Star Spangled Art Show

I was presented this beautiful engraved wood plaque last Saturday afternoon at the Reception fo the Star Spangled Art Show at Carrollwood Cultural Center. I was so blown away I could only babble into the microphone. I had to finally stop and leave the stage. It was a very difficult show to manage, but I did not think it was such a trial that I deserved such an accolade. Many others had a share of this plaque and I hope I have thanked all of them. Without that help the show would not have been the success it was.

Before the show ends on Monday, June 4th I made this composite photo showing our Theater Gallery with the addition of the lovely logo Stuart Dwork gave for us to use for this show. This is the view from our stage where I was standing when I could not pull myself together when Mary Donovan and Cathy Williams handed me this amazing gift.

Have You Ever Tried to Get Your Cat to Pose?

This is MY Game and YOU are my PAWN

Oil             20 x 20             $650

The title of this painting popped into my head one day, as I was probably doing my cat's bidding, or fetching something for her. The next day I went out to search for a chess set and came up with this pretty glass one for about $5 at the local dollar store...only problem was the queen and king were missing. I probably should have taken it back, but you know about OCD people like me. Telling her just how to pose for this painting was a little tricky but she was good about it! Miss Puss is a very smart cat, sometimes...like all cats she has a variable IQ. This painting was done for the Carrollwood Cultural Center's Annual Black & White show next week...June 8th will be the reception.

Genesis: Spaghetti Squash

Genesis: Spaghetti Squash     Egg Tempera    6 x 8      $450

All the other Genesis Series paintings show fruits and vegetables in their raw condition, but Spaghetti Squash doesn't turn into "spaghetti" until it is cooked, so I had to cook it before painting this one. By the way...this vegetable doesn't taste at all like spaghetti. This reminds me of the childhood days when all weird food was compared to the taste of chicken. Parents were so dumb!

Virtual Frame

Well, what do you think? I have tried many styles and colors of frames but this one on www.pictureframes.com really was the only one that looked good. I haven't bought it yet. I can upload a photo to their website and try out most of their frames in their virtual frame shop. Pretty neat!

I think this is the one I'll go with. Black killed it, silver was worse, woods in all the brown flavors looked terrible. Really, this was the only one that worked, at least for me....and it was the last one I tried, thinking that a green frame would be worse than all the others, combined. Go figure.

Orchid Shadows

Orchid Shadows        Oil on Canvas       20 x 20   

It is finished. After my last post about this painting as a work in progress, I fussed and fiddled with it for many more hours. I wanted to insert more drama, more interest, and I especially wanted to work on the edges, losing and finding them as necessary. I have never paid much attention to that until recently, and realized that it could make or break a painting, so I paid extra attention in many places, and I think it helped, somehow.

It must now be framed and I am at a loss to know what to do to it. I have tried some various frames online and nothing hit me, so I'm now trying to figure out what will work best. Gold kills it, and black is not good either. I didn't try silver, so that might work. I'd love to see this with a liner, but I can't imagine how that will come together either, and white would not work, and natural linen kind of leaves me cold. Of course if I gave up and took it too a pro framer I'd save myself much trouble, but in the end it is always about money. This is a gallery wrapped canvas, but I'm of the opinion that my work looks best framed, except those very wide edge canvases with the painting wrapped around...that looks OK, but for the most part my work looks sickly without a proper frame.

A Pastel

Chincoteague  9 x12 on Art Spectrum Paper (unframed) $70

I have not done a pastel for a long time, having been so enamoured with Egg Tempera. I did this in my Sampling the Media Class which had only two students, and down to one on the last night....plenty of time to fool around with my own stuff. 



A Work in Progress

This is not a finished painting. I like it so much I just had to post it to my blog. I wonder why I like it so much....perhaps the color combination is satisfying to me, or perhaps it is the subject....two lovely orchids that were given to me by special people. I don't know, but it is strange how this particular painting is developing. It seems to flow and come together effortlessly. I wish all my paintings were like that! I have not named it yet, so if you have any suggestions about names please make a comment, or email me. Perhaps something like "Chiffon and Orchids"....that seems very ordinary. Anyway, something will come to mind, and if not it can always go as "Opus 1".

Dragon Fruit

Egg Tempera       6 x 8 gesso panel        $450

This is a Dragon Fruit....magenta skin and all. It is about the size of a lemon and tastes sweet and somewhat like a watermelon...kind of. Smitten, I am.

Sweet Treats Series

Only a truly obsessed artist would spend months painting stuff she can't eat! Diabetic problems forbid the candy, muffins and cake presented here, although I did sneak some of it!

CAKEFEST

CANDYFEST

MUFFINFEST

These three paintings are 16 x 20 each. The series price is $1400 for all three.

Icy Pond Series

These two little 8 x 10 acrylic paintings were done for the upcoming "Winter Wonderful" show at Carrollwood Cultural Center this December.

Icy Pond, Mystic, CT

Icy Pond, Woodstock, CT

Not One. Not Two

Oak Tree       Metalpoint Drawing        Private Collection

I had an email request to use my Oak Tree Drawing in a Blog that had such a lovely message about the "edges of God" and the tiny grey spaces and delicate lines and marks in which we live. I was honored to have this nice sentiment illustrated by my drawing. To read the whole blog post go to this link http://stillinthestorm.wordpress.com/

Corn Wins

Genesis: Corn won an honorable mention at the Florida State Convention Art Show of the National League of American Pen Women. I was very pleased as the competition was very stiff!

Rambutan

Rambutan      Egg Tempera on Gesso Panel     
6 x 8        $450

Fresh Rambutans are much redder than the one I found at my local Publix Market. They are native to Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and other parts of Asia and they are being grown in areas of South America. Their name comes from the word "hairy" in Indonesian. The white fleshy fruit is sweet, although only a small morsel of it is in each fruit as they are quite small, perhaps slightly bigger than golf-ball size before the hairs. They are used in jams, jellies, and eaten fresh or in deserts.

Best In Show

My Egg Tempera "Genesis: Pear" was awarded Best in Show in the North Tampa Arts League Member Show called "Debut" at Carrollwood Cultural Center. I was so blown away by this award, and my thanks goes to Robert Hellier of the Tampa Art Museum who judged the show. This is my second Best In Show for one of my Genesis paintings!

Inspiration

Inspiration    Oil on Linen    48 x 30

This painting will be shown for the month of September at Carrollwood Cultural Center, along with 8 other paintings in the "Feeling Series". For more information on this painting click here.