Tuesday, November 27, 2007

this and that

I posted the iris painting today for a client that wants to see it and lives out of town: so there you go.
The vineyard painting "Abundance 3" is nearly finished, installed this weekend. I'll miss it from the studio and hogging up so much space.
Onto other projects: New commission just starting, based on the abundance series from my new work postcard that many of my clients received, announcing my new series, "not always as it seems"
I know I've written this previously, but enjoying this series immensely. I've been working it over in my head, looking for the reasons behind my choices in the studio and what ends up on the canvas versus what never makes it outside of my mind.


Monday, November 19, 2007

My son Q was kind enough to snap this shot of me up on the ladder whilst I was working on the top portions of the painting.
The fact that the painting and I are both generally in the frame is impressive as Q is only 3. Well done-
This painting that I'm working on is nearly completed- I'm just doing some small things, after all, it's unfinished until it's done, right?
I'll be installing this with the help of D in a little short of two weeks now, so it's important to complete it and back off, resisting the urge to poke at it since it is prudent to let the paint and leaf set up and completely dry and then varnish so that we don't have any incidence between here and installation day- paint on walls, rubbed off on furniture, hands, etc. It has happened.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

14 things

1. yesterday had to rant on my mothers site to make sure family doesn't travel to see her and screw up her immune system.
2. got my panties in a knot on that one for sure.
3. productive day today, painting, wiring paintings, anticipating selling painting
4. time way too short (see number 3)
5. grocery list is growing longer and am tempted to see how long I can put it off until "people" start asking questions
6. love my new bedding
7. I actually almost removed all of my big toenail (don't ask)
8. my new business cards are ordered and am anticipating big sales as a result (right?)
9. how many so called "journals" have I started and stopped?
10.Several people I haven't heard from in a long time. Does it mean something?
11.house hunting is equal parts tiring, exhilerating.
12. did I say tiring?
13. Now have a total of 4 agents checking in with us: A, S, M, and S
14. Do I ever have the right thing to wear for ANY occassion???

Friday, November 9, 2007

painting as progress/process




Additions to the project: In case you're interested, it's called "Abundance 3" and painted in oils with leaf.
I'll be installing it on December 1, so right now I am under the gun to get everything on canvas as soon as possible because it's got to dry dry dry before I can varnish it and then load it into D's truck and install at the client's house. Very much enjoying it:
I love working on a large formate (I think I've said that in previous posts) really, I am enjoying this immensely. Note the chair in the image so you can see the size of said painting, more or less.
Stay tuned, as I'll be posting more images of this project as it progresses.

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

More, more, more




Can't remember the name of the artist...
But, spending far too much time figuring out how to get ad text on my blog through googles REALLY EASY instructions.
Thank you David for emailing with helpful tips. Turns out the tips were exactly what was missing from this recipe.

I promised that I'd post more pictures of the way big painting I'm working on, so here they are. I realized that even though the painting is 7 feet high on this itty bitty format known as your monitor, it looks kind of puney. So, the next time I take some pictures, I'll stick something in the frame to give it some perspective. Maybe a kid.

Monday, November 5, 2007

something else I'm working on


First of all, dear reader my blog is going to be changing it's look soon, as in, I've signed up for Adsense and I'm understanding that google in their infinite wisdom will be placing relevent ads on this site. Your job? click on them and everyone's happy. Get the picture? Good. You're smart, I knew you would. Why? Cause, like I said in my first post of this blog, this site is meant to be used as my casual friday- my art site is not meant to be muddied by the flotsam of our culture known as advertising. Once again, your only concern is to click on them.

Ok, onto the something else I'm working on. Wine and my art. Relationship? yes. How? Well, besides the fact that I've always had and continue to have agriculture inspired art such as vineyards, trees, fruit, vegetables, I've also generated paintings that include wine bottles and the like. So, naturally being the egocentric artist that I am, I've always had a personal goal of getting my art- something- on a wine label. Enter wine maker.

