Category: art

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Argh! Computer crash meant missed deadline

I have a great computer system, really I do…  Dual monitors, a Dell Inspiron whatever whatever that my techhie hubby set up for me admittedly a while ago, but it is a high quality system all the same.

I think the problem is, I’ve been tooling around with four different web browsers at once.  Long story.  Suffice it to say, with all open at once, there’s a good chance the system will operate somewhat … uhm … inefficiently.  And unfortunately, I didn’t count on that when, as typical last minute suzy on certain things, I put together two fun and I thought very clever “masks” to enter into the Torpedo Factory Masks Exhibition. 

In the end, I took it as a sign that they needed more work before going full out exhibition style public with them.  Structurally they need shoring up, but I like the effect.  Here’s a sneak preview of one:

On another subject, eyes are starting to act funky again.  Perhaps another visit to the optho-neurologist is in order since I was asymptomatic last time?

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Note to self: Skip Goodwill After Steroid Injections

I’ve been under the weather for a while – actually since December and I kept figuring I was fighting something.  Finally gave up and went to the doctor this morning.  Turns out it’s allergies.  Yeah, having the cat inside during winter, practically living in my office is not a good thing.

The doctor gave me a steroid shot and though I intended to stop in for just a very quick look, well, I kinda went overboard at the local Goodwill today.  The kind of manic splurge I haven’t had in years!  It was .99 yellow tag clothing days and the Ralph Lauren white cotton sweater and NY & Co tweed jacket will go quickly on e-bay I’m sure, along with the Aussie made boiled wool cardi.  I’m thinking the $2.99 vintage bowling ball hardcase is too cool to sell, and look at all the glisteny shiny .99 or less items I got for making art.

I’m gonna be busy for a while so if I don’t answer the phone, you’ll understand.  It’s the steroid shot.  =)

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Winter’s Bone and Sinew – New Painting

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A week ago, we had two lovely snowfalls back to back.  It shut the schools down for, well, the entire week.  It also meant closure of Sharp Spring’s Natural Area, an exquisite many acres of nearly virgin land.  I parked outside the gates, and with my Iphone and dog, went exploring and picture-taking.
My plan was to walk a half hour or so, but, entranced by the exquisite beauty of it all, found myself returning to the car nearly two hours later.  Smokey didn’t seem to mind and sprang about in the snow more lively than I’d seen the 10-year-old dalmatian in ages.  I think she felt as uplifted as I did in “owning” the place, unspoiled by human footsteps, tire tracks and more.
I painted the above from one of the photos I’d taken, waivering about whether to add the foreground fence that bracketed the photo on the lower right side.  In the end, I thought the stark expanse more like the breathtaking experience I felt when there.
The title – Winter’s Bone and Sinew – comes from a John Burroughs quote:  Winter has given the bone and sinew to literature, summer the tissues and the blood.
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What the witches brew concocted…

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The top painting is on Arches 140 lb. watercolor paper and the paints really did beautifully – especially the walnut one I made which was smooth like butter and very, very rich which is why I used it alone in the very zen-like second painting.  Done in the Sumi-e style, it is simply walnut paint on the handcrafted pampas grass paper I made.

Hope you enjoyed todays lesson.  = )

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My husband thinks I’m a witch! LOL

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OK, to be fair, he’s not entirely off base.

I mean, on the front door, we have this smartass window sticker we bought when in Glastonbury (UK) this past fall that’s a spin on the Neighborhood Watch signs that every good whitebread neighborhood posts.  Ours reads “Neighborhood Witch.”

Then, there’s the pot of pampas grass boiling in the big corn pot on the stove.  You can’t smell it, but there’s a definite scent of Fels Naptha Brown Soap wafting in the air.

And finally, there’s these glass jars of liquid on the dining room table, shown above.  To the uninitiated, they COULD resemble witches tinctures and such. If you look closer, though, and are familiar with the color chart below, you’ll figure out that they are artists paints.  Mine though are non-toxic, environmentally pure as the driven snow, and all natural.  Really.

You see, I’m entering a juried art show this coming weekend where the emphasis is on “green” – the movement not the color.  So… I figured what better way to “represent” than to create works using all-green materials, right?  And as you can see from the chart, I do have an array of colors to work with, though, ironically, there’s a dearth of green in these…

Oh, and the pampas grass boiling on the stove?  It’s for the paper to paint on, silly!

