New Summer Collage Workshop!

White house is the instructors quarters, red barn is where the class will be held

The folks at Yates County Art Center in Penn Yan, NY have asked me to come up to the finger lakes region and teach my Paper Paintings Collage Workshop in July this year. 


Artists are innately drawn to the natural beauty of the Finger Lakes region. It is an area that stimulates creativity and has led to the creation of thousands of images of sailboats and sunshine, clusters of grapes hanging on gnarled vines, and waterfalls and gorges that cut through a patchwork quilt of farmlands and vineyards. No, thanks to a generous donation to the Yates County Arts Center from the estate of Dr. Annie Smith, artists will have an additional opportunity to fully experience the inspirational impact of the Finger Lakes.

This workshop is open to the public, Kris at the center said. "We are absolutely open to anyone who wants to come – we love visitors from other areas and it’s a GREAT region to visit….lots of good wine, beautiful lakes, rolling hills etc.  Lots of Mennonite farmers and craftsmen so buggies are a common sight. "


Come out and tear paper with me, take an extra day or two to enjoy some of the wineries in the region.  Check out the Keuka Lake Wine Trail.  and the Penn Yan Wineries and Vineyards Travel Guide.

Key West Ships Today!

27 pieces, some large, some small, are shipping to Key West's Stone Soup Gallery in four large boxes today via good old FedEx Ground. I just have to figure out how to get these boxes into the store! Typically if they see me coming with one, they will come out and help me with the rest. My FedEx store knows me well.

Butterfly Strings #1 / collage on wood panel / 20x24

Florida Oranges #1 / collage on wood panel / 12x12

I am sending Stone Soup a wide variety of pieces, some newly created just for them, and some I have in my inventory. Florida Oranges #1 and #2 were done over the workshop weekend in North Carolina. I had Stone Soup in mind when I used Florida Oranges #1 as my demo piece.

Key West Lighthouse / collage on wood panel / 10x22

I am looking forward to heading down to the gallery next week! My husband and my kids are heading down for the show and some R&R next wednesday. I'll be teaching a two half-day class over the weekend on the 17/18 if you are close by and interested.

Blueberry Bliss / collage on panel / 24x24

My Moos

#30 ©St.Hilaire Nelson

I bike several times a week training for the upcoming triathlon season. When I ride I bring my iPhone and I always ride the Seminole Wekiva trail which passes a wonderful pasture area that is home to several cows and horses. As most of you know, I am not a fan of horses.... but the cows are another story. Cows are my muse. Or should I say, my "moos"

Curious, ©Doug Nelson

My husband is the pro photographer, which means that even with his iPhone, he gets better shots than I do! This cow was very curious of Doug's phone the day we stopped our bikes and I put him to work photographing future collage reference for me.

#31 ©St.Hilaire Nelson

The last cow I collaged from these reference shots Mary Moo sold in Asheville, NC. I'm headed to Asheville again this June and so I have been thinking about creating another cow for the occasion.

Mary Moo, ©St.Hilaire Nelson, SOLD

I am a big fan of the farm fence in the foreground. This is a composition that has become a theme for me and I will probably utilize it in future work for the Asheville, NC show.

Stay tuned for another cow in the near future. BUT for now, I am still plugging away at the Noah's Ark Series. I have two sets of "twosies" to go. I'm also going to be the featured artist at the Grand Bohemian Gallery the first friday of April for St. Augustine, FL's Art Walk. That's Easter weekend, so I might have to put some baby ducks into the mix.

Curious 2, ©Doug Nelson

If you have any farm reference photos you'd like to give me permission to paint,
send me an email!

New Workshop - Asheville, NC

Grand Bohemian Gallery – June 1/2/3
Once again I'll be in Asheville, NC for a spring featured show and collage workshop.

Located just steps away from gates of the famous Biltmore Estate, this exquisite Asheville hotel holds authentic Old-World, rustic ambiance of a Tudor inspired boutique hotel, masterfully blended with all of the modern luxuries synonymous with a contemporary Kessler Collection hotel experience. Among other Asheville hotels, the Grand Bohemian Hotel Asheville offers exceptional style combined with luxury accommodations and is central to many of Asheville’s enriching experiences.


The Grand Bohemian Gallery is located inside the amazing hunting lodge lobby pictured above. The workshop will feature lunch included in the price, catered from the Red Stag Grill Restaurant. The hotel is putting together some package options including spa treatments, yoga classes and a champagne artists reception on Saturday, June 2nd.


Stay tuned for more details, check out the gallery website 
or call: 828-398-5555
OR visit my Facebook Fan Page
http://www.dwellable.com/u/add_post/3315

Palms for Key West

Palms, Photography, ©Douglas Nelson, 2011

Key West Coconuts #2, 24x24, collage on wood panel, ©St.Hilaire Nelson 2012

 Many of you know that my husband Douglas Nelson is a professional photographer who I art direct for my own purposes while on vacation! Last year we attended a wedding in Jamaica and I got him to take reference photos for my upcoming Key West show at Stone Soup Gallery on White Street.

As you can see, I have taken artistic license with the images. I have added coconuts, cropped, deleted branches, and pushed the color. Once I establish a sketch and basic under-painting from the photo, I put it away and deviate in the collage phase. In the end, the collage will have a look of its own.

Not only is it great to have a photographer on your team, but one you can ask to photograph your art as well as your reference materials, I'm in heaven. My husband spends countless hours photographing my work for archiving and reproduction. He uses his professional digital equipment to give me fantastic quality images. He also takes my head shots for PR and editorial purposes.

If you don't have someone like Doug at your disposal, you can always create your artwork on a small scale and utilize your own desktop scanner with high resolution, you can contact a professional in your area and ask about having your work photographed, or you can find a service bureau near you with a large format flat bed scanner. Often times you can negotiate an arrangement for low cost on scans if you offer volume.

As a result of my photos, I can offer any of my artwork images to you as a beautiful giclée print on either gallery wrapped canvas or textured paper. I have a printer in Orlando who does an amazing quality job and ships directly to you flat boxed.

For more information about prints, contact me.

Palms, Photography, ©Douglas Nelson, 2011

Key West Palms 20x24, collage on wood panel, ©St.Hilaire Nelson 2012

Pinterest

Source: google.com via Elizabeth on Pinterest

Source: ccpvideos.com via Elizabeth on Pinterest

After reading Alyson Stanfield's Blog today about Pinterest, as well as several recent articles on how it's just TAKEN OFF, I decided I needed to get on that train. So I spent some of this morning putting together boards of my favorite things; recipes, art, fashion, and books to name a few. Such fun searching for fun things to "pin."

The idea of Pinterest as a marketing tool is to show your audience who you are as a person. To give your art fans an insight into some of the other things you like such as funky glasses and high heeled eclectic shoes and fashions you know you'll never wear but would like to.

I also had been told by folks that they had found my art in Pinterest already. How cool is that? So I did a search of myself and low and behold, there was a lot of collages pinned in there!

It's fun to look and see what your friends like, the colors and fashion and art they enjoy. I had a great time trying to remember my favorite recipes and books I had read. My favorite artists came to mind quick, but the titles of pieces I own, I might have to go back and flip them over to look!

Magic Murals

Fall Trees / ©St. Hilaire Nelson

Announcing a NEW and HUGE product with my art on it.... Magic Murals! These murals are made of a removable and repositionable self-adhesive vinyl called QuikStik™. They are best applied to non-textured, smooth, painted drywall and sheetrock, smooth wood, or smooth wallpaper.

I have an entire portfolio of available artwork on their website.