ChociBlog

BSDA!

2012-01-31T12:52:00.000-08:00

It's up and running -- my online solo show at Buy Some Damn Art - curated by the lovely Kate Singleton! There'll be a Q&A to come, too. Please spread the word to all your art-interested pals?

Coming Soon!

2012-01-29T11:54:00.000-08:00

It's going to be an exciting week. I'm going to have an online solo show at Buy Some Damn Art for the week of January 31st. All six pieces featured will be for sale for several weeks after as well. I'd like to share a preview with you here, one of the works that will be offered!

On Friday, February 3rd the show Love for Sale III will open at Studio Hart on Allen St. in Buffalo. I had a solo show there last summer and really looking forward to being among an amazing selection of Buffalo area artists. Here is one of three works that will be available there.

More to come, stay tuned!

New Work

2012-01-19T16:46:00.000-08:00

I've really been enjoying having a real space to work in again, and have been quite productive! I have a few announcements to make in the next week or so and will save the surprise, but in the meantime I can share a few images.

Three works on paper for an upcoming group show at Studio Hart in Buffalo, called Love for Sale III...

These have titles like: "Hardcore Valentine", "Two Hearts Beat as One", and "Heart and Soul". The images aren't so much about love or valentines as much as what was going through my mind while I was finishing them... word associations with music. The bands Wire, U2, and Joy Division were the inspirations here.

Then, I have some works on small wood panels made for one of my collectors. This one is my favorite of the three. It's 7" x 5".

Catching Up

2011-09-28T16:12:00.000-07:00

Wow, well... I guess it has been a while since I posted here, hasn't it? And look, I've got 40 followers now, that's exciting. Thank you for signing up and reading, everyone – I am hoping to provide more regular content for you to enjoy.

My main point for posting today was to tell you that I FINALLY got my long-promised e-newsletter going, and sent out my first campaign the other day. You can view it here, and subscribe to it as well if you like. I plan on sending out fairly monthly emails, sometimes a bit less, sometimes a bit more depending on how exciting my art career is or isn't at a given point in time.

Coming off a very busy summer, I'm in the middle or a very busy fall. I'm teaching *ahem* six classes at three different colleges, plus still doing some art stuffs, as mentioned in the newsletter. Plus there is more to come, so keep your eyes peeled and subscribe – surely you don't want to miss out on anything. Also note that with the holiday season coming up quickly, I'll likely do an exclusive email subscriber-only special offer on selected artwork. Ooh, fun times!

Those of you who donated to my awesomely successful Kickstarter fundraiser, I am still (embarrassingly) working on fulfilling the rewards. Pathetic, I know – but seriously, I am NOT bailing out on anyone, just more busy and less organized than I should be. Now that one of my obligations (online teaching) is off the table for a while, I should be able to tie all that up soon. Feel free to bug me about it.

So, I am very excited that I've been invited to attend my first fundraising gala (that is, a fancy party!) at the Castellani Art Museum this Saturday. I am donating a small piece of artwork and will very much enjoy hobnobbing with the hobnobbers and having a nice meal and wearing fancy (for me) clothes, like a dress and tights. The Castellani has been so great to me and really helped get things going for me as an artist. They are certainly a worthy cause and I am happy to be part of this celebratory fundraising effort.

I think that just about brings things up to date for now... stay tuned for more developments, they are coming!

A Last-Ditch Effort with Kickstarter

2011-06-27T17:00:00.000-07:00

Hello all,

I've just launched a Kickstarter project to help fund attending an artist residency at Ox-Bow and a whole summer full of art-making. Please feel free to pass on the link — I would greatly appreciate any and all support, even if it is to share the link or make a post on your blog. There are lots of fun rewards for all donation levels!

Getting Ready, and, It's Going to Be An Ox-Bow Kind of Summer

2011-04-23T15:26:00.000-07:00

I had off today from any sort of obligations whatsoever. It felt really good. I slummed it a bit, but I also managed to make progress cleaning the basement. This is necessary not only because it was so messy that it was depressing, but also because my studio is down there and I am due to have some curatorial type folks come by one day soon (pretty much once I get my studio in order, so I had better get to it!).

So the basement as a whole is now in much better shape, but my studio still needs tidying and organizing. For the past couple months, I've been mainly running in and grabbing stuff I need and then throwing it back in when I'm done. You can imagine what any room will look like after a couple months of that sort of activity.

I don't think it will take too long to get it in presentable order, and I am excited to reclaim the space as somewhere I can make new work. I need to start doing that like yesterday with all the stuff I have coming up this summer and fall.

On another note, I am thrilled, like THRILLED to announce that I have been awarded my first artist residency! I'll have the pleasure of two weeks at Ox-Bow in July to focus on my work. It is much needed!

It's really going to be an Ox-Bow kind of summer, because if you recall I mentioned that I will also be attending the Paper & Book Intensive in May, which also takes place at Ox-Bow.

I hear they have the most excellent food there.

Art Hound!

2011-04-02T11:49:00.000-07:00

A few days ago I discovered a wonderful site/blog about art called Art Hound. I just love Kate's sensibilities and wrote to her right about how I get inspired by other collectors of more modest means like her, and to introduce my own work. To my surprise, she profiled my abandoned house paintings yesterday! No joke!

To say I was thrilled was certainly an understatement. I have a lot of back reading to do... Kate picks some really interesting artists among who I am happy to be among the ranks!

***

It's been too long since I've been in touch, I know. How have you been?

I'm busy! I'm still thoroughly enjoying my new life path as an independent artist and teacher. First, I'll tell you about the shows I have lined up in 2011.

• Until April 9th, I have my (almost) complete set of house paintings at Gibson Gallery at SUNY Potsdam.

• In July, I'll be showing my work along with Elizabeth Leader at WNYBAC.

• In August, I'm having a show with another as yet undetermined artist at Studio Hart.

• In October, my first international solo exhibition! It'll be at Weston College's Bath Spa Gallery in Weston-super-Mare, England. I will be traveling there to attend the opening and perhaps do some other travel and activities.

I'm also excited to announce that in May, I'll be attending the wonderful two-week long Paper and Book Intensive at Ox-Bow in Saugatuck, MI. I have also been awarded a Nell Meldahl Scholarship which pays for half tuition. I couldn't be more pleased, though I have to admit that it will be strange being away from home for that long. I'm sure the time will fly by, though!

I've been continuing to make house paintings and still enjoy exploring their possibilities... but I have also been missing working with the figure and portraiture, inspired by artists like Leonard Rosoman, whom I read about in a book about acrylic painting a few months ago. I love how he combines architectural elements and puts his figures into sometimes quite elaborate scenes. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find any of the works that appear in that book to show you at the moment, but maybe I will try to photograph the pages because his work is stuff people should know about. I was rather shocked that he flew over my radar all these years!

Recently, my website got a wee bit of an update, a little dressing up and updated text, etc. I'm still working on getting a suitable gallery section together, but for now you'll be directed to my Flickr which I manage to update much more frequently.

I'm aiming to post more often here again! So much more to tell you about! Until next time...

Back from the Dead

2010-11-01T19:28:00.001-07:00

I've been MIA, but not for lack of activity. All kinds of things in the works.

For now, I've been teaching college-level art and a bunch of bookbinding workshops.

I made some new paintings. I still need to document them.

I hope this finds you well and prosperous!

In recent news, this painting has found a new home with a collector in Asheville, NC.

Coming up

2010-07-27T12:04:00.000-07:00

OK, so more stuff fell in my lap:

Another little show at a restaurant, this one is in Niagara Falls (my city!) and has incredible food and atmosphere:

Ancestry

2010-07-27T11:20:00.000-07:00

Stuff I'm doing.

These are portraits of my great-grandparents, my dad's father's parents. James sort of disappeared from the scene a few years after my grandfather was born, and apparently Augusta was a nasty old woman by the time she came to live with my father's family when he was a child.

The little bit that I know about these ancestors leaves me with so many questions.

(Each painting acrylic on canvas, 11" x 14", 2010.)

Stuff I am Doing

2010-07-12T08:18:00.000-07:00

July has turned into one of those busy months... my show at Betty's got extended another week, last day to view it is on July 18th. I've also been co-curating a show over at WNYBAC, and it opens on Friday night!

Then, next week? I'm so excited, taking my final week of vacation at work and attending Type Camp as a day camper. Giddy! I'm not sure exactly what to expect, but it should prove to be very interesting, fun, and a great professional development-type thing to do. (I wouldn't mind signing up for the one taking place at the Bauhaus next year, but I seriously doubt I would be able to swing it financially!)

I've recently started thinking about the things I'd like to do and accomplish next year. Among my ideas:

• Paper & Book Intensive, which will be at Oxbow near Chicago in 2011 (totally drivable!)

• An artist residency somewhere

• Attend the College Art Association Conference in New York

• A few more solo shows — I think my focus will be on university and college art spaces, but I'll still work on commercial galleries as well

• Seek out more grants and funding

• Continue seeking out teaching opportunities of various types

• Keep my eyes and my heart open

etc. etc. ad infinitum

Here and There

2010-06-22T13:28:00.001-07:00

This Way Out, 2010. Mixed media on paper, 10" x 8"

Mary Mary, 2010. Mixed media on paper, 6" x 6"

These little works have been around for a couple weeks now, but I am just getting to doing anything with them. The latter is being shipped to the UK for a trade, and the former may have a new home... waiting to hear. If not, I'll happily keep her (yes, she's a her) hung up in my cubicle.

Next Up!

2010-05-26T08:58:00.000-07:00

Among whatever else I have going on in the studio, I also have a specific project in mind to work on: a book about Love Canal. It's a neighborhood in my city, Niagara Falls, NY, that was discovered to have been built on top of a toxic waste site and came to international attention in the 1970s thanks to a grass roots effort by a housewife named Lois Gibbs.

I have been fascinated by what remains on the site for many years now, and have seen it transform into an increasingly wild area spotted with the very occasional house still standing and occupied. I'm not sure exactly how I want to approach this. I'd likely let my photos speak for themselves, but considering that I do also enjoy writing, I'd also like to compose accompanying text.

I'm thinking about trying to interview the current occupants of the remaining houses. I'd really like to do that, in fact. I've been so curious about why they decided to stay all these years. Or maybe they are people who bought real estate dirt cheap and decided to risk contamination in exchange? One house I've noticed even keeps a large vegetable garden.

Incidentally, wildlife seems to be thriving there, at least the plants, trees, and birds I've seen.

Last weekend I drove around and took a few photos.

Cutter

2010-05-26T07:38:00.000-07:00

Here is one painting that didn't make it into my show at Betty's (it didn't really fit—I had planned to make other quilt paintings and just ended up focusing more on the houses). The inspiration for it was one of the so-called "cutter" quilts I bought recently. A cutter quilt is one that has been so loved and well-used that it is falling apart in places... and they can be had for not very much money, as one might imagine. But, that status doesn't lessen the fact that their beautiful colors and patterns remain, even if some are faded or deteriorated. I obviously take a lot of liberties in my interpretation... I'm not interested in creating a realistic rendering but rather to showcase the aspects of the quilts that dazzled me so much in a more simplified, graphic manner.

This painting is 16" x 16", acrylic on canvas.

***

By the way, the opening for my show at Betty's went really well. So many people came out to show support, and I got lots of great, interesting feedback. Even sold one piece, and have interest in a couple others! That's always nice. Working with Kathy Sherin, the curator, was great. She really has a wonderful eye for grouping works together and making the show feel really cohesive. Unfortunately, I totally forgot to take photos. If anyone has any I'd be grateful if you'd share!

That said, I am glad it's out of the way and will be hanging through July. Next up is my show at ArtMission in Binghamton, where I'll be showing more house paintings—the batch that are already made (including the Betty's paintings, and the ones languishing in New Hampshire) plus some new ones, too. Exciting! But I am glad to have a break from any major art activity, aside from studio work.

Speaking of which, I am starting a two-week vacation on Friday! You can bet that I will be happy to spend a good portion of that time in the studio... I can't wait.

Ghosts

2010-05-14T10:50:00.000-07:00

Surprise!

2010-05-14T06:32:00.000-07:00

I have been busy in the studio getting ready for my show opening on Monday... but I haven't been posting any works in progress, or finished work. Part of me is dying to share what I've been doing, but I have been feeling strangely protective of it until it's actually hanging in public.

The reason? I want it to be a surprise.

Silly, I guess. But true.

Last night one of the paintings I was working on, one of the houses titled, Wrong Place, Wrong Time, is getting really gorgeous. I found myself really falling in love as the evening went by and I got more layers on it. It's funny how the ones that are rather homely in their beginnings, and even in "adolescence", turn out to be the best works.

It's an amazing process, the development of a painting. Which is why I keep doing it.

***

I also really noticed my development as an artist in a very palpable way last night as I was working. The way I work, the colors I gravitate toward, the qualities that are important to me... all have changed quite a lot since I entered grad school. It's taken some time, but it's so interesting to me how my work has become this hybrid of the representational and the abstract. And how concise I've become with the brush. I love painting edges, or making a curve just so. I'm starting to lose the drips, which is probably a good thing. (Bingyi's comment those months ago really stuck with me, I admit it, but now... I think she was right.)

