Time, Again

Looking over my postings for the last few months I notice that they all have a common thread, time, or the lack there of.
I had a conversation yesterday with a dear friend where she asked when do you want to retire?

Want to retire... that's a loaded question, yesterday or even better, last year, would be when I want to retire. The reality is that I don't see retirement in my future at all.
This is an all too common dilemma faced by creatives.
I love working with my 'old sweeties' in Long Term Care, but I am fighting a continual battle with the clock/calendar, and it get's very tiring.  
Retirement sounds like a dream come true, unfortunately having been self employed most of my life, the only CPP for me will be the little bit I get from the part time side jobs I've periodically had.

I'm at a stage in my art career where I need to be spending more time in the studio, but time is an ever more elusive beast. I hate turning down invitations to show that have been coming my way, I hate having no new art to show at the Art Emporium, and being under pressure to produce work for the next show

  STEAG 10th Annual Show & Sale 
November 11 - 13, 2016
Fri. 6-9pm, Sat. 10am - 6pm Sun. 11am - 5pmCASO Station, 750 Talbot St, St Thomas (behind Giant Tiger) 

Please don't think I'm whining, or have any serious regrets, because I'm not, and don't.  I don't have much work because I did some serious experimentation this summer, not all of which was successful and what was sold quickly... 
So, I continue to soldier on, dreaming about windfalls, and winning lotteries with tickets I never buy, and 'one day' when my ship comes in, though I'll probably be a the train station... painting in the moments I'm able to carve out of my day, it's amazing what you can do with 15 minutes here and there.



 

Public Education

There has been a debate raging in an online form I frequent. It started with the familiar lament of an artist deploring big box store 'art 'and the people who buy it.
From there the discussion cycled through how do we producers of real art compete, should we even try, and ended up at how do we educate the public about the value of real art?
All I could think was.... it's apples and oranges folks.
Big box store art, or art by the yard is usually made in a Chinese art factory, and often sold for less then the supplies would cost in an art supply store. Decor hunters love a pretty bargain, and as trend followers usually think of said pretty bargain as being disposable.
Artists, these are not your target market.
Granted with education some of them may be turned into collectors, but not often, for collecting is a different mind set.
Collectors look for value, they want keepers, not disposable trophies.
It behooves us the artistic community then to  focus on the value of what we produce, it's uniqueness, it's local flavour, and it's universality.
We sell emotion made tangible , and their response to it, after all they buy our art because they love the art, and that is the real value of art!

Skyward! 12x12, $160.00, glazed acrylic, contact for info

This piece is currently at The Art Emporium, and has been submitted to the Port Stanley Artists' Guild Show June 5-7 at the Port Stanley Legion.

Why not my art?

 It's the start of art show season, the invitations are starting to fill my in box. Also we're accepting portfolio submissions for consideration  at the gallery for the 2015 season.

Every year young and not so young artists hopefully put their work out there, looking for recognition in the form of jury acceptance, awards and sales. 

Every year some of them have their egos crushed, and are left crying: why not my art??

For many years I was a part of that brigade, let me share with you what I learned that got me out of it. 

Sometimes your work is awesome, but it's just not what they're looking for at that show. 

Many years ago, I entered one of my paintings 'thank a pollinator' in two different shows, it was rejected from one, but earned a judges choice at the second...the judge for both shows, was the same person.  True story. 

Sometimes your work is too much like everyone else's. I've been to a few shows where I swear all of the artists have painted the same view, using the same technique. 

Sometimes your work is technically brilliant but boring.   

And sometimes...it's just not as good as your friends, family, and neighbours have been telling you it is. 

So, what do you do?

If you can, finding a good teacher/mentor is the best solution.
Don't be afraid to experiment, it's the best way to become the artist you were meant to be.

Learn to look at your own art objectively by training your eye. 

Go to every gallery you can, look at art online, and in books. 

When you see something you love ask yourself why? What grabs your attention in that work? What holds that attention?

Chances are it's:
Strong composition/ design: focal point, and counterpoint, connections and balance.  

Value contrasts (light/dark), mono value  paintings are really hard to do well,

Colour choices that make sense, I don't mean slavishly following the reference.  Using compliments for impact, cool colours in backgrounds and shadows, warm colours in foreground and highlights, some times that differentiation is very subtle. 

Intelligent use of line and edges. Some hard some soft, some barely there.
Something in those paintings has pop, something draws you in, hints at a mystery, and amuses your eye. 

Is it the technique? Tom Thompson, Van Gogh, Emily Carr all used the power of their brush strokes  brilliantly.

The subject? Lucien Freud, Frida Kahlo, Georgia O'Keeffe all mastered a subject. 

