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!

Another Page from The Sketchbook Project :)

OH man, I just realized I have to put this sketchbook in the mail in less than a month! Uh oh...I think I need to make less detailed sketches at this point so I can actually finish it on time. Wait, have I done one about procrastination yet?!?! I think I need to...

Anyway, back to the theme of the sketchbook: "things that change other things"...this sketch is about moving into my own apartment. I haven't really had my own place in 3.5 years, so getting a "room of my own" so to speak has definitely changed things....I wasn't sure how it would work out, what I would find-- hence the question mark, keys, clouds, etc....but my gut instinct told me it was the right thing to do :)

And sure enough it has changed other things-- doing more art, reading more, I started swimming again (I'm only 5 minutes from the YMCA)!, and generally focusing on what I need to do. I think moving out of the city has really helped with that. It is peaceful out here with lots of trees! It's interesting how a geographic switch can make all the difference.

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....

The Sketchbook Project-- Page 10

Wow-- I just realized I have a lot more pages to fill by January! As the title of this post so astutely explains, this is page 10...with the theme being "Things that Changed Other things."...words are powerful (pretty common knowledge)...and what I'm trying to get at here (probably pretty obvious huh)? is that the words not spoken, are sometimes even more powerful-- shutting doors, opening others, etc....Not speaking what's on your mind can just as powerfully influence the future as not doing so. I can think of way to many examples of this in my own life! (so it seemed to be appropriate to include it in the project :) It was done in mixed media-- collage, pencil, watercolor, and gouache.