Portrait of a Girl

Click title to enlarge, for more information, or to purchase.
Size 25" x 31" x 1.5" framed.
Oils and Paper on Canvas.



Whew! Wasn't sure this post would happen today. So many obstacles today. How should this piece be classified: pop art, folk art, outsider art, abstract, semi-abstract or all of the above? When you list a piece on eBay, it has to be classified and it is hard to know where my art fits in. Scroll down to post #49 to read about pop art.

Useful LInk - Exploring Pop Art

Whether or not you believe that Pop Art is true art or not, it has made its mark. Following is the definition of this movement according to Artcyclopedia: "Pop Art--1950's to 1960's; Pop Art is a style of art which explores the everyday imagery that is so much a part of contemporary consumer culture. Common sources of imagery include advertisements, consumer product packaging, celebrity photographs, and comic strips. Leading Pop artists include Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, and Roy Lichtenstein."

Webmuseum, Paris says: "It is a moot point as to whether the most extraordinary innovation of 20th-century art was Cubism or Pop Art. Both arose from a rebellion against an accepted style: the Cubists thought Post-Impressionist artists were too tame and limited, while Pop Artists thought the Abstract Expressionists pretentious and over-intense. Pop Art brought art back to the material realities of everyday life, to popular culture (hence ``pop''), in which ordinary people derived most of their visual pleasure from television, magazines, or comics."

Click on the Useful link title to see some examples.

Still Life with Pomegranates

Click Image to enlarge. Sorry, bidding has ended.
5" x 7"
Medium - Digital, Giclee



This picture that I made a while back on the computer was intended to be a sketch for a painting. But I liked it the way it was. And so it became my first piece of digital art, created on the computer with a mouse instead of a paint brush. As you may have guessed, I still have artist's block! But I did sketch a little bit last night. Maybe it's beginning to break.

Scroll down to post #47 to read more about digital art.

Useful Link - Digital Painting

What is Digital Art?

Wikipedia defines as Digital Art as art created on a computer in digital form. Digital art can be purely computer-generated, such as fractals, or taken from another source, such as a scanned photograph, or an image drawn using vector graphics software using a mouse or graphics tablet."

This week's post is a digital piece I drew and painted in Photoshop Elements some time ago,(Scroll up to post #48) which was drawn and painted entirely on the computer. I don't have a drawing tablet so the drawing was done with a mouse. This is a bit clumsy, but sometimes such a hindrance or limitation adds an element of unexpected character. Digital art seems to already have a following. Although many digital artists use photographic images which they manipulate into something new, it is also possible to draw and paint "from scratch" right into the computer.

Useful Link-Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

No paintings this week. Still dealing with creative block and low energy! My solution this week has been to paint something other than a canvas. Therefore, I freshened up the paint on my walls. I experimented with black on some smaller accent walls. That was fun and felt a little daring. Lots more painting to do too.

Some art items that may be of interest to you from ArtDaily.org:

"MEMPHIS, TN.-The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art celebrates Art Today with an exhibition highlighting the founders and some of the important gifts they made to the museum. Art Today, a support group of the Brooks, initiated the acquisition of contemporary art for the museum's collection.

When Art Today was founded in 1953 by Nancy Glazer, Mildred Hudson, Adele Lemm, Marjorie Liebman, and Dorothy Sturm, their goal was to promote "that which is historically significant in our time." These exceptional women were guided by their experiences as accomplished artists, teachers, and arts administrators. They worked towards educating the public about contemporary art, bringing the finest examples to Memphis through exhibitions, and acquiring important works for the museum's collection." Read full article. The photo with the article is an encaustic painting by Nancy Graves. To see a sampling of her art, click Nancy Graves.

Maybe I will have a painting to post next week...

