Explosion of Color

My show at LoPressionism Gallery in Melbourne, Florida opens today, January 27th, and runs through March 11th. I have four large paintings in the show, titled "Explosion of Color," along with the work of two other artists. If you're in the Melbourne area, be sure to stop by to see them!

Katherine Kean and Lee Mullican

I went to a panel discussion of Lee Mullican at the Getty tonight, and who should be sitting next to me waiting for the tram but Katherine Kean, an artist I haven't seen in many years. Is this a small art world, or what? Katherine does fabulous medium- and large-scale ethereal landscapes, one of which is pictured above, titled "Mountain and Clouds." You can see more of her paintings on her website.

Don't miss the Lee Mullican show at LACMA. It's an incredible show, and it's there through February 20th. This is one of the paintings from the show titled "Space:"

Who is Benjamin Stove?

Love a mystery? Then read this ongoing story about a strange painting. Be sure to check out some of the posts on the discussion forum, especially this one and this one. The plot thickens!

The Dot

Two of my paintings are currently in a show at The Illinois Institute of Art in Chicago. The show is titled "The Dot," and it features the work of three artists who use dots in their work. These are the two pieces I have in the show:






The show runs through March 1, 2005. If you're in Chicago, be sure to stop by!

Miriam Wosk Show

I went to the preview of Miriam Wosk's show at Billy Shire Fine Arts in Culver City last night. Miriam does incredibly detailed collages, with very unusual subject matter. The show officially opens on January 21 and runs through February 25. There is an opening reception this Saturday, January 21, from 7 - 10 pm.

Soy Milk Paint

I've been doing some more experimentation with pigments in a soy milk binder. It takes some getting used to, because the colors of the Earth pigments are a lot more subtle than the colors of acrylic paints. It's also a thin and watery paint, unlike acrylics, which are thick and viscous.

This is a recent monoprint piece done with soy milk paint. It's kind of interesting, but I'm not sure it's the effect I want.

Sweet Violet

The sweet violets in my backyard are beginning to bloom. I love this time of year, when the oxalis, violets and camellias are blooming, and then in another month the wisteria will start to bloom. They hold the promise of spring.

Primarily Red

Lyn Southworth and I staffed the I-5 Gallery today, as part of being in their "Primarily Red" show. The show looks really good, and I took a couple of pics for you to see. This first one shows one of my paintings, "Redscape," installed -- second from the left:



This is a better photo of "Redscape:"



Below is the piece that Lyn has in the show, titled "Red Lady." It's ink and bleach on cotton, meaning that the piece started out red and she worked backwards by bleaching away the light areas.



The show will be up through January 29th with a closing event on Sunday, January 29th from 3:30 - 6:00 pm. The I-5 Gallery is at The Brewery, in downtown Los Angeles.

Thank you, Mat Gleason, for showing us the hidden light switch!

Organic Matters

I just started a new blog called Organic Matters to showcase the work of artists working in natural materials. This piece is rust on silk by quilt and fiber artist Liz Plummer:



More to come soon!

Upcoming Shows

I've been getting work ready for two shows in Melbourne, Florida and Scottsdale, Arizona. These are the pieces going to LoPressionism Gallery in Melbourne for a three-person show titled "Explosion of Color:"





And eight pieces are going to LKG Contemporary in Scottsdale:









If you're in these cities, be sure to check out my work!

Natural Surfaces Yahoo E-Group

There's a new Yahoo e-group called "Natural Surfaces" for people who are interested in natural dyes, mold dyeing, rust dyeing, clay dyeing, natural pigments and binders, and other natural art materials. We share information and ideas, and post photos of things we've done. We currently have 93 members from all over the world, and it's growing fast. Please join us if you have any interest in these things!

Enzia Farrell

I went to an art salon last night where Enzia Farrell showed images of her paintings and talked about her life, her process and her work. She spoke with incredible openness and honesty, the end result being an evening of intense emotion and visual imagery. I greatly admire her authenticity, and her courage somehow gives me the strength to be more myself.

New Art Blog

There's a great new blog about the state of women in the arts titled Anonymous Female Artist (A.K.A. Militant Art Bitch), written by an artist named "Edna" in New York City.

Edna's first post reads, "Women who strive to be equal to men apparently have little to no ambition." Edna is not only witty and clever, but she provides good information, too.

Experimental Techniques

Some of you have been asking what I've been doing lately. If you must know, I've been experimenting with new techniques.

Washout:



Scraping paint with a piece of cardboard:





And fingerpainting:



Some of these might find their way into my paintings, and some won't. Tomorrow I'm going to start on a multi-layered washout piece.