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2010 in 100 words, more or less

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I gotta say, this was an excellent year for me personally and professionally!

I dove headfirst into art this year, reorganized and formalized my studio, and by chance scored my first solo show at an upscale restaurant in Nashville for six weeks from late June to Father’s Day.  Great timing except Nashville’s millenial flood took place the weekend of my scheduled reception.  Most I knew were fortunate and suffered no or minimal losses but many areas were devastated.  My reception ended up closing the show, more or less, but still a nice crowd and healthy sales meant I could claim professional artist status!   At year end, my art is
hanging in several venues in Middle Tennessee and a few more people are puzzled by the name “Moesse.”

A mid-year turning point meant transitioning from Hazel King’s tutelage to more independent study, and the formation of Collaborative Artists Network (Nashville) – http://www.thecann.org – with fellow painters and dear, dear friends.  A more personal turning point came when I took a stand against a loved one, ending a pattern of enabling.  By year end, I’m glad to say, it was proven to be a good decision for all involved and things are looking up on that front.

A wedding in October was special partly because I got to talk to Canadian superstar Bryan Adams and tell him David and I were married to one of his songs (which I’m sure he hears ALL the time).  What made it stellarly special (my phrase in case ya couldn’t tell), was that my dear, great and wonderful brother Barry married the love of his lifetime(s), Gretchen.  I used the plural because, yeah, their spirits have been dancing this love tune for centuries.

Another wedding in November, this time in England, meant a stellar trip across the pond, celebrating the union of two young people, spending great time with David’s family, touring the southwest region, and freezing our butts off.  All before jetting back home just in time to beat the U.K. version of Snowpocalypse!  While there, I discovered snoods, Primark’s cheap but cozy for a season offerings, and an Indian import store offering huge zippered bags on the cheap to lug home our dirty laundry.

December was a blur with unpacking, preparing and mailing out more than a dozen Christmas parcels to friends and family from afar, a few parties, and yes, prepping for and pulling off a New Year’s Day open house. I did little painting, but put at the top of the blog two abstracts that I did that I’m very pleased with.

In closing, know that I’m eagerly anticipating great things for 2011, for two reasons.  First, I have this weird thing for prime numbers (I think because I was born on the 13th in 1959) and 2011 is about as prime as you can get, baby!  Second, my dark-haired brother was the first newcomer to step foot through the door that day, followed by his male black lab, Nigel.  I’m told Scottish tradition says that if a dark-haired male is the first to cross the threshold New Year’s Day, it bodes well for the year.  I’ll take all this as a good, hopeful sign for more good things to come.

Here’s hoping you experience all good things for 2011.
MWS

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Painting on the porch in the rain

There’s something about porches, don’t you think?  When you are able to let go of the critical “I should be elsewhere” mindset and just hang on a porch doing whatever.  If you’re like me, you find it liberating and reinvigorating.  To me it’s the ultimate “Hominid’s revenge” where we who stand on two feet and have opposible thumbs and think and plan and scheme, can come in close contact with the great outdoors without … you know … really being out there!  Where mother nature can rain down in all her splendor but we stay dry.  Where mosquitos and other bugs of all kinds swarm around hoping to feast on our fleshy skin and red blood.

God bless Lucilla!  That’s all I can say… Despite her cosmopolitan ways she had the foresight to add on a splendid and expansive porch to her Sylvan Park home, complete with screening, high-end ceiling fans and a bug-proof flooring barrier too.  So outside on the porch we of the Collaborative Artists Network (Nashville) who were in town painted. Judi has commenced her journey back to Geneve, Switzerland where we are hoping she’ll establish a CAN Chapter.  Margot is in the xenophobic state of Arizona babysitting children this week and recuperating from what sounds like a huge cold and laryngitis.  Lynne was recuperating closer to home after two exhausting weeks of setting up and arranging her show at the Gas Lamp in Nashville.

