Amy Boucher Pye

Tag: Leo Boucher

  • Watercolor Wednesday: Drizzly Grey

    By Leo Boucher.

    The weather in London has looked a lot like this painting lately. Grey, drizzly, chilly, and with only periodic bursts of sunshine. I know for a lot of people, January feels dull and grey too. It can feel a hard month because of the effort we may put into the resolutions made at the beginning of the year that we haven’t yet abandoned. I heard from one of the teachers at the gym this week that there were three injuries in the space of an hour there, partly because of the increased traffic from people wanting to work off the weight they gained over the holidays.

    How do you bring sunshine into the grey?

  • Christmas Greetings!

    By Leo Boucher.

    On this Christmas Eve, we wait and watch and wonder. Pondering the gift of Jesus, the Son of God, born a baby. If you are rushed with a long list of tasks to prepare and feeling hassled; if you’re sad because this Christmas feels different because of people not with you; if you feel quiet and grateful and joyful; may the God of wonders, who became Man and lived as one of us, fill you with his presence today and always.

    Note on my dad’s watercolor – I asked him (Leo Boucher) to put into paint one of my favorite Christmas decorations in their house, which Dad made some decades ago. It’s a wooden base with the figures of Mary, Joseph, and Jesus cut from a darker wood. I love the simplicity, and how the story comes all back to this.

    Happy Christmas!

  • Watercolor Wednesday: Advent wreaths – or not

    By Leo Boucher

    We’ve had a different sort of Advent in our home this year, as I didn’t realize I had none of our Advent candles stashed away like I usually do. Getting them (we go for three purples, a pink, and a white one) meant a jaunt to the next High Street where parking is a nightmare, and it just didn’t happen. So here we are days before Christmas with the candles only recently purchased, but now the kitchen table needs to be cleared of the cookie-making mess before we can assemble and light the Advent wreath.

    We’ve failed our own customs this year, but I imagine God doesn’t much mind, not wanting us to get our knickers in a twist, as it were. Life is messy – which is why Jesus came as a baby in the first place.

    How’s your Advent going?

  • Watercolor Wednesday: A Study in Abstract Art

    By Leo Boucher.

    I like my dad’s abstract art, such as this oil painting (sorry; not a watercolor!) that hung in various places in our home when I was growing up. Art, I know, can be subjective, and probably abstract art even more so.

    To me this painting says home and familiarity, but also conversational groupings, time with a friend on the water, buildings and structures. Actually, however, when I look at it, I don’t think so much about the individual parts but rather I like to soak it up as a whole.

    Over to you – what do you think about abstract art? Like it, loathe it, or somewhere in between?

  • Watercolor Wednesday: Castle in the Mist

    By Leo Boucher

    As the news has been filled with fairytale stories of a commoner from the former Colonies marrying a prince, it seemed fitting this week to showcase my dad’s abstract of a castle by the water. You can picture this as Windsor, where the wedding will be next May, or perhaps a fortress in the North of England, a haven of safety against marauding invaders.

    What does this picture say to you?

  • Watercolor Wednesday: An autumnal farm scene

    By Leo Boucher.

    Growing up in Minnesota, I’d often go with my family to visit my grandparents, both sets of which lived on farms. I took for granted the beauty of the fall colors and the picturesque farms dotted along the way as we drove to Southern Minnesota or Iowa. Now, however, I can bring forth those memories with thanks, also grateful for my dad’s artistry in capturing the moments.

    For those who are celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow, may your celebrations be marked with joy and abundance.

  • Watercolor Wednesday: Days Gone By

    By Leo Boucher.

    This autumn scene speaks to me of an age gone by. A time before electronic devices and everyday mass shootings. A time for reading, gardening, and talking to the neighbors while delivering a homemade cake. But those days had their own challenges, such as people in a minority not having a voice, or cultural expectations reducing the number of creative expressions workwise (can you imagine many people with a so-called portfolio lifestyle back then?).

    Keeping with the autumnal theme, what has died from that era to give us what we have now? What do you wish hadn’t perished? What are you grateful for in this new day?

  • Weekly Watercolor: Beauty or weed?

    By Leo Boucher

    The wild grasses sway in the wind, shimmering against the sunshine. Some think pampas grass is beautiful, while others see it as an invasive weed that is difficult to remove. Sales of the plant have fallen in the UK with the cultural connotation of the plant in the front garden being an invitation to swingers (who knew!?).

    Whatever you think of this plant, here’s an autumnal look at life. Hints of color next to the evergreen tree – the only sign of green to come in the tundra of Minnesota to come, the setting for this painting by my dad, Leo Boucher.

  • Watercolor Wednesday: The movement of autumn

    By Leo Boucher.

    We’re having a taste of summer this week on a quick trip to Spain, but I know elsewhere the Fall feeling is in full flow. My dad sent me a few new watercolors for the season this week, and I love the movement he captured in this one.

    I suppose the meaning of the movement of autumn is towards death and dying, however beautiful the colors are. But out of death can come new life. May it be so in our lives.

  • Watercolor Wednesday: Blood and tears

    By Leo Boucher.

    Today’s art by my dad, Leo Boucher, is a watercolor I shared back in Lent. It seems appropriate to ponder it again today as we consider the latest atrocity. The blood from the hands of Jesus looks to me to be tears – the tears of a God made man who wept and died for the fallen, angry, hurting world. May we find hope and healing through his blood.