annejenningsparis

Summer School Part II: The Boy Brain

2011-12-19T11:19:00.000-08:00

Last summer (2011), I took a day-long workshop about teaching boys. I made a few sketches.

The presenter. She did not lead by example. Still, I learned a lot.

I'm not really sure where this came from.

I always doodle. Teachers should know--doodling is not a sign of a student not paying attention--doodling is a strategy a student uses in order to pay attention.

Summer School: Geeks at OSU

2011-12-19T11:11:00.000-08:00

This summer (2011), I took a week-long workshop at OSU, where I learned how to make basic video games. The conference was all about integrating technology into the classroom. I made some sketches.

If you have looked at earlier posts from the same summer, you will see I was experimenting with quick-sketches, in which I don't really look the paper as I draw. Therefore, the figures come out very loose and distorted. I find the result is surprisingly good at catching the distinguishing features of the person. It rarely makes the person look very attractive, though. Only distinctive.

The conference organizer, to whom I say, "Well done, you."

When there is nothing left to draw, consider your foot.

The key-note address, about a pilot project in L.A. schools aimed at closing the achievement gap.

Chris--the life of the party, great at Karaoke, and a cool teacher too.

There's one at every conference. And she knows who she is.

My excellent instructor, Jason, about to be a dad.

Sketches from an old trip Part II: The Art

2011-12-19T10:11:00.000-08:00

Two years ago, I went to England. At the time, it seemed like a good idea to sketch other people's art.

Why did I draw this? I think I was trying to figure out how complementary colors and composition functioned on such a simple level to create a masterpiece.Whistler's Nocturne: Blue and Silver Chelsea.

Public art from the train.

The artist was trying to figure out how to make art out of waste/leftovers. I resemble that idea. Balka's work, however, is much more elegant.

The walk from Tate Modern towards St. Paul's. My favorite spot in England so far.

I am the one with the ponytail, downstage. It was a very strange moment. I was watching a video of an artist--the art was a film of her having sex with a patron who agreed to pay 20,000 for the sex+art video. A commentary on the artist/patron relationship. A very awkward moment of watching porn in a public space with strangers.

Here I am sketching myself again to show my scale as compared to the huge table and chair. Like walking through a giant's living room.

Perhaps the most interesting art of the day--two live twins sitting in twin chairs under twin paintings of dots. The artist was playing with the idea of twins as nature's art--one is the copy of the other.

Not really art, but I loved all the baskets on bikes in Oxford. Very storybook perfect.

The real deal. Kind of. This one was a sign.

Sketches from a steampunk exhibit in Oxford. These masks appealed to me on so many levels.

A close-up. These masks were masterfully crafted and assembled by the artist, one Tom Banwell.

The orange of the bike + orange of cop's jacket. Modern Oxford.

Sketches from an Old Trip: Meals in England

2011-12-19T10:00:00.000-08:00

Two Thanksgivings ago, I went to England. I made some sketches. A lot of them were of my food.

The above is a description of the "cocktail" I give myself to get on a plane.

Half-way there--a stop in Atlanta. I used to pass through the Atlanta airport about 6 times a year on my way back and forth to my dad's house. Now I'm eating Sushi on my way to England. There are black people here. A lot of 'em. We don't get much of that in the Pacific Northwest. True story. I have a nice chat with the bartender and manager. I'm the last customer of the night.

I was most impressed with the biodegradable packaging. This was a great lunch at the Tate.

And here's lunch at the Tate Modern. I remember thinking, "The only thing missing is Barbara." In fact, I wrote it on the sketch. If you are reading this, Hi Barbara.

Above: Jamaica Wine, the pub with all the cool people standing in the alley, is where I wanted to eat, but they weren't serving any food. So I ate at Weatherspoons, (below) with a right friendly barkeep. Unfortunately, the ambiance was more Las Vegas Casino than jolly old England.

A perfect lunch in Oxford, under a college in a vaulted basement. I admit, at meals, I get a bit lonely when I travel. But only at meals.

This was the kind of place you really wanted a drinking buddy or art pal.

The texture of Oxford.

The girl/woman is someone I saw near the Oxford bus stop/train station. Crazy red hair.

Thanksgiving day in Reading with my two favorite expats, Heather and Rob. This was "pie and a pint." If anyone ever offers it to you, accept immediately.

I'm happy, and I know it.

The beer of Thanksgiving 2009.

Trip to Florida Part II

2011-12-17T14:59:00.000-08:00

Don and Marty
I came to Florida to check in on Don, my step-dad. He and my mom got divorced about 12 years ago after 23 years of marriage. Don has developed a brain tumor--a glioblastoma. He is receiving chemo and radiation right now. His girlfriend, Marty, is also suffering from cancer--cancer of the throat. She has beaten it back several times already. I really wanted to meet her, so I decided to go down there and check things out. This isn't really a blog about my life, so I'll just be posting the sketches I took with a few captions. Suffice it to say, it was a tough trip.

Don receives daily radiation for 8 minutes a day for six weeks. He wears a mask over his head, which allows them to target the exact spot. This sketch does not show the acid green cross hairs that show the machine where to radiate. Here, a nurse fits the mask on for Don's second treatment.

A sketch of what Don's tumor might look like. It is not encapsulated and cannot be operated on.

During the treatments, I would take short walks in the neighborhood behind the center. Oak trees are my favorite part of Florida.

Some attempts at trying to sketch just the mask.

Marty looks unfortunately like a zombie here, because I colored her eyes in too much. And that's water in her hand. She can't eat or drink much--most of what she takes in is through a feeding tube in her belly, under her shirt. We played Parchesi. She couldn't talk much, but I was happy to meet her. Her dog was a sweetie too. Not pictured--her cats.

