Sketchbook Project 2011 Cover

This is the cover of my sketchbook for The Sketchbook Project 2011. I love the brown kraft paper look so I kept it as my background color. I would tell you the theme I chose but it's kinda obvious!

Done! Well, maybe...

Here's the halfway done girl I posted below. I like her enough but will make some small changes in a day or two. I always come back and "touch up" things here and there. Does anybody else do that? I just can't seem to say it's done already!

Halfway Done

I'm about halfway done with this one. Don't know yet who she will be or what she wants to say, in other words- I don't know what to do with her yet! On 12x12 canvas.

Social Butterfly

I did this 12x12 canvas in Sharon Tomlinson's Faces in Technicolor class. She gives wonderful and very helpful critiques, here is part of her critique on this one (used with permission and because childhood memories always pull at my heart strings).

" I like the movement and she is caught in a whirly wind (not sure how to spell) but it is a memory from my childhood when we could look out across the field and see the dust and debris blowing and caught up in a whirl like a mini tornado. We always ran toward it. Well anyway, last week when I was at the hospital with dh there was an area at the front entrance to the hospital that caught the draft and I saw this several times. I wanted to step into it but there were crepe myrtle blooms swirling in it as well as a other dust and debris and I thought I shouldn't. A good painting should evoke something in the viewer even though it may not necessarily be what the artist intended. So, your painting brought back to me a distant memory along with a more recent one where the crepe myrtle blooms were swirling instead of corn husk and cotton plant leaves. .....even her hair is caught in the swirl."

You can visit Sharon's blog here and where her classes are held here.

Done - Final Layer!

I kinda lost track of how many layers. Let's see what all I used: Acrylic paint, water soluble oil pastels, stencils, ocean jasper stones, turquoise stones, charcoal pencil, ink, cheese cloth and fibers. Here you go, Mom!

Here's some close-ups:

Fourth Layer

When in doubt, paint a flower. I think my stems got a little wonky tho. Still needs more layers!

Third Layer

This is the third layer. Don't quite know where I'm going with it yet but I know it needs lots more layers!

Second Layer

This is the second layer in the painting for my mom. I did a gel transfer of one of her favorite Scriptures and I stenciled using an old plastic doily that had belonged to her mom. Not liking the transfer so I might remove it.

First Layer

This painting will go to my mom for her new place. It will be the first time she has ever lived alone so I wanted to make something special just for her. Her favorite color is blue so I started the first layer with that. It is a 36x36 canvas, a nice above the sofa size.

Sunflower Girl

A work in progress. This is painted on my mothers old dresser mirror. The mirror broke so I salvaged the frame. It will eventually include birds, my dog and whatever else I think of. The white part is the outside of the frame, I think I will journal on that and add some cool scroll-y things.

Bonny's Birthday

My little girls birthday is today, she is two years old, officially ending her puppy years. Here she is with one of her birthday presents. She got to snack on apples all day long that I dehydrated for her and she got raw egg mixed in with her regular food. Egg-y is her favorite!

Angel

Almost done with my first angel painting. I added in fibers, gold leaf, and iridescent details in the wings. And a close-up to see more detail...

Albert Bloch - Winter in the Dead Wood

Albert Bloch
American, 1882-1961

Winter in the Dead Wood, 1934-1938
Oil on Canvas

After returning to the United States from Germany in 1922, Albert Bloch became the head professor of drawing and painting at the University of Kansas in Lawrence. He painted Winter in the Dead Wood early in his 25 year tenure there. Rendered with a stark palette, this bleak winter landscape suggests haunting desolation and Bloch's own pessimistic world view. The scene depicted within its thick, encrusted surface evokes not only bitter cold, but also memory and loss. Bloch titled the painting after a poem by the Austrian poet Karl Kraus (1874-1936) written in protest of World War I. Lacking explicit references to war, the painting may, nonetheless, reflect obliquely Bloch's horror at the rise of Hitler as well as the despondent mood of Depression-era America.

The original work can be viewed at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.
Photo by me, text references by the museum.

Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, David with the Head of Goliath

Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, called II Guercino
Italian (Bolognese), 1591-1666

David with the Head of Goliath, ca.1618
Fresco

This David and Goliath is an early work by Guercino painted in fresco, a technique in which paint is applied to fresh plaster which, as it dries, bonds with the pigment. A good portion of the tree on the right, however, has been painted on top of the dry plaster, using pigments bound with glue or egg. Fresco painting was normally used for large scale, architectural decorations rather than individual, smaller scale works such as this. It is possible that Guercino did this painting as an exercise in mastering the fresco technique. It depicts the Biblical story of David, who against all odds, killed the Philistine giant Goliath and beheaded  him with the giant's own sword.

The original work can be viewed at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.
Photo by me, text references by the museum.

Bernado Strozzi, Saint Cecilia

 Bernado Strozzi
1581/82 to 1644

Saint Cecilia, 1620-1625

The classical columns allude to Saint Cecilia's aristorcratic Roman family who secretly practiced Christianity. Her martyrdom is symbolized by the palm frond in her right hand. Cecilia is flanked by an organ and a violin, her attributes as the patron saint of music.

This work can be seen at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.
Photo by me, text references from the museum.

Vincent van Gogh, Olive Orchard

Vincent van Gogh
Dutch, 1853-1890

Olive Orchard, 1889
Oil on canvas

This is a late work by van Gogh created at a time when his style was at its most agitated and expressive. It is one of a series of olive orchards painted while the artist was a patient at the asylum at Saint Remy de Provence, where he had committed himself after a series of mental breakdowns.
Van Gogh refers to the painting in a letter of July 1889 as an orchard of olive trees with gray leaves, "their violet shadows laying on the sunny sand". These shadows admirably convey the scorching heat of the Provencal sun, and the repetitive, rectangular brush strokes establish curving patterns of energy that heighten the emotional effect.

This work can be seen at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.
Photo by me, text references taken from the museum.

Paul Raphael Meltsner, Paul, Marcella and Van Gogh

Paul Raphael Meltsner
American, 1905-1966

Paul, Marcella and Van Gogh ca. 1937
Oil on canvas

This self-portrait by New Yorker Paul Meltsner features not only likenesses of his stately model, Marcella, and charming wirehaired terrier, Van Gogh, but also a view of one of the artist's industrial scenes, which brought him considerable fame in the 1930's. Holding a hammer instead of a typical brush and palette, Meltsner expresses identification with workers like the one included in the painting behind him. The composition's smooth and volumetric forms, which appear like products of an assembly line, tie Meltsner more subtly to proletarianism, a celebration of workers' culture that attracted many American artists throughout the period. Meltsner's style translated easily and successfully into the widely accessible medium of printmaking, a pursuit that further strengthened his affiliation with 1930s proletarianism.

Original work can be seen at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.
Photo taken by me, references taken from the museum.

Stuart Davis, Hotel de France

Stuart Davis
American, 1892-1964

Hotel de France, 1928
Oil on canvas

Hotel de France is the first painting Stuart Davis completed during a 14 month stay in Paris beginning in 1928. The bright palette, jaunty composition and picturesque street scene convey the American artist's delight in the city's unique sites, particularly in the area of Montparnasse, where he settled. Vertically oriented, the composition calls attention to the white hotel facade, red pissotiere (public urinal), green advertising kiosk and black lamppost. Signs of the influence of French Cubism are evident in the interplay between two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional space as well as in the inclusion of prominent textured forms. The visual rhythms of Davis' work approximate the syncopation of American jazz, which enjoyed international popularity for its rebellious and youthful spirit.

This work is part of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.

Resurrection Day

 Resurrected Jesus and Mary Magdalene, early 1900s Bible Card illustration, publisher unknown.

Thomas Hart Benton

 Thomas Hart Benton

American, 1889-1939

Persephone, 1938-1939

Tempera with oil glazes on canvas, mounted on panel

Benton’s Persephone appears as a sunbathing farm girl. Hades is shown as a lustful, aging farmer with a rickety cart for his chariot. His facial features appear similar to Benton’s own, although he used a local model.

Note: It is rumored to be Benton and his wife in this painting.

This painting is displayed at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.

The Scream

April Fools! I feel kinda bad desecrating the work of Edvard Munch like this, but what the heck.

