You raise a whole human and then you give him to the current system we are in now (2026- present day America) which teaches one to take classes in order to work for ‘the man’ so that they can live in the system. The system was created to keep us all safe, however, the system is currently failing, and I predicted this years ago, although this is besides the point, and I’ve already digressed in the first paragraph.

This past weekend the whole family drove to University of Kentucky to drop my son off to college so he can live in the dormitory on campus. I ugly cried on the bus back to the car, and have called him every day since then. It’s an exciting and sad time.

In our society today, this is a success- to have a son or daughter that has done well enough to go to college, and to be there on partial academic scholarship, and for your child to have the motivation to further their education. For the parents, it is a success to be able to afford this venture. Side note: I do not think this is a great financial decision, however, this is what my kid wanted.

The Original Mother

The original mother is planet Earth and you can think of her as the mother of all of us humans. She carries us and she has her own aura and energy. Her evolution is connected to ours. Every day she spins around carrying billions of humans and some of the humans don’t give it a thought, however, we wouldn’t be here if she wasn’t carrying us so diligently. If she stopped spinning, our lives quite literally would be over.

On a smaller scale, every woman who has had a child gives birth to future humanity. Most of us blow this off, especially those who are male. We, as women share our bodies with our offspring for 40 weeks until they are born and then if instinct is correct, we raise them and nurture them until they are old enough to ‘be on their own’.

I remind both of my boys when they aren’t doing what I ask, or are giving me lip, that “We shared a body.” Men can’t say that. Period.

A Mothers Job

I’ve come up with the three jobs of motherhood on my own (I invented these three points years ago) and I’ll share them with you before we dive into other aspects of this article: (These points are good if you are a new mother and you don’t quite know what to do yet.)

1. A Mothers First Job is to Love Their Child/Children

   This seems rudimentary, however, there are many instances where you hear about how children aren’t loved. Luckily, I loved my children beyond measure so we have that going for us and we are all good on numero uno. Some mothers have trouble bonding with their babies, so if that’s you then seek counsel for therapists who specialize in mother and infant attachment.

2. The second Job of a Mother is to Protect The Children

   You wouldn’t believe this if you were never a mother… there is danger everywhere in this world. My second son (I have two boys) is small and has always looked younger and has been smaller than his actual age. This meant I was constantly plucking him up or out of the way of vehicles that wanted to back up into him. One time, we were crossing the street, on a busy intersection after school, with dogs in tow, and a car literally turned and was going to hit him. I picked him up by the loop of his back pack (while still holding the dogs), and dropped him several feet away so he would not get hit by the car. This of course was Divine intervention, however, it was also the work of a mother. Then there was the other time, that the lifeguard wasn’t watching at the pool, and the same son went underwater as the shallow end met the deeper end. Like Pamela Anderson on Baywatch, I swam-ran across the pool to save him successfully. My second one always had an affinity for putting himself close to the line of what mystics call, “The Other Side”. My job was to bring him back to us without harm, and this was no small task.

3. The Mothers Last Job is to Teach the Children how to Live in the World.

   This one is a bit hazy and up to your own interpretation. My interpretation of this was teaching the kids how to be self sufficient. There was much work to do on ‘the front end’. Much of my method of teaching was to lead by example. I taught the kids how to cook, by cooking most nights and supervised them as they cooked in the kitchen. We were way involved in the Scouting Program, which taught them many life skills. (This was a huge parental committment.) I’ve tried to explain money management to them, as this is never taught in school. In addition, I run a tight ship so to speak with keeping things tidy and the chore list is hefty for today’s day and age. My kids are expected, at least at my house to load dishes, unload dishes, help mow the lawn, feed the dogs, and keep their rooms clean. I’ll admit, the rooms aren’t that clean, but I at least make it known they should be. This short paragraph is not comprehensive, though I’m sure you get the point.

Present Day: Your Kid Goes to College:

And… here we are- the point where you have done all the things you could and have dropped off your most precious thing in the world to the University so they can learn how to be adults. Let’s face it though, my kid is 95 percent supported by us, with tuition, meals, and boarding paid for, so is it really that hard? All he has to do is attend classes and make it back to his dorm room.

Still, this transition is emotional. I’ve been in a state. I’ve called every parent I know that has a kid going to college to commiserate. This has been helpful. My friend Chris told me that I might have time now to give more energy to my ART work and enter shows. Well, thats what I’ve wanted since he was born, and I think I forgot about that. I didn’t anticipate that my desire to go to Sicily would be overshadowed and squashed by the sadness of my first born leaving. I feel there is a part of me that is missing with my son gone. There is something to proximity, I am certain.

