Karen Budan Fine Art Blog

A Change in My Blog

2011-03-14T07:37:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago I moved my websdite to a new hosting site, Fine Art Studios Online. The service includes a blog, but I continued to use my Blogger account for my blog and linked it over. I have decided to begin using the blog that comes with my website. This will require you to go to the new blog location at www.karenbudanfineart.com/blog and once again sign up for an RSS feed to continue receiving new posts in your e-mail. I apologize for any inconvenience.....but this will give you access to other sections of my website quickly if questions arise from reading my blog entries. I posted my latest entry this morning about my weekend at the Scottsdale Arts Festival. Please check it out!

Happy Days!

2011-03-05T18:48:00.000-08:00

I have been very frustrated in the last few weeks that my schedule has kept me from focused time at the easel. All the activities I have been consumed with have been great experiences that I very much wanted to engage in.....but I have missed painting. I participated in an art festival in very cold and rainy weather....but I still enjoyed talking about my art with the hearty souls that braved the elements. I also coordinated a week long workshop for the Arizona Pastel Artists Association with Richard McKinley. I have worked with Richard for a few years now but each workshop is a great learning experience. This one was no exception. I have also been preparing for a workshop I am teaching this next week. All of this will be culminated with two art festivals the next two weekends. All of it great......but it is not the same as being able to spend time at the easel.....and I can't wait to get back to my painting. So in the midst of all this hectic activity I received a letter in the mail today that put a big smile back on my face! My piece, "Radishes" was juried into the Pastel Society of the West Coast's Pastels USA International Pastel Show. I am thrilled as I am working towards signature status in this very prestigious pastel society. One becomes signature by being juried into three Pastels USA shows. I now have two of the three as this is the second year in a row that I have been juried into the show. With this great news I can relax and enjoy the next few weeks of non-easel based activities. Life is good!!

Arizona Pastel Artists Association Spring Juried Show

2011-02-12T06:09:00.000-08:00

I just received notification that all three of my entries for the spring juried show in Sedona were accepted! I am tickled as Richard McKinley is our judge and I deeply respect his opinion. This was a hotly contested show as we had more entries than for any show in the past. I was just hoping to get one painting in.....so the notification was definitely a nice surprise! The three pieces juried in were "Pear Study", "Red Roses", and "The Line Up". The show will be judged for awards while Richard is here for our workshop at the end of the month....but we will not know the results until the actual show the last two weeks of April. Talk about building anticipation!!!

Radishes

2011-02-06T12:59:00.000-08:00

"Radishes" is the latest artwork to leave the Budan easel. I planned to leave fruits and vegetables for awhile.....but I had this piece in my mind and decided to bring it to life before moving on! This is the first painting of vegetables that I included any of the grocery store labeling....but I thought it added a little interest to this composition. This is an 18 x 24 piece....and required the use of a lot of red pastel!! Good thing I had just gotten all my new Ludwig pastels won in the Pastel Society of New Mexico national show. Now I am headed back to my new series called "Fun and Games". "Marbles I" was the first in this new series....but there is more to come! Enjoy "Radishes"!

Festival of Fine Art

2011-01-27T19:41:00.000-08:00

My first art festival of 2011 is just around the corner. I am participating in the Sonoran Art League's Festival of Fine Art the weekend of Feb. 18th through the 20th. Stagecoach Village in Cave Creek is a great location for an art festival and I have my fingers crossed for good weather! If you are in the area please plan to come and enjoy the festival. I will have some of my newer paintings with me that I would love to have you see. As you can see, my painting "Artichokes", was one of the pieces chosen for use in the advertising for the festival.....always a compliment! I hope to see you there!

Marbles 1

2011-01-21T07:22:00.000-08:00

I have always been fascinated by some of the pieces people have done with marbles.....so I decided I wanted to do one. I loved the colors of the marbles themselves and even more I loved the reflections in this setup. It is a small piece....6" x 6". I created it with an upcoming miniature show at a gallery in Scottsdale in mind to possibly enter. It came out to my expectations so I think I will enter it and see what happens!

Chile Peppers

2011-01-13T12:15:00.000-08:00

Chile Peppers is the second painting that I started during the Hidden In The Hills Open Studio Tour and Sale. I had fun with the reflections on this piece. For me the paintings come alive when you start adding the highlights and the lights in general. This is a 12 x 16 painting that I wish I had done in a larger format. Maybe I will still do that at some point. Enjoy!

Exciting Night!!

2011-01-09T08:17:00.000-08:00

In a previous post I had mentioned that I had both of my entries successfully juried into the Scottsdale Artist's School Best and Brightest Show. I had applied for the last two years and did not get in. At that time I was doing landscapes. Since then I have switched to still life which turned out to be my genre! Last night was the opening reception. Bob and I arrived to a crowded reception to find that my piece, "Market Colors" won an Honorable Mention! To top it off.....both of my pieces had red dots on their labels meaning they were both SOLD! They sold during the VIP preview for the reception. "Market Colors" was purchased by one of the Scottsdale Artist's School Board of Directors.

Definitely an exciting night!!!!

Final painting of 2010

2011-01-06T16:07:00.000-08:00

I know this is January.....but I did not have time to do a posting prior to leaving for our Hawaii trip over the holidays. I was running around getting last minute things done.....one of which is getting this piece to the framers to take advantage of their sale pricing on framing. This is my final completed painting for 2010. I have another piece that is close to completion but will be finished in 2011. Both the pieces were paintings I worked on as a demo of pastel painting during the Hidden in the Hills open studio tour and sale. It is fairly easy to do the initial layers of a painting with constant interruptions, but when I get to the point of final layers and bringing the painting together I need to focus. As a result I planned on starting a piece each of the two weekends. This piece is titled "Apple Slice". I had a lot of fun painting the cut portions of the red apple.....it was easier than I thought. The slight browning effect was actually achieved with a yellow green color! I was pleased with the results.

This piece and the next piece of chile peppers, which I plan to finish in the next few days, may be the closeout of my "fruit and vegetable" period....although I can't say fruits and vegetables may not be a component in future paintings. I have a hankering to paint some still life pieces that are southwest themed. I have a few ideas floating around in my head that I am excited about. Stay tuned to see where it goes.

Sonoran Arts League Small Works Show & Sale

2010-12-02T06:28:00.001-08:00

Each December the Sonoran Arts League holds a juried small works show in their office/gallery. Again this year I had a piece juried into the show. I don't usually paint that small as the maximum size for an entry was 35 sq.inches which is basically a 5" x 7" piece. However, as shared in a previous blog I painting a color study of a single pear with this show in mind. The show includes over 200 entries in a variety of mediums. If you live in the area and have a chance....stop by the show. You may find the perfect gift for several people on your gift list. There is no better gift than original art!!

Hidden in the Hills Reflections

2010-12-02T06:00:00.000-08:00

Well, my second Hidden in the Hills Open Studio Tour is now under my belt. After a day of breakdown and couple of days of rest I can look back and reflect on this year's event.
First and foremost is how happy I was to be in an indoor setting this year! I had a great time at the studio I was at last year....but I was outdoors on a back patio. I took my art down each night and worried about wind and rain each day. I lucked out last year in that I only had rain at the very end of two of the days while I was removing my art. This year the Sunday of the first weekend was on and off rain all day. There were a couple of good downpours and even a little wind. The Sunday of the second weekend was very cold and windy....yes, even in Arizona we get some cold fronts that come through. I was very glad I wore tights under my jeans and brought my gloves! Both weekends I would have been desperately protecting my art if I was still in an outside setting! Thank you Toni for inviting me to be a part of your studio with an indoor setting!!
My second reflection is one that is very gratifying to me as a pastel artist. With only a couple of exceptions, my visitors were all familiar with pastel as a medium. This is a big change from past years where I spent a lot of time explaining what pastels are and how they are used. I even had people coming into my booth and saying "Oh, I love pastels!". Definitely gratifying! It follows the resurgence of the popularity of pastels both nationally and internationally that is occurring.
A third reflection is how much I enjoy talking with people about my art. Although festivals and open studios are a lot of work, the opportunity to talk with people about my art makes it all well worthwhile.
A final reflection is how much I learn spending long periods of time with fellow artists in an art setting. We share strategies and resources for making art and marketing our art. I learned last year with the folks I was with and again this year. Fellow artists are so generous with their knowledge and experience....it is truly a great group of people to be a part of!
Well, I am already thinking about modifications of my presentation for next year and how I will use what I learned for my next art festival which is the Sonoran Arts League Fine Art Festival at Stagecoach Village in Cave Creek in February. I am hoping for great weather and lots of folks to share my art with!

Hidden in the Hills Open Studio Tour 2010

2010-11-22T06:59:00.000-08:00

The first of the two weekends of this year's Hidden in the Hills is in the books. I am so very happy in my new location. Last year I was at a studio where my location was on the back patio of the host artist. My host was wonderful and I had a great time with my fellow artists.....but I was outdoors. I took my art down each night and worried about the weather each day of the event. Two of the days we had rain at the end of the day as I was taking down my work and trying to get it into my car unscathed. When my friend, Toni, called to invite me to exhibit at her home/studio with an indoor location this year I couldn't say no. I miss my former studio mates.....but I am so-o-o-o happy in my new location! I am once again working with a great group of artists (actually not sure I ever met an artist I didn't like :-)). However, the bonus is setting up my booth and being able to leave it fully set up for the full two weekends of the event. At the end of each day we shut the garage door and my art is safe and sound from weather and any other risks! This was really brought home to me yesterday as it rained most of the day with some wind to factor in as well. I would have been in deep trouble on the patio in my former location. In my new location I was safe and dry.....albeit a little chilly as the storm front brought colder temperatures. Here is a picture of my booth. We had great traffic this weekend despite the weather on Sunday and I am looking forward to next weekend!

Scottsdale Artist's School Best and Brightest Show

2010-11-17T16:32:00.000-08:00

I received the exciting news today that both of my entries to the Scottsdale Artist's School Best and Brightest Show were juried into the show. The two pieces are "Market Colors" and "Ripe Strawberries". In addition to the show being on display at the School from January 8th through March 15th, it will also be on display at the ten-week Celebration of Fine Art in Scottsdale, Arizona. The artwork will be rotated on a regular basis from the School to Celebration and back. Definitely exciting news!

Breaking the Rule with "A Pair of Pears"

2010-11-14T15:04:00.000-08:00

My last two paintings, "A Pear of Reds" and "A Pair of Pears" break one of the basic rules of composition. The rule is that there should an odd numbers of objects in a composition. In the first painting, "A Pear of Reds", I flat out forgot this rule as I played with my setup of the pears I was so enthralled with to get one I liked. In fact I did not even realize it until I was in the middle of this second painting, "A Pair of Pears". Oops!!! At least I caught my own mistake (I comforted myself with this thought). Then I decided I liked the two paintings for the color and the warmth.....so I am not going to try to change them......I am going to consciously break the rule. That's what rules are for.....right??? I plan to have them as part of my display of paintings for sale at the upcoming Hidden in the Hills Open Studio Tour. I wonder what visitors will think of them. It is going to be fun to see what the comments are......I will let you know! Here is "A Pair of Pears".

A Pear of Reds

2010-11-13T16:04:00.001-08:00

I am continuing my current love affair with pears. I had fun with this title...."A Pear of Reds" for two pears that encompass a variety of shades of red. Pears are not my favorite fruit to eat....but they are definitely fun to paint. I love the warm and yet vibrant colors of the various pears and the nice round shapes. I have one more I am hoping to finish tomorrow.....and then it is time to move on to something different. Not sure yet what it will be....but right now warm reds, oranges and yellows are catching my eye (maybe the cooler temperatures are impacting my choices). Let's see......warm reds, oranges and yellows........hmmm.....that does not really narrow the field that much....I guess I will be as surprised as you!

