Queen West Art Crawl and the Art Show in Trinity Bellwoods Park.

Everything came together for this art show. The weather was absolutely fantastic bringing huge numbers of people out into the park to enjoy the art, food and atmosphere. The quality of the art shown was very good and there were really interesting food vendors. Just across from me was a stall selling spring rolls, dumplings, fish balls and meat things on a skewer. They did a roaring trade. Alongside was a very theatrical popcorn maker who continually had crowds around him as his huge pan began popping up a storm. There were also musicans playing in various areas around the park and they had chosen them well. My favourites among the people who played near me were the gypsy band with it's feverish music that had everyones feet tapping and a couple who played great jazz. I took some photos of the two jazz players as reference material for some future musical paintings. I met some great people and was honoured by the ones who decided to buy my work. I would gladly do this show again.

Tent Broken Into at Festival

I forgot to mention in my last post that someone liked my paintings so much at the Junction Art Festival that he broke into my tent overnight to steal them. He got away with one and dropped another as he made his getaway. Because I was the only artist targeted I have decided to take it as a compliment!

Trinity Bellwoods Art Show

This art festival is where I will be this weekend. It's part of the Queen West Art Crawl in an exciting gallery area of Toronto. It's a big show with some 250 artists participating. Taking part in these three shows has been quite exciting and has taken my mind off all the things that have gone wrong during our move back to Toronto. It has been an extremely stressful time with all the usual problems that occur when you move from one country to another plus being let down by someone we really trusted. However in the greater scheme of things we are really lucky and shouldn't be complaining about things that will pass. The weather looks as if it will be great and my eldest son will be here for a visit.

The Distillery Show

Last weekend I did the show at the Distillery in Toronto. It's a wonderful place with loads of atmosphere. There were huge crowds of tourists and locals enjoying the wonderful weather. This weekend is a major one for festivals all over Toronto and we also had the airshow going on for three days. It was pretty dramatic but noisy. We met some really nice fellow exhibitors and had a pleasant weekend but the buying energy was pretty thin for all of us. Most of the crowd were not there for the art but for lunch and coffee. I had lots of great comments on my art work and the other artists were very complimentary about it. I even sold two works to one of them. After our busy few weeks moving it was actually nice to be able to sit and watch the world go by for a few days. This weekend I am at the Junction Art Festival. It will be interesting to see how this compares.

New Art Studio in Toronto

Finally I am in our new home in Toronto and setting up my art studio again. It's small but I think I can make it work. When I first started unpacking I was overwhelmed by the amount of art and art materials that I have and need to fit into the space. It has taken days and I still haven't finished.

There is so much happening in the art world here so I think it will be an exciting place to work. To get started I have three art festivals coming up in the next month.

Artisans at the Distillery Art Show
Sept 4 - 7

The Junction Arts Festival
Sept 12 & 13

Trinity Bellwoods Park 2009 Outdoor Art Show & Sale
Sept 19 & 20 (11:00am � 6:00pm)

Toronto Art Festivals

I have now applied, and been accepted into, three festivals in Toronto in September. The Artisans at the Distillery Art Show, The Junction Art Fair and Queen Street West Art Crawl. This should keep me busy for the first month or so. Toronto is such a vibrant city with lots going on and I am excited about the art possibilities there. It always takes about a year to begin to make new friends and find out what is available in a new place but at least with this move it will be more permanent and I won't be leaving just as it all starts to come together.

Small Musical Paintings and Abstracts

I have been working on some small musical paintings, 6 x 6 and 8 x 10, which is a real challenge for me. I like really big you see. Anyway it has been a good exercise to do and I now have a few pieces that I quite like. I also did some abstract works a month or so ago and I find that the way I painted those has filtered through into the latest of these small works. One is posted here.

I have been busy getting ready for our move to Toronto. We should be on our way in mid July. I have applied to three art festivals there that will be held in September. I have been accepted into one, Art at the Distillery, and I am waiting to hear about the other two. After finding out about which ones are good or not in the Atlanta area I now have to sort out the better shows in Ontario.

