Spring Cleaning

Well Finally Spring feels like it might be around the corner. I spent today cleaning my home, office and studio spaces. Many bags of garbage were disposed of! Today was a good day for me. I got alot accomplished here. I went through old sample boards, I tossed the ones that just don't sell. Like an old pair of shoes, if I have not worn them in over 2 years I toss them. With my sample boards if I have not sold it ever I tossed it. I recycled a few that I think might make interesting backgrounds for fine art type paintings. I organized my "inspiration" photo albums, and stacked my books and papers. The studio needed some tidying and the house was cleaned top to bottom including the cars! Taking inventory, and cleaning your work space helps keep you feeling in control and organized. For me it helps remind me of projects I found interesting a few months ago, and then unfortunately they may have been buried under the next "great project" added to my plate!For spring, its a good time to go through your ares, and re- establish your priorities. Plus it frees up time for gardening!

Learned Lessons in Reproducing Old Masters Paintings

As an artist I have many favorite painters, sculptors, and artists that I look up to, derive inspration from, and sometimes emulate. John William Godward is someone whose work moves me and inspires me. For many reason, I love his saturation of color his use of fabrics to convey form, and his incorporation of the often lovely female as the centerpiece of the painting. I had been wanting to incorporate my daughter into one of my favorite Godwards for a while. Over the last few months I gave it a go. I use these excersises as just that, an excersise in discapline, painting like someone else, as a challenge, and of course for my own pleasuer. My painting has a few lessons foe me. The lessons are positive and negative, I am very pleased with my renderings of the fabrics, shadows, marbles and girl. My dissappointment is that I have learned that not all paintings can be "morphed" successfully, my major failure in this painting is that my daughters face is not age appropriate to the original woman in the painting and that is why the painting looks a bit awkward. As artists we must learn from all endeavors, success is in everything because any lesson learned is of value, and all paintings serve as practice for your next Magnun Opus!

March 2009 Artist of the Month

The Faux Forum is my cyber home away from home. This is an online community where I have met and collaborated with artist friends from around the world. The Faux Forum is a place where I go for critique and help with my paintings while in progress, it's a place where I can ask questions when experiencing proffessional, or technical difficulties on a project. Faux Forum is a place where I can find out about upcoming events or plan to meet my friends at planned events. I have been honored with the Artist Of the Month recognition and I am in tremendous company. The artists recognized previosly is a long and impressive list, being added to this list is very special to me , being amongst such gifted talents, humbling. Take a moment to explore this wonderful online community, you will find some inspiring how to demo;s, some useful information on products and some interesting techniques. http://www.fauxforum.com