kaitlin carroll

On the Easel: Morgan Falls Reservoir

2011-01-10T19:32:00.001-05:00

Morgan Falls Reservoir No. 6

Morgan Falls Reservoir No. 5

MFR No.1

MFR No.2

MFR No.3

I had a preconceived notion of the Chattahoochee river, completely formed by one really bad country song. Little did I know that as the river snakes through the hills in Georgia, it is called by different names. The section closest to Avery's apartment is known as Morgan Falls and there's a dam and a little park there. I spent a few afternoons last week painting at Morgan Falls Reservoir. While my first drawings were akin to the images below (yes, I played with the black and white presets in Lightroom, don't make fun of me), it was soon evident that I was more intrigued by the challenge of capturing moving water. The series above is the product. My drawing skills are visibly lacking, painting atmospheric landscapes has done little to maintain my eye for perspective and foreshortening. That being said, I'm pleased with this series and look forward to doing more.

Homemade Charcoal

2011-01-05T14:00:00.000-05:00

Dirty Fingers

Chunks

Untitled (5 x 7" charcoal on watercolor paper)

I'm currently up in Atlanta spending time with Avery. While not as wintry as he'd like, we did build a fire the other night, which reminded me of the large chunk charcoal I used to see at the art store. So, the next day I pulled what I could from the fireplace and drew a few pictures. I hope to take some down to the creek with me in the next few days for some plein air drawing.

On the Easel: No. 46 Work in Progress

2011-01-04T12:14:00.001-05:00

No. 26 (Oil on Canvas, 24" x 24")

When I was young I wanted to be a musician. I have notebooks filled with songs and poetry going back to second grade. They are terribly embarrassing to look back through. Some time along the way, however, I stopped writing. There was no delineating moment - it just simply slipped away. In conversation with my boyfriend about my blog and the hours I spend agonizing over it, Avery asked why my posts were never as long as their handwritten counterparts. I replied "I could never be that honest. That's why I couldn't be a musician." I didn't have to think about the words - they just jumped from my mouth, momentarily stunning me with their honesty.

That line stuck in my head for a while, and I started thinking about my paintings. Painting has been a way for me to discuss unpleasant themes without it feeling like such emotional masturbation, the way my writing always had. John Hull, one of my professors, said that abstraction can be the subject matter of a painting, or abstraction can be the mantle through which subject matter is discussed. I loved this idea and it has certainly been formative to my paintings. My landscapes continually further themselves from reality.

However, some people misunderstand my work. "It's a landscape, right?" they ask, "and its... blue." Yes, thank you. My four year old niece can do better than that. They stand there for a moment, a giant question mark on their face, then they give up, "I don't get it," and walk away. I am left disheartened. Yet, when I respond as directly and matter-of-factually as possible that my works are nonrepresentational, emotionally driven landscapes, they look at me like I have three heads. How do I tell a stranger, or my family for that matter, that my paintings are about loneliness and isolation, both self and socially imposed, and the tension between their co-existing positive and negative connotations? They're going to think I need anti-depressants!

I do not wish to be emotionally verbose or visually obvious (it's not like I'm painting pictures of a man, alone on a chair in an empty room). I've spent so much time learning how to explicitly not say whats on my mind, but to instead hint and allude to it. There is a subtlety in painting this way that is now paramount to my work. It would seem that I have to be explicit, if not emotionally self deprecating, to be understood even though I've shied away from doing so - shied away from being "that honest" for years.

Map of Antarctica

In other news, a couple weeks ago I was invited to join the Etsy Team, House of Art & Design, an invitation only Etsy Team whose express intention is to "transform public perception of real ART&DESIGN on Etsy." The members of this Team exude a wonderful professionalism. I am proud to be counted among them. Due to my new found association with the Team, my watercolors have been featured in twelve Treasuries in the last few days. (Boggles my mind!) Thank goodness for Etsy's new Activity Feed feature, without it I'd only known of 4 of these.

Etsy Treasury Feature: Out My Window

2010-12-14T23:55:00.000-05:00

My Watercolor No. 39 has been featured in another Treasury. Jen from Autumn to May curated this wonderful Treasury entitled Out My Window. This is certainly my kind of palate, greens and greys. There are some truly lovely items in this collection, my neighbors to the left and right are particular favorites.

On the Easel: No. 43 Continued

2010-12-14T18:29:00.000-05:00

No. 43

Photographing my paintings is something I'm not great at, not for lack of trying. So far, I've been working on this painting for roughly 30 hours and though not photographed well, the shifts in color are subtle and luminous, the paint having been built up in layers. The layers have also given the painting a wonderful surface, thick and modeled in some areas, and thin and soft in others. My previous paintings on wood have relied on wood grain for texture but in this painting, being my first on canvas in over a year and a half, I've been focused on building up paint for texture. I unfortunately have again reached that painful place of uncertainty, not knowing whether or not the painting is finished. Just as with my last commission painting, this uncertain feeling is in large part due to my (delicate artist's ego) fear that they won't like it. Alas, uncertainty is part of the process.

Etsy Treasury Feature: I Enjoy Being a Girl

2010-12-13T22:45:00.001-05:00

My Watercolor No. 39 has been featured in a lovely Treasury titled I Enjoy Being a Girl, curated by Jaros Designs. The list is soft and feminine in sea foam greens and soft pinks. Jaros Designs is one of the founding members of the Etsy Team and blog Curation Nation, an Etsy Team who's soul mission is creating treasury lists. This is the second time one of my watercolors has been hand picked by a curatorial Etsy Team.

Watercolor No. 39

Artists I'm Looking At: Art Basel Edition

2010-12-13T20:26:00.001-05:00

I wrote this blog post last week, but with Cataclysm dropping last Tuesday and the holiday and what-not, I've been a little distracted.

Having grown up in South Florida, there was a strong part of me that wanted to be rid of this place. I'd felt negatively about it for years, "it's too hot, there's nothing to do, if I go outside I'll get sunburned," the list of complaints goes on. It's why my siblings and I attended colleges elsewhere. Yet, somehow we've all returned home.

Perhaps I've matured. Perhaps my baneful negativity has subsided (unlikely), but the number of culturally aware, artistically mined, and entrepreneurial spirited individuals seems to have risen. Miami is a mecca of cultural diversity and artistic prowess. I've never had any interest in living New York or LA, but perhaps Miami isn't so bad after all. Of course I could just be saying this because Art Basel was this weekend.

While my pockets could only afford me one evening at the event, I had a blast. Below are some of the works that I loved from the show.

Frank Stella

My response upon seeing this from across the room was, "Holy Crap! That's a Frank Stella!"

Gustavo Bonevardi

Detail

Thiago Rocha Pitta

Suspended by Michael Raedecker

Present by Michael Raedecker

Phoenixallee by Kailiang Yang

Sommer 8 by Kailiang Yang

Etsy Treasury Feature

2010-11-30T19:35:00.000-05:00

I loved the idea for this treasury. April from withaflourish describes created this curated list to promote undiscovered shops. All shops featured in this treasury have less than 20 sales and many are affiliated with the Team Discovery, an Etsy Team, specializing in finding and highlighting individual, unique, undiscovered gems on Etsy. My watercolor, Landscape No. 13, was featured in the treasury, which was gorgeously curated.