What a Difference a few Weeks Make

Life becomes pretty hectic at times. I have been busy with several at fairs over the past few weeks and the weekend of May 16 and 17 I will be showing at the North Atlanta Art Fair on Peachtree at the Forum and then Memorial weekend I will be at the Atlanta Jazz Festival. On top of all this we have now decided to move back to Canada so there is lots to do to prepare for that. It's exciting though and it will be great to be back with our family. There won't be a lot of time for art making over the next month or so but once in Toronto I will be eager to get into the local art scene knowing that for a change, we will be living there for a long time.

Wooden Bones

So I'm a proud mother! I wasn't going to mention it on here but I can't help myself. My middle son Todd is the singer songwriter in a Canadian band called Pilot Speed. On April 28th they release their new CD, "Wooden Bones," in both Canada and the US. It has been a long time in the making and it's fantastic. Well naturally I would think so being his mother wouldn't I. We are very proud of him and all the work that he has put into this creative effort. The whole process of creating is the same for all of us. We just have to trust the process and then put it out there. How it is recieved is another thing but I do hope the world embraces his wonderful music. The first single from the CD is now out with a rather artsy video. See the video of "Please Put the Phone Down" on youtube. It's pretty crazy and during part of the making they had Todd attached to a rope flying around in the air which made him feel quite ill.

Alpharetta Art Festival

Last weekend I did the Alpharetta Arts Festival. I can't say it was a successful show for me however I did manage to cover my costs and have enough over to buy us both dinner and a few wines. I'm not complaining though. It was actually really fun and we met some wonderful fellow exhibitors. We also learnt a lot more about the whole Art Festival Process which was very helpful. One of the most interesting things though, was seeing what work was selling well at the other booths in the show. My husband was almost incredulous at the success of some of the work but it just goes to show that taste differs and that's a good thing. As for me, I was really inspired by the amazing work created by many of the people.

To put a nice end to the story, I just heard that two of my collagraphs sold at Rev Coffee.

Toilet Art

My art is in the toilet! This is not a depressing thing. Actually I feel quite happy about it as where else do people have a few moments alone and time to actually look at art without any distractions. The painting I am talking about is Golden Sax, a very vibrant work in reds and golds and on the deep red wall in the toilet, it looks fantastic! The painting is in a show at Rev Coffee in Smyrna, just out of Atlanta. This is a fun coffee shop with an eclectic feel. They have lots of art on the wall and at night there is live music. The show opening last night had a really good feel and the coffee they make there is some of the best I have had.

Exhibition Update

The next few weeks will be pretty busy for me. I have the opening of the Dogwood Show at the AAC tomorrow, April 11th 1pm, and I also have some work in a show at Rev Coffee in Smyrna. This is a fun coffee shop with an eclectic feel. They have lots of art on the wall and at night there is live music. The art opening for this is at 8pm Saturday 11th. Next comes the Alpharetta Streetfest, 18th and 19th April, and then the Wesleyan School's "Joie de Vivre"on April 30th and May 1 and 2.

I am now working on some very small musical pieces. They are 6 inches square and at that size the smallest work I have ever done. I am having fun with these though and really enjoying the challenge. Once I have a few finished I will post them here. I hope to keep the cost at under $100.00. Sunlit Sails above, is one of my newer works. After a lot af red paintings it is refreshing to do something in summer colors.

Atlanta Artists Center

The "Dogwood Show"

I received a nice surprise this week. I entered several pieces into the local Dogwood Show at the Atlanta Artists Center in Buckhead and received an Honorable Mention for my collagraph print called "Under the Hot Sun". My acrylic painting called "Abstract in Red" was also accepted. The opening reception will be held Saturday, April 11 from 5-7 PM at 2979 Grandview Ave. Atlanta, GA 30305. The exhibit is on display from April 7 - May 1. Hours Tuesday - Saturday: 10 am - 4pm.

The Painters Keys

After writing yesterdays blog I received an email newsletter from "The Painter's Keys" . This is an interesting site developed by Robert Genn a Canadian artist. The email was about recent research on artists incomes to which I will post a link. This is a wonderful site to subscribe to and the click backs, or replies that come in from all around the world, are often really good reading. Artists can also have a free listing on his site.
http://clicks.robertgenn.com/art-income.php

Art and the Recession

If you have been following my blog you will know that I have been working on a group of abstract paintings for a local gallery who were going to exhibit them in March/April this year. I have enjoyed the process of doing them but unfortunately the gallery has been badly affected by the recession and they have decided it's not worth the risk of staying open. The same week it was on the news that one of the major galleries here in Atlanta has also decided to close after twenty years or more in the business. I'm sure there will be more to follow. Tough times.

