Thank you I Heart Art / Etsy and DWR!!

Had a lovely time last night at the I heart art mixer match!  Thank you to everyone who made it awesome!!!
Here's some info about it! 

http://www.oregonlive.com/art/index.ssf/2011/08/i_heart_art_the_portland_mixer.html
http://iheartartpdx.com/mixer-match/

Bike Love Show @ Angst

June Bug.

I don't know where you are in the world, but here in Portland, Oregon we are experiencing the 3rd coldest and 2nd wettest spring in the history of keeping track.  and it's unpleasant.  I need some good ole sun shine, blue sky and warmth!  Don't get me wrong, I really can't imagine living many other places on earth for many different reasons, but about now, i'm dreaming of a hot climate and blues skys with a tad of tropical sun and sea for good measure. 

Today I'm playing catch up and clean up.  I participated in one and helped in another workshop last week and went out of town.  So needless to say, i'm behind!  on everything!  I've been experimenting at the Atelier Meridian with sugarlift, auqutint, and solarplates and it's been great fun!  I can't wait to post some photos of what I've been working on! Printmaking is an amazing subject to study!  Oh the possibilities!

here's a bit of a preview!

Here's hoping that your weekend is full of sun and fun!  Happy early weekend everyone!

This and That and the Other...

The Kenton Street Fair was Sunday, I shared a booth with Bike Cozy!  It was my first outdoor fair!  Sorry I cut off some of both of our booths in the photo! 

New kitchen floor to replace the one scratched up by the cops after the burglary! Cat not included. The tape is to hold the seems in place.  It's gone and I have baseboards now too!

looks like a melted crayola box! I love it! and the kitty!

 I also received some lovely mail art from Jessica at Natures my Friend!  Thank you!!! Fun stuff for sure!!

why can't i rotate this!?

Happy pre 3 day weekend week!

Forgive me Leonardo.

My dearest Leonardo,
Please forgive me.  It's hard times out here in the 21st century.  An artist has to do what an artist has to do.  or does she?
Yours truly,
Serena

I was approached to paint my interpretation of a "slutty Mona Lisa" reproduction.  I thought about it for a few seconds and agreed.

Need less blurry photo!

However, once I started painting I felt a bit funny about it.  Embarrassed or slightly ashamed.  Or maybe just irreverent.  This is one of the most well known paintings in the world, done by Leonardo Da Vinci for kitties sake! Shouldn't I be more respectful?  As I kept painting I needed photo reference and in my research found a bazziliontrillion knock offs and reproductions from alien heads to Micheal Jackson in Mona Lisa drag.  Soooo, I decided to embrace it and paint that best damn Mona Lisa I possibly could in the time frame I had.

It's also really hard painting from crappy photos online.  It's also hard to extrapolate breast augmentation.  It's obviously not a direct reproduction, I've made some changes to the clothing that I thought appropriate to her well-endowed and time period.  I have a few small things to touch up, but it's 99% finished at this point. 

Have I stepped on Leonardo's, as well as the feminist toes here?  Probably.  Thoughts?
I'll also post a process blog at a later time.  

Art is a Luxury? *WTF?

I was meeting with my AA group yesterday.  That's Art Accountability group to you!  And a certain someone brought up how her family was taught that art is a luxury. And the 3rd person in our group agreed!!! I was SHOCKED to say the least.  Art is NOT a luxury, especially for an artist.  Art is a *M.F'en necessity!

A little Rococo for ya!

I'm still in shock.  Image, if you will, there is no art. Look around you.  Bare walls, no color, every piece of furniture ceases to have style.  Every house would look a-like, all our clothes would only be utilitarian.  Art is embedded into every nook and cranny of our cultures.  You might not think of yourself as an artist, but every time you arrange your furniture, pick a particular combo of clothes, paint a room, arrange a flower vase, you are expressing yourself.  You are creating a composition.  You are, in fact, living art.  

Horse
c. 15,000-10,000 BC
Lascaux, Franc

Now, if you don't consider
yourself and artist, and apparently even if you are an artist,  you may disagree with me. But you'd be wrong.  :) Art has been an integral part of society.  I'll spare the art history lesson today.

Function without form?  Sounds horrible.  For me, art is a necessity! A staple in life's my diet.  My hope is that it becomes that for you too!  A life without expression hardly seems worth living.  

Disagree?  I'd love to hear why!  Agree?  Do tell!!


*M.F'en is my abbreviation for a shocking offensive pairing of swear words, same for WTF! :) Just in case you didn't know.

Cascade Print Exchange!

Brochure and Packet of my Prints

Inside Cover of Brochure

My Linocut "Night Sky" Top of Page 85

Print exchanges are awesome!  For this one I printed an edition of 15 and mailed them off.  I get 12 random prints back, a brochure and a spot in a the exhibit of Fairbanks Gallery, OSU May 2nd - 24th 2011.





The Reception is Tuesday May 3rd 
4:30 - 6pm.  I will certainly try to attend!

Here are some examples of the ones I received!

Kelly Tully Intaglio on Monoprint

Left to right:  Vesper White "Pencils" Intaglio, Watercolor.  Maren Burck "Smallest of Birds" Lithograph.   Amanda Abraham "Sparrow" Lithograph