A nice little surprise.

When I went to pick up my paintings yesterday from the Riverside County Fair – also the National Date Festival, I had a nice little surprise. Of the three paintings I entered, two came home with ribbons, and I came home with a nice little check.  ‘The Setting Sun’ had taken an honorable mention in the Theme of the year, non-traditional, and ‘Gentle Storm’ had taken first place in the same category.  Well, the theme of the year was clouds….

Two winners at the National Date Festival.  Oooh, look at that big fat bow.

Painting the morning in the night

Last night I guided a small group through a paint and wine class at Vanguard Gallery in Moreno Valley.  One of my students had already taken classes with me, including the Absolute Beginners class and was happy to work through this painting  of winter solstice sunrise across the Salton Sea to hone some of the skills.

We’re doing an underpainting to get rid of the white so in the final painting we’re not strugging with that aspect

We’re painting the sky part of the top coat

It’s easier to paint the bottom of the panel when it’s upside down.

Adding the sun.

All done!

 

Newer work #85

First of three.  These were painted together – small panels that would fit between doors in a hallway.  However, I’ve hung them together in the booth and some people have considered they would make a nice triptych.

#1364 “Just us Three”. Refractured watercolor on panel 18×5″ $60 inc shipping!

Anniversary at the Vanguard

My strong association with the Vanguard Gallery in Moreno Valley – I teach there, curate about a third of the year’s shows and sit on the advisory committee – goes back pretty much to its inception 7 years ago.  For August Rick didn’t have a theme he wanted to work on and I couldn’t find another artist so I had to fill the walls myself.  I had lost track of the years, but the reception is going to be the 7th Anniversary of the Vanguard.  A few special items will be scheduled, including a mini petting zoo with some rabbits and birds, and probably Rick will come up with some other things between now and then – then being August 11th 5-7pm.  In the mean time, here’s the show wall of the gallery.

Painting in its forever home.

My client that I met at Calabasas had commissioned me to create a repeat of a small painting in a larger size for a space in the guest bathroom.  He lives close enough to my other half that I was able to deliver.  Here’s ‘Ron’s Red Morning’ in it’s place.

Gonna be hanging out with the towels.

A row of ribbons

Nice little array.

I had entered eight paintings in the Imperial County Fair this year and seven of them won ribbons!  Four of them – the first and second place winners will be on display in Pioneer’s Museum in Imperial until the 27th.

The other half.

One of the silliest things I didn’t do on Wednesday when Christine Lamb was setting up her half of our show at the Glass Outhouse Gallery was to take some photos of her half of the gallery.  Yesterday at our reception I corrected that.

Christine’s Jewelry. Many of the items are made with upcycled denim.

We had a two-person bad perform for us Hunter and the Wick’d for the afternoon and had quite a few people drop by, or come in from the advertising.

I really like the painting on the right at the end wall.

I sold two small paintings and Christine sold some earrings and a clock.

Christine doing some inventory. The clock on the left didn’t last long!

I really fell for this little gallery and was quite jazzed to have been offered a last-minute show due to a cancellation.  The artist who was to have been at this show turned up.  She had cancelled because she had torn her rotator cuff on the side she uses a crutch – double whammy.  She was doing a lot better now and is looking forward to showing at another time.

Bookwork is so much part of our job!

I also got to meet Jaymie Arquilevich with whom it’s planned I’ll have a 2-artist show in 2018.