Sew I Started Sewing again ;) ...

When I was a kid I really enjoyed sewing. I didn't know a lot, but what I did know I enjoyed. I first learned a bit of handsewing in 5th grade, from my teacher Ms. Havlick. We had a project where each student in the class made one hand sewn square, which the teacher then put together to form a quilt. Soon thereafter I learned some embroidery in Girl Scouts...and then in 6th grade I made a small, hand sewn quilt for my Grandma. Oddly, in retrospect-- I think this was where the roots of the chicken character really started...In the quilt for my gramma each square was made with a differentn fabric, and then I'd sew a little picture on each square that resembled the fabric. One of those squares had little chickens on it. (or perhaps duckies..I am not sure, I haven't seen it in 20 years)...anyway, that image always stuck in my head. Also, over the years, little chicken heads would pop up in my art...it was like the Mr. Chicken character was oddly meant to be, and just kind of took a while ( a couple decades ;) to "hatch"!...Initially Mr. Chicken was all little paintings..now I'm getting back into sewing as well :) When I paint, I'm a wee bit of a perfectionist and sometimes get burned out...Sewing by hand oddly relaxes me, so it's a good break in the action-- and also creates other types of merchandise. I realize sometimes people may not want a painting for their wall, but would love an item they could use, or wear, such as a headband, a key chain, or a necklace...etc...I also want to start sewing clothes, but that's another story and will come later! Here's the start of Mr. Chicken's sewn items ;)...which included a chicken doll (kind of like the traveling gnome)-- which I took everywhere and took pics of...I ended up giving him to a man in Hospice :) I'll sew another one for further adventures!...btw-- the lovely Irish lass in the picture with the punk rock chicken is my gramma. Her name was Peggy...I think we can largely credit her with helping create the chicken, as she always nurtured my artistic pursuits-- thank you gramma!! (miss you :)...

The Asheville Show!!!

I must admit, this was pretty exciting for me. I have never had a solo show in a state in which I do not live, let alone a state that is a couple of states away! This was the longest trip I have taken by myself in my life, and I'm a tad bit scared of long distance driving, so in many ways it was a personal victory :) What's even cooler is the night I got into Asheville, (after the longest drive I've ever taken), I found out I got into nursing school! I was sitting there, grabbing a bite to eat, checking my email on my internet phone, and there was the "email of acceptance!" It was a great weekend! :) And it was so AWESOME to show my work at The Lola Salon and Gallery. It's such a cute place, and the people are SO nice! (They do great hair cuts as well)!-- if you are in the Asheville area and need a great hair style, or some cool art, I'd highly recommend checking them out! Anyhoo...here's some pics from the show-- Enjoy!

Where the Heck have I been!?!?

That's That's a good question!-- I just realized I haven't blogged in about 3.5 months-- that's very unlike me!!!...Life has just been crazy busy, and lots of changes going on...

A brief summary...took a break from socializing and art for 2 months to focus on school...left old studio...got another studio 2 months later...hung an art show (post to follow), and got into nursing school! :)...essentially it was a nice little hiatus to refocus and realign my goals-- and it looks like it's gonna work out-- yeah!!! ( In my ideal world I'm a nurse half the week and an artist the other half ;) ...Oh-- and here's the latest chicken!!! I guess it's fitting-- it kind of represents the much needed mental vacation I took...ah, so refreshed!

The Notorious Alpha Chicken...

Some time back I had an idea for a "B" series...you know, something along the lines of "Miss Chicken." ...and then I was thinking perhaps there should be an "adult" series!...something along the lines of Kama Sutra chicken or something...maybe this fits into the category of B.5?....It's based on a sketch I did of Betty Page on a coffee bag...way back in WI when I was working at this coffee shop in Madison called Cuppa Jo...I randomly started sketching Betty Page because there was a cool photo of her in the paper-- and an empty coffee bag was the nearest paper like substance...I then made a chicken out of it, as this decorated coffee bag was the first thing I came across while in search of chicken ideas...so there ya have it! :)

It's Not a chicken, it's a Crow!

At least for the day...thought I would pay an homage to one of my favorite movies-- The Crow :) I enjoy how darkly romantic it is...I mean, if someone comes back to evenge your death, like after death, and then wants to be with you for all eternity, even when you are both dead-- it's kinda hot!!!Hope you like the drawing! It was done in pen and ink

The Moment I Held You Here Was the Best of All

Here's the latest chicken!!!! This one was created using graphite, and was based on a dream I had. In the dream I was standing on someone's porch. I'm not sure who it belonged to, but it was a white, wooden house, with a gray wooden floor. It was very nostalgic, slightly worn, but oddly charming and beautiful. In front of me was an empty boat, and above it was a sign that read, "The moment I held you here was the best moment of all." And then there was an arrow, pointing to a little sign of the boat. In the dream the boat was empty. For the picture I created, I added the chickens :) The whole thing kind of reminded me of the movie, "The Notebook."

La Venus de Pollo!!!

Here's the latest! It's an original gouache painting...I think it's about 4.5 by 7 or 8 inches...I will need to go back and measure ;)

Lately I've been into putting the chicken into classic paintings, so the Venus definitely seemed appropriate! I matted it up and framed it in a lovely 9 by 12 inch black frame. The original is in my studio, and up for grabs currently. I need to list the prints on Etsy! :)

Mr. Chicken is now on t-shirts! :D

Yup, the chicken is spreading his wings!!! Right now is the "experiment" phase to see what kind of chicken merchandise people are interested in. (And also which images). Here are a few t-shirts I now have available via my etsy shop, mrchicken.etsy.com. I recently acquired more shirts with a wider variety of images, as well-- (Mona Lisa Chicken, The Scream, Blue Guitar Player, Vitruvian, etc...), but I still need to photograph them! I plan on doing a photoshoot this weekend if all goes according to plan, so those should be available soon as well! (they can currently be purchased in my studio). On a side note-- taking these pics was a blast!