Artists on Etsy: Graham Heffernan

2010-11-25T12:04:00.000-05:00

I am often frustrated by the quality of fine art on Etsy, but when you dig there are some really wonderful contemporary painters, such as Graham Heffernan.

Blue Room (22 x 24" oil on canvas)

Graham Heffernan earned his BFA at Rhode Island College in 2006. In his senior year Graham Heffernan won the Special Talent Award, a merit based scholarship recognizing students with exceptional talent in the visual and performing arts. I don't know what his work looked like in college, but this stuff is brilliant.

Grey Abstract (12 x 12" gouache on paper)

Before reading his statement or profile on Etsy, I noticed how spacial these works are. It's the kind of dynamism I really enjoy in paintings. While Heffernan uses planes of flat color, the paintings have depth and spacial awareness, especially Blue Room and Grey Abstract. The surface is certainly not flat, the attention Heffernan pays to the surface texture of his paintings is gorgeous. He admits in his artist statement that he often gets lost in the materials he uses.

Graphic and bold, Heffernan's lines set a distinct rigidity to the paintings, yet like so many minimal abstract artists working in line, the artist's hand is present as the edges distort just slightly.

Graham Heffernan's paintings are gorgeously minimal and meticulously painted. One of these days, when I have the extra cash, I'd love to own one of his works.

Circuit 5 (20 x 20" oil on canvas)

Circuit 5 (Detail)

Circuit 7 (12 x 12")

Graham Heffernan's Artist's Statement:

"In my work I deal with spaces. Abstracted interiors with a musical arrangement of elements. Every painting is stripped down to it's minimal qualities in my attempt to approach the essence of a space. Materials, such as paint, gel and paper are another main reason that I create this art. I get lost in materials and often they take over the artwork and pieces become totally about materials (i.e. Gel Squares)."

Space / Rythm (4 x 4")

White Abstract (7.75 x 7.75")

Finding Graham Heffernan's work on Etsy renewed my faith in the site as a viable place for selling fine art.

On the Easel: Key Limes Study

2010-11-22T18:23:00.001-05:00

Lime Study 1


Lime Study 2

Lime Study 3

Lime Study 4

Lime Study Group

I've been frustrated recently with my work, with abstraction, and with people's general unwillingness to understand abstraction. Rather than allow the negativity I'm feeling to influence the paintings I've been working on, I decided to work constructively, spending my day on still lives. This morning I came downstairs to find key limes my dad brought up from the garden, so I grabbed a few.

These little still lives are painted on wood and are quite small, the largest being 5 x5". I'm afraid my inexperience in still lives is terribly evident, but now I've worked the desire for representational images out of my system.

On the Easel: Struggle, Paintings No. 46, No. 47, and No. 48

2010-11-19T20:29:00.001-05:00

No. 46 (24 x 24" oil on canvas)

No. 47 (24 x 24" oil on canvas)

No. 48 (18 x 18" oil on board)

Success does not come without struggle. Struggle is certainly the point I am at with these three paintings. The first two paintings I started over the last two Sundays painting live at Dekka's Artisans' Market. The pictures above show them after my second session working on them. I've been looking at more and more abstract works and I am struggling with the balance of atmosphere and distinct mark-making. Having worked previously in thin layers, I'm experimenting with thick strokes of paint on the canvas. The struggle now is balance, which amount of each element makes for the most engaging experience.

I love the subtlety and luminosity of the low contrast paintings, but when compared to my previous works, they are not as immediately engaging.

Struggle is a part of the process, and I am not disheartened. Without it there would be no edification, no growth. Without struggle this work would not be worth doing. As part of the process I suffer it, to become a better painter, a better artist, to better understand my work and myself. Struggle on.

The Best Monday Ever

2010-11-18T17:42:00.001-05:00

The Front (40 x 48")

The Front, detail (40 x 48")

On Monday evening I received an email from Joshua Bromaugh, the artist from last Friday's "Artist I'm Looking At" segment. He included two pictures of his most recent painting along with the email.

Hi Kailtin,

Your blog post about my work was pointed out to me and I appreciate the compliments.

But I'm writing to tell you that I took the time to look at your work and I admire what I saw. Good luck, and keep it coming.

Thanks again,

Josh

I'd never expected to hear from him. I tend to of this vast distance between the level of art I'm working at and 'professional' art, successful art. For him to actually take a look at my work, and like it! It really made my day.

Shortly after I received Josh's email, I got one from Etsy. The item I had posted earlier that day had sold. My fourth sale so far on Etsy. The next day I found out that the treasury I was featured in made the front page. My first front page feature, ever. Probably the best Monday I've ever had.

Etsy Treasury Feature

2010-11-14T20:40:00.000-05:00

This morning I got an email about being featured in an Etsy Treasury by Under My Feet. It is an adorable collection of tiny treasures from throughout the Etsy community. My Watercolor No. 15 is among the wonderful oddities.

Artists I'm Looking At: Joshua Bronaugh

2010-11-12T21:18:00.001-05:00

The internet has an interesting way of bringing art to my attention. The art of Joshua Bronaugh came through my news feed a few weeks back and it's been open in my browser window since, for me to peruse while I'm working.


Lithuanian Love Song (27 x27")

The first thing that struck me about his work was that perfectly toed line between realism and abstraction that makes the work really dynamic and engaging. Joshua Bronaugh works with a number of mediums, the painting above is made with oil paint, motor oil, alkyd, and resin on canvas. Upon hearing this, the painting became very real to me, imagining the texture and smell the motor oil would produce. This painting in person would be very tactile, having an extremely thick, modeled surface.

Change is the Disease and the Doctor, Both (36 x 48")

Joshua Bronaugh's paintings feel enormous. When viewing them on his website, I imagined them to be quite large, perhaps 4 to 6 ft or so, but many of his paintings are in the 2 ft range, much the size that I've been currently working in. Which may be why he puts a disclaimer on his website:

Websites are the worst ways to look at paintings. Digital images are compressed, have poor color, have no sense of scale and simply do not glow like paint does. I would rather a person see one of my paintings through a window from across the street in the rain than have him see anything I have ever made online.

He makes a valid point. Paintings are physical things, they have a physical presence in a room. You really need to see them in person to appreciate them appropriately. Every monitor displays color with a slight variation which a painter cannot control. However, that being said, it is important for contemporary painters to display their work online. Not every art enthusiast lives in New York or LA. I am a firm believer that art should be available to all, and as a child of the internet age, what better a place to display your work.

Black Monk (Swamp Thing) (24 x 24")

Nimbus (24 x 18")

I would love to see Joshua Bronbaough's work in person unfortunately I will not be in New York any time in the foreseeable future.

On the Easel

2010-11-11T21:19:00.001-05:00

No. 43, 34 x 36", oil on canvas

I'm working on No. 43 as a commission for a family friend. So far I've logged about about 20 hours into this painting. While every painting is different, it had been my experience that a painting of this size takes about 30 hours of work to complete.