I keep trying to figure out the best way to represent my recent experience with memory, which is that diving down (into the wreck as Adrienne Rich would say), there are moments of intense wonder and joy, all colored and influenced by the shades and shadows of every other experience--pain, boredom, sadness, beauty, layer upon layer, second upon second, year upon year. The above diagram is an attempt at thinking about this memory experience as a series of glass panels, through which light builds and amplifies.

I tried to draw the same feeling another way, with lines leading from one nodal experience to another, the different colors representing the different sensory conduits and memory channels that connect it to the the other nodes. What resulted looked surprisingly like a series of glioblastomas.

Don watching TV.

Trip to Florida Part I

2011-12-17T14:37:00.000-08:00

Mom and Jack

I just got back from a trip to Florida. The main purpose of my trip was to check in on my step-dad, who is receiving radiation treatment for cancer. But I also got a chance to see my mom Phoebe and her husband Jack. Here are a few sketches from the Christmas concert they were a part of.

This was a singer from the visiting choir, very dapper in his tuxedo.


Three singers from Mom's church.

The flutist. Her dress was actually black, but I didn't think that would translate well.

This was the couple right in front of me.

This woman, in the front row, looked very sad for someone singing in a Christmas concert.

This was the guy sitting right behind me. His hair was actually more grayish/white than this.

I drew this one of mom the day before I left. She doesn't really have all those lines on her forehead--I just wasn't looking at the page as I drew the sketch. With all of these, I had to decide whether to make the skin yellow or white, having no better choice among my watercolor pens. The decision usually rested on whether I needed the yellow for some other reason in the picture.

OMSI after Dark

2011-09-01T21:41:00.000-07:00

Last night I went to OMSI after Dark to see my friend Will and the PIGSquad (Portland Indie Game Squad). I made a few sketches. Most of these sketches I do in about 30 seconds. Then I paint them later at home.

Random Dude Playing an "Early Game" at OMSI's Game On exhibit. I drew his hands on the controls as a separate vew.

Random Dude playing Pew Pew Pew.

PIGSquad member and chiptune artist Nick.

Friend and PIGSquad Founder, Will.

Mount Hood Village Sketches

2011-08-30T12:03:00.001-07:00

Recently had a two night camping trip with the Goldbeck woman and children. Took a few sketches.

Mount Hood Village Sketches
Ink on Paper
8/17/11-8/18/11

Meadow Sketches

2011-08-30T11:37:00.000-07:00

Meadow Sketches
Acrylic on Paper
4/28/11

More sketches from the meadow. I quite like these.

Meadow Portraits

2011-08-30T11:30:00.000-07:00

Meadow Portraits
Acrylic on Paper
4/28/11

Lovely evening in the Meadow with some lovely ladies. They are much prettier than my sketches. Everyone knows I like to make everything ugly in my art. Except for ugly things. Those, I prefer to make beautiful.

Three Portraits

2011-08-30T11:27:00.000-07:00

Three Portraits
Acrylic on Paper
4/22/11

So one of my goals this summer has been to make more art, even if it's not ideal. So I started making these blind contour drawings wherever I went. Then I would color them in later, sometimes with watercolor pens, and lately, with acrylic. Here's a set of three portraits I made at my house the other night. One of them is me. It's not the cute one.

The Road to John Day

2011-08-30T11:12:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure I started this painting about 3 years ago. It is finally complete, thanks to my week o' lonelitude. It's amazing how much creative energy I have when my family is away. I think they will have to go away at least once a year so I can finish all my projects!

The Road to John Day
Acrylic on Canvas Board
11 x 14
Available

Fabric + Image--an idea whose time has come

2011-08-24T20:51:00.000-07:00

Updated 8/30/11--completed the fabric portion. Now, I need to work on the image that is going to go over it. By the way, it probably took about 8 hours to get this silly thing done. At least.

Work in Progress
Acrylic on Stretched Canvas

Actual fabric from doggie bandanna

Okay, so ever since I bought @IsaacYoder's Caticorn, I've been toying with the idea of painting a canvas with a fabric pattern, then putting a crazy, weird-ass image on top of the fabric. See, Isaac's painting is oh-so -awesomely painted on a sheet I'm pretty sure my parents had in the early 80s. Well, not the exact sheets--that would be gross. So, the other night during the Un-finished Business painting session, I finally started putting one of these ideas into action. Voila! The first layer of rainbows copied from a bandanna the groomer put on my dog last month. Stay tuned for all sorts of awesomeness to bedeck this image. I'm toying with the idea of a gas mask.Caticorn
by Isaac Yoder

Demo-Orange

2011-08-24T20:49:00.000-07:00

Orange
Acrylic on coated paper
6 x 6 (ish)

I don't even know why I'm posting this. But I am. Maybe because I don't want it to feel bad that it's only a demo I did in class and not a "real" painting.

How Collaborative Painting Works

2011-08-24T20:37:00.000-07:00

I Will Walk You
Acrylic and rhinestone on canvas board
5 x 7 inches
by Moonka Minka, Jake Fabrycki, Anne J. Paris

This past year, my good buddy @moonkaminka turned me on to collaborative painting. We started a huge canvas at my house on a night when several friends were over. At least five different people worked on the painting, and when the night was done, so was the painting. I took it to school, where I got tons of positive feedback on it. That led me to have the kids make some collaborative paintings. When I get a chance, I will will post pics of those here. Meanwhile, here's a little 5 x 7 collaborative painting that has the following lineage:

I asked my high school students to make a painting in the style of the surrealists. One student, let's call him Jake (because that's his name), came up with a sketch of a town where people had melon heads, and they could shop for different heads at the melon store. He soon realized the size of the canvas was not going to accommodate his vision, so he switched to paper and pencil. I took the sketch and proceeded to fill in the large blocks with color. Then the school year ended. The other night, Moonka Minka was at my house, and I asked her to finish the painting. Here's the result.