My friend Megan has a girl which is a million times worse I think. Megan went back to her daughter’s school for her Bid Day to a sorority one week after she took her to the University of Arkansas. I told her this was absolutely absurd, then had to call her a week later and apologize because of all the emotions I had a week later when I dropped off my son. Remember the ugly crying I mentioned that happened on the bus?

Society Minimizes the Divineness of Motherhood

This last part is what I really wanted to get to: It is an honor and a privilege to be a mother and it is also part of being Divine. Like menopause, no one talks about motherhood being such an amazing feat. (Actually, people are starting to talk about menopause a lot, but that has been very recent.) When you become a mother, people just expect you to do it. Actually, in America, people expect you to give birth and go back to work in 6-8 weeks which is nonsense.

If you work at a full time job, and raise children, it’s tough to manage working and raising your children whole heartedly and not falling asleep at the wheel. If you stay at home and raise the kids without a full time- paying good amount of money- job, as I did- you are not respected in many circles or by your own family- they think you’re spoiled. (Did I say that? Oops!) Either way, it’s hard. Society expects too much of us. Add to this, you need to look good doing it. You have to keep up the bod, and the good looks and also attend every sporting event and parent meeting of which there are way too many.

Despite societies ridiculous expectations, being a mother is a privilege. A unique spirit chose you to be their mother- there was a human host that was ready (you) and there was the unique spirit willing to come to this great and challenging place called Earth and they chose you to be their guide. This is not something to be taken lightly. The fact that you, or we (as mothers) were able to carry another human in our bodies AND give birth to them, is a wonder. To lead them successfully into adulthood is a miracle.

Just Remember I Love You

When Anton was in pre- kindergarten he punched a kid named Ben Reiser in the stomach at school. I forgot what Ben had done to provoke Anton, however, we were contacted by the principal, Ms. Ranken and told that Anton would need to meet with her the following day, in her office, and they would need to talk about how punching kids in the stomach was not appropriate.

I remember being absolutely fraught with emotion and worried about how this would go and how it would affect him. I tried to prepare Anton for the pending meeting the following day with Ms. Ranken to the best of my ability. I remember telling him this: “Just Remember I Love You, and it will be Alright”, and I played the song for him. (As many of us know this was a very popular song by Firefall in the 70’s.) I remember telling him that no matter what it was, we would face it, and I would be there for him. I didn’t reprimand him, rather I talked to him about the situation and how we don’t want to punch people even if they are being butt heads. I told him that we all react sometimes and that the next time he is provoked enough to want to punch someone, try to take deep breaths instead.

This whole thing seemed like such a big deal at the time, however, can you imagine taking this situation seriously? My kid was only 4 years old and the school was acting like he was 25. Looking back, maybe I should have punched Ms. Ranken in the stomach. As it turns out, Ms. Ranken had other things to attend to and didn’t even get around to meeting with Anton to discuss his behavior and I was on pins and needles all day awaiting the report of what happened!

Yesterday, I called my kid and he sounded a little bit sad. I told him that homesickness was to be expected. I think it’s important to tell your kids that it’s okay to have emotions, especially boys. I told him to “Just remember I love you and it will be alright.”, and I told him that I was trying to sound upbeat but that I was sad also. I didn’t want to make him feel bad that I was missing him so much.

I’ve been pressing on with the Cue the Color Print Club, despite the funk, and that has kept me pretty busy. I havn’t unpacked fully from the weekend trip to college, and it’s Friday so I think I need to get going on this, and I’ve spent the whole day in pajamas trying a to catch up on life. I’d like to take this time, now that my kid has gone to college to get more ART work going. And I’ve been of course busy with extremely long (and not useful at all) meetings at work. It’s okay though, I made a few interactive drawings of a tea party for some of my co-workers during one of them…

Xx, Aurora 💫

I started with creating my Lions Gate Collection for the ritual on 8/8/26 (Saturday) and then did the actual ritual on 8/9/26. I had a few days of contemplation for the reading, and I’d highly recommend not rushing. You can work with the Lions Gate Energy until August 12th, so there’s still time!

Lions Gate Ritual Objects and Cards / 2026 / A Triple 8 Lions Gate

In this article I’ll explain exactly what I did:

Firstly, I used a ceramic plate I purchased a long time ago from a candle shop in Lawrence, Kansas called Waxman. (Waxman has the best candles in the world, to my knowledge.) I made an infinity sign on a piece of paper and drew gold stars around the infinity in colored pencil.

On Saturday I drew Tarot Cards. I’ve been using Tarot cards for around 20 plus years, before they became so popular and mainstream. So, this isn’t something new thats trending that I recently picked up. I’ve developed a system where I simply ask what I need for the week and I draw 5 cards. Alternatively, I ask what does this week hold for me?

