Fresh Fruit

Mango and Banana

I have a collector who purchased three fruits from me some years back. He recently contacted me and said he "needed more fruits!" I am posting here to show him that his fruits are finished, and I hope that they are to his liking. My style has grown and changed since creating the original fruits and I hope that this new bounty will blend well with the others.

No pressure Jaime! if you don't like them, I'll keep them.... they are "growing on me"

A Very Special Commission

Part Five: Finished!

For Michael | 12x10 | collage on wood panel

Here is the finished piece. This very special commission is of a Blue Bunting, which is a bird that has special meaning to the woman who asked me to create this collage. She asked me to create this Paper Painting for her sister, who had lost her only son, Michael. You can see that I worked his name very subtly into the tree just above the bird where they intersect. If you zoom in on the church, you will also see that the text that creates the white, is about blue birds.

The drippy painted effect at the bottom is from the under-painting -- in the end, I decided that I wanted to let that show through. At the bottom and the very top, there are small areas of wood that are exposed to show the viewer what's underneath, I really like showing the color and the texture of the birch wood panel. Around the tree and it's branches are pencil lines that I have been experimenting with leaving in the finished work.

The DVD overview of the process that I am working on, actually highlights this piece. I have gotten so much positive response about the video that I am considering adding a voice over to it (the first version will simply be set to music for galleries to play in the background) that will in fact make it instructional. The video portion covers the process from start to finish, I just need to describe, in detail, what I am doing along the way. With an added voice over, this video would offer step-by-step instruction on my collage process. I hope to add this to the project and make it available for purchase in the next several weeks!

My First Painting

Easter Basket, Tempera on Paper

This weekend my husband and I have been working on a DVD of my collage process. When I talk about myself and my art at workshops, in my bio, and on this DVD, I often tell people that I always knew I wanted to be an artist. I say that I can remember the first painting I ever did, and it's true... I was in Kindergarten at Moseley School in Western Massachusetts, it was spring and we were painting Easter scenes. We had to don a trash bag smock and take turns going into the hallway to work at one miniature easel that had baby food jars of paint set into a wood shelf at the bottom. We got to use those big fat brushes that they give little kids, and I can still smell the tempera paint! (this art, by the way, is a blue easter basket with green grass and pink eggs and lots of colorful clouds)

My mother did me a wonderful favor, she kept this painting for me until I was an adult. When I went to collage, I took this painting with me and managed to keep it safe until many years after I graduated. When I moved to Florida and got my first job in marketing, I was voted "employee of the month" and received a check for $100. I used that money to frame my first painting.

Today this painting hangs in my daughter's room with the little photo of me and this artwork stuck into the lower right hand edge of the frame.

Buy it Now!

Framed or Unframed?

I am offering this piece framed. If you are interested in having the piece framed, you will need to use the PayPal button to buy the piece, and then use the second PayPal button to buy the frame, all costs include me assembling the art into the frame and sending it out ready to hang. If you choose to take the piece unframed, just purchase the unframed option.

Orange Tea--Unframed
12" x 12" (30.5cm x 30.5cm)
Collage on Panel
$100 plus $6.95 shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.

Natural Wood Gallery Frame
12" x 12" (30.5cm x 30.5cm)
Natural Wood
$25 plus $4 shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.

Lunch with a Fiber Artist

Green Apple by Ellen Lindner

Do you believe that this collage is made of fabric? I had lunch with Ellen Lindner in Melbourne, FL last week. Ellen was familiar with my work, even posted me as her "favorite artist" on her website some time back. Ellen was unable to make it to my You Call That Art? talk at LoPressionism Gallery a few weeks ago, so she invited me to meet her when I picked up my work.

Ellen and I shared art techniques and marketing strategies and spent some time comparing and contrasting paper collage to fabric collage. This Green Apple piece she brought to lunch to show me, it's beautiful! She's glued the fabric to a gallery wrapped canvas and varnished it. She uses "directional cutting" (I guess there is no directional "ripping" when it comes to fabric!) to wrap her fabric pieces around the form of the apple, just like I do with the paper. Her shading technique is amazing, considering that she is using existing fabric colors and patterns. What a huge collection of fabric she must have!

Ellen Lindner is also a teacher, you can take classes from her online or in person. Check out her website for more amazing samples of her work, and check out her blog to see what she's up to lately!

A Very Special Commission

Part Four: More Collage Papers Added

On a roll now, not sure how much under-painting or pencil sketch I will leave showing through, that is all determined as I go along. I have been experimenting with leaving more an leaving less, it all depends.

The papers I am using in this piece I painted very recently while working on a DVD of my process with my husband, they are rich in color and texture and I am really happy with how they are coming together in this piece, especially the greens.

A Very Special Commission

Part Three: Applying the Collage Papers

So now I start ripping an glueing, this is my favorite part! I just listen to my iPod, have the dogs at my feet, and start covering the under-painting with torn painted papers.

A Very Special Commission

Step Two: The Under-Painting

Here is the level of detail I do in an under-painting. Sometimes I get carried away and give the painting more detail than I need, but this time I stuck with my own advice. I always tell students "Don't fall in love with the under-painting, or you will NOT want to glue paper on top of it!"

A Survey

The Question: Would you prefer to buy art framed or unframed?

I have been occasionally selling small pieces on the blog unframed. I have not been framing them to keep purchase cost and shipping costs down for my art collectors. Robin's Nest sold unframed last night to a very sweet woman in CT. I told her I had become very attached to that piece and will be sorry to see it go!

My question for you to consider though, do you think that the pieces would sell better, faster, if I had them for sale framed and ready to hang or ready to give as a gift? Is the unframed piece feeling like more work than you want to do? I value your opinion, if you have a moment to comment.

Buy it Now!

This unique piece shows the under-painting, the sketch, and the collage process all in one! Created on wood panel and coated with varnish, this piece is ready to frame with no glass or matting needed. This piece would look great in the kitchen with a simple natural wood frame. A great Christmas gift, with time for framing!

Finish Your Veggies-- unframed
15 ¾" x 15 ¾"
collage on Panel
$200 plus $9.95 shipping and handling in the US
E-mail me for International shipping rates or other inquiries.

A Very Special Commission

Blue Bunting Sketch

A few days ago I received an email from a woman who asked me if my small bird collage "Blue Bunting" was still available. I told her it was with a gallery, but I could do another one for her. She told me that she had come across my collage art while searching for Blue Buntings for her sister. Her sister had lost a son, her only son, and she said that when she visited his grave, there were always Blue Buntings there, as bright blue as little jewels, which gave her some peace in her heart.

I was so touched by this story that I wanted to do a custom piece. We agreed to also incorporate a small southern style church and the name "Michael" into the collage.

I thought this would be a good piece to do a step by step process on. I have not done a piece from start to finish on the blog in a while and this collage is going to be so special that I think you will enjoy taking the journey with me.

Envy - now available in cards

Set of 10 single panel cards with envelopes

Peacock Postcard Set
4" x 6" (10.2cm x 15.3cm)
printed on paper