Pear I and Pear II

2010-11-03T17:28:00.000-07:00

I did something a little different with my latest painting....I mean, paintings. I wanted to create a painting to possibly enter (if it came out good) in the Sonoran Arts League Small Works show. Paintings for this show are limited to a maximum size of 35 sq. inches. I set up a still life using a pear with rich red and orange gold colors. Once I set it up and took some photos I decided I would really like to add it to my upcoming open studio tour. So I painted two paintings of the pear in two different sizes ( 7 x 5 and 12 x 9) at the same time. I did the two backgrounds at the same time and then moved to the pears. They came out pretty much the same except for the scalloped edges of the cloth they are setting on.....not sure how that happened....but I ran with it. What made it even more interesting was that I painted them on two different pastel papers. Pear II (the 7 x 5) is painted on UArt paper in 400 grit. Pear I (the 12 x 9) is painted on Wallis paper. I found myself becoming very aware of the difference in the two papers. The Wallis paper has a coarser texture with a touch of variety in the texture across the paper. The UArt was very consistent and felt finer even though it is the coarsest grit they offer. I found I leaned towards the UArt....although I certainly plan to continue using Wallis. Here are the two paintings on the easel, then Pear I (12 x 9) and last is Pear II (7 x 5)

Talk About Being Thrilled!!!!

2010-11-01T16:35:00.000-07:00

I received a phone call today notifying me that my piece, "Artichokes", won the 5th place award in the Pastel Society of New Mexico's National Show! The award for 5th place is a gift certificate from Terry Ludwig for $500 in pastels! I have truly died and gone to heaven!!!! Ludwig pastels are one of my very favorite pastels and I use them extensively. Life is good!

Limes

2010-10-31T11:56:00.000-07:00

I am continuing to work hard to get pieces ready for this year's Hidden in the Hills (HITH) Open Studio Tour which takes place the last two weekends of November. You may recall that I had entered three pieces in the Pastel Society of New Mexico National Show with the hopes of getting one piece in. I never dreamed all three would get in in! I was excited about that success......but also concerned about losing three of the best pieces from my inventory as opposed to one piece for the upcoming HITH. Aaawwwggghh! I have been painting every chance I get! I just finished "Limes" this morning. It is 24" x 18", a size which usually takes me a couple of weeks to complete. "Limes" was finished in one week! It helped that it did not include as much detail as my previous larger pieces. I am pleased with the results......but have to move on to the next painting! Enjoy!

Red Roses....at last!

2010-10-24T16:36:00.001-07:00

Red Roses was one of those tough ones. It is a larger piece at 24" x 18" which means it took more time simply because of the size. However, when I had completed the painting......the first time....I was not really happy with the results (image on the left). I was happy with the fruit in the bowl and the pitcher....but I felt the roses looked flat and the whole piece just didn't meet my expectations. I knew something was wrong....but wasn't sure what to do. So I called a good friend who is an excellent artist as well as a great teacher. I sent her the image and we brainstormed. Her first reaction was not one I wanted to hear since I had labored over it. She felt my shadow competed with the actual pitcher of roses. She suggested I think of presenting the shadow as on a wall much further back so it wasn't so "in your face". I didn't want to let the shadow go....but as I digested her comments I realized she was right. When I talked about the roses being flat we talked about adding more contrast to the roses themselves....but also the possibility of darkening the background.....hmmmmm.....hadn't thought of that! Maybe I could address both issues with a change of the background. Another thing she pointed out to me was that she was confused about the rose on the table.....but it was because she couldn't see the stem as it was in the shadow of the bowl. That would be an easy fix. I left the painting to work on another piece while I continued to think about how to address the background. I looked on the web for pieces by still life artists I admire to see how they did their backgrounds when there were reds in their setups. Finally, I was ready for the redo! I completely changed the background, spent a lot of time adding more contrast to the roses and ended up changing not only the stem of the rose on the table...but the cloth itself underwent a transition. A lot of work.....but now I am happy!!!

Art Challenge 2010

2010-10-20T12:41:00.001-07:00

I once again signed up for the Arizona Pastel Artists Association Art Challenge. Last year's experience was a career changer for me as shared in previous blogs. This year the objects for the challenge were two creamy white ceramic bird salt and pepper shakers. I had a lot of ideas for paintings around the objects....but decided to go with a little sense of humor. My son and daughter-in-law gave us a wonderful handmade wooden birdhouse a few years ago. It is beautifully decorated with greenery and pine cones. It was so cute we kept it indoors as decoration instead of putting it out for possible use by real birds. I decided it was the perfect house for my newly obtained salt and pepper shaker birds! I set the scene up and added a couple of rocks from the yard and some additional greenery. I changed the name on the mailbox from "The Birds" to "Mr. Pepper & Mrs. Salt Bird"........and that became the name for the piece as well. I can't wait to take it to the November APAA meeting to share and to see what the other participants chose to do with their set of salt and pepper shaker birds!!

APAA Artist of the Month

2010-10-09T15:38:00.000-07:00

Each month the Arizona Pastel Artists Association holds an Artist of the Month Competition at our monthly meeting. The winner of each month's competition is eligible to have their winning painting compete for the Artist of the Year honor at the end of the meeting year. At the October meeting I entered my most recent painting, "Ripe Strawberries". I was excited to have the painting bring me the Artist of the Month award. I am now eligible for the Artist of the Year competition.....as long as the painting does not sell in the meantime. Oh well....a good home for my painting is more important than an award.......right????

Taste of Cave Creek 2010

2010-10-02T16:13:00.001-07:00

Wednesday and Thursday of this last week I participated in the Taste of Cave Creek. The Taste of Cave Creek has been an expanding event over the last few years. This year the town decided to add an art exhibit and sale. They approached the Sonoran Arts League of which I am a member to provide the exhibit. I coordinated the exhibit as well as exhibited my own work. Considering it was the first year for the art exhibit, the event was a great success. The artists participating were hoping for sales of course, but realized that as it was a first time event getting additional exposure was the big goal. However, many of us sold artwork to our surprise. I sold my landscape piece, "Bulldog Cliffs" to a couple from Illinois who have a second home in the Cave Creek area. I also have a couple of follow-ups that may result in additional sales. This was the first event of the art season in the Valley of the Sun for most artists....and if this event is an indicator.....this year should be a much better year than the last couple for selling art. Above are a couple of pictures of my setup.

Ripe Strawberries

2010-09-19T13:10:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a 24 x 18 painting of a still life setup that is giving me problems. I conferred with a painting buddy who gave me some insights and made me think about the piece. I think I have decided what to do to fix it....but also decided I needed some time away from it to let my ideas "percolate" a little more. I set it on an easel at one end of my studio to look at every now and then. In the meantime I decided to paint a piece that I have had waiting in the wings. I decided to do this piece in a smaller format and ended up with a 9 x 12 size. The blue towel was fun to do but the strawberries took a little longer than I thought they would. I wanted them to be painted in warm, luscious colors. As a result I struggled with the highlights....what color to use for the highlights. I ended up using a light warm yellow and then an almost white warm yellow for the final highlights to get the look I was after. Enjoy "Ripe Strawberries"!

Excitement, Excitement!!!

2010-09-11T16:30:00.000-07:00

I just received notice that all three of my entries were accepted into the 19th Annual National Exhibition of the Pastel Society of New Mexico. The show will be hung from November 5th through the 28th at the Hispanic Arts Center at EXPO New Mexico in Albuquerque, NM. The selection judges were Patti Andre', Aaron Schuerr, and Sally Strand. The judge of awards will be Clive Tyler. The three pieces are: "Vine Tomatoes"; "Artichokes"; and "The Line Up".

Time to Think and Reflect

2010-09-04T10:36:00.000-07:00

This week my husband and I rented an oceanfront condo in Carlsbad, CA to celebrate our 36th anniversary. It has been a very relaxing and peaceful week overall. We spent some time in antique shops looking for still life objects and in general driving around checking out the area. A highlight for me has been my daily walks on the beach. It is definitely cooler here than in Scottsdale, AZ so even in the bright sunshine in the first half of the week the walks were quite pleasant with the breeze off the ocean. However, the second half of the week we have been pretty much socked in with marine layer (fog) all day or most of the day. This made for very interesting morning walks as I found I even needed a jacket. But.....a plus has been the fact that such an environment of few people, inability to see very far in any direction, and the sound of the ocean leads to introspection. I found myself doing a lot of thinking this week. I thought about how I came to painting after retirement totally enthused about plein air painting. I thrived on being outside with friends painting the landscape. I have worked with some of the top plein air pastel landscape artists in workshops. My inner soul thrived on being out with Mother Nature......but my frustration with my painting was a constant. Although I saw great improvement and I certainly learned a lot.....I never felt that I had met my potential for a painting. Interesting enough I had done some still life in classes....but saw them only as a stepping stone for better landscapes. I also was not driven to paint in the studio....only to be out with friends in the field. I was collecting a large number of unfinished paintings begun in the field and never finished. Then I signed up for the Art Challenge with the Arizona Pastel Artists Association. In previous blogs I talked about how you receive an object and must somehow incorporate it into a painting. My object was a glass goblet.......how do you incorporate a goblet into a landscape meaningfully??? I didn't......I set up a still life to simply fulfill the task......and this has changed the direction of my art totally. It came out so good I wanted to enter it into a show....so I did a second one for the challenge. I loved that one.....and it got into an International Association of Pastel Societies show. Suddenly I found myself planning my next painting as I was working on one. I found myself eager to get into the studio and paint. I think I have found my niche. I still love being outdoors....but I am not driven to paint it.....I am driven to paint setups that I create. I have total control over setting up a still that speaks to me and calls for me to paint it. I think part of it is the fact that I like to paint realistically and to a level of detail that creates problems in landscapes. I was constantly working to paint more "painterly". But I am a "type AAAAAAAAA" person (that is not a typo)....very organized and detail oriented. This is an asset in still life. I do not have to try to change what I am but apply my innate way of operating to the principles of a solid painting. Thus the comfort level and inner satisfaction. Yes....reflection and thinking is good....it helps you to see where you've been, where you are.....and provides goals for where you are going. I am going to miss the foggy walks on the beach as I head back to my beloved Scottsdale, my 2 little Italian Greyhounds (Emily and Jasmine), and my studio with a half done painting calling for me.

Artichokes

2010-08-14T10:53:00.000-07:00

My "art affair" continues with vegetables with my latest piece, "Artichokes". This is the second time I have had artichokes as my subject. The first time I did a small piece of a closeup of an artichoke and really had fun with color. This piece was more focused on the shapes of a pile of artichokes. This is a cropping of one of the photos I took in the local Safeway market. I really liked the composition that the cropping created. I had fun with the shadows as the light source was from above. This is another big piece at 24" x 18". After this piece and the asparagus piece I find I need to replenish some of my green pastels......oh no.....I have to go shopping at the art store!

International Mile High 2010 Show

2010-08-03T17:31:00.000-07:00

Today I received word that both of my entries to the Pastel Society of Colorado's international show were juried into the show! The two pieces are "Asparagus Bundles" and "Greens and Purples". I am very pleased as I highly respect the judge, Sally Strand. Sally was the 2007 inductee into the Pastel Society of America's Hall of Fame. I took a workshop from her about three years ago at the Scottsdale Artists School and found her to be a knowledgeable and professional teacher as well as an inspiring artist. Time to pour a glass of wine and celebrate!!

