I love art.

My friend and fellow artist, Jessica Smith, is moving to Florence, Italy this summer to be a part of a missions program there called Avanti Italia. She was one of the girls who went to Italy with me in 2008 and she fell in love with everything Italian. She's an amazing painter and she's having to sell a lot of her art work before she leaves. So, naturally, I had to snag one of her beautiful pieces and this is the one I chose.

Venice Oil on Canvas 8x10 in

I'm crazy about it! It totally turned my crappy day into a great one. It's weird how art can be so effective. I look at it and just smile. One of my goals this year is to acquire a piece of art from all the girls who went to Italy with me. All of them are amazing artists and I would love to have a meaningful collection like that. I hope everyone could have a piece of art that changed their day in a positive way. Check out more of Jessica's work on her blogs here and here. One is more about the Avanti Italia program and the other has a lot of her art work on it.

Italia Reunion

Hey guys! Today I'm going to our HUF (Harding University Florence) Art reunion! For some of you who didn't know, I went to Italy last summer for a month to study art. Not only did I learn a lot about art and the Italian culture, but I learn so much about 10 wonderful girls and our parents for the trip, Dr. Keller and his wife Sally. We all grew so close and I can't wait for all of us to reminisce about all of our adventures. Plus, my friend Jessica wants to buy some of my pottery (!!!) so I'm really excited about that too! I hope everyone has a great weekend! Ciao!

One Year Ago...

One year ago I lived here...

Ate these...

Traveled with them...

And called this city home.

I miss Florence so much. I lived there for a month and a half while traveling throughout Italy. I never knew I could love a city so much, especially one as lively as Florence. I have some amazing memories from that trip that I wouldn't trade for the world! The trip was offered through our Art Department at Harding and I jumped at the chance to go. Our group consisted of 13 people; 10 female art students, Mrs. Cindy (an art teacher), Mrs. Keller (Queen Bee), and Dr. Keller (the only male, bless his soul). This was my first time out of the country and I really didn't know many people in the group. Needless to say, by the end of the trip we were all one big family. I miss how everyday was an adventure and now days, everything is so dull. Oh well, I guess I'll just relive it all through my pictures. Hopefully someday I can go back and enjoy it all over again. Ciao!