Color Play

I am back at work on my Common Denominator series since we leave for a show next week. I've been trying to split my time between the new abstracts, which are going to be shown at an event in association with our Contemporary Museum (more on that later) and the collages. It's fun to change gears like this and I think I learn something each time.

So, as I was building backgrounds, I thought about a discussion I had with another painter about color. She worked in all blues/purples and of course I work in so many reds/oranges. It was funny because she said she has been trying to branch out but can't seem to do it easily. And of course I have had the same problem. I finally achieved some success with a blue/green palette and with pinks & neutrals, but purple continues to be a challenge. Over the past year, I have tried purple over and over with horrendous butt ugly results. I feel plagued by purple.

But today I tried to take my time and do more mixing. I feel a little bit more comfortable. Now, mind you, this isn't purple per se, but it's as close as I've ever gotten. My toe is now in the water; I like the direction and plan to do a little bit more. It turns out I have some great papers that work with the palette, specifically this swell vintage doll house wall paper(say that three times fast). The second piece doesn't have a phrase yet, more thinking needed on my part, probably something about their haircuts....

What a fun time I had playing! I have a full un-interrupted studio day tomorrow (meaning I don't have to leave the house for anything. I can hardly wait.

Happy 4th

Ever since I was a kid my birthday has been celebrated on the 4th of July. The cake involved sparklers, a tradition my Mom continued even on my 40th. That was the same year she insisted that no one in our family liked icing (who on earth put out that fiction!) and instead fixed a "healthy" cake with berries and non-fat whipped cream. For the record, allow me to say I love icing. I do not, however, enjoy whipped cream, go figure.

My birthday was celebrated on the 4th as a matter of convenience in that my family was already together. In recent years we had a reunion of sorts, immediate family only, at my brother's lake house in Kentucky. This year we are spread out from our origins in Ohio, to Missouri, Tennessee & Texas. Managing a get together with my brother's 4 little ones is complicated and we do well to make it happen once a year. So John and I will have a quiet 4th with some friends.

I have been thinking about my birthday though and trying to figure out what to do. It falls on 07/07/07 and I will be 47. With all that lucky 7 energy, seems like I should have monumental plans. Something profoundly life altering; something wild and reckless; or at a minimum, something really high calorie. Suggestions anyone?

In case you were wondering

I have been told that other artists appreciate my honest approach in sharing the good and bad side of this crazy business. Lately I've had lots of good news, in fact, I haven't even shared some of it. Such as I got into Kentuck, a show I really wanted. Plus I am wait listed for Plaza, which was one of my best shows last year. And I was invited to be one of 4 artists to show abstracts in an upcoming gallery show. Not to mention a couple other thrilling things I will hold up my sleeve for the moment. So, I have lots going on in addition to my active Art Fair schedule.

But today was a pretty crappy day. I was very bummed out about this white on white painting; I don't know why it hit me so hard. It's been a long time since I cried over a rejection, and I felt like a big baby, but this was the day. Probably because I am a member of Art Saint Louis and really care about their shows so much. Also because I felt my work was so on point with the topic. The piece was hard for me and I put everything into it. Not that I don't normally do that, but I felt more emotionally invested than usual.

I guess I mainly feel so stupid. Like why do I keep entering these darn shows over and over only to face rejection. Yeah, just kick me again.

I always think I have a fresh chance since it is different jurors every time, for different topics; typically I paint something special like I did this time. But it's been so long since I have gotten into a show. It's embarrassing to me and this was a tough blog to write. I would love for it all to be happy happy but it's not. And despite telling myself this was just one (or two) person's opinion(s); that I am successfully supporting myself with my art; that I have experienced regular recurring success on multiple levels this year.......despite all that stuff....it still sucks big time.

Delicious

We had a perfect weekend with the kids. They are so much fun, even when Ian plays the pouty boy at Claire & Kenny's famous salmon party.
Later in the evening they got rambunctious and knocked me off my shoes (those are my faboo Kork-Ease; they make me 5'3").

What a time to cherish and a lovely prelude to my birthday week. Here are some snippets:

Morning cuddle time; it was insanely early but somehow I didn't mind when we were curled up in bed watching Peter Pan.

Dinosaurs and dolphin cupcakes, oh my. Not even too many sprinkles on the floor, yet another miracle.