No. 46, 24 x 24", oil on canvas

No. 46 is the painting I started working on at Dekka's Artisans Market last Sunday. I was positioned on the store's stage under one red fluorescent light and one blue one which made it difficult to get the colors correct, so instead I concentrated on the values only. It was an interesting experiment. I think it turned out well.

Dekka's Artisans Market in Review

2010-11-10T21:12:00.000-05:00

While a bit slow at times, Dekka's Artisan's Market was an entertaining way to spend my Sunday afternoon. I met some awesome local artisans including Migdalia and Erika Taguchi-Newton.

Migdalia makes purses out of recycled t-shirts and embellishes them with her unique dolls.

Erika Taguchi-Newton is an illustrator specializing in what she calls "fantasy art and geeky crafts."

Add caption

Live Painting Today at Dekka

2010-11-07T10:36:00.000-05:00

Dekka, the fashion, art, and music boutique where some of my work is hung, is having their first ever Sunday Artisans Market. Originally planned to be a monthly event, the Dekka owners got such a heavy response that the Artisans Market will be held every Sunday. Today I'll be doing some live painting down at the show. I'll also be tweeting from the event from my new twitter handle, so be sure to follow me at twitter.com/_kaitlincarroll .

How to Stretch a Canvas

2010-11-06T13:19:00.000-04:00

One must have in a painter's arsenal is knowing how to stretch a canvas. So, here goes, some step by step instructions on how to stretch a canvas. Through the photo series, I stretch my own gallery wrapped canvas. Gallery wrapping simply means that the canvas is wrapped all the way around the edges and stapled to the back and the sides are primed just as the surface. The clean edges allow the finished painting to be hung without a frame, if you so choose.

Materials You'll Need:

Materials

Wood ( I use 1 x 3" pine)
Canvas
Hammer
Nails
Angle
Scissors
Plyers
Staple Gun
Large Paint brush
Acrylic Gesso (white or tinted)

Step 1: Align Stretcher Bars

Lay out the wood stretcher bars. Align them, use the angle to make sure they are at 90 degrees.

Step 2: Nail Stretcher Bars

Nail the stretcher bars together at the corners. Use the angle while hammering to ensure the bars are secured at right angle.

Step 3: Layout, Measure, and Cut Canvas

Layout Canvas

To ensure that there is enough canvas to wrap around, measure the depth of the stretcher bars and add 2 to 3" more. The stretcher bars shown are 3" deep, so I've measured 6" around the entire frame. Cut canvas accordingly.

Step 4: Wrapping the Canvas

Starting at the center of one side of the frame, use the plyers to help get a good grip on the canvas (doing this with your hands will lead to raw knuckles, learn from my experience). Pull the canvas firmly with the plyers in one hand and using the staple gun secure the canvas to the frame.

Continue pulling the canvas and stapling, working opposing sides to ensure an evenly stretched canvas. Start at the top center, move to the bottom center, then right side center, and finally left side center. Start again 2 to 3" right of top center and continue as above. Repeat from 2 to 3" left of top center. Work in this way until all sides of the frame are covered.

Step 5: Corners

Once all the sides are covered, there'll be excess canvas at the corners. As a professor said when teaching me how to stretch a canvas, "If you can make a bed, you can stretch a canvas," at which point I realized that I didn't know how to fold the corners of a mattress. Well, now I do.

Pull the excess canvas into a sharp triangle, make sure there's no slack in the edges of the canvas. Fold the triangle to one side of the stretcher, making a 90 degree angle (as shown in No.2 above). Wrap the excess behind the canvas and staple.

Step 6: Gesso

Use an acrylic gesso to seal the canvas. Paint 2 to 3 coats of gesso on the surface and sides of the canvas. Let the gesso dry between each coat.

Voila!

Artist's Statement: Baby Step No. 2

2010-11-05T17:12:00.000-04:00

In continuation of preparing an artist's statement, the next step is writing down a short list of words and phrases you think of when pondering your work. Here's mine:

landscape
escapism
reminiscence
loneliness vs. self reliance (in the Emerson-ian sense)
affectation
atmosphere
abstraction
sentimentality (with both positive and negative connotations)
evocative

On the Easel: An Experiment Derived from Rauschenberg's White Paintings

2010-11-04T12:04:00.000-04:00


No. 43 (36 x 34")


No. 43 Detail

No. 44 (24 x 24")

No. 45 (12 x 12")

This week I've been looking at Robert Rauschenberg's work, namely his white paintings (pictured below). These abstract works are wonderfully perplexing, challenging the viewer's concept of art. The Guggenheim said of these paintings,

"In the summer of 1951 Robert Rauschenberg created his revolutionary White Paintings at Black Mountain College, near Asheville, North Carolina. At a time when Abstract Expressionism was ascendant in New York, Rauschenberg’s uninflected all-white surfaces eliminated gesture and denied all possibility of narrative or external reference."

For a while I've been working in close values, but thinking about Rauschenberg's work has made me wonder how close can I get my values while still maintaining a landscape? So this week I've been working on pushing the values near the horizon line closer and closer together. No. 43, a painting for some family friends, is still in progress and unlikely to stay in its current state. However, No. 44, in my opinion, is wonderfully successful in this experiment.

White Painting (several panel), 1951

White Painting, 1951

Writing An Artist's Statement in Baby Steps

2010-11-03T13:22:00.000-04:00

Graduate programs, internships, and galleries want you to have an artist's statement. I came out of college knowing I needed one, but dreading writing it. One or two paragraphs summing up my work, process, themes, and raison d'etre!? eeek! So rather than face this daunting task outright, I'm going to take baby steps.

A few simple questions:
How did you get into this work?
I've always wanted to be an artist. Well that's not true, first I wanted to be a doctor clown (what can I say, I was a creative kid), then there was a while in my early teens when I wanted to be a musician, but other than that, I've always wanted to be an artist. I'd be doing myself a great disservice if I didn't at least try.

My current work, the landscapes, came about due to a series of college classes taken in a certain order. I took a landscape drawing class with Sarah Frankel followed the next year by a painting class with C of C's resident abstract expressionist Michael Phillips. So I started playing with abstraction in landscapes. John Hull, the Studio Art department chair, said once that abstraction itself can be the subject matter of a painting, or abstraction can be the mantle through which the subject matter is discussed. I loved this idea, to paint landscapes without out rightly painting a landscape, to let the landscape be the mantle through which I discuss my themes.

How do you feel when your work is going well?
Exuberant, like walking out into the sun, like the world makes sense for a few hours.

What are some of your favorite things about your work?
The atmospheric quality. The tactility of the wood. The emotionally evocative quality.

Here are a few helpful resources I've gathered from the internet.

