Saturday, July 26, 2014

Villa Montalva :

Yesterday, I participated in a wonderful event at the
in Saratoga, CA


I was invited to be one of the artists
to do live painting for
 

We all braved the heat that day
and enjoyed a casual afternoon on the grounds
of an historic villa.


There was music performed by the talented Chris Reed,
and an art exhibit by the amazing visual artist Tulio Flores.
 Myself and other local artists
set up our tables and easels on the lawn.
-unfortunately, I didn't take more photos during the event! 



This was a really fun experience for me,
working on a new painting in such
an inspiring environment. 









I didn't finish my painting,
maybe because the glazes were not drying
as quickly from the humidity, or
I had too much fun mingling with the guests & other artists!



My daughters and I plan to return to the
Villa Montalvo soon to hike the trails.

It has alot of eye candy for me to see 
from the architectural details, to
the artist projects created throughout
the grounds, the large old trees, 
flowers and succulents galore,
and more I haven't seen yet!



I want to thank both Chris and Tulio 
for an amazing afternoon!

My art to yours,
Yvette



 

Saturday, July 5, 2014

50|50 SHOW :

Happiness is .....

 being one of 69 artists accepted into 


The Project . . . .
to complete 50 small works of art on 6x6 mdf panels
over the course of 50 days.
 
Just picked up my 50 panels from the Sanchez Art Center - Woohoo!

My Theme . . . .
"Urban Botanicals" - 
abstract textures from the garden
Doesn't that sound like my aesthetic? 

This promises to be an intensive and creative endeavor for me.
Does that worry me?
 Absolutely not!!

Any artist who is given the challenge to push thier 
creative energies will only flourish.  
(I made that up, but I know you'll agree!)

I thrive on this kind of stuff!


First part of my process . . . .
I needed to prime the front of each panel with gesso,
and sprayed primer on the backs for a clean look.
The art center already drilled holes in the backs.


The next step was to add a nice layer of
molding paste to create my "organic" textured surface.
I varied the marks and crevices to make
each panel unique.


When all 50 panels dried, I was overjoyed with my results; 
the textural patterns were much better than I expected!
(I really get into textures!)
I tried different techniques with my tools and molding paste,
and discovered new ideas for future paintings.
By the way,
my one and only molding paste is from Golden.


The Layout . . . .
 I created a template, on 8-1/2 x 11 paper,
of the panels as they will be hung at installation.
This became paper to sketch my ideas of a
 somewhat cohesive layout.
(More on that on another post)


The panels won't "fit" like a puzzle or read as "one" painting,
but my intention is for all of them
to relate and transition by color and designs.
So if a someone wants to buy just one, their painting
will not be lonely. 


At this moment, I have painted the designs on most of the rows, 
and have added color to some.  
Creating all the colors of my glazes is so much fun!
Thank goodness for all those old plastic containers.




I plan to share my progress over the next two months
here on my blog.
But you can connect with my on an almost daily basis


My art to yours,
Yvette