Art 180 Calendar!

 

 

I made the drawings for the new 2011 Art 180 calendar illustrating quotes by youth in Art 180 programs. Erin Potter of Punch Design did the graphic design and color selection. It is a very handy calendar that folds out to sit on your desktop, adding a bit of brightness and inspiration to your day. We are all very proud of having donated our efforts to support Art 180, an organization that provides art programs to youth facing challenging circumstances. Once this product is listed, you can buy your very own calendar for $12 at their online shop, and if you live in Richmond you can find it at craft events where Art 180 and I will be vending! By the way, I've heard rave reviews about the Art 180 cookbook. Someone told me about a recipe for black bean burgers that is simply amazing. May have to pick that up for myself soon...

One Kind Word - Love

This is a poster and postcard set I illustrated and hand-lettered for One Kind Word Project, run by Hartwood Press in Richmond, VA. Please submit writing, art, or a combination of both! There is a chance your submission will be selected for inclusion in a print anthology of One Kind Word. Please pass this along to friends who may be interested.

New Prints and Black Friday Sale on Sprout Head

These are what I've been working on madly for the last few weeks. More new art to come. They are all linocuts, which is my new (old) favorite printmaking medium. I say that because I hadn't done much since high school, but I love them now. All are for sale in my Etsy shop, Sprout Head.Which reminds me, I'm having a BLACK FRIDAY WEEKEND SALE at my shop from Friday, Nov 26 through Sunday, Nov 28th. Get 10% off your entire purchase when you enter coupon code BLACKFRIDAY10.

 "Horse Constellation"

 

"Gathering"

 

"Gathering (Autumn) 

"I Went Hunting" - inspired by a song of the same name by Alasdair Roberts:

I went hunting in the morning, Polly,
When the geese were in the field.
I went hunting in the morning, Polly,
The geese were in the field.

Then I saw a woman changing
From a woman to a gosling.
Then I saw a woman changing
Before my eyes.

And the larks sang melodious, Polly,
At the dawning of the day.
And they only know the one song, Polly,
But they sing it wondrously.

And the beauty of the singing,
All along the valley ringing,
And the beauty of the singing
Stayed my hand. 

One print in this edition is being donated to the charity auction at Gallery 5 on Friday December 3rd, benefiting Art 180. I'll also be vending at RVyAy! (Records, Vintage, and Art Fest) on that night. Stop by and do some shopping if you're in town!

Stillness

it's been awhile since i posted something on here, but i promise you i have been busy! i've been working on some commissioned illustrations, which i will post here very soon

as for personal work, i was asked to donate a piece for the Tiny Auction, a special event which is part of Bizarre Market Holiday, a craft market that is set up in the gallery space of Chop Suey Books in Carytown for a whole month from November 26th to December 24th (Christmas Eve!) Visit the Bizarre Market Facebook page here. I will be selling prints, paintings, and more at the month-long market, but the Tiny Auction is for 3 days only. 20 artists have been asked to donate art specially made for this silent auction. the pieces measure 5" x 5" or smaller. From Friday, November 26th to Sunday the 28th at 4 pm, customers get a chance to bid on their favorite pieces. profits go towards a great cause - the scholarship fund for the Richmond Young Writers Program, a non-profit that offers writing classes to youth.

here is my piece for the auction, measuring 5" x 5." It's called "Stillness." I made it using papers that i painted with watercolor, cut and collaged together. i was actually quite frustrated working on this piece because i kept feeling like it needed something, but i didn't know quite what to do. i think adding the shadows helped. i admire other artists who can beautifully blend funky textures and colors together into a unified whole. i need to practice more to really master it. i am happy with my piece now, though you can only tell it's collaged if you look closely. i had a Scandinavian look in mind when i made it, especially with the detail of the girl's sweater and the simple shapes of the trees. i may create a black and white linoleum print version of this piece if i have time.

i hope you like the painting! and it you live in Richmond, please come down and bid on it at the Tiny Auction!

More Monotypes

I finally got around to scanning/photographing the rest of my monotype prints from my art show "Wind Bridge." Here are some of my favorites, the rest are on my website.

Milk Paintings

Here are some new paintings I made using Milk Paint. Last week I e-mailed my friend Betsy about using milk paint, since I had been curious about it for awhile. Betsy works at Ecologic, an environmentally-friendly interior design store that also sells handmade goods from artists like me. Betsy makes beautiful handpainted gourds with all kinds of colorful patterns. She gave me some samples of milk paint that I had asked about. It's based on an old formula of casein (milk protein solids), lime, and pigments, and after it has been mixed with water it becomes a biodegradable and non-toxic paint that is environmentally friendly (paint they used to use in the old days). I spent a few days experimenting and making small paintings on wood blocks. This paint was really fun to use. It is a bit like gouache paint, but dries much harder and can't be re-activated with water. It has a chalky quality to it that I like. Also, the wet paint doesn't last long, so I have to work fast because the paint doesn't store well after it is mixed with water. This is good for someone like me, since it forces me to work for a long stretch of time on the paintings so I don't waste the paint. I experimented with sealing the surface with wax polish and with varnish. The wax will darken the color a lot, which is useful in some cases.

It was fun experimenting with new materials. I have lots of ideas for this new paint. I love the fact that it works so well on the wood panels. I picked up a bunch of free wood panels that a cabinet-factory near Ecologic was throwing out, so i have a nice little stash to work on! I have some plans of combining painting with linocut prints. I will post pictures of more things I work on as these paintings develop.

The Rest of Them

Here are the last of the paintings I did for Harrison St. Coffee Shop. I am happy to have finished this series - it's satisfying to see all of them together.

All of the paintings were drawn from life, except for the Asparagus Flower which I drew from a photo. Also, the design on the plate was made up. This was an interesting way to work. I went to the grocery store and farmer's markets, and kept an eye on veg and fruits that looked particularly beautiful or interesting. Then I had to draw them before too many days passed and they got rotten or misshapen. I took photos of the foods so that I could reference the color when I went to paint them, since usually after I drew them I wanted to cook/eat them. It was fun drawing the cupcake. It was a nice treat to eat - delicious!