The Line Up

2010-07-31T16:27:00.000-07:00

With our vacation to visit several of the national parks in southern Utah under our belt, it was back to the easel this week. The vacation was wonderful.....such a beautiful area of the country.....it is easy to see why there are such a large number of national parks all clustered in the lower half of Utah. It was a real transition to come back to the easel as I went from the towering splendor of colorful mountains and canyons to a line up of 5 pears! However, the transition became easier with the vivid colors of the pears and my choice of color for the background.....mostly warm oranges, yellows, and reds. I wanted a warm wood color for the shelf so I ended up setting the still life up in my bedroom on a dresser. This added a little challenge as I did not want to paint in the bedroom and I was blocking my husband's sock drawer! However, between a photo and time "absorbing" the setup in the bedroom the painting was completed. From the time I set it up I kept thinking it was like a police line up....so that became the title....."The Line Up". The final piece is 9 inches high by 24 inches long. I hope you like it.

A Little Time Away Works Wonders

2010-07-02T18:34:00.000-07:00

In my last post I shared the struggle I was having with my painting "Asparagus Bundles". I ended up brushing out a large portion of the bottom third. After the brushing out I found myself needing a break from asparagus. Life worked to my advantage as I had a busy week of meetings, appointments, etc. However.....after a nice break I found myself reluctant to go back to the piece.....not wanting to resume a struggle. Finally, I made myself face the music.....and guess what.....it just started to flow....no longer a struggle. I redeveloped the bottom third in a completely different format which I like much better. I also worked across the whole painting with some final touches to build more contrast and interest as opposed to just trying to redo the bottom third in isolation. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder in a relationship....well....it seems that distance from a struggling painting makes a painting go easier!! Here is the finished piece.

Some are a Struggle

2010-06-20T17:27:00.000-07:00

I know I have said this before....but it just continues to be reinforced in my studio. Some paintings just paint themselves.....others are a struggle. The current piece falls into the second category. I am continuing my series on vegetables with a piece on asparagus. I was intrigued by the stack of bundled asparagus on my trip to Safeway for reference photos. I decided I wanted to reference the long thin shape of asparagus spears with a tall thin painting. I decided on 9" wide by 24" tall. This was a painting that I basically started at the top and worked my way down......which I don't usually do.....maybe this is something to consider in the future. All went well until I got to the bottom third. Although the top two thirds of the painting were very tedious and time consuming I was happy with the results. Then the bottom third......things just didn't go well. I knew there were problems and decided to take a break from the piece. As I returned to the piece I decided to take a photo and look at it on Photoshop. This really helped as I instantly saw some of the problems. The heads of the asparagus in the lower third were too large....almost twice the size of the top spears. They also did not stand out as individual spears but seem to run more together (maybe from being overworked????). I also suddenly noticed that the bands holding the bundles together at the bottom formed a line across the width and that the two bands on the right side were the exact same width. Not good! I even thought about cropping the piece to eliminate the bottom third. Here is the piece and a cropped version I considered:

The crop eliminated the problems.....but did not have the same impact that the full 24" would have if corrected. So outside with a stiff brush to brush out the problems. Tomorrow we try again. Here is the piece on my easel with the areas brushed out. The lighting is not great....but you can see the work to be done. Wish me luck!

Cave Creek Film and Art Festival - Take 3!!

2010-06-10T12:21:00.000-07:00

For the third year in a row I have had a piece juried into the Cave Creek Film and Art Festival. This year I wasn't sure of possible success because I entered my piece, "Equine Eye". This is a piece I was driven to paint....but realized that the subject would not necessarily appeal to everyone. However, I also thought the eye of an equine was appropriate for the very old time western town of Cave Creek....so I sent it in! Today I received the call notifying me that the piece was successful in being juried in. Obviously there are others that share my love for horses!!!

Time to Celebrate!

2010-06-01T20:55:00.000-07:00

I received an e-mail today notifying me that my piece, "Market Colors" which was juried into the Pastel Society of the West Coast's Pastels USA 24th International Open Exhibition in Los Gatos, CA was awarded the Pastel Society of New Mexico Award! I was thrilled just to be juried into this prestigious show so winning an award is truly icing on the cake!! Thanks goes to the Pastel Society of New Mexico for sponsoring this award!

New Website Design

2010-06-01T09:17:00.000-07:00

I have spent the last few days working to redesign my website. My main purpose for the redesign was to reflect my decision to put my focus on still life paintings. I wanted the website to clearly communicate that focus. As such, I did not include my landscape, figurative or animal subsections for my gallery page. I also wanted my paintings to pop more than they did on the neutral background I used in my first website.....thus the black. The part that I am unsure of is the left column with my business name and the links to the other pages in the website. I am not sure it doesn't intrude on the main focus of each page. I would be excited to get some feedback from you......let me know what you think......how could it be modified to improve it further? Here is the link:
http://www.karenbudanfineart.com/

Vine Tomatoes

2010-05-28T10:58:00.000-07:00

Vine Tomatoes is the next piece in my exploration of fruits and vegetables in market settings. This piece is adapted from a photo taken in my local Safeway market. That reference photo collecting trip was interesting in and of itself. I had no idea that vegetable display setups are highly competitive among markets. I took a business card with me when I entered the store with my camera wanting to be both professional and polite. I approached the gentleman stocking in the vegetable area to request permission to take photos as reference for my work as an artist. He informed me I would have to talk with the store manager. When I explained my request to the store manager I was told I would have to talk with corporate. I was given the number for corporate and asked for public affairs as I had been informed to do. I explained my request and on a whim suggested she visit my website to see the kind of art I seek reference photos for. She indicated she would call me right back. I only had a loiter around the entrance to the store for a minute or two before she called me back and gave me the go ahead. Needless to say I took many photos knowing the steps I would have to take for future visits.

This setting of vine tomatoes nestled in artifical straw caught my eye. I added a few tomatoes and adjusted the lighting as I needed a focal point and a clear lighting pattern (in the store the lighting comes very strongly from the ceiling. This is also the largest painting I have done to date measuring 18"x24". It took me a LONG time to work on all these tomatoes!!! Hope you enjoy the results!

More Exposure

2010-05-22T10:30:00.000-07:00

Summer is the slow time in Arizona. Many folks leave the valley for cooler climes. Personally, I like the heat.....certainly makes for fabulous pool weather!! Although I am entering national shows which continue through the summer in other parts of the country, the slow pace in Scottsdale allows for more studio time. However, I am still interested in having my work out in the public for exposure and possible sales. The Arizona Art Alliance, of which I am a juried member, has entered into an agreement with the new managing company of the Scottsdale Pavilions shopping complex. They have leased a building to use as a gallery, but they also have agreed to set up art in the windows of currently empty buildings until they are leased by new tenants. I now have two panels of work in the windows of stores as well as two pieces in the new gallery which is scheduled to open June 2nd. If you are in the area of Indian Bend and the 101, I hope you will take the opportunity to check out my work!

Two Down

2010-05-16T10:31:00.000-07:00

I completed the revision of the second piece developed during my recent two day workshop with Liz Kenyon. Again....although it was not finished to begin with during the workshop...during the critique at the end of the workshop I realized that in both pieces my compositions were composed of four objects. A general rule of thumb is to have an odd number of objects for a strong composition. To resolve this issue with the piece I titled "Fruit and Spices" I decided to add a paring knife. It fits in the concept as many people like to salt their fruit. It also completes the composition without pulling from the focal point where the salt shaker meets the center pear. Here is the finished piece.

One Down and One To Go

2010-05-09T17:15:00.000-07:00

Here is the revision of the first of the two pieces that I painted in my workshop last weekend. As indicated in a previous blog I realized the painting was composed of four objects. A rule of thumb for a good composition is to have an odd number of objects. To rectify this issue I added two additional turkey eggs laying on the table next to the basket. This eliminates the totally symetrical look of the painting without the extra eggs. I have named this piece, "Turquoise Plate". On to the next revision.

Equine Eye

2010-05-05T18:39:00.000-07:00

I was always one of those young girls totally crazy about horses. I read every horse book and spent many happy hours galloping around fields holding a piece of rope (my reins). When I got married I had my first opportunity to own a horse. I lived, breathed and loved horses for many years. I rode across the state of Michigan as a trail rider, studied and showed in dressage at both the state and national level, and bred and raised several foals. It was a wonderful time in my life. I do not have horses now....but they still hold a warm place in my heart. Horses have personalities and express many emotions. Their eyes are so soft and expressive.....I have always loved close-up photos of equine eyes. I decided to paint an equine eye. I spent the time painting this piece reliving many memories. If you have ever spent time with horses I hope this painting brings your memories to life as well!

Still Life Workshop

2010-05-04T15:16:00.000-07:00

Last Friday and Saturday I participated in a Pastel Vintage Items Still Life workshop with instructor and friend Liz Kenyon. As always Liz provided a lot of direction, inspiration, guidance, and fun. I painted two pieces.....both of which still need some final touches. In addition to the final changes I had planned, I realized during the group critique that I had created each with an even number of objects. I will be adding an additional object to each. I thought I would share the pieces post workshop, but pre needed work. Watch for the changes.

Facebook Presence

2010-04-20T16:35:00.000-07:00

I would like to announce that I have created a Facebook business page that I would like to invite you to become a fan of. The page title is "Karen Budan Pastel Painting Fine Art". I have linked my blog to this page so all entries will automatically show up on the wall. This creates another easy way for interested folks to follow my blog as a pastel painter. I look forward to having you as a fan on Facebook!

"Nap Time" wins Honorable Mention

2010-04-18T12:31:00.000-07:00

The Arizona Pastel Artists' Association Spring Juried Show opened Friday, April 16th at the Sedona Art Center's Community Gallery. Although the entries are juried into the show by digital image, the judge, Vince Fazio, judged the awards Friday morning once the paintings were hung in the gallery. I was pleased to learn that "Nap Time" won an Honorable Mention. I was one of the show monitors Friday and Saturday and it was fun to see people's reactions to the little calf all snuggled down into the straw. He was fun to paint....and obviously fun for viewers as well!

Exciting News in Today's Mail

2010-04-10T18:07:00.000-07:00

I just went to get the mail and found exciting news! My painting, "Market Colors" was juried into the Pastel Society of the West Coast's 24th Annual International Exhibit, Pastels, U.S.A. PSWC is one of the largest pastel groups in America with a number of professional artists as members. Their membership shows are competitive.....but this annual open show is very competitive and hard to get into. Needless to say.....I am thrilled. The show will be hung at the Art Museum of Los Gatos in Los Gatos, CA. from June 3rd through July 9th. What great news!!

Santa Barbara Workshop

2010-04-10T17:52:00.000-07:00

I recently completed a week long plein air workshop with Richard McKinley in Santa Barbara, CA. I have worked with Richard a number of times, but this was a new group of pastel artists for the most part. I did find some old friends from previous workshops with Richard, Janie Hutchinson, Willo Balfry, and Linda Connelly. All three took part in the Italy workshop with Richard in 2008. This workshop was for advanced painters and with a few exceptions the participants had worked with Richard previously. The weather was mostly sunny....but not very warm. We also had a lot of wind which dropped the temperature. I tried to be in the sun as I painted to keep my fingers from stiffening up from the cold. Richard's goal for the workshop was to push each of us to the next step in our painting. I shared this goal....but I was also seeking help in bringing my landscapes to the same level as my still life paintings. I think I made some inroads into the issues that I am dealing with in my landscapes. More practice in application of Richard's input will hopefully make the difference for me. I worked on 5 paintings during the week. One of them was completed on site.....unless I decide to make any final changes. Here is "Carpenteria Bluffs". Let me know what you think!

