Spare me

The lack of a/c in our house especially in my studio is giving everything a heavy feel. Clothes feel heavy, food feels heavy, dark paintings feel heavy, paint feels heavy. The spare lines from the weekend sketches at Lake Eola are what I am feeling today. The man's profile and the woman and her camera, quick gesture type drawings with a brown gelly roll pen...still love those things. So spare us the Florida heat without air conditiong. This reminds me of the post I made right after the lightning strike. It went something like this...at least we have electricity and therefore air conditioning unlike the days following the hurricanes of years past. Spare me.

Orlando Draw Crawl

What a great idea...meeting other artists and taking a drawing tour of the Lake Eola area. I was able to stay only a very short time, but enjoyed it. Thank you Thomas for organizing this event. (http://www.thorspecken.blogspot.com/)The breeze off the lake even in the Florida summer at 8:00 a.m. is very pleasant. There were a multitude of people walking their dogs. The surprise was how many pit bulls there were. I thought there were a lot of them in our area because it is rural, I guess it is an Orlando/Florida thing.
Back to work in the home studio without a/c,(we are wondering if it could be the remnants of the lightning strike that brought everything to a halt.)
Following the guidance of our fearless leader, Alyson Stanfield, the art marketing guru (http://www.1automationwiz.com/app/?af=1019193) I carried my things (to an air conditioned room) and started labeling my folders for the files she suggested in her book. Amazingly the next day I needed some information quickly (to apply for the Bravo Series on art) (that is another blog)and there it was at my fingertips, organized and ready to go. Thank you Alyson.

Lightning strikes again

A tree outside my studio door was struck last Tuesday evening. I was in the process of turning everything off when it hit. So the ordeal begins again, this happened last fall almost the same spot. New phones, new alarm system, rebuild computer, new modem and router, new land line...We have a surge protector on the whole house and surge protectors on computers. My computer is on a hi-speed connection so has an actual wire attaching it to the internet cable. This is how it damaged my computer, not through the electric connection. So be forewarned if you are using dial-up use a surge protector that has a phone connection too. If you know of a protector for ethernet please let me know. This is getting very old. Living in Florida, the lighting strike capital of the world we are careful. This is not the pretty heat lightning, this is very violent and dangerous stuff. It was snapping around our house in the trees for about 20 minutes. It was long and pretty scary. BUT we still had electricity and therefore air conditioning. After hurricane seasons without this was a breeze. Relatively speaking.
I am off my computer for a few more days then it should be wired and transmitting.

Garden sketch

Still trying to work on the painting a day idea...this is from a photo of the garden in early spring.It looks like a sketch to me. The piece is acrylic on layout board. Board is covered in gray gesso. Outlines are done with those gelly roll pens that I love.

It ain't over...

This week I decided to venture into a new world. That of water aerobics. Several months ago I tore tendons in my right arm. It still hurts when I lift anything of any weight. So...I have been trying to figure out a new approach to healing. That explains why I have joined the ladies and gentlemen of the early aquarobics class. This morning we had a different teacher. Things were going along pretty well, good workout, warm water...then she said,"Find a partner." Probably the two scariest words in the English language when you are in an exercise class of any description. Scarier when she says the men won't like this...merde. She turned on waltz music and we were told to waltz with hands in the air toward our partner, high five and go back to our side of the pool, repeat with holding each others' hands in the air and making circles, repeat with elbows locked in a square dance pose. We were laughing out of total horror. One man found an adorable little Asian lady. He was swinging her around and around. I think he had looked for an excuse to get his hands on her for a long time. My partner was the little lady with lots of jewelry who couldn't float with the styrofoam noodle. The teacher had to jump in to help her when she kept rolling over facedown. She was a little round and finally with the help of two noodles could do the leg exercises.
I have often taken the birds' eye view of the water aerobics classes from the upstairs weight room. I have thought what great subject matter this would be. Some of you know my history of painting Ladies at the Beach. My first piece(photo above) was in college, an acrylic assignment. I am not sure how I came up with it, but by the time it was finished one of the ladies looked like my favorite waitress, Mary, at the Torch diner. It was the restaurant where students could drink endless cups of coffee, get great breakfasts and grilled cheese for little money and be waited on by surrogate moms...
Things go full circle, now I am in one of my paintings. I am realizing a canvas isn't large enough to hold these stories. We'll see 'cause it ain't over...

