Sunday, November 28, 2010

Thoughts On Balance

Pears, 2009.
My resolution for 2011 can be summed up in one big seemingly unattainable word: BALANCE. This comes after a few years of truly realizing what balance isn't: running and scrambling from project to project and trying to eek out every bit of work I could out of myself, leaving relaxation for another day which seemingly never comes.

As a teen, drawing in sketchbooks and riding horses, I knew that I would one day live in the country, gardening every morning and painting in the afternoons. Carebears would my muse (just kidding). As an adult, art is still a very big part of my life. Unable to take on the role of "starving" artist (though much respect for those who refuse to compromise their dream), I found a job and am currently an evening artist.

While I would absolutely love to be a full-time artist, living in the country with a large studio with (YAY) natural light, I'm pretty content where I am. I have the best family in the world, am able to do my part in supporting them and have a job that allows me to be pretty creative. I thank God daily for the blessings in my life. At the same time I feel that I need to continue to improve my technical abilities and life balance.

My solution: baby steps. First off, let's go bottom to top.

Lately I've been reflecting on the impact of food as fuel for my creative process. I'm not talking about the impact of food as subject matter, but actually making healthier and more meaningful choices about what I eat and where it comes from.

The more I read and learn about food the more I realize that this integral part of our health and being has a large impact on our outlook and the way we feel as a whole. Reasonably, we can assume that our creativity would pull from this spring. I've never felt "tortured". I have, however, felt the strain of trying to paint whilst completely and mentally drained. It doesn't happen.

I've been reading a bit and watching a bit and the correlation I've started to notice in my own process has me encouraged to try to create more balance in my life, starting with something as simple as a garden. I'm not going to list summarily what I've learned past the point of saying we are starting a garden, farmer's market-ing what I can't grow and a compost bin, things I should have done a long time ago (I try to do a garden every year but my lack of focus usually ends up with it withering and dying). I've been reading "In Defense of Food" and watching some good documentaries that bring forth some interesting ideas. For more on Michael Pollan and his book, check this out.

As an artist I'm working to get a good system in place for my work. More on that later...

Saturday, November 27, 2010

My Spin On Black Friday/Cyber Monday

Etsy recently set up the ability to use coupon codes in our shops, and I thought I'd put this to good use by setting one up for my readers!

Use coupon code BLGRDR2010 at checkout to receive 10% off your order. Offer expires Dec 31st 2010, or as close whereabouts I get online to close the code after that point.

So many talented etsians have been working to make shopping this season truly one of a kind, and I wanted to do my part. So go ahead, check it out...

Blip of An Update

The last few months have been hectic to say the least. I have moved my studio not once, but twice, deciding pretty quickly that the space in my basement would not do at all, no matter how many natural look lights I installed. I am now unpacking on the 2nd floor of my house (poor hubby), after repainting the room from it’s previous very yellow yellow (I like bright colors in real life, too) to a neutral off-white, so as to reflect the light coming in from the window.

One day I would love to have a studio to catch the morning light that has room for all my art supplies. For now I am instead putting energy into maximizing the space I have in this 10′ x 13′ room. I’ve put a metroshelving unit into the closet to hold supplies & blank canvas, I’ve carefully laid down rugs over the carpet to help me from ruining the carpet underneath, and have started packing away my unsold work (someone is going to get a deal). There isn’t room for much storage and it wouldn’t be good to have it too cramped, I get to feeling cramped myself.

I have two projects that have been ongoing for a while, an illustration project and the commission that my readers have been able to watch progress. I’m anxious to get back to work, and hopefully find time to update my online shop as well. Poor neglected online shop. My September grand event was derailed by my hissy fit over dull lighting.

Add into this a full-time job, a college class or two and being a mom and it equals one busy artist. I thought about setting my art aside for a while but I couldn’t do it… I think it’s the only thing keeping me centered. This momma needs her quiet time and creative outlet and besides, it is who I am.




Arabian ready to go on another journey...