The secret to collaborative painting is that you really cannot care about controlling the outcome, which can make it a good exercise in the artistic process, because ideally, we should not be worried about the finished product at ANY point in the creative process until it's time for signing and framing. Or actually maybe just when it's time for hanging.

We Have Cleared the Tower: Killing George Washington Is a Go!

2009-09-30T22:03:00.001-07:00

HOOOORAY! I just learned that my friend Molly received my book today in the mail. This means you can actually BUY MY BOOK and GET IT! And READ IT! The funny thing is, I don't even have a copy of the book yet. I should have bought one!

Sorry for all of the exclamation points; I am just really pleased that this project has finally seen the light of day.

If you want a copy, you can find me on Amazon. Or come to Wordstock at the Portland Convention Center on Sunday, October 11 at 2:00 (Mountain Writers Stage). I'll be giving a reading and signing books.

What's new? An update summarizing all of this year so far!

2009-09-11T14:30:00.001-07:00

It has been a ridiculously long time since I posted on the blog, mostly because I put everything on facebook these days. But here is an update on what I'm doing:

Teaching: This fall, I'll be teaching part time at the Alliance Charter Academy in Oregon City. I'll be teaching writing to 3/4 graders, middle-schoolers, and high-schoolers. I'll also be teaching study skills and drawing and painting. ACA is a public charter school that provides classes to homeschoolers. It's kind of a "design your own curriculum" kind of a place. I may also be teaching a community ed class down in Canby: Writing activities you can do with your kids!

Writing: My first book, a collection of narrative poem entitled Killing George Washington, will be out next month. I'm very excited yet somewhat overwhelmed. I should be spending a lot of time marketing and publicizing it, but instead, I'm working on designing my syllabi for my teaching (see above). Just trying to go with the flow and not get too stressed out about it. I will be doing a reading at Wordstock next month, where signed copies of my book will be for sale. You can also order the book from Barnes and Noble or Powells online if you are interested!

Art: My art for the last six months or so has focused on recycled materials and commentary on popular culture and identity. I have had a great time scouring thrift stores and my own appliance graveyard for inspiration. I also started a major collaborative with 14 other women/girl artists entitled the Wedding Dress Art Project Invitational. For this project, I invited interested artists in all media to produce a work of art based on a wedding dress that I would purchase on their behalf from a thrift store and mail to them, along with a mystery "bonus item." The resulting works will be shown, hopefully around the country, beginning next year. In what has been one of my longest sustained projects every (I spit on you, Myers-Briggs), I have actually managed to work on this project continuously for about 6 months now, with no signs of waivering interest. I stepped down as president of the Three Rivers Artist Guild last spring in preparation for what I thought would be a cross country move (see below), but now that we are not moving, I feel kind of bad about that. However, it left me more free time to actually *DO* art, so I doubt I will be throwing my hat in the ring for any future leadership roles in the organization anytime soon. However, it is nice to see that the group is finding successful new ways to bring art into the community in conjunction with the Oregon City Main Street program.

Personal: About a year ago, Marc and I felt we needed a change, so I started looking for full-time work, mostly at universities around the country. I ended up accepting a job in Woodstock New York at the Woodstock Day School teaching English and French on the condition that we could sell our house here in Oregon City. From January through April 1, I worked very hard to ready our property to go on the market. We listed it on April 1 with high hopes, but come August, we had received no offers whatsoever. I declined the job in Woodstock, and we recommitted to our life here in Oregon, which wasn't hard to do given that we had such a beautiful summer full of friends and playmates and great weather. Thanks to my friend Sascha, I got an introduction at the ACA, and they have given me what is probably my ideal job--part-time teaching. So, we will see how it goes. Meanwhile, Marc has come through a tough project at work and is feeling happier than he was a year ago, so things seemed to have worked out okay. Duncan, meanwhile, is as wonderful as ever. He is in the 4s class at his preschool three days a week. He's really into his Karate lessons, where they focus a lot more on child development than on fighting, if you know what I mean. Huh, this is starting to sound like a Christmas letter. Anyway, we still go back and forth on whether to sell our house (it's so big and ungainly and such a maintenance hog) or stay in it (it's so big).

So, that's the update for now. We are looking forward to many visits from family and friends in the fall. I'll try to post here on the blog more often. I'll try to find a way to link to my facebook page for better cross polination.

The Road to John Day

2009-01-23T14:18:00.000-08:00

IN PROGRESS

On the Road to John Day

11 x 14

Acrylic on Canvas Board

Last spring I took a trip out to John Day, Oregon to research my book. On the drive out, I saw this amazing field of burned trees and flaming red willow bushes. I figure this painting still needs about 2 more good sessions to finish it up, but I like how it is progressing!

Golden Trout "Mini-Masterpiece"

2009-01-23T14:01:00.000-08:00

NOT AVAILABLE

Golden Trout

2 1/2 x 3 1/3

Acrylic on Stretched Canvas w/Mini-Easel

When I saw these beautiful golden trout at Tony's Fish Market, I was more excited about painting them than eating them. But they turned out delicious too! I felt this painting was above my skill level--where I am really lacking is in the area of "verisimilitude." I could not, for the life of me, figure out how to make the white wrapping paper look crisp and papery. And that was a grave disappointment. However, for a cheeky little 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 painting, this'll do.

This will be gifted to my frien Barb Blumer when I get around to shipping it to her.

Moving House

2009-01-21T12:19:00.000-08:00

Ce n'est pas ma maison.

I am in the process of packing up my house to move. I've decided to close my etsy stores while this is going on, just to eliminate distractions and allow me to pack up my inventory. Sooo, I'll still be doing some art, but until further notice, I won't be listing it on etsy.