Last night I was thinking about Alex Katz and Giorgio de Chirico, not for his surrealist tendencies as much as for his architecture and light and economy.

Alex Katz.

Giorgio de Chirico.

"Ghosts" at Betty's

2010-04-29T06:48:00.001-07:00

I am pleased to announce the opening reception for my showing of small paintings, "Ghosts", at Betty's Restaurant in Buffalo, NY, is scheduled for Monday, May 17th, 6 to 9pm.

I am fervently toiling away at this new body of work that continues the exploration of abandoned houses, though the title and theme of this exhibition expands my focus to include memorials to people (famous and not-famous) and to worn-out quilts, often referred to as "cutters".

Normally I wouldn't think to show at a restaurant, but the curator, Kathy Sherin, does a great job choosing wonderful artists to show there, and the clientele is one that is probably more interested in art than most... not to mention, Betty's serves the absolute best reception food I have ever tasted in my life. Win-win.

Teaser photos are forthcoming. I hope to see you there!

More Fifty-Two

2010-03-31T17:44:00.000-07:00

Oh, dear. It has been forever since I last posted. I've been quite busy, more busy than ever before... but that is no good excuse, is it? Well, Calm Air All Ice's show Fifty-Two is now up in Bristol, UK, and here are a few links concerning my work in the show for you to peruse. Needless to say that there are fifty-one other artists worth checking out, as well!

For those with a little more pocket money

My mini-interview

We're open!

Thanks again to Camilla and Claire for inviting me to participate in such a fantastic show!

Fifty-Two

2010-02-12T09:13:00.000-08:00

I am thrilled to announce that I have been invited to participate in a group show all the way over in Bristol, UK by the ladies at Calm Air All Ice, Camilla (who invited me) and Claire. It'll be up March 28 through April 3 at Room 212, and I really couldn't be more pleased to be included.

I'll likely send my Elliott Smith painting (which is already made), along with maybe one house painting and one quilt painting (each of which I will make fresh for the exhibition). I like having events for which to create work—I tend to thrive on deadlines.

In other news, I am wrapping up teaching my first class (foundation drawing) with the Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online, and getting ready to start on the next one (digital image manipulation)! It's been a busy month— I've been teaching a self-portrait class to five 12- and 13-year old boys on Saturday mornings, and I taught a private bookbinding lesson to a lovely family (A mom, her daughter and daughter-in-law, and her 12-year-old granddaughter, who blew us all out of the water) last weekend! Next week, I'm finishing up with the boys but also teaching Bookbinding for Beginners at the Western New York Book Arts Center; after that, my weekends will be my own again, at least for a while. I need to catch up on some studio work!

New Work! + Jen Sbragia

2010-01-25T12:33:00.001-08:00

Stop the presses! Hold the phone!

I've made a few new little paintings (or drawings, or whatever you want to call them). These were all made with graphite pencil and acrylic paint as the eraser/ghost maker. I am thinking of these grisailles as my ghosts and would like to make a series of them, houses and people... for my solo show coming up at Betty's in May? Maybe title it "Haunted"? Or something.

Anyway. The work:

Ghost (1), mixed media on paper, 11" x 14", 2010.

Ghost (2), mixed media on wood, about 3" x 4", 2010.

These are obviously not the best photos—I took them while sitting in the parking lot of Big Orbit Gallery, where I was bringing them to submit to this year's members show. Always last minute, I am. But I got stuff done, and it felt great to be making art again.

Then there is the third "ghost". It's bordering on cheesy, I guess, sitting there at the dining room table making drawings of dead (and beloved and missed) rock stars. This one is Elliott Smith. I can't believe it's been almost seven years since his death! I always thought he had the best face and hair, I've been wanting to paint him for a long time. This was a fun little project to work on, and I'm happy with how it turned out. I think I will hang him in my bedroom.

Close up

Framed, with Nico the cat nosing around

***

Finally, since we're almost out of January and the thrill of the new year has all but passed, here is the lovely card that yet another inspiring, talented friend who is also an amazing musician and artist, Jen Sbragia, made! I'm almost certain it is stenciled and it is just so simple and cool. (My other friend that fits that bill is Tae Won Yu, who in addition to being an amazing artist and designer, was also in the band Kicking Giant in the heyday of 90s indie rock.) Jen, if you didn't know, was pretty famous back then, too, as one half of aptly-named The Softies and now of the All-Girl Summer Fun Band.

Funny, I seem to remember a fun photo of Elliott and The Softies that maybe Tae even took himself? But I can't find it anywhere. Too bad—that really would have tied this whole post together, yeah?

Anyway, I am so lucky to have cool friends like these who still send me cool stuff after all these years. Thank you for the encouragement and support and inspiration!!!

Just so you know...

2010-01-12T11:37:00.000-08:00

I've drawn in my sketchbook two days in a row now.

No, I won't show you. I drew, but I didn't draw anything noteworthy.

I am happy though!

Instead, here is a portion of my cube wall. "Suddenly I've Got That Old Time Feeling" on the left and "Please" on the right.

Finding a Groove + Tae Won Yu

2010-01-11T07:52:00.000-08:00

I am an artist, and I love making art.

Yet it is somehow hard for me to fit in the making of it. Should I admit that here?

I see so many artist blogs where everyone is so productive, so thoughtful, so linked in to the rest of the world (whatever world that may be, here online among artist blogs or elsewhere)... and here my poor blog languishes mostly in inactivity, or showing stuff that I made previously. In 2010 I'd really like to change this, and I hope I can. I miss making art all the time. I want to be able to show people new things frequently. That is who I am.

Sure, it is nice to have languid, lazy weekends like the one I had hence, but the reality is that is not how I achieve my goals (except for getting all the books read I'd like, that's one good thing about a weekend like the one I just had).

One step I have recently taken is to always bring my sketchbook with me to work, in case I have a moment for inspiration. So far nothing has happened.

But, things like that don't just happen, do they? One must resolve to do them.

I don't have anything new to show you from me at the moment, but I'd like to share this photo I just took of a lovely little new year's card I got from my old friend Tae Won Yu, who designed it (maybe even printed it himself? I'll have to ask). I've got it hanging in my cube at work, it looks nice juxtaposed with a sketch I did of a dead chipmunk years ago (we're talking 20+) that I still really love. I ought to get it framed properly one day. Anyway, isn't Tae's work amazing? He's been a great inspiration to me over the years as an artist and as a graphic designer, and I am fortunate to have quite a few examples of his work in my files and on my walls.

Goal for today: One drawing in my sketchbook of anything.

***

This week is the beginning of what looks like a fairly busy teaching season—I hope so, anyway. I've listed the classes I am scheduled to teach in the coming months in a new section on my website, CLASSES. I'm also starting to teach online as an adjunct professor at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh today! This is my first online teaching experience and I am very excited to see how teaching a drawing class online works out. The school has provided a really good class structure and resources, so at least I have a strong foundation to build on, plus a mentor for my first class! I guess this is the wave of the future. I think it's pretty nifty. It definitely appeals to the hermit in me, I admit it!

Lots to look forward to. I just need to carve out time for the activity that is most important to me: making my art. Should be easy, right?

(Hmph, if it was easy I'd have already done it.)

I'd be really interested to hear what you other artists out there reading have to say about my predicament: balancing more than full-time work and family with my studio practice.

Update in the Etsy shop!

2010-01-05T07:23:00.000-08:00

It's been a few weeks, and I am finally getting around to putting my leftover handmade books from the Holiday Panic Sale into my Etsy shop! There are still a few more to add, but plenty of new things to look at in the meantime. Here's a photographic sampling.

The Year in Review.

2009-12-28T09:45:00.000-08:00

This is the time of year I love. Post-Christmas, and just before the new year turns.

And this year, how exciting! We're entering a whole new decade, even!

I have high hopes for 2010, with some interesting possibilities (and certainties) in the making. These include two small solo shows (the third got moved to 2011), more community teaching for awesome area arts organizations, and an online teaching gig with the Art Institute of Pittsburgh! I am very excited about this. I just got finished with the required facilitator assessment course that was the final hoop before being assigned my first class, and received notice that I will begin teaching with them on January 11th. Newbies can only teach one class in their first session, but it is possible that I could teach two classes for each of two sessions per quarter, eventually. I've never taught art online before, so this will be an interesting experience, to say the least! I am looking forward to it.

I'd like to take the rest of this post to reflect on the all the things I managed to do in 2009. I am so thankful for all of the opportunities I've had so far—they've really helped me grow as an artist and as a person!

Here goes, in the order that I think of them.

1. My first solo museum show at the Castellani Art Museum at Niagara University.

2. Scheduling three more smaller-scale solo shows in 2010 and 2011.

3. Teaching! Thanks to the Buffalo Arts Studio, the Burchfield-Penney Arts Center, and the Western New York Book Arts Collaborative for including me on their roster of instructors. Also, two pretty great private lessons.

4. Artist presentations at Starlight Studios, the Castellani, and Alden High School.

5. An honorable mention award at the Big Orbit 2009 Members Show.

6. Winning an SOS Grant. Twice?

7. Having work selected for group shows at Artstream Studios in Rochester, NH, and at Nahcotta in Portsmouth, NH.

8. Having work chosen to appear in the Winter 2010 issue of Calyx Journal.

9. Having a studio visit with some prominent area curators as part of the selection process for the Beyond/In WNY Biennial (I didn't get selected, but having the visit was still pretty amazing).

10. Being Gordon's on-site artist during Buffalo's annual Garden Walk. Even if I did forget my paints. I made due with the colored pencils I brought with me as an afterthought.

11. Tabling with my pal Jan Nagle at the WNYBAC's Holiday Panic Sale, meeting lots of cool people and selling a few things.

12. Being accepted into the art education teaching certification program at Buffalo State College for fall 2010.

I feel like there are more achievements that I am proud of, but that will do for now. In 2010, I hope to have more time to dedicate to the studio, and I hope to get one or two artist residencies, too. As I said before there are other possibilities but for now, I will leave them as that and secrets, too.

Here's wishing you and yours a very happy new year!

Christmas Frida

2009-12-18T12:52:00.001-08:00

This probably qualifies as more crafty than arty, but I finally got finished making my ornaments for the swap that was organized by my co-worker Nicole over at her freshlyblended blog and Swap-bot, where I have been pretty active as of late. For the longest time I just could not come up with anything clever or overly cliché for my ornament and so kept putting it off and putting it off, until I found myself way over on the deadline to send them. Frida Kahlo ended up being my muse and I found a great black and white photo to use to make a neat paper ornament.

In Photoshop, I cropped out Frida's figure (you couldn't see her feet in the original photo, either, which I really liked) and then selectively colorized it. Then, I printed the image out on cardstock, and glued it to a brightly colored piece of Canson paper, while inserting a loop of embroidery floss in between for the hanger. (This took some expert manouevering, by the way!) Finally, I carefully snipped, snipped, snipped away and came up with Christmas Frida! On the back, I stamped the phrase "Feliz Navidad." Incidentally, she is smoking a cigarette—so apropos!

*sung to the tune of The 12 Days of Christmas*

TEN FRIDAS SMOKING...

And what she looks like, front and back. The color is more accurate in this photo:

By the way, I'm really not that into Christmas... it usually makes me more depressed than anything. But really, who doesn't like a little Christmas Frida?

Where Will I Be Today and Tomorrow?

2009-12-11T09:46:00.000-08:00

Why, the Western New York Book Arts Center Holiday Panic Showcase, that's where!

I will be sharing a table with my good and talented friend, Jan Nagle, who makes clever jewelry items. I'll be selling the dozen or so little books I made for the event, as well as some of my art -- mostly framed collages and mixed media-type items.

I feel woefully unprepared for this, but I'll be there and I will have stuff to sell. I guess that's enough. I hope it is, anyway!

Maybe I will see you there?

Books books books

2009-11-20T06:30:00.000-08:00

Someone on one of the book arts communities I belong to on LiveJournal posted this video, which I think is just amazing. So much time and skill and hard work goes into editioning a fine book like that. I'm not sure I have the patience for it, so I guess I'll probably stick to one-offs I can make at my dining room table... for now, anyway. This has really inspired me!

Enjoy!

Lady Godiva's Operation

2009-11-12T06:47:00.000-08:00

In case you haven't visited my Etsy shop in a while, I just posted another painting there and should have another couple in the coming days... going through my inventory and getting ready to say farewell to things, I guess. It would be great to see a few things find new homes before the end of the year!

Available now is Lady Godiva's Operation, an acrylic painting on canvas, 30" x 42".

This painting was recycled from a previous work, some remnants of which still remain visible, but fully integrated into the new work. I was inspired by those gorgeous Italian Renaissance portraits in profile, as well as the crazy cascade of my own hair. It was named after the Velvet Underground's amazing song, which came into my head as I chose to leave the disconnected heart in the new painting from the old. It was such an apt title! I consider this painting among the few real jewels of my collection of own work. I hope you will think so, too!

Books books books

2009-11-10T06:17:00.000-08:00

On Saturday I taught a bookbinding class at the WNYBAC to a group of seven very cool ladies. We had amongst us a rocket scientist (yes, really!), a chef, a museum worker, a women's studies professor/writer/poet, an actress, a writer/homemaker, and an artist, a full range of ages, 20s–60s. The class had a great energy that I as a teacher just thrived on. In fact, it was the best class I ever taught, student-wise, and my performance as a teacher-wise! So many books were made, the class just took off with the techniques I showed them and ran.

