call for artists

wanted to share with you my son Dylan's year long thesis project. i may have mentioned around here that he is a graphic design major graduating this year. it's a project that hopes to put art lovers in touch with artists by giving a taste of the artist's work, with the hope that relationships and sales will grow beyond that first taste. you can be a part of it by clicking here!

What is Amuse-Bouche: The Art Appetizer?

Amuse-Bouche (uh-mooz-boosh) is French for ‘entertains the mouth.’ In the culinary world it is usually a small, original, bite-sized appetizer which is created personally by the chef and cannot be found on a menu. It is an expression of the chef’s skill and style and can predict the culinary approach to the rest of the meal. We use the phrase Amuse-Bouche here in a similar sense. A small, original sample of art, created and inspired by the artist to help build the artistic appetite. Collect the art boxes and try out new artists and styles all without making the financial commitment of a large work. Amuse-Bouche brings a taste of different artists directly to you. Bon Appetit!

art box for the artist's work

working into the wee hours getting everything ready

a taste of art

another taste

chinese takeout

hope gangloff

oh the sacrifices i make just to illustrate a calendar.

some sacrifice. roast pork lo mein, steamed dumplings, lemon chicken, fortune cookies...


yes, it's almost here! the 4th annual humble hand drawn fortune cookie calendar is in the works and heading to the shop!

lauren pretorius

michael naples

looking for inspiration

it was oh so cold and windy today in our part of the world but the sun was shining bright so we dared to venture out to dia: beacon.  dia is a museum in a beautiful spot along the hudson river.  it's housed in a restored nabisco box printing factory, a perfect space for a museum.  old wood floors beautifully worn, skylights everywhere and art - just a great combination.  if you like art that you can walk around, look into, peer over and even walk into then i think you will love this place.  

perhaps most famously, they have an andy warhol installation.  72 huge canvases hung end to end encircling a room the size of my house.  sol lewitt's precise, geometric pencil drawings on white walls 15 feet tall.  then there is my favorite, torqued ellipses by richard serra.  massive 16 foot tall steel spiral pieces that curve sensually in toward each other and out again.  the rusted steel is gorgeous and tempts you to touch it.  

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dia

i love days like these, being immersed in a creative atmosphere and soaking it all up.  what did you do this weekend?  we've got winter break this week so i plan on sleeping in a couple of days.  i'm so looking forward to that. 

goodnight kids, sweet dreams

rebellion

i am in love with this adorable form of rebellion.  yarn bombing is a little like graffiti but with yarn of course, and has got to be the cutest way to beautify a public space.

here's what wiki says: Yarn bombing, yarnbombing, yarnstorming, guerrilla knitting, urban knitting or graffiti knitting is a type of graffiti or street art that employs colorful displays of knitted or crocheted yarn or fibre rather than paint or chalk.

i love the term guerrilla knitting - i imagine a group of sweet old grannies lurking about late at night, bombing stop signs and bus stops, even though i know full well knitting and crocheting are the art forms of choice of the grandchildren of those grannies in my imagination.

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this is very cool stuff, right?

have a great sunday!

getting my toes wet

showing your art online is a much easier thing to do than showing it in person and recently i've been trying to overcome my, shall i say shyness, about showing my work in public.  it feels a bit like standing naked in the middle of a room at a party.  so when the opportunity came for me to hang my work in a public place (no not a big, scary gallery, thank goodness!) i had to take it.  since the beginning of may, i've had most of my canvases hanging in this neat place called body be well in red hook, ny.  it's a pilates and yoga workout studio offering private and group classes in a friendly and supportive environment.  at the studio they also have an all women's gym so those of us who might be a little uncomfortable working out in the company of the opposite sex, can sweat freely.  that's where i come in, and no, i don't mean the sweating part.  the gym is also a gallery where local artists can show their work.  so up my canvases went.  the very next day after they went up i was honored to be sent an email by someone from the gym saying that she enjoyed working out to the view and could she purchase the one called nest?  of course she could!  

and this is nest, now gone to it's new home

what a great way to get my toes wet with this first public showing.  thanks to cheryl, gallery curator and instructor and chelsea, owner of body be well for giving artists a chance to show their stuff!  in my opinion it's an awesome place that caters not only to the body but the soul as well.

and just a follow up on my previous pergola post (nice alliteration there, hunh?)  in allowing myself to dream big i found these.

find this tuscan castle rental here

find this amalfi coast rental here

now if i can just sell oh, about a zillion more canvases.....

enjoy!

i just discovered wanelo and i'm having a blast wandering around.  while virtual window shopping, i found this.  i love it and just had to share it here.

then i saw this

these lovely prints are by bianca green. check out this neat project she's started.

i just might have to own one or two of these.