Ohio Happenings

These are scenes from the Wooster Ohio Art and Jazz Festival last Sunday. There were 80 local artists and the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra providing great music on a beautiful summer day. A New Orleans style Parade completed the day. Everyone decorated umbrellas and mached along - here you can see the band leading the marchers in a tight right turn.

I've visited a number of art shows so far this summer and I'de like to share the websites of some artists who I've met and whose work I admire:

Beautiful Glass: http://www.sudduthglass.com/

Vibrant Acrylics: http://www.muenzenmayer.com/index.html

Unique intepretations: http://www.zsyu.com/index.htm

Jewelry http://www.bonyas.com/

For the Birds

Inspired by the birds who are regular's at Michaels Grain and Feed Fly Thru, open 24/7
The first painting was done earlier this year and is sold.



This fellow has a seed in his mouth - and a feast at his feet. Acrylics 2.5 x 3.5"

The happy couple is painted in acrylics, 4x6"

ACEO-Gold finch 2.5 x 3.5"

Here is the bird feeder. Here, seeds and crumbs.

Sprinkle them on and see what comes.

One cardinal, one chickadee, one junco, one jay.

Four of my bird friends are eating today.

Unknown

Geraniums

This piece is 4x4", in acrylics on ampersand board. The pot of geraniums are on my patio and while I was painting them I decided to do an ACEO also. I love these reds - would have don another but dinner was ready!

Life is a Carousel

ACEO "The Carousel"

I woke up late today and tuned on my favorite tv show "Sunday Morning" just in time to catch the end part of a feature about carousels and one woman's 22 year effort to restore the historic carousel from Idora Park in Youngstown, OH that she bought at auction. The story is here:
http://carouselnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=140&Itemid=66

These are photos from a restored carousel in Chapel Hill Mall in Ohio.

Saturday Morning

I joined up with the Satruday Morning painters today for my first plein aire session. We decided to set up on the porch of the Canal Boat Museum.

It was a very hot and humid morning and the shade on the porch was welcome. We got started a little after 9:00 am and picked our views. There is a cluster of small buildings across the street - a house, a shed and the red 'money barn'. It earned this name when a park maintenance worker stumbled across the stash while restoring the rickety old barn. I have heard that it was $35,000 in cash buried in the foundation stones.

There was a good bit of glare and some challenging reflections off the shed roof. Combine this with the little gnats that wanted to embed themselves in the wet paint and I had my hands full! The new easel was great, every time I set it up I get a little more proficient. by 11:00 I had 95% of the 8x8"painting complete - just some finishing details to see to when I got home. A short break, some scouting to find a new subject and it was back to work. This time a small 6x8 of the field and shed across the street, behind the Trail Mix Store.

All in all a great morning out. The best part was having the opportunity to chat with all the nice people who stopped by.

T.G.I.F.

I’m excited to be joining the Saturday Morning Painters tomorrow for a Plein Air session in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. I’ve had my outdoor easel and chair for a while now but have never used it before. The wooden French easel smells wonderful ( for you car buffs, this is like the joy you get from that ‘new car smell’). Everything is clean and free from paint spatters. I’ve packed everything that I think I could possibly need. (ooops… bug repellant!). I plan to be a Saturday morning regular and will post my wet paintings tomorrow!

In the meantime, here's a few new ACEOs:

Tonight is the opening of the Cain Park Arts Festival in Cleveland Heights. 150 artists, great food and live entertainment. Details at: http://www.cainpark.com/arts_festival.asp

The Fabric of Art – Incredible talent – if you appreciate fine needlework look at this story out of Texas http://www.star-telegram.com/visual_arts/story/751552.html

A Little This, A Little That

• When I have time I like to surf the net looking at other artists websites. There is an amazing amount of talent to be found. Today I discovered an artist who paints abstracts and figures and landscapes. Mark E. Mehaffey is well accomplished and nationally known. I was happy to see that he has published a book – which is on my wish list already. Check out his work at http://mehaffeygallery.com/index.html
  
  
• This summer, NYC is installing a handful of giant, 120-foot-tall waterfalls in the East River and under the Brooklyn Bridge. This shot of the Brooklyn Bridge waterfall in action was taken by photographer Vincent Laforet The waterfalls will be up for the next couple months, so be sure to walk across the Manhattan bridge and check them out if you're in town this summer. While it looks great in this photo, I'm not as entranced by the sideviews or some of the other locations. I think seeing the metal framework detracts from the spectacle. I also miss the backdrop of rocks and trees that a natural waterfall offers.

• While browsing in the library I came across "American Photobooth" a celebration of the classic photography booth. It will bring back memories of squeezing into a photobooth with your friends and making silly faces for the camera. See it here: http://www.wwnorton.com/catalog/winter08/033076.htm Be sure to follow the link and see the NY Times Video. I was surprised to learn that the new digital booth in Times Square will screen your pics outside on a jumbo screen at the top of the building.