For the Lions Gate Portal, I asked what to I need to move forward and to manifest for the Lions Gate? I drew 3 cards from Rider-Waite, 1 card from Rebecca Campbell’s Oracle Deck - Work Your Light, and 1 card from the Inquire Within deck by Kristen Drozdowski of Worthwhile Paper. Worthwhile Paper I then drew 2 cards asking what I needed to release moving through the Lions Gate.

Items Used:

• Bloodstone, carnelian, and citrine: I used bloodstone as it is one of my favorite stones. Christians carved scenes of the crucifixion from Bloodstone because it was known as the Martyr’s Stone. There is a legend that Jesus’ blood fell and stained the green jasper crystals at the foot of his cross. Ancient Greeks called bloodstone heliotrope meaning “turning the sun” because they believed it held the energy of the sun. I used carnelian as it is known for inspiring artistic inspiration and it is also used for courage and confidence. Citrine was used to intensify personal power, abundance and wealth.

• A few hearts of selenite for truth, honesty and mental clarity. One of my favorite students gave me the smaller selenite heart and I use it all the time as I feel it’s very powerful when someone gifts you something like this.

• Small crystal orb.

• My miniature house.

• A lion ornament I purchased many years ago from a place like Pier 1 or maybe World Market.

• Zinnias from my garden, a snip of wisteria, basil, marigolds.

• Mediterranean Fig Candle from Glow Candle Co., in St. Louis, MO Glow Candle Co.

• Magnet. “Proceed As If Success is Inevitable.”

Interpretations: 💫

What do I need to Move into the Lions Gate:

Ace Cups: Divine Love is pouring through you. The cup is the vessel of the subconscious mind. Symbolizes love and new relationships. Lotus blossoms are floating on the sea in the Rider -Waite deck.

3 of Cups: The three goddesses dance around each other holding their cups up to the sky. Symbolizes friendships, collaboration, creativity and abundant harvest.

4 Pentacles: A man sits on the edge of town holding his pentacles (money) - the man is too attached to money and can’t move forward.

Work Your Light: Leap: Leap and the net will appear. This is the sign and permission slip to leap into the unknown. Life bends for the courageous.

Worthwhile Paper: It Doesn’t Have to Be Perfect. (Needs no interpretation.)

What I’m leaving behind:

3 swords: Heartbreak and sorrow, painful separation. Let go of past hurt, punishing yourself and painful thoughts.

Rune Stone: fear. (Needs no interpretation.)

Inquire Within: Go on a Fieldtrip

Please note that I do not actually do Tarot reads for other people, I only use them for myself. One time, I did readings for a women’s get together and one of the women there was asking about fertility. I did not know what her question was. I interpreted in the outcome position, the Empress reversed, and the tears came. She never ended up being able to conceive a second child. After that, I decided my tarot reading days were over for the public at large. With the tarot, what I always say is that it never lies- however, you may not be ready for the answer.

Of course, you don’t need the Tarot to do the Lions Gate ritual. Simply write your intentions for manifestation on a piece of paper and burn a candle. Make a few pictures of the Infinity and whatever you like- hearts, stars, waves, whatever! I wrote down everything I wanted to release (on a notecard) or leave behind the gate and burned the paper in my chiminea.

What I’m Leaving Behind. Burn it up!

Further Interpretation:

With my weekly tarot card draws, I typically wait for some interpretations to unfold. This reading was great for the Lions Gate Portal overall. There was an emphasis on Cups and the number 3, which is perfect as I could be moving into more Love. Let’s hope so! Also, moving into collaborations would be ideal- will it be with fellow artists, or Substackers, or both? You can’t create work in a vacuum after all.

Read more

Process video of assembling the mailers.

I worked most of Friday and Saturday getting all of the components ready to go out on August 1st, and I’m glad I started here with subscribers on Substack as I consider this month to be sort of a trial run.

The Whole Layout.

What I Would Do Differently Next Time:

1. On Friday I wrote the letter and firmed up the postcard, and took that to the local printer I’m using. (Which was a drive to the city.) I did this on a Friday, just one day before the send out date. I blame my job situation for this- I forgot things get really busy at the end of the month! Next time I’ll not wait until the last minute as the print shop was very busy and I had to wait a long time for my order. I told the owner that next month, I’d have it more together. Everything felt rushed, and I made corrections on my i-pad in the shop. Then, my i-pad died and I had to go out to the car to charge it. They closed at 5:00 p.m. and I’m sure they didn’t appreciate the last minute order.