Molly Gordon's How to Write and Use an Artist's Statement
Art Business.com's Your Artist Statement: Explaining the Unexplainable

New Portfolio Website

2010-11-02T17:36:00.000-04:00

For the last year my brother has been very gracious in hosting my website on his web server. About two months ago, he decided to trim this toy from his budget and I took it upon myself to not only get my own web hosting, but to rebuild my website, by hand, from scratch, all by myself (well, almost). Two months, a trip to the local library later, and some whining at my brother, here is the outcome, my new portfolio site (warning: it looks crappy in Internet Explorer, I'm not that good).

This of course has led to a redesign and rethinking of my blog. To bring more viewers to my work I'll be writing new article segments, including:

Artist's I'm Looking At
How To
Notable Etsians and Bloggers in the Arts
Graduate School Admissions Process
En Plien Aire Painting
Small Business Articles

I'd like to include a monthly contest (which totally wouldn't be a rip off Cate Wade's Sepia Sunday Photo Contest, not at all), though I haven't come up with the exact criteria.

On the Easel: No. 43

2010-10-27T18:01:00.000-04:00


No. 43

I've been up in Atlanta for the last week or so helping my boyfriend get situated in his new apartment. It would seem I'll be jumping back and froth between Atlanta and Ft. Lauderdale until the fates (aka graduate school admission offices) give me some kind of inkling into my future.

I brought my whole gambit of art supplies: full sized easel (I must say I love driving a wagon), over-sized palette, art box, a 36" x 34" canvas... the works. I've been working on this painting out on Avery's patio. Below are the photos chronicling the progression to it's current state.

Wooded View on Avery's Porch

2 hours

6 hours

9 hours

No. 42

2010-10-12T19:44:00.002-04:00


No.42

2- 24' x 36' panels

Currently on the easel.

Everglades Study (in oil this time)

2010-10-08T17:26:00.000-04:00

Thursday afternoon I went out to the Everglades with my friend Claire Moore for some plein air painting. We spent about 3 hours next to the highway on an elevated gravel road that overlooks the everglades. The weather was gorgeous despite the sunburn I got. Painting out of doors has proved really satisfying. The painting resolved into something tangible and pleasing in a matter of hours. In the studio, I work on some paintings for months before I am pleased with the resolution. I'm looking forward to going back next week to finalize this piece.

Putting up my work at Dekka

2010-09-25T18:51:00.000-04:00

Casey Helping Out

Today Casey and I went down to Hallendale to hang my paintings on my newly rented wall space in Dekka! I feel so official with my work hanging in an actual store. I was originally worried that the space would feel cramped, but I'm really happy with the outcome. Let's see how this whole brick and mortar thing goes, hopefully more people seeing my work and like it.

Kaitlin Carroll's Fine Art at DEKKA

2010-09-23T15:39:00.001-04:00

I took a big leap for my art this afternoon. I negotiated the rental of retail space at DEKKA, a local fashion, art, and music boutique. My work will very soon be up in an real brick and mortar, where other people can see it, close up and in person. I have 2,772 square inches of space in which to display my work. This prospect is really exciting, yet even more terrifying. I hang work on Saturday. So, am I a real artist yet?

Fine Art Business Cards

2010-09-22T15:09:00.000-04:00

I've officially ordered my first set of business cards. So, I'm an adult now, right? I used moo because they allow you to upload your own images, as many of them as you want. You want 50 cards? You can have 50 individual images. This works great for displaying a portfolio. For mine, I've chosen 5 watercolors and 5 oil paintings. They'll arrive just in time for the Dekka's Hallandale Fashion, Art, and Music Festival which I may (crosses fingers) be selling at next weekend. I'm meeting with Dekka's owner later this week.

Paintings No. 38 and No. 40 (not in that order)

2010-09-17T21:07:00.000-04:00

No. 40

No. 38

Here are two of the oil paintings I've been working on besides the commission.

Commision Continued

2010-09-17T18:12:00.000-04:00

No. 36

No. 36 Detail

I've been working on this painting for my friend Allison and her husband for the better part of 2 months now. It has certainly changed a lot, though I admit I fell behind in taking progress shots for the last couple weeks. The largest change has been the removal of the clouds, which never really resolved. They felt heavy and stagnant, and there were details I liked in the foreground that were being shortchanged. I feel that the piece is stronger and more resolved, but is it done? I always struggle with when to stop.

Etsy Treasury

2010-09-10T23:51:00.000-04:00

I've been lax lately with my updates. Earlier this week I had some minor surgery (don't worry, I'm fine) which I'm still recovering from. It has taken me away from the 'making' side of my process for a while. I was quite happy this afternoon to receive an unexpected email from fellow Etsian SeaPinks, informing me that she'd featured me in her treasury, Cold Gray. My first ever! I'm so excited. It looks like spending time on my photos is paying off! Please check it out.

Why I Don't Sell Prints

2010-08-25T20:14:00.000-04:00

Many artists sell prints and I am sure in the future I will sell them as well. For now however, I am caught up in the romance of original artwork. The argument of 'prints v. originals,' like any good argument has valid points on either side. From a business perspective the argument could go either way. Prints allow more people to see your work, building stronger brand recognition. The lesser price of prints allows more people to afford your work, widening your target market.

However as artists we play the differentiation card. No artist can paint voluminously enough to compete with mass production. It is our individual viewpoints that inform our artistic processes, which end in unique pieces of art. It is the unique individuality that makes art valuable. By selling prints you devalue your work, saturating the market with inferior goods. Prints say that your work is not in fact rare, individual and not worthy of fetching a high price.

My personal opinion on this however, has little to do with my business education, and much more to do with youthful idealism. Glen Hansard, of The Frames and The Swell Season, talks about letters in a similar manner when telling stories about his songs on The Swell Season's album "Strict Joy." Glen talks about reconnecting with an old flame through letters.

"...letters that are made of paper, that are put in envelopes, that are licked and touched... A letter, you can tear up, you can kiss, you can burn. You can put it under your pillow. You can do other things to it. You kiss an email and you just get a shock on your lips."

It is this romance that I'm drawn to. I spend time with my paintings. I hold them in my hands. I ponder them as they lay unfinished on my desk. What you receive when you purchase a piece of mine is something that I have held dear to me, something I have taken pride in and not made 1000 copies of. From this perspective prints seem impersonal.

This all being said, I have just finished my undergrad education and am trying to get into grad school. I can not say that I am living off of my work. I have only sold a handful of pieces. Headstrong romanticism will not pay the bills. However, I am nothing if not idealistic. I am a painter after all.

**Photographs and digital illustration are of course excluded from this argument. **

Painting with the Chill'ins

2010-08-22T16:40:00.000-04:00

by Roman Payan

by Roman Payan (my personal favorite)

by Amelia Payan

by Kaitlin Carroll

I'd been feeling a little down about painting recently, so when my sister, her husband, and the kid-lets, Roman and Amelia, came down to "Gigi and Grandpa's" house this afternoon, she brought the kids' painting stuff. It was nostalgic painting with craft paint and kid's brushes. I love watching the freedom with which children paint. Roman's second painting (my favorite), he painted by picking up all the extra brushes on the table, dipping them in water, then dipping them in paint (the individual colors long-since mixed together) and finally onto the paper. It's made me really want to return to some paintings of pure abstraction.