And so it was that Barbara, Lucilla and I found ourselves enjoying the splendor of her porch, some great food she prepared (but wasn’t supposed to), and one another’s company.  We didn’t so much paint as talk and learn and plan for the future of our group and more.  In the end, I set about playing.  One of my paintings took on a “Georgia O’Keefe-ish” style, according to Lucilla and Lynne who showed up late to grace us with her presence.  They claim it was because I had today’s afternoon gynecological appointment on my mind.  I put dots to represent cave dwellings on the hillside, but it definitely needs more work before I post it here.

I’m exhausted now, having gone to the doctor (just an annual checkup and all is well, in case you’re wondering) and gotten stuck in commuter traffic.  My BFF from New Jersey claims we could never live there, given the amount of commuter traffic they endure daily. Even though it took me a full hour to get home from downtown, Nashville’s nowhere among the worst cities for traffic. Well, the microwave’s buzzing and my chicken chili’s done. The dog’s pouting and hoping for a walk too, so signing off.

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A grand day with fellow painters yesterday

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Barbara with a painting from more than 20 years ago!

The Collaborative Artists Network (C.A.N.) is getting geared up!  We painted at Barbara Rembert’s studio in her home yesterday inspired by some glorious instrumental music, great, great food, and the artistic and creative energy that flowed like a bubbling stream.  Barbara has a tremendous learning library of books to borrow, and we were treated to a private show of her collection of works.  She has some brilliant work over the years, and happily, we got the up close and personal tour, including explanations behind some of the loveliest of paintings.  Her methods are so varied, and yet all convey so beautifully what message or meaning she is trying to illustrate.  Pure wonderment!

Another surprise treat was a painting Margot pulled out that she had done back more than three decades ago!  And to our joy and amazement, it was done using the same strokes, colors, and style she uses today.

We didn’t talk much about our organization today, preferring just to paint, but the idea behind it is to organize as a non-profit, obtain grands or other funding to provide a safe, comfortable place to paint, the resources to do so, the opportunity to teach others less fortunate, and to sell our works to self-fund our endeavor moving forward. It will surely be a long road, but with we five, I think we C.A.N., no pun intended.  We recognize women typically give up so much to raise children, care for family, or meet other challenges that typically come from lacking that second X Gene, particularly economic ones.  And each of us has faced tremendous emotional, physical, or monetary challenges, or a combination of all three, to get to this point in our lives, and we feel it is time to put our experience to good use, identify a forum, and ultimately, give back.  Down the road, I hope to write more about our organization’s progress.

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School’s starting & great art supply sales abound

I’ve been getting a pile of sale flyers in my inbox lately, and my debit card is burning a hole in my pocket.  I rationalize that at least the purchase of art supplies isn’t like some conspicuous spending that would be really gauche in this day and age.  I mean, after all, we’re buying this as the raw materials to create product for sale (hopefully), thus fueling the economy, right? A stretch, yeah, I know.  Still, here’s the lowdown on good sales going on right now on art supplies through major retailers I know of, either mail order or local to Nashville (and scores of other cities nationwide).

Dick Blick:  Right now they’ve got Strathmore 300 Series Bristol Board, Golden Heavy Body Acrylics, Prismacolor Pencils,   Alphacolor Soft Pastels and Unisom Gator Foam Pastel Surfaces, Winsor & Newton Oils, and Charcoal pencils on sale at discounts of 13-54% off.

Cheap Joe’s:  Use promo code CJ45 to get 4.95 shipping through 8/22, click this link to save up to 60% on select items in their fall sale event on items including Prismacolor Colored Pencils, Golden Artists Acrylics (and I think I’ll be picking up this great deal on Golden Open Acrylics, to test them out. 

For those local to Nashville, Jerry’s Artarama Nashville has restocked it’s canvas offerings and has a deal on Winsor & Newton, The Edge, and Creative Mark Canvas. A boatload of other items are on sale, too, and the . These other sale items include Matisse Dervan Acrylics (LOVE THOSE AUSSIE COLORS!) Lukas Oils, Daler Rowney Oils and Gesso, Soho Urban Acrylics and Oils, Silver and Pro Stroke Brushes, Painter’s Edge Pallet Knives, Strathmore 300 Series Bristol and Watercolor Pads and Canson Pads as well. Foamboard is at fantastic prices too for both the large size and smaller sizes from 8 x 10 all the way up to 32 x 40 and some portfolios and ArtPort cases are on sale too.  This link from Jerry’s national lists even more stuff on sale.

