You'll now find my work at McAtamney Gallery in Geraldine, NZ

I am excited to announce, I have joined the stable of artists represented at McAtamney Gallery in Geraldine! It is a beautiful, boutique gallery in a bustling township, linking the snowfields near Christchurch, NZ.

I was fortunate a good friend was travelling through Geraldine recently, when she visited McAtamney Gallery and had a really wonderful experience.
We had previously talked about what one might hope for in a gallery relationship, as artists over lunch one day. She told me she met Carolyn Mc Atamney-Rasch, and described her as exceptionally knowledgable and excited by her artists and their stories. She told me to get in touch. I’m so glad I did.

On the Kings’ Birthday weekend in June, my husband and I went for a road trip, we delivered a mix of finished work I had brought over in our shipment from the US. It was a chance to meet Carolyn face to face after a number of exchanges and have a look around.

I must say, everything my friend had told me was true. Carolyn is knowledgable on all aspects of the art world and it was evident immediately that she brings tremendous energy and enthusiasm to sharing information about her stable of artists and their work, while also having a wide understanding of the history of NZ artists and her secondary market. This is not as common as one might think in the artworld today.

“Fog on a Hill’
28" x39”
Oil on Canvas
Available @McAtamney Gallery

I had just started sorting out the new studio and am currently investigating a new series of works, but Carolyn was as keen as I am to find this handful of works their rightful homes. She also understands it takes time to settle and get the creative flow again, the muse has a timetable of its own. I am grateful for that understanding.
Relationship is everything when working with a gallery.

I know people are all excited about Instagram and other forms of social media because of the ‘world’ of exposure that if affords and the ‘immediacy’ of response time and it can be a viable marketplaces for some but, I truly think we are missing out on one of the most wonderful parts of the art world; the relationship built between artist and gallery and client.
It is much deeper than a material exchange.

There is immense wealth of knowledge, history and creativity to share in such circles, so much to learn and inspire. Gallery events to meet new faces, exhibitions to share a coherent body of work, artist talks and the social and working connections that creates in the wider community.
As an artist, it makes for more opportunity for group shows and collaborations, often through mediums which outside of the Gallery setting, the artist may not have access to independently.

I do like selling my work, and frankly it would be a cost prohibitive hobby with the amount of time I spend making art but, the process is not as transactional as buying something per-functionary.
It’s very personal. Art hopefully makes you feel something.
Art is a luxury for the senses.

I feel humbled to be included in Carolyn’s stable of artists at McAtamney Gallery. I look forward to creating a body of work to show there.

NZ is already filtering through in my current ‘Talisman Series’, acid free paper and ink works.
Natural tones abound and everything feels fluid. I have taken great solace at my window creating this series and will share sometime in the near future once fully complete.

I am always available to discuss commission but admit my reign is tight on creative control beyond palette and style reference.
My overseas clients can still contact me via email directly but I am very excited to see future works shown in NZ at McAtamney with Carolyn’s curatorship.

You can find McAtamney Gallery at: 40A Talbot Street, Geraldine, NZ.
Contact: Carolyn McAtamney-Rasch
027 395 3000 to book apt Tues/Thurs
All other days, Gallery is open from 11am-3pm
(In home viewing available by arrangement)

#TAE23 Twitter Art Exhibit 2023 Donation-The Weave

Every year I participate in the Twitter Art Exhibit by sending in a postcard sized artwork for sale.
This year the show is being hosted by Urban Native Youth Association in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

UNYA’s goal is to realise funding to build and run the Native Youth Centre. The Native Youth Centre is opening doors not only for Indigenous youth, but for the whole community.
This project presents an opportunity to take meaningful steps on the path to reconciliation. Every contribution received will help create a community of caring in support of Indigenous youth.
It may seem like a small contribution but, the sale of one art card alone would provide 4-5 meals, a day's bus ticket for a youth program, art supplies for up to 5 youths, or two hours of youth care counselling.