In other news, about the time I realized I had actually forgotten to send a print of Arabian in Color to her new home (frazzled much?) another print sold to Colorado! By now I believe I have this print thing down. Saved the color settings, invested in some great archival quality sleeves and backing board (took a while to track these down) and started signing in the front bottom corner. The prints are a great hit and are fantastic for gifts. Received some wonderful feedback from the buyer as well. Made my week brighter!

At this point things are starting to return to normalcy a bit. I’m still unpacking and am taking advantage of this extended weekend to really dig into things. The website is a bit more streamlined and will continue to improve, and over all things are good. Feeling positive and actually managed to get some quick sketches done this weekend for some new ideas which spurred yet another idea… but more on that later.

Katie

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Finishing Streetview

My studio assistant and I put some finishing touches on Streetview.

Studio assistant is a very quick learner. Don't touch the wet paint!

As you may have gathered from the title, I finished Streetview today. The pictures above were taken in my cluttered studio while I tried to balance baby and painting all in one. I'm quite a bit behind in my projects as I was out most of last week and spent this week fighting off a nasty cold. Feeling better now and the completion of at least one of my in progress works makes me feel quite accomplished today. Just in time to catch some great Fourth of July fireworks.

So now, without further ado and details of my DayQuil fueled life today, here is Streetview, completed!

Streetview 7/4/10

or

Hup Holland Hup!

I should have posted this yesterday but I've been a bit under the weather. Marco, being dutch, and Abigail, being half-dutch, were dressed quite appropriately for the Holland quarter final against Brazil yesterday.

Now Abby has to wear her Dutch jersey on any day Holland is playing. Now that USA is out I don't mind - the excitement is contagious!

Katie

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Hyde Park Clock Featured Treasury

Check it out, a great treasury by JuniperEve! Thanks for featuring Hyde Park Clock! Summer Travels Treasury

Snap it up!

-Katie

Sunday, June 20, 2010

The Four Foot Chicken

Funky Chicken!

Here is the chicken I have been mentioning. If you want to see Mr. Chicken in person, visit Meadows Photography in Brookville, IN. They will be open sometime next month, I'll post details when I have them!

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Tale of A Special Dog

It's no secret that I get a lot of inspiration from our four-legged friends. Today I realized just how attached we become to our furry family members, and thanks to the good work of a wonderful vet, my fuzzy Phoebe is going to be around a little longer.

Phoebe is an Australian Cattle Dog, or Blue Heeler. Like many of her kind she has made a life of bringing joy to the two-legged in her life and has been at my side through tragedy, happiness, and everything in between. She was there when I left for Europe, hanging on my old bed, and waiting in the drive when I arrived home two years later, married and a bit more grown. When we moved to Cincinnati, Phoebe came with us and became our first family pet. I remember coming home from soccer practice to her cuddles and going for runs with her easily (easily) keeping pace.

In the last five years or so she has gotten older, and now is twelve, facing thirteen. The grey hairs have been intruding in amongst her black ones on her muzzle, her pace has slowed (but not by much), and the big-hearted pup that is constantly wanting to go for a car ride is having to take it a little easier. We had a scare this morning and I was positive that I would only have memories this afternoon, but somehow she pulled through. She's not out of the woods yet, but I'm pretty sure I'll be painting a cattle dog soon.

Thanks, God, for giving me a little more time with my Phoebe girl.

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Painting in the Morning



Recently I've been butting my head against the wall from frustration. Not from my work, but because any working mom with a one year old knows that finding time to work at home and entertain a little one can be a little hairy at times. Add in wet paint and you start to get the idea.

Abby's new game is aptly called touch the wet canvas! Luckily she has only been successful once, and that was while I was working on an underpainting, but artistically I can be a bit neurotic anyway, and with trying to dodge little hands it was just getting to be too much!

This morning I woke up quite a bit earlier than usual and rather than going back to bed, I shuffeled downstairs and started working on one of my wip's. The morning light started to come in a little while later, I'm energized and fresh, and Abby's asleep. Why haven't I started this before? My paint is safe from precious but mischievious hands, at last.

Below are several of my wips. Forgive the glare (taken before the light started coming in).