"Why Yia Yia?, " Ian says. Again. And again. And again. Thank goodness, this too shall pass.

Studio time with Aidan. I gave him a small sketchbook and a mechanical pencil (his first). His drawings have always been good but I love the detail he works when using a pencil. Our discussions about art are so pure.

Songs and stories before bedtime, all four of us sprawled across the bed.

Wading in the creek, looking for fish and frogs and turtles. Boys and their never ending love for rock throwing - Ian heaving a rock nearly the size of his head.

And yes, I did attend a "foodie" part with a hot dog in my purse.

And then finally.....whew.....the quiet after we got them into bed. John and I, thankful for the opportunity to be part of the boy's lives; marvelling over the energy of their parents; and rejoicing for the magic of our grandchildren.

Stars all around

"Papa, you get a star for no pee in your pull up."

I had to stifle a laugh as 3 year old Ian, with a solemn voice, explained the compensation program to his grandfather.

These kids are a hoot. And they are all ours for the next 3 days as Mom & Dad play in Vegas, which they soooooo deserve. We don't have any big plans as they are easy to entertain. The creek ranks high up there, 1st in popularity and lucky for us since it's nearly right behind our house. Thankfully we have had some rain so there might even be a fair amount of water. Ian also told us he wants a root beer float and Aidan just wants to color. They are both going to daycare tomorrow so John and I can finish up our work week.

Then it's all play all the time. Woo hoo! Nothing like time with children to remind you what's *really* important.

The Stories we Weave

(click to enlarge)

This is the painting I finished over the weekend. It is 24x24, on canvas. It was created to enter an upcoming show at Art Saint Louis, White Washed - Shades of White.

Here is what is says on the prospectus: For “White Washed—Shades of White,” Art Saint Louis seeks artworks that explore our culture’s fascination with concealing physical, psychological, social and/or emotional flaws in an age of pseudo-perfectionism; works that demonstrate cover-ups, variations or degrees of white.

I would complain about the convoluted description except I am on the Program Committee and was involved in selection of the topic. I must have zoned out during the discussion, imagine that, ha!

At any rate, here is my piece. It was quite a challenge to paint and create interest with the palette as I have never done this before. There were times when I didn't think it was working. There were also times when I wanted my friend Nancy (who often works in this palette) to simply finish it for me. But the size wigged her out as she's a small format kind of gal.

Anyway, in the final analysis, it was invigorating and y'all know how I love a challenge. I am pretty happy with how it turned out, especially all the embedded meaning, symbolism, etc. that is probably not going to be apparent even from the enlarged view. News stories mainly - Iraq, Scooter Libby, Paris Hilton and others. You can interpret for yourself. And let me know what you think of my first venture into the world of white....

Keep your fingers crossed that it gets picked.

Holy Moses

What an amazing thing to have a free weekend. After three shows in a row, John and I literally collapsed this weekend. We didn't really do anything thrilling. Unless you consider going through all our old magazines or catching up on Netflix and Tivo exciting. Cases in point:


PBS - Simon Schama's Power of Art

This is a series of 8 shows about masterpieces that changed the way the world looks at art. We watched the first one, on Picasso and Guernica. It was a powerful account of Picasso's life and his state of mind at the time he painted this impactful piece. This Simon Schama is kind of a drama queen at times, but I was trying not to hold that against him and just enjoy the history lesson. Next up is Van Gogh and Wheatfield with Crows. There is still time to catch the rest of the series, so set your Tivo now. Definitely worthwhile.


Inside the Actor's Studio - Elton John

Wowza, a 2 hour interview, an old one, from 2005, but we had never seen it. Elton was way more down to earth that I would have guessed. I especially loved his talk about fear and creativity. He was talking about working on Lion King and Aida, about how he had some fear around working so far out of his box. And how he strongly believes any artist needs to push them self through fear because to take risks is to grow as a creative. I love that concept. Feel the fear and do it anyway.

Pan's Labyrinth

Well....I had heard a lot about this movie, how stunning it was from an artistic standpoint. And it was certainly well done. But just so violent and filled with evil I guess I had a hard time with that. Thank goodness we didn't see it in the theater.

