Here's to New Friends

My husband Michael and I are just home from a cycling vacation in the Eastern Townships of Quebec Province.  On this (supported!) VBT tour, we collected some new friends, who may, just may, take a bit of their time to look at my humble collection of artwork here.

It was wonderful to find out that a number of us were artists of varying levels of seriousness...and media, too (a well-published author of science fiction and thrillers included!).   On the very last day I found that one of my fellow cyclists was what I call a SERIOUS artist, with the "chops", degrees, and gallery representation to prove it!  I humbly direct you to Robin's website.    What amazing artwork!

Meanwhile, I find my own gallery on this blog is extremely dated, so I am going to take a minute (or 60) to bring it up to date.  I hope you will take time to peruse it.

And meanwhile:

Pompous? I hope not!

 The eight SOBs are getting ready for our May show at Anton Art Center in Mt.Clemens, Michigan.  We will have about a half-dozen paintings each, plus a "history room" that will show the background of our group.

The Art Center will also have on display a book with our various artist statements, so all of us are writing new ones or updating old ones.  The following is what I'm using this time around.  I always think that writing statements makes me sound pompous. 

Maybe that's the point?

 

“Art” should  be a verb,   not a noun!

I  prepare to paint by stretching my watercolor paper:  I soak it, then staple it to a backing, and allow  it to dry taut and clean. The process is magical for me, pregnant with possibility and hope.  There are infinite possibilities ahead of me with this sheet of paper.  It may be a failure, destined to be torn for collage, or gessoed over, or scrubbed, or just recycled.  Perhaps it’s destined to be a  personal “masterpiece”, a work to give me joy and confidence for years to come.

 Before I’ve even made my first marks, from the moment I’ve decided on subject matter,  the possibilities and options begin to narrow. My choices become more limited,  driven by previous choices, previous marks.  (wait a minute… is that not exactly like life?)

The total fascination of art for me is that journey, from the first moment with the blank sheet of paper, to the ending, whatever it may be (successful or not).  Decisions of subject, color, design, texture all provide my escape from life’s more difficult decisions and choices.

 I generally paint using traditional watercolor techniques and materials, with recognizable subject matter. I often enhance and expand on my subject matter by obscuring the actual original environment using dramatic value contrasts and patterns.

Click Here to visit the ANTON ART CENTER site.

Click Here to visit the Sisters of the Brush website.

Almost TWO YEARS!

I can't believe it's been almost two years since I posted here. It's because of Facebook: for a while I 'published' my artwork here, then I published it BOTH places, and eventually that was too onerous, so I have just been posting on Facebook.

Well, just to break the ice, I'll post acouple of the paintings that were accepted into the Our Town exhibition this fall, at least those are fairly current. And then see about getting serious about keeping this up to date.

The Sisters of the Brush have a holiday event...

I probably haven't posted much recently about the SOBs with whom I associate.  They are aka the Sisters of the Brush, and we have critiqued and learned and painted and shown artwork together for quite a few years (don't make me go back right now to figure out the first time we met - but I'll guess well over 10 years).  This year we'd arranged to have our artwork featured at the Fieldstone Winery for the month of December.  Several of us have had solo shows there, and we've had a group display previously.  Because it's the holiday season, we've gotten ourselves into a mood for a party more than an opening.  We're bringing our most affordable art (sometimes some older things, sometimes reproductions, often smaller items) so that our friends and followers can find something they like to take home. We also pledged that 50% of our artwork sales from the party and the month-long display will be donated to support the Mary McCarthy Anderson Art Scholarship fund.  We hope we can pull together a substantial amount in order to sponsor more students in their pursuit of artistic expression.

Mostly, we hope we will see you there!  You can come by to see and buy the artwork any time through the month of December, but on Thursday the 11th, you'll find us there, and a rack of notecards, and a rack of REALLY affordable matted/unframed originals and reproductions. You'll also find wine tastings (Fieldstone wines, of course),  and good refreshments.  So, does that motivate you to find time between 6 and 9 that evening? I sure hope so.  And of course, I also hope that Old Man Winter cooperates.  Enough of the bad weather just when you plan something fun!

The "FALL" art season begins

Both these pieces, painted earlier this year, have been accepted into the Birmingham Society of Women Painters fall exhibit, juried by artist Joseph Sim.  The show is being hung at the Birmingham Unitarian Church (a very nice venue), with the opening reception being held on Thursday, November 20th, from 6 to 8 pm.

Congratulations to Lisa Richter, who won BEST OF SHOW for this exhibition!

Yes, it may be the fall art season, but we have winter here too.

Summertime painting

Pleased to say that two of my three submissions to the Our Town 2015 show/sale were accepted (no, not the paintings shown here: I'll post them later on).  That's a welcome pat on the back near the end of summertime which, for me, is traditionally my time of LEAST painting.  And, you might notice, least posting.

To those blogging art friends who have kept it up  (both their art and posting), congratulations on both, and, although I've not taken time to post comments, I have been watching your successes - many of them!

I actually did do some summertime painting too, though, this year, some of it at our cottage, most at home on the rainy days.  I decided to make summer painting into a 'Hobby', and not challenge myself. The goal was to make it fun and easy. In pursuit of that I stretched quarter sheets, half the size I've been working on usually.  I found interesting source photos - just fairly unchallenging still-lifes - did drawings, picked a few,  transferred the drawings to the paper, and then just carried the results and a small pallette with me up north.  Rainy days there were frequent this summer, and with   less to do in bad weather than when at home,  I got my painting time.  Two of the finished results are shown (very casual photography).  Anyway I like 'em, and even more, I liked painting them.

Hope you've had that much fun with art this summer. If not,  just wait. Those other seasons that shall remain nameless are indeed approaching, and maybe you'll find more time to get inside and make art.

MWCS Members Award!

Although I've been a member of this organization for a number of years, I'm not exactly sure what "Members Award" exactly means . . . Except that I'm a member and . . . I got it!

Saturday was the big day - the Michigan Water Color Society's 67th Annual Exhibition - which included a critique by juror Paul Jackson in the morning, a convivial and well attended board luncheon at midday, a lecture by the juror in the afternoon, and finally the awards ceremony we had all (well, I had) been waiting for!

I'm very honored by being chosen for one of the awards: the company of the thirteen award winning artists is of the highest caliber.  If you don't believe me, write to me to buy one of  our beautiful catalogs!! (Sorry: fund raising never ends. But the catalogs really are lovely
- and only $15).

Anyway, my husband reminded me to get a picture taken with the award winning painting  ("Treepodia"), so here it is for your perusal!