Sunday, November 4, 2007

images of new painting




So fun to see a work in progress, don't you think?
This is called abundance 3. It's sized 5 feet by 7 feet and the sheer logistics of getting it to the client and installing it has been loads of fun- but worth it. This is the size and type of work that I really enjoy. It will be morphing along nicely and I'll post more pictures as we go...

Saturday, November 3, 2007

I hear the jing-jing-jingling of sleigh bells

The holidays are upon us folks... Around these parts, it's marked by Halloween and the event of Primos birthday just following.
R and I have gone out of our way over these last several years to minimize the hoopla especially around birthdays that mark the passing of time for, hello, a ten year old. How did this happen? Not him turning ten. Pay attention: It's the part about the extreme lengths that parents can go when celebrating their children's birthdays. When Primo turned one, we had a cocktail party to beat the band, babies (of course!) included. Turning two, three, four: yes, yes and yes- more over the top including the ever present, gift to the party go-er: the party bag. How about just giving the tot cash?
(I know I'm ranting and I'll get to my point, and I love it that you've gotten this far)
We finally came to our senses when we were plunged into reality and absolutely could not pull it off one more time. Primo was turning five and we were preparing for the birth of secondo. (In case you feel mystified, don't: One two and three in italian)
The circumstances that R and I were facing were such that any party, no matter how important the occassion just wasn't going to happen: The paired down birthday was born. One guest, one movie, one lunch at a favorite burger joint- A trip to the toy store to pick out something- done, bye-bye.
We've tried to carry on the same theme in the years since then but last year it got the better of us and low and behold, 10 boys in the house- learned our lesson after the boys ate and left jelly beans sitting on the floor in a bedroom and essentially delivered a hand written invitation to all the ants within a mile radius to come on over, the livin is easy!
What in the hell does all of this have to do with art?
time, honey, time.
All that day to day life that we're all livin- the stuff that has to happen whether I'm interested in it or not? Yep, it does have to get done. And all of that takes away time, time time!
Hence the hour of the post. Where do I find time? In the wee hours of course. Can't sleep, get up, make coffee and get at it.
No light? No problem! Paint any way and how fun it will be to see what I make in a few hours. Just don't let it be a commissioned painting. The client might not like this particular direction-
With that, I'm off to the studio-
In the dark.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

first day

ok, not first day. I've been painting since my eldest son, we'll call him Primo, was two. So that makes eight years.
But, since all of my best friends are now working during the morning hours and my youngest, we'll call him Terzo, is in preschool, I am painting or at least showing up in my studio, every day.
Yes, every day.
In the words of Chuck Close, an artist whom I admire very much, "just show up" I paraphrase, of course. But the point is, don't not work. Don't avoid art, making it, thinking about it, touching it. Just show up and things happen, the next thing happens.
If I don't paint, I clean up my studio. If I don't clean up the studio, I sketch, or cruise the internet for art opportunities, or look through my constantly expanding file of ideas. You get the picture.

So, first day since I started this blog. Been getting a lot of practice in the blog-shere of the web as I keep family and friends updated on my mother's leukemia, which by the way is fantastic as she is about 90 days post stem cell transplant and she's coming along nicely. I'm not going to sugar coat it and say that she's great! Kicking Leukemia's ass! No, she's not all that, but she's got the best attitude and is getting through this with grace.

Back to me: Now, when a painting is drying and I'm "showing up" (see speech above) I can show up by coming to this blog and writing down my thoughts about being an artist and all of the glamorous (ha) trappings that one can only imagine are involved in such a life.
I usually have 2 paintings going at once though, so all of this musing is really for not. One large commission (5x7 feet) is drying and "setting up" and I do actually have a small painting on the easel that I could easily get back to, but I decided today to just start this blog and write down all of the things in my pumpkin head.

From time to time I'll be posting images of work that I'm in the middle of or just finished, after all, this is a painting site and would be a whole lot of words otherwise.

Check out the links over there>>> some of my favorite sites

Kate