Doodles of Poodles

In preparation for the commission poodle portrait I found I had poodles on the brain. Here I was painting another beach lady when her empty hands called out to be holding something. I was thinking about beach balls when poodles made their entrance. Now this is hardly a portrait poodle, more a poodle doodle, but it is the thought that counts.
All of these thoughts came as I was enjoying Golden, Colorado. Much to my total delight we had snow. For a born and raised southerner this was a gift. Back in Florida, 90 degrees and muggy. More dreams of moving west and north.

Thanks, Mom and Dad

Working away with Robert Plant and Alison Krauss singing in the background, me singing in the foreground. That is a terrifying reality, ask my family. It is so good to be back in the studio. Continuing in the same style as the "Beach Lady" with this new piece, "Thank you, Mom and Dad". It is small, 8"x10". The fine white lines are going to ruin the remaining vision I have. It is hard to be inside with the magnificent weather we are having. A weekend in the garden was what I really needed to feel rejuvenated. I received a commission yesterday for a large pet fantasy portrait of two poodles. It will be in the same style as this painting, "Harold's Fantasy." A Christmas gift! Uh oh! The countdown has officially begun for making gifts. 53 days until Hanukkah and 67 until Christmas. Thank you Alyson for the countdown.

Hello home

Home after a week in Houston helping family. It is good to be home, wherever home might be. If you read this blog very often you know I pine for the west and for cooler weather. I do. Houston had a few fall like days while I was there. It makes me hopeful that we can return to the out of doors and enjoy the garden again. Since the weather was nice on my visit I spent an evening outside drawing the branches of an oak tree in the backyard. That will come later this weekend when it is completed with the white line outline. Hmm a little rhythm to that phrase..."white line outline". I am posting a small 8"x10" painting. The "white line outline" is the finishing touch on this new beach lady. Seems it will work on trees, leaves, and people. Once again...love those gelly roll pens.

Citrus on black paper

In a recent comment I made on another artist's blog I mentioned how I start my new paintings. I take the paint remaining on my palette from my last piece and spread it over the new canvas. In doing this I have found myself starting on interesting colored backgrounds. When I didn't have a palette to clean I was using dark colors, even black. So leap forward to just using black paper to start with. This painting is of the citrus trees in our garden. The bluebirds represent a spirit that watches over me. I used acrylic paint on the 18"x22" black paper. Then outlined each element in white gelly roll ink (still love that stuff). It has a batik like appearance. You can click on the photo to see it in detail.A new method to explore.

Studio Time Available or a Room with a View

This fall I am offering studio time for aspiring and already there artists. As the weather becomes what Florida is all about: cool, clear and inviting we begin to think about gifts for the holidays. There is always the thought that this year I will make something for my friends and family. Weeks go by and it is Thanksgiving and time is flying by. Next thing you know you are in a mall trying to figure out what can I buy Aunt Myrtle when she already has everything and doesn't like anything or anybody anyway.
My studio and I can offer you:
New and clean workspace.
Natural light.
Outdoor paved patio.
New Orleans coffee or herbal tea.
Library of art books and magazines for inspiration.
A turntable so you can choose your own tunes to work by.
Tricks and techniques from a professional artist.
Flexible schedule to suit your needs.
You bring the materials and ideas, I provide the expertise and help you achieve beautiful results.
For $20 per hour you will get all of the things mentioned above, plus the satisfaction of producing an original gift, something that will be treasured and kept much longer than a Santa tie or an argyle sweater.
To set up a time contact me through my website at http://www.niftyartgirl.com or email me at beth@niftyartgirl.com.

Home's not merely four square walls, home is where affection calls.

I have moved back to my home studio. I thought it would be apropos to have a photo of where I will be working, but it is a jumble of chairs, paintings, supplies, and projects I am working on. Instead here are some of the unmentioned reasons I returned. A great view, when it is tamed, of my studio garden. A bleeding heart vine, one of the things that is happy to reside in the steamy out of doors, a gift from our French friend, Herve. And as most artists tend to have, a studio cat, Harold. His ancient friend, Scratch is not up for a portrait session after celebrating her 19th birthday yesterday with her boy who is away at college. I will follow up with the way the studio would look if nobody did any work in here. Oh merde, an ant crawling on my neck from our brief photo shoot outside. FLORIDA!