And lest you think we just watched TV all weekend, we also slept in, took a walk, cooked some food, read books, cleaned out magazines and (drum roll please) talked about vacation plans. That would be a real vacation like where we take a trip that doesn't involve any one's family or business interests. Hmmmm, what a concept. We are still formulating plans, but Santa Fe and the surrounding area is our top choice at the moment.

And I even painted and finished a new work. Stay tuned for photos.

Works on paper

I'm getting ready to paint some abstracts and doing small studies as I play with new palette combinations. The texture is tissue paper that I hand dyed and painted. I am totally into green/blue/yellow at the moment. Can you tell?
I made these pieces before Chesterfield last week. The only work I got done really and several of them already sold. Which is a good thing since none of my Common Denominator works sold. First time that has happened. It could have been the fact it was so hot no one could summon up the energy to reach for their wallet. But on the upside - not selling means I don't have to kill myself trying to replenish inventory.
I am officially "off" now for a few weeks as my next show is Krasl on July 14 +15. Anybody in that part of Michigan? Hopefully it will be delightful summer weather meaning I won't be sweating so much it looks like I peed my pants.

Small packages

I am short. OK. There. I said it.

Really short, probably no more than 5 foot tall although I boldly claim 5'1" on applications and such. I've been told I seem taller, most likely due to my mouth. But I try to carry myself large and during my whole life I have rarely felt short.

In fact, I like being short. There are lots of advantages. When I go to the City Museum with the grand kids, I can crawl through even the smallest cave sections with them. If I cannot reach something in our kitchen, I can jump up on the counter and simply get it down. This is such a normal occurrence for me that I have startled guests by my behavior and my brother even bought me a step stool after he found me standing on my kitchen counter one day.

Yesterday I was unpacking all the art since we don't have another show for nearly a month (woo hoo!!!). I decided to hang some different paintings around the house and create a gallery in the hallway off our foyer. I held the painting so the center of it was even with the top of my head. John eyeballed it to verify (this must have been a real struggle for Mr. Measure), glanced behind to mark where to put the nail and voila, we were done in a flash.

Clearly the best benefit of being 5' tall - the ease at which I can hang artwork 60" on center.

Art in the Park

Today and tomorrow. Come on out to Faust Park, on Olive Rd. in Chesterfield. There are a variety of events, music, food, drink and..........A-R-T! Great fun for all ages.
Here is the schedule of events. I'll be there the whole time.

June 15-16, 2007
Friday Evening - 6 to 10 pm
Saturday - 10 am to 9 pm

Friday, June 15, 2007
6 pm Festival Opens, Artist Village Opens
6 pm Artist Demonstrations Begin: Sandy Schulz, ceramics & Jerome Grimmer, painting
6 to 8 pm Caricature Artist
6:30 pm Ronald Radford Flamenco Guitarist
6:45 pm Artist Demonstration: D.C. Smith, wire sculpting (Artist Village)
7 pm Best in Show artist awarded (Main Stage)
7:15 pm Artist Demonstration: Maggie Ahern, jewelry-making (Artist Village)
8 pm Hudson and the Hoo Doo Cats (Main Stage)

Saturday, June 16, 2007
10 am Festival Opens, Artist Village Opens, Children’s Create-It Station Opens
10 am Artist Demonstrations Begin: Sandy Schulz, ceramics & Jerome Grimmer, painting
10 am to 2 pm Live Music and Crazy Competitions with The Smash Band (Main Stage)
12 to 4 pm Meet Champ, Champion of the Arts! (Create-It Station)
10:30 am Artist Demonstration: D.C. Smith, wire sculpting (Artist Village)
11 am Plein Air Painting demonstrations begin (Historic Village)
11 am Artist Demonstration: Maggie Ahern, jewelry-making (Artist Village)
2:30 pm Storytelling Through the Ages with COCA
3 pm Artist Demonstration: D.C. Smith, wire sculpting (Artist Village)
4 pm Pop/Rock Music with The Squares (Main Stage)
5 pm Winners of the 2nd Annual LEGO Design Competition announced
5:30 pm Dance Inc. performs (Main Stage)
6 pm Artist Demonstration: D.C. Smith, wire sculpting (Artist Village)
7 pm Artist Demonstration: Maggie Ahern, jewelry-making (Artist Village)
7 pm Motown/R&B with The All-Star Band

Chesterfield Arts Members
Don't miss the VIP Tent - special seating, refreshments and more!
Sponsored by Hochshild, Bloom & Co.
Not a member? Join at the festival!
See the entrance to the VIP booth for details.