2. In addition to this, there was a grammatical error in the letter that I couldn’t stand, and I was going to send it out as it was, however, I just couldn’t let that go and ended up at Office Depot to print a second version. The second version was better with the grammar, however, I didn’t like the color as much as the local printer. Luckily, the girl working the copy center at Office Depot didn’t charge me for the prints. (I have no idea why, but thank you!) I rationalized that not everything can be perfect and, I could tweak these things forever, so I had to be okay with good vs. perfect.

3. I literally didn’t do any marketing for the Print Club. So, I need to work on that. I had planned to run some Ads on Pinterest and IG, however…time and the full time job. So, I’ll let you know how that goes.

4. I might change the tissue paper.

5. I might change the sticker. (I used older ones I had from a while back.)

6. We all know how long shooting video and photos take. Another reason to get started on the October mailer. I need to edit video and take many more still photos for marketing. You can double the time spent on creating the work with all of the documentation. (Or, maybe multiply that by 3x~ it’s an estimate)

   

   Back side of the postcard with my beetle drawing placed where the stamp goes.

What I learned:

1. I learned how long it takes to fold the Zine, and assemble all the components and wrap with tissue paper. Should I change the tissue paper? I feel like the tissue paper I used was flimsy. Plus, I cut the tissue paper. All of this took longer than I thought it would. If the print club grows, which I hope it does, I’ll have to send the mailers out in waves.

2. I ended up putting a few 5 x 7 Giclee prints in a few of the envelopes at random. I like this idea of putting a free small version of a Giclee print in the envelopes, which shows people the difference between the Giclee and the postcard print. I liked that I didn’t keep track of where I put the Giclee prints ~ it was just too much hassle.

3. I’m glad I waited until I had several pieces in series completed, so that I can start the process of running prints, Zines, and letters now for the mailer that goes out in October. It will be important to get ahead of this in advance since I have the full time job and my job is very busy at the end of the month as I wrap up seeing people on my caseload. See my article on “Don’t Quit Your Day Job”.

4. I worked on the Zine many weeks ahead of the first send out date. This was definitely a good thing, and think it’s one of the best parts of the mailer. I wonder how it will be received.

5. I included a little element in the letter that I ended up really liking so I’ll do that again. In the August mailer it was an image of the beetle, on tissue paper that I had traced from my original image. I also included this on the back of the postcard. That element gives the recipient an image of what’s coming in the next mailer. It feels very ‘Griffin and Sabine’. 1

Details on the Cue the Color Print Club:

💫 If you subscribe now through August 31, 2026 you will receive “The Aurora” as a print/ postcard and you will receive the Zine that goes with it. After that, every other month you will receive another new print/postcard if you are subscribed, and a Zine to go along with the print.

💫 The months where you will receive the Cue the Color Print Club Mailer are August, October, and December of 2026. Then in 2027 February, April, June, and back to August!

💫 Subscribers to the Cue the Color Print Club will receive the print + Zine + video access to a tutorial on Vimeo. After the close date of subscribing at the end of the month, the package will be at a higher price in my Shopify store. (Shop App) At this time I haven’t decided how much more the mailer will cost.

💫You might be asking, “What if I sign up for just one month, and end my subscription?” I will still send you a mailer. No biggie. The mailers are great to receive on an ongoing basis, however, they are also meant to show you examples of the prints up close - it is like sampling small versions of the larger prints.

I am eager now that we have some momentum with posting notes and articles here on Substack and are gaining with momentum on “The Aurora Series”. Follow me if you’d like to know more about the series as it progresses, or if you are interested in learning techniques of painting and drawing!

Xx,

Aurora 💫

Austin Kleon wrote a great book, “How to Steal Like an Artist”1 and the 9th tip of 10 is to be boring. Austin says to “Keep Your Day Job”, (I’m paraphrasing here) in that section, and ‘that it will probably be a while before your art takes off, and you’ll need a job to make ends meet. If you add too the mix: two dogs, two kids, and a home, you’ve got a pretty substantial list of things you’re responsible for. *Austin Kleon’s link is at the end of the article!

A long time ago, somewhere in the 1900’s I went to school to be a nurse. I attended the University of Kansas, and read the big book of degrees offered and was taken by the black and white photo of a nurse looking down on a newborn baby. I was also interested in Art, and decided to take design classes during my freshman year. Back then, I somehow rationalized that I would need an actual job, versus living in a van like most artists. So, with my wits about me, I managed to get into nursing school (it was very competitive at K.U. at the time2), make it through pathophysiology, (with some helpful friends that were way smarter than me) and my Critical Care Clinicals. (The instructor hated me, so I barely made it through.) I graduated with a Bachelors of Science in Nursing in 1995 at the ripe age of 22. Writing this, I think that’s unheard of these days, I was merely an infant.