What can you take from the masters to lift your work?  

  

It's 2015

We're a full week into the new year, and many have already made and broken their new year resolutions.
I've always thought resolutions at the beginning of a new year to be a bit of a crock. IMHO one can't save resolve for a date on a calendar. True resolve comes in that moment when you just know, that you have to make a change. That moment when you know things can not stay the same, with out damaging your soul.
The new year is a great time for stock taking, for thinking of what is and is not working in your life, and what steps you can and should take to implement change. If that leads to resolve, instead of tagging it a new year resolution, call it a life goal, and set up a S.M.A.R.T.  action plan

Reflecting on my 2014, I see areas for celebration, and areas for action, here are  few...

I've had an amazing year professionally, definitely the best year yet, with I hope more of the same to come. I've developed some excellent habits which I intend to maintain, like arranging my schedule so that I can spend the first part of most every day, which is when I'm at my most creative, in my studio.

On the personal front, I've lost 40 pounds, again with the help of good habits I intend to maintain.

Some of last years family issues have been solved, but others have gotten worse, so I will need to remain every vigilant against  my tendency to worry about things I cannot change.

I've let my own newsletter slide, I've sent so much time advertising for our wonderful Art Emporium that I've forgotten about myself so I need to get back to a monthly publication.

My goal to step back a bit from guild/committee work was harder to keep than I though, and I am still more  involved than I should be, but that is my nature, and an ongoing struggle. I'm still trying to learn to sit on my hands.

All in all  Desiderata  -I have a copy on my studio wall-  still rings true for me, and remains for me words to live by:

Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence.

As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and the ignorant, they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans. Keep interested in your own career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals, and everywhere life is full of heroism. Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love, for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass.

Take kindly to the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself. You are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars; you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be, and whatever your labors and aspirations, in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace in your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.

Max Ehrmann c.1920

Have your best year yet, happy 2015

Robin

Call for Artist's 1-2-3 foot squares show

Art Emporium Port Stanley is hosting their 2014 Juried 1, 2, or 3 Square Foot Show.  The show will run from Saturday, October 18, 2014 to Sunday, November 16, 2014.  An Opening Reception will be held on Saturday, October 18, 2014 from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. The remainder of the show will be open for the public during regular Art Emporium hours of operation.  Wall hung Art and 3D Art will be accepted. Ribbons will be awarded as 3 Honourable Mentions, 2 Judges Choice and 1 Best in Show. There will be a cash prize of $100 to the Best in Show winner.  Juror: Cathy Groulx

Criteria:

• Art Emporium Members will be granted maximum submission without charge as part of their membership, with a 15% commission on all sales.
• Non-members will pay the following entry fees, and 35% commission will be taken on all sales.
• Each Artist will have a maximum submission totalling the entry fee of $30 in any combination. 

Prices for entry are as follows:

• 1-foot square (12”x12”) $10   
• 2-foot square (24”x24”) $20
• 3-foot square (36”x36”) $30

(e.g. One 1-foot piece ($10) and one 2 foot piece ($20) = $30). One 3-foot piece = $30.

• 3D art sizes will be determined by their greatest dimension in any one direction, excluding circumference. Pieces 12” or under in any dimension will be counted as one $10 entry, pieces over 12” and up to and including 24” will be counted as a $20 entry, pieces over 24” up to an including 36” in any dimension will be counted as a $30 entry. No pieces over 36” in any one dimension will be accepted.
• The Art Emporium asks all artists to price their work no less than the minimum prices set out below. Feel free to price your work higher, but we ask that you abide by the minimum prices specified.

• 12” x 12” minimum price $100 minimum
• 24” x 24” minimum price $200 minimum
• 36” x 36” minimum price $300 minimum

• Wall hung art submissions must be in the format of 1-foot square (12”x12”), 2-foot square (24”x24”) or 3-foot square (36”x36”) to be accepted.
• Posters, Hard Copy Invitations (limited) and E-vites will be provided to each submitting Artist for distribution.
• Artists are requested to provide a one sided 8.5” x 11” biography for the Biography Book that will be on display in the Gallery during the show.
• All entries will be accepted between Saturday, October 4, 2014 and Monday, October 14, 2014.
• The Art Emporium will jury all artwork upon submission. All unaccepted work must be picked up no later than 3:00 p.m. Friday, October 17, 2014.
• The Art Emporium will collect HST on all sales and submit on your behalf. 
• All wall-hung work must be strung gallery style and wired securely for hanging.  Saw-tooth, or any other means of hanging material will not be accepted. Jagged or sharp edges on framed work will not be accepted.
• All 3D work will have shelving provided by the Art Emporium.  If the piece requires a special display, the display is the artist’s responsibility to provide for the Art Emporium’s use for the duration of the show.  All special displays must have the Art Emporium’s approval prior to the show.
• All unsold artwork must be picked up as early as Monday, November 17, 2014 and no later than Sunday, November 23, 2014 during Art Emporiums regular business hours. (Thurs-Mon 11am-5pm)

Art Emporium will take reasonable care with submitted artwork; however we cannot accept responsibility for damage or loss.