I admit, I was worried I would be unable to donate this year as I recently closed my Twitter account.
In previous years it was necessary to be an account holder, in fact participating was the reason I opened an account over a decade ago. I had heard about the project originated by artist David Sandum of Norway and wanted to be part of it. You can read more about it’s origins and history in my previous blog post here: 2022 Blogpost

I am happy to share, it is no longer necessary to have an account in order to donate a card for sale.
Here is my 2023 entry: Title: ‘The Weave’.
Each individual line contributes to the making of this image as a whole.
As in life, individual threads are required to come together, to create a sum total greater than themselves.

‘The Weave’

I spent the past 5 years living in Puget Sound (off the coast of Seattle,USA) and was privileged to learn a little about the local indigenous tribe of the Suquamish and their traditional ways of living as Southern Salish Coast peoples.
The Squamish of BC, Canada are Northern Salish Coast peoples. The Salish Coastline is such a beautiful part of the world and its PNW peoples share many of the same beliefs and wonderful ways of living.

I hope UNYA reaches its goal and can build the Native Youth Center, a most worthwhile project. Thank you Twitter Art Exhibit for the opportunity to contribute.

Mark your calendars: The Exhibition & Sale will be on June 24-25, 2023 at the Pipe Shop Venue at the Shipyards in North Vancouver.

TAE would like to acknowledge the 2023 event venue is located on the ancestral, traditional, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) and sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. We are honoured and grateful to be able to hold this event on this land.

#tae23

Glenn Eure's Ghost Fleet Gallery 28th Self Portrait Exhibition

It’s that time of year for the Annual Self Portrait Exhibition at Glenn Eure’s ‘Ghost Fleet Gallery’ in Nags Head, North Carolina.
This is the 28th year the show has been running and my 6th time participating. This year was special as I have recently relocated my family to the South Island of New Zealand and was unsure if I would be eligible to enter. As it turns out, to my delight, I received an invitation from Pat Eure to participate despite being off shore.
It makes me smile to think that as an Australian artist, now residing in New Zealand I can continue to exhibit at Glenn’s, Ghost Fleet Gallery.

Glenn had a special place in his heart for Australians and New Zealanders having served alongside them in the battle of Long Tan.
He made lifelong friends on the field, with whom he stayed in touch with over the years since.
In fact, the Aus and NZ Embassies sent over high ranking officers to read a letter from the Commanders in the battle, at his memorial service. Something he would have been very proud of and also meant a great deal to his wife Pat, family and friends to hear.

This year the shows theme was ‘I am where…’

I admit, my entry was hard to execute this year. I had just relocated and was still awaiting the shipment of my art supplies as they sailed a 14 week journey over the Pacific Ocean from the US to NZ shores. I had a bare minimum of ‘emergency art supplies’ to keep me going for which I am grateful. I generally paint in Oils on Canvas but had some ink and acrylic and small artist trading cards so set about making something different this year.

I created a small abstract work, the size of my Tiny Talisman series (2” x3”) on card and framed it to send.
I can be found as a figure in Alizarin Crimson among the magic green and clouds, embracing the energy that envelopes me here. Alizarin Crimson is an all time favourite color of mine to denote life and humanity. It may be the fact it is the colour of blood and unites us all, or just that it is such a colour of incredible depth but whatever the impulse, it feels wonderful to use in a self portrait.

The theme for this years exhibition had me reflect on where I am, not just physically but emotionally and spiritually.
New Zealand is often thought of as a small country at the bottom of the globe and it is, but it is also a country full of wonderfully kind people and of magic.
The magic of the long white clouds for which is is famous, verdant pastures, rolling hills, pristine shorelines and a sense of time and simplicity reminiscent of years gone by.

‘Sandfly Bay, NZ at dusk’

I am finding a sense of peace in the slower pace of living and the size of the towns and population. It has allowed me to stop and smell the roses, so to speak and delight in the smaller things, the things where magic is so often found.
Hence my entry title: ‘I am where small things hold magic’.

‘I am where small things hold magic’
2”x3” Mixed media on canvas card

I am also proud to share, the work sold to a well known artist from OBX, Doug Brannon, prior to the opening. Many thanks for collecting Doug!