Death in Venice

When we were married almost thirty years ago a dear friend gave us a beautiful print she had made. It was an empty beach chair sitting on the sand. The title really grabbed us along with the incredible mastery of printmaking she showed at the age of twenty-one. The beach ball I painted this summer reminds me of Elizabeth's piece in spirit only. The end of summer, quiet beaches when kids are back in school and families have returned to their routines away from vacation destinations. Elizabeth where are you?

Night in the Museum

Yes, really, Night in the Museum. I watched it last night. Without little people in the house I have missed so many good children's and family movies. While visiting my daughter in DC a few weeks ago I saw a bus drive by with Night in the Smithsonian on the side. A message with wheels. So I followed through and really enjoyed this movie.
One of my favorite books is From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankenwiler. Another night in a museum. This time in the Metropolitan. While in New York earlier this summer I had a quick trip through the Metropolitan Museum. I was continually reminded of the book and the children hiding in a sarcophagus.
A nice romp, as they say. A romp through the museum.

Really?

During the summer our studio had a group of Red Hat Ladies visit. They were stopping by before lunch at the restaurant next door. I thought I would do some special small pieces with them in mind. The ladies didn't make any purchases so I still have this piece which lends itself to any frustration anybody faces. "Really?"

Run Sandhill Run!

I was reading an article in the Orlando Sentinel today. It seems not only do we have Burmese Pythons running/slithering wild in the state, we now have African Rock Pythons. They are typically only 16 feet long, but can grow to 20 feet. They will feed in Florida on raccoons and among other things water birds. Here is one of our local birds, the sandhill crane. I can't say they are water birds, but they are natives here. Usually seen in pairs or in families with one or two children. I often see them in nearby pastures, but have seen them on neutral grounds on busy streets and one family frequented our bank. Hope they are watching out for those pesky pythons.

Pencils bring Mr. Vegetable

I am working with a friend on a project that requires my illustration skills. The ones I want to hone. When I grow up I want to be an illustrator. I better hurry up. Here is one of the first pieces. It is on an ancient piece of Pantone paper from college days, filed away in a flat file for all of this time. (The giant wooden flat file has lived in garages in San Antonio, Colleyville, Texas and Orlando. What a great gift this was. We bought a house in San Antonio from the architect who had retired from his practice. He was so kind. I became the owner of a giant drafting table and giant flat file due to his largesse. They are still living with me.) Back to the illustration, Mr. Vegetable. He is primarily color pencil. I haven't played with them in so long, but I love the bright colors against the smooth blue. This was a happy accident. The ease of the pencils, the portability and the fun are bringing them to the top of my materials list.
P.S. HP and Geek Squad deemed it necessary to replace my computer with a new one. Thank you to the technical powers that be for that blessing. I think I am me again.

Stay or go?

When I took the blogging class taught by Alyson Stanfield this summer we had an assignment to write a list of future topics to blog about. I tried to look forward and see what issues I would be facing as the months rolled by. To stay or to go from my public studio was a topic I listed. I am at that point now. I have stewed over this and come to the conclusion that it is better to move back to my home studio. I have learned so much being in the public space with other artists. I have also learned my audience is in a different part of the city. The drive to the small town is more than many are able to schedule in their days with children and full calendars. I understand it is a fun destination for a day trip, but a drop-in on the spur of the moment is not possible for my clients who live at least 30 minutes and a freeway away. At the end of the month I will pack up my supplies, furniture, and paintings and come home. It will be a sad time to leave great people and a little town trying so hard to become an artist community. It will also be possible to refocus on one workspace, my on-line presence, and the quiet of my empty nest.

Wishing I was in the west.

Sigh...the great western United States. We are home after an extended trip through Colorado, Wyoming and north to Whitefish, Montana. The mountains, the water, the flowers, the magnificence are unparallelled. I know that is trite, but it is true. These are places that touch your heart. I can't wait to go back.
Dropping our son at college was a difficult maternal moment, but he is happy and that is what is you want. Home again to Florida summer, enough said. So much time has elapsed and so much has happened that I will just pick up today and begin again.
...and the computer is still not fixed. The local Geek Squad is blaming HP, HP is looking into it. More than a month in their hands. I am adapting to an alien laptop that is trying its hardest, but just isn't the same. I will give credit when credit is due to whoever gets this fixed.

