Monday, February 28, 2011

come together

Even though February is the shortest month of the year, it usually feels like the longest one because of the weather...but not this year. It has nothing to do with the weather this time, though. It has everything to do with the First Friday Art Walk. I really want to get some new stuff ready for this coming Friday and it seems like I've had less time this month to do so, but that's okay. Thankfully the last few days have been productive ones. I have been sneaking away to my studio whenever I get the chance and working on different things. I was able to start and finish a brand-new collage, start another new one (which I hope to complete in the next couple of days), and put the finishing touches on a collage that had been sitting around, waiting for the right ingredients to come along. I have also been plugging away at this year's birthday painting and, with some luck and some more time in the studio, I should have it ready for this month's show. It's nice when things can come together quickly. Fingers crossed that it keeps happening!

Thursday, February 24, 2011

made to order

Terry's friend from college, Deb, was looking for a special present for her partner, Dave. Deb had been looking at photos of my art I had posted on Facebook, and she came across a collage entitled "Get Out Of Your Head and Into Your Heart". She sent me a message asking if she could buy it for Dave, but I told her the piece had sold at the Gorham Art Fair a couple of months ago. She asked if I ever did custom pieces and I told her I've done a few, but the prospect always makes me a bit nervous ("What if it doesn't meet expectations? What if it's not what you had in mind?"). She promised (with a smile) to have low expectations, so I agreed to give it a shot.

Deb prides herself on giving unique, thoughtful gifts, so I was flattered that she thought of me to provide her with one. Deb and Dave's song is "Flying Clouds" by Jorma Kaukonen, and Deb wanted the collage to represent it in some way. She sent me the lyrics and I chose a couple of lines that I thought would be nice to feature. I scrambled around looking for images, since I knew that Deb would be visiting Portland soon and I wanted to have it ready for her. I had an idea in my head what the collage would look like when I first started, but it ended up being fairly different...and I am so glad I didn't glue anything down prematurely! Deb was very happy with the finished product, and I got an email from her today saying that it had been well received by Dave also: "Your art got a 12 out of 10!" What a relief!

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

simple green

This month's First Friday was great! The turnout was even better than last month's, and I got to spend some time with people I care about (thanks to Erica, Rebecca, Andy, and Terry for hanging out). Last time I just had paintings on display, but this time I did both paintings and collages, and people really seemed to respond to the eclectic mix of work. Not only did I get positive feedback regarding what was on the walls, but a couple of people commented favorably on the music I was playing as well! I'm also happy to say that I was able to get not one, but two of the paintings I mentioned in my last post finished in time for the show.

I believe one of the reasons for the improved turnout was the sandwich board sign I was able to put out on the sidewalk. Erica was kind enough to loan the board to me, and I attached some bright yellow posterboard with the word "art" and some arrows painted on it. As the evening was coming to a close, I went outside to bring the sign in...and I noticed that someone had stuck some greenery on it! I thought that was so sweet, and it really was a nice touch. It made the sign so much more welcoming and friendly-looking, and I just had to take a picture. I'll make sure to pick up some fake flowers and greenery of my own for next month's Art Walk!