If you get a chance to head down to ‘Ghost Fleet Gallery’ before the show closes May 11th you will be treated to 54 fabulous artists’ entries to view, and the bonus of a new category this year for Literary artists…9 entries to enjoy there.

You’ll find them at: Ghost Fleet Gallery-
210 E Driftwood Street, Nags Head, North Carolina.
Situated in the middle of The Outer Banks, (OBX) a well known US holiday destination admired for its beaches and it’s art!

#TAE22-Twitter Art Exhibit 2022...

Every year a different venue hosts the Twitter Art Exhibit to raise funds for a nominated charity.
Originated by artist David Sandum of Norway in 2010, it is now into its 13th year.

What exactly is the Twitter Art Exhibit?
Twitter Art Exhibit is a fundraising event that utilizes social media and public engagement to generate income for charities and nonprofit organizations. 
(Up until 2019, the charities kept 100% of the proceeds. Due to higher overhead costs that #tae has had to absorb, the charities now keep 80% of the proceeds) 
The first exhibition’s goal was 140 entries, symbolic of the 140 characters used on Twitter.
The response was so enthusiastic that 260 cards were submitted from 24 countries, and David Sandum raised enough funds to buy 221 new children’s books for a struggling library in Moss, Norway.

This is when I heard of David’s ambitious and generous hearted project and began donating an artwork each year.
I love creative thinking to help problem solve and even more so when it is driven by the desire to help a cause in need.
This was a cause close to David Sandum’s heart and in his neighborhood. No one could have imagined how large this project would grow and how many charities it would help in the years ahead.
This is a beautiful example of how one person with a vision to help others, succeeded in ways not imagined at the time of conception.

#TAE provides an opportunity for artists around the world to donate a postcard sized work to raise much needed funds to help the chosen charity. The only cost is your time creating and the stamp it costs to send in your work.

This year the recipient is The Encephalitis Society . You can click on the link following to register a donation as an artist if you are so inclined. I highly encourage doing so as it is such a good feeling to create for a wider good and to be part of such a creative and positive project, knowing you are helping in some small way, to fund an important charity.

You can click on the link to register a donation too or just share the tag #TAE22 to help promote the exhibit on social media.
Of course you can purchase my artwork or one of the many 100’s of artworks that come in over the next few weeks to support this wonderful cause.

Social media plays a major role in Twitter Art Exhibit. It is the intention to tweet, share, seed, and promote the artists to thank them for their participation, and to make this event a huge success. The reach is much larger than one person alone and who doesn’t love a positive use of social media?

My donation this year is titled ‘Unity’.

It seems an obvious theme to almost everything going on in the world this year so far and echos the intention of #TAE from the get go.
We are so much stronger when we stand together and of course when we stand in love.
May this beautiful world of ours and it’s peoples find love and unity once and for all…and if not in this moment, may we keep on trying in whatever ways we can.

Thank you to David Sandum for your creative vision and Mathew Bose for curating this exhibit in the historic city of York for the benefit of the Encephalitis Society this year.
Wishing you all the very best of engagement.

‘Unity’ #TAE22

'I am...a work in progress'

It’s been a rough start to a new year.
Looking outward from 2021, 2022 seemed to hold some kind of mystical renewal energy I was truly looking forward to, but it seems the ‘letting go’ energy of 2020 / 2021 still hangs in the air.

It is early days I know, and I remain optimistic that 2022 has many welcome moments in store but I have dragged my feet somewhat lacking motivation.

So, I started a studio clean up (believe me, it was long overdue) and sometimes that is the type of activity that can kick start creativity without the pressure to create.

As luck would have it, I came across a pile of 10” x 8" unfinished oil paintings, dry and waiting to be reborn.
I took one I particularly liked and started to play with it. I had nothing to lose, it was after all, in the waiting to be something else pile and the cleaning up is always a secondary priority to creating!