Pastel Society of America

2010-03-23T11:56:00.000-07:00

I am thrilled to announce that I have been juried into the Pastel Society of America as an associate member! The Pastel Society of America (PSA) is the oldest and most prestigious pastel society in the United States (http://www.pastelsocietyofamerica.org/). PSA is housed in a building in downtown NYC with a gallery and school. One cannot just pay membership dues and be a member......you must be juried into membership. There are two levels of membership.....associate and signature. Signature status allows you to put the initials "PSA" behind your signature. Those who have earned signature status are seen as very accomplished artists! One can be juried in at the signature level.....but I believe that is a rare occurrence.....I have not heard of anyone doing so. As one advances in their career associate members can apply to the jury process again to be considered for signature status. I hope to be doing this in the not too distant future!!! Life is good!!!

Nap Time

2010-03-03T17:44:00.000-08:00

I have had a painting partially completed on my easel waiting for me to find the time to come back to it. It finally happened! I loved this little fella all snuggled into the straw and the way the light created blue tones in his black hide. Babies are so cute.....and this calf is no exception! I decided to title it "Nap Time".

Art West Art Fest - Interesting Finish

2010-02-28T17:07:00.000-08:00

My experience as a participating artist in the Out West Art Fest had a great first two days and a very interesting third day. Saturday, day two, was another beautiful day as the predicted rain was moved to Saturday night as opposed to arriving in the afternoon. There were great crowds and I had another profitable day selling some giclee prints and notecards. As the day progressed the artists became ever more diligent about keeping tabs on the weather reports. To be on the safe side most of the artists decided to take their art home for the night. My tent partner and I both decided to take all of our art home for the night. We added extra weights to the tent with concrete blocks and 25 pound barbell weights. We were in a short row of three tents across from the food tents. As an extra precaution we tied the three tents together. We all left for home hoping the storms would pass us by.

I woke up to rain Sunday morning and it wasn't long before the phone rang. A friend who was also participating in the art fair and lived close to the location had driven up to check her tent after the night of storms. She called to let me know that our tent top had been peeled back by the wind and the interior was soaked. According to the news reports later in the day a microburst hit Cave Creek. We actually fared better than many of the artists. There was substantial damage to many of the tents as you can see from the pictures above. Our tent nor panels were damaged......just totally soaked by the 3/4 inch of rain that fell in the area. We could not hang our art on the wet panels as it would destroy our artwork.....so like a good number of the other artists we packed up our tent and panels and gave it up. I did not get a picture of our tent as my partner and several helpful people already had the tent disassembled by the time I arrived.

Oh well.....the first two days were great! I guess this is what you have to be ready for in the art fair business!

Out West Art Fest - Day One

2010-02-26T17:55:00.000-08:00

It was a very exhausting setup last night....neither my tent partner, Julia, nor I had a clue how to put up our tent. Julia got it used (no directions) and had set it up once...four years ago. Her memory is no better than mine. Let's just say we did, undid, redid a few times and ran around asking people questions. We did get the tent up and the propanels in place before it got too dark.....barely. Quite an orientation to art festival life! I dragged myself to my car and drove home thinking this may not be my cup of tea!

We got there early today and hung our paintings and made the final setup arrangements. Sunshine and lots of people.....this is more like it.....maybe this is my cup of tea. Then in the first hour I sold a painting, "Golden Barrel Cactus". Yeah....I think I do like it! Then I sold a second painting, "Sunflowers", and some cards. Yep!!! This is pretty great!! Funny how a couple of sales makes you forget all about the pain of the setup!

Now for the next challenge.....we are supposed to get some fairly significant storms with winds, rain and possible hail tomorrow night. Needless to say all exhibitors are on edge. We are going to take all our art out of the tent tomorrow at the end of the day (hopefully not in rain) and pray the tent is still there when we arrive Sunday morning. Cross your fingers for us.

I will let you know!

Out West Art Fest

2010-02-19T14:50:00.000-08:00

This weekend I will be showing in the Out West Art Fest at the Stagecoach Village in Cave Creek, AZ. This will be my first outdoor art festival. For this first venture I will be sharing a tent with my good friend and fellow pastelist, Julia Patterson. Above is the flyer with the location, dates and times. If you are in the area please stop by and see us!

Show Results

2010-02-19T14:43:00.000-08:00

As reported in previous blogs, I recently had pieces juried into both the Glendale Arts Council 2010 Show and the Arizona Pastel Artists Association Winter Juried Show. I received awards in each of the shows. The piece "Greens and Purples" won second place in the Glendale Arts Council Show and the piece "Boot Scootin' Wannabes" won honorable mention in the APAA Winter Juried Show. I was very pleased to receive recognition in both shows!

Cold in Arizona???

2010-02-09T06:06:00.000-08:00

This week the Arizona Pastel Artists Association is hosting a plein air painting workshop with Maggie Price. Maggie is an highly accomplished artist with a strong reputation as a teacher. She teaches workshops across the US as well as in Europe. As a resident of NM just outside of Albuquerque, Maggie was looking forward to some warmth and sun in Arizona in the middle of winter as much as we were looking forward to learning from her. Well, our "el nino" winter is not cooperating. We are definitely not showing our best side to the folks that have come from out of state to participate! We are having below normal temperatures.....low to mid 60s, cloudy weather at least part of each day so far....and rain predicted tomorrow. But, we are taking it in stride.....the warm friendship and laughter among the participants as we brave the elements has overcome our disappointment in the weather. And most importantly....we are learning a lot!!!

IAPS Fifteenth Juried Exhibition Reception

2010-01-25T14:29:00.000-08:00

As mentioned in a previous blog I was thrilled to be juried into the Fifteenth Juried Exhibition of the International Association of Pastel Societies. The show was being held in the City of Brea Art Gallery in Brea, CA. As this was my first national level show I decided to attend the reception on Saturday evening, January 23rd. It is a beautiful gallery and the reception was very well attended. The trip was further enhanced for me because Maggie Price, IAPS President, presented a great pastel landscape painting demonstration from 2 to 5 pm in the gallery prior to the reception. Needless to say, I was very impressed by the quality and breadth of the work juried into the exhibition....some truly beautiful art. Recognizing the level of work made being part of the exhibit a truly memorable step forward in my art career! Above is a photo of my framed piece hung on the gallery wall. Below is a link to a brief video of the reception. I hope you enjoy the video even a fraction as much as I enjoyed being there!

Please click here to enjoy the video clip posted on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBOKVpUdkKI

Juried in!

2010-01-20T17:02:00.000-08:00

I mentioned in my last post that there are a number of shows to be considered for entry this time of year in AZ. One of the shows I entered is the Glendale Arts Council show. I entered the allowed two pieces to be juried and found out today that both pieces were juried into the show. The two pieces I entered were "Greens and Purples" and "Sunflowers". This is a nice show representing all media and often results in a number of sales. However, the deciding issue for me was that the judge is William Scott Jennings who is a nationally known artist. One loves to get feedback from such an accomplished artist!

Show Season Continues!

2010-01-15T08:39:00.000-08:00

The winter is the high season for art shows in Arizona....and the it keeps one hopping! I entered three pieces into the Winter Juried Show of the Arizona Pastel Artist Association which is being judged this year by Maggie Price who is the President of the International Association of Pastel Societies (IAPS). All three were juried into the show! The three I entered were "Market Color", "Young Bulls", and "Boot Scootin' Wannabes" (see above). I won't know if I won any awards until Feb. 6th.

I also just mailed off an entry to the Arizona Plein Air Artists Small Gems Show.....it will be awhile before I hear if any were juried in to that show. This afternoon I am taking two entries down to the Glendale Arts Council show in Glendale. They jury the art pieces on location. I will know in a few days if either of my pieces got into that show.

I am still floating on cloud 9 from having "Late Night Snack" juried into the IAPS show in Brea, CA. I decided to fly over for the reception on January 23rd. A friend, Christine, and I are going to fly over and spend the night. It will be fun to see all the art as IAPS draw entries from the top pastelists nationally and internationally. Before we fly home later in the day on Sunday we plan to hit some galleries....maybe in Laguna Beach. I will take pictures and share with you in a blog entry upon my return.

Hawaiian Trip Sketchbook

2010-01-08T17:44:00.001-08:00

As I mentioned in the previous blog post, I tried something different for me while in Hawaii. I often take a sketchbook on trips....but this time I took a sketchbook of watercolor paper planning to do watercolor sketches. I tried one or two with just watercolor and did not get excited. But then I remembered seeing sketches done with ink outlines and painted in with watercolor. I decided to try that approach.....and really had a great time. I thought I would share here some of the sketches from the trip. The first one on the left is a picture of some pomegranates we saw in a fruitstand. The second from the left is a view into the bedroom from the living room of the Honolulu condo. The third one is the view from the balcony of our Honolulu 28th floor condo. The next is one of the beautiful hibiscus flowers found all over Hawaii. The last one was a rose I could see from our balcony of our Big Island condo. Quick, simple and lots of fun!!! Enjoy a glimpse of Hawaii through my eyes.

Market Colors

2010-01-07T07:31:00.000-08:00

We just returned from a two week trip to Hawaii which was wonderful! I did some watercolor sketching while there which was new for me......I will share that in another post after I take some photos of some of the sketches. Upon our return I have been very busy as I had to compile all the images from members of the Arizona Pastel Artists Association for our fall Winter Juried Show. I compile them on a CD to send to the judge for judging. I had a few final touches to make on one of my entries that I started during Hidden in the Hills as my ongoing demo for visitors. I really like how it came out....especially the bright colors. Tell me what you think!

International Association of Pastel Societies Juried Show

2009-12-20T12:07:00.000-08:00

On Friday before leaving for a two week vacation in Hawaii I received a very exciting e-mail. For the first time as an artist I had submitted an entry to a national level pastel show.....the International Association of Pastel Societies juried show to be hosted by the City of Brea Gallery in Brea, CA. The e-mail I received on Friday was congratulating me for being juried into the show!!! I was very excited.....to say the very least! The piece I entered was "Late Night Snack"....the second piece I painted for the Art Challenge using the glass goblet. Just goes to show you....stretching yourself to paint something you would not have chosen to paint on your own has definite benefits!! I cannot include a picture here of the piece as I do not have my computer with me with the photos of my art work.....but you can see it in the blog entry "Art Challenge Part Two" posted on October 30th.

Young Bulls

2009-12-14T12:04:00.001-08:00

This is the painting that I started working on the first weekend of Hidden in the Hills. The expectation is that artists are working even if they are not in their own studios during the open studio tour. I sold this painting (half finished) to a gentleman that came through that weekend. After all the hubbub of the second weekend of Hidden in the Hills, hosting the holiday get together of the Arizona Pastel Artists Association in my home, and getting ready for a holiday vacation in Hawaii I finally finished the piece. I was very pleased with the results! Aren't they a curious bunch?

Hidden in the Hills - Year One is in the Books

2009-12-01T07:35:00.000-08:00

Hidden in the Hills is over! My first experience with this open studio tour and art sale was very positive although it ended with a bang! Sunday was the last day with 5:00 being the close of the tour. Around 4:15 the sky began to darken.....by 4:30 it was black! We got hit by a storm with wind and rain that had us scuttling to protect the goods. Needless to say we broke down early. It was interesting loading my paintings into the cars without them getting wet......but we managed! My husband was a real trooper....even though he was freezing as he rushed over to help me while still in shorts. The temperature dropped dramatically and with the wind...it was certainly chilly!