From there, I worked for one year on an adult medical surgical floor in a small hospital south of St. Louis, and then I got a job at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital on the infant and toddler unit. This was a medical surgical floor / internal med floor and it held patients under the age of four. I worked there for 9 years.

From my first year as a nurse, I started pursuing Art in my free time. I went to the Community College, and I took extra classes for figure drawing, eventually applying to Fontbonne College. I received my M.F.A. From Fontbonne in 2001.

We can now fast-forward to modern times, where I found myself three years ago in a crisis. I stopped nursing in 2005 to pursue Art and raise the children, while my husband worked long hours at his job. When we split, around 2022 I was beyond naive. At the time we were splitting, I had a job as an adjunct instructor of drawing at a University called UMSL. This was my dream job. At the time, I also thought an entrepreneurial partnership would work out (I can’t go into details here) in terms of success, or being profitable and that was a failure.

If you have ever been adjunct faculty the pay is minimal- 3000.00 per semester, for 3 credit hours class, which actually hadn’t changed much since 2002 when I first started teaching adjunct classes in Art. (That was in drawing also.) Since I couldn’t take care of the two dogs, the two kids, and the house on 6000.00 dollars a year pre-tax I had to go back to what paid decent wages, and that was nursing.

There was urgency to find a job quickly, as the entrepreneur partnership failed horribly, and I had no paycheck. Additionally, I wanted to keep my house, which is in the historic area of St. Charles, Missouri. I was determined to do anything I could to save my home. My first job ‘back in the field’ started with a hospice company and that was terrible. Prior to that, I even did Door Dash to make it through. I had no support from my parents when it came to finances. I started the hospice job in a small town where there were only a handful of employees (Troy, Mo.) where the work was insane and I found out how corrupt hospice is. (Perhaps later I can fill you in if anyone is interested.)

I believe in the power of the Universe and that everything around us, we create and are responsible for. Meaning, there is no one outside yourself that is doing things to you, and especially not to punish you. I believe in a higher power that works through us essentially. The hospice job was where I met my friend Beth- she came to the hospice company to fix it, and she returned back to her old job, after she found out that the hospice company (our outpost) was too broken to fix. I consider our meeting to be divinely led.

I followed Beth, who went back to her old job, which provides oversight for individuals with intellectual disabilities. This is a world that I didn’t even know existed. People who have intellectual disabilities and are taken care of by the state or have guardians go into homes of hosts that get paid to take care of them. (Think of foster care for adults.) The people that take care of these individuals with IDD can also be called mentors, and my company that I currently work for, trains the mentors.

I took the job from the company that takes care of individuals with IDD when I was in desperation, as the hospice job was ruining my mental health with the drama and the hours that I was putting in. This job turned out to be a huge blessing, as my supervisor was/is very lenient and does not monitor our time, which in this day and age is RARE, when you work for anyone. Learning all that the job encompassed though was challenging. It took me at least a year to get a hold of what I was supposed to be doing. My boss, while lenient tends to point and say, ‘do’, without explaining much. I was in the office often, even though my supervisor never dictated a set amount of hours we had to be there. I stayed in the office to learn how to do everything as there was always someone there to help, and during that time I came to know and become friends with many great co-workers.

In the past year or so I have been able to increase working on my ART again, as I feel more comfortable with the nurse job. However, I find myself once again at a crossroads, as there is much corruption in the current setting I’m in, and there have been unsettling changes recently. I may write more on this in a later article. I have freedom, however, the salary has not increased much, and what I am most upset about is that there are some caregivers that treat us (staff) badly and my company turns a blind eye to their behaviors due to the bottom line being profit. (Remember, I work for a Corporation.) No one stays there long, the turnover is extremely high, and now Beth is leaving…

There will probably be a Part II, or more to this Article. I’ve been wanting to write about the personal aspects of life, in terms of having a job as an artist and I think this will resonate with many.

Xx,

Aurora 💫

Here is Austin Kleons Page! You will love him.

The green template is what we used when the kids were little. You can see one of them drew directly on the template.

If I saved everything I used to make art projects when the kids were little, I’d have already been taken over by a hoarding situation. Luckily, though I saved this gem to be used about 12-15 years past its original purchase.

Making shapes in abstract art is more challenging than you would think~ I’d encourage you to try sometime to make up your own shapes and see just how difficult it is to make something original. There’s a reason Matisse is famous for those bulbous plant forms. I’m forever trying to come up with unique shapes and envy those artists who are masters at creating their own styled forms. I feel like nine times out of ten, every shape is a variation of what someone else has made- it’s hard to re-invent the circle after all.