Submission Form and Artwork Labels:

Submission	Size	Title	Price	Sold
1.	☐ One Foot
	☐ Two Foot
	☐ Three Foot
2.	☐ One Foot
	☐ Two Foot
	☐ Three Foot
3.	☐ One Foot
	☐ Two Foot
	☐ Three Foot

Title:________________________________     Price:_______________________________ Medium:  ____________________________ Artist:  ______________________________	Title:________________________________     Price:_______________________________ Medium:  ____________________________ Artist:  ______________________________
Title:_______________________________     Price:_______________________________ Medium:  ____________________________ Artist:  ______________________________	Title:________________________________     Price:_______________________________ Medium:  ____________________________ Artist:  ______________________________
Title:________________________________     Price:_______________________________ Medium:  ____________________________ Artist:  ______________________________	Title:________________________________     Price:_______________________________ Medium:  ____________________________ Artist:  ______________________________

Sail installation element, done-maybe

I think it's done, except for the top coat, which I have to wait a bit to apply.

Yes the unevenness of the sky is deliberate. My process is dependent on many layers of thin glaze applied over textured layers, I decided right off the bat to use the unstretched  nature of the canvas to my advantage and prep'ed  the sky area with BIN123 to give it a Yupo like tendency. 

I have to thank one of my South Carolina friends, Diane Garry for the use of a photo she took and shared with me. Once the installation is complete I'll post another picture of the whole thing.

The individual sails will be for sale after the event at the Art Emporium 177 Main St Port Stanley. 

Day three: sail installation element

The water especially needs more work, but we're getting there. I have to research out door top coats, anyone have any suggestions?

Day two, sail installation element

This is the start of the second day I've had to work on my contribution to the installation piece for Port Stanley. The finished sail will be one of nine mounted on a frame in The park near the bridge in Port. At lest that's the plan as I've heard it, village council could place it elsewhere.

Because of the size, 63x38x74, I'm working on the dining room table, don't worry, it's an art veteran!

Looking for inspiration

Oh the things we artists get ourselves into.

9 area artists, myself included have been asked to paint 'sails' for an art installation to be ready for Port Stanley's Harbourfest, and the Soiling International Regatta. Three weeks away. 

It seems everyone is doing nautical themes, not as a requirment, but because it's a natural...

I'd rather not, but nothing is coming to me. 

Dear muse help me please!!!

Dr. Seuss's Garden, new painting

Here's another painting ready for Westland Gallery's(formerly Art Exchange)square foot show.

I started this, at one of the Art Emporium's Saturday painting/play days.

We had tons of fun, and couldn't beleive it when 5:00 rolled around. 

If you're looking for a place to get together and work with other artists, the Art Emporium opens their doors at 9:00 am Saturday's. It's a drop in kind of affair, and it's free! 177 Main st Port Stanley 226-658-1888

Dr Seuss's garden, $160.00, 12x12

A Satisfying Day

My definition of a perfect day, is to spend half of it in the studio, and half in my garden.

Today was perfection, and the sense of satisfaction is immense. The garden is weed free, almost all my transplants are done, and the worst of the pruning is over-the winter kill this year was heart breaking. 

I pulled several monoprints, and picked the best one to mat for the gallery (Art Emporium Port Stanley)

Plus I fixed a couple of paintings that had been bugging me. 

A very good day!

sold

Summer Daze, monoprint. 6x6 matted to 12x12, $40.00

Art Emporium Takes the Lambeth Art Association Awards

Congratulations to our Art Emporium Artists who participated in  the Lambeth Art Association's annual show, and especially to those who won awards.
Candy McManiman, Robin Baratta, Debra Kubu, and Shirley Mihlik Thompson.
With over 400 paintings, by some of the area's best artists, competing for awards, that's an accomplishment to be proud of!

Debra Kubu           

Candy McManiman

Robin Baratta         

Parrot Feathers Tulip, painting

Spring has sprung! Finally.

It'll be a while before the tulips are out, I haven't seven seen any 'noses' yet. When they do, my favorites are the little kaufmann species tulips, and the crazy in your face parrot tulips. Unfortunatly the squirrels like them too, which is why I have lots of daffodils, fritillaria, and muscari...

