sailing sailing
I have reconfigured my studio yet again, and have hung a bunch of new pieces to offer during tomorrow’s live sale.
If you see anything in this post that you like, or if any of the things from earlier this week call to you, let me know before 4 p.m. EDT tomorrow (July 19th), so I can pull it for you! Below are just SOME of the items that will be on offer tomorrow! Click on any to see pricing and further information.
“Born on the 4th of July” - a red, white, and blue boat afloat on the sea. The post discusses how to swap art out for a seasonal refresh.
Read MoreTo pick up on the post title: "When you should be getting ready for the Pitman Craft Show," but instead, you spend your morning cleaning your entire studio and bringing new furniture in. The table you see in the top left photo below was just a pile of lumber yesterday morning, and my wonderful sweetheart spent the afternoon turning that wood into the table you see. I love it--and him--so much! We carried the table in yesterday, and this morning it sparked me to clear and clean the room, including washing the canvas tarp that I use under the table I paint on in the center of the room. This new studio gives me so much joy. I love having my own space to work and dream, and a place to hang my art and my vision boards. This room feels like freedom, in so many ways.
The cart to the right of my teal cart came in from the garage today. It moved here with me, and was sort of taking up space but not really functioning well out in the corner of the garage. Now it's holding all my stamping supplies, pastels (soft/chalk and oil), watercolors, oil sticks, gelatos (sadly not the ice cream variety, though I *think* I have some in the freezer), and other non-acrylic media. And as the bottom right photo above shows, an Ikea rack also came in from the garage where it was being under-utilized (and now houses a lot of canvases and other supplies).
I'm super thrilled with the studio, especially now that it's starting to take better shape, but it did pretty much derail my day by tiring me out. I've spent the afternoon working on writing better copy for the products listed for sale on my website. The greeting cards, hot air balloons and sailboats are done! I'm just over halfway through the tambourines and collages shop, and am taking a break from writing copy to write this blog post. LOL!
I will be taking greeting cards, hot air balloons, sailboats, tambourines, collage hearts (not even posted in my shop yet!) and a few literary collages with me this weekend to the Pitman Spring Craft Show. I'll be in space X151, at the corner of Theatre Avenue and Broadway. The Craft Show is scheduled for Saturday, May 19th, though there's unsettled weather in the forecast at present, so there's an outside chance I'll be selling things on Sunday instead. (I'll know for sure on Friday.) Whenever it is, I sure hope to see some friendly faces--and sell a lot of items!
I know it's not just me who gets their best ideas (or some new insight or clarity) while in the shower. This morning's "a-ha" moment for me was that so much of my art is about FREEDOM, and about FINDING PEACE.
Freedom of movement and/or freedom to travel, represented by all the sailboats and hot air balloons. Freedom of expression, represented by various styles of art as well as all those words and phrases found in my literary collages and even in some of my abstracts. Freedom to make noise and be heard in this world (tambourines, anyone?). Freedom to be my whole self, to paint with abandon, to discover new things.
Below you can see an assortment of my artwork - from large paintings like the Buddha and "Love, Breath, Air" to new hot-air balloons, sailboats, and literary collages.
What a lovely gift freedom is. And so many of the constraints I have been getting rid of or pushing past are limitations I either placed on myself or allowed others to push on me. All those "shoulds" I internalized over the decades. All those warnings meant to keep me "safe" that actually built walls and boxed me right in.
Freedom to not take on other people's expectations. Freedom to refuse to allow others to impose boundaries or limitations. Freedom to break free of any of those boundaries I accepted or set for myself. Freedom to be seen and heard; freedom to step back from the noise and be alone, too. Freedom to not care too much whether other people will think I'm nuts if I . . . (fill in the blank).
Freedom to find peace. Peace of mind, for sure. But also the freedom to accept myself as I am, and to be at peace with myself. At peace with my weight, my health, my emotional state. When I'm painting or working on collage, I am so in the moment, in the flow, that there is nothing but peace and the making of art. Maybe that's why so many of my larger paintings have peace built into them: Buddha, a dove, words that invoke a peaceful feeling, meditative elements meant to slow the viewer down and invoke a sense of ease and peace.
What does freedom mean to you right now? What would peace be for you? What are you ready to let go of?
This week was taken up with lots of construction work. As a person with a couple of autoimmune disorders, I usually sleep until about 9 a.m. most days, but that wasn't a possibility this week, as I had to be up before 8 four out of 5 days, and the fifth day, I had to be up at 8.
But look! They framed my new studio! And put a roof on! And even managed a bit of Tyvek and an installed window (ahead of a rather wet and wild Nor'easter)!
See my sweetheart in the grey, talking to the project manager?
Despite all the NOISE NOISE NOISE NOISE (that's me, channeling the Grinch), I managed to get some work done.
In fact, I did so many boat collages that I can offer you a boat show!
The 8"x10" boat pieces are going to be priced at $80 and the 11"x14" ones will be $100. Holler out if you spy one that you want!
