0 Comments
Friday night...good friends...VIP reception...international kinetic art show...tree with sparkles blowin' in the breeze...then a bunch of junk food, tv and artin' after....
I thought you'd never ask! Here are just a few pics...but please, PLEASE know...you have to see the videos to fully appreciate what we saw...I posted some to my Instagram and also to the Art Hive Facebook page...check'em out! For more about the 2015 International Kinetic Art Exhibit and Symposium click on the link below! Gonna keep this short...need to start my daily art piece...but last night John and I went to Dada for some appetizers with his Aunt and Uncle from NC, something quick (but fancy!) before they started the trip back up I-95. The main reason we chose Dada is that Aunt Jan wanted to see my artwork. So we went. And I showed her my artwork...but some of it was missing.
Oh crap. Where did it go? Turns out- I sold four paintings! Yes! So today after school I drove down to Delray to restock/rework the walls in the two rooms where my work is on display. I pulled from my inventory and chose five pieces from my April 2014, 'Poetry' series, and then moved the pieces around in the back room to fit the two paintings from the 'ant' room...so the walls are all ready...stop by and eat, drink, dance and buy some art! Yay!
So, I am a sucker for holidays. Seriously. I love to decorate for holidays, wear lame socks...coordinate my colors to go along with special days...guilty on all accounts. That being said...I have really gotten into Valentine's Day-themed art as the years have progressed so this month my theme is...wait for it... This theme came from a variety of sources...first up, past Valentine's Day themed works...as shown in the slideshow above. Keep in mind that I am missing some works, but this is most of them. Also...my recent obsession with Jewel from my Miss Matchy Matchy series. I mean...she and her cat Gem took over almost half of the series...don't believe me? Look for yourself:
(Side note...and I just thought of it...another reason for this love of all big, fluffy fabulous hair...my own hair is stick straight and barely holds a curl. You always want what you don't have, right?) Not too long ago I posted something about it on Instagram, prompted by a quote or something that a beautiful art friend named Raquel posted...can't remember if it ever went on the blog, but here it is...a grouping of just some of my images of gals with natural hair from the past couple of years; ...also note...I decided on the theme before even thinking about the link to Black History month...which when I realized it I was even more excited about my series! Win-win! ...well, you can see where the Valentine's Day inspiration came from...and the hair...now for the last piece of the inspiration puzzle...the BEE! Over the past couple of years I have incorporated bee motifs into my work off an on...and I ain't even gonna lie- it is a direct link to my love for Art Hive Magazine. Jess snags many of these pieces (and she even had her momma, Viv, steal one from HER!) But, yeah, I include bees in my work whenever I can, even if it's just one pieces in the series just as my way of saying I love you, Art Hive. Here are some of the pieces from the past couple of years that incorporate this motif; And that's it. That is where the inspiration for this series came from. Oh, and I am still working with adding the embellishments onto my drawings...this is helping me get my 'fibers fix' til I can figure out how to get back into textiles...even if it's just a little bit...just wanted to mention that...pardon my sparkle...
Also of note...I will BEE participating in a group show later this month, so hopefully some of these pieces will work for that...and Jess has a fun venture that she is working on...which ties in with this theme... I am rambling. That's all. I hope you like my new series, I am only tree pieces in and I am in LOVE!!!!!
While I was looking up images of Iris to work from I came across so many of her quotes that were inspirational to me...now, you probably know this one...my favorite...
Yeah, she did say that, and I love it...but she had many, many more 'gems' so I felt compelled to include some here on my blog...and I gotta be honest, my wheels are spinning at frightening speeds with ideas based on Iris Apfel and what she has to say about fashion...
