I'm very pleased to have just been unanimously welcomed by the board of  fantasy artist peers as a member of the Enchanted Visions project. Members each submit their own artwork to be displayed at the Enchanted Visions website according to a monthly theme. About 7 of my completed works are now available for viewing at the Enchanted Visions - aka EV - website. They can be seen by visiting the EV website link given below. More coming.

Enchanted Visions was started by 2 highly acclaimed fantasy artists, Amy Brown and Jessica Galbraith. Monthly theme challenges were formed as a basis to help stimulate the artists to create artwork in a fun setting. The artwork was published on a website devoted to this. It's now open to an expanded list of participants thanks to them and equally great fantasy artist Coriander Shea. Coriander, another great EV artist, Lisa Cree, and possibly others I don't have info about, have worked as admins for the group website and other activities. Coriander recently resumed the distinguished role as head administrator for EV. Lisa remains active as an EV artist.

Rebecca Brogden Nance and Mayumi Ogihara, also exceptional EV artists, have formed an EV Deviant Art group. Its primary purpose is for showcasing EV member artwork at DeviantArt.com. Rebecca and Mayumi publish member artwork there based on the same monthly themes.

Many thanks to Amy, Jessica, Coriander, Rebecca, Mayumi, Lisa, Monika, and all those who have gone before for all your wonderful work and dedication.

Links to the growing list of EV's lively internet activities:

LOL - When I started on this story, I had no conception of how many people are working behind the scenes. Here's the entire current list of the EV artists who voluntarily hold positions on behalf of the whole group. Each of them is also an EV artist. Thanks to all of you.

ENCHANTED VISIONS ADMIN LIST

Katerina Koukiotis- EV Pinterest

Monika Holloway- EV part of Monthly Fantasy Art Auctions, shares EV MFAA items to EV fanpage, keeps an eye out for new artists in MFAA

Rebecca Brogden Nance- EV Deviant Art group, keeps an eye out for new artists on Deviantart

Mayumi Ogihara- EV Deviant Art group, keeps an eye out for new artists on Deviantart

Maria Gonzalez- Monthly theme folders on EV fanpage, posts periodically on EV fanpage, misc. EV fanpage tasks

Alexandra Eff- EV Twitter, keeps an eye out for new artists on FB & elsewhere

Catherine Swinford- Miscellaneous tasks, Web help, Keeps an eye out for new artists

Coriander Shea- EV website, EV Member Artist group, EV merchandising, whatever else needs done

Such an honor to have my paintings at theme pages alongside some great fantasy artists' work. I'll be hanging the original in The Katbird Shop, Schenectady Art Society - SAS - gallery today. Stop by to see it among art by other SAS members at 425 Liberty St. , Schenectady, NY after today. Here's how a print of the finished watercolor painting looks with white border. The finished watercolor painting is 16" x 20" on archival Arches Watercolor board. It will be available at the store ready to hang, mounted in a wood frame w/ a metallic champagne gold finish.

 Here's a pencil sketch I did as a draft for picture pendant. This is not available as shown due to my time limitations. BUT...

...You can get the even nicer version & its many variations in silver or gold, as a locket, round or square at Zazzle.

A sneak peak at what I'm working on as part of my first auction offers at Monthly Fantasy Art Auction. the auction takes place on Facebook. New work is offered the 5th of every month. Anyone can join and bid or choose Buy Now options.

The bright blue border is tape that comes off when the work is finished.

Here is my latest work on her face. I did it digitally. I can use it to see how it looks before I go ahead and change it in the painting. I'll also do some cleanup with acrylic paint.

Here she is thus far! Still some refining left to do on her face. Very hard to get features just right due to how small they are. I have to use my tiniest brushes & watercolor pencil points. I'll also be adding geometric designs to the mid-line. Done with Watercolor, wc pencils, colored pencils, graphite. 16" x 20".

I'm unable to set this up the way I used to on my website. They changed it & I can't find the feature that lets you click on it to see the enlargement. 

The Creek Spirit Fairy goes to the place in her heart where the beauty of the soul resides and all is eternally peaceful. There lies the source of her strength. It is eternally invulnerable. She offers a prayer for relief from the tears shed by so many people suffering from loss in its many forms. Death of loved ones, devastation from floods and other natural disasters, illness and disease, broken relationships, financial trouble, the list goes on and on.

It is said that when we commune with the Divine during the rising and the
setting of the sun and ask anything, and it will be granted. As the Creek Fairy sends out her prayers, she is completely assured that her highest hopes and fondest wishes for the relief from suffering, an Awakening for all of humanity, will be granted.

She emerges from the creek every day during the rising and setting of the sun. To outsiders, it appears that she is only sitting there on the stream bank, but she goes within to a secret place. Within to the Sacred Heart, where she communes and laughs and meets with her Divine. No matter what else happens to her in the external world.

No matter what else appears to be happening, she feels the causeless joy as it is restored to its rightful place in our lives. The tears of her strength and all her senses painlessly feed us her ojas*. A sense of renewal is restored for us, a sense of hope not lost, but left unattended. Then she returns the next day to begin the cycle again, continually until the end of time. Always taking up our burdens and cares, converting them for us back to causeless joy, food for us made from the substance of our own Eternal Selves.

This is a Work in Progress. I started it as a pencil sketch. Then I put a digital photo of it in Photoshop where I can try out various colors in Layers. It's a fun way to work out the colors for a future painting. If they don't work out they can be deleted or a Layer can be removed. After I work out the optimal color hues and combinations, I'll print an enlargement of it in a grayscale version. I'll transfer that to a piece of Bristol paper where I'll create a colored pencil, watercolor paint & pencil version of it. It really makes painting more fun by eliminating a lot of the guesswork on color choices and compatibility.
-Joyce

*Ojas is a Sanskrit word meaning “vigor." It is a pure and subtle substance. A story from an acquaintance of mine who specializes in ayurvedic medicine is that Beings in the higher spiritual realms allow their ojas to be drunk by those in need. It heals and restores those who drink it, but does not deplete the higher beings, who willingly and gladly give it to others in this way. Maybe that's an explanation for why Jesus is quoted in the scriptures as saying something like, "He who drinks from my mouth will be restored." If anyone has the exact words, you can post them in comments below.