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In the first version of ‘Drops’ I attempted to make two images side by side. The image on the right was the better one, although there are some good parts on the left side.

In the piece above, I wanted to make two separate images side by side- I was thinking of creating two 5 x 7 inch size cards. I thought these so called cards would go really fast. They most certainly didn’t go fast, and here I am, more than 6 months later making a second version of this painting called, ‘Drops’.

Also, making the work side by side was ineffective, as it was too small of a space to work on. Most of the pieces from the Aurora Series are made on larger pads of paper these days. You can see in the painting above the right side started growing over to the left and eventually took over most of the paper.

Initially, as in ‘Drops’, I laid down shapes, and for some I painted right from the template- meaning I didn’t outline them first and then paint them. Some colors like the lime green circle, are painted in translucent color over a base. You can see this with the lime green circle which is a very translucent green over the base layer of yellow. I like this effect very much, however, you can see in the lime green circle on the left that when I went over it again with colored pencil, it chipped off some of the paint. I worked to troubleshoot this problem and I’ll be putting that technique in the video tutorial for paid subscribers.

I suggest trying different colored underlayers and then laying on a very translucent wash of another color to see the effects if you’d like to experiment with color layering. Color layering will make a piece much richer than painting directly on a white canvas.

At some point, I became obsessed with the drop shape and making the dots on it better. I developed a formula for this drop- I think I’ve made at least 10 variations. For the Version 2 of this piece, I want both the drops to be hand created, yet I want them to be as similar as possible. At times, I’ve wondered if I’m just procrastinating finishing by trying to make two drops match. It may be the idea of ‘Duality’ as a concept (and series) which I’ve painted about previously that is inspiring me to create two of the same things. In ‘The Duality Series’ I painted some of my figures two times~ and with the human hand, no image can be painted the same way twice. (Or, not usually)

I created that series (‘Duality’) years ago, before we were all so scared of AI. Of course, we could print items in duplicate before AI. Think of Andy Warhol and his prints of the same item in various colors or tones.

Screenprint of German artist Joseph Beuys by Andy Warhol: created in 1980-1983. The look on his face is freaky.

My drops though are different~ they are made with the human hand. They have several layers to them, and I make them separately. This is different than screenprints or even block printing where you use a brayer to coat the cut out block and repeat the print on the paper or a piece of cloth.

This is a video of ‘Drops’

For Version 2 of ‘Drops’ I am making the drops and cutting them out, so that the finished piece is more of a painted collage. I have a few other pieces going with ‘The Aurora Series’ where I am doing the same…

For more on the Aurora Series, please follow and subscribe to the “Cue the Color” Mailer, which I am sending out on August 1st! This will come to you in your mailbox along with links to videos with paid subscriptions.

Xx,

Aurora 💫

Doodle & Sketch: This is a lioness.

I created ‘Doodle & Sketch’ with prompts in mind, such as, “I need more ____________________ in my life.” Then, I used what seemed like disparate images I collected from Pinterest, or combined some items from life (a cup, a plant, etc.) with the images, and didn’t pay attention to composition. The intention was to let the mind be free with doodles, patterns, and such. During that time, a student of mine, who comes for private lessons, told me that the Doodles reminded her of the “Griffin and Sabine” series by Nick Bantock. (I considered that a compliment.)

Then, somewhere in the fall of last year (2025) I took on the name of Aurora in a women’s group, where I am a member. Our names were intended to be more cosmic and spiritual vs. our regular names we acquired at birth from our families of origin. This group influenced me to create work that was relevant to the Divine Feminine.

The “Aurora Series” (it didn’t have a name at the time) started out with basic concepts, like layering colors in acrylic and working with combinations of shapes. The beginning work from this series was pretty bad, and I’m not sure if I could find some of the original pieces if I tried. I consider the influence from Doodle and Sketch, and the crossover from the group I’m in to have evolved into what is now “The Aurora Series.” There is also some carryover from the ‘Grid Series’ from several years ago with the use of Geometric elements.

Some of the beginning pieces started with fictitious constellations, and I imagined a completely different galaxy that we haven’t discovered yet. Did you know that astronomers have discovered trillions of other galaxies? The Milky Way is just one of an estimated 100 to 200 billion galaxies in the observable universe. I imagined an entire feminine galaxy, something that was Yin oriented. I made flower shapes into planets, thus giving the galaxy a feminine feel.

“The Aurora”

This is what I consider to be the first successful piece of the series. I therefore named it after the series itself.