Love those "gelly rolls"

After reading several blogs and seeing the daily painting idea come up several times I have decided to give it a try. I was looking for small pieces of illustration board when I found some layout board from long past days as a graphic designer. Yes, the old cut and paste grids. After a coat of grey gesso the board had some tooth and body. I painted in a loose floral and some blue birds. This was something I could see outside my studio window. After the paint had dried I went in with a black gelly roll pen and did some line work for definition. This is the part I like the most, decorating the piece.

Tomatoes

I am happy to report our kitchen is being taken over by tomatoes from the garden. We have lived in Florida for 10 years and can attest to the fact that the worst soil in the nation is here. Our Christmas present to each other last year, a real vegetable garden! I perused the web and found a tomato seed site, http://www.tomatofest.com. All I wanted was Creole Tomato seeds to try to copy what I grew up with in Lousiana. We started the seeds in January in little peat pots...fast forward 6 months, drought, wind, freezes, and torrential rains later and we have an assortment of tomatoes. They took 10 years to grow, but "om om."

Studio Landscape

I began a painting for the summer show using the view from my studio window as inspiration. Somehow a transformation took place and the finished piece looked like a view of a savannah or desert. I was trying to analyze how this happened and realized I often am guided by color. If I have just painted a purple sky I look for something to make it livelier (I just can't use the word "pop"). The reds are next to the purples, the blue and orange together. I at first thought it was a complimentary color combination, but I see that isn't accurate at all. Pictured is the view from the window and the piece now hanging in the Gallery on First.
This view was a jumping off point as opposed to the painting being a copy of what I see. In looking at my paintings you will see that is true of most of them.

Whirlwind

Graduation, visitors, family, gallery opening, parties have all come and gone. Incredible memories are still with me:
1.the faculty clapping for the students as they exited the auditorium with the bells ringing
2.child after child joining the line for photos
3.the man who made ice cream to order with liquid nitrogen (really)
4.taking my sister to the airport
5.wishing my daughter could be home for the summer like the old days
6.realizing how many great friends we have
7.the gallery filled with cheerful people supporting their friends and enjoying the art. Thank you friends, old and new, for taking your Saturday evening to join us.
8.trying to find my way out of the Metropolitan Museum in a time crunch. Going from Van Gogh to Cezanne to Degas looking for the exit and having to leave without looking at each of them.
9.suggestions for new directions.
10.stretching out on the sofa for a day and reviewing the month past.
I am posting two photos to see the transformation one painting made to feel worthy of appearing at the show. She was originally "Mother Nature"(on right). She has become in her own creepy way, "Blue Birds."

The Meaning of Life: Graduation and the Gallery

My youngest is graduating from high school this Saturday. This means we will have a wonderful weekend, celebrating great accomplishments. He has done so well and made so many good friends, this means it will be an emotional weekend. Family coming from out of town to celebrate, this means late nights with lots of talking. It is hot and humid, this is Florida, so this means...ugh.
Next weekend is the opening at Gallery on First. Dreaming up titles to paintings, framing, thinking of decorations, this means my head is swirling. Is this piece finished? Is this piece signed? Is this what I was meaning to do?
This means never wait for the perfect time. There is never a perfect time.
And oh, by the way, I am going to New York City for one night.
This really does mean jump in, relax and enjoy. This is life and this is what it means.

Photos for reference

I was looking at a basket of orchids that were given to me 2 years ago when my dad died. They were so beautiful, I was hopeful they would survive. They have thrived outside my studio window. In the deepest shade, getting all the humidity Florida has to offer. I photographed them for reference for future paintings. Several years ago I started photographing our kitchen concoctions. I would then add the photo to our family cookbook, makes it seem legit, hard evidence.
This spring our vegetable garden has produced such a variety and quantity of foods that I wanted to record it. The camera has been in the kitchen taking pictures of green beans, peas, herbs, ruby chard, and tomatoes. Photo! A dear friend brought a pot of parrot tulips to us for our graduation party. Photo! After Christmas I painted a picture of the fruit that arrived from an aunt in Phoenix. Some pears and apples, instant still-life, but I can't paint as fast as it ages so...photo! Lemons, limes, oranges from the trees in the winter. Photo!
I am not always in sync with the garden or with whatever would lend itself as subject matter. (I found out during a painting class that tulips open when exposed to light. The still life kept changing over a two hour period. A Disney nature film before our eyes.) I may not need the reference for years, but I have it recorded. A photo!
P.S. If you have an etsy.com store keep it going. This morning Good Morning America did a story about artists/crafters who have had great success on the site. Free publicity for the site and your work. Must get that updated myself.
http://www.niftyartgirl.etsy.com

