Paintings on Exhibit at Imago Gallery

This past friday was the opening reception for the Open Community Exhibit at Imago Gallery in Warren, RI. Artists from all over RI and southeastern MA showcased an eclectic variety of work, from brilliant still-lifes to vibrant surrealist and abstract paintings to richly layered ceramics and glass work - and everything in between.

A very full house made for a highly energetic evening, and the gallery did an excellent job of curating.

With open, non-juried shows, it can be quite a challenge trying to pull such a diverse body of work together and have it all flow smoothly, sometimes more so than with a thematic show, be it juried or not. Despite the open agenda, this particular exhibition I thought had a surprisingly cohesive feel.

I was very excited to my elephant babies hanging proudly for the world to see. It was the first time I had seen the three of them displayed together, and quite interesting for me to see my progress from piece to piece.

Family - Silk, charcoal, ink on canvas

Wisdom - Silk, oil, wax medium on canvas

Tribe - Silk, oil, wax medium on canvas

---

Here are some progress photos of Wisdom:

Hand dyed batik silk, mounted on panel. I studied the matrix of the lines for nearly three weeks before I started painting the elephant. I needed to let her emerge in her own time. In the meantime, I filled my journal with sketches, and worked on little side elephant projects.

Oil underpainting: the elephant beginning to form from the matrix of the silk. Her features are a combination of about a dozen different photographs of African elephants.

Layers and layers of oil thoughtfully applied. I was very interested in preserving the integrity of the silk through a certain level of transparency.

Glazes of deep violet and raw umber were added for contrast, and I softened her eyes.

A final overcoat of wax, and she was ready to go out into the world.

Namaste.

New Beginnings

The New Year has been off to a great start. I started by putting my Etsy shop on vacation from 1/1 - 1/10 with the sole purpose of taking that time to re-connect with my creative side and take a break from filling orders. It's been so much fun discovering, testing, and making art that I want to share some of the treasures that have emerged!

The Full moon rising over my studio last night was so inspiring.

My fascination with elephants has re-emerged. I recently began researching their behavior and cross-cultural symbolism, which most commonly revolves around strength, wisdom, and endurance. I thought this shamanic website did a great job of expressing the many characteristics and traits of the elephant that can be directly paralleled with humanity, which is what interests me most - we have so much to learn from them:

"Elephants can teach us that gentleness, commitment, and communication in relationships is very powerful and necessary to keep relationships alive, trusting and loving, whether it be friends, family or partner. Deeply committed to all creatures with whom they have relationships, elephants are tough when protecting others and gentle when nurturing them. The matriarch (the oldest, most experienced female leader of a herd) leads in a way that is both gentle and inclusive. Elephants are able to communicate telepathically. This can teach us how to truly listen to others.

Elephants are so similar, yet so different to our own species. We have so much to learn from them! Elephants have emotions that are comparable to human - love, joy, jealousy, rage. Just like humans, young elephants are dependent on their mums, until they reach adulthood. The general lifespan of an elephant also closely parallels that of humans. When a baby is born, the entire community gathers around the mother and newborn and rumble with joy. This is equivalent to tears rolling down their faces. Just like human babies, elephants learn about getting along in the physical environment. For instance, elephant calves have to learn the many ways in which their trunks can be used. The newborn elephant is born into a community of love. Calves have more than one mother so to speak, as all are willing, eager teachers, from the matriarch, to her offspring and their young. They want to nurture, protect and help the youngest among them develop. They also teach first time mothers how to develop their own nurturing skills. Loyal and affectionate elephants would risk their lives for the sake of others in a family group. Wild elephants have been known to grieve and even shed tears when a family member has passed away. Elephants have amazing memories and when mistreated they often seek revenge. Elephants show us that by supporting and loving one another, our own ability to thrive in the physical world is enhanced. We learn from them to pass on the gift of nurturing we received in our early years, be it from our biological family or others who helped us grow into who we are now. We must honour the elders of our community and nurture the young. Like the elephant, we need to help ease the transitions of those who are going into adulthood with gentle love, wisdom, patience and compassion. By having open hearts and minds, we can create strong relationships within the community, therefore building a strong community. "

With this knowledge, I decided to paint a family.

Elephant study in vine charcoal and ink, on gessoed panel. Charcoal and dye studies on recycled newsprint underneath. I was intending to use this as a study with a new collage technique, but fell in love with the image, so I left it as is.

Kitty rests on charcoal drawings.

Here is the underpainting with vine charcoal on hand-built canvas for a piece for our living room. I was especially interested in keeping the background elephants semi transparent, as if they could be spirit elephants traveling in stride with the rest of the family. I was decisive in each elephant's personality and age, and imagined how they might interact with one another in the picture. I especially love the little baby who is helping lead the heard, who inquisitively turns to look at her audience.

The next step was painting the atmospheric overlay using habotai silk and acid dyes. Unlike my silk scarves, this was not suspended in a frame - I just painted directly onto the silk on the table, with wax paper underneath. The pattern the wax paper picked up was just as interesting as what was produced on the silk... I added it to my stash of used wax paper that I've been hoarding.