I've been asked to come back for the winter session and teach another class or two, including a continuation of the beginner's class, so that is good. I am glad that they were pleased with how I did, too, obviously.

We managed to cover quite a lot of territory in the seven hours we had together, everything from that simple one page folded book to a single signature hardcover book with wrapped covers. Each student walked away with at least five books to take home; some were still working even as class time was over and I was walking out the door! (Alas! I didn't take photos... too busy teaching/binding!)

***

In other news, I haven't been making much art per se lately, although I have been pretty active over at the website Swap-bot, writing letters, putting little packages together, and even making the occasion art-like item. Actually, one of the things I was really pleased with was a doll quilt (not necessarily for a doll, but a quilt that is quite small, less than 24" on any side) that I made for a swap. I had a quilt top that I had put together a couple years ago and never figured out what to do with... so this was the perfect opportunity to use it! I really enjoyed the process of hand-quilting and see this as a potential new medium for me to tap my creativity. I'd see them more as art pieces than anything functional, at least at this point.

Not too shabby for my first time out. And wouldn't you know, I forgot to measure it, even? It's probably about 7" x 12" or so. I can always ask the person to whom I sent it.

Swap-bot has been good for me in that it gets me doing creative stuff, even if it's nothing "big" or "important". It's also helping me get better working with deadlines, getting things done in time because someone else is waiting on you. Not to mention, it's a nice place to "get around"—that is, to see and be seen, so to speak. More exposure for my work when people look at my profile and decide to visit my website or whatever. That's always nice. And there are some interesting folks there! (Some not so interesting, too, but isn't that the case anywhere?)

I'd say anything that keeps me making stuff is a good resource. Even if it is just things like handmade bookmarks and typed-out stuffing recipes and doll quilts.

In MORE other news, I'm signed up to table at the WNYBAC's Last minute gift buying panic marketplace on December 11 and 12. Here's their description:

At the main gallery, 1st floor of the Western New York Book Arts Center
468 Washington St at Mohawk in Downtown Buffalo
Friday Dec 11, 4-8pm and Saturday Dec 12 12-6pm
Free admission and open to the public
Artists, craftspeople, printers, & other handmade/self published/locally produced items. Perfect gifts for giving or hoarding.

So, if you are in town that weekend, you should stop by and check out all the lovely, locally-made wares! I plan to have available some of my old zines (hm, mayyybe a new one!), some little blank journals (hard and soft cover), and art. In fact, my idea is to make a new series of house paintings, but quite small so that they will be very affordable and accessible. I'm still working out what sizes and grounds would be best for these, but I do hope to churn out quite a few for the Marketplace (and beyond, like my Etsy shop). I'm excited about this! I tend to produce and perform best when I have a deadline.

Never-before seen

2009-11-02T11:46:00.001-08:00

I just got photos of these paintings sent from Nahcotta Gallery in Portsmouth, NH, where they have been living since the beginning of August, when they were included in their annual Landscape Show. They'll be coming back to me eventually (unless they sell, of course), but they asked to keep them for a while longer. Stupid me, in a mad rush before I delivered them to the gallery, neglected to document them, write down dimensions, anything! Bad, bad practice indeed, and won't ever happen again. Anyway, it was almost like Christmas when I received the photos yesterday. I'd forgotten how nice they were (if I say so myself!). Hope you enjoy them, too!

Little Red, 12" x 18", acrylic on canvas, 2009.

Big Red, 18" x 24", acrylic on canvas, 2009.

Things We Lost, 36" x 24", acrylic on canvas, 2009.

In other news, I submitted my application to the NYFA Fellowship, cutting it close to the deadline! I've applied several times in the past; maybe this will be my lucky year! Of course, I have a long wait to find out... not until April 2010 or so. It's going to be a loooong winter...

I also have another thing up my sleeve but can't talk about it. It's an exciting prospect, though! Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Where to show, where not to show

2009-10-22T05:53:00.000-07:00

This is something that I've been thinking about a lot since I had my exhibition at the museum this year—where to show my work, and where not to show it.

I've had different pieces of advice, each from people who are art professionals. I've also kept an eye on what other artists (those who are perhaps a rung or two or three above me in status/recognition/success) in my region have been up to.

My instinct is that I would only like to show at dedicated art spaces, "real" galleries (and yes, I will take another museum show, please!), but there are alternatives that seem like they could be good opportunities for my work to be seen, too. For instance, the restaurant where I'll be showing my work next summer. It's a small, upscale bistro where they seem to have shown quality artists in the past. They have wonderful receptions for the artists (best food I ever had at an art reception, in fact!), and it strikes me that my work would be seen by a desirable clientèle, one who is more apt to actually buy original art than others. On the other hand, people go to a restaurant to eat, not to look at or buy art. On still another hand, people expect that when they go to this restaurant, they'll be seeing some good art, and can buy it if they like.

So one piece of advice I received was that I should show my work at every opportunity afforded me, no matter where it is. You never know who will see it. And just that the more you're "out there" and visible as an artist, the better.

The other piece of advice was the opposite. "You've had a museum show now, you should not show at a restaurant! You should show at places that will further your career, not take it backward."

See, I agree a little bit with the first but lean toward the second line of reasoning. For my upcoming restaurant show, I am keeping it (against the second advice-giver) because I love the place and I just want to see what happens—I'm curious whether I will sell well there, if anything will come of it. After that, no more non-gallery/museum shows for me... I have bigger fish to fry, and my sights set higher.

Hm, will saying that get me in trouble? What do you think about this issue? I'd like to hear all points of view on this.

***

Now, I'd like to share an artist named Kareem Rizk, who is based in Australia. I love the graphic design sensibility in his gorgeous collages! He's also got a blog and an Etsy shop.

Amanda Blake

2009-10-19T08:12:00.000-07:00

Art like this breaks my heart.

It's almost unbearable.

Acceptance/Rejection

2009-10-19T07:33:00.000-07:00

Whew, I have been one busy bee this past week, and I am exhausted and halfway ill to show for it... man, I am too old for this kind of schedule. Maybe other people work ~60 hour weeks with no problem, but for me? Too much to take physically and emotionally. I need time to myself and/or with my family, it's so valuable to me.

That said, it's been an interesting week. Did I mention that I'm working as an artist's assistant for a while? The artist I am working for, Bingyi Huang, is preparing for a solo exhibition in Shanghai in November. The schedule is tight, so I've been giving her as much time as I can. I love that I am getting such an intimate view into another artist's creative process; she works quite differently from me and it is very inspiring. I really admire her paintings and her work ethic... she is quite prolific and manages to put out these amazing, surreal images... I don't know where they come from. Me, I like to have something to refer to, whether it is a photo or a model of some kind. It's very hard for me to just pull something out of my head and spew it out onto the canvas.

This is like getting a supplemental education, in a way.

But it is tiring, as I said. This week I have off from the studio until the weekend and will be working on updating her website. Then, hopefully when Saturday arrives I will feel refreshed and ready to work more hours in the studio with her.

Here is one of her paintings:

Epitaph, oil on canvas, 2007.

Just gorgeous stuff. I feel so fortunate to be working with her.

***

Acceptance: I recently found out that two of my paintings will be appearing in the Winter 2010 issue of Calyx, A Journal of Art and Literature by Women. This is a great publication, and I am very excited for this opportunity to have my work seen by its readers.

Rejection: I got my rejection letter on Friday from the committee of Beyond/In Western New York, the regional biennial. I have since found out that the competition was VERY stiff and that many prominent local artists didn't get in, either, including most of the faculty of the local university. That makes me feel a little bit better, but I admit that I still had high hopes this time around. The past year has been so full of little successes, I figured it would just keep going... well, never assume. So, I am a little bruised but it is something I will certainly get over and move on from. I do wish all the artists who did receive an acceptance letter my heartiest congratulations, truly.

Maybe next time, if I am still in town.

***

Working for Bingyi has sparked my own creativity. She's got me working on paintings that will eventually become something else entirely—something of her own, obviously... but as I said, it's been a little hard for me trying to work in a totally different way, it's like being without a net. I don't think what I am making is as good as I know I am capable of, but I think another part of the problem is working in front of someone else, especially someone I am working FOR. It's worse than the times I was taking a painting class and having the professor hovering over you looking for mistakes (not that Bingyi does that—she is worried about her own paintings). It paralyzes me. I have no idea what I am doing. I tell her as much, and she replies that she doesn't think any of us do.

I feel like a fledgling baby bird.

Collborations

2009-10-13T10:43:00.000-07:00

Here are three of the collages my students and I made together in a round robin collage session the Saturday before last. Each person had twenty minutes with each collage, then passed it on to the next person. It was a very gratifying, fun way to work. Even the students enjoyed themselves! I did, too.

Collages by Amber (18), Topaz (15), Tyler (13), and me:

Turn of Events

2009-10-12T09:05:00.000-07:00

Things took a crazy-ass turn this weekend! I have suddenly become a part-time artist's assistant. Here is the story.

So, on Friday night I was just browsing Craigslist, as I often do. I look at just about all the for sale sections and the jobs sections, just in case something good is out there. Actually, scratch that: In the jobs section I usually only look in the arts/media/whatever and creative sections. But Friday, I looked at everything, including general labor. There I happened upon an ad that was titled something like housekeeping/art assistant position... my curiosity was definitely piqued, and I figured, I'm not proud, I'd do some cleaning if it also involved some sort of art or just for an art kind of person. So I responded with a short note...

The next morning as I was getting ready to leave for my little Saturday teaching gig, I got a reply. Turns out it is one of my professors from UB (grad school), a young art history professor with whom I took a museum studies course. She's also a painter. I have really admired her, enjoyed her class very much, etc. and so was excited to find out that it was her, and that she was excited to hear from me, too!

The ad stated that she was looking for ~5 hours a week, but it turns out that she is getting ready for a big solo show in Shanghai and has a ton of art-related stuff to get done. So, she wants me to do a lot of painting for her, plus other sorts of prep like cleaning antique frames that she'll be using and whatever else. The other major thing she's having me take care of is her website, for which she wants a complete redesign.

And since this the exhibition in Shanghai is in November, this is all VERY time sensitive. So she wants me to work as much as I can to help her get ready. I started on Saturday afternoon and put in several hours yesterday, too. It's pretty crazy.

The whole thing is pretty bizarre, but it's fun (though very tiring). Yesterday I finished priming an old frame, and then worked on a large painting the rest of the time! The painting I worked on amounted to painting a portrait of her on top of an old painting of hers, and then she will possibly work on top of that. She ended up really liking the painting so far and said she may just include the painting in the exhibit as is, as my own. I don't really care either way, which I know must sound strange, but... I am producing things for her show under her direction. I don't really see what I am making in her studio mine at all, does that make any sense? And I feel totally comfortable with that. Yesterday's painting was very different and new for me because she currently only has a limited palette to work with, so I was forced to use colors that I normally wouldn't; and the scale is larger than most of the paintings I can make at home, so that was different, too. I see my experiences working with her very much fueling a whole new approach that I can use in my own art—it's like this forced breakthrough.

Very, very strange. October is going to be a intense month and my life just a whole lot busier, to say the least.

My painting/not my painting. About five feet square, acrylic on canvas. In progress.

***

I'd also like to point you over to my lovely friend Cathy Cullis's blog, where she is doing a Week of Painting. I'd also planned to do a week of painting and make new work available for sale, but considering how things are now, I'm not sure how far I will get with that. But I will try! Maybe some small tabletop-sized works on paper in gouache... hm...

I like these "Week of..." events. The one at Poppytalk the week before very much inspired me, and now Cathy's. It helps me to have a focus, a goal. I plan to do my very own "Week of..." in the future, as well as perform some in tandem with Cathy.

I will keep you posted on the exciting developments!

Sarah F. Burns says, Collect Art!

2009-10-07T09:07:00.000-07:00

Sarah F. Burns is an artist I found on Etsy a while back and whose blog I follow (though apparently not closely enough, since I missed, like months of great content!). She is not only a talented painter but also a good writer. As I was playing catch-up today, I found her blog post about collecting art that I thought was spot on; couldn't have said it better myself, by a long shot. So, if you are a collector or have always wanted to start your own art collection, definitely read what Sarah has to say on the subject!

Visit Sarah's Etsy shop.

Visit her website.

Dottie Damsel, charcoal on paper, 18" x 20", 2008

One Rock and Two Shells, oil, 9" x 12", 2009

Such lovely and thoughtful work!

2009-10-06T07:39:00.001-07:00

This painting is available, along with some of my other artwork, at my Etsy shop! I don't think I've posted it here before, but it is one of my favorites. It was included in my solo exhibition at the Castellani Art Museum back in the spring.

Hot, acrylic and charcoal on canvas, 22" x 24", 2009.

Etsy Shop Update!

2009-10-05T12:44:00.000-07:00

As I said earlier, I had hoped to get around to updating my Etsy shop a little bit at some point. And so I have! I renewed some items and added some that have not been in the shop before. I hope you will stop by and check it out!