Scroll down one entry to this week's earlier post on differentiating between folk art and outsider art. (art brut)

Useful Links: The Different Forms of Folk Art

Folk art painting is generally described as art with an almost childlike quality by artists with no formal training. It is usually free of ideas of what "should be". Therefore one might find a bird with four legs, a house that is placed or colored in a non-traditional way, much as a child might paint. It also often has a particular spirit of freedom or spontaneity and is not bound by rules of art. Many definitions of Art Brut, also known as Outsider art fit this description. However, this genre seems very often to possess a raw, psychological, chaotic quality too. And some people would say that this is an important element of Outsider art. I have also read, that in its purist form, the outsider artist is not at all concerned about selling the art or about making anything that appeals to others. Here are some links to art typically categorized as Folk Art and Art Brut (Outsider Art). See whether you see differences and similarities.

Ginger Young Gallery
Petullo Art Collection

September 11-Remembering - Not available

Click image to enlarge. Bidding has ended.
Size: 36" x 36" x 1.5"



In response to a note from artist Steven Givler yesterday, (featured in blog post 29) in which he hoped I had overcome my creative block in time for today's blog, I replied: "The painting...is a complete departure. What a struggle this one was. It seemed to have an idea of its own and was not about to let me impose. Ironically, or not, I painted it on Sept. 11 and the memory of September 11 is what it is about to me. That was entirely unplanned. The painting is so raw and unlike what I normally paint. I think I like it, [It is so different though, that I am not sure] but I am not sure anyone else will. That's the scary part of posting on a public blog and auctions. It makes one feel so vulnerable."

The exercises I chose to use to work through the creative block were to paint anyway and to make a sketch of my idea and work from that. The painting barely resembles the sketch and I don't know whether I am passed the creative block. What I learned: Sometimes I need to let something happen; something that seems contrary to my style; something that may not sell; something that goes in an entirely different direction, whether or not it works out.

Also, beginning September 11, Artist Justin Clayton began painting his way down the coast of California. You can travel with him painting by painting on his blog at beachpaintings.net

Scroll down to the previous post to read about creative block and ways to overcome it.

Useful link: overcoming creative blocks

The painting I was working on for this week's post turned out to be a big (36" x 36" x 1.5") disappointment. After carefully applying the under layers until they looked almost too good to paint over, I proceeded to paint an entirely unpresentable piece over them. So I painted over the canvas again to prepare it for another attempt. And found I had no ideas. No inspiration. Even the art of great masters is leaving me bored!

I tried making some sketches but don't know how they will translate into paintings. I cannot tell whether they work or are boring. Furthermore, now I have only a few days to produce something new for the Thursday blog! After searching online for suggestions on overcoming a creative block, I came across these ideas at About.com that have worked for other artists to overcome a block. Click here to see what they did to usher in INSPIRATION

I guess we will know by Thursday whether these ideas help me! Let me know what has worked for you in the past.

Heaven and Earth - SOLD

Click Image to enlarge. Click Title for more information or to purchase.
Size: 22w"x 28h" x 3/4d"



Free art prints: Would you like a free art print?

All art images on my blog are available for you as free art prints. Print as many as you wish. Frame them, give them as gifts or make greeting cards. There are no watermarks or other symbols to mar the images. Please note, copies are not to be sold, but are for personal use only.

Printing suggestions: Resolution will allow a print up to 8" x 10" which will print on your own home computer.
1. Choose the image: Simply click on the image of the art you would like to print to create a separate, larger image.
2. Paper: I recommend using matte white brochure/flyer paper in bright white.
3. Printer Options: I recommend selecting the "borderless" option in your printer's software; the "premium plus" paper option, and "best" print quality option.
4. Print and enjoy.

Flowers of the Cliff-SOLD

Click Image to Enlarge.
Size: 40"h x 30"w x 1.5"d





Two paintings this week plus a Useful Link from EmptyEasel.com about selling art online. Both paintings posted this weak were painted over earlier pieces. You may be able to see remnants of Urban within the composition of Flowers of the Cliff. But no trace of Wild Tomato is visible in Olives.