January 30 day Painting Challenge! (I'm doing it!)

Yikes!!! I just signed up to do Leslie Byrd Saeta's 30 paintings in 30 days painting challenge! (Not without some fear and trepidation!) I confess...I have had major difficulties getting motivated to paint recently. Something in the election kind of took the wind out of my sails and then there has been major family commitments as well and holidays and and and....

So maybe this is just the thing I needed to get going again! I will post my work here and on Leslie's blog as well (http://www.lesliesaeta.blogspot.com/2012/12/thirty-paintings-in-thirty-days.html?m=1). Wish me luck and even pray for me if you will!

Donating Art: A Struggle, A Rant and a Rare Occurrence

Artists are asked all the time to donate their work to benefit various worthy causes. As a co-owner of a gallery for many years I can tell you that almost weekly someone called or came in for that specific reason. I heard "give me your art so I can make money" so many times that I had to begin to define some personal parameters and some personal responses to this. I think anyone who knows me would agree that I am a generous person both with my time and my money...so why then does this bother me so much?

Perhaps I need to say this: I live in an area where art is not valued the way it is in some other areas of the country and I am on a personal mission to change that!  Perhaps that is why this is such a sticking point for me. Perhaps the attitude "Let the artists make the sacrifice" or "wouldn't it be lovely to have art?" or whatever the discussion is in various committee meetings begs this question: Why do people who normally do not perceive monetary value in original art (the "beer" fund is much higher than the "art" fund) then think there will be monetary value for fundraising?

As a group my gallery members once gave works to a worthy local organization. We were told that we could set a reserve price and that nothing would sell for less than that. We later found out that this agreement was not honored and that many of our pieces that normally were worth between $200 and $600 were sold for $10-$15!!! One of our artists later had one of his collectors purchase one of his works from a rummage sale for $10!!!

So I began to create boundaries around my giving determined to maintain the value of my work. Life is a circus but my art is not!

All that being said: Open the floodgates!!!...Cancer has occurred in my family...my sons beautiful girlfriend of many years is undergoing chemo at this writing. There is a fund raiser to off set the enormous costs of treatment being held at the Art*Bar in Riverwest ( http://artbar-riverwest.com/ ) this coming Thursday Sept. 20th and donations of any kind will be auctioned off. I have donated five pieces of art for the cause...this is what I have to give and give I will. For "love covers a multitude of sins"! 

These 5 pieces will be auctioned off at the Art*Bar this Thursday for the Save-a-Sweetheart fundraiser offsetting the Cost of Chemo Treatment for one very beautiful young woman!!! No reserve...all proceeds go to this cause!

A Third Place Award and Two Sales!!! PRAIRIE PLEIN AIR EVENT

On Tuesday this week a group of about 20 area artists were invited to participate in the first Prairie Plein Air Event on the beautiful and private grounds of the West Bend Mutual Life Ins. Company. I was lucky enough to be one of them. We were able to paint anywhere on the property which is mostly a wonderful naturalized prairie from 8 till 3pm. Then we could submit 2 paintings for the competition. Oh it was a good day!!!!

I walked some ways into the prairie at first...measuring my ability to haul my stuff against the view I saw! This fibro girl has to think about that kind of stuff. I found this tree popping up at the path into the field and felt I had found my first challenge. I set up and began to work. Guess what?? The resulting  painting "Entrance to the Barber Prairie" won the Third Place award and was purchased by West Bend Mutual becoming part of their permanent art collection!!

Entrance to the Barber Prairie
12x12 oil on linen panel
SOLD!

I took a break and walked a good deal into the property to stretch my legs and my mind. I had a bite to eat and some caffeine. All the while I had been painting the first one this small group of wild flowers I had seen earlier  (yellow cone I am told) called to me. It was actually somewhat distracting to me. So I quickly set up and began laying in pieces of bright color and then I got out my trusty palette knife and started to place pieces of color in the basic shapes of those flowers. It was a fast painting which sometimes happens to me when I have been thinking about it for some time. I was excited to hear today that "Shooting Stars was also purchased by West Bend Mutual for their collection!! Like I said...I was a good day! Thank God!

