Today's Artist quote is by Leonardo Davinci, 

but first, my response...

 💙"Dear Leonardo, yes, I agree.  Each vase in the gouache painting shown above is like a stanza in a poem that is a page from my life. 

🌼The two swirly ones shown on the right are vases I collected on the island of Gozo during a trip to visit my Maltese cousins way back in 2003.  

🌼My cousin was getting married, and my whole family made the long voyage to attend the wedding.  

🌼I bought these two vases at a glass blowing shop, Gozo Glass, while spending a few days in Gozo with my cousin and her husband.  

🌼The vases spoke to me because I knew they would serve as reminders of precious time spent with family from afar. 

🌼Their beautiful shape, weight, and the colors that would remind me of the islands of Malta, Gozo, and the Mediterranean sea for years to come. 

🌼Every time I pick a flower and put it in these vases, memories of that trip live on in my heart." -Marie Stephens October 17, 2025 

 🎨ARTIST PROCESS: I painted the swirly blue and white vase by swirling thick layers of gouache paint with a pin to replicate the beautiful shades of blue in the Mediterranean  created by the artist who made the vase in Gozo.  The actual vase is very textured with layers of swirled blue and white glass, meant to depict the beautiful ripples and waves of Mediterranean waters as they capture light. I hope you can feel the joy and movement in every brushstroke!

Memories that inspired my painting

Pictured above from left to right:

1. The glass blowing studio in Gozo where I purchased the vases. 2. A beautiful beach in Gozo with the limestone shoreline. 3. My husband and myself on a boat ride from the inland sea through a cave and out into the open water that surrounded what once was the Dwejra (Azure Window).