The Masses have Spoken

 

There are many reasons doing art shows is SO fun.  First, your only job for that period of time is to talk about your art.  Blather on in creative speak bliss while the visitor's eye glaze a bit.  It's great.  The second fantastic thing is seeing people's reaction to your work.  Now I have to be honest, this doesn't always go like you want it to.

 

People don't know it but within an instant of time I can tell what level of 'like' a person might have for a particular painting.  You think you can hide your MEH face but I see it a mile away!!  A smile, golden.  A lingering pause, fireworks.  Bring someone over to take a look with you and I do my internal happy dance.

 

But one thing that always impresses me and makes me a better artist is peoples ideas, suggestions and comments.  Greve in space, that idea came from an 8 year old.   So when my customers come up to me and tilt their head, ready to share I listen.  I see them worried about my reception of their comments but inside I can't wait to hear what they have to say.

 

This image idea is courtesy of Lucy, a fellow cycling chick. "Where are the girls?" she asked as she was thumbing through my notecards.  I thought, "Yeah Gina, where ARE the girls?"  Sure, Greve is the bomb but girls love bikes too.  Into the studio I went.  Lucy approved all four images I created and soon they will be in 4x6 notecards.

 

I love to hear customers thoughts.  Some are bizarre and a few bruise my ego a bit but that's what makes me better.  Lucy had a few other suggestions. "Is there a girl Greve?"  Stay posted! 

 

 

 

The Simple Things

 

 

Everyone should have a dog.  Well, okay not everyone. I have a few friends who, in MY opinion, neglect their four legged companions.  Neglect in the sense that they don't walk, run and play them regularly.  But if you want to lose weight, get a dog.  Suffer from SAD, a dog will cure you.  Feel you don't live in the moment, let a dog show you the way.

I have a Treeing Walker Coonhound. She's from the blood hound family and they are VERY athletic and energetic dogs.  I will again emphasize the VERY. Pouring rain? Onto my bike I hop for a 5 miles loop.   -20 degrees?  We go for a ski.   Oh yes, there is grumbling from me but I picked this breed for this exact reason.  Everyday I will take time out, no matter how full the schedule to exercise my dog and myself.

We all know our lives are too manic.  Too much electronic media and distractions.  We all love it and hate it.  And even though I am not any where near 'addicted' my 'puppy time' lets me unplug and do some mental house cleaning.  Often inspiration hits!

Today is a full day and so the dog gets only a neighborhood walk.  Along the way I saw this twig laying on the ground.  It looked like a mini tree.  It needs a swing.  With a little girl.

I won't pay any bills with this little watercolor but I thoroughly enjoyed creating it.  It made me wonder what other natural things I could incorporate into art.  It was a short walk by our normal standards but yet I still found a little inspiration.  Take a walk, you never know what's waiting.

A bird, an Italian and a Midwest girl

 

 

They say you can learn a lot about an artist by looking at his work. Hmmmm, I painted a chicken riding a fish yesterday.  That could frighten Freud.

But I have been told that people see me in Signore Greve.  One client even told me him and I have the same posture.  True story.  Hey, my grandpa was a D.O. slouching was never an option!  And it is true that I wore a scarf, the same scarf, in my school photos from 4th-6th grade.  ( it really needed to be retired after 5th grade)  So clearly Greve and I are of the same tribe.

 

I think Huey is the person I really want to be.  Confident in himself with awkwardness and all.  Not everyone gets him and that's okay.  It's funny, in high school I don't remember trying to 'fit'.  Somewhere in my young adulthood I became more concerned with my alternative sights on the universe.  Now in middle age I find myself content in my alternative sights.

 

 

Greve and Huey are both travelers which is a clear insertion of one of my loves. I guess it is true.  It's impossible to create something from yourself without having it be a piece of you.  It's fun having an illustrated alteration of myself.  As for the chicken on the fish....I'll leave that to Freud.

#2 Pencil

This is a little sketch I did for an artist friend that I was texting.  The story behind the sketch doesn't really matter but what is important is what this sketch began.

For years I have tried to become better with the pencil.  Drawing isn't my strong skill which is kind of crazy.  I mean, I can scribble out an idea for a painting but it really doesn't come to life until I touch it with a paint brush.  Imagine if an artistic license was like a driver's license...I would fail the written test! 

My high school art teacher required 10 sketches a week.  They could be of any subject but they needed to be a full sheet of paper.  Any subject??  What kind of monster was this woman???  I would stare at my blank sheet, I would walk past my dog, our gardens, the giant towering oak trees and out into the fields of the Midwest stumped at what to draw.  I mean there was nothing!

Okay, I admit, I look back and think, good heavens why did that seem like such a chore.  I shake my head at my younger self and open my sketch book.  I walk past my dog, my garden, the gangly spruce trees and out into the mountains stumped at what to draw.  Come on, we live in Alaska.  There is NOTHING to draw!