I have a pile of papers like this in the studio too, unfinished works that sing some kind of song for me but have not found their purpose yet. All kinds of materials used on different types of paper. I collect everything, packing paper from deliveries, foam inserts for making stamps, bits of material and miscellaneous thread all lie in wait for a moment of magic.

I got my moment with the oil painting on the table, a pair of scissors and a piece of unfinished acrylic and ink work to cut up.
I have been drawn to cutting up a simple human shape in the past year, so that is what I did, I cut out lots of little people. In the end I chose my favorite for size and fit and color palette complimentary to the oil painting.

I recently received an invitation to include a painting in Glenn Eure’s Ghost Fleet Gallery Self Portrait Exhibition.
It is one of the few shows I participate in every year, well, ever since a dear friend and fellow artist introduced me to Glenn, his work and his gallery. (Thank you Doug Brannon)

This year will be the Gallery’s 27th year holding the show and my 5th participating.
Glenn has since passed (may he rest in peace) but his wife Pat Eure and gallery manager Sharon continue the tradition every April. I am so pleased they do, the gallery is a long standing, central art hub for the Outer Banks, North Carolina.

I may not have got to cleaning the studio but I did complete my entry for the Ghost Fleet Gallery, Self Portrait Exhibition 2022.
This years’ theme: ‘I am…’

Here is my entry: ‘I am …a work in progress’
Aren’t we all? ;)

‘I am…a work in progress’
8” x 10”
oil and mixed media
2022

'Art is Happening' @ Bainbridge Is Public Library

I didn’t complete many works during 2020.
I painted often, almost daily, but mostly just for process.
One work that was deemed finished at least 3 times before it felt complete, is aptly titled ‘Letting Go’.

You see the irony there is, for most of 2020, I could not let this painting go.
I kept returning to it with another color to add, more drip work, some more scratching and scraping even when technically she was complete but my process was not.

I have lost many a painting to process but it is important not to over prioritize the finished product .
The therapeutic act of making art is more important that the art produced, which is a good thing, because there were many unfinished works and big messes in the studio this past year but it makes the work that does get resolved so much more special!

In 2020 I painted through my shock, my fears and sorrows….for the best part of the year.

‘Letting go’ kept calling me back!

While I was painted, I processed my emotions about Covid-19, my inability to access my eldest daughter and wider family in Australia, our changed plans for relocating to NZ for our youngest child’s first year in college and of course the layers of fear and mistrust that erupted to challenge me to find my way back to center and find my true north.

It wasn’t all doom and gloom though, as each time I worked diligently I found I unhooked another strong hold of a need to control or have the need to have definitive answers to my many and ever changing questions.
Somehow while working, I softened in my fear to find practicality and a way forward into the unknown.
One day at a time.

In June, my long awaited (18 months) solo show at Bainbridge Island Public Library was cancelled due to rising Covid numbers and rightfully so, but on a personal level it became another test of finding internal acceptance of undesired change.
I was pleased the library did what was best for the community wellbeing but a little lost in my personal direction for a minute. It’s hard for most artists who work in solitude, often an exhibition in the works gives us structure and a goal to work toward as well as the opportunity to share the work outside the studio.

You can imagine my joy when Patrick Gulke (library associate and the instigator of ‘Art is Happening’) invited me to share a work in his annual group show for the month of September at the very same library!
‘Letting Go’ was the pivotal work in the series I had planned to show in June, so naturally it was the work I chose to share in the group show.

It is still a strange time for us all, the pandemic not yet run its course and still much uncertainty as we navigate how to move forward while still protecting our vulnerable.

I have been thinking how poignant the energy of 'Letting Go' is at this time...we have not yet built the new and may not even be sure what to build yet, but we see the fragments of old structure falling away ready to create something more resonant.

I hope you get a chance to drop in to the library in the month of September to take in Patrick’s beautiful curatorship and wonderful works of 13 artists from our very own Bainbridge Is!

Artists on show: Patrick Gulke, Jamie Brouwer, Marilynn Gottlieb, Drew Kinninmont, Michael Pontieri, Sara Tuminello, Diane Walker, John Wiens, Susan Wiersema, Eileen Wold, Silas Bryant-Kunz, Chris Demarest and Deborah Rhee.

