In Search of Xanadu

"Tangled on Xanadu" watercolor ©Mary Montague Sikes

The news is disturbing. I have to turn it off. I love baseball and will follow it closely until the St. Louis Cardinals' season is over.

With my art, I can hide from the craziness of the world. I can search for a simple place where beauty dwells and love and peace reign.

That place is Xanadu.

The name fascinates me. Images grow in my imagination. Colors glow and tremble on paper and canvas. Already I have an entire series of work developing with this amazing destination in mind. If it does not exist for us now, it will one day soon.

Somewhere, deep in the universe, a special planet glimmers in the darkness. Its light brightens every nearby star. Unknown colors gleam like gems of light. People smile. The color of their skin matters not. Only the touch of a warm hand, a sincere embrace create memories. Life is in the moment without treacherous thoughts to cloud the future.

In my paintings, I will continue to seek the secret, elusive planet of Xanadu. It lies hidden somewhere beyond the clouds. Just outside of our sight.

Dreaming Good Thoughts - Blogging Challenge A to Z

"Dreaming of Xanadu" ©Mary Montague Sikes

"Dreaming Good Thoughts" is my phrase for today's A to Z Blogging Challenge. This describes my painting on the left, "Dreaming of Xanadu". I love working with the intense Robert Doak watercolors on Yupo. The slick surface lets the paint move in special, often unexpected ways. That is the case with this art.

The turquoise color is one of my favorites, so you will see it often in my work. One turquoise section appears to be open to an unique view of some mystical place we don't really know. My painting features a surreal surface that describes Xanadu and my dream of it.

Trees are special images for me, and you see them on the right. I often wonder what the old trees in my woods have witnessed over the years. These trees see and know all. This painting is another in the series as I search to find Xanadu.

I would love to know what you see in "Dreaming of Xanadu". Does mystery abound in this unknown destination?

Creating an Angel Card - Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to All

"Angel from Xanadu - Mystic Visions" ©Mary Montague Sikes

For quite a long time I have painted an angel for Christmas each year and then made cards using the new image. For 2016, devising the right painting to share was especially hard for me. Negativity covered our land and although it became a prevailing wind over which I had no control I continued to try.

After creating my first angel image that I liked, I discovered my new painting on canvas would not work as a card. The colors didn't resonate for Christmas, and the painting actually looked best when paired on the studio wall with another new painting created during the summer.

"Angels Maybe" ©Mary Montague Sikes

Back I went to the studio to try making a new watercolor painting on Yupo--"Angel Wings-Mystic Visions". While I really love this dramatic painting, I soon realized it would probably not work well for a Christmas card. Once again, it was back to the studio.

"Angel Wings - Mystic Visions" ©Mary Montague Sikes

This time I decided to include a more traditional angel in my painting, "Angel from Xanadu - Mystic Visions". This, too, is watercolor on Yupo. However, the angel is painted with gesso and acrylic paints.

Because I am fascinated with the idea of a magical place in a fantasy universe that I call "Xanadu", this will be part of my new series of paintings. I'll be writing more about the mysterious and colorful planet of Xanadu during 2017. I will also create additional paintings about a place in space where peace and beauty reign.

What do you think? Do you believe in mystic visions?

Merry Christmas!

A to Z Blogfest, Around the World in 30 Days - Xanadu Gallery

Elaine Horejs, Director of Xanadu - MMSikes

"Watching Him Paint"

Wow! We are winding down and almost there. For "X" in the A to Z Blogfest, Around the World in 30 Days, the Passenger to Paradise has chosen Xanadu Gallery in Scottsdale AZ. She's been following the gallery for several years on the Internet and was thrilled to actually get to visit Xanadu a couple of weeks ago during her trip to Arizona.

The Passenger was delighted to visit galleries up and down the street, all filled with exceptional art. Xanadu was special with an outdoor sculptural presence as well as a variety of paintings inside.

Following the stroll up and down the street of the Scottsdale Art District, the Passenger paused for lunch at Cafe Forte dining to a serenade of classical guitar music.

What can be more magical than a stroll through and lunch in a spectacular Arts District like the one in Scottsdale AZ where Xanadu actually exists?