Kids, get your LEGO designs ready!
The 2nd Annual LEGO Design Competition will take place at Art in the Park. For more information, call 636-519-1955.

I mailed the commission on Monday and the client received it today. I would love to show you a picture but ding dong forgot to take one. Yes, that would be me. Duh. I was so worried about getting it to my shipper on time I completely spaced. The client has promised to send me a jpg. She is pleased and was quite emotional (in a good way) when she called. It really made my week.

I've been trying to take it easy. I felt half sickly on Monday, almost like I was coming down with something. I slammed a bunch of vitamin C and took a nap. Tuesday I felt better and got the laundry done, organized some things around the house, did a boatload of paperwork and cleaned up part of the studio. Stupidly, I drank coffee late in the day and was still buzzing at midnite. I just could not settle down and slept poorly.

I have been cooking this week. Finally. My darling hubby bears the brunt of my insane schedule - he not only handles his own job during the day, but helps me on the weekends and also cooks for us. Since I pretty much work day and night, I think he realizes his best shot at actually getting a meal is to cook it himself. How sad is that? So now that my schedule has eased, I am running errands and cooking. It feels good to be taking care of him for a change. I love it that we can trade roles with such ease. We are lucky that way.

Recipe

How to make a tired artist:
Take two shows back to back. Add one large commission. Throw in a dash of paperwork (entries) and tear down of another show. Simmer with familial and social obligations. Stir with 3rd show 5 days from now.

Seriously, all is good here. I finished the commission in time for the Father's Day mailing deadline. It is great if I do say so myself. When the light is better I will snap a picture.

The show was fine. Not fabulous as past years at CWE, just fine. I did talk to lots of people about commissions, so there could be additional sales down the road. We had a brief period of rain today but luckily got the tent dried out before we had to pack up.

I was invited to participate in an upscale holiday boutique here in the St. Louis area. I'll furnish more specific details later, but I was thrilled for the opportunity.

And.......drum roll please......I am officially accepted into the St. Louis Art Fair. Woo hoo, how cool is that!! Apparently someone cancelled, so I am IN! Which is way cool as now I know well in advance rather than having to wait until the last minute. Very very nice indeed.

I am often asked whether I use transfers in my art. And my answer is the same.....ummm, no, I don't. Not that I don't want to, but I can never get them to work right. And after investing so much time in a painting, I sure hate to screw it up with a failed transfer. Yeah, I know, there are no failures, just opportunities, but the whole transfer thing frustrates me.

So imagine my surprise when I accidentally transferred something!! Yep, classic MB technique. Trying to do something else and I get a transfer. Good grief.

It started with a Martha Stewart product I bought at Michael's, looks like tissue (my obsession continues) so I had to get some. It is a small tube with a variety of pastel colors in diminutive prints, very cute; intended for a food gift, to line the box (remember, we are talking Martha Stewart here). Anyway, I didn't care what it was intended for, I just liked the look and figured I could use it in collage.

I was working on a piece and slathered some gel medium down on my canvas. I put the tissue on top and it immediately wrinkled, almost like it was a light weight vellum or something. Ugh, I didn't care for how it looked, so I hurriedly pulled it up and voila, that is when I realized the design had transferred.

Wow, what a thrill. It even worked when I tried a second time on purpose. Of course I have no idea how stable the color will be. It does look pretty cool though.

A new week

I am a delinquent blogger lately. It is so bad that I couldn't remember my logon information, yikes, how pitiful is that.

We just got back from my worst show ever. In Cincinnati, my home town. Where no one apparently likes my art bwah ha ha ha ha. Just joking. There were perhaps 2 or 3 people who did. John, my mom, my dad. Maybe a couple others.

But seriously folks, just goes to show you, I come off that fantastic Belleville show into this. The artfair Gods giveth and the artfair Gods taketh away. Consequently, I take nothing for granted. Not one single thing. Zip Nil Nada. This is one crazy ass business.