Don't think the ridiculousness of all this doesn't make me insane.  But I don't seem to have a mind for drawing.  I'm only a working artist for pete's sake! 

My little bee has changed me a bit.  Since then I have been sketching quite often.  This artist friend of mine is a great drawer.  He is inspiring me and encouraging me.  It's a simple thing but I know it will make my paintings better.  I don't imagine me packing away my brushes but it would be nice to not have a blank piece of paper haunt me.  Even if that means simply bringing to life a little, fuzzy bug.

Huey Takes Flight

"Huey-Fireweed Song"  12x18

 

This is Huey!  Some of you may have seen Huey fliting about.  He is a new character I have been developing.  How do you develop a character?  Good question.

 

When I first painted Signore Greve I really had no bigger plan than to paint a fun picture of an Italian man with his dog on a bike.  Really, that was it.  One painting became five, become 20 became a book.  It was awesome!  Through no real plan of my own Greve took on his own life.  It was as if HE developed his own personality.

 

Wanting a piece of art for my bathroom I painted a cute little singing bird.  Man, that bird is cute so  I painted him again and named him Huey. (obvious name choice)  It sold.  Hmmmm, I could be on to something.  I painted three more, they too found homes.  Recently, Huey with a fox ( see post June 4th, What's the Password) was presented at the illustrators show at Blue-Hollomon gallery. What a great opportunity to get some feedback.   It sold!

 

So the answer to the above question is that I don't really know how to develop a character.  I am going to go with what I know.  Keep creating Huey.  Sketch him here and there.  Paint him here and there and slowly he will tell me more about who he is.  The cool thing is often a sketch won't come together and you realize it's because that's something the character just wouldn't do, a place they just wouldn't be.  I know, I know it sounds silly but it's true.

 

Like my journey with Greve I am now enjoying the great part of it all.  Pick up my pencil and brushes and see where Huey takes me.

Copy Cats

Wasn't Freud who said we all suffer from the delusion of originality.  I would  like to think I am special and different, unlike any other.  But we can almost always find someone who share our quirks and preferences.  Maybe not the entire package but close.

 

As an artist feeling original is HUGE. Being special with your craft is what makes us go into the studio everyday.  When someone says they love our work and ooze with a genuine energy we glow feeling that we did something no one else can.

 

This is a painting I did several years ago after a bike trip through Portugal.  We loved watching the fisherman bring in the nets in the mornings and sorting through their catch.  That delicious bounty would most certainly be lunch and dinner in the little fishing village where we had rented a room.  I wanted to capture that moment.  Fish in a net aren't pretty so I was happy when I came up with this composition.  Original don't you think?

What is this????  I walk into a furniture shop this week and I hear my husband gasp. I turn around a see this pottery. I know!  They totally copied my work!  Wait, that is unlikely.  I am pretty small potatoes in the art world.  I am actually just a potato eye lying on the barn floor.  So it's almost worse, my idea wasn't original at all!  I mean look how close it matches!  Is it possible that some potter who mass produces designs for furniture stores saw my work on line and copied it.  Again, unlikely but I want it to be true.

Sorry Freud, I want to keep thinking that I am original.  I know my doppelganger is out there with her pointy nose and big hair.  But I will ignore her if we pass on the street.  I can't explain this pottery or the origin of the design but I do plan on continuing my delusion of originality.

The New Family Portrait

I love this new movement!  Remember when the family portrait was an awkward photo at Sears Portrait studio?  Your mom would pick out your clothes and style your hair in a way you never wore it except for family pictures?  Those days are a thing of the past!

 

Here are some examples of family portraits I have been asked to paint.  The above piece is placed in Homer.  A four person bike? Not a problem in the world of Gina Art.  I can include the kids favorite outfit and of course, the furry family members.  I really enjoyed figuring out the bike on this piece.  Would you believe there are four person bikes on Google?  I never tire of painting Alaska.

This client wanted to always remember the beauty of the Chugach.  She has since moved out of state and sadly one of her 'family' members has died. But she will always have this piece of art to remind her of fun summer days with her four legged companions playing in the mountains.  I grew up with a Harlequin Great Dane and I love these big dogs.  I was thrilled to paint them.

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Amsterdam was the location of this portrait.  After an awesome trip to Europe the husband decided to create a gift portrait for his wife to always remember the great time they had.  The nice thing about my portraits is animals can be transported without boarding a plane! I really enjoy painting buildings.  Have just visited Amsterdam last fall it was nice to reminisce while I worked.

Life is fun.  What's better than capturing your moment of bliss in a family portrait.  Sure the chin resting on the fist is a classic pose.  The gel slicked hair had it's moment. But this is 2013!  Make sure your next family portrait makes you smile every time you see it.  Even 10 years from now.