Lipizzaner WIP 6/16/10

Mother and Son WIP 6/16/10

Spanish Rider 6/16/10

Streetview WIP 6/16/10

Subscribe via feedburner or google for tomorrow's post to hear about my upcoming adventure with a four foot chicken and where you can buy my work in Indiana!

Katie

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Arabian In Gold

Arabian In Gold, 2010, Mixed Media (Acrylic, Charcoal, Graphite)

Finished a new piece yesterday. Arabian In Gold started out as a study but I decided to go ahead and turn it into a full piece on cold press paper. You can buy a small print or the original via my etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/katiesstudio or you can play around with frame options and papers via my imagekind shop http://katiesstudio.imagekind.com/. Whatever you decide to do, have fun!

Yesterday we (Hubby, daughter and I) went to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. It was gorgeous and I immediately wanted to chain myself to the nearest barn and never leave. Managing to get many beautiful shots before the camera was full, I downloaded them onto the pc last night and am already working on some ideas for my next painting.

Now I currently have in progress:

  • Lipizzaner

  • Street View

  • Portrait, Mother and Son

  • Irises
Off to do the monthly books (yuk) and get some painting completed (yay). 'Til next time!


Thursday, June 3, 2010

Lipizzaner Work In Process

This is a piece I've been working on for about a month now. While trying to finish the middle stallion, I am quite pleased in the progress I've made. The canvas is huge, 36" x 54", and progress is moving along.


As a visual artist my work can take anywhere from an afternoon to months. Poetry In Motion was a path that encompassed well over a year of intense labor and periods of reflection (i.e. I will never finish this painting, let's stick you against the wall.... weeks later... ok, I forgive you, let's get back to work).

Right now I'm in the "let's get back to work" phase on this. The client I'm working with has been instrumental in the direction of this piece and I can not wait to be able to wrap it up and see what it will look like on her wall, in California. This piece has a while to go on its journey, but my time with it is not quite through yet.

Friday, May 21, 2010

About Me & Page for Artists Added

My dream is to create a great website for artists with a wealth of information available for selling, buying, etc. As the ideas for this are not completely concrete, I offer you two new pages with information as I gather them.

Check out the About Me and For Artists pages and let me know what you think. If you have something to add, please let me know. I'd love to be able to organize this stuff while I work on the next steps...

Katie

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

New Painting and Other Things

 Above is the small illustration-style acrylic painting I worked on last night. I have always had an interest in illustration and particularly, the Beatrix Potter illustrations. A few years ago I completed a few sketches of small chipmunks and squirrels and while I was looking back to reference some pieces for the Lipizzaner piece I came across them again and decided to turn them into small paintings. The above piece measures 4" x 4" and is available for sale in the etsy shop.

This picture was too cute to pass up. Abby likes to hang out in the studio so I got her some crayons to try on for size. She took off! Also marked was my floor, the wall and a few other things but hey, creativity knows no bounds. :-)

Lastly, check out a treasury I recently pulled together on etsy. It features a few favorite painters as well as a couple things I just loved too much to leave out.

Til next time!

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Work In Progress

Above are pictures of a work in progress I am roughing out. Otherwise everything in the studio is progressing as usual. Oh, we now have a studio bird! Have a little budgie to keep me company. Still thinking of names for her. Any ideas?

Katie

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Design On A Dime Gala

Image from Zatista.com

The Zatista wall was beautiful, and you can see my piece in the lower right hand corner. From what I understanding the event was amazing, and Zatista was amazing in working to ensure their part was a success.

Things in the studio are hectic and moving along. I'm off to do some work on a currently untitled commission. Will post pictures soon!

Katie

Thursday, May 6, 2010

I have An Amazing Daughter! Studio News, Too ;-)

Abby watching her toons this morning.

This little girl is a constant surprise. Picture early morning, changed diaper, place baby (or little girl) on the floor just to have her pick up her dirty diaper and throw it away herself. I didn't even realize she caught on to these things. Amazing, my daughter's a genius! Now if I can only teach her to put away laundry.... hmm...