And here is my daily art, inspired by the one and only Iris Apfel. I put her in a pair of emerald green palazzo pants with sequinned embellishments and a black feather coat, also with some sequin accents. Under the coat she is wearing a black turtle neck with a turquoise necklace and a gold necklace and has a large jeweled brooch on her shoulder. I included her signature owl-eye glasses, too. Now, I tried to find out- does Iris have a pet? I couldn't find anything about a pet...but I really wanted her to have a cat...cause Miss Matchy Matchy and Jewel both have a cat...and I have cats...and cats are awesome. So I gave her a mini-leopard and called it a day. Okay...here's the thing. I don't know if I can part with this series. I...just...I can't. I love it too much. So I don't know the details, but there will be more pieces. I don't know how many...might not be every day...but...I have to make more. I have to. Besides finishing up my 'last piece' in the series (again...NOT the last piece!) I also made a trip down to Hollywood to handle some art-related business. Sharon over at Gallery 2014 wanted me to make sure my February '13 and '14 pieces were good to go since they are perfect for Valentine's Day. (so stop by Gallery 2014 and check them out...heck, buy'em!) I also picked up my work from Sally over at SMASH Beauty Lounge...waiting to see if the pieces might be relocated to a new location...in the meantime I have a bunch of eye paintings and a dress form wearing a wedding dress made of recycled Art Hive Magazines in my car.
No big deal. I was inspired to create a bridal-themed piece for day 30 of this series. My inspiration came from a couple of places...
I thought I had posted about all the DIY elements in our wedding...but maybe I didn't. I will do that maybe some other time...but let's just say our wedding was FULL of small details...I hand painted our invitations, response cards, programs and the 'reserved' signs for some of the tables...did my own bouquet with hand-wired aurora borealis crystals and accent brooch, lil' mini bouquets for the cake toppers, made our own CD wedding favors...and I even did my own bridal portrait painting. Kinda crazy when I look back on it, but it was mainly of out of necessity; we paid for our own wedding so we had a limited budget...but I also wanted to have those personal touches. #WeWasJustBabies For my daily art I basically used my bridesmaid/flower colors as inspiration: periwinkle and colors pulled from hydrangeas. And this is what I came up with: In piece #29 I started to experiment with adding some real fabric/trim elements to my work...and I kinda love how it turned out. When I see that tiny pink bow at her waist it makes me smile. I continued this idea with this piece, using some scraps of vintage lace and trim that I had, cutting them into the shapes that I needed, then adding crystals, pearls and clear beads on top of the fabric elements. The small aurora borealis crystal at her waist is a nod to my own wedding. The design of the bridesmaid gown for Jewel is my own creation, just a one-shoulder number with some gathering and lace/embellished detail.
But I gotta be honest. I kinda LOVE making these pieces. I am combining some of my favorite things...the female form...fashion...cats...sparkle...even some art history just for fun. And I don't know if I can let this series end. I am going to move on in February...I already have an idea that I am really BUZZED about (ummmm...so that was a hint!!) But I don't think I can leave this series. So you're probably thinking, 'no big deal- just make some more.' And you are totally right BUT...I have this insane need for everything to be in a structure of sorts...to tell you the truth when I took a detour and made the pieces below I was excited about them but...and now this may seem really lame...I was stressed about how to label/organize them. Yeah, really. So...I will be inside my own head today trying to figure out how I want to continue the MMM series but also move on to another theme...and also what the official last two pieces for the month will be.
To be continued... Still on a pearl kick and I am not one bit ashamed. I even through in some sparkle for good measure.
For pieces #27-28 I created two views of the same gown, worn by MMM's friend Jewel...and kitty Gem of course. In the first image the attached scarf is shown draped over the gown so you can only see some of the pearls and in the second view the scarf is moved to the back (note the pearl strap on the first image, that attaches around the back of the neck, blending in with the pearl neckline) When the scarf is on the back it reveals more pearls and light pink rhinestones. I only have three more pieces left in the series...not sure if I am going to do one more image of Jewel...or go back to Miss Matchy Matchy...but I am working on an idea of their 'Fairy Glam Mother' that I am kinda excited about...so...we'll see. |
AuthorArtist and Art Teacher
|