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I must say...Valentine's Day, or any holiday really, is extra fun when you are a teacher. I used two of the items given to me by students today in the creation of my daily piece, the plastic 'Bee Mine' ring off a cupcake from Aura and the heart shaped box from the chocolates that Claudia gave me. Thank you so much, ladies...for the Valentine's Day gifts AND the inspiration!
![]() Either it has been busy...or I haven't been using my time wisely...whatever the reason/excuse...I haven't been updating my blog as much as I would like. So...this will be brief, but an update nonetheless. I am twelve pieces into my monthly series and having a blast! Working with mixed media really appeals to all that I enjoy doing as an artist- drawing, collage, painting...maybe down the road I can even work in some sparkle and/or beading. I think sometimes I feel pressure to draw the women's faces more realistically, especially in terms of the proportion...but I am kind of throwing that out the window and just working in the silly, exaggerated style that comes most natural to me. (Left) For my #tbt pics on Instagram today I posted some collages of photos from February of 2012. My monthly pieces were small heart mixed media paintings on square canvas panels, and true to form I also started a side series of drawings...yep, you guessed it- ladies. I worked with a heart motif inspired by Valentine's Day and came up with some fun images that focused on the heart(s) and lot's of hair. Jess and I participated in the ANE group show for that month, the theme was Love Struck/Love Sucks. Per usual, we had fun getting into character for the event.
(Middle) In addition to the daily heart pieces and the side series of drawings...at that time I was still trying to complete a self portrait each month...of course it had to go with the theme for the month...starting to see a pattern with me and all my OCD self-imposed rules? This particular piece was fun to make, I painted on a wood panel with acrylic paint and then embellished the piece with jewels. It was very, very sparkly and colorful. (...just like me!) (Right) Lastly, I posted some pics from a girls 'art afternoon' I hosted at our place in Palm Beach Gardens. Jess and Sof came over and we all worked on different projects. Sof was making a coiled heart for Valentine's Day, Jess and I were bedazzlin' some high heel shoes...because...well...why not? ...one MAJOR thing that happened in the middle of all the other craziness... JOHN SUCCESSFULLY DEFENDED HIS DISSERATION!!! Aughhhhhhhhh!!! It's been a long time coming, but he finally earned those three lil' letters, PhD! It's official! We will celebrate again when he does the formal graduation ceremony in May, but that cover page is signed and he is legit.
I love you so much, Dr. Gironda! You are such an inspiration...and you better believe Lucy and Amy are toasting you from above! ![]() Coffee. Espresso, specifically. And old issues of Art Hive Magazine. And tulle. And gems...glitter...and patience. And the occasional RuPaul break for inspiration. That is what is took to pull off creating a weddng gown for the 2014 Fashion ARTillery show at the Armory Art Center in West Palm Beach. Well, that's not all. I would like to say a sincere THANK YOU to Jennifer German, my best friend's mom. Jennifer is a craftin' machine, specifically scrapbooking. We have a long history of creative shenanigans, from painting, to angel dropping and now...long distance artin'. Jennifer sent me over 700 flowers that she cut from the magazines I sent her, all via the USPS. I combined her flowers with the ones I had hand cut...and also with scraps of tulle to make a total of (at least) 850 individual flowers (each flower was made of 2-4 individual pieces) that covered the front and back of the gown. So thank you, Jennifer. I mentioned on Instagram and I mean it...I know Amy is looking down and just laughing at how crazy we both are! I definitely could not have done this without you. I love you! Thank you again! And now...here are some pics! Some exciting news! I have a new place to display/sale my artwork! Yay! Fairytales in downtown Hollywood has some of my work on the walls and on display...and...it's...for...SALE! Yes! I spent Thursday night through Saturday morning creating works to be ready for the first private event at the location...and I ended up taking over six framed mixed media pieces, four fun quote paintings and two whimsical girl paintings...and even another painting as a gift to Sally at SMASH Beauty Lounge for all her support. It was a busy, and EXCITING 72 hours.
...it's late, but I did want to write just a little bit about the first ever Art Hive Indie Bride event. The event was a huge success and I am so proud to have been a part of it. All the hours spent prepping for the event were worth it! We had over 300 folks come through the doors to meet with vendors, get inspired, watch the drag shows and fashion shows...and to just have fun! I think that it hit me after the fact just how exhausted I was...but it was well worth it! Can't wait for AHIB 2015! Dusting off the cobwebs...time to post some updates about some recent art shows/exhibits! For starters, I have had several opportunities to share my work in various shows and exhibits and I could not be more pleased. First up, the Square Show at Bear and Bird Gallery in the upstairs of Tate's Comics. (Lauderhill, FL) This is the second time i have participated in this exhibit and I was happy to have a chance to show the mixed media piece I made in honor of my friend Jess a few weeks back. John and I ventured out to see the show, TONS of amazing pieces on the wall...and right there it was- my art! Feels great to have my work on display among such talented folks! Now, if you have never been to Bear and Bird, be forewarned....you ain't gettin' outta there in less than thirty minutes. Too many fun distractions in Tate's Comics! John found the Star Wars and assorted action figures...and me, well I got myself lost looking for Ugly Dolls and then looking at the cool art books. I seriously love that place, so fun! Next up, I was lucky enough to be featured as the Downtown Hollywood ArtWalk artist (again!) for SMASH Beauty Lounge. It feels great to have someone that believes in my work enough to let it hang in her venue!! (Thank you, Sally!) I woke up that Saturday morning so excited that...I painted almost twenty additional pieces to add to the work shown that night...because I am crazy like that! (Seriously, I really did do that!) Even better than having work up again...my friends came down to show their support! It felt great to celebrate with the folks I care about. Special thank you to John (always!), Sofie, Jen, Jake and Jess for making the trip down south to see my art and go out to dinner. ![]() ...AND...special THANK YOU to my friend Maria from work. She called me the day of and said, 'hey, I want to go see your work!'. So she did! And look, a guest appearance by JLo! Wait a minute... So silly. That's not really JLo! ...and lastly...the Continuum Black Tie and Sneakers Silent Auction! This was a super fun and fab event that I caught wind of a little late in the game...I kept seeing my artist friends posting on FB and IG updates about these shoes they were creating to benefit charity and I wanted in, too! Lucky for me my man JaFleu was local and could pick up the shoes for me since I couldn't make it before the gallery closed. I met with him to pick up the shoes and to sketch...and to plot and scheme some artistic collaborations...heeheehee My idea for the sneakers was to work with the shadowbox since that is what I have been doing for my daily art this month. I also knew I wanted to do something figurative and sparkly...so...well, I went with Gustav Klimt- my favorite artist! I even watched a movie about him while I worked on part of it for inspiration.
The finished piece came out great, and when I arrived at the event I was so excited to see it already had some bids. Not sure how much it sold for, but the money went to Faith’s Place Center for Education, Inc. ...so that's kinda awesome! Special thanks to my 'date' for the event, Maria! I wish we would've started hanging out sooner! |
AuthorArtist and Art Teacher
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