A little off track, but for Nashvillians, but through Jerry’s, I learned of an event to be held at Hickory Hollow Mall tomorrow starting at 6 p.m. entitled “Exposed!”  Not much info to be discovered on this but I suspect it relates to the newly opened art gallery in the mall.  The flyer notes Gallery opening at 6 p.m. with performances starting at 7, featuring new and seasoned talent, a guest DJ and a guest performance.

Back to shopping and definitely not to be outdone,  Plaza Artist Materials is having a fall sale too.  They list
Paints, and related materials, brushes, canvas, drawing supplies, paper, and furniture on sale with savings of up to 70%.  Like Jerry’s, being able to go to the store and talk to their well-trained and knowledgeable staff is very helpful and they, too offer web-based sales.  With 12 stores, located DC, Maryland, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia, there might be one near you.

Even Michaels, the Arts & Crafts retailer, is getting into things with value canvas multi-packs, Strathmore 400 series pads, Liquitex Basics Paints and storage accessories on sale now. 

In case I’ve missed anything, feel free to add in the comment section below.  It doesn’t require blood or promise of money or any other committment, so feel free to post a comment.  To those who have/ do, thanks!    

Added 9:33 AM CST per comment of earlier and more info:  

Mea Culpa, Utrecht Art Supplies  has a great sale going on there now too, and double down by deducting 20% off the total too! (Plus free shipping on $100 orders or greater).

And Mea Culpa to  ASWeXpress too!  A 3 day deal which ends Aug. 21 (enter code B8W4) for 15% off your total plus free shipping on orders of over $99,  Golden Artist Acrylics at up to 40% off til Sept. 30, and finally, select brushes, including Silver Brush, Winsor & Newton, Raphael, Robert Simmons and Isabey up to 67% off until 11:59 P.M. EST TONIGHT.   So, if you get in and purchase by midnight tonight you get a great brush deal, 15% off all, free shipping if you get with friends and bundle an order, and are, uhm, pardon the pun, Golden too!

Happy buying, happy creating, just be happy

Added 12:58 PM CST per comment of earlier and more info: 
Clarification on the Utrecht deals:  Ends tonight at midnight: Save 20% Off Your entire purchase!* (Use Keycode BTS20E)… Need one more thing to round out your studio? Save 40% Off any one non-sale item!** (use Keycode BTS40). But a weekend deal offers  Free Ground Shipping and extends the 20% off with limits as per an offer I received in today:  Utrecht is fully stocked for Back to School and the more you buy, the more you’ll save! Take 10% Off Your entire purchase, no minimum purchase required!* (Use Keycode WKND10E)… Spend $100 or more and Save 20% Off Your entire purchase plus Free Ground Shipping!** (use Keycode WKND20E). Click here for details.
 

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A stupendous day painting with the girls

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As you may recall, Lynne, Lucilla, Margot and I have been meeting weekly at one another’s homes although today was Barbara Rembert’s first day joining us.  It definitely won’t be her last as we’re piling in on her next week. But back to today – it was held at Margot’s lovely place in Green Hills, and I was treated to some of her fine homemade Gazpacho (she’s promised to share the recipe with me and if I get any comments to my post, I may just be nice enough and share it here later, too.)  And since Barbara had a birthday recently, Lynne surprised her with a little cake in her honor.

It was a wonderful day of watercolor painting and I worked on a pair of waterfalls from the same photo that would never have occurred to me to break them up into two separate paintings, but with Barbara there, coaching me on, I saw the composition would be that much better for doing it.  I decided on those paintings since Barbara showed us all a pair of beautiful watercolors she had done on paper that she had gessoed over to protect the integrity of the paper and make it easier to lift off paint later.  Mine were poor stepchildren compared to her gorgeous works, but it was good practice all the same.  I did a sweet little birch forest painting too, but the hubby is working to upgrade my Iphone right now so sharing a photo of my effort will have to wait.

The big news from today’s session was that we have decided on a name for our group and intend to codify it, first with website, then see about some funding sources, and more.  Pretty exciting when you think it all started just a few weeks ago.  Wish us luck!