Triage almost complete

So many things are on my radar today. My blog triage class is coming to an end. It has been an eye-opening experience. Evaluating my abilities, what I thought I knew and what I certainly don't know and want to learn is pretty clear. There is so much out there to take advantage of and so little time to pursue it. I think. That is the qualifier, other people are able to schedule and write a blog, paint a picture, feed their children, take a walk, expand their networking so I know it is possible. This is my personal challenge, to keep all the balls in the air. That is why I am using this painting to once more illustrate my blog. Thank you to Alyson and Cynthia for walking us through this high tech frontier. Their ability to communicate so beautifully even on difficult technical subjects has helped me so much. (I still really enjoy the audio.)
And then today I look at the followers on my blog and want to cry at seeing so many new faces. Thank you. This is the greatest support you could offer.

Open late this Saturday Night

The Jim Payne Run for Kids will be tomorrow afternoon in Sanford. Support this worthy cause and cheer on the participants.
On Saturday the Gallery on First at 211 E. First Street will be staying open late until about 9:00. If you are in the area come on by. This is a busy place.
Thank you to all who came by Thursday for Five Alive. The music was great celebrating Sanford de Mayo, the crowd was cheerful, and the weather cooperated bringing a nice breeze instead of the storm that appeared to be on the horizon. Lots of people came through the gallery for the first time and were surprised to see what a treasure was hiding there. The variety of artists and styles. There is really something for everyone and priced for everyone too.

Feed Success

I can't even describe how good it feels to accomplish Lesson 10 from my blog class. I have set up a blog reader in My Yahoo, set up the RSS feed, signed up for sitemeter and a feedburner account. It is a foreign language, but it feels good to speak it and sort of know what I am talking about. Thank you Alyson.

Five Alive in Sanford

Tonight is Five Alive in Sanford. A street party for everybody. A band will play, there will be food, drink and vendors of all descriptions. The Gallery on First, http://www.galleryonfirst.com will be open late to welcome visitors. Come on by, say hello and enjoy the art....

The Party's Over

Okay life can begin again as I know it. The graduation party for 70 at my house, with our cooking, cleaning, gardening, and decorating is over. It was a huge success. Everybody ate a lot, although there is one of four briskets, half a cake, three boxes of greens, and assorted other things, most importantly a lot of wine left over and several kegs of husband's homebrew.
Sales Discussions of all types continued throughout the weekend.
I did as our marketing meeting suggested last week and handed out postcard invitations to the attendees as they left. As my husband, the sales manager supreme said, "Shameless commerce." I guess to some degree it is. This is an invitation however to an event where one can gaze at art, eat good food and drink wine and beer. Wouldn't everybody want to be there?
The sales discussions continued.
My daughter has started a new business in addition to her full-time consulting job. She is in the skin care market. The stuff is incredible. So we were talking about possible clients and reaching as many people as possible. She is taking the approach of going to large gatherings and dealing with people on a large scale, convention type platform. She is not doing one-on-one sales. This is a serious business direction.
Getting advice from outside sources.
A guest we had this weekend, Pringle Teetor, a glass artist from North Carolina, friend from 5th grade in New Orleans, visited the gallery to give me some ideas and tell me what some of her fellow artists had done in Hillsborough.
http://www.flambeauxart.com
http://www.hillsboroughgallery.com
Seeing your sales techniques through other eyes.
When that visit was through my daughter and I reviewed what she had seen and how she would makes changes. We discussed everything from moving furniture, changing vocabulary in signs to what to paint.
To test the new information.
I have a show out of the gallery for an afternoon at a new retirement development. The vote was for more fat lady paintings. We did research at the beach on Mother's Day. There were models aplenty. The human body is an amazing, and beautiful thing in all shapes and sizes. It was an artist's dream to watch the swimmers and sunners, in their pageant walking by on the cloudless and brilliant day.

