Moving On to the Next Phase in the Olin Library at Kenyon College Series or A Peek into My Brain

Published on March 5, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

I’ve been motoring on with my Olin Library series, a group of paintings about a wonderful Nook and Cranny at library at Kenyon College. Last week was a busy one, what with installing a show on Wednesday and then attending the opening on Friday evening. Despite essentially losing two days (well, not really, since showing and selling my work is part of my job description), I did manage to move the paintings forward.

Looking down from my favorite staircase in the Olin Chalmers Library at Kenyon College

Looking down from my favorite staircase in the Olin Chalmers Library at Kenyon College

 

You’ll notice that something is missing. The bannister is there, but what the heck is holding it up? I’ve been postponing adding the railings because I’m not sure how I want to do them. And since once I start, I don’t want to have to move them around too much, since that would mean redoing the whole area. Up to this point in a painting, I’m more than happy to change angles, move stuff around, change proportions. But now that I’ve added lots and lots of layers and am getting happier with what I’m seeing, I’d like to at least be in the ball park with the placement of the uprights.

My brilliant friend, Sharon Brady, helped me out with the idea of using tape to map out the railings, take a snapshot, reposition the tape, take another snapshot and then decide which I like best. So I did.

Stairwell in Olin Library, looking down down with vertical tape

The bannister with blue tape indicating the placement of the railings, parallel to the edge of the painting

 

It probably took me ten tries to get the spacing correct on this. The good part is that all I needed to do was pull off the tape and try again. The bad part is that in order to try my other idea, I had to pull off the tape. So here’s a record of what I had, but it didn’t occur to me to mark the position.

Stairwell in Olin Library with tape, not in accurate perspective

This is the next idea with the railings tilted, not accurate perspective

 

Again, after multiple tries with the tape, I came up with this. It makes me nervous because the perspective isn’t accurate, but I really like the way the tilted railings add to the movement in the painting. So I think I’m going with this. The good thing is that I can mark out where the tape is located before I pull it off!

Many thanks to Sharon. While it took me most of an afternoon to tape and re-tape and re-tape, it would have taken ten times longer to do the experimenting directly on the panel with paint.

And on to painting number 2.

The staircase in Olin Library, looking up, 3-5

I actually like the way the painting looks without a bannister and railings

 

While I like the abstractness of the painting without the bannister and railings, I have a feeling a casual onlooker wouldn’t be able to figure out what they were looking at. And does that matter? Well, that’s a whole other conversation.

The staircase at Olin Library, looking up with tape to indicate the bannister

The bannister, sketched in with tape

At this point I was tired of dealing with uncooperative tape, so I didn’t add the railings. Now that I’ve had a chance to cogitate about it, I think the painting does need the bannister and railings to make it understandable to the viewer. And I think it will add to the gracefulness of the image. So, on to wrestling with tape to figure out the placement of the railings.

 

Art Oracle Exhibit at the Casa Grande Art Museum

Published on February 27, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

An exhibition of artwork by 8 artists (including Jim and I) from Oracle will be opening this Friday, March 2. We’ll be making the trek on Wednesday to Casa Grande to deliver the work and to install the show. The mixture of  sculpture, paintings and photographs will make for an exciting exhibit. Here’s a glimpse of the work, and the exhibition details.

Art Oracle Announcement Casa Grande Art Museum

 

Should be a fun opening. There’s going to be a street dance right outside the museum starting about 7 pm. Lots of good food, great artwork and entertainment should make it a memorable Friday night adventure. Hope to see you there.

Stage Two, Olin Library Paintings

Published on February 23, 2012 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment

The two Olin Library paintings are in what I call the second stage of painting. All the fun willy nilly applying paint in all kinds of colors to the panels that happens at the beginning was completed. Stage 2 is the point at which what’s on the panels needs to move toward making sense to people who might look at it. Moving things around, changing angles, adjusting colors and textures all takes lots of time as well as a certain amount of nerve. I liked what I had and hate to have to take the chance of wrecking that. On the other hand the paintings are clearly not finished. It’s a matter of forging ahead despite the resistance in my head.

So here’s the staircase, looking down.

