Soliloquy

A Day in the Life: Sewing

2010-02-27T16:25:00.000-08:00

Here's the finished pillows made from the Spoonflower fabric printed from my paintings. I think they look really good, and they look a lot like the paintings. I'm going to order more fabric and make some to sell on Etsy!

A Day in the Life: Showcase

2010-02-21T19:34:00.000-08:00

I've been photographing and scanning miniature paintings for the past couple of days, in preparation for my Etsy showcase. It's a 24-hour event, and started at midnight EST. This is my first showcase on Etsy, and I'm not sure which images will work best on the showcase page. You need to have images that catch the eye, because there's so much to see. You can view all 27 miniatures currently in my Etsy shop here.

A Day in the Life: Special Delivery

2010-02-19T15:26:00.000-08:00

My Spoonflower fabrics arrived in the mail today, and they are fantastic! The color is dead on, and the resolution is pretty good, even though I used JPEG images instead of TIFFs. The fabric is a nice linen-cotton canvas, good for pillows or jackets. The picture below is how it looks on the back, and you can see the weave of the fabric.

I ordered fat quarters, which are 21" x 18". The designs are 18" x 18", and fit on a fat quarter with about 3/4" to spare for seam allowance.

You can see and order the two designs I've uploaded here. This is way too much fun! Think of the possibilities. Paintings turned into pillows, quilts, clothing . . . it's wild!

A Day in the Life: Photography

2010-02-17T19:31:00.000-08:00

I've been photographing artwork all day for my Etsy shop. It's especially tricky to get the color right, and even when it looks good on my monitor, there's no telling how it will look on anyone else's monitor. That drives me crazy.

I bought a digital SLR camera a while back so I can photograph my own artwork. I'm the only one who really knows how it should look, and I'm the only one willing to put in the time to get it to look that way. I decided on the Nikon D60, a 10.2 megapixel camera with an 18mm - 135mm zoom lens. I love the camera, but the lens distorts too much. I can correct the distortion in Photoshop, but I'd rather not have to. I think I'll be better of with a straight 50mm lens for this purpose.

I never thought I would need to be a Photoshop expert, but I use it almost everyday, and I don't think I could get by without it!

A Day in the Life: Gallery Show

2010-02-14T11:04:00.000-08:00

I went out to OBJCT Gallery again last night for the Second Saturday Pomona Artwalk. That place is packed on second Saturdays, and it's mostly young people -- college age. Many people wanted to meet me and asked me about my work. It's really encouraging to see so many young people who are interested in art.

I took some more pictures of the show, which is up for another two weeks. Greg Lynn's toy furniture is amazing, and I love Lisa Segal's sculptures and Tim Hemstreet's altered record album covers.

Kudos to David Shearer of OBJCT Gallery for putting together such a terrific show!

February Newsletter

2010-02-09T14:52:00.000-08:00

I just finished my February newsletter. Hot news! Read all about it!

Subscribe to the newsletter and receive it monthly in e-mail!

A Day in the Life: Spoonflower

2010-02-08T14:50:00.000-08:00

How cool is this? You can create images and have them printed on fabric using Spoonflower! I uploaded images of two of my camellia paintings, sized for 18-inch pillows. They offer several different fabrics including a linen-cotton canvas that sounds like it will be good for pillows. Eventually you'll be able to order my designs as well, but not until I receive my proofs and approve them. In the meantime, you can see the designs that I uploaded here. I'll let you know when they're available for purchase.

Spoonflower has lots of other interesting fabrics available from other designers on their Marketplace. What fun!

Art Calendar Excerpt

2010-02-05T17:39:00.000-08:00

I'm going to be in the April issue of Art Calendar magazine! Renee Phillips, the author, kindly put an excerpt from the article on her blog. It's about donating artwork to charities, and my experiences with ARTconnectsLA.

