A Different Direction

This year was a bittersweet one. The good of it was that I feel I accomplished some solid paintings and am continuing to grow in skill as a watercolorist. I love watercolor and the way it works. I have some ideas for directions to go with my work and am excited about what the future holds. The bad was the art fair season...they were rough. I love doing the outdoor art festivals...it's a great way to meet my clients and fellow art lovers and artists. I make friends and usually end up with a new piece for my ever expanding art collection. But I do need to at least break even on expenses to keep the habit going and this year I fell so far from the basic line. Perhaps I'm in the wrong venue? Wrong region? Oversaturated market? It's kinda hard not to take it so personal. I've read many blog posts from other artists that, in not so many words, say that when you sell you feel like you're a good artist and creative soul. When you don't, you feel like a failure, debating if you a hack or wannabe masquerading as an artist. You question your skill, training, talent, approach, technique, medium, subject matter, booth design, framing choice, your attire,....the list goes on. You wonder if you should even go on. 'Maybe I should just be like everyone else and get a 9-5 job...it would be stable'. So many doubts and fears, all because you had a bad show. One good show and it all disappears, but after a year of bad shows you begin to wonder, am I any good???

Bad shows or not, I know I am good....I have a style all my own, a voice, and that is neat! But I realize I have SO MUCH TO LEARN. And that is one of the things I LOVE about art. You can never stop learning. You can never stop progressing and evolving as a creative spirit. Sometimes, though, you need to take a step back and focus on the little things, focus on painting and creating solely for you.

Which leads me into sharing with you all a different creative direction for me from the watercolor. I've always been a doodler and a drawer. Most of my school assignments from my youth featured little horses prancing, rearing, bucking, and eating grass along the borders. There was one time I remember actually getting scolded in the middle of a science class because I was drawing on my notes instead of giving my full attention to the teacher as he lectured....chemistry, it's not my thing. (but give me biology and geology anyday!) Before I start a painting I begin with a little doodle to figure out the composition of the piece. Then I work on the drawing. If the drawing doesn't look right, I won't paint it. You have to start with a solid drawing...it's the framework of what you're wanting to achieve. But to keep myself from not getting bored or to inspire new ideas, I often doodle, sketch and draw. Most of these will never see the light of day.

I also have a passion for gift giving...in part so I can wrap a package and make it beautiful! I love pretty paper and ribbons and bows. LOVE...or maybe I should say obsessed??? LOL. I was looking at some doodles and thought it would look neat as wrapping paper. I wanted to know if I could make my own and started researching different options. Well, I'm happy to announce that I now have several designs of wrapping paper sheets that I've created and that has led to my silk screening/screen printing some of these drawings onto fabric and creating textiles for the home. I've printed and sewn fabric and made tea towels, linen table runners & napkins, pillows, infinity scarves, and men's neckties. It has been fun! I haven't screen printed since high school....which is a loooooooooong time ago. I forgot how much fun it is. I decided this holiday season I would do some craft shows and sell these instead of the fine art. It's been a lot of work but it's been fun.

The most amazing thing out of this different artistic venture is the passion for my painting. When I sit down to paint it is for me. It's so much more rewarding. I don't feel any pressure to crank out paintings of subjects that might sell. I can enjoy the process. I love this! I can't wait to see what paintings emerge from this new found painting freedom. I will still be doing art festivals, but not as many. I'm just going to paint! :) Oh, and if you want to see some of the things I've created on my new artistic venture, check out corvidaedrawingsanddesigns.com

More pics from the Chalk Festival

I meant to post these only a few days after the chalk festival, but then you get side tracked by working on your epic halloween costume, hanging out with girlfriends and working on some pieces I've been taking forever on (SORRY John, Algier, Shawna!!! they are coming, I promise!!!) soooooooooooooooooo, here are some more pics from some other pieces that were created on the street of Bigfork!

There was also a spot for kids to join in on the action too!

There was also a guest artist (this guy working on Captain America) and a featured artist (who did the charlie russell piece) They had squares twice as big as ours. It was really neat watching them create!

So many pieces!!! A lot of fun to look at, as well as be a part of! Hopefully, I'll get to do this again. It Rocked!

Drawing on the Street

This Saturday I'll be participating in the Chalk n' Rock Festival, a street art and musical event being held in downtown Bigfork, MT where professional artists from across the nation will be creating works of art with chalk on the street! There will be bands playing while the artists will be working. We each get an 8ftx8ft section on the street and we'll get to compete to create a work of art.

I'm so excited I was invited to do this. I think it will be SO much fun. But.....I've never created anything with chalk on a street before, unless you count drawing smiling suns and flowers and hopscotch for my niece and nephew. This is going to be quite the artistic adventure!!! LOL.

My biggest problem is trying to figure out what I want to do. A Bison, Two horses nuzzling each other, or a bear catching a fish in a raging river. Oh the agonizing decision! haha!

If any of you are in the area, be sure to stop by. The event will be on Saturday from 9am-7pm and again on Sunday from 10am - 5pm. It's gonna be SO much fun! :)

I'll be sure to post pictures from the event next week.

Pushing New Boundaries

So, I LOVE to troll the internet for upcoming shows, exhibitions, artist opportunities and such in the western art world. I also look at what other artists are doing by checking out Legacy Gallery's website, Trailside Gallery's website, and artist pages for Cowboy Artists of America and such. It's very inspirational and reminds me not to settle.

Sometimes, I look at the art and think, 'GOSH. I'm never going to be that good.' Other times I'll look at a painting or two and think, 'I'm TOTALLY better. Totally.' (I KNOW I'm not really better than someone or worse than them....I just have so much more to learn and ways I need to grow as an artist). The point is, I'm looking at my contemporaries and letting myself absorb the simple truth that while I have my own unique style and approach to a subject, not to get stuck in a rut. Try new things, keep things fresh.... Paint what I love but don't get complaicent. Plus, it's just fun to look at great art!!!!

So, In my trolling this afternoon (when I should've been taking a well deserved Sunday Afternoon Nap) I came across an artist name Bill Owen. WOW, BILL IS AMAZING!!! Like, I-wanna-be-like-him-when-I-grow-up amazing. I came across a piece he did of a couple horses standing on a grassy hillside with a starlight sky behind them. WHOA.

lemme say that again.... W H O A

It was A.W.E.S.O.M.E! The colors, the simplicity, and those STARS. I immediatly wanted to try that...to even see if I could pull off an image like that. I don't have ANY reference photos of a horse/cow/etc. at night (got of some great ones of Whitefish City Beach though ;)!!!)

So, I pulled out a reference photo of two calves I've been meaning to paint and gave it go as a night scene. It's 8x11. It was fun. I liked how it turned out (went off of memory of that painting I came across of Bill's) I thought it was a pretty solid piece until I looked at Bill's again and I can see SO many much needed changes/improvements. Let's be honest, if it wasn't for the 'stars' (which compaired to Bill's look very 3rd grade btw) it could easily pass as a any piece in daylight or during a storm. This is something I definetly want to learn about. Capturing color, light and life in a muted setting and having it read as night.

It was a fun experiment! Maybe you'll get to see more stary pictures in the future (but I still need to finish another daisy, rock, and cow painting. Yikes, I have my work cut out for me!!!)