“Letting Go”
  24” x 24”
  Oil on Canvas
  2020

‘Permission to pause’....Tiny Talismans & Revolution project on display at Bainbridge Public Library

I saddened to share my long awaited solo exhibition at the Bainbridge Public Library was cancelled due to Covid restrictions in June but pleased to announce with the reopening of Washington State this week the library will resume its place on the ‘First Friday’ artwalk.

I am grateful to Linda Meier, the library art director, for thinking outside of the box and sharing the story of the Tiny Talisman and the Revolution project. She has graciously been sharing Tiny Talismans in the library gardens throughout June/July to be found.

What began as a feel good for others ended up being a way to feel good myself  has hopefully grown in to a feel good for many others, whether it be in making talisman to leave out for others or perhaps finding one yourself.

Congratulations to John Weins on his exhibition titles ‘Organic Lines’ showing for July. I look forward to seeing it in person myself. 

The text in the display case:

My Tiny Talismans began as a project in 2016 when I felt at an all time low, watching world events unfolding, I felt powerless and wondered what I could do to affect change in a positive direction.

A collector had requested a miniature artwork to take on her travels because she felt there was an energy in my work that helped her re-balance. On making that Tiny Talisman for her, I realized that is something I have to offer and began leaving miniature artworks in the community for people to randomly find. I hoped they may lift someones spirits and make them smile.

Science says a smile boosts endorphins in the body and endorphins make us feel good, so that is where I put my energy.

The Tiny Talisman project continues with a life of its own, other people joined from far and wide creating talismans to share in their own communities so I made a Facebook group, where they could stay in touch with each other and let us know what they were doing.

Anyone can join. All are welcome.

If you care to know more, the Facebook page is Revolution-artwithheart.

Both exhibits will be available for viewing at the library, through the month of July.

The tiny talismans are back in circulation.....

The Bainbridge Island Public Library is such a champion supporter of the arts.
My solo show was cancelled due to the pandemic but art can still be shared.

Do subscribe to ‘The Island Wanderer’ for staying in touch with all the wonderful events and places Bainbridge has to offer!

Read the full article here.

Glenn Eure's Ghost Fleet Gallery - 26th Self Portrait Exhibition...

I am so grateful for the opportunity to participate in Glenn Eure’s, Ghost Fleet Gallery’s 26th Self Portrait show in April!

The Ghost Fleet Gallery is a beloved community art hub in the Outer Banks, North Carolina, USA.

The theme this year was ‘Put yourself in the picture’ and as always I interpreted the theme abstractly.

I began thinking about the past year of many changes and how at times I’ve felt such high’s and at other times such low’s. It has been quite a bumpy ride, yet, there is hope and much to celebrate.
The voice of the feminine is being heard more clearly in all walks of life, offering fresh viewpoints on change but birthing isn’t always a quick process, often difficult and messy. Life is a lot like that too. But there’s a tenderness to be found among people who have contemplated and grown in awareness and this recent year of upheaval has brought many opportunities for reflection and growth.
As much as it feels like a decomposing, it also feels like we are building anew- as a society, as individuals and as always, from the inside-out.

This work is in-part biographical, and in-part a reflection of our experience as the feminine rises on Mother Earth.

I have not painted a great deal in this year gone by and look forward to regaining momentum and lightness of being. Building from the ground up, new beginnings.

’Ashes to ashes, dust to dust’…

#TAE21 - 'Silver Linings' my donation to Twitter Art Exhibit this year.

It’s been a very strange year to say the least.
Although, among the many challenges, I have found there is nearly always is a silver lining to be found.
I am grateful for the many moments that have presented this year to help me feel this way.

My postcard piece for #TAE21 -‘Silver Linings’.

Scandinavian artist, David Sandum, founded ‘Twitter Art Exhibit’ in an effort to raise funds for his local library in Moss, Norway in 2009. #tae is now in its’ 12th year.
It has garnered a large following on Twitter and made meaningful contributions to a variety of charities over the past decade.