A Day in the Life: Packaged

2010-02-01T21:02:00.000-08:00

The Valentine cards are mostly packaged and ready to go. I'm using Clear Bag plastic envelopes to protect them, but I'd really like to find a more eco-friendly alternative. Any ideas?

A Day in the Life: Packaging

2010-01-30T17:35:00.000-08:00

It's all about packaging today! Making the cards is one thing, but then there's printing and cutting the labels and inserts, folding the inserts and the cards, putting everything into clear packages, and sealing the packages. They look really nice when they're done. Too bad I don't have any finished ones to show you yet!

In the meantime, you can purchase the cards from my Etsy shop. They're being featured at the New York International Gift Fair this weekend.

Valentine's Day Cards

2010-01-29T20:29:00.000-08:00

Tell your loved ones that you care by giving an original limited edition Valentine's Day card that is also a frameable work of art! I have three different splatter paint designs available, each in an edition of 50 cards. They are signed on the front, and dated and numbered on the back. Each card is unique and handmade. No two cards are alike. Get 'em while they last!

A Day in the Life: The Shed

2010-01-28T17:39:00.000-08:00

I'm a prolific artist, and I create more work than I could ever dream of selling! Therefore I have a storage problem, but I'm not the only one with this problem. Most artists create more work than they sell.

I considered renting storage space, but it's expensive, and I didn't want to have to haul artwork back and forth to a storage space. So I bought a weatherproof shed, and it has worked out great. Except that whatever I need is inevitably in the back of the shed, and it's a pain to get to it.

That's what I was doing today. I had to pull out artwork for an ARTconnectsLA presentation at Children's Bureau, which meant that a lot of work in front had to come out of the shed. Ugh!

That's why I call my Etsy shop "Empty Shed," because my goal is to sell everything and have an empty shed!

A Day in the Life: It's in the Mail

2010-01-27T22:00:00.000-08:00

I'm working on a mailing to art consultants and curators. I've been developing my mailing list for years, and I do a mailing three times a year, to update them on my work. A good place to start in developing your own mailing list is Caroll Michel's art consultant and curator mailing lists. The annotated art consultant list is particularly helpful in determining which art consultants might be interested in your work.

A Day in the Life: It's in the Cards

2010-01-26T22:00:00.000-08:00

I had a brilliant idea last night to create some limited edition splatter paint Valentine's Day cards. I wish these ideas would come to me sooner, and not at the last minute! So today I was busy making cards. The weather has been damp and rainy, and it looks like it's going to take a while for them to dry. Hopefully they'll be ready before Valentine's Day.

My favorite card blanks are the Fabriano Medioevalis cards. They're an elegant off-white Italian watercolor paper with a beautiful deckle edge. Definitely worth the price.

Re-Appropriate Video

2010-01-15T07:21:00.000-08:00

Check out this short video that David Shearer put together for the Re-Appropriate show at OBJCT Gallery. Very well done!

The show has been extended through February 27th, and I'll be there for the next Second Saturday Pomona Artwalk on February 13th, 7-10pm.

OBJCT Gallery
250 W. 2nd Street
Pomona, CA 91766

January Newsletter

2010-01-12T22:03:00.000-08:00

I just sent out my January newsletter. I've been doing the newsletter for a year now, and I'm having fun with it! Fortunately I've been busy, which gives me a lot to write about. And it looks like this year will be even more busy.

Subscribe to the newsletter and receive it monthly in e-mail!

Re-Appropriate at OBJCT Gallery

2010-01-05T11:41:00.000-08:00

I have several paintings in a show that opens at OBJCT Gallery in Pomona this Saturday. The title of the show is "Re-Appropriate," and here is how OBJCT Gallery owner David Shearer describes it:

OBJCT Gallery invites you to experience our latest exhibition addressing the intersection between art and design. The concept of reusing or recycling objects or readymades into art is not new; Marcel Duchamp introduced the idea of the readymade as a way to combat the notion of art, rendering objects useless from their original intention. The term appropriation refers to the idea of borrowing and re-using or reclaiming materials and found objects to create new, and in the case here, useful objects. What we are experiencing currently is a shift in why these materials are being used by artists and designers; contemplating materials as not just a way to represent a concept or idea but as a vehicle to reflect on issues that are larger and outside of the basic realm of art and design. Issues of sustainability and environmental consciousness are beginning to infiltrate these art/design elements with the intention of rendering “new” objects that are useful as well as appropriate in terms of social responsibility.