We hear a lot about the difficulties affecting other industries but no one ever mentions artists and how hard it is for them. I think it stems back to the idea that it's not a proper or real job however, for many artists it's their sole source of income and the coming year will be challenging.

Last year I made the decision to take part in some local Art Fairs this summer. The applications for many shows have to be in months in advance. Well, what a bad time to start! My optimistic husband made the comment that "Oh well by the time the economy comes back you should know what you are doing". The first one is the Alpharetta Streetfest on April 18 and 19.

Portugal

Portugal was wonderful especially the areas away from the built up tourist areas. The old towns with their winding narrow streets and alleys are so lovely to see. I took quite a few photos but here is one that I really like. It was taken in Silves inland from Albufeira in the Algarve which is in the southern part of Portugal. There is a lot of decorative tile work but I loved the way this one was set into a doorway. I shall post a few more photos in the next post.

After such a nice holiday I am eager to get back into my studio again.

Revitalization of the Creative Spirit

On Monday I am off on holiday for two weeks. The last four months have not been the best in our lives and I think my creative spirit has suffered from the anxiety and general stress. Now that the health issues that landed unexpected on both of us over the holiday period have been resolved, we are ready for some fun.

So where are we off to you are wondering. We are going to Portugal to the Algarve. We have been to Spain several times before when we were living in the UK and really liked it so I am sure we will enjoy Portugal too. One of the really nice things about the trip is that we will be meeting up with another couple from the UK who we went to Spain with last time. My friend is a wonderful artist and we used to spend many hours together in the UK visiting art galleries and attending painting courses. It's so nice to have friends with similar interests and I especially miss her company now that I am in Atlanta. That is one of the sad things about moving so often, you leave wonderful friends behind.

I hope to take some photos of the beautiful beaches on the Algarve and to see some great art and local crafts. I also hope to be inspired and revitalized so that when I return in a few weeks time I am ready to plunge into my art with renewed gusto!

Go Figure

Go Figure is the name of an exhibition that is currently showing here in Atlanta at the Spruill Gallery. It's a really good exhibition with a variety of work focused on the figure. A couple of weekends ago they held an event where three of the artists whose work is on show, spoke about their work. It was very interesting and one of the best events of it's kind that I heve been to. I got there early as I thought that there would be quite a crowd however there were only the three artists, the gallery director and assistant and less than five visitors! I was amazed and I think they were too. I think they had expected a lot of local art students to attend along with other members of the public. I'm sure it was very disapointing for them however they may need to look at their attitude to the public. When I first arrived in the area I went in to see an exhibit and then went and asked the person on the desk where I could find out about local art events or classes. He was very abrupt and not at all friendly or helpful. Every time since then when I have been there to see an exhibit I have found the staff very unwelcoming. I have never been greeted with a hello or welcome to the gallery and if I made a comment about how nice the show was I only got a curt reply. Prior to the Go Figure artists talk I met a friend and we went to see the exhibition. Once again we were not greeted and the gallery director came in and started talking to the assistant and ignored us. My friend mentioned to the assistant, as we were about to leave, that she thought it was a lovely exhibition to which we got no reply. Once outside my friend said to me how she thought that the girl was quite rude for not even answering and that she had found them very unfriendly whenever she had been in the gallery on previous occasions. Exactly my own experience. I find people in the area very helpful, polite and friendly and I can't understand why it's so bad at this gallery. Perhaps that's why they didn't get many visitors for their talk.


Just to brighten up this post I will attach one of my small abstracts.

Collagraph Artists Proofs

I have just pulled another collagraph print of 'Breathe'. This one is a much brighter version. I now have four options to submit to the 'Trees in Art' National Exhibition here in Atlanta and I have to decide which one to go with. I would have liked to do a painting to enter but somehow this print just asked to be done. I only hope that the judges actually realise what I am trying to say and don't just think it is an odd looking little tree. Here are the last two variations.

The Green Version

After printing up two or three versions of my 'lung tree' in blues I decided to do a green version which is probably more in keeping with the ecological idea. I think my name for this piece will be 'Breathe'.

Which one do you like best?