Note to US residents: Many of my pieces have shipping included in the price! Yay!

Post-weekend

2009-10-05T06:46:00.000-07:00

It was an interesting weekend.

On Friday, I made it to a third "collecting" post on Poppytalk! Talk about a nice way to wrap up the week. It has geared me up to get back into the studio and maybe even update my poor, languishing Etsy shop. I'd like to generate some more interest in my work online, and make an active effort to sell more. Sadly, I've gotta pay the bills somehow. What better way than to sell the work I love to make?

Speaking of which, I sold this piece over the weekend to one of my online friends! She has been collecting my work over the past few years, and since this is one of my favorite recent collages, I am happy that it will be going to live with her.

U-Men, mixed media, 9" x 10.25", 2009

And I am thrilled that the same patron has renewed my Pro account over at Flickr, which means that you can once again see all my photos, including the ART Set. I hated not having access to everything, so this is just wonderful. It's like Christmas! So thank you, J.!

***

On Saturday, I taught my collage class again—just three more sessions to go! This time I had the three students work for twenty minutes on a collage, any subject matter, any size, etc. Then, they passed their collage to the nest student, who would then work on it for another 20 minutes, adding to it however they wish, on to the next, and so on until each collage was returned to its originator. (Actually, I ended up participating in this, too, since there were just three students.)

I must say, the collages turned out fantastic, way surpassing any expectations I had myself. I will take photos and post them here this coming Saturday to share with you. I really enjoy working with my little group of teenagers and it seems like they are really opening themselves up to the hands-on process of collage, too. Can you believe that none of them had ever tried it before?

Next week, we are moving onto digital collage (sadly, I think), but I am going to encourage them to mix and match between cut and paste techniques and scanning and digital manipulation. I'm sure they will come up with some cool ideas.

***

As for me, I want to gift myself with some much-needed studio time this week.

Paper Puppets

2009-10-02T08:10:00.000-07:00

I just took photos of the movable paper puppets I recently made! Here they are.

This fanciful horse is my own design, using a decorative paper that was part of paper company's promotional packet. I related the bird design to the feeling of freedom and flight I think about when I see a horse.

This colorful guy was based on a template that I found in the great book Paper Puppet Palooza by Norma V. Toraya. His outfit and faces (yes, faces!) are my own design. I was thinking initially about a vintage circus theme, and then thought back to a collage that one of my BAS students made in our first week together of a wrestler. I am interested in the colorful costumes and masks of Mexican free wrestlers, or Lucha, so I decided to use his other face to create my own, as you see in this next photo...

The figure has a double head that you can turn at the neck to switch between personalities! Very fun!

I'll be teaching a class called Artful Paper Puppets for ages 14 and up at the Buffalo Arts Studio in November. Information can be found here, just scroll down for more information. In the meantime, I'll be making many more puppets myself—they are so much fun to develop, and can be as simple or as complex as you would like!

Autumn Color Week: Red

2009-10-02T06:50:00.000-07:00

RED!

Who doesn't love red? I love red.

What Does the Veil reveal?, mixed media, 2006

Red Right Hand, gouache on paper, 1999/2009

***

Also, SUPER excited to be collected by Poppytalk again yesterday, aka BROWN day (as Radio Choci). It's so nice to be recognized for your work... I mean, it's not the only thing of course, but it does help keep you going.

Holy Cow! Look What I Wore Today!

2009-10-01T16:18:00.000-07:00

Ha ha, not Look what I wore today, because I don't have a picture to share, but Look! Look at this most awesome group on Flickr called What I Wore Today.

Totally brilliant stuff. I may have to actually contribute—hey, it'd be a good excuse to draw self-portraits again.

Autumn Color Week: Brown

2009-10-01T11:14:00.000-07:00

Drop, oil and colored pencil on wood panel, 2007

Two Questions, oil and colored pencil on canvas, 12" x 18", 2007

Include Me Out, acrylic and colored pencil on wood panel, 2009

***

In other news, this morning I had the pleasure of teaching a small group of students from the Buffalo Academy for Visual and Performing Arts over at the Buffalo Arts Studio a little workshop making movable paper puppets! A while ago, I discovered the book Paper Puppet Palooza and started making some paper pals of my own. It's a really fun, fairly easy and not-too-messy creative activity that is actually quite addicting! So, I was happy to share my new obsession with the seven students and their three teachers. We didn't have much time together, but true to kid form, they all dove right in and got quite a bit accomplished—from a tiger and a wolf to a robot, and more! I'll have to take some photos of the ones I've recently made— a vintage-styled Mexican Lucha wrestler with interchangeable heads and a running horse.

Each time I end up working with youngsters, it fuels my desire that much more to become certified to teach K-12. I find them so interesting and inspirational! I guess we'll see what the future holds, there is so much I'd like to do... in the meantime I at least have the opportunity to work with area arts organizations to fill in that gap in my artistic life.

I feel lucky.

Autumn Color Week: Orange

2009-09-30T09:06:00.000-07:00

First of all, I am thrilled that one of my GREEN paintings was included in a Poppytalk post yesterday! Thank you, Poppytalk, I am honored!

Today's color is ORANGE, and I have a few pieces to share. These are actually some of my favorite small works in the past few years. Orange is such a great color to work with.

Heart & Lungs, Knees & Toes, mixed media, 2009

Franco Nero, mixed media, 2009

Please, mixed media, 2004

Autumn Color Week: Green

2009-09-29T06:54:00.000-07:00

Today is Poppytalk's GREEN day, and here are a few of my paintings that fit the bill.

Gertrude and Francis, oil on canvas, 60" x 48", 2007

The Dumpster Incident, oil on canvas, 48" x 60", 2007

6801 Maple Rd., acrylic on canvas, 60" x 48", 2009

***

In other GREEN, albeit sad news, our two bonsai trees were stolen from our front porch sometime between yesterday morning and the evening before. I am just heartbroken about this. One was a little juniper and the other was a pretty Chinese elm whose leaves were about to turn. I know this sounds silly, but I am actually worried about them in a similar way that I'd be worried about losing one of our kitties. I can only hope that whomever took them actually knows about bonsai and how to care for them (they were outdoor plants, for instance), but sadly I fear that either some young ruffians took them and just threw them away somewhere, or some other unfortunate end.

RIP Bonsai of the Bungalow... you are sorely missed. (You can see them in the photo below on the right hand side, one each on top of the two columns—sadly, I never got good photos of them.)

Autumn Color Week: Yellow

2009-09-28T07:51:00.000-07:00

This is rather unusual for me, but I have decided to follow along Poppytalk's Autumn Color Week. It struck as a fun way to try to blog here a little more regularly, and maybe get involved with something bigger than me and the blog, even for a week. I've been keeping myself rather isolated these days... what a nicer way to break out a little?

So, today is YELLOW day. I'm featuring a painting I did a few years ago and was subsequently collected by a dear friend and brilliant writer, Teri. It's titled, "When I Was 27, Everything Was Lined in Silver". Acrylic and colored pencil on colored paper. The drawing was based on a photograph I took of myself... you guessed it... when I was 27. Looking back, it seems like an odd, magical time but I also know it was a difficult time overall, too... very transitional and uncertain. As perhaps 27 is wont to be.

(You can click on the image for a larger view.)

If I was a...

2009-09-28T06:47:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been thinking about who I am and relating my identity to things, or concepts. For instance, fashion and music.

OK, so if I was fashion, I would be:

this

or this

or this. (All photos swiped from the fabulous Hel Looks website.)

Too bad you probably wouldn't know it to look at me in person! I need to get my fashion flair back. At least I have it in my head.

***

I recently decided that if I was music, I might be Arcade Fire.

Or, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana.

Or, Paul Hindemith's Ludis Tonalis.

Prizes, Awards, Grants

2009-09-21T05:40:00.000-07:00

Back in 2008 when I was participating in the NYFA MARK professional development program for artists, I heard about the West Prize. We all received a brochure about it and were encouraged to submit entries to be considered. At the time I wasn't ready with enough cohesive work I felt comfortable putting out there, so I didn't do it. This year, thanks to seeing another MARK alumni post about it on Facebook, I decided to give it a try this year.

You can view my entry here, and, if you wish, vote for me. You can just click on the row of stars next to my name and choose how many you think I rate, then click to submit the vote. As I understand it, you can vote multiple times. I don't know how important these votes are to an artist's success in the competition, but I guess we'll find out! Submissions are accepted until November 1st, so feel free to keep voting until then.

(UPDATE! I heard back from the West Prize folks regarding the voting system: "The star rating system reflects votes from the public, however has no influence on our final decisions." Good to know! However it is still fun to get votes, isn't it?)

I am also applying for the NYFA Fellowship... again. This very competitive award is, to my mind, one of THE feathers to have in any New York state artist's cap, not to mention the $7,000 you receive as a winner is no slouchy prize. This year, for the painting category, another prize has been added, The Basil H. Alkazzi Award for Excellence in Painting. I can only dream! Two painters will be awarded $20,000 in addition to the NYFA Fellowship.

I have applied at least three times in the past for a Fellowship, but this year is probably the first in which I have felt like I have a genuine chance. I'm hoping that the judges will feel the same way about my house paintings as many other people seem to! I guess we'll just have to see.

Either way, I won't hear of the results of either for quite some time... next spring. I guess it's nice to have something to anticipate!

Oh, and... wish me luck?

Regrouping

2009-09-15T11:05:00.000-07:00

You know that photo I posted last time, the garage that was going to house my new studio this fall? No longer. We're not buying the house... turns out it is in a very flood-prone area which is definitely not conducive to avid gardening.

Back to the drawing board, so to speak. We'll be reconvening our house hunt in the spring, so I will be continuing to work in my dungeon studio for the time being.

***

In other news, my calendar is full this fall! I'm scheduled to teach quite a lot in the next few months. Below are the highlights, feel free to contact me for more information on these classes or if you live in the western New York area and would like private lessons instead.

September 19 & 26: The Buffalo Arts Studio, Bookbindings with Sewing Techniques (ages 14 and up)

September 19–October 24: The Buffalo Arts Studio, 21st Century Collage (ages 14-18 only)

September 23 & 30: Lancaster Community Edcuation, Bookbinding for Beginners

October 14 & 21: Alden Community Edcuation, Bookbinding for Beginners

October 20 & 27: Maryvale Community Edcuation, Bookbinding for Beginners

November 3 & 10: East Aurora Community Edcuation, Bookbinding for Beginners

November 7: Western New York Book Arts Collaborative, Bookbinding for Beginners

November 14: West Seneca Community Education, Bookbinding for Beginners

November 21: The Buffalo Arts Studio, Artful Paper Puppets (ages 14 and up)

This is where

2009-09-09T11:28:00.001-07:00

my new studio will be.

We're having the back ten or twelve feet of the garage converted into a space that will be mostly studio but also appropriate for storage, with a wood floor and heat.

Everything's pretty much in place, now mom and me and C. have to sell our two houses. Maybe everything will time right and we can start moving in before the houses sell. But quick sales would be nice, too.

Think good house thoughts for us, thank you!

Art Moving Sale!

2009-09-04T06:09:00.000-07:00

Life has been a little crazy lately.

I haven't been making much art these days, but instead mentally preparing for a move, among other things. Soon, I must start packing and cleaning and just generally putting my life in major upheaval.

But, hopefully it will be worth it in the end. We're moving back to the country, to a house that has a couple acres, and perhaps most importantly (and certainly most relevant to this blog) a huge garage inside which we'll be building an art studio for me! I am very excited about this. Just imagine, making art above ground again! In light! Wonderful.

The move probably won't actually take place for another little while, but I do hope we'll be in our new digs by Thanksgiving. In the meantime, I want to clear out as much inventory from my studio as I can. Hey, the less I have to transport, the better it is for me!

So, if you have been considering acquiring some of my work but haven't yet, this is a great opportunity. Have a look at my website and see if there is something that floats your boat. If so, let me know and we can go from there. Generally, my smaller works on paper range from $100-$500 (framed, less unframed if you prefer) and $300-$2000 for my paintings on canvas. I have more work available that I hope to get up on the site... you can also look at my Flickr art set.

If you have any questions or would like to make me an offer (I am open to reasonable haggling), you can email me at amy.greenan at gmail dot com. Happy collecting! (Oh, and I would happy to make layaway arrangements, too!)

Here are just a few selections of what I have to offer currently:

Heart & Lungs, Knees & Toes, 2008, mixed media on paper, 10.5" x 16.5". $300 (framed).

Gertrude and Francis, 2007, oil on canvas, 60" x 48". $2000.

Untitled, 2004, acrylic on paper, 8.5" x 11". $150 (unframed).

Two Questions, 2007, oil and colored pencil on canvas, 12" x 18". $400.

Rejections, rejections

2009-08-25T13:13:00.000-07:00

I'm still receiving responses from the slew of emailed gallery submissions I sent out two weeks ago—I'm still surprised that I have heard this quickly from as many spaces as I have, even for rejections. I figured I probably wouldn't hear much at all from anyone, so maybe that's a good sign? Or maybe I am just grabbing at straws.

