Sunday, April 29, 2018

new art in the stores

hi there.  we put up three new paintings in the stores for the world to see.  as always, click on the link below the photo to see which items are available for each painting.  just scroll down the page.

in society6

Busy One




Queen Bee





Red Flowers in Her Hair


pillow





tank



drawstring bag



hardcover journal

mug







travel mug

spiral notebook



pretty bees and flowers to brighten up your house for spring!

until later,
Jenny

Wednesday, April 25, 2018

inspired

I love it when a subject/artist/whatever is able to inspire me enough to get me out of a slump, even for a little while!  for some reason the fates collaborated and I was inspired by this weeks class in lets face it .  this class was by juna biagioni who is a mixed media artist and who taught the lesson very well.  the master artist we were following with juna was Kees van dongen (26 January 1877 – 28 May 1968).  

van dongen had a colorful style that I am particularly drawn to, and I chose a small 5x7 canvas and a few reference photos just to get the placement correct, not for perfect likeness.  juna had a front facing portrait and I chose one as well, as I wanted this painting to be easier for me so I wouldn't be discouraged while getting my art groove back.

I chose the red, yellow, blue color pallet I enjoyed in some of van dongens artwork;




and decided to make the reds pop even more with a brighter shade and flowers in her hair;




I will be working on the background more before I call this one completely finished, but I love how this little painting pops even from the other side of the room



I think I will be delving into van dongens style a little more, as I enjoyed the loose painting technique with my hand at the back of the paintbrush.  letting go of some control was freeing me of some anxieties I had been feeling about my art.  maybe it's time to let go a little more often!


until later,
Jenny

Monday, April 23, 2018

in a slump

hey there.  since I cant get my head on right about just working with the paint, I've been concentrating on organizing my studio and getting it the way I want.





I've also spent some time on unsplash.com finding photos that inspire me to paint.  it seems to me that the change of seasons does some strange things to my mental health.


I've worked on my queen bee painting to a point where I'm wavering between 'good enough, sign it' and 'work until you feel it's the very best it can be'.  I think thats why I've stalled.  if I get hung up on all the imperfections on each little painting I'm going to drive myself nuts, but I don't want to settle and not push myself, either.  artist A.D.D, maybe?

this is where "Queen Bee" stands now.  and I'm ok with her, but there are some things that bother me enough to question going further.  in the end, I've probably stalled enough that I should go to the next painting...  call this one 'done', put it in the database but not varnish it until either I decide it's done, I 'finish' it to my satisfaction even if it's a year later, or someone buys it.


I darkened the background and I like that she is more of a focal point now, and I made her shirt black except for a small part of the chest which is lighter, kind of an inner glow.  you can still see the green underpainting in the shirt in other areas, as well.  it all gives a Bee feel in my opinion.  I can see this clearly as a notebook!  she being on the front cover, and the back being the green.  yep.  a very nice notebook.



this week I hope to get back on track with the art.  I have my grandmas portrait I'm still mustering up the courage to continue, and another class from 'lets face it' that I'd like to put on canvas.  and I've joined "around the world thru art" , which looks like a great class with many fabulous artist teachers.  hopefully I can get my mojo going with this push.  

until later,
Jenny

Wednesday, April 11, 2018

new beginnings, and homes for my beauties

I've got several paintings in progress at the moment.  mostly of the bee variety.  I'm interested to see how I can make them all different and still draw the eye into the scene.  but, I was captivated by a photo in unsplash (a website of royalty-free images I browse for inspiration and reference photos) and knew she needed to be a queen bee for me.  here she is in progress;



I'm hoping I can do her justice.  sweeties words keep coming to me when I have these doubts;  "I know you can figure it out, you always do".  he is the best support.

ah, doubt.  I was talking to an artist friend of mine- a REAL LIFE friend who lives nearby!- and discussing why it's sometimes so difficult for me to get to the studio.  this doubt of mine.  this anxiety, this depression.  it's always whispering in my ear.  every painting I start is a hurdle of self doubt.  should I bother sketching it?  it won't look right, anyways.  and then, when I push thru and get the sketch done I'm being told not to paint it, cause I'll just ruin it.  on good days I can tell these nasty voices where they can stick their opinions.  more often than not I have to fight the demons just to step into the studio to begin the task of finding the good stuff in the paint.  I know it's in there!  I have lots of proof!  but, finding the courage to "begin again" each day, to uncover the beauty from the mud I had made the day before, the push and pull of the paint... sometimes its just a huge battle.


