The Barn Gallery

Awesome news to share...I met with Sue Newton, owner of The Barn Gallery in New Fairfield, CT, on Route 37, today. She has accepted 15 of my pieces into her gallery as well as a number of my greeting cards. May many people fall in love with them and buy them all! :-)

The Barn Gallery is a great space showcasing tons of art as well as unique gifts and greeting cards. They also do custom framing...so you can get a great piece of art and have it framed all in the same place! If you are in the area be sure to visit her gallery.

Today, I also got to visit with my friend who lives in New Fairfield, the same one who put me in touch with Sue. My friend lives w/in walking distance of the gallery which was such a great surprise. I also got to meet her niece who is studying theatre. I will be sure to post plays and other info on her as I find out about it. We love to support emerging artists in all fields of art.

Well I am off to make dinner but hope to have more to share within the coming days. Till then happy creating all!

Go Right

So far this is turning out to be a fabulous art week. I have painted 3 days in a row and also worked on the GO alphabet (see Now I Know my ABC's for more details).

Today's piece is called "Go Right", acrylic on bristol, 13"x18". This was a fun piece to sketch out and to paint. I am still experimenting with the retarder and so far it is a happy experiment. In case you don't know, retarder is a product that keeps acrylics "wet" so they are easier to work with. It slows the drying time down so it is easier to blend and work, at least I think it is easier. My big issue both yesterday and today is with my bristol board, for some reason when I remove the painters tape it is ripping the paper. I've been lucky that it hasn't ripped into the painting, well maybe it is more than luck since I score the edges before I remove the tape. Anyway, it is beyond annoying although if the pieces are framed you won't see it. However, I can also crop the paper and remove the damaged edges if I want...but not sure I want to do that just yet.

But the big news for today is that I spoke to the owner of a gallery in CT that my friend recommended. I am scheduled to meet with the owner on Friday, so if all goes well she will show my works. So check back for more information sometime on Friday.

That's all for now my friends (is there anyone out there? leave a comment or become a follower, I'd love to hear from you).

Oh, before I forget, my favorite little artist likes today's painting. :-)

Red Mama

It is a rainy day here in NY but that didn't stop me from painting today. Today's piece, "Red Mama", acrylic on bristol, 13"x18", was an experiment in a number of ways:

1. Tried out "retarder" to see if it did make the acrylics easier to work with. The jury is still out since I am thinking I may not have used enough since I was concerned about using too much.

2. It is rather large for an acrylic painting, at least for me. It is 13"x18".

3. Tried out some new brushes that had longer bristles. That was an interesting experience but may buy new brushes with shorter bristles again. It is a control thing.

4. The subject matter was drawn freehand right on the bristol board versus in a sketchbook and then traced. The reason is that the biggest sketchbook I own is 11"x14".

The colors on this piece are more earthy then I normally do. It is most likely a side effect of the rain on my psyche...LOL. This piece was also very difficult to photograph but then we all know that the camera and I aren't really good friends.

So far this is turning out to be a pretty good art week but it is only Tuesday so I hope I haven't jinxed myself. But I do have some other news...I did hear back from one of the galleries I reached out yesterday. Unfortunately, they are booked up for the August show but if someone is unable to deliver their works on time they will let me know. Also, I have been in contact with Yellow Llama and am hoping to work with them. I'll keep you posted. Till tomorrow...

So Close

Happy Monday! It was a good art day. I was able to spend some quality time in my studio and completed a new painting this afternoon. However, before being able to paint the studio needed some cleaning up. My favorite little artist spent a number of days creating w/moon sand. Needless to say it was moon sand covered the drop cloth but she had a great time using it and that is what counts.

Today's piece is called "So Close", acrylic on bristol, 8"x10". It is dedicated to my muse...you know who you are, my dear friend who encourages me to do art and in the nicest way demands to see a new work. Well, maybe that is exaggerating a bit....hahaha Well maybe not since she im'd me w/ "ART?" LOL But what would I do w/out her? Sometimes you need someone who encourages you and is so happy when you answer their question with a yes.

The other art related item for today is that I reached out to two galleries regarding shows in August. Hopefully, both will have room for me since one of my goals is to show at least once a month. Tomorrow should be another good art day, I was given a contact at a gallery by a friend that I will call. Stay tuned for the news....good or bad.

Later!

How sad...no art

The blues are slowly subsiding, art would have helped but unfortunately the responsibilities of life had to come first. Monday we experienced a power surge that fried our kitchen appliances. So today was spent in contacting a repair technician and getting an estimate. Then purchasing a new coffee maker and other errands. The highlight of the day was picking up my favorite little artist from camp...she had a wonderful day.

So know begins the fight with the insurance company and ConEd in order to get reimbursed for having to replace our appliances. Add to that the fact that I am still unemployed and we don't have any extra funds...oh this is going to be so fun...NOT!

Tomorrow is a new day and I hope that it will be one filled with art. I am looking forward to working on my newest project to see how it turns out. Have great night.

Now I Know my ABC's...

Today, my friends, was a tough day. The sun is shining (perhaps a bit too brightly) but my mood was definitely blue. My job search is at a standstill, it seems I am not making much progress with selling/showing my art, my husband was the victim of identity theft and the icing on the cake...we experienced a power surge yesterday that has fried the fridge and stove. My instinct was to crawl back to bed and stay there. It was so hard to stay downstairs and force myself to search the web for job postings and then speak with my career counselor. But as luck would have it, and in this I am lucky, my wonderful friend was online. A simple hi to her and telling her I was sad helped to change the day. She knew just what I needed...a nudge to go work on my art. So into the studio I went...

It was hard at first to concentrate but slowly the creative instinct clicked in and the web of blues disappeared. I focused on my latest project which is to reproduce all the letters of the alphabet in a "garnetoriginals" way. I am past the halfway point in my endeavor having made it up to "O" before heading out to pick up my favorite little artist from camp. Right now they are simple b/w drawings but eventually each will be turned into a painting. The objective is to be able to mix and match the letters to recreate names or initials to be used as greeting cards. This project should keep me engaged for awhile and hopefully keep the blues from creeping back in.

The other thing that happened as I sketched away, I began to sing "Rain Drops Keep Falling on my Head" (be thankful you weren't around to hear, a singer I am NOT lol). So my friends I will leave you with a quote from the song:

But there's one thing I know

The blues they send to meet me won't defeat me

It won't be long till happiness steps up to greet me

~BJ Thomas

Midnight Sky

Today is the first day of camp for my favorite little artist. I hope she likes it and has a fun time. The morning was just confusion and it didn't leave me feeling super confident but when I left her she was smiling and making a new friend. So I will take a breath...

Art has been slow for me over the last week but we did have a busy holiday weekend which was very nice. We were in Lake Placid and I began a painting there which I finished at home on Thursday, 7/1/10, however, I did not get a chance to post it yet. So here is the latest offering..."Midnight Sky", acrylic on bristol, 10"x13". It is a study in primary colors (red, blue, yellow) along w/black and white. Since I was in Lake Placid I only bought a handful of paints with me which happened to be the primary colors. It came out better than expected.

I am hoping this will be a good art week...it will be nice to get back into a creative groove.