In other news a good friend is having an opening at the Nordheim Gallery tomorrow night. Stop by to see her work and tell her hello! Ruthe Wyman, http://www.rwymanart.com/ . Reception is 6-9 pm tomorrow.

Today is day 2 of studio set up. Hoping to get some actual painting completed. Will post pics soon!

-Katie

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

New Studio!

Studio space has been located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Can't wait to get things moved in.

Updates have been made to the blog. Did you know I'm on Twitter? Brand-new development. You can follow katiesstudio or click the button in the left hand navigation to be redirected to my feed. As always I'm on facebook and have the website, http://www.bunschotenstudio.com/.

I might have blogged about Zatista.com before, but if you are looking for some great navigational tools and a beautiful setting to view original artwork make sure you stop by. My store is located here.

Working with Zatista I selected a great piece to contribute to the Design On A Dime Charity Event this Friday. Stop by if you are in NYC!



Sunday, May 2, 2010

Sanctuary In Blue

This is Sanctuary In Blue. I'm just ceasing working on it now and am setting it aside to see if it's finished....I like the rough look of it and wanted to keep it a bit raw.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

Saturday Coffee Musings


Above - another wip photo of street view!
Etsy - I want a commenting feature on etsy listings so we can tell people how cool their stuff is, and maybe get dialogue going like in the treasuries. To see this thread and add your input, click HERE!
Now on to business. Studio has been hopping! I'm waiting on my mucho huge-o canvas to get here so I can start on the Lipizzaner commission. Until then I'm working on a portrait and two cityscapes.
Last night we hung out in the backyard and I was able to snap some great pics of my daughter. I'm going through them to see if one might become a painting. Sketching all afternoon, I placed my sketchbook on a patio chair only to have it covered in sidewalk chalk (thank you Abby!). Got to love the creative side exhibiting itself. Go Abby! Next time on the patio pls!

Off to have more coffee, this time with an artist friend. Back in the studio this aft!

Friday, April 30, 2010

Street View - WIP


I'm attaching a small view of the work in progress I started called Street View. It's based on some pictures I took while in New Orleans a few months ago and is reminiscent of Vibe of the City which is being auctioned off in NYC next week (7th). I've already completed a bit of progress since this one and I will be posting those pictures soon. In this photo I've roughed out the basic shapes and tried to grab the feeling I am hoping to evoke in this piece. My favorite part of this is the sky which I painted in vivid lime green and hints of red oxide. Who said skies had to be blue?

Katie

Thursday, April 29, 2010

New Commission - Lipizzaners

Yesterday I officially got a completely wonderful commission to start on very quickly. It will be a 3 foot by 4.5 foot painting of Lipizzaner stallions in their airs above the ground. Completely, completely energized and invigorated by this one. The client is great, the idea is great and I am heading to the gallery today to get the handstretched canvas I'll be using to do this one. I'll be posting pictures of the work in progress here on the blog at various stages.



If you live in Cincinnati you may have heard of Essex Studios. I'll be speaking to them next week and visiting their open house May 7th to look into renting some space myself. There are some larger projects I would like to start and the small home studio I currently work out of is starting to run out of space. I have been waiting to get involved in oils until I have separate work space to be able to set up.

More info soon - for now I need to get painting!!!

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

WIPs

The two works in progress I'm in the midst of are called Sanctuary in Blue and Street View. Street View has a bit of a Vibe of the City feel to it and Sanctuary in Blue is an energetic yet tranquil piece (I have a hard time putting those words in the same sentence but those are words that remind me of this one). The finished versions will be up soon. Oh, the suspense!

Hope everyone is doing well and thanks for reading!

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Great Cougar It's Cold

I don't think it's fair to subject an artist in the midst of enjoying the blossoming warmth of spring to a sudden cold snap, so this week I'm pretty cranky about that.

Tomorrow is the opening of Vivid and I hope everyone can come. It's pretty casual and laid back. If you know me you know I'm a jeans and t-shirt kinda gal, so I hope the whole event is inviting, fun and a great place to just come hang out.

Until it warms a little I think I will return to hibernating. Goodbye! :-)

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Vibe of the City - off to NYC!

