.

february - solo show. Roq La Rue gallery, Seattle.

july - solo show. Thinkspace gallery, Los Angeles.

november - solo show. Copro Nason gallery, Santa Monica.

other group shows, TBA.

2010.

solo show, Joshua Liner Gallery, NYC. details TBA.

She is not accepting any more shows until 2011 (!!!!).

Lovely Day

November

No Difference