Shooting Stars
9x12 oil on linen panel
SOLD!

An Honorable Mention and Two Fiery Dragons

My weekend began well when my painting "Porch Light-Study" received an Honorable Mention at the State of Inspiration awards ceremony on Friday evening. And that was followed by a fun dinner with some of my favorite kind of people...artists!

Honorable Mention at State of Inspiration
Porch Light - Study
12x9 oil on linen panel available
by Wendie Thompson

Saturday was an early start to get to the Bristol Renaissance Faire which is about an hour and a half drive for me. I wanted to get there about an hour before the gates opened so I could find where I wanted to set up and have them help me haul my painting stuff there in one of their carts. (This place is big and there are no carts allowed on the grounds after the gates open) I knew from painting there last year that painting it is like trying to paint swirling confetti! So for my first painting I found this large sculpture of a dragon...it was roped off and more importantly standing still and had wonderful light streaming down on it from the blessedly mild sunny day!!

The day continued to swirl around me with record crowds expected and believe me they came!!!

So when it came to beginning a new painting I decided to stay right where I was instead of trying to pull all my stuff through that crowd. The light had shifted and back lit the dragon which I was still fascinated with so I painted it again! Both dragons are available.

My happenings this week: Schauer Center Friday, Renaissance Fair Saturday and Sunday and West Bend on Tuesday!!

Wow another busy plein air week coming up for me!

Friday from 6:30 to 7:30 is the awards ceremony for "A State of Inspiration" a WIPAPA juried show at the Schauer Center for the Arts in Hartford WI. I have 4 pieces in this show: 

 

 Two small studies and two larger pieces from the studies.Can you tell which is which?

Then on Saturday and Sunday I will be one of 20 artists creating plein air work at the Renaissance Faire in Bristol WI (right on the border between Illinois and Wisconsin). I have been looking forward to this all year as I participated last year and had a great time!! I also took many photo's last year...here are some of the paintings that resulted:




 

Watch me and 19 other artists jousting with our easels!!! Then on Sunday around 3 consider purchasing via auction one of the paintings right off a human easel!

!! Proceeds benefit AWE (Artists Working In Education) who's mission is to provide youth in the Milwaukee area with arts enrichment programs to enhance human potential, advance learning and cultivate community.  http://www.renfair.com/bristol/specialevents/pleinaire.asp#Artists

On Tuesday the 14th I will be one of 20 participating artists painting on the grounds of West Bend Mutual Insurance Company in West Bend WI. I have never been there but I hear it is a wonderful place!!

Also I have an entry in this August's Bold Brush Competition...it is a public choice event so if you like my piece on the site it will help me possibly win an award!!! Here is the link: http://faso.com/boldbrush/painting/36486 and Here is  what the the painting looks like:

Mukwonago: A new Wisconsin Competition

Vernon Marsh Looking West-Evening
12x12 oil

I have had two lovely days painting at a new Plein Air Competition in a place called Mukwonago.   Awards are on Saturday...wish me luck!!

Vernon Marsh Looking East-Morning
20x10 oil

Yerke's on Frog Alley
16x12 oil

Wheat on Road X
9x12 oil

Rachel Weeps: A Word on Abortion

A little over a week ago while in Cedarburg I happened upon a bronze statue in front of a church. I was dumb struck by it. I set up and began to paint it in hopes that I could capture some of what I was feeling in response...I got a start but felt nowhere near finished with this piece and never found time to go back to work on it again. It has stuck with me and today I felt compelled to work on it again. Her empty arms and the grief on her face had me asking some heavy questions as I painted...

Here is the plaque found at the site...as far as I could see it did not identify who the artist is (does anyone know?):