My husband and my Mom couldn't believe how well I handled the lack of sales and both said they were proud of me for motoring through. I did take a NAP during the show (a first for me), behind the booth although I guess I could have done it in the booth, with my head right on my desk, it was that slow. Honestly though, what's the point of getting grumpy, upset, angry? I mean that's certainly not going to inspire sales now is it? And I can't stand using my energy that way.

So, onward and upward. Central West End is this weekend. I will have lots and lots of new fun pieces, originals and repros. If you live around the St. Louis area, come on out!

Why, you might ask, am I up this late?
Well, I just finished working for the day, that being Monday because I'm still on Monday in my head. I got up at 5:15 am to go to Gypsy Caravan, the gargantuan annual flea market organized by the St. Louis Symphony. It was fun and rewarding, I found some cool stuff.

Ran errands for awhile, figured out more display options on the repros; printed the remainder of the repros; finished the big proposal I have been working on and also wrote phrases and finished all the 6x6's. Took a break to spend some time with John, had dinner, watch a bit of TV then went downstairs around 8:30. I am still not really tired but I know I need sleep so that is next on the agenda. I have gotten a lot done, but there is still so much to do. It is just endless. I am nearly to the stage where I need an assistant or maybe just somebody to help me out every so often.

We are supposed to be leaving Wed. am but that seems unlikely based on my present situation. I still have work for the show, not to mention the commission I need to lay out and do the background. All the paper work is done, thank goodness.

In the midst of today's madness I was overcome by this inexplicable need (?) to make a pair of earrings. Geez....starting on the second pair, I finally realized I needed to slap myself. Not that it does any good.

And ugh, I just glanced in the mirror - there is gel medium in my hair.

Yes Virginia, it's true

The Princess set up her own tent last week. First time ever. This has always been "John's part." And he prefers that I stay out of his way.

But I wanted to at least know how to do it myself. I have considered going to a show or two with a friend which means I would need to know what I was doing. Plus it's just plain embarrassing that I've been doing this for several years now and don't even know how to put up my own tent.

So yep, I did it. John showed me how or better said, he facilitated in me figuring it out for myself. Which was a brilliant way to teach since I am so visual (thanks sweetie, U da man!).

And here is the result, a different approach than before, including an extra wall to allow for merchandising of my new repros. Which sold like hotcakes I might add.

I feel like such a doofus when I can't recognize the word verification letters on a blog. Like I just made a comment on someone's blog (OK, it was Heidi) and I entered letters and they were wrong. Twice.
I swear they looked Cyrillic.
Or maybe I just need more coffee.

Art on the Square

Well, the Belleville show met all the hype. Truly, I was a little hesitant. I rely on the Art Fair Sourcebook and the word of other artists regarding shows. The Sourcebook is so high on Belleville that it almost seems suspect. But then I know a couple artists who've done the show and sold hardly anything. So, I wasn't quite sure what to think.

But wowza! What a wonderful show. We were at the champagne artist awards breakfast on Sunday and someone said it's like a show with room service. That is such an apt description. The volunteer workers simply pamper the artists.

This started with lunch and dinner delivery the first day, not just for me, but also my devoted roadie, John. The pampering continued for the duration of the show; cold bottled water all day long; yummy pastries; fresh orange wedges; and various other snacks (healthy and not so healthy, we got to pick). The most amazing thing is this was all delivered right to our booths by the most gracious volunteer staff I have ever met.

Add to this super easy set up and load out procedures. Combine with perfect weather.

What more could you ask for?

Oh, you want sales? I can't speak for everybody, but the buying energy sure felt good to me. I had a very good show. Which means I am quite busy right now, getting ready for Summerfair. That is OK by me.

Other shows could take a lesson from Belleville. It was first class all the way.

Blast to the past

Deb and Patti have both tagged me so I suppose I can no longer avoid this.....7 things that people don't know about me......how about some childhood stories?

