Tis The Season

Three Amigos

the "busy season" that is!!
Waiting for the summer to actually take hold has been a long and almost painful process!! The spring has been anything but lovely. One of those very unpredictable New England springs at best.
Now...finally....I'm feeling optimistic!!
The weather seems to officially be on the upswing and people are getting out and about.
I just received word yesterday (yes, Friday the 13th...love it) that the Three Amigos just sold!!! Yay....that's a good sign that Cape Cod and The Little Beach Gallery are getting into full swing.
This means I'll be creating at full speed....because I'm also due to be one of this summer's "guest artists" during a trunk show weekend in July at The Art Stable Gallery!! Sooo....I've got to have plenty of stock not only for these two places...but for the upcoming local shows!!!

Been working pretty much non-stop to stay ahead of all this.

Seems that 12"x24" canvases have been my size of choice lately. Did another "cabana" piece. The first one I'd done last summer sold on the first day of a week long show. Figured I'd better produce another one.

Also did another Whale Tail because I've actually sold two others and have had inquires about more.



And...as always.....Mermaids!! The latest one...just finished today in fact....is Avalon.
I'm really pleased with her. It's not always easy to get that vision you have in your head to show up on the canvas. She came pretty darn close!!

Yes...all of these are 12"x24".

Got my next subject planned and ready for an underpainting!!
No...not a "coastal" subject this time. Sometimes you just need
to change the pace a bit.
Soo...stay tuned.
The "season" has begun!!

Think Spring

OK...at least try!!
I can't remember when we've been bombarded with sooo much snow. Geesh...we've been getting like two to three storms a week. No fair!!
As I sit here right now the wind is howling outside and I can't seem to warm up. I think just hearing that is what's keeping me feeling cold....and maybe seeing nothing but "white" outside. There's no color.....just like living in a b&w photo!!
Sooo....I have to stay in my art room where there is color all around me....and work on images of spring & summer!!
Just finished more seagulls on the beach....Three Amigos!! These shore birds seem to always be soo popular...so I'm glad that they are also fun to work on.
I've got several other underpaintings done....but next one in line....huge ice cream cones!!
Yep....I can pretend that I'm in the middle of spring while working on Torn Paper Paintings....but reality really takes a bite when I come back upstairs and get those cold sights and sounds again.
Maybe I can play groundhog and simply stay downstairs.....hmmm....

September already??

I can't believe it's Sept already. The winters seem to last forever....but not so for the summer!!!
I've been very busy and yes, have neglected my postings once again. Will try to do better this month...but must warn you....this is also the month that my beautiful daughter is getting married....so I may be a bit distracted...lol
To fill you in on what's been going on....lots of art. Yes...that's what keeps me busy in the art room and not so much online. Summer is certainly the busy season...and I'm happy for that!!















Newest pieces....I've done another Bass, different coloring than the first...and since two seagulls recently found new homes, I did another two..."Ben & Jerry"...lol



Right now I'm in the middle of a piece where I'm experimenting with backgrounds. This one is a seahorse. Usually I only do seahorses in the mini size..about 3" high. This one is 16" tall.
Will have to post a pic for you when it's done...but for right now...I'm pretty pleased with the way it's going.


The other update is that I finally got to deliver the four pieces that are becoming part of another corporate collection.
It is a brand new medical facility that is just doing the finishing touches on getting ready to open. I can't wait!!
Will tell you more about that too when the opening is official.

Soo...now that I've made a good start to a brand new month (and season) and have gotten you all up-to-date....fingers crossed that I come by here a bit more often.
At the very least...you can be guaranteed that there will be wedding pics showing up at the months end :)

Time flies!!

Wow....you can always tell when it's the busy season around here.
I can't believe I haven't posted in soooo long. With all that's been going on with art making, art shows, and commissions....I feel like I haven't been here in ages.
To catch up....yes...the local shows have been going on...and I was delighted to have sold one of my pieces on the first day out on one of them!
It's also busy season at The Little Beach Gallery...so dropped new work off to them as well.
In other news...I was contacted about being part of another corporate collection...for a medical facility. Nice!
One of the four pieces they are getting is this little guy I just finished.
Will tell you more about that when the details are set.
Soo...for now..sorry to have been a bit MIA. Will try to do better...but being busy is actually a pretty good sign!!

Be sure to keep in mind that there is an upcoming Torn Paper Paintings workshop in Peace Dale, RI for Aug. 9th.
Still a few spaces left...so if you hurry you may be able to join the fun!
See you then!

Mini delights!!

It always delights me whenever some of my art gets published. Whether it's in a national magazine or a local publication. Any press at all is good press.
Sometimes I make a serious effort to make it happen...sometimes it just comes to me. This latest one was due to a "readers challenge".
Cloth Papers Scissors Magazine was holding a challenge at the beginning of the year for "mini" art. The idea was to do something that was 4" or less in the style that you would normally do your larger art.
Well....this was no problem. For a few years now I've been making some mini pieces (2.75") to go along with my larger art for the gallery in Cape Cod that represents my work... The Little Beach Gallery.
I decided that one of my little seagulls would be just the thing. So I made one for the challenge and emailed the image. A month later, when the challenge closed I received an email saying I was a finalist and would need to send it to them for a photo shoot. I was soo excited....but still had no idea when I'd see it in print. All I knew was we were to receive our work back in mid April.
Then one morning when I got online with my art group, a friend of mine who had just gotten her latest subscription copy for May/June posted a "congratulations" to me. When I asked her why, she said she spotted my seagull right away in the issue! How fun!!
Cloth Paper Scissors is one of my favorite magazines. Always cool interesting articles. I actually worked with them once before for their very first Collage in Color eMag. I was one of their features for that one, complete with a stop action video which was great fun to create.
I was now thinking that I would see my little seagull turn up back home soon...but he never arrived in the mail. Next thing I knew...I had an email from the assistant editor. Seems she spends a lot of her summer in the Cape. She said that my little guy reminded her very much of the happy days that she spends there. Then...she asked if she could buy him from me!!