This will be my 7th year sending in a postcard.
Please consider doing so yourself too. The more cards to they have to exhibit and sell, the more funds raised.
Click the link to find out how!
Twitter art exhibit

Twitter Art Exhibit 2021 is hosted in Cheltenham, UK and will be curated by Cat Salter Smith on behalf of ‘The Leukemia and Intensive Chemotherapy’ fund. Another wonderful cause to help raise much needed funds to help support patients and families dealing with blood cancer.

'Earth Star I' has found it's forever home!

Last week I participated in the Arts and Humanities Bainbridge fundraiser to raise funds for an important service on the Island, Bainbridge Youth Services.
I donated ‘Earth Star I’ , a work I completed on our arrival in the Bay Area. We had yet to find our new home so I did not have a studio set up but was itching to paint. The most difficult part of any move for me, is packing up the studio.
I bought a small set of oil paints and a couple of smaller canvases and created the trilogy of ‘Earth Star’ paintings on the dining room table. I remember the feeling of creating after a couple of months hiatus…it was pure joy! I had not made small works for some time and really enjoyed working from the wrist instead of using my whole arm for sweeping strokes. The detail that emerged is still in my visual language today.
All three paintings from the ‘Earth Star’ series are in homes on Bainbridge Island now!
Isn’t it funny how things work out?

‘Earth Star I’
8” x 10”
Oil on Canvas

I am excited to share it sold to the same person who purchased ‘Tip of the Iceberg’ last year from my show at ‘Pegasus Coffee House’ during the April First Friday Art Walk. They are now officially my first collector on the Island. A collector being someone who purchases multiple works.
I am happy to be able to help raise, along with many other local artists, much needed funds for BYS who provide counseling services to youth on the Island.
At this time of Covid 19, their services have been in high demand as the children adjust to schooling online and many other societal changes. Keep up the good work BYS and thank you to Arts and Humanities for the opportunity to be involved.
A big thank you to our purchaser too. :)

'Be Gentle' donated to Rabbit Haven's fundraiser auction.

When Covid-19 arrived on our shores, our family decided to help the local shelter place a bunny.
We were thrilled to welcome Ash to our home, although we have had to be patient over the past 2 months, letting him come to us as he gained confidence in his surroundings. He is starting to play with his ‘toys’ and explore outside of his sleeping enclosure now and we hope soon he will allow us to cuddle him, at present he loves to be stroked but rebuffs any move to pick him up.
While at Rabbit Haven we were impressed with the dedication of staff toward caring for the bunnies awaiting their forever homes. We went through a process of making sure Ash felt comfortable with us before we were able to leave with him and the director of the shelter made sure our personalities were a match. Thats a level of care that reflects the love they have for these beautiful prey animals.

Ash (Chinchilla Rabbit)

Hopefully in July, Rabbit Haven will be able to hold their annual fundraiser (in person or online) and I have donated a painting for auction to help raise needed funds. I’ll share details of the auction when it is announced. Hopefully they raise some good funds.
Ash reminds us every day with his shy nature to be gentle….the world needs it.

‘Be Gentle’ 8” x 10” Mixed media

Glenn Eure's 'Ghost Fleet Gallery' 25th Annual Self Portrait Art Show

I am excited to send in my entry for this juried show in North Carolina. I have entered the past two years and really enjoyed the process of working through ideas.
I am an abstract painter and painting realistically is not something I truly enjoy or are very good at, funny how that is often the case!
This year, once again, I did attempt to draw myself in order to paint myself but I just wouldn’t want to share any of my efforts.
I did have fun working with ways to explore this years theme though: ‘Stepping out from the mirror’.
I thought about all the things that means to me, stepping out of the shadow of oneself, stepping away from the story other people have build around who you are, stepping out of projected identity within family groups, even pondering how our own self image changes over time.
I thought about how we often don’t see ourselves they way other people see us and considered some of the reasons why this is so. I thought about how we are not who we see in the mirror and how to get past referencing ourselves with what we see reflected back in an image of a body. We can’t see the soul in a mirror although, we can sometimes glimpse it in our eyes.
As this show is open to mixed media and I don’t often play in that arena, I thought I’d send in an abstract entry again, with a twist. Hope you like it.