Vibe of the City has been donated to a design charity event in NYC. Sending it off shortly but hopefully not before it is the star of my short show @ the Nordheim Gallery next week. Speaking of which I'm sending out the invitation to those on my email list tonight.

This leaves me with very little work in the studio and lots of painting to do! I'm placing a new order for canvas next week and am working on two unnamed cityscapes which will hopefully be finished soon.

Sorry for the short post but I will upload some pics soon. Until then enjoy your week and thanks for reading the blog!

Monday, April 12, 2010

Vivid Invitation

VIVID

I will be having the opening reception to my solo show, VIVID, April 21st from 6-8 pm. This selection of my work is being held by Covington Independent Schools and will be in the Nordheim Gallery on the Holmes Campus. For an invitation please click here.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Prints in the Shop!

Vibe of the City, 2009

Prints are in the shop! Right now I've posted Vibe of the City and Funky Giraffe, with Arabian coming soon, possibly later today. Stay posted and if you see one you like, buy it to support this artist!


Storing Artwork

With proliferation comes storage issues, at least in my studio. I work out of a small 10' x 10' room in my home since my daughter was born, and the sole closet is precious space that I plan to utilize to store the work I bring home between shows.

Now that I've been exhibiting for a good period of time, I've started to develop a plan to store my work. Again the unique size of canvas comes into play. Horizontally stored work is definitely not ideal, and leaning work against each other is never a good idea, resulting in overstretched canvas, possibly damaged paint, and scuffed frames. What sort of solution do I have within a limited budget? Although I could purchase specially designed and manufactured storage solutions, the money required to put down on those would be a serious dent to anyone's artist fund.

Why not build our own?

I may be over-generalizing, but I think America is on the cusp of being in a major do-it-yourself phase. With the recessing ebbing many of us have become more appreciative of the resources we have, and debt has taken on a stigma that makes living within one's means a much more palatable alternative.

With this in mind, why would we spend up to a thousand dollars or beyond on furniture that can be easily made ourselves? This art rack will sit in my closet, so my design will essentially be an upright rack made with a good quality wood approximately 1" x 4" or similar. Slots between will allow space for the work without touching it and lined at the top and bottom to provide a secure fit, or at least that is the design currently in my mind. I have yet to draw out a blueprint but the idea is to set this contraption upon wheels so that in the event of a show it can be easily taken out and wheeled to the gallery. When home, I can wrap my pieces in dust cover and know that they are being stored in the most careful way possible without sacrificing precious storage space.

What do you think? How do you store your work?

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Packaging Artwork

In the past year my collector base has grown from the southeast to nationwide. This growth has been phenomenal but also creates it's own logistical implications. Packaging, shipping charges and keeping track of contact information is something that requires time and patience.

Over the next few weeks I'm going to be evaluating some ways to approach these duties in a time-saving and user-friendly manner. Some of the topics I'll be working on are:

  • Collecting contact information from my guestbooks, Quickbooks, website, etc, into one workable and easily adaptable database.
  • Finding boxes to fit the unique shapes of my canvas artwork and finding a supplier that works with small businesses and enables smaller bulk purchases.
  • Putting together a shipping table so I can have a quick resource guide for my shipping charges. I would like to be able to offer more shipping coverage without building a quote.

I've been migrating towards more sales online which has made this necessary. The contact base is going to be time intensive in the beginning, but this way I'll have a comprehensive list of people for my show invitations.

Things to keep in mind when creating contact databases:

  1. Keep track of what sort of contact this is. How were they referred to my work/website?
  2. Do they require updates on all work, local showings, blog updates, etc?
  3. What pieces does this collector own currently?
  4. Do not over email. I refrain from using email except for show announcements and possibly an update 1 - 2 times per year. If a collector would like to be updated frequently, they can subscribe to the blog.
  5. Last contact date.
  6. Format. If you use Excel many times this database is exportable and can be used when creating invitations.

