In case you're new to what I do, allow me to explain it here: I set up my easel and paint an 8" x 8" canvas for 8 hours straight. I sell raffle tickets ($5 each or 3 for $10) and at the end of the day, the completed painting is raffled off, with 50% of the ticket sales (as well as 10% of all art sold, excluding magnets but including totes) being donated to charity. I name each "Paint-a-Thon" as I go along (just so I can keep things straight), and I'm calling this particular event "Do Tell!" because this time, the cause I'll be raising money for is The Telling Room! You might be asking, "Where and when is this happening?" Well, those answers make up a couple of the other reasons why I'm so excited! First, the venue...I will be at Dobra Tea, 89 Exchange Street, Portland! I have a solo show that went up on Friday, May 26th, and it will be up through most of July, which means I will be having TWO "Paint-a-Thon"s there during that time period (but let's focus on one month at a time, shall we?)! Second, the date..."Do Tell" will be happening on Friday, June 2nd, which also happens to be First Friday Art Walk! The art walk isn't 8 hours long, though, so I will be starting my painting around 10:30am and (hopefully) finishing up around 6:30pm. I'm planning on hanging out a bit afterwards and having the winning ticket get pulled closer to the end of the art walk (which is 8pm). If you can't make it to "Do Tell!" and you still want to support The Telling Room by buying some art, don't worry: the 10% donation from all art sold will continue throughout the month of June!
side wall
back wall
a lovely place to enjoy some tea!
...like so...
...and the back faces the driveway to the CSA pickup area...
...like so...
...and I couldn't be happier about it!
...like so!
Speaking of Brunswick-area events, the seventh annual Altered Couture was last Thursday, May 25th, and if you missed it, you missed one hell of a show! Altered Couture is the brainchild of the lovely and talented Christine DeTroy, and this year's event was entitled "Masquerade Couture"! It was my fourth time participating, although the first time was only as a last-minute fill-in model for someone else's entry, so that makes this my third time creating a costume...anyway, in case you've never been to Altered Couture, here's the rundown: roughly two dozen participants each make a costume based on a theme. You're not supposed to spend more than $25 on your outfit, and the emphasis is on getting creative with recycled/repurposed/inexpensive/non-traditional materials. You choose a song, and you "walk the runway" wearing your creation. It is the best example of "art for art's sake" that I have ever been a part of. Every year, Altered Couture raises money for a different cause, and this time, Christine chose ArtVan to be the recipient (and if you're reading this, you know I love ArtVan and their mission). My costume was based on the song I chose: "How Many People Are You" by Phish. I wrote out different words that might describe me onto oversized paper labels and Mod-Podged them to the unstretched canvas skirt I made for last year's event (which I repainted). I kept those words to six letters or less so they could be seen from a distance. I duct-taped more labels to an old tomato cage, decorated it with ribbons and beads, and wore it on my back via elastic straps. I cut up and painted one of my husband's old, oversized tie-dyes as the top to pull it all together. It's always scary "walking the runway," but having Phish playing (along with having friendly faces in the crowd and wearing a mask) made it a lot easier (and no, I wasn't out there for the full 8+ minutes of the song, just the first two and change)! Also, all of the participants are super-supportive of one another "backstage", encouraging each other and calming frayed nerves...it's really a nice environment. Plus, Christine is awesome, and everyone wants to do a good job for her because of that fact! Here's a link to Susan Perrine's photo album of the event, and here are some pictures of my costume!
the front
the side
the back
backstage with Christine DeTroy!
I know this is already a really long blog post, but I didn't want to end it without sharing this great little video with you! My dear friend Rebecca Boothby Conley shot this piece for Maine Public featuring another friend, Tammy Neilson, hanging out in her kitchen and discussing her mad gardening/canning skills! It's the first episode in Maine Public's new original web series, "Living Off the Land," and my art makes a cameo at the end. Way to go, lovely ladies- and thank you for your support!
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