Water Color No. 21 (Everglades Study)

2010-08-14T23:34:00.001-04:00

Last Monday my friend Cait Wade of Messier Object 45 went out to the Everglades to get our art on. She photographed while I painted. I haven't worked from sight in a while. I usually paint from memory, the landscapes I see in my day to day life stitching together gestate in my mind until they come our tinted by my memories and experiences.

We went to a few choice locations I'd been too afraid to venture to alone. This watercolor is my best from the day.

Commission Continued

2010-08-14T14:36:00.000-04:00


Here is the painting after 20 or so hours.

The painting has changed drastically in the last 10 hours of work. I tried to choose photos that had the largest breadth of change while still showing each phase it went through.

Etsy Shop Work: Scale

2010-08-02T13:15:00.000-04:00

Earlier I'd posted photos of my new shelves, in hopes to portray the scale of my watercolors more accurately. As my friend Cait Wade, of Messier Object 45, pointed out, no one but I really knows the size of my little gnome and perhaps something more immediately recognizable would show scale better. So I've taken some photos of my watercolors against books and next to my watercolor brushes. I feel like the books really show scale, but their bright colors are distracting. People who like my work talk about their simplicity and their calming qualities. The jury is still out as to whether or not I'll use the photos. Thoughts?

Commission

2010-07-30T23:18:00.001-04:00

The photos show about the last 10 hours of work on my commission piece. A painting this size usually takes me about 30 hours of studio time to complete, so we're a third of the way (woohoo!).

Commission: Session 1

2010-07-26T13:37:00.000-04:00

I spent a few hours in the studio on Friday evening working on this piece and intend to spend the better part of the afternoon working as well. More photos soon.

Commission

2010-07-23T15:19:00.000-04:00

My friend Allison, who I met while up at school, has commissioned a painting for her master bedroom. ::Squee!:: I'll update posts, documenting the whole process. Here's step one: waiting for polyurethane to dry. Should be ready to paint on tomorrow.

Raw goods: 3 x 3ft square, 3/4 inch ply, after receiving a generous double coating of polyurethane. Sealing the board in polyurethane keeps it from warping (a lesson learned the hard way).

In the Studio

2010-07-19T19:41:00.000-04:00

Mini 1

3" x 3"

No. 23

2' x 4'

No. 33

(more along the lines of 30" x 42", though I haven't actually measured it)

No. 35

18" x 18"

Indie Craft Bazaar

2010-07-18T21:56:00.000-04:00

This afternoon Casey and I ventured into downtown Ft. Lauderdale for the Indie Craft Bazaar. It was surreal going back to Cinima Paradiso, my high school used the theater for plays as, back then, we didn't have a dedicated space for performances. It's been years since I'd been there. ::shudders::

In all I am afraid for say that I found the bazaar lackluster. I guess I'd had different expectations for it. As a painter I'd been excited to meet other local artists, yet only 4 of the 30 or so vendors were 2D artists, and only 1 of those sold completely original works (note to self: write blog post about why original works are more important than prints). I was certainly not jazzed by the collection of artists there. Perhaps biased on my part, seeing the art that was chosen over my own, though as my brother overheard, others shared my sentiment. I'd arrived jubilant expecting the best of Etsy to be assembled in my back yard and did not find it.

I purchased one item at the Indie Craft Bazaar, a print from Paper Squid, as I was determined to leave with something. The artist was amiable, her work clean and palette pleasing. Still I wished for more than prints and thank you cards.

In the Studio

2010-07-17T20:33:00.000-04:00

No. 33

(about 4' x 3' ... I think)

No. 34

24" x 24"

My last semester of school I worked mostly in a reduced palette, my work referencing most concretely the thunderstorms I'd missed from home. It simply doesn't rain in Charleston the way it does in South Florida. However since returning home and spending many an afternoon at my window just watching it rain, I find my palette expanding expanding unexpectedly.

I am happy here when it is raining or overcast. It's well known that as pale as I am, the sun and I are not friends. I find the quality of light here oppressive, and especially so during the summer. My palette has lightened considerably in attempts to grasp this quality that I'd previously ignored. I am happy with the progress.

Etsy Shop Work: Scale

2010-07-14T16:41:00.000-04:00

Since receiving my new camera I've been working on taking pictures (good ones for once) for my portfolio, rephotographing works for my Etsy shop, and determining a series of works to put on my business cards (I know, about time right?).

One of the most frequent comments I get about my work in the Etsy community are concerned with scale. I tell people my watercolors are small, some of them are very small. I offer exact figures, but this doesn't get the point across very well. I need better reference in my photographs. I liked using the works against each other to show scale, like I did at school. The clothespin worked well too.

Though since returning home I've had trouble with this, my watercolors being constrained to a light box, or rigidly framed and hung. I've missed my little ledge from school, the organic layout, placing works together as I finish them. Upon that thought, another popped immediately into my head. IKEA.

So it has been done. Yesterday I spent the afternoon putting up my little shelves, arranging some watercolors and whichever doodads that had survived last month's renovation.

Hopefully arranging these works in a way that they'd actually be displayed in a home will give others a better sense of the actual sizes of my works.

Carrot Cake Cupcakes

2010-07-05T14:55:00.000-04:00

A good friend of mine celebrated his birthday this week, giving me a wonderful excuse to bake and play with my new camera. The cupcakes shown are carrot cake cupcakes (I have been told by multiple sources that my carrot cake is tops) with cream cheese icing only made more sinful by candied bacon. Yay bacon!

In the Studio

2010-06-30T12:31:00.001-04:00

No. 30

12" x 12"

No. 31

18" x 18"

No. 32

12" x 12"

Progress: No. 23

2010-06-22T23:58:00.000-04:00

Here's the continuation of No.23. Today was the first day since painting at school that I've felt a spark that I'm moving in the right direction. It is important to work everyday, even if it's only for an hour, to feel the growth and minute changes that take place day to day. Hopefully I can keep it rolling.

Watercolor No. 19

2010-06-11T11:29:00.003-04:00

Here is the newest item in my Etsy shop. It is a small slightly more referential landscape, measuring 3" x 1" and mounted on a 5" x 7" piece of 140 lb watercolor paper.

While trying to photograph this, and a few other new pieces, I found that my poor old Canon point and shoot is starting to fail me. I started looking at new cameras and decided that I am beyond the functionality of this type of camera. So, I'm currently bidding on used DSLR's on eBay. Wish me luck.

Room/ Workspace

2010-06-08T12:12:00.000-04:00

When I got home I rearranged, repainted, and re-organized my room into a usable workspace. Here's the end result.

Back Home

2010-05-31T15:16:00.002-04:00

After graduation three weeks ago, I moved back home to South Florida. I've been redecorating my room for better usability, re-painting, re-arranging, organizing, and throwing shit away. No longer the room of the girl I was when I was 15, but something more sophisticated, a room that shows of my paintings (pictures soon to come).

