Still Life: Cherries

DSC05315, originally uploaded by aunt.meeb.

My college art professor lauded the benefits of doing still life studies as often as possible. He saddled us with the responsibility to create our own compositions. Truly, some of my favorite works were a result of these assignments. Here, I worked for about an hour on a bowl of cherries in a windowsill on a very windy day. The clouds would block the sun and delete the shadows from my view, and then the sun would reemerge, almost blinding me. Still, I need to do more of these.

Below is some pictorial documentation of the process.

The initial outline/composition sketch in charcoal:

Starting to fill in some tones:

Tones pretty much complete; adding detail:

Finished product:

Studio, Space

DSC04978, originally uploaded by aunt.meeb.

Eric and I decided to take advantage of a great opportunity and rent the first floor of our condo as studio space for the three summer months I'm off school. That way, I would have a dedicated space to work, and I would feel compelled (since we are paying for it) to be down there as often as possible. It is amazing, the feeling of reconnecting with part of you that's been neglected. The smells of the oil paint, familiar faces on dusty canvases, the feel of the masonite in your hands...it is powerful.

My main goals are to practice, practice, practice. I intend on working specifically from pictures, just to get back into the habit (plus I have some images that I've been desperately wanting to preserve in oil paint), but I hope to also do some still life and experiment with other media. I hope I can share this space with loved ones as well. It's so open and airy. I will have a hard time giving it up in September, but deadlines are good for me. Stay tuned...

VSA Side by Side

DSC02518, originally uploaded by aunt.meeb.

This is the second year in a row that I've participated in the VSA Side by Side program. I worked with two girls, one was a teenager and the other was about 8. With the teenager, we went out, took a bunch of pictures (shown in this set), and then picked out the ones we both liked. I then arranged them in a 3x3 grouping that was displayed with the student's other work. With the younger artist, we worked together on a couple watercolor paintings of trees. We experimented with my Chinese calligraphy set, and also studied a tree from life. I only had a total of about two hours with each girl, so we really had to be efficient with our time.

I was pleased with what we were able to accomplish, and I was thrilled that my nieces got a chance to see my art in a studio. Hopefully it will be the first of many shows? *fingers crossed*

I look forward to participating in the Side by Side exhibit in the future. It is a really great way to practice teaching techniques and get to know some pretty cool kids.

Art!

From February 2009

I finally got to go to the Indianapolis Museum of Art this past weekend. I love it. I get lost in art museums. They're never quiet for me; the variety of works call out to me an pull me into so many different worlds. I'm grateful I got to enjoy it with Stessi, Kate and Sophie.

From February 2009

Etsy-ness!

From Blogger Pictures

We'll see what happens, buuut...



I'm on Etsy now! Check it out and let me know what you think. Too pricey? Not good enough? Just right?

What else can I sell? I want to go to France this year!