The next step was mounting the dried silk onto the canvas. I must have done at least a dozen tests of different ways to work with the silk in layers, and you can imagine how excited I was when I discovered an acrylic medium that would permanently mount the silk to the canvas while also preserving the delicacy of the charcoal underneath - using a wax medium would have smudged everything beyond recognition. The one thing I didn't take into account was the sheer size of the silk made it impossible to mount smoothly - it wrinkled and bubbled in areas, but it actually worked out in my favor as it really helped emphasize the enduring heat of the climate and mimicked the leathery texture of the elephants' skin.

Next step was re-drawing with the vine charcoal to add more definition. Looking back, I actually really love this stage where the atmospheric quality is very much like a dream or a mirage. With just a bit more definition I think this could have been an excellent stopping point...

...however, I wanted to see how all of my tests would translate onto this large scale - so I filled in more of the elephants, and went back in with a quill pen and ink well to really emphasize the contour lines of these beautiful creatures.

I also used the pen & ink in some areas to capture the finely detailed wrinkles of their skin, and I chose to give the background elephants contours, but leave their bodies semi-transparent.

I may make a few slight adjustments but am very pleased with how this came out! It just needs a title now.

This was another experimental piece that I made yesterday, title TBD. Remember how I mentioned that I save all of the wax paper that I paint on top of? I finally found a use for it!!! For this I used a gorgeous piece of blue/purple wax paper and mounted it to a clear acrylic frame. I then used some recycled newsprint (much like what the painting is resting on top of) and did a quick sharpie drawing of an elephant and mounted that to the inside of the frame, which created a really interesting ghostly effect (you can see it most in her ear). I then went over the top of the image with more sharpie for added definition. It is fascinating to me how different this looks when backlit, and lighting and installation is definitely going to play a role in my work this year.

These next few months are going to be about finding balance - how to maintain my etsy shop as well as make time for this sort of creative play, which is so important - in addition to working my day job and balancing a social life with friends and family. I think it's going to be a great year, full of challenges and surprises. I hope you'll continue to follow along!

Thanks for reading!

Handmade and Vintage Holiday Wrap-Up

What a holiday it has been. I feel very blessed to have been able to share this special time of year with family, good friends, good health, and good kitties.

I am so grateful to my customers, many or you new, many more of you returning. Thank you to each and every one of you for helping me surpass even my loftiest goals - what an unbelievable ride it has been this season! Even in a tough economic climate, the support that you have shown for handcrafted has been overwhelmingly positive, and I'm filled with hope for the new year.

I think it goes without saying that I wanted to shop handmade and local for the holidays, and I found some really amazing, unique gifts to give this year - many of them handcrafted by talented artisans, with sprinkles of vintage here and there. I've REALLY been looking forward to sharing these precious gifts with you all, and of course I didn't want to ruin any pre-Christmas surprises, so here is my handmade and vintage holiday wrap-up:

I commissioned these southwestern-inspired margarita glasses for my dad, made by my childhood artist friend Aron Leaman. Absolutely magnificent blown-glass work.

My hubs loved these homemade popcorn seasonings (so tasty), magnetic and fridge-mountable, by GneissSpice...as well as some healthy, scrumptiously-addictive roasted pumpkin seeds from Gerb's that I picked up at Craftopia.

My brother LOVED this handcrafted bottle opener made by HandySamCreations - the vintage, limited edition beer can really made this piece a winner.


I asked for these for myself - my latest obsession: eco-printed tees from Zen Threads - SUPER comfy, and I am in LOVE all of their designs!!

My stocking was stuffed with DELICIOUS local honey from Aquidneck Honey...

...as well as this amazing handmade, heated wrist compress by TheFerrisWheels... after spending 40+ hours typing at a desk and another 40+ hours painting for weeks on end, my wrists couldn't have been happier to receive this precious gift, coupled with hand-crafted arnica oil and lotion made in Vermont by The Body Lounge (these homeopathic remedies are amazing).

Vintage Christmas Cookie cutters by LaurasLastDitch - these are the same cookie cutters we used with my mom when we were kids! I can't wait to continue the tradition... now if only I could get my cookies to taste as good as Mom's... :o)

Personalized pet bowl from Twisted River Clayworks in CT - I ordered the blue one for my sister-in-law. It is even prettier, sturdier, and more precious in person!

Of course, it wouldn't be Christmas without a Catnip Activity Mat or two from Apiary Designs...

For my friend living abroad and Turkey, I found this amazing jeweler on etsy from Istanbul - Misket. Simple and sweet unique designs at great prices.

I am an avid fan of PoPko jewelry and was SO excited to receive these beautiful monarch butterfly earrings from my mom - made with real butterfly wings and cruelty free!

I also found some lovely and unique last-minute gifts in Downcity Providence - thank you Homestyle and Eno Fine Wines on Westminster Street.

We also found an incredibly easy way to give to a variety of local and global charities via Greater Good Network/Gifts That Give More. 100% of every donation is directly donated to the cause of your choice - even if you pay via credit card, this nonprofit website will cover the cost of credit card fees to ensure that every cent goes directly to the charity.