Some Trailers from Gladstone

2009-01-18T18:44:00.001-08:00

I had scouted two great trailers in recent trips to Gladstone, just over the river. Here they are:

Dartmouth Road, Gladstone, OR

The sun was at a really bad angle for this one (above), but I think I got a pretty good shot of it. The owner came out to tell me he thought it was made in 1969, and he just had to do a little work on the inside. I think he was a little baffled by why I would be taking pics of his trailer.

Corner of Oatfield and Thiessen

I love the faux wood paneling on this one (above), but there was a car parked next to it that stopped me from getting a really good angle.

What Would Jesus Buy?

2008-12-26T12:03:00.000-08:00

During our power outage on Christmas Eve day, I made this collage by candlelight. It is a meditation on the commercialization of America and the rhetoric of the last eight years--patriots must spend money to support our nation, and patriots must revere Jesus. That led to the thought that Jesus should save our economy. Thus the title: What Would Jesus Buy?

NOT AVAILABLE

What Would Jesus Buy?

Mixed media on canvas

12 x 12

Then, this morning, I saw there was a film by Morgan Spurlock by the same title--that must have been somewhere in my subconsious when I titled the piece.

The picture here is cobbled together because my scanner is not big enough to scan the whole piece.

My dad is visiting and he liked the piece so I gifted it to him.

Snowed In

2008-12-23T13:26:00.001-08:00

The other day, we were snowed in (still are) and I made a few mixed media collages, which are now up on my Etsy site.

NOT AVAILABLE
Amulet against Headaches
Mixed media on canvas with Easel

2.5 x 3.5

Detail
Amulet against Headaches

This first item is one of my "mini masterpieces" (i.e. it is made on a canvas 2.5 x 3.5 inches in size with its own little easel). The title is "Amulet against Headaches" and it is designed to ward off the evil migraine spirits. It was made using vintage dictionary text and wax.)

The second one is a larger collage (8 x 10) entitled "Father." It is a meditation on the competing conceptions of masculinity in our culture. Materials include vintage maps, dictionaries, a gocco print I made of the Tin Tin rocket, some instructions for rocket launches, metal studs, a heart, some wax. I really like the colors in this one.

AVAILABLE

Father

Mixed Media Collage

8 x 10

$45

Detail

Father

You can view these works in more detail on my etsy site for "serious" artwork:
http://ajparis.etsy.com/.

Blue Poppies

2008-12-12T11:37:00.001-08:00

Again, this is a square painting that I cannot fully scan, but most of it shows here. About two years ago, I did a ton of poppy paintings. They have all either sold or been given away as gifts. I held onto this one for a while, but now I'm making it available. Ready to move on to new work, I guess. I love the combination of a deep green/blue with yellow ochre (my favorite paint color!).

NOT AVAILABLE

Blue Poppies

Acrylic on stretched canvas

12 x 12

Update: I recently gifted this to my friend Margaret. It is now in her private collection.

More Inchie Paintings

2008-12-12T11:22:00.000-08:00

I actually completed these a while ago, but at the encouragement of my friend Nena, I'm finally putting some new paintings up. I really like both of these pieces. Unfortunately, the scanner won't let me show the whole painting, but most of it is here. Both of these paintings are square.

I love the variety and richness of color in this painting, and the way meaning is implied in the letters, but not clear enough to be understood.

Thing Be

Acrylic on canvas

11 x 11

AVAILABLE

$45

Again, I love the colors in the painting below, but for the minimalism as opposed to the variety. I also love the way the composition suggests a human face, through an accident of inchie randomness.

Suggestion

Acrylic on canvas

11 x 11

AVAILABLE

$45

A new blue trailer

2008-12-05T21:45:00.000-08:00

I found this trailer today while waiting for my friend Sascha to arrive at her studio. I was too timid to actually go into the people's yard for a better angle--too bad, because I just love this trailer. I think it might be as cute as my "little trailer that could." I need a better angle to paint it though!

Some more trailers

2008-11-29T10:15:00.000-08:00

I don't know why I'm so into trailers right now. There is something so appealing about the idea that you could just put a whole life into one of these things--a microresidence, a microcosm, a snowglobe on wheels. And Oregon is just full of these retro beauties.

Carlton Oregon
November 22, 2008

More Minis

2008-11-20T17:33:00.000-08:00

One of the women from my art guild asked for some small pieces of art to decorate the Christmas tree at the gallery we have at the End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center. I decided to use my mini-masterpiece canvases to do a few images from Oregon City.
Here is my favorite little trailer:

SOLD
Trailer
3.5 x 2.5

Acrylic on canvas

And here are two views of the Oregon City Municipal Elevator:

AVAILABLE
Oregon City Elevator
3 1/2 x 2 1/2
Acrylic on canvas
$10

NOT AVAILABLE

Oregon City Elevator with Train Tracks
2.5 x 3.5

Acrylic on canvas

Oaks Park Skating Rink

2008-09-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

SOLD

Skating Rink 1
Oaks Park Series
Acrylic on Canvas Board
11 x 14

I have a very ambitious project in mind involving a Hopper-esque painting of some ladies behind the counter at the old Oaks Park skating rink. In the meantime, as a warm up, I'm doing a few atmospheric paintings from the same venue. Here's one of disco lights reflecting on the wood surface of the rink, along with some plastic balls they put out for the kids to play with.

Kitchen at Kam Wah Chung: A New Painting

2008-06-05T17:13:00.000-07:00

SOLD
Kitchen at Kam Wah Chung
Acrylic on Canvas Board
11 x 14 inches

As some of you know, I'm writing a book of poetry that features the voices of 5 characters who settled the American West. One of those characters is Ing Hay, a Chinese immigrant who made his home in John Day, Oregon. In March, I took a trip to John Day to see his home, a store known as Kam Wah Chung.