I've set up a place to work on my oil paintings in the barn (I'm not allowed to use oil paints in the house), doing my best not to spill paint in my mother's work out room. While a restrictive setting, I am happy to have a place to work.

Unfortunately when moving back home, many of my paintings were ruined. We took precautions layering newsprint and blankets between the paintings to cut down on abrasion, but the heat and compression were too much, and many were damaged beyond repair, including some of the centerpieces of my portfolio. While heartbroken, I am now doubling my efforts in building a cohesive portfolio for grad school.

Watercolor No. 18

2010-05-02T15:53:00.000-04:00

Watercolor No. 18 is the newest item in my Etsy shop. The image is 4" x 4" mounted on 8" x 10" watercolor paper. I mount to standard frame sizes my watercolor are ready to frame.

In other news, the Young Contemporaries show came down this week. This afternoon I met with the young couple who bought my watercolor installation from the show. They were adorable. They were as taken with "meeting the artist" as I was with meeting those who would pay money to be able to live with my work in their home. Quite an experience.

Recent Work

2010-04-27T23:06:00.002-04:00

I've only been managing a meager couple of hours in my studio a week as the semester comes to an end. This has led to me working on smaller pieces, so I can feel some sort of accomplishment. Here's what I've been working on recently.

In other news, the Young Contemporaries show came down today. I'll be picking up my pieces tomorrow afternoon, which means they'll soon be going off to their new homes!

Visiting Artist Lecture: Josephine Taylor

2010-04-19T20:45:00.003-04:00

This evening Josephine Taylor, an artist who lives and works in San Fransisco, came and gave a lecture about her work. Earning an undergraduate degree in Religious Studies, Josephine did not take the traditional route in art education. Her family was supportive, but did not see art as a viable career, a note that resonated with me personally. After working unfulfilled at a desk job, Josephine realized she did not value 'things' as others did. So she quit her job and started building her portfolio for grad school.

Working through the overwhelming fear of making "contemporary art" when unversed in the knowledge of art history and without the traditional schooling, Josephine struggled at first. This struggle led her to give up completely the notion of making "contemporary art" and simply make work for herself. She returned to her roots, picking up a pencil and paper, drawing her family as she had in her childhood. The subject matter that emerged was personal and honest, the terrifyingly truths of her youth. Josephine's father was diagnosed bipolar. He was an alcoholic and a drug addict. More frightening perhaps was Josephine's middle school experience, where she and many of her classmates were molested by faculty. These horror stories came out in her drawings. While many were pastel in palate, lending a rosy atmosphere, her work always carried a subtle undertone of violence.

Her work is intensely personal. Her best advice to the student body being to make personal work, be honest with yourself, it's ok to be afraid of what your working on, growth comes from a place of discomfort.

By the way, her work is ENORMOUS.

Miscellany Release

2010-04-14T20:24:00.004-04:00

The Miscellany release party was tonight. I'd not seen the printed book before I went. I was pleased to say the least when I walked in. I'm proud and honored to have my work in print. (I'm friggin' published!)

Dun, Dun, Dun ... Another One Bites the Dust

2010-04-13T21:39:00.001-04:00

This morning I received an email from one of the interns at the Halsey Gallery. Apparently yesterday, after walking through the Young Contemporaries and Salon des Refuses show, a couple became quite adamant about owning my watercolor installation. I got their contact information and they were delighted to hear form me. Another sale!

Etsy: Watercolor No. 17

2010-04-12T14:17:00.002-04:00

I got my first sale on Etsy on Saturday! Hooray! I find it interesting that my most expensive item was the first to sell, hmm. Makes me think twice about my pricing...

I'm continually working on watercolors, scraps of paper floating around my desk. However it seems that I only get a good one for about every six that I paint. Well this is my most recent finished piece. The watercolor measures 2" x 2" and is mounted on 8" x 10" paper. It is currently for sale on my Etsy shop for $22.

Progress: No.23 continued

2010-04-11T21:11:00.002-04:00

This painting has seen many painful iterations sitting on my easel for the last month or so and is finally starting to come around. Yay progress!

Back in the Studio

2010-04-07T18:55:00.002-04:00

Circumstances over the last say, two weeks, have kept me from my studio: PAX, getting sick from PAX, my parents visiting, the Young Contemporaries 2010 Show, starting my Etsy shop, ... the list only jumps exponentially when I start thinking about my schoolwork. So this afternoon got to spend a meager hour or so in my studio, only to be glared at by the still unfinished behemoth on my easel. I couldn't bring myself to work on. Instead I worked on some tiny scrap wood and pulled an unfinished piece from earlier in the semester down off the wall. I don't know what to do with it. There are aspects that I enjoy, but I'm unsure where this piece needs to go to be a stronger painting. Painting is a process, so it'll work itself out in time.

Working On My Website

2010-04-05T00:16:00.003-04:00

I took this afternoon to re-vamp my website. I still have to re-size some of the images and add the photo details, like painting title, size, and medium, so this version isn't live yet. Sometime tomorrow hopefully. Let me know what you think.

Etsy Shop

2010-04-02T21:41:00.003-04:00

My Etsy shop is finally live. Please go check it out! www.kaitlincarroll.etsy.com As you can see, I've currently got six of my watercolors up, however, the primary images I'd wanted to start my shop with are currently in the Salon des Refuses show at the college. They'll go up once the school show comes down.

Young Contemporaries 2010

2010-04-02T21:02:00.004-04:00

Young Contemporaries 2010 opened last night. The reception was wonderful. There was a great variety of work. Mary Jane Jacob did a wonderful job of picking submissions for the show. I got a great many complements on my work, the best of which came from one of my business professors, Dr. Kelly Shaver. Dr. Shaver came and walked around the show, he'd previously not known I was a painter. We talked art and business for a while, as it turns out his mother was a sculptor. His wife joined him later in evening, and after showing her the above painting, they said "We'll take it!" MY FIRST SALE! I was so giddy. The evening only got better as I was awarded with the Best Painting Award. This semester is rounding out quite wonderfully.

Say What?

2010-03-31T18:20:00.003-04:00

The Young Contemporaries 2010 Show opens tomorrow. I've been really excited about it. This afternoon in my Modern American Art class, which is co-taught by the John Hull, the Studio Art Department Chair, John asked if I'd be attending the reception and award ceremony, (yes, there are cash prizes). When I told him that I would indeed be attending and that my parents were even coming up from Florida, he smirked in an "I know something you don't know," kind of way, and told me to remind my parents to bring a camera. My mind automatically went to visions of my painting as some sort of centerpiece, perhaps even an award. I shook the notion from my head not wanting to get my hopes up. Then, at 5:30 this evening I received this email.

Kaitlin,

At noon on April 15 the Friends of the School of the Arts will hold its final Simons Guild luncheon of the year inside the Hasley Gallery. As an award winner in the Young Contemporaries 2010 show, we would love to have you join us.

The members of the Friends of the School of the Arts are obviously supporters of the arts and they really enjoy getting to know the students who create it!

Please let me know by April 7^th if you will be able to join us.