1. I was a Junior Olympic archery winner when I was a kid. Yep, it's true. The chunky little girl with coke bottle glasses, the one who couldn't do anything athletic to save her soul. The one for whom the "mandatory 2 innings of play" rule (in softball) was surely invented.
My dad set us up with this, cannot imagine where he got the idea, but he took me and my brother to this archery place every Saturday morning. We had to get up really early to drive there. Dad was serious about it too, even bought bales of hay for our basement and set up a small range - we had a ranch house so our basement was pretty long and we could practice down there. It absolutely defied logic that I was good at this, truly I was such a clumsy backwards child. But my hand/eye coordination is still good as evidenced by my "shooting" on my nephew's Nintendo Wii. I stunned (and scared!) my husband a couple weeks ago when we were in Memphis. Ha!
2. I learned to play the cello between my sophomore and junior years in high school. I had always wanted to play a string instrument ever since the 4th grade when we were tested for musical aptitude. I apparently flunked the test and the school administrators told my parents it wasn't worth their money to provide any musical lessons for me. Can you imagine!?!? Lucky for me my parents didn't take kindly to hearing this and told me I could start with the piano since we already owned a really old one that had been given to us. So, in the first of my many defy the odds stubborn acts, I taught myself to play the piano using a key chart and a piano primer that I found in the bench. That led my parents to sign me up for private piano lessons. And then in high school the string instrument bug came back; I wanted to play the viola. I met with the orchestra director who told me he could really use another a cello player. I took a crash course with lessons all summer long so I was up to speed by the time the school year started. To this day cello music makes me swoon.
3. I raised a baby sparrow when I was 12. He fell out of the nest and was abandoned. I fed him by hand then released him to the yard when he was old enough, tried to train him to find food, etc. He eventually left our house but would visit and I could still get him to eat from my hand.
4. I had strange premonitions when I was young. One day I was walking home from the school bus and told my best friend I had a feeling something horrible had happened to someone in my family. When I got home my mother told me that my uncle (healthy, in his 30's) had a heart attack and died. I also have this really weird ability to find lost items. When I was in my teens I made a little leather bracelet for myself, just a strap of leather with one painted bead on it. I wore it to a concert in a park near our home. There were thousands of people there. Naturally I lost it and was simply demolished because I loved that bracelet so much. The next morning I told my mom I was going to go find it. She laughed about it, said I could make another one, etc. Basically told me to knock myself out but doubted I would find it. I walked the approximately one mile route to the park in an attempt to retrace my steps and easily found the bracelet nestled in the grass.
5. In the 8th grade I had the art teacher from Hell, Miss Siemer. She was a young teacher and very mean. Clearly she preferred the boys in our classroom. I was accustomed to getting high grades in all my classes, but especially art. She was horrid to me, told me I was no good, had no talent and should simply abandon any ideas of any artistic future. I was in a vulnerable awkward state that year and unfortunately I believed her. It destroyed my artistic notions for years and years and sent me in the direction of writing and music. But.....my last effort in her class was a pop art piece, a huge replica of a Kool-aid packet. My parents still have it, hung in their rec room basement along with some of my other early artistic endeavors such a painted plaque next to their pool table with some pithy "rules for play" and this fun "rubbing" piece I made in black and white. I love that Kool-aid packet and am so happy my Mom is a pack rat and keeps all this stuff.
6. Hunting for morel mushrooms was a family activity we did every year on Mother's day. My Grandpa Schaich had a secret spot, out in Indiana near a Dairy Queen because we got ice cream afterwards. Grandpa would walk with slow deliberate steps and would, without fail, find the first mushroom. He would leave it in it's place and call us all around so we could see what to look for. Once we saw that, it was easier to spot them and we would find lots of these decadent delicacies.
7. I hate raw onions. I mean I really hate raw onions. Like I will gag if one gets in my mouth. This stems from a Home Eck incident in high school. One where we were supposed to make potato soup yet we were not given enough time. It was a partner project and I cannot recall what went wrong. All I know for sure is the soup was not even remotely cooked and had way too many onions in it. Out teacher forced us to eat our own soup and I thought I was going to be sick there were so many raw onions in it.

Ok, that's it for me, probably more than anyone wanted to know, ha, ha.

I have finally finished my new reproductions, gorgeous (if I do say so myself, tee, hee, hee). They are signed giclees, 8x8 images matted to 14x14. Here are 2 of them; "Wear it like you mean it" (posted below) and "Don't fence me in" are the others. All girly themes - my mantras, my rules for life, the do's and don'ts that all live in my head. The pics are me because, well, you know - it's all about me. Ha, except when it's all about you of course.

$35 each or 2 for $60

Priority shipping $5, US only please

Email me mbshaw@mbshaw.com for details, I can take MC/Visa/Discover, check or Paypal cash.