Avocado and Lemon - and My Very First Newsletter!

 "Avocado and Lemon" 

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

$250

Click to buy

This is my painting for day two of the 30 in 30 February challenge. It's yesterday's painting. I'm not going to be blogging every single day's painting, because I anticipate that some of them will be less impressive than others, but for now, here ya go! 

...And speaking of impressive! After procrastinating for almost ten years, I just published my very first email newsletter. Check it out here, and click subscribe to be entered into my Blog Anniversary Giveaway. Because, yes, my blog will be TEN YEARS OLD in just a couple of weeks! That feels awesome.

Just subscribe to my email newsletter to be entered to win! It's a teeny tiny pool right now - so share with a friend! Your chances are excellent.

It's my Blogiversary!

 "Big Reds"

12 x 12 inches, oil on canvas

Sold

More red Camellias! I have a larger painting in the works with this setup, but in that one the blossoms are still mostly closed. I thought they looked lovely the next morning as they opened, so I started a second painting. 

Eight years ago, on February 21st, 2008, I wrote my first blog post - and it wasn't much! Looking back at my work over the years is fun, and I see some subjects I'd like to revisit...

Tulips through time

"Tulips in Silver"

12 x 9 inches, oil on canvas

Sold

Tulips, as every flower painter knows, need to be painted fast. Under strong light, they move and open! It's like a slow dance. I've been painting these red and white beauties for years - they grow in my mom's yard (along with almost everything else I paint during the warmer months). Here are the same tulips from two years ago, from four years ago, and even from six years ago. 

 Do any of those look familiar? How long have you been with me, dear reader?

Another Self Portrait and Another Road Trip!

 "Self Portrait, February 2014"

14 x 11 inches, oil on canvas

Sold

Last week, once Snow-maggeddon finally melted (and the power came back on and my car was towed out of a ditch), Carol and I hit the rainy road to Portland for a brunch date with a group of awesome artist-bloggers. There were a lot of familiar faces in attendance, and one new to me, but a blogger I've been following for years, Don Gray. What a pleasure to meet someone in person and feel like you already know them so well!

Because you can never have too much of a good thing: artist-friends, delicious brunch food, cute dogs, painterly commiseration, new-work-sharing...

Below, clockwise from top: Annie Salness, Carol Marine, Ruth Armitage, and Randall David Tipton; Lulu the cutest damn dog in Oregon; Sarah Peroutka; Don Gray and Randall; Jo Reimer, Don, and his wife Brenda. Present, but not pictured: Gretha Lindwood. Huge thanks to Ruth for hosting us at her stunning home.

As far as this self portrait is concerned, (and I should say something about it, huh?), I painted it while cooped up in the snow (but before the power went out).  I used a Zorn palette, and really wasn't planning on even finishing it, but ended up liking it. The nose is a bit short, the chin maybe a bit too big, but you'll have that. Until you come to Eugene and meet me, you can't really argue!

Tips and Tricks: It's Curtains!

 My contribution to this month's blog carnival, devoted to Tips and Tricks, is all about window treatments. It might sound a bit strange - this is an art blog and an art tips carnival, after all. Some of you, having witnessed firsthand my attempts at interior decoration, might be wondering what I could possibly contribute on the subject of tasteful decor curtains, but fear not! At the heart of this matter are two subjects I do know something about: problem solving the simple way, and shopping at the thrift store.

I've come to realize that people like to redecorate. They must, because there are tons of curtains at the thrift store. Weird curtains. Oh well, I don't judge. The more colorful, the better, for my purposes...

Those purposes include model backdrop, still life component, and (in moments of desperation), drop cloth. Hey, they're pretty cheap, these used curtains. 

One of my favorite ways to use any piece of fabric is to block out windows when I want to control a lighting situation. Our weather changes very quickly sometimes, and when I have a model in my studio, using window light, which can switch from cloudy grey to bright and sunny with no warning, is not a good option. Sun breaks make the general public happy, but for me, they are no good!

By putting two little nails in the wall, I can easily hang a window-blocker of any type with bulldog clips. Those round holes are so convenient.