speaking of proof.  some of my collectors have sent me photos of my art in their new homes.  what joyful photos!  and proof that my art is loved and needed in the world.

what a peaceful home these two elephants have found!

some busy bees helping out at orange graphix


I just need to keep plugging away, painting and ignoring the doubt when I can, resting when I need to, and reminding myself that it's the journey not the destination.  I think part of my issue comes from thinking I must get it out there immediately, then I get overwhelmed.  there is a street fair each month in a neighboring town starting next month, and my brain thinks I must crank out product and go sell, sell, sell.  I don't need to do that, or anything else I don't honestly want to do!  I don't own a brick and mortar storefront where I need to be there, and sell.  I'm just here at home doing what I love and letting things evolve naturally.  sweetie just wants me to enjoy myself.   why then do I put myself thru so much pressure?  yikes!  so, again, I'm mindfully pulling back from these big events and the commitment that goes along with them.  if I find I have enough paintings to sell and a desire to run a table (with lots of support from sweetie) then thats what I will do, but I need to stop with the thinking of "what will sell" and paint what I want, when I want.  

honestly, it will create more joyful results, and thats good for everyone!

until later,
Jenny

Monday, April 9, 2018

newest in the shops

hi there.  over the weekend sweetie did a bit of work getting some new paintings up and some of the more popular older paintings up in the new shop.

as always, click on the link below the photo to see which items are available for each painting.  just scroll down the page you are brought to.


first society6;

"The Collector"


wall clock




"Teaching of the Emu"







"Abstracted Intuition"






now for my redbubble shop, which includes these three paintings, but we also added;


(click links to see all products)



"Pink Lotus"



"Spirit of the Elephant"


"Buddha and Butterfly"








and,




there is so much to explore in my stores.

until later,
Jenny

Friday, April 6, 2018

bee and abstract garden

hi there.  at this point I'm just trying to keep tabs on what I'm painting and when.  it seems I'm on a roll right now, and I get lost and sometimes forget to put dates on my paintings when I finish them.


i'm not quite finished with the first one I'm showing, but am happy enough I could be.


"the collector"

I might leave it here for all I know, and I haven't yet signed the back or dated or any of my numerous paperwork stuff I do to make them 'properly in my world', so putting it in blogland is good to keep these details handy while I decide what else I might do with it.



this next one I am painting will have a bee on it, as I'm still loving the bee energies I'm getting, but fell in love with the background and think it will be nice on it's own in the shops.

"abstracted intuition"
(hard to see, but there is text that includes the word "intuition" on the right)

I can easily see this on a mug or dress.

update;
I like it even better, now

sat with it for most of the day, and saw mountains in the background.  it called for better clarity and a darker sky.  I also darkened the red on the upper left side.  I'm thinking I may leave the bee out of this one, so I will sit with it further to see what it calls for.  to bee, or not to bee, that is the question.  only the muse knows.



until later,
Jenny

Thursday, April 5, 2018

newest in the shop(s)

hi there.  I'm being held hostage by a tired, chilly pup this morning, so figured I'd be productive and get some blog work done while incapacitated.

ok, I'm tired and chilly, too.
it benefits us both


since I sold "Gaia Heals" yesterday I knew I needed to get on the ball and scan it before I had to varnish today.  don't want the glare to interfere with the accuracy of the scan.  and, since sweetie had the scan right there we decided to just get it online.

as always, click on the link below the photo to see which items are available for each painting.


some of the "Gaia Heals" products in my society6 shop;


a beautiful shower curtain








and in my redbubble shop;




see all the neat items redbubble has for "Gaia Heals" here.



we also figured out how to turn on the template for kids shirts and onesies on redbubble, so we added a couple of the elephants for starters.  we will get to work on the rest of the elephant paintings we have there over the weekend.  

for now we have;

(click to sizes to see the other options)

and;

(click to sizes to see the other options) 


take a look and see all the elephant paintings on dresses and other items!  they make my heart so happy!

until later,
Jenny