Olin Library staircase, looking down, stage 2

If you check back a blog post or two, you'll see the difference from the beginning of the painting.

 

And here’s the staircase looking up.

Olin Library staircase looking up stage 2

Looking up has changed, too

 

Stay posted for new developments in the saga of the Olin Library staircase series.

Teeny Tiny Paintings

Published on February 16, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

I do like to mix it up in the studio. I find that switching from one series to another helps to maintain the freshness and excitement I feel with each and every painting. I also enjoy changing formats, using square panels then switching to rectangles, vertical to horizontal and large to small. Each change means rethinking my approach. In addition to the two new Olin Library paintings, one square, one rectangular (see last post for photo of these), I got the urge to do a group of very small paintings. So I ordered 6–6″ x 6″ panels from Dick Blick, my favorite catalog company. My idea was to just have fun experimenting with color and texture. When I’m working and get stuck on one of the larger works, I turn around and play around with the little guys. Here’s what I have so far. I have no

6" by 6" tiny paintings, just starting

Here's the group of 6" x 6" paintings, just starting to play with ideas

idea where I’m going with these. I’m going to try to remember to keep up with photographing them as I progress.

Fresh Starts, Continuing the Olin Library at Kenyon College Series

Published on February 10, 2012 in Uncategorized. 2 Comments

I’ve been focused on water reflection paintings for the last 6 months or maybe more and my neglected Olin Library staircase series has been calling to me. So this week, I treated myself to a change of pace and started two new 24″ x 24″ paintings. Right now I’m blocking out the larger areas and applying lots of wild colors with my palette knives. Pretty soon, I’ll get out my trusty electric sander and remove some of the paint. This is great fun because whatever is left after attacking the panel is a surprise. From that, I’ll start applying more layers of paint. I love the unintended accidents and the problem solving that comes with figuring what to do to keep the happy accidents and still end up with a cohesive painting. Here are the two newborns.

Olin Library at Kenyon College, staircase, looking down

A slightly dizzying view looking down the beautiful staircase at the Olin Library

What’s there on the panel is probably totally incomprehensible to anyone but me. I, however, am excited about starting to work back into this. Of course, the hope is that eventually what’s there will be accessible to the viewer.

 

Staircase in Olin Library at Kenyon College, looking up

Believe it or not, this is going to be a view of the staircase, looking up.

Again, not at all what the completed painting will look like.

 

"Ode to Olin", Kenyon Library

"Ode to Olin"

Above is the first painting in the series. It started out just like the two above. Stay posted for what happens next on Olin #2 and #3!

 

 

The Best Little Cookies in the World

Published on February 7, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

I’m not talking about actual cookies here. I’m talking about the kind of cookies woodworkers use to hold stuff up off a surface. I have a set of 4 cookies, complete with little caps. It’s amazing what a difference the right kind of equipment can make, no matter how small.

It used to be when I needed to get a painting up off the surface of the table I prop it up on 4 yogurt containers. This happens when I’m finishing off the edges of the painting or pouring a glaze. Until I got the cookies, I didn’t realize what a struggle I was having using the yogurt containers. No offense to yogurt container manufacturers, but they just don’t do the trick. They slide around and invariably at a crucial moment one will slide out from under the painting, causing at the least, irritation and at worst a big mess as the painting tips over. I usually end up hanging onto the painting with one hand, trying to keep it steady as I work.

The cookies are solid with a wonderful non-skid top and bottom. Even better, one can purchase little pointed caps that snap onto the top, raising the object to be held up onto points, thus offering a minimum of contact with the surface. Once the painting is situated on the cookies, it’s solid. No slipping. No muss, no fuss. A small triumph in an effective tool.

Bench cookie

The basic bench oookie, with non-skid top and bottom

 

Bench cookie with top

Here is the bench cookie with the top snapped on. It comes to a point, so the object (painting) is resting on the tip.

 

Bench cookie holding the painting up off the table

The bench cookies, positioned at each corner, are holding the painting securely up off the table, allowing me to tape and paint the edges with both hands free.