Everyone who has participated in HITH has expressed that their first year is the slowest. With that in mind along with our current economic condition I was looking for exposure and to sell some of my note cards I had created showcasing my art. Well....I exceeded my expectations. I did sell a lot of cards. Some people even bought them planning to make a collage or series of small framed pieces as they could not afford the paintings themselves. But......I also sold a painting! It was actually a painting that I was working on during the tour as a "working artist" of a group of young bulls looking curiously at the photographer. The gentleman who bought the painting (brave man as it was only about a third done!) is a jeweler who designs jewelry. He ended up calling me after the first weekend and asking if I wanted to display some of my work in his jewelry store. Needless to say I was tickled pink! I was also approached by a woman interested in having me do painting of her horses.....a possible commission! This last weekend I was approached by a woman representing the Thunderbird Artist Expo. This is a ten week long event held annually in a large tent with over 150 artists working and displaying their art. I was encouraged to consider participating in this juried event.

So.....HITH was a definite success for me....both financially and moving me forward in getting my art exposed! Can't wait for next year!

Hidden in the Hills Open Studio Tour and Art Sale

2009-11-23T13:37:00.000-08:00

Well....my first weekend of the Hidden in the Hills Open Studio Tour and Art Sale is under my belt! Whew! The weeks of preparation are done.....painting, framing, making note cards, ordering postcards and business cards, buying a banner, buying propanels and hanging hardware...............and so on! And it all came together beautifully! Mother Nature even helped out with beautiful weather....even for the Valley of the Sun which is famous for beautiful weather! Since this is my first venture of this sort (along with the state of the economy) I was hoping to sell a few cards and get exposure as an emerging artist in an area crawling with professional artists. If I sold a painting it would be frosting on the cake. Well....I got the frosting! Over this first weekend of the two weekend event I sold many note cards, met many people interested in my art and how I do it, sold a painting, and got a commission! I am thrilled! All the effort and hard work was worth it. I can't wait till next weekend!

Here is a link to a video of my booth setup. I got many compliments on my setup which was very gratifying. I was set up on the back patio of the host studio of Lori Greenberg. The entrance to her studio where she makes glass beads is off this back patio. Next to me on the patio is a fine art photographer, Sal La Rocca who does beautiful work and is great fun to talk with whenever we had a lull. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KBLCFNsz6H8

Fall Colors

2009-11-10T20:08:00.000-08:00

After spending the weekend framing or reframing pieces in preparation for Hidden in the Hills which is just around the corner, I was able to get back to painting. Yesterday I completed a small 5" x 7" inch piece that I have redone twice titled "Fall Grapes". I like it OK now...but it still does not make my heart sing. It has a signature....but may find itself back on my easel before getting framed.

Today I finished a piece that I started during the Clark Mitchell workshop in Sedona a couple of weeks ago. This was painted along Oak Creek at the Crescent Moon Park. The location I painted is a few hundred yards down from Red Rock Crossing which provides the classic view of Cathedral Rock seen on all the postcards of Sedona. I loved the changing colors of the trees along with the small rapids in the creek as it flows around and over the rocks in the creek. It was a beautiful sunny day and I can still hear the creek and feel the sun as I look at the painting. I titled it "Oak Creek at Red Rock Crossing". It is signed and ready to be framed for Hidden in the Hills.

Jerome Hood Ornament

2009-11-07T09:52:00.000-08:00

One of the paintings I am working to finish from my recent weeklong workshop in Sedona with Clark Mitchell is a piece from Jerome, AZ. Jerome is an old mining town on the side of a mountain that has been experiencing a rebirth as an art destination. The buildings are very historic.....it is like stepping back in time and the people who live there work to keep it that way. I was taken by a car parked on the street that just seemed to exemplify Jerome. It was an old white car covered with a blue tarp held on by big clamps. But of most interest to me was the huge horned cattle skull wired to the hood. Although the full painting which includes some of the buildings the car is parked near is as yet unfinished, I cropped just the hood of the car to create a 5" x 7" painting to enter into the Sonoran Arts League's Small Works Show. I named it "Jerome Hood Ornament". It even made me smile as I painted it.....so very typical of what you see in Jerome!!

"Sunflowers" wins Honorable Mention!

2009-11-07T09:47:00.000-08:00

Last night was the Arizona Pastel Artists Association reception for the Fall Juried Art Show held at the Sundust Gallery in Mesa, Arizona. I was very pleased to discover as I read and presented the award winners that my piece, "Sunflowers" won an Honorable Mention". Our group has many very talented artists, both professional artists and part time pastel enthusiasts......so to win recognition among such a group is truly an honor!

Artist of the Month!

2009-11-01T17:42:00.000-08:00

Each month at the Arizona Pastel Artist Association meetings we have a competition for Artist of the Month. Members are invited to bring in pieces fully framed and show ready. The pieces are numbered and the members vote for the painting they feel is the best of the group. The votes are counted and a first and second place are awarded. The monthly winners bring their paintings back in June and the vote selects the Artist of the Year. Today I won first place for the month!!! I was tickled pink to say the least! The piece was "Greens and Purples" above.

Art Challenge Part 2

2009-10-30T10:47:00.000-07:00

In a previous blog I shared the piece ("Greens and Purples") that I painted for the first AZ Pastel Association Art Challenge. I was so pleased with the results that I entered the piece into our fall juried show. (All three of the pieces I entered were juried into the show! The other two were "Sunflowers" and "Bulldog Cliffs"). I was somehow thinking I would have to take the painting to the show site prior to the November meeting where the art challenge paintings were to be critiqued/discussed. As such, I thought I had to do another piece for the challenge.....which I did. It wasn't until I had the painting started that I realized I did not have to do a second one as our meeting is the Sunday before the Wednesday we hang the show. However, I am very glad I did. I had fun with this one. I set it up at night in my dark studio with just one light placed low on the left of the setting. It provided great highlights on the glass goblet and the other items I grabbed from the kitchen. Hope you enjoy the results as much as I enjoyed the process!

Hidden in the Hills Open Studio Tour

2009-10-18T18:28:00.000-07:00

This November I am participating in the Hidden in the Hills open studio tour for the first time. This studio tour is very well established and well respected. It draws thousands of people from across the valley and Arizona in general. The tour is composed of 46 studio spread across Cave Creek, Carefree, and North Scottsdale. Each of the studios hosts up to 5 additional artists. The event covers the last two weekends (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) of November. I will be in Studio 27. Here are some links you may want to check out:
Web site: www.hiddeninthehills.org
Blog: http://hiddeninthehills.blogspot.com
Facebook Fan Page: http://artist.to/hiddeninthehills/
The directory: http://bit.ly/3IKXW7

Hope you are able to come and enjoy all the art!

Building the Inventory for Hidden in the Hills Studio Tour

2009-10-18T18:15:00.000-07:00

I am continuing to work on finishing plein air pieces that just needed a little more work. Because I unexpectantly had the opportunity to be represented by the Menagerie Boutique, a large chunk of my inventory for the upcoming Hidden in the Hills open studio tour is now hanging at the gallery. This is actually a great opportunity to put a little fire under my feet to complete a number of paintings that have been awaiting my attention. Here are two pieces that I have completed the last few days. The painting on the left is another piece from Lake Pleasant entitled Lake Pleasant Cliffs. The slant of the cliffs and the shoreline reflections caught my eye. It was a day with scuddling clouds which is unusual for this area. The painting on the right is the location where the mustangs or open range stock wandered into the area while we were out painting (see blog on visitors on location for a picture of the foal). I was intrigued by the path leading to an expansive area composed of the McDowell Indian reservation and the mountains around Bulldog Canyon in the far distance. I called it Mustang Trail in honor of the visitors that day.

Menagerie Boutique is open!

2009-10-18T17:51:00.000-07:00

We're open! The Menagerie Boutique (see previous blog) that is representing my work is now open. The grand opening was Saturday, October 17th. Bob and I went to visit today and see what things looked like once everything was set up. Very impressive.....and very exciting for me! I share the owner, Cindy Keogh's great expectations for the future of the alternative gallery. Here are a couple of photos that include some of my work. Please plan to visit. It is located at 14150 McDowell Rd. in Goodyear, AZ. Lot's of goodies to buy....and Christmas is just around the corner!!

Rio Verde

2009-10-10T10:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I finished the final touches on this plein piece in my studio. This is a view of the shorline of the Rio Verde at the Needle Rock Recreation Area in the Tonto National Forest. I really liked the way the sun was hitting the topline of the overhang on the opposite shore highlighting the trees and shrubs against the deeply shadowed overhang. I was also attracted by the reflections in the swiftly moving water. It was one of those beautiful fall days in Arizona that just make you think of nothing but the joy of being alive and surrounded by nature's beauty. I could have painted all day......but the growing intensity of hunger pangs made lunch climb to the number one priority. Oh well.....lots more of these days to come....which is why I love living here!

Menagerie Boutique

2009-10-10T10:21:00.000-07:00

I recently became a participating artist at the Menagerie Boutique. The Menagerie Boutique is what I would call an alternative gallery brand new to the Phoenix area. It is located in Goodyear, which is the SW part of the valley, at McDowell and Lichfield Rd. The grand opening is October 17th. The owner is Cindy Keogh and she is approaching the sale of art in a unique and imaginative way. Cindy has two rooms connected by a hallway which will include hung art. Each of the two rooms has walls painted different colors. She has brought in a collection of eclectic pieces of furniture, some antiques, most from her home. She plans to set up vignettes with the furniture to showcase the art as one would possibly see it in their homes. I think this unique approach will appeal to customers and decided this was a venue I wanted to try as an artist. The gallery website is currently under construction, but should be active soon. (http://www.menagerieboutique.com/). Please check out this new gallery and my work there. I would love to hear what you think!

Art Challenge

2009-10-03T13:01:00.000-07:00

The Arizona pastel Artist Association has initiated a new event this year in the form of an "Art Challenge". There are three cycles of the Art Challenge during the year. For each cycle up to 10 artists can sign up to participate. The participants are given an object or set of objects. All participants receive the exact same object(s). Each artist then has two months to create a painting that incorporates the object(s). After two months the participants bring their finished pieces in to the meeting where a discussion is held that examines the resulting paintings in terms of composition, color choices, concepts, etc. It is a learning and fun activity for both participating and non-participating members. I decided to participate in the first cycle. Our object was a glass goblet that was tinted green. This worked fine for me because I have been really enjoying painting with the colors of green and purple of late (artichokes, eggplants, etc.). After a shopping trip to AJ's grocery store, I composed and painted the painting above. My problem is that I am so happy with the results that I decided to enter it into our fall juried show. If it gets juried into the show it will not be available for the discussion at the November meeting......which means I would have to do another composition using the glass. I will have to start thinking of other compositions.....just in case!!!

Bulldog Cliffs

2009-09-20T12:07:00.000-07:00

This is a piece I did plein air out in Bulldog Canyon in the Tonto National Forest 2 weeks ago. It just needed some finishing touches in the studio which I did this morning. Bulldog is one of my favorite places to paint. It is very much still as nature intended. You need a pass to access the area which only has a couple of 4-wheel drive roads through it. The entrances have gates with padlock codes which are given to you 6 months at a time. There is a herd of mustangs that travel this area that we have seen twice. This canyon borders the Salt River which attracts wild life. Hope you enjoy this piece as much as I did doing it.

