Painting...

Had a lovely time and a nice little break with some friends and a new painting get-together tonight. Almost finished a new piece in the few hours as D.J. spoke about utilizing a ratio in drawing a composition and the math behind it. He also spoke about color theory and textures in painting. Pretty interesting and tempted me into a shopping spree of sorts.... at least in my mind.

I have been making frames, getting a LOT of painting done and trying to get the gallery room together in time for tomorrow's opening with Jason Bly in the S.A.M. Main Gallery. I must admit the photographs he sent for the S.A.M. Website did not do justice to his work in person. Pretty awesome stuff! Makes you look several times in depth to the actual work as it is a fantastic illusion. Would consider it photo-surrealism. Must check it out!! He is only in the gallery until Sunday, July 19th!!

We painted the gorgeous vintage chairs that have this lovely fabric with a yellow-green hue. The wood detail on the frame is all glossy black. I am really curious to how they will look in the freshly painted room.

Nighty Night!

Tomato Tuesday

Thought a catchy Title would get your attention. It has been a crazy busy day. The counter manufacturer came out today to measure the counter tops and see what went so incredibly wrong. Of course it was the stores fault.... hmm all times. If the store would have written down the fact the sketches were created by someone in the field I wonder if the manufacturer would have referenced them. Oh well... it will be another few days before the new top is here.. THANK GOODNESS! (doing the cabbage patch dance).

Sunday Greg and I went to the gallery and painted my room. It is a beautiful green color. We are finishing the crown detail in the room and the base board in white and then putting in a black roman shade along with black details on furniture. The chairs are vintage with green fabric. I also have some accents which will be going into the room. Eventually I will be putting in a rug... still searching for one that talks to me... maybe some pillows too.

Today Greg made me a table for the gallery; I still need to paint the top and put fabric around it, other than that it is done. Painted the side table yesterday -- so much more beautiful in black. It is a queen anne style table with the sloped out legs.

We also worked on frames for new work. I am loving the frames!! Reworked some of my pieces and resized a few. I am really excited for this years open studio tour as I am getting a lot of new work on the walls.

We are getting closer and closer to getting done w/ the house for now and cleaning out some of the stuff we have piled over the years. Amazing the memories that come up when you are going through things.

So that is pretty much it for now in a nutshell.

Making frames

Making some fantastic frames today.. Wood is flying all over the place.

Open Studios is coming up very quickly!! I am eagerly trying to get all of these frames and canvases painted. Also I still need to run by CAMSTL to pick up my packet and drop work off. agh! Will have preview pics soon!!

My lovely friend Dan Jaboor mentioned that a picture of my work made it into St. Louis Magazine (pg 143) for their newest issue regarding Open Studios. How awesome is that!!

Lost...

Feeling a bit overwhelmed in many projects this last week. Hubby has started a new job (YAY!!)!!!

Remodeling has slowed down a bit. Also adding many projects to that honey-do list. We are patiently waiting on our countertops. After it gets here I will fill you in. I am tired honestly of microwaved food, paper plates and plastic forks, spoons, etc.

After the basement bathroom is done (will have pics soon). We are going to take a break for about a month and start again after all our organization is done. We are hoping to have the bathroom done by this weekend as there was not much in the way to do down there. YAY no regut.

We will be pulling out all of the ugly carpet downstairs and replacing all the flooring with laminate wood flooring. Along with some improved lighting, built up walls, and new paint the basement will look so much better. Also will be building a custom closet to contain all the massive amounts of clothing that we don't have room for in a normally small closet of which we have currently. The closet will have shelves on both sides and have a total of six hanging area sections. Eventually I will be replacing furniture.... The microfiber couches are not suggested for parents with ADHD children. They have had their time, let's put it that way. Eventually I will replace the furniture and remodel the livingroom. Not sure how I am going to do it as of yet but lots of ideas rolling around.