Thanks,

Nelle

Needless to say I freaked out a little bit, especially at the, "as an award winner" part. We'll see if this holds up, as the awards are not supposed to be announced until tomorrow evening. It also exists as a humorous reminder that this college isn't that great with their timing coordination (teehee).

PAX East and Johnny Cupcakes

2010-03-30T16:32:00.003-04:00

I got to go to PAX East in Boston this weekend. I really enjoyed playing the indie games created by MIT students and grads. My favorite was this four player combat tetris- like game by Fire Hose Games. It was brightly colored had good art direction and was a blast to play.

Boston was a really cool town. Their downtown was gorgeous and quirky. Driving in we passed a place called Johnny Cupcakes that has this great logo. We anticipated cupcakes as PAX neared an end and strolled over from the convention center to the bakery. We walked in a little confused, as there were no baked goods to be seen only t-shirts and hoodys. The proprietor quickly approached explaining his shop. He's a graphic designer. All of his shirts are built on the idea of cupcakes. The shop is adorable, decorated with old mixers, the t-shirts displayed in coolers. He even listed himself in the phone book under food. Avery was a little upset that there were no cupcakes to be had, but I was quite taken with the idea.

Miscellany: The Literary and Art Journal of the College of Charleston

2010-03-23T09:58:00.004-04:00

No.1
24" x24"
Oil on panel

No.8
18" x 18"
Oil on wood

A number of weeks ago I submitted two paintings to Miscellany, The Literary and Art Journal of the College of Charleston. With all the bustle surrounding Young Contemporaries and there being only 5 weeks of school left, I'd nearly forgotten. This morning I received an email from the editor. They'd like to include both of my pieces, one of them for the cover. There will be an opening reception on April 14th where both pieces will be on display.

Young Contemporaries: Accepted Submissions

2010-03-22T14:42:00.002-04:00

At 1:00 this afternoon the show list was posted. I got two paintings into Young Contemporaries (No. 17 and No. 14) and my watercolor installation into the Salon des Refuses, which as it sounds is the honorable mention show as it were. Young Contemporaries was juried by Mary Jane Jacob, a public works artist and Sculpture Professor and Executive Director of Exhibitions and Exhibition Studies at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Studio Art Professors here at C of C choose the best of the remaining art for the Salon des Refuses. The show opens on April 1st with a reception and awards ceremony.

Young Contemporaries: Submissions

2010-03-20T18:48:00.004-04:00

No.17
48" x 48"
Oil on hardwood ply

No.14
24" x 24"
Oil on board

Diptych
2 10" x 10" panels
Oil on board

Watercolor Landscape Installation
Watercolor on paper

Young Contemporaries is the College of Charleston's yearly juried art show. Art students are permitted to enter three works into each category: painting, drawing, print, photography, and sculpture. I've submitted the above works. I'd feared I'd have to choose between my watercolors and my oil paintings, as I consider both mediums painting. It was John Hull's idea to enter a selection of my watercolors as an installation of drawings. He thinks, and I agree, that these little works are more affective together than apart. Submission results are posted on Monday and I anxiously wait.

Progress: No.23

2010-03-20T17:50:00.002-04:00

As a double major, it can be hard to pencil in studio time, as has been the case this last week. However getting into the studio can serve as the best form of procrastination ever. I've got two papers to write this weekend so naturally I've spent the last five hours painting. In my defense this painting which I had planned to be my major entry into the Young Contemporaries show has been the bane of my existence for the last few weeks. You'll notice that it bears no resemblance to its earlier photos. After this afternoon's session, I finally left feeling proud of this piece.

Thanks Mom

2010-03-14T20:36:00.002-04:00

Over spring break I made use of my wonderful mother's expertise and her light box. Now time for Etsy shop building!

Progress: No.23

2010-03-04T19:59:00.003-05:00

Trouble on the easel this evening. I'm anxious about this piece. The submission date for Young Contemporaries is the week after next. I won't be able to work on it over spring break, there's no way I'm strapping this thing to the roof of my car to take it down to South Florida with me. So I've got about five days left to get this work show ready.

Progress: No.23 Video cont'd

2010-03-02T20:34:00.003-05:00

2 hours of studio time compressed down to just under 5 min. I love seeing the finished product and it's terribly interesting for me to actually watch my own process, but I've gotta say that I get a little paranoid when the camera's on.

Artist Lecture: Robert Birmelin

2010-03-02T19:27:00.003-05:00

The Halsey has showing up of Robert Birmelin drawings. He was nice enough to accompany his drawings down to Charleston from New York to give a lecture. A giddy and lighthearted old man, Birmelin views the world with levity, brightness, and curiosity. I've never seen a man his age banter so readily with a large group of students. He launched himself into his presentation dropping gem after wisdom filled gem, which my hand hastily scrawled in the dark of the auditorium. You know it's bad when I can't even read my handwriting. Birmelin developed his style during the time of the abstract expressionists, or very shortly thereafter, however he came out a figurative painter. When Professor Phillips ( a student of that era who is still very much an abstract expressionist) assumed that it must have been difficult for him to develop his style under that sort of pressure, Birmelin countered that "everything is going on all of the time." Who cares if the style your working in isn't currently in vogue. It probably will be in 10 years or so. It matters much more "to be true to your own being." That's something every art student loves to hear.

Progress: No.24

2010-03-01T01:09:00.002-05:00

Progress: No.23 Video

2010-02-28T17:03:00.002-05:00

Mobile

2010-02-27T15:02:00.003-05:00

These little guys are about 3' x4'. As shown in the tiny sketch above, they'll be used for a mobile to add three dimensionality and movement to a usually static medium. Reminder: must get to hardware store for little hooks and chains, and perhaps a giant fishing weight, or shiny bauble to hang off the end.

Progress: No.23

2010-02-27T01:51:00.003-05:00

In conversation with another student a few days ago, the term "painting academically" got mentioned, which kind of threw me off guard. She looked forward to graduation so she could paint as she liked. We'd been talking about the teaching differences among professors. A bunch of the teachers at school teach how they paint, as though it were the only right way. It disturbed me that she felt she had to "paint academically" to appease her independent study professor. It has been important to me to develop my "voice" as a painter while still in school, while I still have access to these minds.

I work with Michael Phillips for my independent study. No one could ever say that he teaches you to paint like he does. I've been working with him for the last year and half, and if you compare our styles, they're worlds apart. As a teacher he presses you to find a voice, a style that is personal to you. It is a shame that some of my fellow independent study students paint differently for fear of condemnation from their professors.

No. 15 in the Studio Art Club Show

2010-02-27T01:21:00.003-05:00

I've got a piece up in the Studio Art Club Show. It's been a few weeks, but I've been busy and it would seem that I've never passed my painting when it's been lit properly. I saw the show hung for the first time walking to my studio one night. There were two spotlights over my painting and one was burnt out. Now that the CATO center is open, maintenance in the old building seems a little lax. However, I've got work up in where people can see it and Young Contemporaries fast approaching.