Mr. Chicken Has a Blue Period...

I decided on this title because it works on many levels! (if ya think about it :) Prints are available on my Etsy sight, as well as in my studio

New Merchandise at Mr. Chicken!

The chicken is now on keychains and t-shirts!!! The keychains in the pic here are currently listed in my etsy store, and there will be more arriving this week. (think Mona Lisa Chicken and Karate chicken keychains)! In addition, I will at some point be listing the t-shirts-- I just need to hunt down some of my friends to help model them-- it's hard to take pictures of yourself! The shirts are currently in my studio though :) And if you want those keychains-- just look on the right side of the screen for the Mr. Chicken Etsy link!

The Death of Me

That's what I am calling this latest surreal piece! It was created with watercolor, gouache, and also irridescent medium. I'll spare ya the details on this one, but it's basically about how you can lose yourself in relationships, or potential relationships. As humans we sometimes get so wrapped up in others, and trying to please others, that we forget about our own needs, and part of us dies. Interesting how that happens...reproduction prints are available in my Etsy shop!

Coming to a t-shirt near you!

The time has come-- Mr. Chicken is now on t-shirts! (courtesy of zazzle.com :) I am starting with a few images, but will definitely add more! I'm thinking baby onesies as well, and perhaps some doggie clothes!


make custom gifts at Zazzle

Chicken Impaled With a Pearl Earring...

I've always liked this masterwork by Vermeer...thought the chicken should give him props! :) I just love the starkness of it, and the gaze...there's something to be said about a certain type of gaze. Perhaps this is why artist's like portraits so much ;)

Dirty Chickens!!!!!

Rumor has it not only did she carry a watermelon, she is also a fowl dancer... ;) Here is the latest chicken painting! This one was done in gouache and measures 5 by 7 inches. I've always been very fond of "Dirty Dancing," so making a chicken painting of a scene from the movie seemed appropriate. In fact, I may do more than one...we will see!

The Latest in Surrealism...

I have not yet decided on a title for this one. I'm thinking either "The Talk" or "The Embrace." It's a little painting, around 5 by 8 inches, but will be put in a 9 by 12 inch frame. For this piece I used watercolor, gouache, and a fine point pen. I think I might do a larger version too...I'm considering doing more with the background-- more itty bitty details and such, 'cause I like to do that kinda thing! We will see :)

I'm Having a Cyber Monday Sale!!! :D

It started with Black Friday, and goes through Monday night :).The sale is through 2 of my Etsy shops!!! ...All items will be reduced by 25%. At checkout, the coupon code is blackfriday1

At checkout, just type in the coupon code (don't forget this part, it's important :)!...and Etsy will calculate it for ya-- then you just check out-- nice and easy!!!

Items on sale include matted prints, holiday cards, and handmade recycled paper. Feel free to check it out!

http://mrchicken.etsy.com
http://thegreenefairy.etsy.com

Breaking Out of the Box...

Or at least attempting too...This is page 6 in my sketchbook, for "The Sketchbook Project."

I'm kind of a perfectionist (to say the least)...let us just say it holds me back. If I can't do it perfectly, or in the very least-- exceptionally well-- I might not want to do it at all...or I procrastinate...this has effected me in most aspects of my life, especially artistically. I put off projects, I take FOREVER on them...etc...you get the picture :) There have been times though when I had "happy little mistakes," and had to try something else...times where I played, experimented, and created something cool...these times when I broke out of the box changed things, and changed things for the better...

In this post I have also included a mixed media piece called "strength," which is based on the tarot card Strength. This is really the first REALLY mixed media piece I did. And how did it happen? I tore the darn painting! There was a 3 inch tear near the top of the painting so I had to collage over it to cover it up. And what happened? It turned out cooler than it probably would have in the first place! And then after this I started doing a bit more mixed media, as opposed to strictly watercolor, etc...breaking out of the box can be very, very good!!! I need to keep reminding myself of that :)

Mona Lisa Chicken!

Here is the latest ACEO in my chicken series! :) (For anyone out there who doesn't know what an ACEO is, it's a baseball card size piece of art)...I've veered a bit from my normal path lately with the chickens. In the past I would do an ACEO, number it and write a story, turn it into a print, and make an occasional larger version in oil. Now sometimes I do the painting without the story, or a larger version initially, or with no ACEO sized work at all...I've decided to break outside of that box a bit, as the protocol was slowing me down. (Mainly the story-- I need to be in the right mood to write :) ...the story shall continue though, never fear! I've had numerous people tell me the chicken series would make a great children's book, so I am thinking about doing different versions of the story. The current one has more of an adult tone...then there is the "B" series-- 'cause he meets a hot chick :) And uh, the "C" series, which is a bit, uh...naughty....Perhaps the "D" series can be for children...I want to do a coloring book as well! All the possibilities...What can I say, the chicken is inspired by DaVinci....

New Handmade Recycled Paper!!!

Yup! I was back in the lab :) Here are some new creations!

Thee Latest...

I call this one "Fragility"...I think it is done now, but I am not sure. (Let us just say I was feeling, uh, slightly "vulnerable" when I began this piece...I set it aside a few months ago, frustrated and undecided as to what more to do with it. I've been looking at it for a while now, and think it may be complete...I may do another version as well, but with more snow flakes, and a different color scheme. This painting was created using watercolor and mixed media...I even used some gold leaf! (sweeet)...first time I ever used that stuff-- I like the effect :)