Back it up

If I tell you another tree beside our house was struck by lightning last Thursday you probably won't believe me, so I won't tell you. My computer has been shipped off, new phones have been purchased again. Yes, we have giant, powerful surge protectors on the electronics and the whole house.
The front page of the Orlando Sentinel this morning says,"Warning! Florida can be hazardous to your health." Reading through the list we can put a check by lightning, hurricanes, Burmese pythons. I see alligators every time I drive to the Sanford studio. (There was one at our children's' school too.) They forgot to mention bears, we had two in our neighborhood. Oh!and the water moccasins, who knows how many there are in our yard. We have a friend who can check off sharks from his list.
So there won't be any pictures for a little while.
Back up everything...daily! I do it regularly so have CDs of most things. I had just refiled my photos the night before. The external hard drive wouldn't connect since the lightning had damaged the connection before and our repair person couldn't find a problem. The latent damage from lightning is real. I paid over $100 to retrieve everything when it could have cost as little as a short amount of time and the cost of a CD for the night's efforts. An external hard drive that won't connect is not a good excuse, go the extra mile and get it done, somehow. Think of all of your paintings sold and in some other person's hands. No visual record of them. The stories and great novels you have started. Gone. Your family history...poof.
Some services now offer an automatic daily back-up for $140 for four years. Things happen. Be proactive.
Thank you for the comments. I am still trying to figure out how to respond to some. Any ideas on how to reply so the author of the comment knows you appreciate their efforts? I can't always link back to them.

A little recycle

Cleaning up the studio I found some papers I had used to protect my table. There was a Rorschach of black paint on one of them. Thinking of the painting a day scenario I decided to play a little. Here is what happened. I think I am longing for days in San Antonio and Santa Fe watching mariachis or flamenco or conjunto performers.

Treasure in the pool

Back to the pool again this morning. After a few weeks of dragging myself to the Y for water aerobics I am realizing how much I like it. The exercise is okay and the people are great! I have been in exercise classes my whole adult life. Never have I been in a group where my classmates are so eager to say hello and introduce themselves. These are such nice folks. I am learning a lot sitting in the sauna warming up after our hour in the water. That is where the scoop is heard. There are illnesses, retirement plans, and a lot of arthritis. Thank you members of the morning water aerobics class. You are a treasure.

Then the Levees Failed

In preparation for a busy day at the studio/gallery I spent the last several days painting small pieces. The thought was, in these economic times why not offer something for all pocketbooks. More birds, a sandhill crane (which are everywhere in our neighborhood. They are accompanied by their children at this time of year.)and some flying people who morphed into floating people were the subject matter.
Being from New Orleans I have a soft spot for the place. As seedy, humid, dark, and morose as it is, it is also beautiful, colorful, creative, and warm in its humanity. I know all sides, I lived there. I knew people of all types there, the really good and the really not so good. These little paintings, 5"x7" on watercolor paper, have finally expressed some of my feelings about Katrina. There is a sad floating loss. The political aspects of this have gotten so out of hand the reality has been totally lost. I have my views, but they would not be popular in the present blame those last guys atmosphere so they will stay in my heart. Because I did live there. I do know the truth.

Birds and Brides

The studio/gallery where my work is displayed, Gallery on First, has a very cool Vendo-Art machine. You can find them scattered around the country in different art venues. They are old cigarette machines that have been recycled to dispense wooden blocks that have been decorated by artists. The token to pay with is $5.00.
One of our responsibilities as artists in this gallery is to keep the machine filled with original art. All proceeds go to print invitations for openings or purchase refreshments. It has worked very well.
I have a small following of people who like my little blocks. One woman came to find me and asked when I would paint more of them. Another bride to be cautiously entered my studio. She said she was using the blocks I had painted for gifts for her bridesmaids. I have never been more flattered.

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."