Well........needless to say, I was just over-the-moon flattered by that. Knowing how much artwork goes through those offices all of the time, to think that my little gull made such a connection made me quite proud.
Although I do normally "sell" them...I was so honored by the request that I decided to simply "gift" it to her instead.
I'm just thrilled to know that my little guy has a good home.
Barbara, thank you for the compliment. Enjoy!

Tiny Art

Spent this week on a "mini" marathon.
No...not a quick run aound the block...a marathon of making little "mini canvases".
Since all the tiny art that was out in the gallery with their larger counterparts have sold out, it was time to stock up again.
This year, along with the seagulls...I've added little seahorses.
They make darling little holiday gifts when you want to give that something special but a big piece is just too much. The seahorses are 2"x 4" and the seagulls are 3"x 3".
I'm sending this little batch off to The Little Beach Gallery today then making a backup group.
I just love these tiny little canvases!!

A Good Week

Just when you think that the summer season in the area is starting to slow down....you can be taken completely by surprise!
I started the week off by hearing that a nice Torn Paper Painting sold at The Little Beach Gallery in Hyannis. Without a doubt...this is the top selling gallery I've been involved with!!
Seems today, before the week is out, another big piece just sold. Nice!!
While I do love every piece I do...or I simply wouldn't do them....I always feel that since they are at a gallery, I always know where to find them and can bring them home when I need to. Sort of like kids..lol
When they do sell...it's a little bittersweet. I'm happy that someone loved one of them enough to give it a good home but of course, I'll miss them.
Seriously though, I'm always delighted to see my art being so well received. It's what motivates me to continue.

Seagulls from scratch

Ahhh...and you thought seagulls were just those funny little ocean birds who flew into the picture looking around for everything and anything you may have left around!!

Nope...it's not that easy.

I've had a bit of a run on seagulls lately so I had to actually make some more "seagull" papers before I could even make more of those little birds.

The best papers in the shades of gray that I'd been working with were the ones I make myself. Sooo...that was the first part of the process.

 The result...my single guy...DB and my fun loving pair...Lucy & Ricky.

Yes...they sort of name themselves as they come to life.

A Bigger Bird

 Tis the time of the year when it is hard to get new work done!

I had been really wanting to do one of my seagull in a larger size. With an upcoming appointment with another gallery, I had all the motivation I needed. Just finished this one tonight.

He measures 11"x14". I especially love the fact that most of the body is made from papers I made myself!!

I find that extremely satisfying.

I took the picture below to show the difference between the little tiny ones I'd been doing beside this bigger version.

While the new one isn't huge....it sure looks it next to the little guys.

I'm sure there will be more of these sea birds to come!

A Tiny Piece

 With the holidays coming I wanted to play with the idea of some little torn paper pieces that could even be used as ornaments.

I found these tiny little canvases that are 2 3/4" square and started to experiment. I wanted something that would not simply be a christmas theme, but something that would also work year round.

Staying within my usual coastal theme, I decided to make the first one a seagull.

This was really fun and a bit of a challenge to work this small.

Hope to try a few other designs.

Back from Maine

YAY...finally back from Maine. Not that I don't
enjoy being there mind you....but this visit was not quite what I'd hoped.

But first....here are the pics of the paintings I did and donated to the fundraiser for the Farnsworth Museum that I'd mentioned in my previous post.
"Gulls" and "Outdoor Dining". How lucky we were that Saturdays weather turned out well.

As for why this trip wasn't one of the most fun ones...it started with the room we were given at the TradeWinds. First of all, let me explain that there were no other rooms in town that would have been available to trade for, so what you got was what you got!
In this case it was more like what you "didn't" get.....WINDOWS.
Have you ever heard of a hotel room without any window??? Well...I should say that yes, there was one, which looked out into the hall!!! In my opinion, if the window only looks into the hall and not outside...it's not a window. Because of this, the lighting in the room never changed. You couldn't look out to see if it was day or night or even what the weather was. Each morning I'd have to get up, dress, then go to another area of the hotel where there was a window "to the outside" to see what the weather was! Thank goodness the room was at least cute and clean, it's only saving grace.
Then, as luck would have it, it rained sooooo hard on Friday, all day (I had to keep going elsewhere to find a window to check) that I couldn't even leave this room. Parts of Maine were sooo badly flooded that some streets collapsed.
By the end of this day I was going stir crazy from being in this windowless box and had wished someone would pop some holes in the top to breath!!
I had hoped that maybe being able to get the internet would help me a bit, but of course the signal wouldn't last and I'd get 5 minutes if I were lucky before I'd be booted!

Luckily the weather cleared for Saturday & Sunday. As you might imagine, I spent all my time outside!!
When the show ended yesterday around 4pm, we packed up and went to spend the night with friends who live about 1 hour south of Rockland.
We had a lovely evening with them and headed back home this morning.

Word of advise.
Previously I would ask when booking a room if there was a "view". Now, if they say there is no view.....I intend to ask if there is at least a " window"!!
Who would have thought to even need to ask that question???