Progress: No. 22 and No. 21 (in that order)

2010-02-17T22:33:00.002-05:00

Progress: No. 19 and No. 20

2010-02-16T22:37:00.004-05:00

Yesterday someone asked me why I work on wood. Well this person literally asked, "What's the deal with the paint on the board?" Ignoring my compulsion to make that question grammatically correct, I surmised what he was asking. I really enjoy the tangible quality of this hard surface. I love the texture and the color. Canvas when pulled across stretcher bars has flex to it, making it feel delicate. Also I purchase remnants from a local lumber store, where many of the small pieces I take would have been discarded anyway.

Artists I'm Looking At: James Turrell

2010-02-15T14:42:00.004-05:00

James Turrell paints without traditional materials. His work is experiential and largely intangible, you cannot simply own a piece of his. He cuts out skylights in an exhibit space, allowing the sky itself to be his work. This makes his work vivacious and lively, as the work changes from moment to moment.

Professor Phillips, always the one to ask you to step out of your comfort zone, asked me to look up Turrell. The lesson I've derived here is to not allow myself to get too comfortable. There is always a tension and struggle in my painting process, the push to move forward. Turrell's work is a reminder a painting doesn't have to be limited to paint, that the strong point in my personal work is illusion vs. reality, a reminder to constantly push myself.

Outcome: No.17 (maybe)

2010-02-11T19:26:00.002-05:00

This painting is quite large, 4ft x 4ft. It occupies the room in a very demanding way despite its subtle movements. In working recently I've been thinking about something John Hall, (one of my professors,) has recently said, that the process of making art is about "keeping track of your affections." This painting certainly does this. For months I've been working towards this mood, this palate, referencing more of my water colors than my previous oil paintings, trying to pinpoint my 'affections.'

Progress: No.18

2010-02-11T19:21:00.003-05:00

Progress: No.17

2010-02-09T21:45:00.000-05:00

Progress: No.17

2010-02-09T00:35:00.004-05:00

I'm trying to keep better record of my process, however I've found that I'm limited to 5 images per post.

Progress: No. 16

2010-02-09T00:13:00.003-05:00

Progress: No.15

2010-02-05T21:29:00.003-05:00

Progress: No. 14.5

2010-02-02T23:53:00.003-05:00

New Studio Space

2010-01-15T13:34:00.002-05:00

With the new art building finally open, all painting classes have been moved to the stunning new studio. The independent study students however, remain in the old one. Yes, after being promised a new art building for the last three years, I don't get to use it. We do get the whole 4th floor to ourselves though. Yay! This is my space for this semester and might I am quite pleased to be out of the hallway.

Progress: Painted Over Color Studies

2009-12-02T17:19:00.002-05:00

I don't know whether I'll keep these two together or not. I started the right one without the intention of making it a diptych. We'll see. Let me know what you think.

Progress: Painting No. 7.5

2009-11-23T16:00:00.000-05:00

Progress: no. 7.5

2009-11-19T10:45:00.002-05:00

The semester will be over in 3 1/2 weeks. I don't feel that I've accomplished enough in this independent study. After looking through the 14 or so pieces I've worked on all I could think was "Shit, none of these are done. None of these are strong enough." Next semester I will hopefully be working with Cliff Peacock to build a presentable portfolio for when I graduate, for grad school, for an artist in residence program, for anything, because after I graduate I won't have access to these minds and their wealth of knowledge and experience. After this I'm on my own.

Outcome: Painting #14

2009-11-12T19:34:00.002-05:00

And the tape comes off! I LOVE this painting, and apparently I'm not the only one.

(I'm going to rant now, so please feel free to skip this part)
I've had problems with people not respecting my studio space; storing their supplies, 'borrowing' my palate knife, using my paper towels, that kind of thing, nothing major, just annoyances. However when I got into the studio this evening someone had MOVED my paintings and TAKEN my easel. I realize it's not MY easel, but there are plenty of easels in the main studio. Maybe it's not that big of a deal, but every semester I've painted I've had at least one painting spoiled by someone's negligence. GRR.

(Now back to the story)
George has occupied an independent study space for almost as long as I've been taking painting classes at the college. He graduated in the spring... but he's still around. He's been working on developing his portfolio and redying his applications to grad school. John Hull, the department head, who was teaching a class at the time, walked by. He joked with George about making him pay rent and made some disparaging comments about the painting he was working on, all in jest. Later in the evening George was looking at the painting above as John walked by. John said, "Oh, so your looking at a painting I actually do like," causing me to throw my arms up in victory. John, at least with me, will not offer his opinion unless asked. So I was really jazzed to hear he liked it.

You can see some of George's older paintings here. (I don't like his website)
And look here for John Hull's work.

Also Cliff Peacock, one of my favorite painting teachers, is currently on sabbatical. He is a finalist of the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition 2009. Which means that he'll have his painting up at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery in DC. THE F-ING SMITHSONIAN! Very proud to call him my teacher.

Progress: Painting #15

2009-11-12T19:25:00.002-05:00

This color study has come into its own, deserving to be counted among the rest of my work. Yay progress!

Progress: Painting #12 ( no longer a diptych)

2009-11-11T17:31:00.003-05:00

Painting #12 has been sitting in my studio mocking me for the past few weeks. Taunting me with the possibility of what it could be. As a diptych the contrast between the two panels took away from the surface quality. I singled out the linear panel, flipped it upside down and went to town. Here's the result. We'll see where it goes from here.

Progress: Painting #14

2009-11-11T17:26:00.003-05:00

Here's some fun stuff. I can't wait to take the tape off.

Progress: Painting #13

2009-11-11T16:01:00.001-05:00

You Know, 'The South' is OK Sometimes

2009-11-11T10:43:00.002-05:00

Scenes like this are quite distracting while driving.

Color Studies

2009-11-03T08:17:00.003-05:00

Do forgive me for the long pause between posts. These are all 12'x12' pine plywood. Multiple teachers have been coercing me to change up my palate. So I stepped timidly forward in these color studies (which, ummm, let's just say they're less successful in my opinion). I chose to work in a close value range in each of these. As the cream on cream study shows, the close values make the contrast between wood and paint more palpable. The viewer has to struggle to accept the illusion.

Segway: Wait, Wait, This One Too

2009-10-29T23:09:00.001-04:00

Segway: A Little More

2009-10-29T22:49:00.002-04:00

Here's a little more work on this one. The text was difficult to read on the previous. I think this is better.

Segway: Advertising Project

2009-10-29T16:33:00.003-04:00

As a semester long project my advertising class has been split into groups and each group given a department within the School of Business to create an advertising campaign for. My group (if you hadn't noticed) is working on the Department of Hospitality & Tourism Management. We've done all of the boring stuff, the product identification, target market profiling, media outlet identification, and blah, blah, blah, but now we're moving on into the creative aspect of actually producing. This is one of our themes (we're also working on a mustache - based theme (seriously)). I was procrastinating this afternoon and decided to take a crack at it (by procrastinating I actually DID work, I'm such a nerd). Images from Corbis.

Photoshop Hero!

Progress: Painting #12

2009-10-25T18:59:00.003-04:00

After another few hours of work.