Today's reply was another Atlanta gallery where once again my work did not "fit". However, I was asked to keep them abreast of the development of my work, which I will certainly do. I liked the looks of that gallery a lot, actually. I won't give up so easily, even if it is a follow-up a year or two from now.

All these rejections remind me of an artist friend based in Florida, who decided to keep a blog of all her rejections. It looks like it hasn't been updated in quite a while (in fact, she kind of dropped off my LiveJournal radar a while ago, what a shame!), but you can check it out here. Well, at least we can say we are not alone in our piles of rejections? That must give some comfort to emerging artists like us.

My personal life has been a bit challenging the past little while, so I haven't redoubled my efforts to pursue galleries more since then, but... I will. I have a whole big country to hit up!

New Contacts, New Friends

2009-08-17T10:21:00.000-07:00

One of the things I enjoy about being an artist is making new friends, often of quite like minds (though unlike minds are just fine, too!) as I navigate around trying to get my work shown, or just to make contacts and "be seen".

Last week I sent out a bunch of inquiries and submissions to galleries in Chicago and Atlanta via email. I've been surprised to already hear from a couple places in Atlanta, and while those inquiries didn't result in shows, I did receive some nice feedback (though C., who is from the south, says they're Southern and so just being polite—I don't know!) and one of the responders is not only the director of an awesome gallery, but a pretty incredible artist herself! Check out Dayna Thacker's website to see for yourself. You can imagine that I am very attracted to her architectural collages, but the work that I originally saw on the gallery's website (click on "PAST" to see the archives) is also lovely.

Ego as Architecture, Portrait #7 (giraffe)
24"x32", collaged paper, graphite and pastel on panel, 2008

***

Another artist I have recently discovered is Danna Ray, whom I had the pleasure to meet when I was in New Hampshire in June and attended the opening of a three-person show in which her work was included, at Nahcotta gallery in Portsmouth. I was really blown away by the quiet magical quality of her paintings, which seemed to emulate her personality (at least as far as I could tell in the few minutes I was able to speak with her!).

(I couldn't find the title or medium or size info!)

***

So let me get back to my recent foray into getting my work OUT THERE. This past year I had my first major one-person museum exhibition, which no doubt helped me get three smaller solo shows I have lined up in Buffalo, Corning, and Binghamton, NY. I've also showed my work in southeast New Hampshire. I have a plan, kind of. I feel comfortable with my level of success locally now, so that I have extended my reach regionally and state-wide pretty well, too (not yet including NYC). I pursued galleries in New Hampshire because my dad lives there, and I thought it would be easier for me to get around, deliver artwork, etc. if I knew the territory a little bit. I suppose my next step could be Boston as far as that region goes, and still be within easy driving distance of my dad's as home base.

Now I'm thinking of doing the same with other cities, hence Chicago and Atlanta. I have a pair of good friends who live just outside Chicago and who are collectors of my work, so they can be yet another home base for me. As for Atlanta, C. is from nearby Chattanooga, TN so I figured that would be another less intimidating market somehow. Familiarity factors in here quite a lot for me, I guess, so even with cities where I've yet to visit, if I have a close contact there, it's more comfortable. It's not always easy taking a big step into a major unknown! Anything to personalize it somehow works for me.

Of course one of the things you need to make reasonably sure of when you are submitting your work for gallery consideration is that it's a good fit! You can look at the gallery's website and the artists they have showed in the past and are showing now. You also need to look at a mission statement or read the "about" section. Maybe the gallery only shows local or regional work. I am usually very careful of this, yet when I submitted to Gallery Stokes my brain neglected to process the fact that that is just the case, so, as Dayna put it so diplomatically, "I'm afraid you are just too far afield." Indeed!

I kept an eye on my Google Analytics page to see who's been looking at my website since I sent that batch of emails. Seems like it's about even between the Chicagoans and the Atlantans, with the major difference being that the Atlantan visitors spent a lot more time on the site! I can't help but wonder now, does my work somehow appeal more to a southern audience? Or is it just coincidence?

Interesting.

I guess in the meantime, rather than obsessing over statistics, I should head into the studio and make more work. After all, I've got three shows to prepare for in 2010—and who knows what I still have to look forward to in 2009!

Panic Mode

2009-06-18T11:52:00.001-07:00

It's good to be busy, and to have things to prepare for. But now I find myself with quite a big freelance design deadline right at around the same time that I will be having a group of curators from the area traipsing through my basement for a studio visit to determine whether I'll be accepted into what amounts to the biggest art exhibition in the region, the Beyond/In Western New York biennial. I've applied at least a few times in the past and this is the first time I find myself accepted to the studio visit stage, which is certainly an honor in itself.

But holy cow, will I ever be super busy in the next couple weeks! So much to do.

Better than nothing to do, I know. Especially as an artist. :)

Here's an older work, gouache and pencil on paper, titled Equilibrium (2004). That's what I will be striving for!

I'm back!

2009-06-17T13:02:00.000-07:00

Eep! Way too much time has passed... that's because it is well into spring, and to be honest, I've been spending much of my free time in the garden, which I have come to realize is just another way to be creative.

Anyway, I was surfing around the old internets and found Society6. I thought it looked really interesting and signed up right away. They offer grant opportunities and yet another networking community. So far I see some quality work there, but I need to explore some more.

As for me? I need to get into the studio and soon. I'm going to be in a group show at Nahcotta in Portsmouth, NH in August—all landscapes that include six of my house paintings! I visited the space while I was in NH a couple weeks ago, and it is fantastic, such an honor to be included there.

In lieu of paintings, here are a few photos I took on my NH trip:

Ayers Lake near Strafford, NH

A view of my dad's vintage camper "Tini-Home"

A couple poor old houses along the way (I took Route 20 across New York state on the way there, and then Routes 5 and 31 on the way back)

Wow: Sunny

2009-05-11T07:57:00.001-07:00

Going through my daily reads (see sidebar), on which incidentally I had gotten a bit behind, I found this incredible artist via the most awesome Dear Ada blog. Her name is Sunny Belliston, and just holy cow! Her skill and versatility bowl me over; I love her sense of color and contrast especially. Check it out!

***

In more personal art news, I am very pleased to announce that I have been invited to participate in a group show at Nahcotta in Portsmouth, NH in August. I'll be including six of my house paintings (all new, most likely, including some NH houses if I am lucky on my next trip there in June).

Need to get painting!

The Incredible Print Show

2009-05-04T06:31:00.000-07:00

I had a very busy weekend and was remiss in neglecting to mention again this wonderful exhibition I feel so honored to be part of in Rochester, New Hampshire. The Incredible Print Show at Artstream Studios is on view both online and in person until June 27th. There are 50 artists from around the world showing all types of printed work: linocut and woodcut, photos, silkscreen, monotype, intaglio, etching, digital prints, and more! All the work is for sale and priced under $400, with many available for under $100! There's some amazing stuff.

You can go here to view some of the art as well as gallery installation shots.

I can't wait to see the exhibition in person! (I will be there for the June 6 art walk that happens once a month in Rochester.) But based on what I have seen online, here are some works that especially caught my eye:

Ana Ventura

Heather Smith Jones

Stacey Durand

Helle Jorgensen

Wayne Pate

Along with five others, I submitted this work to the show.

U-Men

***

Photo: CAM staff photographer (Note: You can catch a glimpse behind me [standing] the table o' zines! Click to enlarge)

On Sunday, I had an incredibly good time at the Castellani Art Museum presenting my workshop about zines called Invisible Voices: Zines as Art, to a small but very enthusiastic group. After a short slide show in which I covered a very encapsulated history of zines and talked specifically about old zine friends Emily Lyon, Sonja Ahlers and Emily Larned, we had a quite lively discussion about, among other things, the relevance of the zine format in the 21st century compared with blogs and social networking venues like Facebook. My pal Jan Nagle and I also talked about how we put our respective zine "dummys" together in a very low-key demo fashion, and the rest of the time was spent, understandably, gushing and cooing over the fantastic zines I brought along from my collection (well, actually, I brought my whole collection!) It made for quite a display spread out on a couple large tables. I can't believe I forgot to take photos! Tsk.

It was especially great because the workshop really seemed to spark genuine interest in all those attending (even the curator, Michael Beam!), which included people who had never even heard of zines before. One of my old high school friends who came said she found one zine on the table in particular that she ended up reading all the way through—she liked it so much she couldn't put it down! I think it was a copy of Kyle Bravo's These Are the Days, which definitely warrants such a response. It was really representative of the entire workshop, I think. And while it may not necessarily have produced any future zinesters, I know that someone is surely to become a regular reader of zines, if anything. I saw a lot of eyes sparkling, that's for sure.

Yay zines!

Designer by Day

2009-04-28T09:38:00.001-07:00

(click for larger, more detailed view)

Here is the desk where I spend all my weekdays, designing catalogs and advertisements for a small, independent book publisher. I don't have much else to show you today.

Lately, life has been full of dying kitties :( and home & garden upkeep. Our 10-year-old cat, Azrael, was diagnosed with chronic kidney failure last week and his decline has been quick and steady, so sad. Much of our time has been spent with him, as well as on the inevitable spring cleanup, inside and out. Not much time left for art-making, unfortunately. I really would benefit from a nice week-long residency somewhere, that is for sure. Hopefully one of those I apply for in the coming months will come through, but in the meantime, I really need to figure out how carve time out for art, even a few minutes at a time would be better than nothing.

Is it bad that I am admitting this here? I'm probably too open for my own good.

*sigh*

Creativity in all forms

2009-04-24T07:01:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe I haven't posted here in a week, for shame! I've been admittedly lazy and a bit down, truth be told, and when weather permits taking my creative impulses out to the gardens. (I even started a new blog about my gardening experiences, Garden By Chance!) This is a prime example of how even when I am not actively "making art", I try to live as artfully as possible. In the past this has involved things like the interior decorating of my living space and surrounding myself with aesthetically pleasing things, making zines, and carefully considering everyday dressing almost as costume (though you'd never guess that nowadays).

Lately, there is nothing better to me than getting outside and soaking up the sunshine and digging around in the dirt, and I have big plans for my little backyard this season. Last weekend I spent some time continuing to clean up the beds and prune some bushes, but also ended up rather unexpectedly expanding some of the beds! And, being an artist, I can't just make a regular square bed, no... I had to get a little fancy:

I obviously have plenty of work left to do... but it was a good start. And I found that the process of creating the shaped beds was very similar to that when I am working on a new artwork... very intuitive and organic, seeing where it takes me rather than vice versa. I hadn't really planned to do this, but it just suggested itself in the clearing out process. I can't wait to see how it turns out.

That's not to say that I am not anxious to get back into the studio and work on some house paintings, though. I have all those photos that I took a few weekends ago to work with, and I am excited to see what comes of it.

On another somewhat related note, let me remind you that I will be presenting my last exhibition-related activity at the Castellani Art Museum next Sunday, May 3rd titled Invisible Voices: Zines as Art. In addition to a slide show and talk about what zines are and their surprisingly lengthy history, I will demonstrate how a zine is put together using various techniques, with the opportunity for YOU to get hands on—complete with a tour of her extensive personal zine library, which includes zines that she's collected since the early 1990s.

AND, my dears: if you would like to bring some materials to make into your own zine (writing, images) PLEASE do! Let me know if you have any questions.

It's free to attend, though you should register an RSVP with Curator Michael J. Beam at 716-286-8286 or email mjbeam@niagara.edu. Space is limited.

Dreams

2009-04-17T11:34:00.000-07:00

I haven't yet read the whole article, but just the first few paragraphs were interesting and well-written enough for me to want to share it with you immediately. Mira writes about opportunities (grants, awards, residencies) for artists, and this particular post is really great because it talks about how she came to be the "Grant Queen" and gives lots of good, sound advice about how you can get funding for your dreams, too.

Right now, my "crazy" dream is to win a residency at the MacDowell Colony. I say it is crazy because it feels like the sort of thing that only well-known and really great artists get. But, it wasn't too long ago that I would never have imagined in my wildest dreams that I'd have a one-person exhibition at a museum, either!

You have to dream big. So, I'm going to apply for a winter residency, which gives me plenty of time to prepare a really good application before the September 15th deadline.

And if I don't get it the first time? I'll keep trying until I do.

Dreams propel you through life. Never give up on them.

From the archives:

Equilibrium, Gouache and pencil on paper, 11" x 8.5", 2004. In a private collection.

Cigar bands redux

2009-04-15T06:08:00.000-07:00

As promised, I have photos of the two latest cigar band pretties to show you! You can click on the images to view them much larger if you wish.

First up: Ed, Jed, and Marshall on a Sunny Day, 4.5" x 4, 2009.

This piece is dedicated to artist Jed Jackson (and will probably go to him). Three of the cigar bands that I used came directly from the men referred to in the title, who gave them to me outside on the patio of the Castellani Museum on the day of Jed's exhibition opening. And yes, it was a unseasonably beautiful, warm, sunny day.

And All the Ladies (CALM), 8" x 7", 2009.

I love how the word "CALM" is spelled out vertically among the cacophony of color and design in the rest of the piece. This truly developed organically. I was very glad to find that odd double band that had one totally blank area, torn away from a previous effort, I guess. How fortunate that it tore away totally retaining the gorgeous shape of the band! It reminded me of a cloud, which in turn inspired the pale blue sky-like area at the top, also a result of being unable to bear interfering with the line that was created by the topmost bands. It just all came together fortuitously, and I am quite pleased with the result.

