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 Is People's Art

I try to describe my work to others. More than likely, that doesn't work. So I pull out a business card with photographs on it (painting on one side, assemblage/sculpture on the other). That helps the conversation continue.

Take a card...

I went to an art show recently where I am usually an exhibitor. I took this year off. Being a customer felt strange. I wanted to stand in someone's booth and write up sales.

I met a folk artist there whose work I had recently discovered. She was very friendly and forthcoming with her process. Maybe we connected because we are both folk artists. We compared notes. Both of us work in mixed media with wood as the base. We're similar but different in our style.
When discussing folk art definitions, she said you know it when you see it. That's what a folk artist would say. She can join my club. It's people's art.

Drawing A Blank

Sometimes a pause is good for the soul. Not actively creating art can mean the hardest work on the next piece has begun. (Or so I tell myself.) The process starts before the paintbrush. First to find a goal and mentally discern the connection. A hook that resonates within. Then, how to proceed: assemblage/sculpture or painting?

'Dog on Rug' wood/acrylic wall assemblage  ©robinrkent

Like a dog picking up a scent, once found, it's a link you are drawn to follow. With no end in sight. Entertain that thought, or spin off onto something else. You'll know when you've arrived. That's what the wait was all about.

Art Zen: Go Slow

'Meditation Box' Commission piece

I was tickled to find myself as 'Guest Artist' on Folk Art Mary's blog just a day ago. Although we're different, Mary and I create folk art out of wood. I felt like I hit the jackpot coming across her blog. And I recognize some of her previous guests as artists I have long admired. I'm a starry-eyed folk art groupie.

Back to earth. With the start of the season here in Vermont, I've morphed my artist persona into a car jockey, squeezing in new work deliveries. (April 2nd post) There's only so much one can do in a day. Blog or drive? I've begun to not push as hard. I allow myself the time.
So now I'm mulling over my current quandary: time. How to use it wisely to still get important things done. Like a circus clown's long balloon, I squeeze at one end and it slips away. I'd rather it be like a log of salami, and cut it in chunks. Nope. Doesn't work that way.
The last decade or so, the cultural goal was 'big'. Bigger houses, living large, etc. Now it seems the word is 'fast'. Multi-tasking, multi-texting. Less sleep, more goals.
But that seems to be slowly changing too. I've become a guilt free member of the slow movement. I've always had the potential. And the proof is I lose track of time while puttering in the barn workshop. That's the charm of being an artist. Call it 'problem solving' while it is really 'day dreaming'?  Useful time? Guess so, when it shows up somewhere down the road in future projects. What other job can say that? "Oh, no problem - take your time and just tinker around..."
And I've watched others looking at my art.  It slows them down too. The long meditative pause possibly turning into a small grin. Maybe that's part of the attraction for art lovers. Art Zen. A visual meditation.