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Jackson Michigan Artist: Greta Picklesimer
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Saint Sebastian, oil on canvas board.
Started and finished Sept. 1, 2007. This
was a self-portrait (my first attempt)
gone amiss. As I painted, I saw the face
of a man emerge. When I wiped paint
from around his head, a halo was
there. The name St. Sebastian came to
mind and kept coming to mind as I
painted. After painting the portrait,
having not yet added the arrows. I
checked on the Internet to see if
there actually was a St. Sebastian and
was surprised at what I found. He had
been a Christian in the Roman Army.
When this was found out, he was
sentenced to die by being shot with
arrows. He was shot, but did not die.
After adding the three arrows, I sat
with brush in hand, studying the
portrait. I wondered why Saint
Sebastian of all names had kept coming
to mind, why not someone else? A
thought came to me. He had withstood
the arrows of his enemies. I was in the
midst of a financial crisis that could
cripple my faith if I let it. I realized
that this was a self-portrait after all.  
The Lord was speaking to me through
it. Reminding me that he was with me
in the midst of this "fiery dart" crisis I
have been in and he will bring me
through it.
What I find interesting about this
painting is that St. Sebastian's image is
muted as if he is a thought coming
through on the canvas. The arrows are
bold and immediate --as if they are the
most important aspect of this painting.
They are not, but the pain of the
situation I am in seems very immediate,
like the arrows.
Even so, this too will pass.
A Lake View, oil painting on canvas unframed, painted 2007. This is from
the series I am working on called Meditative Pieces. Back in 2006, I
photographed Lake Michigan at Holland and Grand Haven. These
Meditative oil paintings are for just that, meditating, reflection and
offering peace to the viewer. May they transport the viewers to a
better, calmer place than that in which they find themselves.
Waves Rolling oil on unframed canvas stretcher frame, July
2007 painted. This one is also from the Meditative series.
I am a self-taught, Midwest artist living in Jackson, Michigan. My influences: Martha Ceccio of Ann Arbor, Michigan, VanGough, and
any minimalist artist.
I started painting with oils seriously in 2006 after losing two jobs due to downsizing and a promising relationship. Painting became a
type of therapy for me. It was a way for me to work out my feelings and disappointments. Through painting, these failures changed
into creative energy and became blessings in disguise because they drove me daily to  canvas and paints.
Storm on Lake Michigan oil on canvas 2007
What Hides among Trees? Photograph
A Pear 3"x 4"
watercolor and
pencil June
2008. This one
appears in my
little travel
journal.
Granny Smith Apple 4"x 4" watercolor and #2 & colored
pencil appearing in my travel journal. June 2008
Funeral Flowers for Wall Street 24 x 24 Completed
October 2008
"Chicken Little Was Right The Sky is Falling (about the Financial
Distresses of Wall Street)."
Oil on Canvas, 16"x20"
Completed September 25, 2008
"Five Little Clouds Over Lake Michigan" Oil on Canvas 8"x24" Completed
September 2008
"Peace" unarranged photograph 2006
"Back Home in Fall" Oil on Canvas work in progress 12"x24" Oct. 2008
"View of Lake Michigan 202" work in
progress Oil on Canvas 24"x24"
    Michigan Artist Jackson Michigan Artist minimalism artist Lake Michigan artist meditative paintings oil painting landscape
    painting Midwest art peaceful art photographic art art photography
Big Apple oil pastel on watercolor paper
20x20 November 5, 2008. Second attempt
at oil pastels.
First attempt at oil pastels. Oil pastel on
printmaking paper 8x8. Completed
November 4, 2008, as I watched Obama give
his acceptance speech for winning the
presidency.
A View of Lake Michigan  oil painting
USS Wall Street 24x28 oil on canvas Finished
November 2008