‘The ties that bind’
Oil on canvas and thread.
2020

#TAE20 my donated card is part of the quilt!

I am excited to see my donation to the ‘Twitter Art Exhibition’ - 6th row down on the right hand side of this gorgeous quilt!
’Fragments longing for Unity’ Ink on Card
This years sales support Horry County Disabilities & Special Needs - providing services and supports to individuals with Intellectual Disabilities, Autism, Brain and Spinal Cord Injury @hcdsn Here’s hoping they raise lots of $$$!

TAE20- My donation to Twitter Art Exhibit 2020

Each year a Gallery hosts the Twitter Art Exhibit to raise funds for their nominated charity. You can click on the link to register a donation too or just share the tag #tae20 to help promote the exhibit on social media.

This year it is hosted by William.H.Miller Studios in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Proceeds from this years exhibition will fund Horry County Disabilities and Special needs art program.
Art making is such a wonderful way to express oneself, also providing opportunity for various motor skills to be developed and engage in the wider community through classes and exhibitions.
I am honored to send in my piece ‘Fragments longing for unity’ for sale.

‘Fragments longing for unity’’

Ink on Card

Collaboration and the gift that keeps on giving....

In February, I instigated a progressive art project involving 20 fellow MoMA online Alumni, it’s titled ‘Cedar Bar Shenanigans’ in homage to the Post War Abstract Painting course at MoMA we undertook together back in 2011.
To begin, I sent out 4 primed canvases to groups of 5 artists across the world, each artist made a contribution to the canvas and sent it on to the next. The blog post I wrote about the project can be found here.
On completion, I compiled a sketchbook containing imagery and text explaining the process from artist to artist as the paintings travelled across the world. The finished art journal was then send in to the Brooklyn Art Library for inclusion in their traveling sketchbook project.
It seemed a perfect a fit for a collaboration that traveled so far in creation, to continue its travels and inspire others. The sketchbook project also affords us the opportunity to log in to the library website and keep track of the sketchbooks journey forward. Here is the code if you would like to log in to the sketchbook project page and see where the project is traveling. (It will be live in volume 15 after February 2020)
In October, I received a beautiful surprise in the mail….
Three of the artists involved, Cathy Sheafor, Jennifer Schaudt and Carol Schaudt, decided to create a progressive painting for me as a thank you for our shared experience.
Not only is it a beautiful work of art but it touched my heart so deeply that they would think to do that. It hangs proudly in my studio reminding me of the talented friends I have come to know through the joy of continued art education. I hope we get to do another undertaking together in the future!

Jennifer Schaudt began with inspiration from Barnett Newman and Mark Rothko

Cathy Sheafor’s addition inspired by Barnett Newman, Robert Ryman and Yayoi Kusama

Carol Schaudt’s final layer inspired by Yayoi Kusama and the Pacific North West, to provide a link to me!

The addition of the Totem pole on the final layer was Carol’s way of adding a connection to the work to the Pacific North West where I live. So thoughtful!
This painting survived two tropical storms…It evacuated with Cathy as she fled Hurricane Dorian and later moved to higher ground by Carol when her home was hit by Tropical Storm Imelda!
Grateful to say they all weathered the storms and the painting made its way safely to me.
Isn’t that a tribute to the passion of artists…to consider an artworks safety when their own was in question!
I am truly honored to have this beautiful work in my home and these wonderful artists in my heart!
Thank you all so much for making me feel so special! I will treasure this piece!

(A special shout out to Ken Schaudt too, for stretching and priming the canvas)

'Through the Ages' has found it's new home in Texas!

I am happy to share ‘Through the Ages’ has found its home in Texas with a treasured collector.