12x12 and destined for the Art Exchange/Westland square foot show. 

Kit's Hollyhock: another challenge painting

Kit Cutting posted a photo on face book, with the caption, 'here is the challenge: paint my photo and post it here.

Today is the first chance I've had to work on it. I textured the support last night, and did the drawing this morning. I'm in studio tomorrow so I'm all prep'ed and ready to rock and roll!

I'm off to Port now to work at the Art Emporium, Kit will be 4 doors down at Portside Gallery, come and visit us both in lovely Port Stanley, it's gonna be a pretty day!

Challenge painting update #3

This is where 'pretty' is at... I don't like the bottem 1/2,  it's boring and trite, so I'm about to scrape it off and start over. BTW chaos is hanging at the Art Emporium, and I titled it Green is Spring, from the children's poem of the same name. I plan to title pretty Blue the sky.. Second line of same poem, I fell a series coming on. Lol

Crazy Daisy Monoprints, fun and colourful

 Sold

Mono-printing is a lot of fun, I love the serendipitous nature of the prints, you never quite know what you're going to end up with. There was a time when that kind of letting go was very hard for me to handle, I thought I had to control every art making process. I hope it's artistic growth that has allowed me to give myself over to the 'flow'

I've tried printing with many different kinds of plate, Gelli pates are by and far the most expressive, and give the most exciting results, IMHO.

a perfect day

Lucky me I've had two days off, and what perfect days they've been.  Studio time in the morning, and garden time in the afternoon.
I've had a small gelli plate for a while, and I've treated myself to a large one this week, so I've had fun playing with monoprinting/collage.  As I've said before, this printer's daughter didn't fall far from the parental tree!
These are 5x7 'mailable art' aka art cards, headed for the Art Emporium.
I'm doing altered books with my kid students, so I used some of the discarded pages and created 'found poetry' monoprints which I integrated into the collages.  Lots of fun!!

More Colours of Summer

 Colours of Summer #7 isn't telling me it's name, this is actually the third over painting of this one, it's being difficult.

sold

What do you think I should call it?

 The colours are just a bit muted here, the butterfly is an orange sulphur, and the asters purple, I never know if it's the monitor, or me that's a bit off...lol

This second painting is one I started when we were at Restoule this summer, it's actually been done for a while, and it's been at the gallery, I just kept forgetting to photograph it. While landscape isn't really my 'thing' this scene begged to be painted, and I obliged.   I've been working to get some work ready for the St Thomas 'Art Before Christmas Show and Sale' which is early November, and fast coming up!

The approach of Autumn

Autumn is in the air, I've just finished bringing my house plants in, well into the enclosed back porch, that's as far as they're coming tonight.  In the spring they 'harden off' in there for a week or so before they go out, in the fall, the process is reversed.
The last of the tomatoes have been picked, and the fish in the small pond, has been transferred to the large one, next will be the Autumn clean up...but not just yet.
Like most, I've been  hoping for just a bit more summer, I've been diligently capturing the last hurrah of my garden both on film, for reference, and with my brush.

These paintings will be headed to the Art Emporium/Boathouse Gallery.

The first one is 'Heart Wide open', the chippies planted tons of sunflowers, as they do every year, this one was heart shaped. I think someone had a nibble when it was just a bud, happy accident :)

sold

And this is of course, purple coneflowers,  still trying to figure a few things out with this little netbook (desktop toast), apologies for the uncropped, and slightly over exposed pics...

sold

For those who've asked, the reno is finally done, and no one committed homicide. A MIRACLE!  

7 ft painting, 'the pond'

It was a whole lot cooler in Restoule,  where I completed this  little painting last week.  I think I'll call it habitat-home.  This tree was like a high rise apartment building, with all the units rented.  Chipmunks in the basement, at lest three species of birds, including a little screech owl, and in the penthouse, northern Ravens, who are HUGE when they sit on the other end of the table and watch you paint.  I didn't dare move to grab my camera, afraid I'd scare him away. I just sat and examined him, as he was examining me...very cool experience.
Since coming home I've been very hard at work, and I think  'The Pond' is done. If you've been in my garden, you'll recognize this scene....

It'll be going down to the Art Emporium on Sunday, I didn't get it done in time for our big opening tonight.  We're hosting the 'Journey to my Identity' show, in partnership with The Elgin Health Unit, and the Talbot Teen Centre in ST Thomas.  It's going to be a VERY busy weekend in Port Stanley, our show and the Port Stanley Proud events too!

 Big computer's still out of commission, and netbook, doesn't have photo editing, apologies the my photog friends, for the non cropped pics.