I Did It!

I applied for the RAM Greenwich Village Art Fair.  I can't believe I actually did it! I have been preparing for quite awhile for this and the deadline was today.  It is in the mail!

Although this is not my 'official' application, these are the images I submitted.  Besides producing enough artwork to show, I had to buy a tent, make some display boards and actually set up my booth in order to take a picture of it.  The whole booth part is the most nerve-racking and unpredictable part.  It is totally outside of my knowledge sphere, but I'm getting there.  It feels incredibly amazing to have this stage finished and has taken quite a bit of courage and just plain work to complete it.  Now I wait for a response. 

Winter, 12" X 15", Acrylic on Canvas

In the meantime, I continue to paint.  This is my most recent piece.  It is a little different than what I had been doing, but I like the direction I am headed.  This is an acrylic painting on a sheet of unstretched canvas and it is purely painted, no collage or mixed media.  It is also a little larger than my other pieces.  To me, she tells more of a story than the others do.  The girl stands peering out the door in the warmth and protection of her environment as winter is visible just out the window.   I have a couple more paintings in mind that include windows and doors and I am excited to get going on them.  I can't wait to see what comes next!  

Done, done and done...i think

Dare I say that I think I am actually done with these three pieces?  You might be sick of seeing the same ones again, but if you scroll down, you can probably see a difference.  Although I have not been starting a lot of new pieces, I have been working on finishing these. 



Begin Now, 12" X 12", Acrylic painting on wood panel



This piece, "Begin Now"  started out as what I affectionately called "Sparkle Girl", but she has come a long way.  The girl really beckons you to take action now.  As George Eliot said, "It's never too late to be who you might have been".  So now is that time in my life where I have begun to take the first steps towards "who I might have been".   



Mother & Daughter, 12"X 24",
Acrylic on wood panel

I am still unsure whether this piece is truly complete.  I had done another mother and daughter painting over last summer, but I think it really lacked the tenderness of the relationship between a mother and daughter.  In this piece, I tried to show how the the warm and protection of the mother gives the child a confidence and assurance.     


Nurture, "12" X 20",
Acrylic on wood panel

 This is another painting that I continue to revisit.  You may not notice much of a difference besides a name change, but for me, there is a huge difference.  I mainly worked on balancing color and adding contrast in the vines.  I still don't know how to 'read' the painting myself.  At times, I see the same tenderness as the painting above.  Other times, I see a disaffected, detached girl and then I will notice the peace on her face, the peace that come from a knowing and certainty.  She seems to mirror my own thoughts and feelings.  Despite my changing feelings about her, I know that she is taking care of those things that are most important to her with a quite strength. 

More to come later....

More works in progress

One of reasons I renamed this blog " A work in progress" is because I am always so excited about what I am working on that I can never wait until it is finished to share it with others.  So here are two of my latest paintings.

This first one, is really almost finished.  The only problem is that it needs a little bit more.  There are two issues with that:  1.  I'm not sure exactly what to add to finish it and 2.  I don't want to ruin it with whatever I decide to add.

  

"Growing", 12" X 20", acrylic mixed media painting on panel

Here is the second painting.  I was calling her "Sparkle Girl" for awhile until I came across a quote from Francis Bacon, "Begin doing what you want to do now. We are not living in eternity. We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand-and melting like a snowflake...".  So now her title is "We only have this moment".  

This is my first 'commission' of sorts - well at least my first painting started at someone else's request.  She still has more work ahead of her.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

   

"We only have this moment", 12" X 12", acrylic on panel

Nurturing

So here is a sneak peek of my latest painting.  It is just a sneak peak because I'm not quite sure how to finish it.  I am going to give it some time and space to grow.

The end...and the end

I finally finished this one!  When I started, I had the idea of using balloons to symbolize letting go of.  I originally intended to represent how we need to let go of the things that no longer serve us or that are negative in our lives in order to open up a space for growth and goodness.  As my grandpa grew sicker over these past few weeks, it was clear that the idea of letting go took on a new meaning for me. 

So as I enter into this time in my life when I am forced to let go of him, I am gentle with myself, knowing there is no right or wrong way to let go.

Courage

So this year I beginning on a new adventure that will take a lot of courage.  I am embarking on starting my own business and in doing so following in my mother's footsteps.  The business plan, details and money are not secure, but I have committed my heart.  So here we go!

Refocus

I'm finding the need to refocus. No...not my camera lens (but I have been having focus problems in that areas also). With all of the busy-ness of the school year, I have lost focus on those people that matter the most to me. I am finding that I spend all of my energy on people and things that do not really matter. And guess what? I don't have much energy to give to those that I love the most. So hopefully I can refocus and re-engergize as we head into an even busy time of the year. In fear of getting too mushy, I'll leave it at this: I love that little girl and handsome man.