Marketing Meeting

Tonight we had our monthly marketing meeting at Gallery on First in Sanford, FL. This is the big countdown and planning session for our 11 artist opening, Hot Summer Nights, on Saturday, June 6, from 6-9:00 p.m. There was discussion about food, it will be very good. Wine and beer, in good supply. Decorations, for me to figure out. Door prize tied to a survey, very cool.
Art will be there in his glory. All descriptions, all prices, in his full regalia, turning himself inside out. Certainly worth a drive to Historic Sanford. To take a look at other artists' work check out:
http://www.galleryonfirst.com
and to see the work of my next door neighbors in Studio 4, Tracy Burke and Ralph Verano, check out
http://www.gooddaytopaint.blogspot.com
A lot of good stuff going on in Historic Sanford so come on out, for the finest Art has to offer.

Previews: Stay Tuned for These Future Blogs

The paper mosaic at left is a depiction of the children. A reflection of where my blogs will go. I have tried to go through my mental calendar for the next 6 months and see what could possibly be happening that would be interesting to a reader. With my youngest of two children going to college (in Golden, Colorado)in the fall I anticipate many changes.
1. What is outside the studio window? What is stimulating and what is distracting?
2. The differences in working in my studio at home and working in the studio/gallery space I rent and share. It is open to the public.
3. How to talk to visitors in the open studio.
4. Preparing for the group show in early June.
5. Picking pieces to exhibit in the show.
6. Stress of producing pieces with a deadline and a high school graduation and company from out of town.
7.What to wear for painting at home, grocery shopping, and painting in gallery/studio public space. Seems silly, but I think about it everyday.
8. How I designed my year old home studio. The books I used for reference and inspiration.
9. Which artists do I get inspiration from? Where do I find reference photos of their work?
10. How I file ideas in my "morgue." When did I start that habit? How do I edit?
11. What to listen to while painting. Sounds I paint by.
12. When pets of the feline variety want to help paint.
13. How teenagers coming home for lunch change the atmosphere. How it doesn't change when they aren't here.
14.The rhythm of the day.
15. Coping as preparations are underway to take my son to college.
16. Coming home without him.
17. Strategies for being new empty nesters.
18. Lease is up in September. Is the public studio space worth the investment?
19. Incorporating my aesthetics, lots of pattern and color into landscape paintings and other realist subject matter.
20. Going through photos of trips to look for reference shots.

Pattern Becomes Lumpy After Dark Art Retreats

All of the positive comments about pattern have reinforced what I probably already knew, "Do what you want to do. Be true to you."
There is a point in every painting where I stop and wonder if I am finished. This usually happens when I have just completed an area I am very happy with. The fear of ruining what I have just achieved is watching me. This is Art's dark side. He sits in the corner and taunts me. He is filled with doubt. He is going to expose me as a fraud, I will be found out.
Then days later I remember I can paint over it if I don't like it. This stewing period brings back sanity, I shoo the dark Art out of the studio, out of the car, and away for the time being. The evaluating has ended and the action can begin again. Happy Art who brings flowers and smiles has returned and is quietly reading his favorite book in the corner of the studio.
Wow, sounds like psychosis with a capital PSY.

Posting a Profile

I have finally posted a profile. I had resisted posting one afer receiving two creepy inquiries about paintings over the Christmas holidays. This caused me to back off of the internet.
Putting a photo on my profile is most frustrating, I take truly terrible pictures so opted for the paper mosaic self portrait. IF anybody can give me pointers on taking good portraits, good self portraits they will be my new best friend. I produced a huge yearbook for an affluent elementary school for 5 years. In that time I learned to take good photos of people of all ages, but I am still, myself, most unkind to cameras. I believe a large part of who I am is in motion. I should be talking, moving, moving my hands while I talk. Hmmm so photos of me should be blurry.
I realize I should also have a photo of Art in my profile or somewhere on my blog. If you have read my profile you will understand this statement. I need to get him camera ready so we can, together, have a photo-op.
(In photo see my first best friend, my sister, Lesley on the left. On the right, my first stint as a flower girl.)