Kam Wah Chung is now a museum. It was formerly a store, doctor's office, and pharmacopia run by Ing Hay and his business partner Lung On from about 1890-1950. These men were only teenagers when the arrived from Taishan County, ready to mine gold on "Gold Mountain." They arrived to find the gold mines largely played out, so Lung On turned his hand to business, and Ing Hay to medicine. They became business partners and lifelong friends.

Stepping into Kam Wah Chung is like stepping into history. The walls are lined with smoke-stained red paper, the shelves are lined with comestibles and herbal remedies from 100 years ago. I wasn't allowed to take flash photography, but the curator shone a flashlight on items I wanted to take pictures of.

This painting depicts the wok and tea kettle that Ing Hay used to prepare traditional Chinese food and drink for Lung On and their many boarders. Here is the photograph:

If you ever get a chance to visit Kam Wah Chung, you won't forget it.

Frist Apartment at Tivoli: A New Painting

2008-06-05T16:46:00.000-07:00

AVAILABLE
First Apartment at Tivoli
Acrylic on Canvas Board
11 x 14 inches
$100

On the banks of the Hudson River, in the heart of Dutchess County, New York, lies the little Village of Tivoli. This is where my sister chose to make her home during the first year of her marriage. This painting depicts two of the earliest possessions of that marriage--a pair of blue lawn chairs.

I love painting objects that are overlooked in life, but beautiful when objectified. The most challenging parts of this painting were rendering the chair material transparent, and making all of the lines of the chair legs line up properly. I always fall in love with my paintings, and this one is no exception.

Here, for your enjoyment, the painting in all of its various stages:

Above: I've roughed in the basic shapes and colors. I like it already.

Above: Things are starting to look solid. The chair lying on its side is wrong, all wrong.

Above: Okay, now we are getting somewhere. The chairs are starting to look like they are the same size.

Above: Almost done, just a few tweaks left to make. Man, getting those chair legs to line up properly was a b****.

Above: Once again, the final painting.

Painting an "Inchie"

2008-05-29T21:20:00.000-07:00

When you make hundreds and hundreds of one-inch-sized works of art (inchies), the question inevitably arises--what do I do with these? A friend suggested I make large paintings of them. Sounded good to me, so today I made a 12 x 12 painting of a 1 x 1 inchie.

Here is the 1 x 1 inchie:

And here is the 12 x 12 painting (due to the size of my scanner, you aren't getting the full painting, but this is pretty close:

I liked how it started to look like a landscape painting, so I decided to leave out the diagonal yellow lines, even though those are what attracted me to this inchie in the first place.

Howells: The evolution of a painting

2008-05-20T12:11:00.000-07:00

AVAILABLE
Howells
Acrylic on canvas board
11 x 14
May 2008
$100

I've been wanting to do a series of Oregon City paintings, focusing on industry, business, and decline. I'm really attracted to the retro signage and buildings we have all over this little town. I've already photographed several of the subjects I want to paint, and I completed the first painting yesterday (above). Here is the evolution of the painting:

Here you see the painting in its very earliest stage, as well as the photo I'm working from. At this stage, I have roughed in the basic shapes and lines.

In stage 2 (above), I'm thinking more about volume and color, trying to work the entire canvas simultaneously.

In stage 3, I realize the perspective is off for the building roofline. I'm going to have to make some changes to the lines that are holding up the sign. I'm worrying a lot about how to make the lines and the metal look like lines and metal.

Here again is the final painting. I'm really happy with the composition and the sign itself. Not thrilled with the way the metal finishes turned out, but it's enough this time.

Inchies

2008-05-15T18:46:00.000-07:00

Ya'll, I am obsessed. I first heard about inchies on http://www.craftster.org/. They are little one inch square pieces of art. You can pretty much make 'em any way you want, but from what I can tell, most people use a collage technique. Right away, I wanted to try making some. So I made a set of about 100 using a map of the Pearl District (Portland's arts district), some scrapbooking paper, and some handwritten messages I collected from the women who were with me at the scrapbooking weekend. Here's a sampling of the result (affixed to a notebook with brads):

Once I got into these, I realized they are all about RANDOMNESS for me. So much of my art is about control--making the image perfect--making the line just the way I want it--trying to get the light right. But the way I make inchies, I have no control over the final image, and each little square that comes out is a little miracle of composition, line and color. Of course they don't ALL turn out that great, but out of 100, you might get 25 really great images.

So I made some more (4 of 100):

And then some more (4 of 100): Then, I went to Chicago for the GREAT ART WEEKEND (more on that in a separate post), where I collected found paper all wekend, and created some more. In fact, if you look at the first picture on this posting, you will see approximately 540 Chicago inchies in progress. Here are a few complete Chicago inchies:

If you don't get it by now, you probably never will. But that's okay; I'll be making enough for both of us. However, if you want to make some, here's a tutorial on craftster: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?action=printpage;topic=211483.0;images

Mommy and Son Project

2008-05-15T18:18:00.000-07:00

Duncan has been home from pre-school a lot this week. On Tuesday, I suggested we make a Robot. I was thinking about some construction paper and glue. But no. He had a particular Robot in mind--the one from a book his dad likes to read him called Le "Manitoba" ne Repond Plus by Herge (he's the same guy who does Tin Tin). So, we find the book and start making the robot. I cut out the shapes while Duncan picks out and glues on the buttons for the eyes, nose and mouth. Sometime while we are working, Duncan says, "Let's make all the stories that the robot is in." After some clarification, I realize he wants to make the whole picture, not just the robot. So, we get started on the porthole with three fish (he mostly glues it together while I do the drawing and cutting), the boy, and the girl. Duncan lost interest about 1/2 way through the girl, but I compulsively had to finish her anyway. Now, Duncan says, "we still have to do the monkey." Here's what the actual book looks like:

Slow Going Part Deux: Still Going

2008-05-15T18:13:00.000-07:00

I am still working on the painting for my handy man friend (though he has probably forgotten my name by now). It is for his daughter Sophie, so my little hippo (who will be wearing a tutu en fin) is named. . . wait for it. . . Sophie. It's a terrible photo--blurry and the color's too green, but at least you can see the progress since the previous slow going post. Jeremy, if you're out there, I'll try to finish it before she graduates from college.