Monday we did a shoot for "The Shanti" a lovely bohemian type bar in Soulard (Allen & 9th). A friend of ours plays there quite a bit with his band. The photoshoot was for an advertisement coming up in "The St. Louis Sinner" Greg took a LOT of pics so I have weeded through most of them and have chosen what I feel are the best shots.

Early July (in the next week) I will be remodeling my room at the gallery. I am looking at painting the walls, putting up trim, putting a roman shade in, adding some plant life and building up a table. Looking into a couple of benches to put in there as well which I am thinking about building vs. buying -- so much cheaper!! I will leave all the details to my hubby which is much better at the woodworking than I. Although I am thinking a couple of nice Ikea chairs would also be wonderful.

Also coming up is the 4th Annual City-Wide Open Studios hosted by Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis (CAMSTL). I have been busy getting lots of work together for this as last year was very successful. The gallery (Soulard Art Market) will have their Open Studio date on July 25th from 10am - 4pm. We have well over 100 folks come through in a matter of a few hours.

Have been trying to get the gallery revamped to reflect many fantastic events we have coming up including "Spoked" a bicycle themed art exhibition that runs in conjunction with the Tour of Missouri in September. This is a huge event for the gallery and St. Louis as a whole.

August -- Roxotica is coming! Cirque du erotic was a huge success and I am really looking forward to helping with this upcoming show! More Info soon!

August -- Donating artwork to an animal charity. Am excited on how this will turn out. They sent me a canvas that is roughly 8 x 10..... running through so many ideas with this one.

In August I will start planning once again "Naughti Gras" which will run in early 2010. Get your Naughti Art ready folks!! If you would like to volunteer, perform, or would like to be a sponsor please contact me.

December is not far away! I will be posting a call for art on the Soulard Art Market website regarding a show called "Remastered". This show will exhibit works from local artists that attempt recreations from the Art Masters in their own medium and style. My husband and I are curating this show. I am really excited and curious to see how the results come.

Today I am enjoying the weather outside and getting these cabinet fronts done. They are driving me nuts! Can we say get done already?

Have a terrific July 4th!!

Recent thoughts

Hello all! It has been a little bit since my last post. Been a busy bee on top of being ill for the last month. Getting better :)

My last post was regarding a friend that had recently passed away. The situation was unexpected and still shocks me. It definitely hits the heart and soul deeply. She will be missed.

The SAM gallery recently had the traveling exhibition "The Sketchbook Project" hosted by Art House Coop of Atlanta, GA. We had a great turnout and I was amazed at how many people would love looking at these sketchbooks trying to figure out what the artist is really all about. It was also the premiere opening for "Rock Paint Scissors" Curated by Deanna Chafin with works by Bob Reuter, Julie Malone, and David Langley.

Bob Reuter's photography pieces were simply amazing. The subject matter was often rough, edgy, and theatrical in a way. They also were dramatic and darkly romantic. Each photograph left me wanting to know more about the person. I look forward to his future snapshots. Bob is also a Saint Louis native and takes pictures of the people that he meets in his course of life.

Julie Malone's new work is seriously leaving me in awe. Most people know I am not a huge fan of abstract. I appreciate the abstract work and the use of shapes and colors but just never found myself drawn to it as much as others. Maybe it is a realist perfectionist thing? I LOVED this woman's work. I generally paint nudes and most of them are female so I am drawn more towards roundness and circular shapes. Julie primarily paints square designs. Her use of color and the spatial techniques in placement of the squares and surrounding shapes were wonderful. I found different moods in each piece. The color was complimentary or contrasted well against each other to the point where I was in love. Julie is quite a personality as well!

Every time I have seen David Langley's work I find myself staring into the work, medium and subjects. The imagery is often from a time most of us do not know or remember. It faces a different mood between gender roles and the exploitation of retro pop culture. David puts a modern spin on these images and utilizes a collage approach in the work combining several images to create a story. Sometimes the subject is daring whilst the other's can amuse or humor me and draw me in to a piece to a wonderful puzzle known as Langley to many.

This exhibition will be open from March 10th through April 5th, 2009 at Soulard Art Market.