German Lumpy is Loompy

Lumpy walks across the German fields and into my painting. He is a midsize dog living in Bad Liebenstein, Germany. His name in German and in my memory is pronounced Loompy. I always find it helpful to know how to pronounce names even when I read them silently to myself. Maybe that is from years of reading aloud as a mom or librarian. Well, regardless, I am working on pieces for the June gallery show in Sanford. We need new work to exhibit. No pressure, to create and be fresh and original. So I started a painting using a photo I took of Lumpy. He is my model, since I don't want to be anatomically correct, I have taken artistic license and given him a sex change. I was going to put a quote I find hilarious on the top of the painting, I guess this becomes an illustration at that point, does it? The quote by Groucho Marx is "Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read." As you can see I tend to fill every inch of my pieces with detail. An empty space seems lacking. So here I am on the verge of filling every square inch with pattern or letters or something when an artist friend says,"that is a good painting as it is." Oh no terror in my heart, stop painting, no fill space, stop painting, no fill space with somebody else's witticisms. This artist's dilemma.

How to blog 101

I have signed up for a class on creative, scintillating, exhilerating blogging. I need some pointers and direction and here, to the rescue, the artbizcoach, Alyson Stanfield, http://artbizblog.com and creative nomad,Cynthia Morris, http://journeyjuju.com. Sound like the perfect teachers to me.
Who am I trying to direct my blog to? I would love for my friends and family to tune in and see what is going on in the creative part of my brain. Potential collectors, galleries and customers for illustration (possibly in publishing or art directors)are an audience I am trying to reach too. Living near or far isn't an issue to me with the technology available. A gallery on the other side of the world would be an interesting challenge for shipping, but doable. Creating a dialogue with or receiving comments from these readers would be interesting and help fill the silence when I post things.
So many people have little time to surf the net so I would like to offer a good short read and a visual to go with it for the readers in a hurry. I really enjoy writing so would like to add an asterisk and something creative for anybody with a cup of coffee or glass of wine and some "down" time. A daily painting could be part of this too. The first blogs I did were based on the journal pieces I was working on.
I think that is the answer to blogging 101, question 1, part 1 and part 2. Sure helps to think this through and put it down in writing.

It has been a long time

It has been such a long time...I have since moved into a space at Gallery on First in Sanford, FL. http://www.galleryonfirst.com A place to work and show the work. People come through to see the art in the main gallery, Jeanine Taylor Folk Art, then find themselves wandering the perimeter to see the studios and working artists. Seems like a win win. I am sharing the space with Dan Tashlin, a very talented realist painter. Who is also a very nice man. The other artists are very supportive and have made me feel very welcome. Their families have even stopped in Studio 3 to say hello and introduce themselves.
I have done some new work being in this energy filled place. And somehow I have found myself back with the fat ladies on the beach. I am doing small paint sketches and working toward some larger pieces for the opening on June 6 where we all show our new work that has been hidden from the public during its creation.

Self publishing

Anybody know anything about this? In my research I see there are lots of places that can help you print your books, get an ISBN number, get a copyright, distribute through Amazon and send your books to you in a week. AS W said, now you have to sell them. He always has a way of seeing through the fog and getting to the point. I have wispy cloud filled dreams of sitting before a crowd of adoring children with Melvin on their lips, chanting for more of his adventures. Hmmm seems very similar to the dreams I had of being a librarian.
If you want to comment please write me at my email address printed on the right side of the column. Click on it and it will take you directly to my email.

Moleskin live feed

That is a bizarre title and if somebody hasn't been following this story-line they would be sure this is a hunting/ animal torture site. The opening of the moleskin journal/Sketchbook project in Atlanta was Friday night. There was a live feed set up so you could watch. For an hour or more I couldn't get on so felt like I hadn't been invited to a party that I had planned and decorated for. Finally able to access it. People walking like marionettes with that computer thing that happens to us all when we are being broadcast digitally. A conversation flowing from all over the country as participants watched from there computer vantage points. We all wanted to be there or make a connection with another part of the techno audience. Having your book picked up and showed to the camera was the highpoint for some of the viewers. My pinky/red journal was not one of them, but there were over a thousand to look at. Sorry I can't go to DC this Tuesday to see them at the Contemporary Arts Museum. That would be a blast.A huge thank you to the men who have put this together and will escort them around the east coast and midwest....