Changing Gears

In my last post , I mentioned that I had taken an online painting class offered by Carla Sonheim. Here are some of the results of my explorations following the class (IOW art I made for show/sale, not as part of the classwork, but incorporating techniques I learned in the class).

Underwater Fantasy I  12” x 12” on birch plywood panel.  Watercolor, gesso, charcoal and acrylic ink.  Currently on display at Arts West in Athens Ohio through September 2. 

Lotus Dreams  12” x 12” on birch plywood panel.  Watercolor, gesso, charcoal and acrylic ink.  Private collection.

Crown of Thorns, 12” x 12” on birch plywood panel.  Rice paper, gesso, watercolor, charcoal and acrylic ink.  Currently on display at Arts West in Athens Ohio through September 2.

Who Needs Fronds, 12” x 12” on birch plywood.  Watercolor, gesso, charcoal and acrylic ink.  Private collection.

Spiral Dance, 12” x 12” on birch plywood.  Watercolor, gesso, charcoal, India ink and acrylic ink.  Private collection.

Reaching for the Sun, 12” x 12” on birch plywood.  Watercolor, gesso, charcoal, acrylic ink and collage.  Currently on display at Arts West in Athens, Ohio.

Tropical Treat, 12” x 12” on birch plywood.  Collage, gesso, watercolor, charcoal and acrylic ink.  Currently on display at Arts West in Athens, Ohio.

I really enjoy working on the small panels of wood and letting myself see what images take form instead of forcing them to come.  Currently I’m working a bit larger, on canvas with acrylics, but I am maintaining the same spirit of exploration and fun that I found in creating these works.

My show of new work, The Mermaid’s Tale, is on exhibit at Arts West, in Athens, Ohio, through September 2.  If you are in the area, I invite you to check it out.  Most pieces are for sale, contact me for more information, and check out my Etsy shop.

The Mother and Child Reunion

My children have always made art with me.  I couldn’t imagine not creating when they were small, and so they always had some variation of art supply, and close supervision as we worked side by side.  It helped keep me sane during those demanding toddler years and helped give them a leg up when it came to making art for school.  I never held back on what supply they could use, I just made sure it was a child safe alternative (adhesives) or I did part of their work myself (cutting). 

My youngest is soon to be 12, and he shares my studio with me.  We do the occasional show together and we brainstorm ideas for our work.  It’s really nice to have an art buddy so close at hand!

His favorite medium is polymer clay.  He’s sold many pieces and has even taken a few commissions.

You can see some of his older work in the background, while his newer work is in the foreground.

We bounce ideas off each other, and take inspiration from each other’s work.  Recently I created this sea scene:

Octopus’ Garden 2011  Machine embroidery with Kreinik threads, machine pieced and machine appliqued.  I still need to measure it, but it’s around 36” x 36”

We have an upcoming show opportunity, with parameters of no larger than 5 inches in any direction.  Izzy chose to make his own coral reef.

Izzy Stern  Coral Reef  2011 5” x 5”

Detail of the sculpture.  He was very concerned that the colors be accurate.  I love the eel peeking out from behind the fronds, and you can see the tentacles of the octopus that is hiding behind the anemone.

This is one of his most ambitious pieces to date.  I am really excited to see where he goes next!

It’s funny to see how you influence your children, or friends, or other people in your life, even if you don’t realize you are.  Sometimes a little encouragement and belief in their abilities can go a long way.