The show runs from January 9 through February 7, 2010, and the opening reception is Saturday, January 9th, from 7-10 pm.

OBJCT Gallery
250 W. 2nd Street
Pomona, CA 91766

Hope to see you there!

Art for All

2010-01-03T20:51:00.000-08:00

I've started a new blog where I'm featuring some of my smaller paintings with links to the paintings in my Etsy store. It's called Art for All, and I have art available for all spaces and budgets.

You can subscribe to the blog in a reader, or sign up for e-mail notification of the posts. I also post each painting on Facebook and Twitter. Check it out!

Latest Painting

2009-12-31T15:16:00.000-08:00

This is my latest painting using the pulled technique, acrylic latex on canvas 24 x 24 inches.

The patterns in the paint are amazing.

Who Does She Think She Is?

2009-12-22T08:59:00.000-08:00

I just heard about a new film titled Who Does She Think She Is? It's about women artists, and the audacity to follow one's creative impulse. Check it out.

RedBubble

2009-12-21T16:50:00.000-08:00

My friend Lyn was over the other day, and she told me about RedBubble. It's a website where you can upload images of your art, and RedBubble will sell prints and greeting cards of your work.

I decided to give it a try, and I uploaded three images of my paintings. You can see them on my RedBubble page. Let me know how the images look, and what you think of the prices.

December Newsletter

2009-12-10T18:42:00.000-08:00

Read all about it! I just sent out my December newsletter and posted it on my website archives. Information about upcoming shows, ARTconnectsLA, and a new "Q&A with the Artist" column.

Subscribe now!

New Work

2009-11-30T08:23:00.000-08:00

I decided to try the technique that I use for my miniature paintings on a larger canvas, and this is the result. The two paintings below are each 24 x 24 inches, acrylic latex on canvas. What do you think? Is it a technique that's worth pursuing? Click on the images for a larger view.

Shopdropping

2009-11-28T21:11:00.000-08:00

I love this story about artist Michele Pred covertly placing her artwork for sale in the Emeryville IKEA on Black Friday. And by Saturday evening, all ten of the prints had sold! What a great idea!

December Home Show

2009-11-25T16:18:00.000-08:00

I've been in the studio the past few days, creating some new small paintings for a home show I'm doing in early December with four other artists. I'll be showing and selling my Frameable Art Cards, miniature paintings, and small paintings. The two paintings below are new and are each 6 x 6 inches, acrylic latex on canvas.

Prices start at $10 for cards, $20 for miniature paintings, and $40 for small paintings.

Here's the information for the show:

Saturday and Sunday, December 5th and 6th

11:00 am - 4:00 pm

6660 Maryland Drive
Los Angeles 90048
(between San Vicente and La Jolla)

Plenty of street parking available

Wine and munchies will be served

The other artists in the show are:

Dale Brown - www.dalebrownart.com
Assemblage dolls, sculptures and boxes.
Batya Dagan - www.batyadagan.com
Landscape, still life and portrait oil paintings.
Valerie Jean - www.valeriejean.biz
Mixed media collage consisting of glass and ceramic tiles, natural shells, gemstones, vintage jewelry, and acrylic paint applications.
Jackie Rosen - www.thefamilyjewelsshop.com
Unique hand made jewelry using Buddhist symbolism and repurposed vintage brooches from the early 1900's.

I hope you can stop by to see my latest work, especially the cards and miniatures, which are great for holiday gift-giving.