Spring Cleaning Cliche

March 29, 2014 in Ramblings, In the Studio

Some cliches exist for a reason and I definitely think spring cleaning is one of them. Every year, I dedicate some time to minimizing and cleaning up after myself. It's weird though, I never consciously think of it as spring cleaning, but a few months into the new year and right before taxes are due I always seem to purge myself of junk I don't need.

I don't know what it is, but I can be so nostalgic about things. For example, I just found an article on Bill Callahan from 1999. Why? Yes, it is nice to look at these things and remember a time. Yes, it is nice to have every art supply known to man, but do I use all of it? No. Do I need to save art materials for a future date? No!

As I get ready for some new things in the coming months, I am so happy that I will have yet again less stuff. I used to think having endless art supplies and keeping random stuff around was necessary, but no way. I'm over that now. I can't wait to show you when I'm done in a few weeks! After taxes, of course:)

The Planning Phase

March 24, 2014 in Ramblings

There are times where I feel like I am not doing much. In reality, it's a little bit of lots of things that are working toward something bigger, but it becomes such a blur. That's how this approaching April is feeling. As usual, the year is going by way too fast: the projects I want to accomplish are not as far along as I would like, I wanted to have my taxes done back in February and I panic as I see the year rolling by and not getting a proper start on my children's book. I like to let things happen, but sometimes a little bit of a guided path is necessary.

View from a recent hike on Saturday in Napa's Skyline Wilderness Park

With the first quarter of the year being done, I think I need to acknowledge what I have accomplished so far:

Applied for an international art residency
Applied for the West Elm/Minted design challenge
Applied to be a contributor to a new magazine
Opened a shop on my website in addition to my Etsy shop
Ran my first giveaway
Nearly completed my redesigned wholesale line sheet
About to have my work in one new store
About to have my portraits in a wedding guide
Close to launching my travel paintings
Close to launching my tote bags

So this brings me to a public to do list. If I let you know what I am doing, I will be far more likely to do it. I made a public list at the beginning of the year, so here's another one.

The list!

Complete drawings for my Shelter show
Edit and add ALL custom portraits to my website
Deep dive into the rest of my taxes
Shoot stylized photos of my art prints and their packaging
Order business cards and postcards
Write to stores for wholesale (past and potential)
Print my first few tote bag designs in April
Sketch and write one new page for my children's book
Finish a few Skillshare classes
Add more designs to Society 6
Try out Spoonflower

Some of these items are ongoing, but I definitely want to accomplish most of them in the next month!

What do you need to get done?

Art Theme: Portraits of Women

March 21, 2014 in Art Theme

Since one of the main things I do is paint portraits, I thought I would share with you some of my favorite portrait paintings of women this week.

Okay, so the first one is not your traditional portrait. You can't see the face of the woman, but you sure can feel it. Clare Elsaesser is one of my favorite artists, with her palette and mood always being on point. Print available here.

I love the work of fashion illustrator Samantha Hahn. She is a true master of watercolor and her subject matter is often women. Check out her book Well Read Women for her interpretation of famous female book characters in her signature brilliant and colorful style.

I love the expression on this woman's face by Bret Pendlebury. There is just something about the direction of her eyes and that bob that speaks to me. Bret created the painting in acrylic, ink, colored pencil and watercolor on paper. You can purchase a print of it here.

Vintage Woman Portrait by Bret Pendlebury

One of my very favorite artists is Maira Kalman. Her work comes to life with her palette, sense of humor and imperfect brush strokes and lines that become...just perfect. If you haven't seen her blog for the New York Times, do yourself a favor and spend some time with it.

Alex Katz captures the upper middle class of the 60's, 70's and beyond like no other. These cool people are often caught hanging out in oversized sunglasses and gorgeous acidic colors. The way he simplifies shape and form never ceases to amaze me. Isn't this portrait of his wife and often-subject Ada just sublime?

If you have an artist that you'd love to share, please leave the name(s) in the comments below.

Don't forget to check out my Portraits board on Pinterest!

Jeremiah Maddock at Anno Domini

March 10, 2014 in Artists & Art Shows

Jeremiah Maddock is one of my favorite artists that has shown multiple times at Anno Domini. I have to say I love finding artists who don't have websites. Contrary to the modern popular belief that you have to put yourself out there, I find it to be so pure (or lucky?!). If you want to find out more about him, check out Anno Domini's site or this interview on Beautiful Decay. Jeremiah Maddock's show We's Gonna be Fine was spectacular. His intricate line work and details are amazing. Surreal and symbolic, you can fall into his work and find more information the longer you look. The images I have included here are just an example of his work. He also focuses on figures, but my phone was too full to take more photos:) Here are a few images from the show.