Vast Tundra

Abstract series #6. Last one in the series but I'll be doing more- mainly as a background.

Abstract series #5. This one if my favorite.

Of the Earth

Abstract Series #4. I see two dogs in this one. No, I haven't been drinking.

Above and Below

Abstract Earth Series #3. These are hard to photograph- they all look a little blurry.

Crimson Tumult

Part of an abstract series of 6. Trying to get earthy qualities through hue and texture. Like what you might see if you slice open a rock.

Interplanetary

One of my abstract pieces. There's something so "freeing" about doing an abstract- no pressure, no structure, you can do anything you want, use any materials you want, and it's all good.

Fisher Woman Fountain

This is my favorite fountain in Kansas City, located downtown on Main St. It has a big bottom part to it but I elected to crop it out to make a better photo.

Vincent VanGogh

Of course everyone knows VanGogh but I found out a lot more about his life after watching "Lust for Life" on TV last night. Kirk Douglas did such a great job of playing Vincent, he made you think he really was him. VanGogh considered "The Potato Eaters" his best work.

Whole Foods Market artist gallery

Had to hang at 7:30 am which meant getting up at 6:00 am, I so don't do early. Anyways, it was worth it. Here is my work at Whole Foods Market. Not a good angle but you can see Organic Girl pretty good. A big shout out to Whole Foods Market at 91st and Metcalf , OP, KS, for inviting me to show my work in their gallery space.

Kansas City Fountain

This fountain was in an odd location- just inside of a parking garage. I couldn't get a good angle on it (because the garage was in the way!) so I took the best shot I could and then replaced the background with one of my own in Photoshop. I call her "Lady in Bronze".

Just a start...

This is only the beginning, the background for what's to come. I hope I get it done in time. I am making it specially for my art display at Whole Foods Market. It will have a girl with a fruit basket and good words like- organic, local and eat raw. Or maybe I will do something different, who knows.

If you are in the Kansas City area, stop by Whole Foods at 91st and Metcalf and take a look. My art will be there from 2-18 thru 3-31.While you're there get some of their Smoked Mozzarella Pasta Salad and a bottle of Kombucha and you're good to go.

Marigolds

This is a fountain in Kansas City. I honestly don't know how all the marigolds got in there. Perhaps people were using it for a wishing well and the marigolds were more abundant than coins. I fished out as many marigolds as I could, threw them all in at once and started shooting wildly before they moved swiftly away.

Kansas City Sunset

My love of photography has taken a back seat to my art lately, and that's ok. Sometimes it's the other way around. I really need a break from this cold blistery winter so I thought I would post some of my photos during the warmer months here in my hometown of Kansas City. Oh Spring, where the heck are you?

More Funky Girly Bookmarks

I love purple. She looks good in it too. This one is fabric, acrylic paint, a clay face and yarn hair. As always, I do my bookmarks on mat board.

Funky Girly Bookmarks

Another Funky Girly Bookmark. In this one, I used all fabric (no paper) except I painted the shoes. Her face is made from clay and her hair is yarn that I braided. I also painted a background on the mat board.

Funky Girly Bookmarks

I will post a few of these bookmarks over the next couple of days. They are fun to do and make fab gifts. The face is dimensional, made from clay, and her head peeks out over your book when closed. I cut them from mat board- free hand with a mat board cutter. On this one I used fabric, paint and yarn. Plenty of room to write a message on the back too.

My Girl

One of my favorite movies is First Knight, with Sean Connery, Richard Gere and Julia Ormond. It inspired me to do this piece with I aptly titled "Guinevere". 9x12 on a wood panel.

Tie Dye Silk Scarf

And one more silk scarf using tie dye. Easy to heat set with a microwave.

Tie-Dye Silk Scarf

 

I love Tie Dye. Especially when it's used on silk.These silk scarves are very easy to do (my first attempt at tie-dyeing) with dyes and your microwave. You can find instructions and supplies you will need here. 

 

The Art of Shelby

Shelby spent her babysitting money on art supplies today, like all good artists would do. Here is her first pastel picture made with her new set of pastels. I think she's liking them better than her PrismaColor pencils.