Technique/s and Concepts:

1. The series in general has been my most experimental one to date: I started working on thick paper, as in heavy watercolor paper and switched to a much thinner mixed media sketchbook pad/s and started taping down the edges so they wouldn’t buckle as much. I found that there was much less pressure to create something great in the sketchbooks. One sheet of watercolor paper is much more expensive than the 100 lb. Mixed media paper. I felt if a piece didn’t work out, not much was lost. The work became more free as a result.

1. I started working with layering in acrylic. Then, added colored pencil. I messed around with different color combinations layered over one another to achieve some depth. I came in with Caran D’ache colored pencils which are very thick and waxy. They feel luxurious, and their price point reflects that.

2. I began to cut out shapes and paste them on some of the pieces. I found that I had been influenced by some of the great collage artists I’ve been seeing in the past year or two. Cutting out shapes that I make allows me to make several and pick one that looks the best. Additionally, I love keeping marks on the side, and find those random experiments with the brush marks and layers to be one of the most exciting and important elements. I started cutting shapes from those and collecting them for future pieces.

I’ll be writing more on “The Aurora Series” as it progresses. There’s so much to go over! This is only Part I.

Subscribers to my paid Substack are mailed a bi-monthly print and ‘The Aurora’ is the first one! If you subscribe, you receive a 5 x 7 print/ postcard as well as a Zine explaining the process and concepts for the image. In addition, I’m making tutorials on painting that relate to each piece. Those will be on Vimeo and will be available to paid subscribers to my Substack starting August 1, 2026.

The Details:

• If you subscribe now through July 29th, 2026 you will receive “The Aurora” as a print/ postcard and you will receive the Zine that goes with it. After that, every other month you will receive another new print if you are subscribed, and a Zine to go along with the print.

• The months where you will receive the Cue the Color Print Club Mailer are August, October, and December of 2026. Then in 2027 February, April, June, and back to August!

• Subscribers to the Cue the Color Print Club will receive the print + Zine + video access to a tutorial on Vimeo. After the close date of subscribing at the end of the month, the package will be at a higher price in my Shopify store.

The Zine:

This is the Zine I made to go along with the first Cue the Color Mailer! This package purchase date closes on July 31st!

I’ve been eager to start a print club, and have been researching others, while also being new to Substack. As far as the print club goes, with my full time job, I feel I can reasonably send out prints every other month. In addition, it was hard to decide what exactly I should put in the mailer, as wanted to create something as unique as possible that appealed to those in my ‘field’ (energetic field not Art field). 💫

Substack has been a big learning curve, and I jumped in not working out any kinks at all before I started posting notes and articles. I keep tinkering around with the website editor and watching ‘how to’ videos. Thank you for bearing with me as I change the fonts, and colors around weekly!

Xx,

Aurora 💫

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Last year though, I found myself buying Zinnias at the Farmers Market, and stealing them from yards occasionally for drawings and painting studies. It was at that time, I decided that if I was stealing Zinnias, I should probably try to plant my own. Can you be arrested for stealing flowers? (I’ve often wondered…)

A surprising amount of work was needed to convert the only remaining space in my historic city yard with high sun, to a flower bed, which is by my fence line. This was problematic as this is the spot where my most dominant dog, Nina, loves to bark at the terrible dog on the other side. I thought, I’d tackle two problems at once, which was me having my own Zinnias, (which would keep me from a life of crime), and to stop the barking first thing in the morning, every morning and consequently the destruction of my lawn by the fence.

Last fall I started on the build out, and finished up this spring by putting in stakes and chicken wire with a border of natural rock. I planted some Zinnias from the local greenhouse, and some from seed. I was able to find discounted, (more than overdue for planting) Marigolds, and brought home way too many flats of them with the roots growing out of the holes in the bottom.

I fell in love with Marigolds in the town of San Miguel De Allende, Mexico where Marigolds or cempasúchil (derived from the Aztec word cempaxochitl) are seen everywhere in the city of SMDA, and are the flower for Dias de Muertos. Businesses adorn their doorways with fresh Marigold Garlands during Dia de Muertos.

A doorway adorned with a Marigold Garland in San Miguel de Allende.

In the Midwest, there is much work to do in the Spring from the harsh winter and I’m always surprised at how long it takes to get everything cleaned up. Finally, at the end of May, I felt good enough to sit down and work on some studies, and my back yard patio was looking more like its old self.

I would say I’ve been consistent with drawing some plants and flowers here and there for many years, although, I don’t focus on this primarily. I find myself inspired recently with all of the good sketchbook spreads I’m seeing, and I couldn’t help myself. The weather each morning has been perfect for going outside on my patio, and working from life.

I’m in Love with Marigolds:

Here is my little table I’m using for all the work on my patio.