Things to keep in mind when packaging:

  1. Allow enough room around the canvas for whatever cushion you use.
  2. Be green. Either re-use mailing material for small pieces or buy biodegradable packing materials. I loathe styrofoam peanuts. Who likes to spend more time cleaning up packaging than they do opening their purchase? And just how long does it take until these peanuts break down? A looong time, if ever. If you need packaging peanuts, starch peanuts are out there which break down faster and are more eco-friendly.
  3. If you can buy packaging in units of 25 boxes or more it goes a long way towards lowering your packaging costs. One vendor I'm going to look into is U-Line.

What have I left out? Let me know.

Monday, April 5, 2010

Horse 8 x 10 Sold, New Solo Coming Up!

Just about as soon as I posted Horse 8" x 10" to my etsy shop she was sold and off to Oklahoma City. As much as I enjoyed having that painting brighten my studio, it now has it's own place to make a very vibrant presence known.

I have an artist reception/solo show for the month of April (well, the 11th through end of the month) at the Nordheim Gallery in Northern Kentucky. This gallery is set on the beautiful and massive Holmes High School Campus. Invitations will go out as soon as they are finished - the reception will be one of the last Wednesdays of the month, either the 16th or the 21st I believe. Email me if you would like to receive a personal invitation.

May is shaping up to be a busy month as well! I have a few possible engagements then and will post details as soon as I have them.

Now being painted in the studio:
  • Commission - people @ the pool table 12" x 24"
  • Commission - winter horses 12" x 24"
  • Cityscape - New Orleans Sanctuary 12" x 24"
  • Commission - Portrait of a mother and son.

Now I'm working on a few proposals and am busy creating new work. Also ordering some canvas. Phew, things are getting busy! How wonderful is that?!

Katie

Thursday, March 18, 2010

A Super Short Post

I'm running late and this time change still has not gotten a foothold in my mental sleep cycle so here goes studio news in a nutshell -

  • got a super interesting email yesterday about an exhibit opp, going to follow up on that today.
  • in the middle of a very cool 12 x 24 inch piece - can not wait to finish this!
  • decided to take my 8 x 10 painting from the other day (the horse portrait) and make it into a 20 x 24 inch. that's how much i love the palette i used.

Sorry for the almost twitter length blog post but this chick has to run. Til next time!

Katie

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Got My Art Supplies In!


I've already used one of the 8" x 10" canvases that came with them, as you can see above! This is also posted to my etsy shop (which has become my sole place to sell my originals online).
I've decided that it is much easier to stick to no more than 3 main sizes of work in order to make shipping easier. I'm learning on the fly, here, people. This one is an 8" x 10" acrylic on canvas.
Most of yesterday was spent going through boxes of supplies but there wasn't much time to do anything with them so that task was left until today. I still have some 8" x 10", 12" x 24" and even some 20" x 24" canvas left, all three becoming my favorite sizes to work on. In addition to ease of box-finding, I also keep open back frames at the ready, which is primarily why I sell them all unframed. I save money by reusing the black frames and whoever purchases my work saves money in buying an unframed piece, and being able to frame it themself(ves).
There are some pictures of my most recent trip to New Orleans on cd around here somewhere and once I find those I may start a few more paintings. Happiness lies for this artist in feeling well equipped to continue painting with a full (unlimited) palette!

Friday, March 12, 2010

Progress and Tips for Blog

Howdy! I'm inserting a picture of where I am on this work in process. As you can see from my pencil marks, erasures, and more marks, I never start out perfectly. The horse in the forefront needs to move up and I believe I'll make the mare and foal in the back a little larger before I make a lot of headway into this one. You can see the ochre ground and some loosely laid highlight and lowlights in prussian blue and titanium white. It's taking shape, though, and I think I will really like this one.

My picture taking ability is gradually getting a little better. Phew for that. I am loving Aviary but Windows 7 has some extremely user-friendly tools that come standard. You may recognize the Picture Manager software right off the bat (is that an Office or an OS thing?) but the regular Windows picture viewer is also pretty cool.

Now I'm off to start dinner and chase down my daughter who is in hot pursuit of the Beagle at the moment...