Sunflowers

2009-09-19T16:22:00.000-07:00

Finally finished! This was a tough piece for me. The sunflowers themselves were a gift from good friends as part of a larger bouquet of flowers. The sunflowers were so eyecatching I just knew I had to paint them. I isolated the sunflowers and the deep purple flowers that so wonderfully accented the sunflowers into a vase to take pictures. I was happy with the resulting photo and even happier with the watercolor underpainting as I shared with you in an earlier blog entry. I was actually worried about ruining such a great foundation for a pastel painting. Maybe it was that fear that set me up mentally. I like the finished piece....but it was a painful process. I painted and left it for days...painted again with new ideas and left it for days....this continued more than a few times. Some pieces just flow from the pastels with no effort.....and other pieces fight you all along the way! As long as I am happy in the end I guess I can't complain too much about those that are a struggle. I hope you like the results!!

Small Works Continued

2009-09-07T16:42:00.000-07:00

Surprisingly I find myself having a lot of fun with the small works approach. I was so pleased with the "Artichoke" piece that I decided to try another vegetable that also uses purples and greens....an eggplant (besides....I love eggplant). I used the remaining half of the UArt 500 grit paper sample I received at the IAPS Convention in May which is 5" x 7". I went to the Wet Canvas Reference Photo section and found a photo of eggplants that met my needs. Small works are so much fun because they are not long term projects. I completed "Eggplant" in about 3 hours with a little more tweaking the next morning after "sleeping on it". I have some samples of UArt paper of different grits.......I may just have to try some more vegetables!!!

Small Works

2009-08-25T16:56:00.000-07:00

I work almost exclusively on 9 x 12 paper as I do so much plein air painting. The 9 x 12 size is easy to transport in my backpack or tote bag. I have been planning to do some pieces in a larger format to add variety to my work as I prepare for the Hidden in The Hills Studio Tour I am participating in this fall. However, I have been noticing more and more art shows for small works. I found myself intrigued about doing a smaller piece. This was fueled by the fact that I had received a free promotional pack of the new Uart paper at the International Association of Pastel Societies Biennial Convention. The pack included four sheets of the paper in various grit sized 7" x 11"......so I had the paper. Now the topic. It didn't take long to decide what to paint......I have had a hankering to paint an artichoke since last winter when I took a class where one of the other artists in the class painted a beautiful artichoke. I had purchased an artichoke and taken photos....but planned on a large painting. Now I decided to paint it in a small format......7" x 6". I sketched the piece and created the watercolor underpainting yesterday. This afternoon I completed the painting in pastel. Here's the results....."Artichoke".

California Dreaming

2009-08-08T14:36:00.000-07:00

I have just gotten home from a driving trip to California with my husband. We were gone two and a half weeks. During that time we visited with our sons and their families, but we also spent quality time in three of our beautiful National Parks, Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Yosemite. I collected enough inspiration and photos to keep me painting for a long time!! I must admit that I found some of the scenary too awesome to try to capture in a painting. Mother Nature has much more skill than I could ever hope to have!! I do have some photos that I plan to work from, but they may not see the light of day!!!

We spent a week of the trip at a condo on Bass Lake in California just south of Yosemite National Park. The lake is truly beautiful. It is at about 3400 ft. above sea level with beautiful conifer forest surrounding it. I did a couple of paintings during the week. I think I am finished with this one which I titled "Bass Lake Shoreline I". Here is the photo of the scene, my thumbnails, my sketch and the painting. I have put my name on it....but may still do some tweaks after I look at it for awhile.

Company on Location

2009-07-15T10:56:00.000-07:00

Despite the heat wave Arizona is experiencing (daily temps from 112 to 116) I went out painting early this morning. The location was a new one for me out in the desert. The morning was actually a little overcast which gave great misty color to the mountains in the background. As I was painting, I thought I heard the sound of hoofbeats and looked up to see I was being observed from a nearby hill by a band of three horses.....a mare, a yearling, and a foal. I am not sure if they were mustangs or range stock belonging to someone because they were not as timid as most mustangs I see while out painting. They went on their way out of sight and I resumed painting. Not 20 minutes later they reappeared walking towards me in the actual scene I was painting. They continued to amble along grazing and came within 50 feet of me. Needless to say I stopped painting to take pictures. The foal even stopped to check me out for several minutes before continuing to follow his mother. They finally moved to a tree not too far from my location and gathered in the shade to relax. I went back to my painting with a smile on my face knowing they were back there in the shade critiquing my work. Made for a fun painting day!!

Trip to France Art Work

2009-07-09T16:31:00.000-07:00

As promised I have taken photos of the four pieces that I completed while at the Richard McKinley workshop in France so that I could share them with you.

This piece titled "Roman Gate" was completed on our first day of painting after arrival. The location is Castelfranc which was a walled town during the Roman Empire. There are components of the wall and this gate still standing. I really liked the arch of the gate and the different colors in the stone. I was also intrigued by the light coming through the gate and slanting across the grassy area in front of it.

This second piece is titled "Wine Cellar Niche". This location is at Haut Baran where we stayed. I stood on the flagstone steps down to the pool to view the side of the wine cellar building which had this niche filled with flowers. The hydrangea were so beautiful! I fell in love with this scene as soon as I saw it. The door to the left is the entrance to one of the guest rooms in the main building. As you can see the landscaping at Haut Baran is breathtaking!

The third piece is "Theron Vineyard Lavender". Theron Vineyard is an absolutely beautiful vineyard located on top of a gently rising hill. Above the lavender is a castle. I first began the piece with the castle included. However, I realized the castle became the focus when included and I really wanted to paint the lavender. I changed gears and started all over with new thumbnail sketches that focused on the lavender field. The color of the lavender was a real challenge to capture....not really lavender and not really blue. Loved it!!

The fourth piece I completed during the workshop is titled "Belaye Overlook". Belaye is a tiny town at the top of a hill overlooking the Lot Valley with the Lot River snaking it's way through beautiful farmland. What intrigued me about this scene were the shadows slanting across the river and farmland as the afternoon progressed. I was also caught by the shapes of the farmland as the different fields accommodated the curve of the river.

I will be working on the remaining pieces begun in France in the next few weeks. I am hoping to finish them before my husband and I leave on a driving trip to California the end of July. In any event I will share them as I complete them. In the meantime I would be interested in any feedback or comments you might wish to share about the four presented here!

Trip to France

2009-07-08T10:44:00.000-07:00

I have just returned from a 12 day trip to France. I was in France to participate in an art workshop with Richard McKinley, whom I have been working with for over a year whenever possible. The workshop was held at Haut Baran, a privately owned French chateau in the Lot Valley, two hours outside of Toulouse (photo above). The owners, William and Rosalie Haas are Americans, although William's family is from France and he spent his summers there from a very early age. They purchased the chateau and converted it into a location for retreats for groups. They specialize in art groups and gourmet cooking groups. The location is stunning, the hospitality is superb, and the food served is truly an experience itself!

Richard is a gifted artist and teacher and strives to provide a rewarding learning experience for each participant. Because of this it is very difficult to get into one of his workshops as they fill immediately and always have wait lists. However, the economy had an impact on this workshop resulting in only 8 artists. This small group meant lots of one on one time for each artist with Richard. We started each morning with breakfast at 8 or 8:30 and worked until dinner which was usually around 7:30 or 8:00 pm. We painted at the Haut Baran itself as well as at various towns and small villages within 15 minutes drive. We also took advantage of opportunities to experience the French culture by visiting a historical watermill, a village street market, and walks through the small villages. We also had the wonderful opportunity to visit Peche Merle to tour the caves containing prehistoric art. Truly inspiring!

In upcoming blog entries I will share some of the artwork I created during the workshop. As always, workshop settings are for learning and trying new things....which means that the pieces often are not completed during the workshop. I need to photograph the completed pieces and work to complete the unfinished pieces in the days to come. First, though.......I need to recover from the jet lag.....the nine hour time difference and long flights definitely take some recovery time! Needless to say....it was definitely worth it!

2009 Cave Creek Film and Arts Festival

2009-06-15T13:14:00.000-07:00

For the second year in a row I was juried into the Cave Creek Film and Arts Festival. The piece juried in is "Boot Scootin' Wannabes". The juried entries will be exhibited at the Desert Foothills Library in Cave Creek from June 19th through the end of July. Although there will be a reception on July 10th from 6 to 8 pm, the actual awards will be announced on July 19th at the Film and Arts Festival awards ceremony (for all divisions) from 6 to 0 pm at the Fine Arts Center at Cactus Shadows High School in Cave Creek. If you happen to be in the area on either date please stop in and join the festivities!

IAPS Video

2009-06-11T09:46:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I attended the International Association of Pastel Societies Eighth Biennial Convention in Albuquerque, NM. I took along a new toy.....a Flip Video Camcorder. I took a few video clips which I put together into a movie called "Scenes from IAPS 2009 and posted it on You Tube. I thought you might enjoy it:

IAPS Biennial Convention 2009

2009-06-01T17:25:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a wonderful weekend in Albuquerque attending the International Association of Pastel Societies (IAPS) Biennial Convention. Bob and I flew to Albuquerque Thursday morning arriving at 11:30 in the morning. This allowed us to get to the convention hotel in time for me to attend the first session of the conference. This convention draws people from all over the world, although the majority are from the United States. Yet, the convention is just small enough that you get to meet people easily at sessions and other convention activities. You also have the opportunity to attend sessions to learn from a large number of the artists one reads about in the art journals. I was able to attend sessions with Liz Haywood-Sullivan, Michael Chesley Johnson, Richard McKinley, Sean Dye, and Kim Lordier. I learned a lot!!! Some of the things I learned were new to me, but then some of the things I have heard or seen before......but they really jelled for me hearing them this last weekend. One of the concepts that really jelled for me was the fact that the artist is painting a concept....not specifically a scene. All the tools and techniques I have been learning are to be used to design a painting to communicate the concept that drew me to the painting to begin with. An artist is not a camera....faithfully recording a scene. An artist "designs" a painting, modifying and interpreting the scene to share the reason the scene first attracted them. I knew this...but never connected all the ramifications of "knowing this". After this last weekend I think I am going to be approaching my painting in a whole different way!!!

Lake Pleasant Shoreline

2009-05-25T16:31:00.000-07:00

As promised, I am sharing the finished painting, "Lake Pleasant Shoreline" You will note that I changed the name from "Lake Pleasant Cliffs". I am pleased with the finished piece. I worked quite awhile to get the reflections to look right. The reflections have movement from side to side...but there are also reflections that move from top to bottom. I would love to get to a point where I could complete a painting while still on site. This finished product reflects about three additional hours of actual work and several hours of thinking and reflecting on each step.

Let me know what you think of the piece.....I would love to read your comments!

Productive Day

2009-05-22T17:10:00.000-07:00

Today I was able to spend a good part of the day in my studio. As a result I found that I accomplished a lot!

First of all I finished another work in my shoes series. This painting is a take off on the "Party Flats" piece. The shoes which are the subject of both pieces are actually black with a black patent toe and heel. In "Party Flats" I chose to use vibrant colors for the shoes as opposed to the native color of black. This time I went back to the shoes' true colors and added a gold necklace. Here you see the result...."Black Patent Flats".

The second accomplishment was the underpainting for a piece I am going to call "Sunflowers". My good friends Barb and Charlie brought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers upon my return home from my surgery. In the bouquet were three beautiful sunflowers. I decided they had to be painted. So I pulled them out along with some vibrant purple flowers and began taking pictures out in the sun on the patio. Today I selected the composition I wanted to paint, created the drawing and painted the watercolor underpainting. I really like the results.....hope I don't mess it up when I start with the pastels!!!

Finally.....I had some time to work some on the painting I started Wednesday plein air painting in the Castle Hot Springs area. I ended up brushing off some of the work I had done on site and began reworking some of the areas. It is a rough half done piece here.....but I think it has potential!

