Rachel Smith Maher ~ Artist and Poet

I reaquainted myself with acrylic paints recently and composed this sunflower painting for the fundraiser Wintergreen Arts Center in Presque Isle, Maine, is hosting in a couple weeks. I wanted to capture how the sunflowers I grow keep their "faces" to the light...looking up...seeking the sun...very uplifting. The clear blue sky represents that peacefullness which accompanies a positive attitude. Reminds me to keep on keeping on, chin up, face to the Son.   ~~~This painting is in a private collection in Maine.

Can you feel it? Can you hear it? Spring is in the air! The birds certainly have known it for a few weeks, now, as they have been singing their sweet spring songs in celebration! I have been inspired to paint tulips...lots and lots of tulips! Pink tulips, red tulips, peach tulips, tulips in vases, tulips in the garden. What joy it has brought me as the transition from Winter into Spring takes place. The melting snow reveals the promise of the new season--green grass, sprouting crocuses, velvet soft mosses. Winter into Spring has many moods--solemn clouds give way to glorious sunrises, which yield yet again to rain and even snow. Each day has a gift to share with us, even if it's so dark that we can barely perceive it--and sometimes it is so light that the glare makes us miss the details...but the gift is still there. May our hearts be light as we seek and find the gift in every day! The top two paintings are available, framed in blonde wood 13"x13" frames with a whi...

Ru-ta-ba-ga: a brassicaceous plant, Brassica napobrassica, having a yellow- or white-fleshed, edible tuber, also called Swedish Turnip. Or as I like to see it, an orb with a really cool purple color that melds into a nice orange-y gold hue and flowing green leaves that have holes where the bugs got at them. This is definitely a vegetable that is under appreciated, but apparently quite healthy for us. Try adding carrots or parsnips to a mash of rutabaga, with some butter (not too much!) and garlic and top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese... delightful! Consider this my ode to eating more vegetables--along with all those other things that are healthy habits to employ! God gives us all that we need to nourish our bodies and souls--its up to us to partake in His bounty!   ~~~This painting is in a private collection in Maine.

New Year's Greetings! The dawn of a new year...a clean slate...a chance to live life as you've always dreamed it. We have this power, this choice within us. It's up to us to make the decision--to live authentically, simply, lovingly, peacefully. The Source that gives light to the sun wants to share that light with you. This, too, is a choice. A daily surrender not to our appetites, but to what brings everlasting peace. My New Year's goal is to be in touch with that peace each and every day...the fruits of my spirit will tell me if I am on track. And as is traditional at Dragonfly Arts ...this small 5x7 first painting of 2012 is being offered to the first person who asks for it--free! Peace be with you all in 2012!

The Wisemen heard the Good News and wanted to worship the New King. They asked, “Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2) They searched, and found their King…but it was not what they expected, to say the least. The star led them to a house where they discovered the Boy Child and his mother Mary. No royal robes, no golden crown, no throne, no palace. Did they turn around, assuming they were mistaken? Did they look at the night sky, seeking another star? Nope. They bowed down and worshiped. And opened their treasures. And offered their gifts. (Matthew 2:11) To the little Child who was their King. Have you ever encountered such a scene…where things did not turn out the way you planned…they way you hoped…the way they were supposed to? Feelings of discouragement, despair, anger and frustration seem warranted. But God’s ways are not our ways. He asks us to look at the Wisemen, and worship anyways. To open th...

My mother in law, affectionately know as "Dinah", has a little saying when happening on something delightful: "That'll give you a lift!!" That's what I feel when I see sunflowers--and was immediately inspired by my friend's vase full of fresh sunflowers earlier this fall. Their blooms lean this way and that as they follow the sun. Do you ever find yourself stretching toward the Light? This painting was donated to a fund-raiser to help a special friend in his battle against cancer.  Sadly, he passed away in the summer of 2013.  His creative spirit and warm smile lives on in our hearts.  RIP E.H. 

Memories of a mountain stream. If you look closely, a flyfisherman is casting his fly off the left bank. There is a rhythmic beauty to casting. The sounds of the rushing waters, the smell of the Maine woods, back and forth, landing the tasty bait just so. With any luck, a brookie will be enticed by the meal at the end of your line. Regardless of the "catching", flyfishing to me is one of the best ways to relax while soaking in Nature at its best. God's magnificent creation. All is good at the edge of a mountain stream. 16"x14" $250 framed