SINGING "GRACE"

At Thanksgiving this year, we sang grace as taught by my Mom. It was a commercial from the Fred Waring Radio Show, daytime radio from the 1930's then later into the 1950's. I don't know who the sponsor was, who authored the song.

"Good health and wealth and joy about,
Whenever we gather to eat
And all the family gathered around
And on our table's meat,
Protein, Protein
and other good things to eat."
followed by
"We gather together
To ask the Lord's Blessing
Amen"

SO I CAN CUSS

"You paint!? That must be so relaxing!" and I think, "No, I paint so that I can cuss."

 Maybe I've said that outloud but the idea of painting in order to relax is bizarre, just bizarre. Making art falls into the same category as bungi-jumping or sky-diving, at least, except it is more risky.  "Safe risk taking" is what Morse Peckham (ART AND MAN'S RAGE FOR CHAOS) called it. I do cuss in my studio. In frustration. In fury. In grief. Someday, someday I'll get better, figure this problem out. Yes, sometimes it is glorious. Tiny moments when something dances inside and out. Blows the top of my head off and I was there. Present to witness a making of something.

SELF-PORTRAIT 2005

CRICKETS AND BEES

The cricket tiny paintings, refrigerator magnets, big cricket and the new version of the big honey bee have all been popular at the exhibit at Imagine Art. Thursday the plan is to rearrange, get ready for the last week-end of the exhibit.

CRICKET DAWN 16 X 20

BEE 20 X 16

GRACKLE refrigerator magnet

CRICKET #64 Tiny Art

CRICKET Tiny Art

E.A.S.T. SET UP

The walls are supposed to be painted white this week so all work down then put up again. 

E.A.S.T.

Oh My! I sold one , well, Olivia made the sale. Plus some hand painted cards so they go.

 

INSTALL TOMORROW.

LOVE acrylic on handmade paper

Exhibiting teaches. Or maybe it is deadlines that are such good teachers. I found some paintings on handmade paper, I had forgotten. I have learned about varnish on acrylic. I never did such a thing but when using acrylic on a hard surface like canvasboard, varnish seems to protect the painting from scratches. I still don't like it. I wrote in my journal - "Note to self - Don't Use Varnish"!

SUNNY SISTERS acrylic on canvasboard

MARKETING

Yesterday I had a wonderful discussion with my friend, Liana, a recent graduate of ArtistsINC. run by the City of Austin. She reports it was very good. Some she already knew, of course, but marketing opportunities and laws change. Constantly in flux in this rapidly changing culture.  Once upon a time, the Church paid for art. And kings, queens and a variety of governments. Now the power is the Marketplace, consumers. Print lives on, of course. Books, newspapers, magazines survive the onslaught of digital media. So what is an artist to do. A unique object for sale to pay the artist's living expenses. It is a peculiar conundrum. The unique characteristics of the one and only object is drowned in the sea of market.