I expect that I will squeeze out a few more of these before I run out of materials. The process of creating these is indeed calming, meditative, and just plain fun, to be honest. I don't know about you, but as an artist it is imperative that I have fun. Otherwise, why bother?

On with the Guayabera

2009-04-14T05:55:00.000-07:00

Last night I got myself back into the studio because, really, it's been a long while since I haven't been making art for some specific reason, i.e. getting ready for an exhibition. So it was really nice for a change to be there and just really have fun with no constraints. (OK, I say constraints but really it's just a mental thing I have about having to do something and within certain parameters I've set for myself, it's really all good as long as I am in the studio.)

I decided to revisit the cigar band collage. The one piece that I have in the Castellani exhibition now was very popular (it was one of the works that sold, actually), not to mention that the collages are really fun to make, just totally different from what I normally do. It's definitely an exercise in free-wheeling and instinct. I don't yet have photos of the two I made last night, so in the meantime, I give you FLOP, which measures 5.5" x 8.75".

I'll post the new ones tomorrow.

A Rush and a Push

2009-04-13T10:42:00.000-07:00

One of the things I don't like about myself (as an artist and otherwise) is that I often find myself making a grand last rush (and push) to get something out the door (figuratively and literally, I suppose). I might have the best intentions, mark up my calendar, rough out a schedule... but something always seems to happen that foils my best laid plans.

This time around getting ready to ship a big box of art to New Hampshire for The Incredible Print Show at Artstream Gallery, everything ended up taking longer than I expected, from the making of the work to the arrival of the frames and mats I ordered, to the wiring and labeling of things... and true to my nature, I kept putting it off this past weekend in favor of something, anything else; gardening, in this case, because I cannot WAIT any longer to get my hands in the dirt and I thought that the manual labor would inspire me.

So what should have been done the weekend before did not get done until the weekend after, i.e. this past weekend. By the time I had everything ready to go, all the good light had gone and I had little if any time to shoot decent photos of the work, which was probably the worst part. Big lesson learned for sure: be MORE than prepared, be MORE than ahead of time. Always. I don't know why it's taken me so long to figure this obvious fact out.

Anyway, here's the six little beauts that are headed, as I write this, to southeast New Hampshire. (I am totally cursing myself about the documentation. Seriously.)

(All above are 11" x 14" framed: The Early Bird Loses the Day; Highway to Hell; and U-Men.)

(All above are 5" x 7" framed: The Why and The Wherefore; Suddenly, I've Got That Old-Time Feeling; Can You Hear It?.

I've got the Blues

2009-04-08T10:20:00.000-07:00

...the winter blues, that is.

This week has been such a downer after the nice weather we had there for a while. I was so confident that spring really had sprung and that we'd see no more white stuff on the ground, and BLAM! a couple inches have accumulated since yesterday.

It's really affected my mood. I want to work in the gardens, I want to go on more photography roadtrips, I just want to bask in the rays of the sun. Is that too much to ask? Humph. That's what I get for living in upstate New York, I know.

The rest of the week I will be finishing up getting ready for The Incredible Print Show in New Hampshire! Unfortunately, the frames I ordered were delayed and I won't see them until Friday. But, I guess in the meantime I can get the artwork made and ready to fit the frames, shipment out first thing on Monday! Whew! Frantic, but exciting. Not to mention I am really looking forward to my whirlwind trip to attend the opening there on May 1st. I will be back in town in time to present my artist workshop at the Castellani Art Museum on May 3rd!

I'll tell you a little about that. It's called Invisible Voices: Zines as Art and it will be part presentation/lecture and part workshop. In addition to a slide show and talk about what zines are and their surprisingly lengthy history, I will demonstrate how a zine is put together using various techniques, with the opportunity for YOU to get hands on—complete with a tour of my extensive personal zine library, which includes zines that I'ved collected since the early 1990s.

Q: What is a zine, anyway?

A: The zine – a self-published magazine that’s often published by an individual making use of cut and paste techniques and photocopies – has a long history, with its roots reaching back as far as Thomas Paine’s pamphlets of the Revolutionary War era, The Crisis and Common Sense, to the manifestos and pamphlets of the Dadaists and Surrealists in the early 20th century, to the music fanzines of 1970s punk rock and the Riot Grrrl and DIY movements of the 1990s and beyond.

The past few years have seen many zine publishers pushing the envelope with the form, transforming the humble photocopied pamphlet to an honest-to-god work of art. Along with the gain in popularity of book arts in general, zines can be an astounding alternative to more traditional art-making.

It's free to attend, though you should register an RSVP with Curator Michael J. Beam at 716-286-8286 or email mjbeam@niagara.edu.

I guess it helps to keep your eyes ahead when you're feeling blue, especially when you have things to look forward to... and I sure do! While I am recuperating from this slump, let me show you something that I have dug out of my archives. Sticking with the blue theme...

Lora and Lana Didn't Have a Chance (detail), Silicone toray intaglio print, 2006

Catch-up

2009-04-07T13:01:00.000-07:00

I haven't much new to report or show you, but since my last post announcing that my website had some meat, I wanted to tell you that everything that I wanted to get up, including galleries, is up! What a great feeling... I can't tell you how long I've been saying, "I've got to get a website up, I've got to get a website up..." and just never followed through. I'm so pleased that I finally made it happen and now have a one stop shop to direct people toward. I think this will call for some new business cards, while I am thinking about it... hmmm...

And just so I don't leave you with nothing to look at, may I present to you one of the lovely, poor, abandoned houses I found this past weekend? I found so much inspiration and can't wait to get back in the studio to paint!

On Route 20, somewhere between Alden and Avon, NY.

Acceptance!

2009-04-01T10:36:00.000-07:00

Wow! I can take a break from rejection, at least for today.

I just got an email saying that I've been awarded a solo exhibition at 171 Houghton Gallery down in Corning, NY for next year. The schedule hasn't been worked out yet, so I can't tell you anything more except how thrilled I am. I don't know, what—I guess you get one or two of these things and it just snowballs?

Yes, please!

I'm really going to have to get back to churning mode in the studio, that is for sure.

Please, Gouache and rubber stamping, 2004.

Finally!

2009-03-30T19:47:00.000-07:00

My poor, languishing website, for which I've had the domain and VERY bare content since the beginning of 2009, finally has some meat on its bones! While I do still have to stock up the galleries with images and upload my CV, I am just about done with the initial full content. From here on out I will be updating the site regularly and adding more information as it comes... I am excited about the possibilities now that I finally have the basic structure down. (I'm no web design wiz, in case you couldn't tell, but I do have appreciation for clean, simple design.)

Please, have a look: Amy Greenan Art & Design. I'd love to hear what you think!

Rejection, Part 2

2009-03-30T12:28:00.000-07:00

Breaking news as we receive it!

I just got an email from an artist residency program that I was pretty excited about. It was a rejection letter, alas, but it was a really great rejection letter.

The bulk of the email read:

I am sorry to let you know that we are unable to offer you a residency at **** this summer. We were very impressed with your work, but unfortunately can never accommodate as many artists as we would like to.

Best of luck to you in the coming months, and with your practice. We hope that you might find a way to come to **** sometime in the future and encourage you to apply again either for our upcoming fall program or for a future summer residency.

Aw! What a nice rejection. Well, I was planning to reapply anyway, if this happened. At least I know now that I have a sliver of a chance.

***

In other news, I now have a 4 or 5 month wait to get a rejection letter from THE big exhibition in town, a biennial. I just submitted my materials today and just... the wait. Torture me, it will. I want to think that I could be accepted this time, but I am steeling myself for the big R, if you must know. But I guess we'll see! Ah, the life of an artist.

Anything Could Happen, Mixed media, 7"x9", 2009.

Inspiration

2009-03-29T17:31:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I went back to the museum where my current show is hanging. I had set up an informal Q & A session for those who didn't make it to the opening — nothing official, just a Facebook-invite sort of thing. No one ended up coming, which was OK since I live just literally a few minutes away, but I made good use of the time, wandering around and having second looks at things, both in my exhibition and in the other areas of the museum. I took photos because there were a few things I really wanted to remember — though for shame, I didn't take down the names of the artists on a few. Anyway, here's what I saw and really liked.

(Self-portrait in a Rauschenburg)

(One of my all-time favorite painters, Alice Neel)

(I love this beautiful wooden sculpture... need to find out who the artist is)

(Ah, Jed Jackson!)

(Ralston Crawford)

(SO gorgeous! Phillip Elliott)

I think it is interesting to see what art really grabs me, seeing it in a group like this, and comparing the group to my own art — not that I am saying my work compares to the work of these artists, just looking at individual elements: color, composition, concept, things like that.

On another kind of inspiration, a beautiful abandoned house I'll be painting in the near future. This one was just off Niagara St. near downtown, Buffalo, NY.

I'm sitting here trying not be gloomy about the impending Monday morning that will be upon us soon! A little cheer, perhaps.

Rejection

2009-03-24T05:36:00.000-07:00

It happens to every artist, multiple times throughout their career.

The dreaded rejection letter.

At this point I feel fairly immune to the effects of receiving one. I've trained myself to expect it only because then it doesn't hurt at all -- not to mention that when I get a positive response, it feels that much better, too. But I must admit, it does sting a little bit, no matter how well I train myself otherwise.

In January I sent out maybe a dozen packets to be considered for shows at various galleries. Most were responses to open calls at galleries throughout New York state and New England. I have yet to hear from almost all of them, but yesterday brought my first rejection letter from the batch.

It wasn't a terrible letter; I am gleaning a little hope from it. It said that the gallery welcomed future proposals and that if I had any questions to please feel free to contact them.

And, you know, I think I might, eventually. I'll certainly send out another, more well-thought out packet. Some of the things I know were not quite right with that batch of packets was including images of work that doesn't quite all go together (i.e. I included my collage work and my paintings, both figurative and houses -- confusing, no doubt!), and maybe my cover letter was too long and personal? Probably, knowing how verbose and squishy I can be sometimes. And maybe a shorter form of my resume would be a better choice.

I chalk it up to learning. Making mistakes, taking missteps, but also taking care to not repeat them and move forward. It's OK.

I've got to keep submitting proposals, sending packets, refining my presentation, and most important: making new work.

A Supposed Day Like Any Other, acrylic on canvas, 2009.

Dear Ada

2009-03-18T13:56:00.000-07:00

Ack! One of my very favorite art blogs, Dear Ada, made a post about my work! I am especially excited about this just because I love her taste in art -- I'm always learning about new artists (to me) who just blow me away. I'm just so honored to be included there. Thanks ever so much, Dear Ada!

(Yes, I know I sound incredibly juvenile in this post. I can't help it!)

Giving and getting

2009-03-17T11:31:00.000-07:00

On Friday and Monday, I visited my old high school for the first time in over 20 years. I went because I had been invited by the current art teacher at the school (my art teacher from way back when retired a couple years ago and now works as a docent coordinator at a local museum). She asked if I would be willing to do something like a mini-residency with her students, and I gladly jumped at the chance. It was a blast! On Friday, my first day, I presented a Powerpoint slide show and talked about my work as well as how I arrived at where I am with my art today. Then, we all crowded around a table where I also showed them some smaller work that I was able to bring in to show them, as well as some of my design work, aka My Day Job. There were two separate classes, so I got to do all that twice. Suffice it to say that I was pretty zonked after that, especially considering I had to wake up at 5am to make it there in time.

(It was totally worth it, by the way.)

Yesterday was where I think everyone had the most fun. We began with me sort of demonstrating my techniques for reusing and recombobulating old work that was either just languishing in the corner for far too long, or work that I just never really liked that much to begin with. So, I started with a couple prints I made back in grad school and some other random pieces of ephemera and pages from type catalogs... and voila!

OK, well, it didn't happen that quickly and I told them it doesn't always. At that point the kids started working on their own creations and it was then that I really started having fun. It was so amazing to see how these young minds and hands went to work, totally unencumbered by rules or requirements... but, surprisingly enough, I think some of them had a hard time letting go a bit. And most of them certainly did NOT want to go cutting up their handiwork, even if it wasn't something they were very happy with. Hey, I remember what that was like...

Long story short, I had a great time and felt I was able to give something back to the school where I grew up and received so much support and encouragement. A big thank you goes to the teachers who invited and welcomed me into their classrooms: Mary Beth Zacher and Jude Kosinski.

Not to mention... all that creative activity really inspired me. By the end of the time I spent in classes, I walked away with two new works on paper myself!

Highway to Hell, mixed media, 2009

U-Men, Mixed media, 2009

Something I've been thinking about

2009-03-10T07:11:00.000-07:00

Drifting around on the internets one day not long ago, I came across a blogger who was making a Dear Jane quilt. What, you ask, is a Dear Jane quilt? Well, there's not exactly a short answer, but in nutshell it's a quilt that lots of folk have been making based on the design of one made originally by one Jane Stickle in 1863.

See?

I've always been interested in handcrafts like sewing, knitting, and quilting. This quilt is really gnawing at my craw for some reason. It's a project, when undertaken, will occupy its maker for years to come. Yet I really want to get the book and become engrossed in the whole online community that surrounds it.

