Collaboration

Before we came to live out here in the dusty ol' desert, we lived in a little town in South Central Colorado called Salida. It was another place of beauty and wonder - the kind of wonder 14,000 foot peaks and a river running through town can produce. I was running an art gallery called Cool Mountain Art, which enabled me to meet nearly all of the artists in town right away. One of the artists I met and befriended is an artist named Harold O'Connor. Mr. O'Connor is a world-class goldsmith and an artist I admire greatly.

What I discovered about running an art gallery is that the business of running a gallery takes away time and energy needed to be an artist. So as my gallery became successful, my art got pushed aside. I got to the point where all I seemed to manage were little drawings that I could do in between people coming in, hanging shows and organizing openings. Those little drawings were often tiny - the size of a postage stamp. I began gluing them to card stock and selling them as original art cards. Harold came in one day and bought a stack of them and said "these would make great pins!" Of course I loved the idea that my little tiny drawings might one day become pins, but I did kind of think, deep down, that Harold was just being nice to me because I had shared half of my sandwich with him.

Turn the clock forward and now it's 2013. The phone rings and who is it but my friend Harold O'Connor. "I'm sending you something." ?? What could it be? Well, about a week or so later I got an envelope full of little brochures showing off my drawings alongside PINS Harold made based on those drawings!!! How cool is that?!?

A few of the drawings:

The amazing pins Harold created using my teeny drawings:

My drawings look so much better, transformed as Harold O'Connor jewelry.

In other news, I will be tending the gallery this weekend at JTAG. If you find yourself in downtown Joshua Tree, stop in to say "hello." I will be there on Friday  for a sneak preview from 4 to 7 pm, Saturday from 10 to 3 pm, the opening is from 5 to 8 pm, and then I will be there again Sunday from noon to 3.

The exhibit "Real and Imagined" continues to do well at the Metro Galleries in Bakersfield, CA. The show is up until the end of May.

Real and Imagined in Bakersfield

I did manage to take a few photos of "Real and Imagined: A Collection of (Mostly) Animal Paintings" at Metro Galleries in Bakersfield, CA.

For scale: the blue abstract on the left is 48 x 48 inches.

The show continues through May.

I am giving away postcards and posters for the show designed by Don Martin, the owner of the gallery. If anyone would like either a poster (17 x 11 inches) or a postcard (5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches) let me know. Leave me a comment or email me and I will get one to you!
They look like the image below:

The show is going really well, and I am already working on new animal paintings for the second half of the exhibition!

I hope you all have a great weekend!!!

In defense of art

Ten reasons to buy original art:
1. It has no calories
2. You don't have to feed it or pick up its poo
3. It will always fit, even if you gain a little weight
4. The software doesn't crash or need updating - ever
5. You won't have to get new tires for it or change the oil
6. It won't wake you up in the middle of the night
7. If you loved it when you bought it, you will always love it
8. It uses no electricity
9. It never goes out of style
10. No one else will have one like it.

Seriously though, if I didn't think art was a worthwhile investment, I wouldn't spend all day, every day making it, thinking about making it, reading about it or looking at it. I even spent four years (give or take) in college STUDYING it.

Do you realize that one of the things people travel to see is art? Do you realize that lawsuits are being fought all over the world because of art? Do you realize that when our civilization has gone, one of the things that will be left behind as a record of our time and culture is art? Art is important.

We spend money on so many things that are designed for our physical selves. Art is for the soul.

"Animal Intelligence." Dictionary pages, tissue paper, acrylic and oil on board 11 x 14 inches. ©Karine Swenson2013

The opening in Bakersfield last Friday night at the Metro Galleries went very well. It was a great crowd, and so many of my friends from the desert drove all the way up there to be there with me!!! Thank you to everyone who came, especially those who had such a long drive, but came anyway. I am overwhelmed by you all! The show is up until the end of May, and paintings are selling, thanks to the efforts of the owner, Don Martin. Hooray!

New abstract painting

"Somewhere Between." Oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches. ©2013 Karine Swenson

Today is going to be visuals only. Hope that's okay...
Oh, and just a quick but heartfelt THANK YOU for all of your encouraging words. It helped me so much, knowing all of you are out there, rooting for me!!! You guys are awesome.

Happy almost Easter!

The Desert in Outrageous Bloom

I have been working so hard in the studio that I think I have finally hit a creative wall. I think I actually have to take a day off! (whoa.) I know, but there's nothing else that can be done. I tried to paint a cottontail rabbit today - nothing new, nothing I haven't tackled before - and I just couldn't make it work. There was frustration. There was a throwing of a brush. There were breaths drawn to calm down. More working...getting more awful by the brushstroke. I finally had to WALK AWAY. Sit down in a different room. Gather myself. And then, I went back and wiped the whole painting off. (oh yes I did!)

So I have decided to write you here, my dear blogger friends. Hi. I promised to share with you some photos of the Joshua Trees in bloom. I am going to do that, and I am also going to share some photos of the Mojave Yucca blooms. We've got one in front of our house that is exploding with flowers. Astonishing flowers. Here are the Joshua Tree blooms (and one bud):

Here are the Astonishing Mojave Yucca Blooms:

Taken in the last light of the day - so delicate

Don't you LOVE them?

Send me your encouraging words, as you have done before. Please. Since delivery for my April show is less than two weeks away. And I need to have at least two more (preferably three!) paintings. (And this is oil paint we're talking about here.)

Invention

Necessity really is the mother of invention. If you have been following this saga about the animal eraser paintings, you will know that there was a two month waiting period for me before the permission form was returned. During this time, I did move on to other animal paintings, created from "real" animals. But I also had this concept for my upcoming solo show ("Real and Imagined: A Collection of Animal Paintings"). I wasn't quite ready to throw that concept out the window. A friend had suggested I create my own imaginary animals. Of course, I had considered that already, but after she said it, I knew I had to try.

First, I did a couple of one-line drawings in my sketchbook. Then, I decided I needed to have something three-dimensional. I bought some Play Doh. I made a rabbit out of Play Doh. I didn't like it, so I squished it and made another. I did another drawing. I made ONE LAST Play-Doh rabbit, lighted it and photographed it. Then I painted it. I wasn't too happy with my rabbit painting, so I did the same thing with a tortoise: drawing, play-doh, squish, drawing, play doh, photo,... And then I painted it. Now that I have begun to once more paint the Iwako "imaginary" animals, I am finding myself more and more satisfied with my own "imaginary" animals. They will make it into the show in April.

a preliminary charcoal drawing

Play-Doh rabbit

Play-Doh tortoise

Here is my tortoise painting:

"Tortoise." Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches. ©Karine Swenson2013

What do you think of my "imaginary" animal?

We love spring

The weather has been warm and glorious here in the desert, these past few days. Things are starting to bud and bloom. The Joshua Trees are covered in buds. I have already seen a few of them in full, wonderful bloom. Photos will be forthcoming.

I am in the studio, frantically trying to make up for time I spent waiting for the well-worth-it letter from Japan. Now that I have a green light, I want to paint more of the Iwako erasers. I forgot, in my last post, to send a link to the company that makes the little animal erasers I have been painting. It is a great website, and if you have a moment, I highly recommend visiting. Click here for a visit to the Iwako, Co, Ltd. website.

I need to get painting, so here are a few glimpses of spring in my yard:

And one new painting:

"Well Defined." Collage, acrylic and oil on board, 9 x 12 inches. ©Karine Swenson2013