Art of the Figure

The Peninsula Art Academy is currently hosting an exhibit of figurative work. The opening of the show was Saturday night ( in conjunction with Blues Night).
I have two pieces in the show. The Potter's Hands is an acrylic painting 8x10" here I am with it~

and my larger work "Our Ladies of Good Counsel" is acrylic, 24 x 30"

Its a good show and the gallery is starting to fill up with wonderful fiber work, jewelery and pottery. The Academy is next to the train station in Peninsula, behind the Winking Lizard.

Mr September

It was a busy weekend - starting with a clambake Friday night, the opening of a show at Peninsula Art Academy ( photos soon) and Lily's christening on Sunday. I did some framing and paper work for upcoming events and I did find time for an ACEO which I just listed on eBay


Here he is, "Mr September"

A Mulligan

In the world of golf a mulligan is when you make such a bad shot that you ask for a do-over. Something I am heard requesting on a regular basis. This aceo is an art mulligan. When I first finished it I was happy with the misty soft look of the landscape. (I tend to be initially happy with nearly all my paintings. Doubt and regret sets in later.)

So when the second thoughts arrived I decided to go back to the easel and re-work this piece. I felt it needed more light values and hightened contrast. Here's the grand make-over:

I for one would love to see a tv reality show staged in the artist's studio - it could be called Project Atelier or What Not to Paint.

Pennsylvania Here I Come!

Phew! Talk about Just in Time Delivery. I had been planning on entering the annual miniature show in Chamberersburg Pennsylvania for some time now and luckily I looked at the entry form yesterday. Egad - art is due tomorrow! So its off to Fed Ex for me today with these pieces:

"Creek in Winter" is an aceo on stretched canvas

"Pecan Trees" is also 2.5 x 3.5" (aceo) on stretched canvas

"Morning Light" also 2.5 x 3.5" in a wooden frame

"Ocean Wave" is 2.5 x 3" in a gold wood frame
The Council for the Arts hosts this lovely show every year. Read more about them here.
The show opens November 5 and runs through January 9

Blogger Award

Thank you very much to Claire Beadon Carnell for including me in her selection of art bloggers for this award. Please go check out her blog and the other recipients of the award!

I am going to pass this award along to seven other artists for their impressive art blogs.
Also, here are 7 things about me that you might be interested to know:

1. I love ketchup and passed this love on to my children and grandchildren. Yes, even on scrambled eggs.

2. This was a two baby year - two new grandchildren! A boy in April and a girl in August.

3. I am hooked on playing FarmTown on Facebook.

4. This year I started making jewelry.

5. I love to buy pottery but I've never tried to do it myself.

6. Currently my favorite tv show is "MadMen"

7. Come be my Facebook friend and I'll tell you one more ;-)



Here are 7 people whom I think really deserve this award - please check out their great blogs:

1. Bill Guffy for his innovative blog The Virtual Paintout Bill combined a love for plein air painting with the newest technology of Google to bring us a whole new concept in painting.

2. Tj Lev - an artist I recently found who maintains a fun, interesting blog
here

3. Deb Keirce a multi-talented artist, internet friend and winner of the Six-degrees of separation award!

4. Paulo J Mendes dedicated artist and master of networking

5. Terry Banderas who does wonderful fun pen and ink work

6. Jill Berry a prolific plein air painter who inspires me to just go do it!

7. Jean Levert Hood the most energetic and talented Texas artist I have ever seen!!

Oil Painting Demo at HSA

Tonight for the first meeting of the year, Hudson Society of Artists had an oil painting demo by Larry Churski . An accomplished illustrator and painter Larry has studied with Don Stone, Richard Schmidt and Lowell Ellsworth Smith.

Larry chose to paint Hudson's Barlow Farm and used one of his own watercolors of the farm for quick reference.
Below you will see a slideshow of his demo. If you are able to visit his gallery in Bath you are in for a treat!