The Little Trailer that Could

2008-05-15T17:46:00.000-07:00

This trailer was sitting by the side of the road on my drive home. Everytime I passed it, it screamed out to me, "Notice me, photograph me, paint me." So I did. About one week later, after having sat there for years, the trailer, along with all the other accumulated detritus in the yard, disappeared.

I've since taken photos of several trailers on my street, just in case there is a trailer Rapture in which all the quirky vehicles on Livesay Road suddenly disappear into the heavens leaving patch after patch of dead, yellowed grass where they once stood. Here are just a few:

Mini Masterpieces

2008-03-12T00:02:00.000-07:00

I've been working on some tiny paintings: 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inches.

The Swirl

2.5 x 3.5

acrylic on canvas

. My favorite shape has always been a swirl. This one turned out kind of cosmic.

The Tulip

2.5 x 3.5

acrylic on canvas

This one is based on a sketch I did many years ago. I guess I've been drawing these same two shapes, the tulip and the swirl, as long as I can remember. What's that about?

Argh!

2008-03-11T22:28:00.000-07:00

The image above is a hand-carved stamp I made using a linoleum block. I then aged and stamped a blank notebook to create a cool pirate journal.

Slow Going

2008-02-12T17:45:00.001-08:00

Well, it's been a long time since I posted, mostly because my art has taken a backseat to finishing my book of poetry, which is due to the publisher at the beginning of May. I do have a work in progress. I guess I can post a picture of it, though it's very rough at this point. Here it is:

Sophie, a commission for my friend Jeremy's daughter.

It has actually progressed a little further since this sketch, but not a lot. The color scheme is very Marie Antoinette, and the little girl is a hippo in her birthday tutu. I'm not sure when I'll finish it. I'm going out of town to give a talk on children's book illustrators (see my other blog for more info). When I get back, hopefully, I'll get a little further on Sophie. I've also been kind of obsessed with paper crafts lately, since I went scrapbooking the other day and then found the website craftster.

Merry Christmas 2007

2007-12-31T15:50:00.000-08:00

Every year, my family decorates Christmas cookies. We like to add nontraditional forms to the mix--this year we had an elephant, a pig, and a dog in addition to the usual holiday shapes. I thought I would share my favorite cookies with you on the blog. After all, these are art, kind of.

Ballerina Reindeer

Paris Hilton Angel

Bento: A New Painting

2007-11-29T14:58:00.000-08:00

I just completed a new painting for a group show with the Three Rivers Artist Guild. The show is entitled The Art of Food, and I've been chairing the committee to get the show organized. I had ambitious ideas about a painting of a sushi chef I know who works at the local Market of Choice, but in a pinch, I ended up doing this variation on a still life. I am intrigued with bentos in general because they are, inherently, works of art. This is a fantasy bento--rather than painting one from real life, I looked at hundreds of photos of bentos and chose the contents I thought were most beautiful in combination with each other. The painting is acrylic on canvas board, 12 x 9 inches unframed. A painting like this takes me at least 20 hours, not including the time spent researching/referencing and composing the sketch. I'm quite happy with the finished painting.

Sketches from the Italian Countryside

2007-10-02T19:06:00.000-07:00

My recent visit with Barb Blumer got me reminiscing about our trip to Italy back in 1999. It was my first experience with plein air landscape painting, as well as my first experience using oils. Barb always reminds me about how excited one of the teachers got about my drawings, and I always remind her how excited one of the teachers got about her compositions. Anyway, I thought I'd go ahead and scan those old charcoal drawings in and post them on the blog so Barb could see them again. They're not so great after all. But they're not so bad either. I've got two poems I wrote about this trip to Italy. Maybe I'll post them on the blog.

You can see Barb's awesome paintings at http://www.barbarahallblumer.blogspot.com/

I've been busy working on my book of poems, as well as getting a new wall and flooring put in to make my studio fabulous. I'll post pictures when the work's all done.

Nadine's Kitchen

2007-08-13T23:54:00.000-07:00

Boy, this one has been tough! I'm not sure it's totally there yet, but time to move on to the next. One thing I borrowed from David Hohn's teaching--if the composition is static, try turning the picture on an angle. What do you know--it works.

Nadine Illustrations

2007-08-10T00:19:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd post an illustration in process to show how I'm creating these. I start with a basic sketch, then I add on as I go, building up layers of paper. The last thing to go in is the paper for the walls and floor. I won't decide what they will look like till the very end. This is a very fun process.

New Illustrations Started

2007-08-08T23:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've broken through to the other side, and thanks to Antonia's permission, I've allowed myself to start using collage for the illustrations for Nadine. Hurray! I've actually started. Here's the first look at what Nadine (the book) will look like. Retro illustrations using cut paper. I'm loving it.

A Scene from Froggy Went A-Courtin' from Thumbnail to Finished (almost)

2007-07-31T11:53:00.000-07:00

Well, my class has been over for several weeks now, and I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever finish the painting. I thought I'd go ahead and show the finished work here, so you can see how the concept evolved from thumbnail sketch to a finished (almost) piece of art.

Stage 1 (above) was the thumbnail sketch. Here you see the main elements--the three cats peering into the hollow tree. This thumbnail was done with tracing paper and a pencil, then marker over top that.