Unfortunately, there's no way I could fit it in, not really. Then again... doing one little patch at a time, one or two a month while I'm sitting watching TV or something? I could just make it a process, a lifetime endeavor which I never really plan to finish...

In the meantime I need to get cranking on some house paintings. I've been seeing many lovely candidates out in my daily travels that I need to photograph and bring into the studio. I am trying to stay focused on those houses that are run-down, or totally abandoned, but I have also been drawn to houses that may not really be run-down but just a little tattered, but with interesting lines, or lines that I have a hard time finding beauty in. And not just houses! I am noticing so much more "regular" architecture than ever before. I need to take a photo trip one of these weekends.

In the meantime, there is this poor little house that I would love to buy and take care of. She's my next muse.

Another Solo Show Scheduled!

2009-03-04T09:50:00.001-08:00

I am thrilled to announce that I have secured my next solo show! It will take place May through July 2010 at Betty's Restaurant in Buffalo, NY. Many a talented area artist has had a "Betty's show" (as I think of them), and I am really excited about having my work seen by lots of hungry customers. (Very tasty menu, by the way... and the last art reception I attended there had the very best reception food I've ever tasted, which is always a plus!)

It may be restaurant, but it's a beautiful space with a great atmosphere in which I will be proud to hang my work. Now, to get planning! I think some smaller house paintings would look perfect there...

(photos snatched from the Betty's Flickr)

Quick note: back when I first found out about my exhibit at the Castellani, I decided that I wanted to shoot for at least one solo exhibition each year... I am so happy that I can cross 2010 off the list!

***

On the flipside, I am sad to announce that I will not be participating in the MARK show at Artspace after all, for a variety of reasons not least of all that the gallery space is not insured, not to mention that the show has to go up in a month and I am just not going to be prepared... too much going on this month and not enough pre-existing work to dig out and/or time to make more. Take this as a lesson learned that you should always have several bodies of work available at all times in your studio -- you never know what opportunity might present itself in short time. Gotta get crackin'!

New work up on my Etsy shop!

2009-03-03T10:38:00.001-08:00

That's right -- new work is available at my Etsy shop. One small painting and one mixed media piece are for sale. Interested? Check them out!

"My Wandering Days Are Over," acrylic on canvas, 18" x 12". This one won an honorable mention award at the 2009 Big Orbit Members' Show in Buffalo, NY.

"Trouble in the Underworld," mixed media, 7" x 9.25".

The Storque

2009-02-25T08:05:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my IRL pal Jan, aka LilyPickford on Etsy, I found out that one of my paintings was included in an article in the Storque yesterday, how exciting!

Remiss

2009-02-25T07:20:00.000-08:00

Oh dear, look how much time has passed by since my last post! For shame, especially at this time when I have been really making an effort to get my work out more and more in other ways. Since my one-person exhibition went up at the Castellani Museum on February 1st, I've sent out about 20 packets to galleries and museums and alternative spaces, replying to calls for entries, and sending cold e-mails, looking for exhibition opportunities for the coming months and years.

So far I haven't heard back from anyone, but I know patience is a virtue. It can take weeks or even months to hear back from places, so for now I will continue to seek MORE places to check out and keeping the outflux of packages consistent and constant.

So, the opening went really great! Lots of people showed up (thanks, Facebook!) and I even sold a few smaller pieces -- and the buyers weren't related to me, even! ;) The artist talk was a little scary since there were way more people there than I expected, but despite my at times shaky voice, I think I did pretty well.

In other news, I finally bought a domain and some real estate on the internets. My website, Amy Greenan Art & Design, is still totally bare bones with barely a shingle hung outside the store front. Right now, it will direct you to this blog and my Etsy shop with little else. But bookmark it for future visits, as I do plan to get some photos and things of interest up sooner rather than later.

More photos can be viewed on my Flickr, if you wish.

Also, I am happy to announce two upcoming group shows that will include my work. The first will be in April at Artspace in Buffalo, and it will feature my work as well as the 11 other artists who participated in the NYFA MARK professional development program in 2008. We were quite a diverse group with many different styles and media, so it should be interesting and of quality.

The other show will open on May 1st at Artstream in Rochester, NH, called The Incredible Print Show. I don't know yet who the other artists are, but safe to say that it will be a wide selection of international participants. I plan to submit 4-6 pieces, which will be small print-based (duh) works on paper, with collage and other elements. I plan to attend the opening also, so if you are in the vicinity of southeast NH, you should check it out!

End of Year SALE!

2008-12-30T10:49:00.001-08:00

To all my wonderful readers I am offering a 20% discount on everything in my Etsy shop today and tomorrow ONLY! When you make your purchase, type BLOG in the comments area, and I will promptly refund your discount to you via Paypal. I'll probably add a little something extra in your package, too, just because I love the turn of the year so much.

My dream is to make two more sales before the new year (which is silly and random, I know), so if you have had your eye on something special, now is the time to pounce!

Thanks so much for keeping on eye on this blog -- I promise more wonderful fun things in the coming year! Stay tuned!

Choci Shop

Enough!

2008-12-24T06:38:00.000-08:00

OK, I know... enough with the Etsy Treasuries already... but I am still thrilled when I discover that I am included in one. This is only my second time, so maybe after this I will be over it, ha ha. Anyway, many thanks to "renef" for including me!

We made the Front Page!

2008-12-24T05:32:00.000-08:00

I am so excited and confirmed that yes, my little Treasury made the Etsy Front Page yesterday. Here is the screen shot; sadly I wasn't able to see it with my own eyes. This is so great!

Also, I've been meaning to share the little cat painting I made especially for my friend Teri -- I traded her for a Queen Bee Truckette bag and a wallet! I love trades. It finally arrived on her doorstep, so I don't have to keep him secret anymore.

"Archer", 5" x 7", Acrylic on paper with handpainted wood frame.

Happy holidays, everyone!

2008-12-22T12:14:00.000-08:00

I made a new Treasury over on Etsy today. Fun stuff!

As usual, click to see it larger. :)

My first Treasury!

2008-12-19T05:44:00.000-08:00

A big thanks goes out to the lovely Enhabiten, who informed me that she's included one of my artworks in a Treasury she created on Etsy! It's a really nice one, too, so I am extra pleased. (Click to see larger; my piece is in the upper right corner!)

In other news, it looks like I am going to be slightly without camera for quite a while. :( So, I'm not sure when I'll be able to post more of my own art again... though, maybe, on the other hand, it's good to have some surprises for my show, right?

Stay tuned for more featured artists coming early next week! I've got a busy weekend ahead with holiday festivities plus guests from Montreal! Have a great weekend, all.

Changing Perspective

2008-12-17T07:48:00.000-08:00

Back in November, Keri Smith wrote about changing one's perspective and included a list of ways you could do so. I love this one:

12. Add something to your name. ("the 3rd", "the great", "the illustrious") Alternate: Add some letters to your name but don't tell anyone.

I took pen and paper and played with my first name, since it's so simple and short. I liked what I ended up with, something more seemingly exotic and unusual (would you believe that my mom thought she was being different when she named me back in 1970?).

From Amy to Amiey or Amiy or even making myself plural: Amieys!

I wonder if anyone would notice... too bad my show invites are probably already at the printers! Har.

***

I know, I've been remiss in the art lately! I try to stay off the computer on the weekends and save them for making stuff -- art and food mostly -- and catching up on movies. Today I am going to direct you to a few artists and craftspersons with a quickie post.

Nicole Lecht is one of my co-workers who happens to be a talented graphic designer and illustrator. I love this letterpress bird series she posted recently.

Over at Enhabiten's shop, there are pillows, ornaments, and jewelry -- all made from fabrics -- AND the things that really caught my eye. I absolutely love her fiber-based artworks. This one is my favorite.

This particular quilt by ScrappyLynn is my dream quilt. If I had an extra $800 laying around, it would be at the top of my list! I'd really love to invest in a beautiful handmade quilt one day, and I would want it to be something like this.

There's something incredibly beautiful and mysterious in the simplicity of shellyklein's art.

Finally, in the vast world of stuffies, these guys made by Lou Lou and Oscar really stand out. My current favorite is this Polar Fish Boy! Too cute and unique...

That's it for today! Tomorrow I hope to be able to share some more sneak peeks at my own work that will be included in my show.

Hopping Right On This One: Olivia Jeffries

2008-12-12T06:15:00.001-08:00

Love at first sight! OK, I feel a little lame since this artist I just discovered had an item included on the Front Page treasury on Etsy this morning, but no matter. I went from shop to website to blog and just was like, "Wow! Wow! Wow!" Something just totally sent me to the moon about Olivia Jeffries' work. Maybe it's that she recycles old papers and materials to draw and paint on, or her delicate, informed way of rendering forms... I am totally in love.

You can visit her shop, read her blog, and peruse her website.

Here are a few of my favorites that she has available for sale:

"Trace Parts 1-4", framed screenprints on old love letters(!), $250

Sketch for "Showed You Your Air", large gocco print, $20 (a steal!)

Daily Sketch for September 30th, $55

***

In other news, I had my very first interview yesterday on my lunch break! No, it wasn't a job interview, silly -- it was for a local paper, a Pennysaver-type thing, which will include an article about my show at the Castellani Museum in February! I was quite nervous about doing it, but the writer was very easy to talk to, and I ended up having a lot of fun. I'll post a link to the online version once it appears.

Have a great weekend, everyone.

News from the Trenches

2008-12-11T08:43:00.001-08:00

February 1st quickly approaches, and my curator has been getting ready for my show, too. His latest request was for a title and a few choices for the image that will appear on the invitation. (Ooh! Invites! Exciting!) I am happy to announce the title for the exhibition will be Nothing Was about to Happen. Thanks to all my friends who weighed in on this important decision and gave me awesome feedback.

I have good news: I got a much better shot of my portrait from yesterday. Unfortunately, I have bad news, too: as I was coming back inside from taking its photo this morning, I slipped on some ice and dropped my camera on the driveway asphalt! Horrors! I am so sad about this. The one good thing is that I was able to retrieve the photos I took and get them on my computer so I could send 'em to the museum. Thankfully. Most thankfully. And I do have a backup camera that I lent indefinitely to my mom, but still. That's one waste of a fine camera. :(

So here, I will share the new and improved photo of the painting I have now titled Lady Godiva's Operation as well as a few small collages. Enjoy!

"Lady Godiva's Operation", Acrylic on canvas, 42" x 32"

"Don't Settle", Collage and acrylic on wood panel, 5.5" x 7.5"

"Insomnia", Collage and acrylic with woodcut print on paper, 8" x 11"

"Heart & Lungs, Knees & Toes", Collage and acrylic with linoleum print on paper, 5" x 12"

New work!

2008-12-10T07:34:00.000-08:00

Augh, I probably shouldn't share these photos as they were taken in the dark basement very quickly and carelessly, but I must admit: I'm a little excited. I've been working on some new paintings in the past week and want to share. Believe me, I will get much better photos up eventually -- I want to put my best foot forward, but no one said patience was my virtue! In the meantime, here. These paintings are all acrylic on canvas and around 30" x 40" or so.

Some landscapes inspired by the train ride through the Hudson Valley:

Detail:

The first painting in a pair of portraits inspired by Renaissance profile paintings:

Deatil:

These may or may not be fully realized at this point... I'm always continuing to fuss, but overall I am pleased with them as they are. I have several more large canvases and ideas ready for the next few -- churning away! More portraits, and some architecture (i.e. old houses) on the way. And probably another funny Hudson hill, extra large.

Thanks for having a look! Back to our regular programming next time. :)

Studio Beerhorst

2008-12-08T06:53:00.001-08:00

Today's featured Etsy artist is Studio Beerhorst... or should I say artists? According to their shop announcement:

"We are an artist family of eight living in downtown Grand Rapids MI with backyard chickens and no car. We would love Etsy to be your way through our studio door! We support our selves making art and that means every purchase helps our family continue on its mysterious adventure and have the money to replace the tires when they wear out.

We are excited to create more variety in our shop as we begin to list creations from Brenda, Rose and Pearl."

So, I'm not really sure who did what artwork, as the individual listings don't give much information beyond what and how. But, I am very intrigued by this family collective, who present themselves as rather folksy, mythical characters. Are they hippies? Punks? Academics? Vegans? Your guess is as good as mine, and the mystery adds to the appeal (like the same way I said about Amy Earles previously, who has since told me that she does not mean to be mysterious -- more on that soon, hopefully!).

In addition to 2D art (drawings, prints, and collages), they also offer potholders, sculpture, and stuffies -- quite a range, which is unexpected and fun. Here, see for yourself in these selections I've chosen to share with you:

"Righteousness", graphite drawing, $125

"Girdle", collage, $40

Ack, I wanted to add another image, but Blogger doesn't seem to be cooperating. Go check out the family shop and see for yourself. :)

***

Since my last post the other day when I talked about the creative muse and my history with it, I've been thinking a lot about who I am as an artist, what moves me, and where I want to go. In the comments I stated that I do not consider myself by any means a "Sunday painter" or a hobbyist, even if I do most of my work in the evenings and on weekends. I take myself and my work seriously and see it as something I want to do as a career eventually. I think that only recently, since I opened my Etsy shop to start selling things, have I really taken that notion very seriously -- even after having participated in the first NYFA MARK professional artists seminars this past year. Etsy has given me a shop to function in and to create work for. I find myself inspired to get the shop stocked, much in the way I create work to stock a show. Only, this is even better because the shop is up and out there all the time.