Yes....a good day in the studio while the clouds roil around outside and light rain continues to show up every now and then.

On The Road Again!!

2009-05-21T11:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a great day!!! It wasn't particularly sunny...but it was a fabulous day because I was back with my friends plein air painting. I have been out of the loop for a few weeks due to health issues which resulted in surgery. I was doing some painting....but hadn't been able to be out plein air painting. Well....today was my first day back and it was so great!! We had a rare cloudy day in Arizona so the contrasts were minimal.......but I really didn't even care!!! Here is a picture of the group getting setup on an overlook of Lake Pleasant in the Castle Hot Springs area in the north valley. Phil is standing next to his jeep and painting setup. My jeep is behind his. Bud is in the chair on the right getting setup. You can just see my setup in the lower left. I got a good start on a painting that I hope to finish today and will shortly share with you.

Did I mention that I love being outside painting????

Notan

2009-05-19T16:45:00.000-07:00

As noted in a previous post, I participated in a plein air workshop with Richard McKinley in Tucson in March of this year. During the workshop Richard brought up a term that was new to me....notan. During his instruction Richard encouraged participants to create thumbnail sketches using notan prior to painting a piece. The sketches were 3 value sketches. To me it seemed that notan sketches were the same thing as value sketches....but I was assured by Richard that they were not really the same thing. He also recommended that we read a book by Arthur
Wesley Dow titled "Composition: Line, Notan and Color" from Dover Publications. I just finished reading the book.....and I think I have a better understanding of notan. Notan is a Japanese term for dark and light. My understanding after reading the book is that notan is the broad concept of light and dark, while values are a further refinement. This makes sense to me....but I want to further discuss notan and how artists use notan to help me confirm or disprove this understanding. I will be seeing Richard at the International Association of Pastel Societies Convention (IAPS) in Albuquerque next week and plan to bounce my understanding off of him. I am also attending sessions with CA pastel artist Kim Fancher Lordier. Kim refers to notan in regards to her work. I hope to learn more in her sessions.

If anyone has a different understanding or a clarification of notan I would love to hear from you!! I will let you know what I learn at IAPS!

Arizona Pastel Art Association

2009-05-19T16:26:00.000-07:00

I have been involved with the Arizona Pastel Art Association (APAA) for about 6 years. However, until the summer of 2007 my involvement was minimal due to my job as the national director for professional development for an educational software company which involved extensive national travel. As I moved towards retirement in the summer of 2007 my travel commitments greatly decreased and I was able to become more involved. This involvement consisted being able to attend meetings and events at first, but quickly moved to my volunteering to take on the role of newsletter editor. This position involves a strong time commitment....but also puts one in a position of getting to know members and the workings of the organization. I very much enjoyed serving in the role of newsletter editor for the last couple of years. However, with this year's elections, the sitting president expressed a wish to step down after serving for two years. I was asked to consider the presidency which I was happy to agree to....and subsequently was elected by the membership. APAA is very much a growing organization and I am deeply honored and excited to serve in a leadership role. I would like to invite you to visit the APAA website at www.azpaa.com. You also may find yourself wishing to become a part of such a vibrant organization!!

A Big Decision

2009-05-10T09:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday marked another step forward for me as an artist. I decided to participate in the Sonoran Art League's Hidden in the Hills (HITH) open studio tour in November. I have been a member of the Sonoran Art League for a number of years, but have not felt ready to participate in HITH. HITH is the biggest event that the Sonoran Art League puts on each year. It takes place the last two weekends in November. Member artists open their studios to the public during the two weekends. The studios are all within a 40 square mile radius around Carefree, Cave Creek and North Scottsdale. Each studio artist hosts up to four additional artists in tents, garages, patios, etc. The event is highly publicized and draws hundreds of people each year. It is a much anticipated event in the area. The full color directory that is published each year becomes a resource for buyers even after the event.

My decision was finalized yesterday at the Match Up Breakfast sponsored by the league. This is an opportunity for studios looking for additional guest artists and guest artists looking for a host studio to find each other. Studios are typically looking for a range of art genre as one would not want the artists at one site to all be producing the same kind of art and be competing against each other. I went to the breakfast thinking that if I found a good match it was meant to be the year for me to jump in. If I did not find a match it would also be a sign! Well....I found a great match! I will be at the studio of Lori Greenberg. Lori is a glass bead artist. I will be sharing the back patio with a fine art photographer, Sal DeRocco. We will also have a fourth artist, a good friend of mine, June Lerman, who does watercolors. June will be located on the front patio.

I am excited and already thinking about what my inventory should focus on and the setup of my part of the back patio. I have a lot of work to do....but can't wait!!! Check out the Sonoran Art League website http://www.sonoranartsleague.org/. There is information about last year's HITH as well as the upcoming 2009 HITH I will be participating in.

Scottsdale Home and Garden Expo Center

2009-04-26T14:03:00.000-07:00

A new opportunity for artists has arrived in Scottsdale in the form of the Scottsdale Home and Garden Expo Center. The Scottsdale site is actually one of four expo centers in the Phoenix area. The four centers are permanent facilities that are open 7 days a week all year long. The difference in their expo format is that the booths are unmanned. This allows shoppers to explore and compare products at their leisure without pressure from sales staff. They can collect information on products of interest and contact the vendors to pursue their interest. Vendors pay rent for the booths.....however...artists do not. Artists put down a damage deposit which is fully refundable based on the condition of the booth when they leave. I chose to take advantage of this opportunity and see what happens. My booth was already painted a neutral color so I left it as is thinking of the many galleries that paint their walls such neutral colors. I put up paintings, put in an area rug, set up a small side table with a basket for business cards, positioned a silk plant.....stood back and took a look. I liked it...but decided the booth needs to be repainted in the near future. My paintings kind of blend in too much. A bolder, darker color will help to make them pop out to the viewer. Now.....we wait to see what happens. My concern is whether a buyer will be willing to contact the artist and come back to meet the artist at another time to be able to make the purchase. Regardless....my work is getting exposure and that is a good thing!! If you are in the area stop in and check it out.

"Cortona Window" wins Third Place

2009-03-22T17:37:00.000-07:00

I decided to enter the Peoria Celebration of Artists juried show this year. The first step is to send up to two digital images for jurying into the show. I entered two pieces, "Cortona Window" and "Golden Barrel Cactus". Both pieces were juried into the show which is housed in the Peoria, AZ City Hall. I was pleased to attend the reception to find that "Cortona Window" had placed third in the Drawing/Pastel Division. The judges were Bob and Louise McCall. Bob McCall creates art for NASA and has the largest painting in the Smithsonian. Louise is also a well known artist. Earning an award by such quality of judges makes the award all the sweeter!!

Richard McKinley Workshop

2009-03-21T19:35:00.000-07:00

The week of March 8th I participated in a weeklong workshop in Tucson, AZ with Richard McKinley. Richard is the instructor that I worked with in Italy last year and will be working with again in France the end of June. This workshop was for artists who have previously worked with Richard and was designed for each artist to move to their next level. Several of the participants had also taken part in the workshop in Italy including my roommate for the Tucson workshop, Barb. This made for great fun for the group as well as being able to learn from each other. We painted in several beautiful sites in Tucson including Sabino Canyon shown here with my easel. I was very gratified that Richard recognized my growth as an artist since the workshop in Italy last May. I have moved forward in recognizing and painting three to four main value masses. Richard worked with me to further define the values within each major value mass. He also demonstrated the next step which would include adding stokes that add the drama to a painting. It was a truly successful workshop.

Boot Scootin' Wannabes

2009-02-28T18:54:00.000-08:00

I have been experiencing some health problems that have kept me from being able to go out plein air painting. This has put me into a state of "withdrawal" from being out in Mother Nature with my painting friends painting. In the meantime I have been taking a class with a friend and very talented artist on finding your visual voice. Liz encouraged the class to use the class to engage in painting a series. I had been wanting to paint a pair of cowboy oot mules I own and decided to initate a "shoe" series.

A lot of artists experience problems plein air painting in narrowing down a scene and developing a strong composition. I have not found that to be a problem. However....as I began to set up a still life with my shoes I found myself definitely struggling to develop an interesting and strong composition. After many changes and adjustments I finally settled on a setup using the shoes, a pair of jeans and a red suede jacket.

It was great fun painting this setup. I really enjoyed doing the jeans and the suede jacket. I also really enjoyed being very impressionistic on the shoes themselves. I was happy with the results....but as always I wanted to spend some time looking at the piece and deciding if any changes were needed. I also took the piece to class to get some feedback from my fellow classmates.

As a result of my own contemplation and chewing on feedback from classmates, I decided that the blue jeans needed some darkening to push them back so the shoes dominate. That helped a lot......but further review brought me to the decision to crop the top of the piece about an inch.

I am very happy with the final result. Now on to the next shoe setup!!

Painting on Vacation Trips

2009-01-30T16:08:00.000-08:00

Bob and I recently took a four day trip to Las Vegas to take in a couple of shows. Las Vegas is about a four hour drive through some beautiful desert and a crossing of the Hoover Dam. Since moving to Scottsdale we have made occasional trips to Vegas for a get-away. Although we had tickets to see both Jersey Boys and Ka, it was also our intent to drive out of Vegas proper and check out Red Rock Canyon and other sights in the area. As such, I took my camera, sketchbook and a few pastels. Well....we did drive out to Red Rock Canyon.....and I did take some great photos....but I did not stop, set up my easel and paint. Why? Well, we ended up with much less time for exploring than we had hoped. This happens often when we travel. It is not that Bob isn't willing to pull out a lawn chair and enjoy a book or newspaper while I paint, but rather that we plan too many activities in the time we have available.

Well, I am going to look at changing the planning process...since I am the one that does all the planning and making of reservations. We have a driving trip planned the end of July into August. We are meeting our kids at Bass Lake, CA just outside of Yosemite National Park. Bob and I are planning to be gone about three weeks. Our drive to CA will include scenic roads through Sequoia National Park. We will be outside of Yosemite for a week with our kids. Our drive home will be through St. George, Utah and Zion National Park. Just think of the painting scenes just waiting for me!! As I build the schedule and make the reservations I am going to build in dedicated painting time. Hopefully my strategy will be successful! I will let you know!

Polly Revised

2009-01-09T15:26:00.000-08:00

At the Arizona Pastel Art Association meeting last weekend we invited Judith, Spitz, a local pastel instructor and show judge to come to the meeting for a critique session. Members bring a painting they would like to have feedback on to the meeting. I decided to take the painting of Polly I shared in the last blog. As a result of the critique I made changes to the painting. Judith gave me the following constructive criticism:

1. The green pillow was dominating the original version of the painting. It was suggested that the painting be revised to take the emphasis off of the pillow. I decided to address the issue by having Polly's leg over the pillow as opposed to behind the pillow.

2. There needed to be green in other areas of the painting to provide more harmony of color. I made the green in the sheet pattern more apparent where before they were very low key. I also added a little green to Polly in her ears. Finally I added some green to the crease in the back pillow that is predominantly burgundy.

The result is a much stronger painting. Sometimes another set of eyes....especially more knowledgeable eyes....can see things that the painter just does not recognize. It provides great opportunity for growth!