 

Voila! I’d like to get a few more sets to have around. By the way, you can find out more about the cookies at www.rockler.com. And no, they’re not paying me for this glowing review.

 

 

 

 

Sometimes it Helps to Have a Deadline

Published on February 3, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Any artist will tell you that it can be difficult to know when a piece of artwork is done. There are artists who work on every painting for years. Yes, years. If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I’ve been struggling over A Surprise in Surprise (now titled “Linger–A Surprise in Surprise”) since last Spring.

Last week I posted photos of two paintings I’d just started as well as a snapshot of the latest “done” state of Linger. Well, I decided to try to finish the two new pieces to submit for consideration for an exhibit in Tucson. I’ve known about the submission deadline for months and months but hadn’t actually created anything within the size limitations or the theme for the show. I forged ahead with gusto. I completed the paintings in time for Jim to photograph them and sent the submission via email, getting it in a full 45 minutes before the deadline (cutting it very close). Having a photographer in residence certainly helps, and Jim was nice enough to drop everything and come to my aid. Here are the results, plus the official final quality photo of Linger.

Agua Caliente paintig

Here is Agua Caliente completed. You can click above on Beginnings, Middles and Endings to navigate to the last blog to see how the painting has changed.

And here is the nearly unrecognizable second painting in the set. If you check out the previous blog post, you can see how it’s morphed. I just got going and before you know it, it was an altogether different painting.

Chimerical, acrylic painting on panel

Where did the dark submerged log go? It's down under lots of layers of paint, I guess.

This just goes to show how much flexibility acrylic painting allows. Sometimes I have a set outcome I’m looking for in a painting and other times what I end up with is radically different than what I started with. Just depends.

And last, Linger. For the last time, I really really mean it this time.

Linger (A Surprise in Surprise)

Complete at last– Linger (A Surprise in Surprise)

Painting: Beginnings, Middles and Endings

Published on January 26, 2012 in Uncategorized. 1 Comment

Woe is me. I sincerely thought I was done with Surprise in Surprise (see last post). Jim photographed the “completed” painting for me and I was ready to set it aside. After all, I’ve been working on this one for about 6 months. Don’t know why I’ve had such a struggle, but there you go–sometimes a painting just flies off the brush and onto the canvas and other times it is such a battle, not unlike hitting a brick wall. Anyway, I took another look at it and decided it wasn’t working AT All. I called in Jim, who made a suggestion. Diana Creighton, an artist and friend in Oracle stopped by and I asked for her advice. Then with a sigh, I tackled it yet again. So so sick of looking at this, but I just couldn’t put it away.

To reward myself for my persistence (stubbornness, stupidity?), I bought a really great cart at Costco, one which will allow me to keep my paints right where my pallet is, at just the right height, on wheels and with storage! Actually, Jim took pity and bought it for me. Hero that he is, he assembled it right away. As you can see there are several levels of empty bins. I have been so excited about using the top part, I haven’t finished with organizing the rest.

Costco wire rack

In addition to this new piece of equipment, I also decided to treat myself by starting a brand new painting and to relaunch into another that I’d started awhile back and hadn’t gotten very far on. My friend, the artist Nancy Reyner, (who besides being a fabulous painter is also the author of a wonderful book, The Acrylic Revolution), once told me that she likes to work on multiple paintings at multiple stages of development at a time. Her reasoning is that beginnings, middles and endings of paintings take different types of energy. Beginning a painting is very physical, takes lots of daring and broader physical action in order to quickly cover the surface. Middles take forever, require lots of thinking, moving about of various parts, adding color, changing color, stepping back, looking and continuing on. Middles are a slog. Endings are like finishing a puzzle, where the pieces just drop magically in place, at least that’s what happens in the most satisfying of endings.

So here is the beginning stage of this painting. I’ve worked on it a couple of days. Beginnings can be magical. Now I’m approaching the middle in which the struggle inevitable begins.