I’ve been keeping the set-up as light as possible in order to make getting out and doing the work as easy as possible to pack up with my work schedule. I am using a cigar box for the paints, a small plate and a few tins, and I’m only using a few brushes. I’ve been showing my set up and some colors used in notes throughout the week.

I’d love to make a retreat in San Miguel for this kind of work, where we build on contour drawing and simple sketches in pen and ink or pencil which can evolve to studies in any water medium. I’m asking my inner guidance system if fall could be the right timing for something like this…

I’d like to know if you have been away from a drawing and or painting practice, what would help to motivate you? And, what is the hardest part of making time for painting or sketching if you haven’t been drawing in a while? Let me know in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you!

Xx,

Aurora 💫

I met with a women’s group I’ve been a part of since last year that is very important to me, and some of the work there is about raising consciousness and focuses on spirituality. What was introduced was a focusing technique by Eugene Gendlen. Focusing is a simple, accessible process for making contact with the felt sense, finding a “handle” (word/image) for it, checking for resonance, asking questions, and then receiving the insights that arise.

My word was “Exhausted”. To give more detail on this, my work week had been filled with increased demands at my job. As a result I had decided to cram a zillion things into the weekend, such as gardening, cleaning, organizing the studio, doing all the laundry, and of course as an artist, I wanted at least four hours every day to work in my studio. This is unrealistic in my current life situation, and as a result, the word, ‘exhausted’ came to me right away.

The next word that came as a follow up or antidote to this word, through a meditation process was ‘relax’. (This seems rather obvious as a next word to the original felt-sense of ‘exhausted’, doesn’t it?) I wrote in my journal, “I really have trouble relaxing.” When I asked for another word, these words came quickly:

Paint. Eat. Enjoy. Love. Harmony.

While this sounds very much like the book, “Eat, Love, Pray”, this was what came. When we work intuitively, we see what comes, and accept it as is. I was not able to embrace these words on Sunday, or put them into action, as I was not in a great place due to anxiety, however, I was able to keep them in mind for Monday- Wednesday, Monday being a Holiday in the U.S.

Sometimes it takes several days to catch up and shut down work, in order to prep for the week ahead. Many times I feel like I am spinning my wheels, and where is my John Wayne, my Prarie Sun, the Bonanza...? *

Keeping my words in the forefront on Monday, I resisted cleaning, I took the doggies for a walk, I ate leftovers from the previous night wholeheartedly, and worked on the Beetle Element, or ‘Kephri and the Iris’ from “The Aurora Series”.

This will be part of the work, “Kephri and the Iris”, a piece in “The Aurora Series”.

The ‘Aurora Series’ has been in development since around last Fall, 2025. The first pieces started in September, looking back on my photo library. I had put my work in the Artists and Farmers Market in Lake St. Louis at the Meadows, and ran into my ex-sister in law, who always has a bit of advice on what I should do with my work. She said I ‘should’ make cards, since people were looking to buy smaller items.

I have not taken this kind of advice from people in a long time, however, this was one of those moments that for some reason, resonated in my mind for several days. These days, I take action on ideas and concepts that are pulling on me, as I listen to my inner being vs. the logical ego-centered self. I thought I’d start by making work on paper, and put those to copy at the printer. I started messing around with completely experimental colors and shapes that had a cosmic element to them and had intended these ‘cards’ to be done very quickly so that I could put them in the LSL Market last season.

What I was creating however, took loads longer than I had intended, and as a Fine Artist, it seems I don’t really do any artwork quickly. I have to think about the work, develop its concepts, find the best papers to work on, and delve into a myriad of techniques to get the right thing going. Perhaps you can relate?

I decided to try a 30 Day Challenge with the series at the end of December, since it was going so slow, and I’m still going with the 30 Day Challenge on Instagram- which is obviously not 30 days in 3-D time. I can write more about the 30 Day Challenge in a later Article and how this is keeping me on track- (with modifications, obviously.)

2 beetles for: “Kephri and the Iris”. The one on the left is much more successful.

I hope you will subscribe to my Substack, as this is new for me and very exciting! I can write more about the work I am doing and all of the techniques without having to condense the thoughts into a 2200 character (including spaces) caption!

This is my very first article and I am still sifting through how to use the platform, so please be patient with me. I have to see how often I can post one article. My goal is to write one article per week, going out on Tuesday- Thursday. Then, I’d like to post one short tutorial for all subscribers and a full video on the technique for paid members.

I’d love to hear from you if you’d like to hear more about any part of this article… the process of the work, the series as a whole, my ex-sister in laws comment, or maybe the Bonanza we are all hoping for…

Let me know in your comments below.

*This is a reference to the song, “Where have all the Cowboys Gone?” By Paula Cole, released in 1996.