Come and Go

I can cross another big assignment off my list. The rain barrel mermaid has left and is ready for a bigger pond. Here she is, in the city far from home, with some fellow barrels ready for their newspaper interview.

Mermaid and me (center in red) with some from her class of 20

Every time I start an assignment, I learn something new. Mostly about art or technique.

This time, I was the lesson. The reporter made a game of guessing the art to the artist.

Mermaid eavesdropping to the Director's interview

He was surprised I made the mermaid. He thought a young dude to be one tagging street art, but this first hand experience made me pause. Do fine artists get this surprised reaction? Maybe the fine arts are more dignified. Or should I find a comfortable middle ground with looser paintings and assemblages, leaving street art to the young-uns? Nooo...don't like self imposed retrictions without good reason. I'll try to own the fact of who I am no matter. Maybe I'll turn into an eccentric artist when I do get old.

Talking With My Hands

Without photos of my work to illustrate my point, I am helpless. Why post words from an artist (still not sure of the type) without something to look at? I always read story books with the goal of getting to the next illustration as a child. Now magazines are my guilty pleasure.
I have deadlines looming, being the beginning of the 'season' here in Vermont. Lots of art popping up along with gardens and baby animals. More time spent in the shop and at the easel than at the computer or outside. Here is the status of the mermaid rain barrel. (You can read the last post for her back story.)

3/4 view of the pickle, er, rain barrel in process.    

©robinrkent

She needs to put her face on. Then some makeup. My mother used to say 'A little powder and paint makes a girl what she ain't.'

And the smell of pickled peppers (banana peppers I'd guess) when you unscrew her lid is devine. Makes you want to order a pizza.

I always start from black, so it's hard to see here, but by the end of the day, I should have her looking more photogenic and ready for her closeup. A nice flowing of mermaid hair would help as well. Will have to scout for just the right screen in the barn upstairs. Buttons for jewelry, etc, will be the final touches.

And that's a good thing: I'll have another post coming right up!

And Now Some Street Art Assemblage...

Finally on a full tilt roll with my painterly paintings. Newest one, above, is still in progress, but whined, wanting to be on the masthead. Will post the finished version when ready.

A vision of things to come?

A street art assemblage project is next.

Like the unfinished fine art painting above, I'll post progress on my art rain barrel commission here.

The Winooski Natural Resources Conservation District will mount 40 finished barrels on bases and stagger them from Church Street Marketplace, Burlington (our only Vermont 'city') down the hill to Lake Champlain's waterfront.
A few sentences about stormwater run off and its threat to the lake's health, posted next to each barrel, will help educate and hopefully entertain.

Folk Art vs Trained Art

I surveyed the recent art opening where my two previously posted paintings in this blog were hung. I asked a viewer (non-painter from town) if they could tell which work was mine. He picked both out.

'Aging Circus Act'  Mixed media sculpture      ©robinrkent

Going back to creating 'painterly paintings' from contemporary folk art has been a learning lesson. Seems one can transfer painting experiences from one medium - and style - to another. No one-trick pony. 

Universal topics often arise at the same time. I recently read via the Fenimore Art Museum  blog  the same art segregation issues when museums hang shows. They highlight a well written article from the New York Times in their post on this very topic.

But from the art business side, is it a good thing to mix styles? When patrons see you as a folk artist and then you're painting 'paintings,' are you confusing your market?

You Are Not Alone

After completing my first (in a long while) painterly painting (shown above), I figured I'd try another. I have a few snaps that might turn into paintings someday. I'll keep creating folk art assemblages and such, but this new curiosity adds another layer to the mix.

'Away From It All'       Acrylic on Canvas               ©robinrkent

My paintings are intentionally soft because I use the same brushes (and paint) on canvas that I use when painting wood sculptures and assemblages. The wood wrecks the brush point, and I like the effect. I bought new (sissy) brushes to be used only on canvas and am waiting for their arrival.
Found a kindred spirit. Alanna Martinez has similar views to mine on painting. In her short article on 'Blouin Art Info,' she sums up 6 painting instincts while viewing the Matisse show at the Met. She hits on many of the 'no-nos' I was told, turning them into 'yes-yes'. Here's the link: http://www.artinfo.com/print/node/854181

True Love

Here's my problem with my love interests. I love doing funky, fun whimsical pieces where I can add my own narrative. But recently (well over the last year now) I've been tempted, dared, and coaxed to go back and try my hand at the serious side of painting.

The header piece (above) is for our local Guild's www.brandonartistsguild.org upcoming show "VermontScapes." A landscape might work as a subject.

On the dock (r) with friends. Sporting stylish canvas sailor caps
and bamboo fishing poles. Chris (center) shows her catch.

I decided to paint the boat dock.
It was the place, as a child, I'd lay and look through the slats at the cool green water and its fish below. Lamenting the thought of fall's onset, my departure, and school's fast approach.
While painting, I recalled all this: the fresh water smell, the sound of water lapping the posts, the give and sway of the dock.
It occurred to me I haven't seen many wooden docks still in use. It became a worthy subject.
My surprise Valentine: a gift to myself from one who was there. Fond memories revisited in the form of a wooden dock. Maybe I'll paint this way more. And make some folk art assemblages for the show, too.

Making Sense of It All

I've always had people around me. I see them in faces in leaves and in folds of curtains. New companions join me even today: faces in the bathroom floor's marbling, and many crowded in my pile of wood scraps. They seem to be involved in whatever they're doing and don't mind me observing them.

Woman with windblown hair

Sometimes I keep a sub-section in my wood scrap pile of pieces that remind me of certain things. Usually casualties from projects that hit a bump somewhere in the creative process and got tossed aside. But even then, when I look through that pile, I see something else yet again.

Bird waiting to fly

For example, this piece (left) started as the head of a woman in the wind. Was she going for a motorcycle ride?
But when I rediscovered her (right), she had turned into a bird.
When giving it a little thought, I wonder if it was some unspoken message. Was I missing the birds this winter? Or was I observing a fairytale: did she wish to become a bird and was waiting for the chance to fly.