Above, you see a more finished sketch. Here we have all of the characters taking shape. This sketch was created on a large sketchpad with colored pencil, then revised several times with tracing paper.

Above is the value study. This was completed with color pencil on white paper. I had a really tough time with this stage.

Finally, the finished art begins to emerge. Painted on Bristol Board using acrylics. The light still isn't quite right, and the highlights need to be put in on the cats, but I like the way the scene has come together. Also, you can see the color palate I would work with for the entire book. Will this ever be a book? Depends on my ability to pitch it to a publisher. I think I'll have an easier time with it if I already have a few books under my belt.

CD Cover Art for Dad's CD

2007-07-03T13:49:00.000-07:00

My dad, Bruce Jennings, just recorded a 2-disc CD of music that he used to sing to my sister and I when we were young. The title of the CD is, appropriately, When We Were Young. Duncan listens to it every night when he goes to bed. He calls it "Grandpa Bruce Music." I wanted to do cover art that would feel very fun and modern, but would evoke the era I was raised in--the 70s. I took inspiration from the Beatles' Yellow Submarine, as well as a dress fabric I saw in Star Magazine recently. I'm really happy with the way the project turned out.

Getting to the Value Study Stage

2007-05-25T12:59:00.000-07:00

We only have three more illustration classes left (sob!). The goal now is to come up with three finished pieces of art using the sketches we've done so far. I've selected two of the scenes. Not sure which the third will be. First, I'm going to do "Last to come in was the old gray cat." I posted a thumbnail for this sketch earlier. Here is a more developed sketch--I'm still not happy with the proportion/perspective:

I need to make the wedding party smaller to increase the sense of height in the room and not make the bugs seem out of proportion with the cats. I like how one of the cats is looking at the reader. I learned this is called a "cheat." I wanted to make sure the reader understood these figures as cats.

The next scene I am definitely doing is the proposal scene. I started by creating the finished sketch/value study for the protrait of Uncle Rat. Then I will do the scene with Froggy and Miss Mousie. One of the things this stage requires is fully developing the characters. I had to think about Uncle Rat. I want him to look stern and vaguely threatening in the portrait, yet still a bit comical, so he isn't terrifying. I'm pretty happy with this drawing:

I like how Uncle Rat is holding sheaves of wheat. I have decided he is a miller. Portraits done in the 1700s often showed a clue about the person's profession. I based this portrait on a few done in the late 1700s. I'll scan them in later to show here on the blog.

Next stage will be to do the scene with Froggy and Miss Mousie (see post below for explanation of how this spread will be laid out).

New Scenes from Froggy

2007-05-25T12:44:00.000-07:00

Well, the next assignment in my class was to sketch three pivotal scenes in the story (Froggy Went a Courting). I had a very hard time with this assignment--definitely using some brain pathways I am not very familiar with. My drawing really has to come up to speed. What I'm realizing is that unlike painting, where you can kind of edit the composition to match your skill set, with illustration, there are just some things you have to put in. So here are some of my efforts, with notes attached:

The text for this sketch was: "He took Miss Mousie on his knee and said Miss Mousie will you marry me. Without my uncle Rat's consent, I wouldn't marry the president."

This was the only one of my three sketches that was really well-received. I had to agree, because the other two were just causing me all kinds of problems (as you will see later). The guys thought this sketch was good "storytelling," and they liked how I introduced Uncle Rat in the scene by way of the portrait. Their main suggestions were: crop the image to get closer, have the portrait spotlighted on the facing page, and only show a portion of it in the larger image. Here is the sketch the guys suggested:

The next scene I chose was: "Where should the wedding supper be, way down yonder in the hollow tree." I didn't hate this sketch--it has a nice layout, I think. The guys, however, felt it missed the main point of the text, which was to introduce the Hollow Tree--the scene for most of the action in the story. Here's the layout they suggested, which really shows the tree as a destination. One of the amazing things about my teachers is that they can come up with amazing visual problem solving on the spot.

I'm not even going to show the third scene because the issues are so similar to what I just showed in the Hollow Tree scene. I need to focus on the storytelling a little more and think about what I really want to say with layout.

Rojankovsky's Cat

2007-05-07T11:55:00.000-07:00

Feodor Rojankovsky won a Caldecott Medal for his illustrations of Frog Went a Courtin way back in the 50s. I thought I'd show how he treated the same text I'm working on. This is obviously "the moment."
Rojankovsky was a Russian who was obviously influenced by folk art. I believe my tastes were influenced by him at an early age, both directly and indirectly. Many of the books I loved that were published in the 70s took their cue from his line-heavy work; loose, rangy rendering; and flat perspective. Other books that came after that rely on this style include Just Right by Lilian Moore with illustrations by Aldren Watson and The Fox illustrated by Peter Spier (also a Caldecott winner). Rojankovsky also reminds me of the work of Roger DuVoisin, but DuVoisin worked earlier and contemporaneously with Rojankovsky, and the two must have been aware of each other.

Before/Moment/After Assignment

2007-05-06T23:28:00.000-07:00

This week's assignment is to choose a moment in the text, then illustrate the moment, as well as the moment before the moment and the moment after the moment. Got it? The idea is that those moments can actually be more powerful than the moment itself visually, because they contain tension and release. I'm continuing with Froggy. This time, I've chosen the climax of the story, "Next to come in was the old gray cat, ate up the mouse and swallowed the rat." I've conceived of the cat as a British commander and Froggy as a revolutionary spy.

Before #1

In this version, the cat and his two cronies watch the procedings from outside. They are strategizing their attack. I like this version because it emphasizes their role as soldiers.

Before #2

This version of before is probably better. The composition is more interesting. It emphasizes the "catness" of the villains rather than the "soldierness."

The Moment

In this sketch, Mrs. Cow flees in horror as the old gray cat eats Miss Mousie (left), and the cat cronies hold Froggy pinned by their bayonets.