Through this website we also found out about a really exciting initiative right nearby called The Food Project in Boston - largely youth-focused, were volunteers are working to turn abandoned areas into urban farms, where roughly 40% of the harvest is donated to local food banks, and the remaining is sold at local farmer's markets, nourishing the community with healthy, local produce.

• Our Mission: is to grow a thoughtful and productive community of youth and adults from diverse backgrounds who work together to build a sustainable food system. We produce healthy food for residents of the city and suburbs and provide youth leadership opportunities. Most importantly, we strive to inspire and support others to create change in their own communities.

Thanks again to everyone who chose to support handmade for the holidays, and for the many talented artisans for producing such lovely, unique work. Wishing you all light, love, peace, and happiness in the New Year.

Three Big Goals Met!

This past week, I met three big goals that I had set for myself back when I had first opened up my etsy shop on 10-10-10:

1. My scarf was featured in one of the Etsy Finds gift guide emails! If you aren't already receiving these emails and you like finding new items on Etsy, you should consider signing up. Just go to www.etsy.com, scroll down and click "Sign Up" on the bottom left panel and start discovering.

2. My treasury was featured on Etsy's homepage just a few days later, another big goal met! What I found funny about all this was the timing: I was really growing tired of just promoting my self and my Black Friday sale, so I thought it would be refreshing to put together a really lovely collection highlighting other seller's items and hope to bring them more exposure during this historically busy weekend for retail shopping. I spent a good three hours selecting and finalizing this collection, and then the very next morning my scarf appeared in the Etsy Finds email. Talk about karma, right? This was on Etsy's homepage around 6:00 PM EST on Sunday, 11/27.

3. I reached 200 sales in my shop all within the same week! Yippee!

Once the holiday rush is through, I'm definitely going to set aside some time to reflect on these goals met and celebrate. Reflecting on goals met is just as important as setting new goals, I think. I'm just so grateful for everyone's support.

I'm looking forward to this special time to celebrate, but for now, Joy in My Studio has turned into Joy in My Apartment - there is some sort of scarf station in every room of the house, minus the bathroom: painting, steaming, washing, ironing, packing, photo shoots and desk work!

If you're thinking about purchasing a made to order item, please keep in mind that December 15th is the absolute last day you can purchase a made to order item and have it guaranteed before Christmas.

Also, I'm offering Free First Class Shipping in my shop now through December 31st. Those who opt to pay for shipping will be upgraded to Priority for free, and international buyers can get a discount as well. Read more details here.

Thank you again to everyone who has made the decision to support handcrafted this holiday season!

Thanksgiving Weekend SALE!

Special sales going on in my Etsy Shop all weekend long.

Wishing you all a very happy Thanksgiving :)

Thanks for a great first year!

I took a photo of this car's license plate during my trip to the Southwest this past August. It was parked alongside the winding Canyon Road in Santa Fe, NM, a true artist mecca, and it very simply sums up how I have felt about the past year:


One year ago today I was feverishly listing the first items in my etsy shop. I never would have imagined that the website alone would bring in 130 sales in its first year.

I'm so grateful for all of the support from family, friends, colleagues and customers in helping my art and business thrive. Without you, none of this would have been possible...

...and I'm especially grateful to my husband, who recently saved all of my inventory, along with my sanity - by dropping everything he was doing at work and rushing to buy me a new tent right after my old tent collapsed... 45 minutes before a show opening!! :)



And what an absolutely outstanding long weekend we have seen here in New England. We've been blessed with sunny blue skies and 80+ degree weather for the past few days. I officially bid my adieus to Summer with one last trip to the beach...


..and I had my own little Etsy-versary celebration by dusting off my french easel and traveling to some scenic spots right in the neighborhood for some plein air painting. This is something I have wanted to do much more of for a very long time, and I finally gave myself the time and space to get out there - and it was terrific. Warm breezes, no bugs, and beautiful October light. Grateful.

[Pond Study I] Mixed media on hot pressed Arches - 9"x12"

I even painted on location at Lorimar Farms today! I've never painted horses in my life, let alone horses from life. Studying the shifting colors of the landscape, and how the light blanketed these beautiful creatures, constantly in motion, were very fun challenges.

[Horse Study I] - Oil on Canvas - 5"x7"

I've been reading Gruppe on Painting: Direct Techniques in Oil by Emile A. Gruppe, edited by Charles Movalli - both incredibly talented American Impressionist painters from my hometown area of Cape Ann, MA - this is an excellent resource for painting alla prima, and I feel it will help bring greater richness and accuracy to my paintings.

My heart holds a really special place for plein air painting and fine art, and I will be incorporating more of the latter into my creative work over the next year, while still maintaining my scarf business.

[Horse Study II] - Oil on Canvas - 16"x20"

And finally, congratulations to Ana Amanti - using a random number generator, your name was drawn in my contest to win this batik, hand painted maple leaf scarf! Thank you so much to everyone who entered. I really wish I could send you all a scarf! :) And thanks again to everyone who has made it possible for me to do what I love. Cheers to the start of a new year on Etsy!



Have a beautiful Fall, everyone!