Different Cupcakes

This was my effort at the Different Srokes image this go round. I was excited to try it but once I got started it seemed like a lot of work. I don't know why. Even the sprinkles were not fun. Mabye I've watched one too many episodes of Cake Boss or Ace of Cakes or Cake Challenge or Amazing Wedding Cakes... or hmm, maybe I should stop watching so much tv and get back in the studio and practice!
The frosting gave me fits. Mine looks like someone smashed their hand down on it. I dont have those nice soft curves in it like a Dairy Queen cone. I may have to try some new variations on this. Or go the to the kitchen and try my luck with sugar and butter.

Remember

Ingebord Lariby

September 11, 2001

Ingebord Lariby dear family member and victim of Muslim terrorism. Rest in Peace.

September

I'm starting this month with some new fall colors on my palette; reds, and purples and siennas.
This is a traditional pastoral scene complete with grazing sheep in the meadow. Currently on ebay here

I thought it wold be fun to try a simpler style of broad, energic brush strokes and edgier colors. The still life is from a photo ref on Different Strokes - unfortunately I didnt finish the painting in time for the exhibition.
The covered bridge is based on a photo I took of the Everett Road Bridge in the Cuyahoga Valley
If you would like to see more of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park I have posted many photos on Webshots. Most were taken while hiking or biking the trails:




Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Season Change

I got some painting done this weekend while working at the Peninsula Art Academy. In between visiting with patrons I painted SEVEN new aceos for my eBay listings. There's a broad selection of subject matter and styles - heres one~
Ladies sharing an afternoon luncheon in the garden.

While I was at the Art Academy Sunday I painted a still life that was set up for an ongoing Oils class. Inspiration was everywhere ;-)

and so I'm off and running ....

Buying Art

I came acrosss an interesting article in the Washington Post today with tips for buying art. They interviewed Allison Marvin who owns an art consulting business. I thought her advice to be excellent.
As an artist I hope to produce a piece that brings about an emotional impact or reaches the viewer in a way that they are moved to look again and search for more.



What advice would you offer someone looking for art for their homes?
I would encourage people to take their time. If that means allowing the time to budget and save the money to put towards a piece, then do it. I also suggest they resist purchasing several smaller, lower-value pieces and wait for one larger piece when they can afford it and when they find a piece that really sings to them.

How do you figure out your own personal taste in art?
Go look at a lot of art. Go to museums. Walk through galleries. Pay attention to your reactions. Have a conversation with yourself about what you like and why and what you don't like and why. It's all about finding artwork that challenges you, moves you or reflects your sensibilities.

What would you suggest to someone on a limited budget?
Ask yourself: What are visual things around you that appeal to you? What moves you? Do you have favorite books, magazines, objects? Pick a predominant wall in your house and create a display of a personalized collection of objects and images, salon-style (different sizes and shapes hung in a grouped arrangement). If you have favorite magazines and books, pull the pages out. Hang a postcard that someone sent you or that you picked up on a recent trip. Include programs or other takeaways from art shows you particularly liked. I would do that rather than pay $250 for a framed poster from a chain store.

Is there a general guideline for hanging art?
Most people make the mistake of hanging art too high. [ KSH: A pet peeve of mine!]Art is supposed to be eye-level, but it shouldn't be eye-level to a guy who is six-foot-three. If you hang artwork lower, you bring it into the room, make it much more part if the environment and you can look at it better. Rule of thumb: Art should hang so that its center is 60 inches from the ground.

What do you need to know about choosing a frame?
Let the artwork be your guide and your only focus. The frame should respect and reflect the art, not fight it. The only guideline you should have when choosing your frame is your artwork, not the color of your walls or stain of your coffee table. A good framer will show you your options and tell you what he or she thinks looks best. Rule of thumb: Simple is better.

I'm Back!

Things have been a little hectic the past few weeks. After Lily's arrival we had a family reunion at my house for a week. It was a wonderful time but after everyone left I got sick and then had a nasty allergic reaction to a sulfa based anti-biotic. Downtime!!
I'm feeling better, back to work and I started a new painting this evening. It large. And different ;-) thats all I'll give away about it right now. I am getting ready for some new shows this fall - more about that later.
I just found out that there is a new exhbit at the Akron Art Museum Familiar Faces: Chuck Close in Ohio Collections http://www.akronartmuseum.org/ So the art scene is heating up even if the temps are in the 40s at night. But the days are beautiful!
Here's a scene from Hudson~