After

Froggy, having escaped, is running away, while one cat tries to shoot him with a musket.

Color Sketches

2007-04-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

I've narrowed this week's assignment down to four sketches. I'm doing them in larger, color sketches now to see what appeals to me. I'm having a lot more trouble with this week than last week.

So far, I like the one above. Maybe because of the color combination. I thought, what if I make everything BUT the frog green so your eyes are drawn to his face.

I'm setting the story in Revolutionary War America. The frog's outfit is supposed to look like Paul Revere. I didn't really like this layout, but every single person I asked picked it.

Little Monkeys Gallery and Cafe at the Carnegie

2007-04-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

This post and the next feature art from the new kids art gallery I'm working on. This is not all my art, folks. Just a few cityscapes from my O-Town series.

2007-04-29T11:42:00.000-07:00

I spent most of Saturday haning art at the Little Monkeys Gallery and Cafe in the Carnegie Center. I've been working on this idea with Sascha Gordon-Manning since September, and we've finally got it going. We will be filling the space with art that is appealing to kids and families. The point is to make original art affordable for families, so parents can decorate their kids' rooms with original art--not mass produced stuff from Babies R Us. We've got it about 1/2 full right now. We'll be adding work throughout the month of May, and we'll have a big opening on June 9th. But you can go there now--anytime the Carnegie is open.

This may be crazy, but we are hanging work at eye-level for kids, so they can actually get up close and see the work (a few exceptions--ceramics, textiles). I want this to be a place designed for kids.

Need Some Feedback--1

2007-04-27T00:01:00.000-07:00

This week, the assignment is to come up with 3 layouts for the same moment in a text. I have chosen "Froggie went a courtin' and he did ride." Please take a look at the 8 layouts and tell me which three you like best (or which 1 you like best).

Layout 6

Layout 7

Layout 8

Need Some Feedback--2

2007-04-26T23:55:00.000-07:00

Here are 5 more layouts. Please weigh in--which are your favorite?

Layout 1

Layout 2

Layout 3

Layout 4

Layout 5

Estrella in Paint

2007-04-26T23:49:00.000-07:00

I couldn't get the whole painting scanned, so here are three different portions of it. Together, hopefully you can get the whole Estrella experience. She was well received in class, but the teacher critiqued (quite rightly) that I didn't really nail the quality of being "mischievous." I agree. She looks playful and mirthful, but not really mischievous.

This is Picolo, her little frog. One person said, "Alligators eat frogs." I think Estrella may be a vegetarian, possibly an activist on behalf of PETA. I mean, she must be opposed to using Alligator skin for clothes, shoes, bags.

Estrella

2007-04-19T22:26:00.000-07:00

I love my illustration class. I'm so excited about my new assignment. We each had to draw (at random) 4 slips of paper from a pile. Each slip had a different character trait or description on it. The assignment is to create a character that features each of the four traits. Here are the four I drew:

Portly

Female

30 years old

Mischievous

I brainstormed quite a bit, and here's the lady I came up with:

Inspirations for Estrella include Peggy Guggenheim, Kelly Osbourne, Paris Hilton, Marjorie Meriweather Post, and Lili Pulitzer.

Her little frog is her vanity pet. I'm thinking his name is Picolo. I'm working on painting them in acrylic right now to work out some of the details and colors. One thing I'm thinking about is whether I want to do my illustrations in ink or in paint. I will have to try both f0r a while to see what I like best.

Illustration Class Starts Tuesday

2007-04-15T22:35:00.000-07:00

I've just started taking a class on illustrating children's books. The first assignment was to copy 4 characters that we like from other people's books, as well as 1 character that we don't like. Here are my offerings: Copying the baby from Binky turned out to be the hardest. I thought it would be the easiest. Getting just the right take on each black line was very difficult, and the subtleties of his body placement/gestures were very hard to capture.
I thought the Forest Princess would be the hardest. She was actually one of the easier characters to render, but the medium, pure pen and ink, was brutal. I had no way to cover up my mistakes.
Sendrak the sorcerer was the most fun character. His whimsical hat and shoes and the little stars on his coat really appealed to me.
Stamp-collecting trollusk makes me laugh just looking at him. Working on this drawing, I felt Mercer Mayer is probably the best illustrator of all that I picked because his line-work is so precise. My version is much sloppier than his because I don't have the practice/patience to make mine line up just so.
This is the character I don't like--Critter from Mercer Mayer's Little Critter series. After drawing him, I decided he's really not so bad, but I really don't like the overall art in the books. Maybe it's too cartoonish, too bland, to representational.

What I learned: In every single case, the quality/style of the black outlines was the number one most important element. For the Stamp Collecting Trollusk, I had to try three different black pens to get it right. You can see where I started with too thick of a pen on the trollusk's ear. Yet that same thick pen was perfect for Mayer's Critter.

I also learned that I'm a better renderer than I thought. The more I did, the faster it went and the more confident I became. This was a valuable exercise.

O-Town

2007-04-06T20:53:00.000-07:00

I am currently working on a collection of paintings inspired by my beloved Oregon City. This town is so full of quirky buildings and factories, and I've been dying to interpret them on canvas for a long time.

Pictured here are some of my favorites. I gifted them all--the big one to my dad, the smaller two to my friend April's little boy Tyler for his playroom.

Serene and Joyful

2007-04-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

I decided to develop a collection based around the words "Serene" and "Joyful."

The collection featured natural elements, such as dogwood branches, dried berries, and fields of poppies.

Murals

2007-04-04T15:28:00.000-07:00

I painted this mural for Duncan's room. We call the monkey Singe.

Some Pastels

2007-04-04T15:24:00.000-07:00

Here are two of my favorite pastel drawings: Night and Planets.