Polly

2009-01-04T08:50:00.000-08:00

With some time over the holidays I have gotten to some projects that have been waiting for my attention....some for awhile. One of those is a painting of our Springer Spaniel, Polly. We had two Springer Spaniels, Polly and Alex, when we lived in Michigan that were wonderful pets. We lost Alex at a young age in the mid 90's when he twisted a gut and died of a heart attack before we could get the surgery done to hopefully save him. We weren't sure how Polly would deal with his loss as they were inseparable. Besides that fact.....Polly was blind and used Alex as a guide dog. Polly suffered from a condition that is being bred out of the Springer Spaniels.....however....it is a formidable task as it doesn't show up until about age 2 and many females have already been bred at that age. The retina separates from the back of the eye and there is nothing that can be done. However, Polly did fine and adjusted to being without Alex. We had her for many more years. She was a faithful trooper and a loving companion. She lost her hearing and began to suffer from displasia of the hips. She finally started having neurological problems and we would find her turning in circles. With the vet, we decided her quality of life had deteriorated to the point that we needed to put her to sleep. We still think of both Polly and Alex often. I had done a painting of Alex prior to his death (see website under Animals), but had never gotten to Polly although I had a photo that I thought perfectly showed her sweet personality. She was our couch potato and the photo showed her lounging among the bed pillows. I greatly enjoyed doing the painting. It brought back many happy memories as well as the sadness of losing her.

Brodie and McGee Continued

2008-12-23T15:50:00.000-08:00

One of the trials and tribulations of creating art is knowing when you have "finished" a painting. I am often guilty of "overworking" a piece.....continuing to work on a piece when I should have stopped. Even being aware of this tendency...I did not have that feeling of being finished with the painting of Brodie and McGee...but wasn't quite sure where to go with it. When this happens I have a number of strategies that often help. A good practice is to leave it and come back later...at least a day later. Sometimes I just put the piece where I can see it as I am going about my business. I will also look at a piece in a mirror. All of these are very useful and often result in my figuring out what the piece needs. But I also like to take a piece to friends and get their perspective and advice. That was what I decided to do with Brodie and McGee. My friend Toni is a retired art teacher and a wonderful artist who always has great insights and advice. As usual it was a great help. I knew I wasn't happy with the blanket the boys were laying on and she helped me to see how I could make the folds more realistic using stronger value changes. As we discussed the hard edges of the toplines of the boys that were bothering me I realized I needed to change the color so that the boys would merge with softer edges into the background. Toni had some suggestions about value changes for the background as well. Toni also pointed something out that I had totally missed. McGee's back needed to be repositioned to emerge from above his nose...not his ear. Bingo....a much improved piece!!! Now I feel finished! Here is the final piece, "The Jones Boys".

Brodie and McGee

2008-12-15T16:37:00.000-08:00

My sister Gail and her husband, Steve, have two delightful Shih Shu dogs, Brodie and McGee. I offered to paint them some time ago (quite some time ago actually). Gail and Steve sent me pictures and I gave it a try. That first try was pretty sad and never got too far. Well.....I decided to give it another try. I figured I had grown as an artist and had new skills and insights to apply to the painting in the months since my first try. This is the picture of the boys that Gail and Steve originally sent me:

My first try was partially a failure because I tried to duplicate this photo minus my sister's leg.....didn't work. After a few months of thinking and many new insights about composition and design, I knew that I wanted to change this photo to have the boys next to each other and resized due to their change in position. This decision called for learning how to move sections of photos in Photoshop. Success!!! Here is the result:

So now I have a composition that makes much more sense. I also knew that I needed to come up with a different blanket and background so as not to compete with the focus...the boys!! I started out with a background that was similar to the blue couch in the photo with indications of the texture weave. I also had a blanket with the beginning of a texture weave. Once I achieved that stage...I realized two textures would also compete with the boys. Here is that stage:

As a result I decided to eliminate the majority of the texture in the background and only have texture in the blanket. I also began putting in more color in the boys. At this point I worked on their eyes which always brings a portrait to life.

As I looked at the portrait at this point I decided there was too much blanket and background. I decided that a crop would bring the focus fully on the boys. I taped off the new borders and continued to build the color and texture in the boys.

After adding more detail and adjusting color I decided it was time to get my sister's opinion.....was I close? Did I catch their expressions? Did it look like the boys? What would she want changed? Here is the cropped photo. I took this while the painting was still on my easel and not outside in natural light so some of the colors are not as brilliant as in the painting.

Gail and Steve felt that I had nailed the personalities and expressions of the boys. Yeah!! The only request was to darken the right ear of McGee (on the right). I will make this change and some finishing touches and "The Boys" will be ready to be shipped to Michigan!

Paint Around

2008-11-24T08:44:00.000-08:00

At the recent Arizona Art Alliance Show it was determined to have a Paint Around Event as part of the kickoff for the Meet the Artists Reception on Saturday evening. I was tapped to organize the event. Basically the event lasted for one hour. I recruited a total of 3 teams of 3 artists each. I and two fellow pastelists who had all been to Italy in the last year formed a team called the "Tuscan Trio". We painted from photos we each had taken in Italy. A second team was three watercolorists who called themselves the "Grey Scale Goddesses". They did flowers from life and photos. The third team were also watercolorists with the team name of "Two Hippie Chicks and a Redhead". They were doing fuzzy things and each had brought a dog photo to work from. The three teams set up their easels in a circle in the area of the reception. After I introduced the teams and the process that would be witnessed the event began. Each artist in the three teams had the first 15 minutes to work on their own piece. They were alllowed to have their sketch completed...but no paint could have been added prior to the event. After 15 minutes each artist moved to their right to the easel of their team mate and worked the next 15 minutes on their teammate's art using their teammate's materials. After 15 minutes each artist again moved to their right and spent the next 15 minutes working on the art of their third member using that person's materials. The last 15 minutes each artist rotated again ending up back at their own easel to put on finishing touches and sign the piece with the team name. Here are the pieces from my team:

Liz Kenyon's piece:

Barb Lang's piece:

My piece:

All the artwork from all three teams is being donated to the Paradise Valley Hospital. It was a fun time and plans are already in the works to have this event at each show.

Arizona Art Guild Show

2008-11-20T09:37:00.000-08:00

As an emerging artist I continually evaluate ways to get my work out in the eyes of the public. I am also cognizant of building up my resume. One of the avenues I have been pursuing is to selectively choose organizations to pursue juried member status. I am currently one show away from juried status in the Arizona Pastel Artist Association. I have achieved juried status in the Arizona Art League. Another organization that I have chosen to pursue is the Artizona Art League. Juried status is granted to members who are juried into three AAG shows. I entered three pieces into the jurying process for the fall show.......and all three were juried in!! I was pleased as there were a number of artists, some very successful in their careers, that did not get pieces juried in. I now have step one towards jury status in AAG under my belt! Here are the three pieces that were juried into the show.

Left to Right - "Cortona Window", "Glorious Outhouse", "Golden Barrel Cactus"

Cowboys Artists of America

2008-11-04T15:41:00.000-08:00

The Phoenix Art Museum is the site of the annual Cowboy Artists of America exhibit and sale. Bob and I joined Charlie and Barb Lang today in an outing to enjoy the exhibit. After a tasty lunch in the museum cafe we admired the beautiful western saddle exhibit as we meandered to the rooms holding the exhbit. Let me say.......the exhibit was truly inspiring. The majority of the works are very large and allow for close examination down to the most delicate brush strokes. The exhibit was predominantly oil paintings with acrylic, watercolor, pastel, charcoal, pen and ink as well as sculpture rounding out the works. Of course, one of my favorites is Harley Brown from the Tucson area. His pastels are truly amazing.

I spent a lot of time looking at how the artists used aerial perspective and lost and found edges. This is an area I struggle with in my own work. Looking at their work I found that so little can say so much. Details and tighter work were found in the focal areas of the paintings. I see...but now can I do!!! That is the question. We ended our visit in the gift shop where I purchased the exhibit book so that I could study the paintings further.

I will be out painting at Bulldog Canyon tomorrow morning. I am going to try to apply these insights to tomorrow's work. Wish me luck!

Jeep Jamboree

2008-10-27T19:05:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday Bob and I took part in our first Jeep Jamboree. What fun! In July I traded in my beloved 2001 BMW Z3 for a Jeep Sahara. Z3's just aren't quite cut out for some of the driving to get to the best painting sites. I needed 4WD and a vehicle with more space for the materials needed for plein air painting. Now I LOVE my Jeep! They are quite a bit more sophisticated these days. The Sahara is designed for commuting and off-roading as opposed to the Rubicon which is focused on off-road. I have electric windows, locks, cruise control, etc. and a wonderful sound system that includes a GPS, hard drive to store music, pictures, etc. All the bells and whistles!

The dealership we purchased through, Airpark Chrysler Jeep in Scottsdale, sponsors an annual Jeep Jamboree. We signed up with very little idea of how the day would go! The Jamboree is run like a poker run with challenges for extra prizes at the 5 stops. We arrived at the dealership a little after 8 am. We signed in and received the directions to the various challenge points. We got an offical hat and a bag of snacks and headed out to the parking lot for the first challenge and first draw for our poker hands. The first challenge was a race to put down and back up the soft top on a Jeep. Bob and I decided to pass as we have a hardtop and have no idea the steps involved. We decided to just draw our cards. My first card was the queen of clubs. Bob's was a 2 of hearts. Off we go to the next challenge point. What a sight to see a huge line of jeeps of various years, colors and shapes all headed down the road!

Soon we were in the outback of the Tonto National Forest bumping over rocks and negotiating gullies. We went up a steep hill with an even steeper and rockier downside, certainly the steepest I have done so far. One couldn't begin to see over the Jeeps' hood to see where we were going as we headed down. Ah, the adventure!! A short distance further our little caravan came to a stop. We had made a wrong turn! Back up and down the hill and back on track. No wonder it was such a steep hill....we were not on the main road!

Our little caravan soon hooked up with the line of Jeeps that had not gotten lost. However, it wasn't long before the long line of Jeeps came to a halt. Soon the word came back that we had made another wrong turn! What fun to watch about 60 Jeeps turning around on a 2 track in the middle of the desert! We soon made it to the second challenge point where the challenge was horseshoe throwing. Here I got the jack of hearts. Bob got another low card. Off we go through the desert to the next point. We actually made it without getting lost this time. The third challenge had the deck of cards tacked to a piece of plywood face down. You shot at the cards using a paint gun. Whichever card you hit was your draw. My aim is not so good with a gun....but the third try I hit a card....the 9 of hearts. Boo. Bob continued to draw low cards that were not related to each other....although it only took him one shot.

Our next leg was predominantly down the river bed of Camp Wash which when wet feeds into the Verde River. Wow! Talk about some beautiful scenary between towering cliffs on each side. Definitely will be back to paint there! This fourth challenge was Bob's favorite. The driver....me...puts a bag over their head and the pilot...Bob....verbally guides the driver through a figure 8 around cones. Other than the fact I started feeling a little nauseous under the bag turning the circles, I did great! Here I drew a Joker which meant I could tell them what I wanted so I took another queen to give me a pair of queens.

The final challenge was a steep hill....up and down. We had to wait in line for our turn on the hill. Unfortunately the large number of jeeps was blocking the entrance to the campground along the river. Just when it came my turn they announced they had to cancel the challenge. The forest rangers were not happy we were blocking the road and were ready to ticket the dealer reps. Oops! I did have to go down the final hill section to leave which is about an 80 degree decline. I was praying we did not turn over when we finally got front wheels beginning to level back out! The hitch even scraped as we levels out! Yes...I would say it was steep!

Back at the dealership we got our final draw and I got another Joker. I chose another queen....but even 3 queens did not win the $1000 prize. Oh well! We did greatly enjoy the BBQ that awaited us along with the live music.

The Jeep Jamboree showed Bob some of the beautiful territory I have been out painting. He really enjoyed the day. I greatly enjoyed the day as well....and have several spots that I plan to return to and paint.......if I can find them again!!!