This painting started out in Australia in 2007, making her way into the container we brought over with us by sea to the USA in 2010.
Once settled, I found a way to use my unresolved canvases as a means to help me integrate more fully into my experience of life abroad. My last Australian paintings became my first American ones.. Life, reflected in art, became about finding a happy medium between old and new.
More affordable paint in the US, allowed the luxury of working in thick layers and using a spatula instead of a brush I began sculpting on the canvas, scratching the surface, while staying true to my practice of revealing and concealing, I was learning a new visual language.
I left little windows in the new layers to reveal the old painting underneath, context for a visual unwinding of the painting while honoring my experiencing in daily life, where much was the same and yet so much was not.
The process helped me to become comfortable with the recognition that I am a culmination of all my experienced and should not mourn the past, it is here as the foundations for my present.
It is so fitting that this painting was purchased to honor a new start in a new home for the collector.
I hope she brings them much happiness in their new home.

Through the ages 30” x 48” Oil/Canvas

' Tip of the Iceberg' has found it's new home, right here on Bainbridge Is.

It is a good feeling when someone finds your work resonates with them enough to make it their own. It’s quite an honor knowing they wish to bring it in to their life and home.

People often ask ‘how can you let them go’ and I’m happy to admit it wasn’t always so easy for me. Early on in my painting career, as I was building confidence in my muse, I was somewhat afraid if I let a painting go I may never paint anything like it again. It’s funny because even when I intentionally set out to create a series I can’t copy my own work, I have to create them simultaneously to capture the same energy flow.

In hindsight, it makes perfect sense, every day is different and painting daily becomes like a creative diary of sorts… the painting becomes a time stamp of the thoughts, emotions and inspiration of that moment. It isn’t something I can fake or try to pull out from another time and place. it is all very present. That is one of the things I love most about creating, it forces you to be present in the moment. I am much more confident that my muse will appear when I front up in the studio now. Twenty years of doing so has shown me there is always something waiting to be expressed.

‘Tip of the Iceberg’ was one of my first paintings in 2018 which incorporated art journaling techniques with painting on canvas. It felt good. It felt like the start of something new and it was. I have continued to use canvas the same way I was using my art journal pages, as a place to explore feelings using mixed media and not only oil paint. I will always love painting in oil, my first love, but this has extended my vocabulary and the process is engaging and rewarding.

I hope ‘Tip of the Iceberg’ gives as much joy to the collectors as it gave me while creating.

‘Tip of the Iceberg’
8” x 10”
Mixed Media on Canvas

Pegasus Coffee House on Bainbridge Island... first friday artwalk. APRIL

Happy to share that Pegasus Coffee House on Bainbridge Island, Washington has asked me to be their Artist of the month for April. We open the show on the 5th of April coinciding with First Friday Artwalk. There is an opening reception between 6-8pm with Live music from Heddwen and Meg Dolde too! Hope you can make it to join us for a fun night of Art, Music and Wine of course!
Heading off today to hang the show!

Glenn Eure's 'Ghost Fleet Gallery' 24th Annual Self Portrait Exhibition.

This is No April Fools…..Tonight is the opening of the Glenn Eure’s Ghost Fleet Gallery’s Annual Self Portrait show.
There is a special wall dedicated to Glenn this year, with a retrospective showcasing a collection of his own self portraits.
I wish I could be there in person to toast Glenn and all he has done for the arts and of course sample the highly regarded culinary delights by obxdougart. More for everyone else…this time!

I am exited to have an entry included although I admit it was much more challenging than I anticipated. Why is it so hard to paint yourself? I struggled with multiple attempts using the mirror and taking photo’s and eventually decided to go by feel and represent myself energetically.
I am not entirely sure how I feel about the outcome but I am really pleased to have had the opportunity to push myself out of my comfort zone. Glenn would have liked that, he was a boundary pusher and liked to encourage others to do the same.
Here’s ‘CHEERS’ to you Glenn and a big hug to your darling wife Pat! Congratulations on the 24th Annual Self Portrait show!

‘We are Light- born of Darkness’
8’ x 10” Acrylic on Canvas
Self Portrait capturing essence rather than a realistic image.