A QUICK CALL FOR HELP:
I need to make some design changes to At The Studio and am looking for some tips or help from someone who knows html and perhaps some design skills. If doing it for good karma won't work, I'm willing to possibly barter to some extent. If you are this html guru and are thinking of opening a dialogue on this, email me @ katiesstudio@gmail.com. I might also check out the blogger forums on this.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Signs of Spring

This morning I couldn't help but notice the tulip bulbs in the front yard are making a more pronounced appearance out of their winter slumber. I wonder if they stretch and say aaah, that was a good nap...



Nice, hmmm? Watching the garden's progress really helps me to feel invigorated and inspired to create, so now onto the studio.

I applied a layer of yellow ochre yesterday. I like applying the first layer or two with an artist's sponge (or paper towel in a pinch). Using a glazing technique for this piece, I'm planning to gradually build up my layers over the next few weeks, the finished project looking very similar to the other one in the pair, Three Horses. Next I moved on to order my art supplies.

My favorite time saver to ordering paints is to export the paint list from Dick Blick's website and then to mark off the paints I already have. Once I do this I then evaluate which ones I will need for upcoming projects and make my order. I forgot to order the modeling paste I need for an upcoming project so I might have to stop at the local shop for that, but otherwise I did okay. I'm also meaning to check out Artist Supply Warehouse for their selection and pricing, a tip I recently got from another artist. The site isn't much to look at but many times the best ones aren't. Maybe I can cut down on my mounting canvas supply prices. I will let you know how it goes.

Tonight is the BCVAA meeting that we are holding at the local Barnes & Noble. If you live in the Northern Kentucky area meet me there! Starts @ 6:30.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

67 Today!

I feel like my mood the last few weeks has been partly dictated by the weather. Ready for this long and seemingly neverending winter to be over (has it really only been 4 months?), I'm going to be evaluating the waking state of my garden and perhaps prune roses today, Abby in tow.

Over the last few days I've re-organized my studio (thanks honey!) and moved things around in order to provide a clearer workspace. My challenge has been to think outside the box so I can maximize the small space I have in my studio/Abby's playroom. Below are some pictures of the after (and how we share our space).

Abby playing peacefully (for the moment!)


ABBY IN THE STUDIO.egg  on Aviary

Below: My desk/Abby's play area...
STUDIO2.egg  on Aviary

Lastly, my creative space. Easel and painting stuff is stored in another closet in preparation for some fabric projects I'm working out details on.

studio3.egg  on Aviary

How do the other creative parents out there manage their studio work and playspace?

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Super Saturday!

Let me tell you a story. Once there was a budding young artist who, enthralled with the idea of art quilts, starting piecing and learning more about the art of quilting. Then, one morning, the evil fat cat who occasionally slept on her bed decided that a Z quilt loom made for an excellent hammock, and that ruining the quilt in progress was merely collateral damage. Thus, young artist returns from school and, dismayed at the sight of evil fat cat on her quilt, decided that quilting was not for her.

Ten years and 0 quilts later I am going to give it one more shot. Evil fat cat has done to join cat heaven so I am in earnest hopes that my current fat cat, Maggie, does not decide to ruin another stretched quilt in fat cat's memory.

As a painter I love working with bright color and exploring different techniques. In fact, as I emailed to a friend recently, the only real constant about me sometimes seems to be change.

Fabric has much the same allure to me as bright bold color does in my artwork. While working on a painting idea recently it occured to me that many of my painting designs would apply well to an applique and/or piecing technique so today I am oiling my sewing machine and working on some ideas. I'm hoping to create my first design in some mod/retro fabric.

Other things on the studio to-do list today:

Learn Aviary, a great photo editing tool offered FREE online. I'm learning Photoshop and Illustrator in my other career working for a specialty food company so I'm very interested in seeing how the two compare for the moolah. Today will be sunny (yay for almost spring!) so I'm going to take advantage of the natural light.

Complete commission to pair with a sold work I recently completed, Three Horses.

Find some great fabric and research fabric dye. Etsy.com has a supplies section with some great sellers. I try to buy handmade/micro-business whenever possible. New Year's Resolution. Easiest one I've ever had. :-)