Beginning-Agua Caliente

After a few hours, I've covered the surface of the panel with thin washes of color and have begun to add some texture

This painting is more or less a middle. I’m at a point where there are parts I feel are working and I don’t want to mess them up. Yet there are other parts that need a lot of work still. This is where the “domino effect” comes into play. From past experience, I know that whatever I do in one area will affect how the rest looks. Before I know it I’m embroiled in thrashing around on the whole painting, despairing that I’ve ruined it. No matter how many times I go through the process, it’s always the same. You’d think I’d figure out a way to bypass this painful stage…

Middle, Pena Blanca Lake

At this stage, there are multiple layers of paint and texture, but it's far from done.

I’m hesitant at this point to say that Surprise is finished. And I want to change the name. But here’s a snapshot of the latest iteration. Alas, it’s not a Jim quality photograph and consequently is too light, but perhaps you can see the changes despite my bad photography. Done or not???

Surprise again

A Surprise in Surprise Painting is Done!

Published on December 15, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

I’ve been working (off and on) on the A Surprise in Surprise painting for months. What with various interruptions and a certain amount of getting stuck, I’m pleased that the final pieces fell into place. I first got excited about doing this painting way last spring. I accompanied Jim to the County Library in Surprise (northwest of Phoenix) for a talk he had been invited to give on the US Route 89 project and his photography. While he was working on getting all the technology set up, I wandered about the library. Lo and behold, there is a lake situated in a park right adjacent to the library. This was indeed a surprise to me. The light, the sky, the water reflections, the colors, the people! I raced to the car to get my little digital camera and proceeded to take lots of snapshots of the scene. This painting is the result.

At long last, A Surprise in Surprise

Now I just need to finish the other painting I’m working on on the same subject. I’m having a lot of fun using some special R&M New Age painting knives that were a birthday gift from Jim. Great for creating a variety of textures.

I think next I’ll resume the series on the Olin Library at Kenyon College. After the holidays.

And stay posted. The workshop series will be resuming in March. Val and I will be getting the information up on the workshop page in late January.

Have a great holiday!

 

A Precarious Situation: Snow Capped Heads

Published on December 7, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Alas, the big holiday party for the Gift and Art Show (see previous post for details) was greeted with blizzard conditions! Despite this, we had a nice turn out of hearty Oracalites. It makes me wonder about how those artists who make their livings by selling their work at various art fairs do it, week after week after week. So far the supposedly mild weather in Arizona hasn’t been as advertised for the three events I’ve participated in this year (but who’s counting). First was the April blizzard, which happened during the Oracle Artists Open Studio tour last April. Next was the recent Tucson Open Studio Tour where cold, driving rain and wind impacted the attendance at the Drawing Studio, where I was selling my work. And then, last weekend the latest weather event impacted our Gift and Art party. The good news is that the shop will be open Thursday – Sunday, 11 am – 5 pm through December 23 so there will be plenty of chances to shop in better weather.

BarbaraCowlin-SnowyGuy1-1

Ceramic Oracle Gargoyle Guy with a precarious snow cap. I make these garden ornaments. This guy guards our home sitting perched atop a fence.

Tomorrow is my last effort in the realm of art fair type selling for the year. The weather prediction in for sunshine and mild temperatures in Tucson. Yahoo! Here’s the information, just in case you happen to be cruising around Tucson looking for something to do.

PaperWorks ANNUAL Holiday SHOW & SELL!

Shop with us this THURSDAY, 10am-3pm

Invite your friends, family and neighbors!

We offer fabulous finds from our talented group of member artists. Mediums include paper, hand-made books, cards, jewelry, totes, encaustics, watercolors, prints, collage, fiber, photography, and mixed media. Treat yourself to unique pieces of art, and complete your holiday gift list with one-stop shopping!

This year we are opening up our show to the public.
Extended hours 10am-3pm make for GREAT shopping and more fun for you!

LOCATION: St. Philips Church-East Murphey Gallery, Tucson

http://www.paperworks.info/specialevents.html

BarbaraCowlin-SnowyGuy2

Gargoyle II, with quite the snow cap. This was taken several days after the infamous snow storm during the Gift and Art Show in Oracle last Saturday

Let’s hope for no weather surprises tomorrow. I’m looking forward to this event. Lots of talented book/paper/print makers showing and selling their work. I only hope I have time between manning my table to look around and get inspired!