Productive Weekend!

Well, I had a great weekend in spite of the fact we didn't go anywhere or see anyone or have a cookout or go to the beach or go swimming or any of that fun stuff. I (without really thinking ahead) had gum surgery earlier this week on Thursday on one side. Recovery is SLOW! Three days of a liquid diet, then 10 days of soft, mushy foods...then I go back and get the other side done! Bottom line here is I had lots of studio time. So, when I was feeling up to it, I went out to the studio and created! Yeh! Thank God for art supplies and the inner need to create...
Here is this weekend's haul:

I made this cute little baby blanket for James and Heidi's new baby girl on the way. Set to arrive on July 8th, she'll be #5 for them! It's so much fun to make a quilt when you have someone to think about and make it for.

Next, as you may know, I'm working on a series of 16 x 20 Collage pieces on Claybord. I think I have 14 completed at this point in time! Six more to go and I will reach my goal of 20 pieces. Two are on display at Nicole Kennedy's Gallery. One of them I will be sending up to my class reunion in July. I won't be able to make it personally because that is the same weekend Joe's workshop is in Indianapolis. So...they are having an auction and I thought one of these would be perfect for that. If anyone is interested, they are each framed up in either a cherry or mahogany wood frame and sell for $350. Here is a photo below of the most recent six I finished up this weekend:

I will also have these posted on my Web site soon! :)

Last week, I dropped off fifteen Encaustic pieces at ArtSource Gallery. I'm really loving encaustic painting. Can't wait to get back in the studio to do more...

Well, that's it for now. I worked yesterday, Memorial Day, getting set to dive in head first on Art of the Carolinas 2011. The Web site should be up and running in about a month, so please mark your calendars now and check back for more details!

Almost JUNE?!

Hello there Friends!
Had a fabulous experimenting day in the studio today. Heather was supposed to come and play too but her doggie got sick and is at the vet. Get well soon Kiwi!
Had a request from one of our vendors and our video department to do some collography.
Well, actually, I had never done it before, but I have heard of it. It's sort of a combination of collage and printmaking...both of which are right up my alley, so I just HAD to try it!
Well...I think I may have found yet another addiction! I'm telling you, this is just SO MUCH FUN! Things do take a little while to dry, but once you get your "plate" made, you are good to go!
Here are a few shots from the work I did today:

Here is a shot of phase one: Highly textured boards, dried and sealed with varnish so you can paint on them, print with them, then wash them off for future use.

Here is a shot of the top plate in the photo above painted and ready to print.

A sneak peek...

Three different images printed from the same plate.

All in a day's work...

I was in the studio ALL DAY and it was FANTASTIC!

Hear is a photo from a couple of weeks ago. Out with some friends, Wyette and Rob at Yadkin Valley Vineyards. If you haven't been there...what a treat! We visited about five different wineries. Great wine, great food, great friends, great weekend!

Joey and me at Shelton Vineyards

Peace!

Encaustic Demo this weekend!

Hello there Blog Buddies!
I just wanted to send out a quick post about this weekend.
I will be offering a Free Demonstration in Encaustic Painting on Saturday, May 21st here at Jerry's Artarama Raleigh retail store from 1pm-3pm. I will feature R&F Encaustic paints and products as well as Ampersand Encausticbords.

If you're ready to learn the basics, come on in and join the fun!

Happy Birthday Cindy Lou and Lynn!

(Late post...)
My sister Cindy and our friend from Costa Rica, Lynn Cannella, are here celebrating their birthday week. That’s right, you see Taurus born people are very generous and they love to have lots of joy in their lives, especially around their birthdays. The joy all began on Saturday, April 30th when they arrived. We have been having loads of fun working out at the farm, relaxing and hanging out.

Tuesday night we went to a Mudcats game and were able to get all of our energy out by yelling and singing at the game. Way too much fun! The Mudcats won 6-0 against the Biscuits! Ha ha, can you imagine being a 24 year old baseball player trying to be cool and playing for the “Biscuits”?! Too funny!

Yesterday, my day off, we “arted” all day long in the studio at the farm. Lynn had her first shot at collage and ended up with a very nice piece. It took some “collage therapy” to get her through a tough day, but it worked! Cindy showed me her new found batik skills and each of us worked on four pieces! At 6pm we were NOT ready to stop, but were completely exhausted. All in all it was a “winning!” day…Ha ha! Thanks Charlie!

Birthday lunch at Upper Crust with the Taurus Gang...

Lastly, I want to post a couple of photos of our dear friend Dave Cannella. We will miss you DooWah!

Come out for a great cause!

Robert King Opening this Friday

Hello there blog friends!
Come out for a great cause! Robert King is selling his “Alien in Love” series.
Here is a sneak preview:

Please join us at Lilly’s Pizza for First Friday, May 6th for a gathering of friends, beverages and Great Pizza 6pm-10pm.

Each painting is for sale ranging from $400 - $824.

Please contact Robert or Lisa King at 919-758-5383 or via email at octaveblue@gmail.com if you would like to make a donation and/or purchase one of his paintings in this series.

Paintings will be on display through the end of June.

See you there!