Exquisite Harmony Reception

©Doug Nelson

View all of the opening photos from the show at my Facebook Fan Page Album! Many thanks to my husband for taking the time and effort!

The Generosity of Others

Once again, I have to talk about the generosity of others, something that never ceases to amaze me! At my gallery talk over the weekend, Kristy Worden introduced herself to me and told me she had come over from St. Petersburg (over an hour drive) to hear me speak about my work. Kristy found my blog through another artist friend we have in common, Julie King. 

At the end of the talk, Kristy GAVE me an album of postage stamps that she had collected with her Dad when she was a kid. She heard me tell my story about my Australian postage stamps going all the way back to 1970 and she told me that she had stamps in her book way older than that! I could not believe that Kristy wanted to part with this album, but I am very grateful.

Thank you for your generosity Kristy, and know that the stamps you collected with your dad will live on forever in my collage work. I will think of you when I apply them and I will be sure they shine.

Gallery Talk for Exquisite Harmony

©Ellen Lindner

I know many of you have been following the progress of Exquisite Harmony since the beginning here on my blog, and that makes it even more special for you to know now that the opening was well attended, the quartet played beautifully, the DVD looped perfectly, and the hanging, lighting and newly renovated gallery space were fantastic!

Saturday afternoon at Maitland Art Center,  I gave a gallery talk (pictured) on to a very nice group of people. I have an album of photos from the talk on my Facebook Fan Page and I will be putting up an album of opening reception photos there in the next few days as well.

Thank you for sharing this journey with me. If you are in the Central Florida area, this show runs through October 24. I will also be giving a collage workshop at the Maitland Art Center on the weekend of October 22.

Exquisite Harmony Heads to the Museum

Today the Exquisite Harmony show that has been a year in the making, was delivered to the Maitland Art Center. I'm very excited about the completion of this project. Yesterday my son helped me put bumper feet on 40+ cradled birch panels and carry them out of the studio and into the house, on their way to the van for the trip down I-4 this morning.

After we moved the work into the house, we cleaned the studio! We vacuumed up a lot of bugs and dust that had taken up residency while the work was piled up. We cleared floor space and shelf space and there was so much room that even the dogs did not know what to make of it.

Now, let's keep our fingers crossed that a good portion of the work sells, so we don't have to bring it back in!

Show Runs September 10 - October 24
Opening Reception is September 10 6-8pm
Maitland Art Center
231 West Packwood Ave
Maitland, FL 32751
407-539-2181

Register Early for Discounted Tuition

Amelia Island Fall Artists Workshop
I have been invited back to Amelia Island to teach again this year! October 8-10. This workshop is wonderful because it is a three-day class which includes hand painting collage paper techniques all day Friday. The success of any Paper Painting is really in the papers you have to work with.

We will be using fluid acrylics to do hand-tinting and staining art store papers, personal memorabilia, maps and old book pages, along with rice paper and anything else that stirs your creativity. I like to use postage stamps and sheet music, you may have other things you want to put in the mix as well.

Homework for you before you attend the workshop is to do two under-paintings. The first is for the apple exercise which you will use a photo reference (bring this!) to paint a simple, large apple on a 12x12 thin plywood board or American Easel Wood Painting Panel primed with either Liquitex Clear Gesso (tooth) or Golden GAC-100 (no tooth). The second panel should be about 16x20 and can be any image of your choice for your main collage project.

The workshop will be held at the Amelia Hotel at the Beach, they can be reached at 904-261-5735. Tell them that you are with the workshop and / or ask for Elizabeth, she is the contact person for a room rate discount of $89/night.

Don't miss this comprehensive workshop in such a quaint location! You might like to bring family members and make a mini vacation of it.

Register HERE
if you register before September 8, you will receive a $25 discount!

Mall Rats

When I was a kid, I loved going to the mall, hanging out with my friends. Now my daughter wants to do the same. Since they are pre-teens, I'm no comfortable letting them roam the mall totally alone, so I often chaperone my daughter and her friends. I drive them, I am in the mall, and we are in cell phone texting contact, but I can't be close enough to be seen. This means, once inside the doors, she says "bye!" to me and I'm on my own.

This weekend I'm working toward a show in Jacksonville, FL called "Ten Good Women/8th Annual
Art Invitational." I plan on shipping this work, so my plan is to work small and all in the same size (for stacking and packing purposes). Working small like I have in the past in the dance competition dressing room, is a good way for me to multi task my art.

Here i am in the food court, while the girls are roaming Hot Topic and Spencer's.... brought a stack of 10x12 pre cut panel (thanks to my husband) a set of sketching pencils and erasers, and some reference photos.

My Day Job

A few months ago, an artist who took my workshop in Jacksonville called me and asked me if I could do a logo for her barber shop. Yes, this is the very person who traded me the portraits of my kids in exchange for my graphic design services!

Today, Jami Childers sent me this photo of her logo and window graphics that I designed, in place. As a graphic designer, I do get to see my work in this type of application. I actually designed the RDV Sportsplex logo that adorns their building here in Orlando. But there is something very satisfying about helping out a fellow artist, and small business owner. Jami told me she had been in this storefront for six years and never had any window graphics! I think she just might get some walk-in traffic to her Barber Shop and Art Studio.

If you ever need a portrait, as a gift or for yourself, please look her up and tell her Elizabeth sent you! And if you need any graphic design services, I'm here all day.