 

 

If you score some of these funky grommet-curtains,  you can skip the clips altogether. I'm not sure how I feel about this type of curtain as an actual decorative element (although, it's already been established that I am no Martha Stewart), I love them for this:

 

I've got one more tidbit before I send you off on your carnival rounds. I get tons of questions about how I hang paintings in my studio, and the answer is simple:

 

Thanks for stopping by today! Hope you enjoy some more tips and tricks from these fabulous artists:

Linda Nickles


Marla Laubisch


Jo MacKenzie


Joanne Grant


Taryn Day

A Carnival in my Studio!

Let's kick things off with a painting (because it can't be all fun and games):

"Blueberries and Water"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

Sold

....And now, ladies and gents - step right up, no tickets required for this guided tour of my studio! 

Can't you just hear the slow creeeeaaak of the door opening...?

Ok, there's no freak show or tunnel of love in this post. It's a blog carnival, in which a group of artists get together to post about the same topic. In this case: our studios.

I've shared pictures of my studio before, but here's what it's looking like this week. Two easels, tons of plants, random still life stuff everywhere, and paintings all over the walls.

 

You can see canvases stacked and leaning on both sides of my cabinet. The left is for blanks, the right is for paintings. I find this to be a *sophisticated* yet intuitive method of organization.

Below you can see some of my happy little plants. Correct levels of Oxygen and Co2 in an art studio is critical to the creative process! I fool myself that they take my fume exposure down a notch as well.

Below I attempted a panorama of a painting-in-progress on the easel. Left to right, top to bottom: My still life setup with painting, my palette, my painting table (and glass bottle collection), my paintbrushes, and a jumble of paints. The last two I'm not too proud of, but the system does contain some cryptic orderliness, and it's been working for me so far!

Interested in going behind the scenes of some other amazing artists' studios? Here is a veritable fireworks explosion of links!

Marla Laubisch	Carol Schiff	Kaethe Bealer	Jo MacKenzie
Michael Chamberlain	Charleen Martin	Sally Binard	Jacklyn Karabaich
Sharon Graves	Sea Dean	Johnna Schelling	Taryn Day
Julie Ford Oliver	Sarah Sedwick	Kim Rempel	Cindy Michaud
Joanne Grant	Carmen Beecher	Cindy Williams	Cathy Engberg

An Audience of One

 "Sunny Egg"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

Sold

This morning I had company in the studio, and not my usual, mostly feline, company either! Luke Fannin, an arts writer and journalist with Create Eugene sat with me during the entire start-to-finish process of making this painting. He'll be writing an article about it for the blog Handmadeology. I'll make sure and link to it when it's published!

I've demo-ed in front of students and other groups, and been joined by models and friends in the studio before, but I doubt I've ever been so closely observed and documented while painting - even when I was professionally photographed! It was interesting, especially as I approached the end-stage of the painting, which can be a tense time even on a normal day. Under questioning, I noticed things I hadn't before - like how I hold my breath when executing more precise passages, and then exhale and breathe deeply once they're completed.

Supermodel, Me

 First, a painting:

"Baby Bok Choy"

8 x 10 inches, oil on canvas

$200

click to buy

Second, a picture of me painting it:

 

And third, an explanation of why I suddenly have such GORGEOUSLY made photos on my blog instead of my usual crappy iphone pictures:

A while back, I got inspired by a collaboration I saw online between a running blogger and a photo blogger (don't ask, my blog-reading interests range far and wide), and so I hopped on Craig's List and put out a feeler. 

---  Perhaps I should say here that Craig's List found me my house, my husband his job, and is basically the reason for everything in the universe.  ---

I was pleasantly shocked to get a response almost immediately from a team of serious professionals whose work I've seen all over town - and they were excited about working with *me*!

Rob and Tracy Sydor of Digital Latte Photography really are artists. I enjoyed getting to see their massive warehouse studio at our first meeting, and then it was time for them to come to my studio.

 

The photo shoot was fun, if a little weird for someone who is usually the observer, not the observed. They made me feel totally comfortable, and I loved seeing the lights and all the equipment they brought.

Here are a couple of my favorites:

 Rob and Tracy also do this really cool boutique package for their clients - they dress you up, do your makeup and photograph you at the location of your choice. Sounds like fun, doesn't it?