Money isn't even the main impetus -- it's mostly pride, I think. Pride in the work I do, wanting to share it with others, putting together a package, an identity for my artist self. It's hard to explain, but it's getting me in the studio happily, and regularly. Whatever gets you there, right?

For a long time my subject matter focus was on portraits -- self-portraits, in particular. I've spent many years exploring different ways of portraying myself with varying measures of success, putting myself out there literally on display. I think that will always be an interest of mine, this self-exploration (I made my first self-portrait at the age of 12, by the way), however in the past year I have found myself wanting to try other things, step out of my comfort zone a bit.

I've been making lots of collage, and drawing and painting cats, and trying my hand at landscape most recently. On the train ride down to New York City this past summer, I was fascinated by some of the land forms in the Hudson Valley -- weird little islands and peninsulas with hills and castles; intricately formed bridges and train trestles. Living right near the Niagara Gorge also provides much inspiration. The solo show I am getting ready for in February is going to include all this stuff, under the umbrella of experience, memory, hope. Here is my statement about the work I have been developing, so far:

"Disappointments and shortcomings are at the heart of the human experience, and lately have served as jumping off points in my creative practice. In a quite literal tip of the hat to the past, many of these pieces in this exhibition are those resuscitated from my studio’s archives – paintings and drawings that had been tucked away out of disinterest or disappointment. Through this work I am reconstructing my past and those events that occurred within it – real or imagined, dreamt of or heard about.

Woven into simple visual narratives using words and pictures from a laundry list of sources, these works are often injected with the absurd and surreal, heavily influenced by graphic design I do by day, and comic books I have read voraciously throughout the years. With directed paint drips, written and then obscured notations, cartoon bubbles, viscera, muted voices, and incomplete thoughts, I make assumptions. With an infusion of nostalgia, confusion, and longing, I extrapolate a story from morsels of truth – so that it might become something else entirely."

I will leave you with a link to some photos I took as a reference for future paintings. I love old houses, and this one has intrigued me for a long time. Only a month or two ago did I have the chance to photograph it, and when I did, I was flagged down by a neighbor who wanted to know what I was doing. It was good timing on my part, because I found out that the house is now going to be rehabilitated! Good on one hand that such a beautiful home might be brought back to its original glory, but sad in that it looked beautiful in its ruin, too. At least I got to document it as is -- a few weeks later I drove by again and the side entryway had been rehabbed already. The house is located on Maple Ave. outside of town in Akron, NY -- about 20 miles east of Buffalo.

On the Creative Muse

2008-12-05T08:16:00.000-08:00

Sometimes it is hard to get my creative juices flowing. Sometimes, I will go without making anything for weeks, even months! But then, I'll get back into it. Sometimes there is a reason -- say, need to make work for an exhibition *cough cough* -- and sometimes it's just plain time, you know?

It's always been like that for me, and it made things rather difficult in grad school, because obviously, you were there to make art! Having a few months' worth of dry spell during the two years it takes to get through a typical program sucks. Trust me, I know. During that time, I never really figured out how to work through it and get past it to create an "artificial" productive period, so I struggled through the end, when the pressure of my thesis shows kicked in and I turned into a painting factory the last month or so. Fortunately, I work quite well under pressure.

I've had a similar experience recently with my first big post-academia solo show quickly approaching on the first of February. Waited, waited... did a little here and there... ack! I need to get my ass in gear! I have gotten my ass in gear.

But I think I have finally found the secret to pulling inspiration out of your... *ahem* when it just feels like nothing: Just do it!

How cliche! How athletic!

It seems to be true, though. Last night I had a few ideas floating through my head, but wasn't sure how to approach their execution. I hemmed and hawed a bit, worked on something little, took inventory. Finally, I decided to just mix up some colors and get what I call "foundation layers" on a couple canvases. It was great! It felt wonderful, and I got a lot done. The biggest thing was that I was letting myself do the work without fear of making something ugly. Sometimes you just have to let go and not worry about the pretty, you just have to worry about getting it done.

I know that sounds funny, talking about making art and letting yourself make something that you're not happy with! But, as I said, I was putting down the first layer of the picture. I've got something to work with. It's kind of like when I am writing my artist statement -- something that puts the fear of God into many an artist -- I let myself kind of throw up all over the page first. Then I go back and refine and revise until it's just right. Sometimes it is the only way to get yourself going, and it really works. It always works for me, only I never thought of applying it to my art-making.

Maybe now, from now on I won't have to wait for the creative muse to grace me with her presence. I can just take my own feeble, unrefined ideas and work with them in the meantime. In my latest statement -- the one I will be including in the catalog for my show -- I talk about how disappointments and shortcomings, at the heart of the human experience, have served as jumping off points in my creative practice as I make use of old "discards" in my studio to make new works. This new realization adds a whole, 'nother layer to that. And I am grateful for it.

I will leave you now with a photo of a few little paintings I had in a small, rather impromptu show a couple months ago in Buffalo. (Note to self: must retrieve paintings, soon!)

Amy Earles

2008-12-03T10:09:00.000-08:00

Oops, I guess I said "yesterday" the day before, which makes me a day late. Sorry about that!;)

Today's featured artist is Amy Earles, about whom I know very little but who makes beautiful images. Unfortunately, her website is under construction at the moment, and her Etsy shop isn't very revealing about her person, but I guess when the work is this good who cares? (Well, I do... but it doesn't make me hold anything against her or anything, of course! I just like to know some personal info about artists, and/or the stories behind their work) Anyway. I discovered a little painting that was featured in one of those major design blogs one day, which led me to her shop, and my subsequent purchase of said painting, of a little witch girl and two tiny ghosts...

Anyway, she has an interesting variety of things available: original paintings, prints, postcards, and paper dolls. Here are a few of my favorites.

"Persuasion", paper doll with painted background, $280

"Benevolence", print of an original painting, $17

"Red Cape", original gouache painting, $50

This leads to me to think, Hm, perhaps I should try and do an interview here and there with an artist? Stay tuned.

***

In the meantime, I may leave you with an image of one of my own little works. This one is actually from a year or two ago, but having revisited it recently, I have fallen for it all over again. It's a drawing made in white pencil and acrylic paint on black paper, with a splatter of light blue paint here and there. The image was inspired by a photo I had taken of a former classmate when one day I was especially struck by her outfit and hair. Her name is Veronique, and the title in my fractured French way is to mean either Veronique dreams, or the dream of Veronique, or simply a dream Veronique. I always wanted to call her "Vero" but she wouldn't have it. So now I do. I think she will go into my February show.

"Vero Reve", 13" x 6.5" (2006)

As always, you may click on each photo for a closer, larger view.

Holidays are for Art

2008-12-01T09:57:00.000-08:00

For making art, that is! I was off almost all of last week and had quite a productive time, which is great considering how much work I have yet to do for my upcoming solo show in February! I thought I would take this opportunity to show you where all my creative activity happens... in the underground studio! (aka The Dungeon aka The Torture Chamber, aka a little room my 1927 bungalow's basement!) While this is not my optimum set-up, admittedly, it is the first time I have had a space in my house where I can totally make a mess and not worry about appearances or kitty safety. I hope eventually to expand and finish this room in my basement I call my studio, but for now I make it work.

And no, I don't get scared at night or anything! It's pretty much all good vibes down there. Sorry for the less-than-great photos -- it's rather dark down there. Yes, I need better lighting. NB: You can click on the photos for bigger versions. :)

Here is the door to my studio. It's painted a celadon green with an orange square at the latch -- came that way when we bought the house. Someone had an artistic bent, I think.

Here is where all the magic happens, so to speak: my workbench. I like to make my collages and small paintings here, and I am able to just take all my scraps and throw them all over the place, waiting to be discovered.

Little tschochkes and cigar bands galore:

More stuffs:

You can see that I am rather cramped into a tight space, but I do make the most of it. Plus, I really enjoy being surrounded closely by things that visually stimulate and excite me -- keeps the creative juices flowing. It's a great space for making small work, so the one thing I don't like about working down here is that it's going to be hard to work on my larger canvases. I am still trying to figure out how I am going to manage that. But I'll work something out.

Finally, I will leave you with a few shots of my most recent larger painting (though this one is relatively small at 40" x 18").

I'm also excited about a little cat-as-person painting I made for my friend Teri, but I can't share it here until she gets it up in Montreal. It turned out really well and can't wait to see what she thinks of it! In the meantime, here is the painting I did of my cat, Nico, a few months ago, in a similar style:

Well, that's it for today! I hope you have enjoyed my little tour! Tomorrow I'll be back to sharing another awesome artist with you.

Betsy Walton

2008-11-25T06:08:00.000-08:00

Today's artist feature/Etsy discovery is Betsy Walton, who blows me away with her incredible imagery.

This original painting, "Pool People", is available at her Etsy shop for $300. A great price! If you're strapped for cash, though, look what you can get for $30: a limited edition print of a painting called "Possibilities Limited"...

On her website, she says about her work:

"Many of my paintings and drawings explore the tension and balance between the mysterious nature of our existence and the objects and environments we find in everyday life. We can experience the sublime in the same room where we fold the laundry, and perhaps at the same time.

My style is informed by a range of influences including Byzantine icon paintings, American folk art, geometric abstraction, and the work of many contemporary illustrators and painters.

I work with a spontaneous approach and few expectations of specific results. I rarely sketch preliminary drawings before diving into a painting, in the belief that the image formed through the painting process itself will be rich, revealing, and vital."

As an artist, I can totally relate to that last sentence -- it's how I approach my work, too. Really interesting! I love hearing about how other artists come to make their work.

You can also go to her Flickr to see sets of her exhibitions -- lots and lots of great stuff to look at.

Lany Devening

2008-11-23T15:33:00.000-08:00

One of my most favorite new finds over at Etsy is an artist named Lany Devening. Over in her shop you can find all kinds of gorgeous silkscreen prints with somewhat tragic, dark themes throughout -- but they are definitely something you can hang on your wall even if you're not a goth kid, for sure. Me, I like a little something "off" or unexpected in the art I choose to display, and Lany's work fits the bill in a thousand ways -- they are completely right. But here, you can see for yourself, just two of the many prints from a series of the United States. And right now, she's having a BOGO sale on them, a steal for $20 for 2, if you can believe it -- each print has 10-15 colors, not easy to do!

Iowa, 8" x 9"

New Mexico, 8" x 9"

She's got plenty more great prints to see, so be sure to visit her shop, tout de suite!

I've been blogged!

2008-11-22T05:01:00.000-08:00

Cathy Cullis over at November Moon and her lovely Etsy shop has added me to her Saturday Shopping list this week featuring my last zine, HPRS 15. What an honor! As she'll also tell you, I have "known" Cathy for a long time now on the internets and have a great respect for her creative pursuits, which have developed in an amazing way. I have a small collection of her little dolls in my office that I really love, but her newest sewn artworks are amazing, unique, and really coming into their own. Just take a look at her most recent:

If you're thinking "mutual admiration society," well, I guess you're right. But honestly, I'd have talked about Cathy soon enough anyway. :)

As for me, I just found a couple extra copies of a little zine called Pumpkin that I did a few years ago. It has a rather interesting format that I enjoyed putting together. See what you think!

Regarding zines, I've had a couple Etsyans tell me that they have no idea what a zine is. I've also added the following description to my listings, but in case you aren't sure, either, here you go:

Q: What is a zine, anyway?

A: The zine – a self-published magazine that’s often published by an individual making use of cut and paste techniques and photocopies – has a long history, with its roots reaching back as far as Thomas Paine’s pamphlets of the Revolutionary War era, The Crisis and Common Sense, to the manifestos and pamphlets of the Dadaists and Surrealists in the early 20th century, to the music fanzines of 1970s punk rock and the Riot Grrrl and DIY movements of the 1990s and beyond.

The past few years have seen many zine publishers pushing the envelope with the form, transforming the humble photocopied pamphlet to an honest-to-god work of art. Along with the gain in popularity of book arts in general, zines can be an astounding alternative to more traditional art-making.

That's it for today. Thanks for stopping by!

Hello!

2008-11-21T15:06:00.000-08:00

After having set up shop over at Etsy a couple weeks ago, I have been finding out about more and more amazing artists and artisans that I would like to give a flash of limelight -- assuming that I will have a nice legion of readers over there, that is! ;) I will also be promoting my own work in lieu of a dedicated website, for the time being. I'll keep you posted on the status of what I hope will be www.amygreenan.com in the near future, where I will feature my fine art and graphic design work.

So, to start off, I'd like to point you over in the direction of ChociShop, where you can see and purchase some of my art and zines in the meantime. In the next few days, I will be getting this blog gussied up with some links and a banner and things.

I can't wait to tell you about all the great Etsy shops and other awesome places on the web to visit that I have found over the years.

Say hello, why don't you? :)

"I Wasn't Born in 1972", Collage on wood by Amy Greenan.