30 in 30_ Day 1

I decided to ride the wave and try my hand again doing Leslie's Saeta's 30 in 30 challenge.  Its a great way to start painting again after the holidays .  I'm joining a small group of about a 1000 painters from all over the world!  There are no rules, just paint a painting a day or at least to paint more than you painted last month (an easy challenge since I only did 2!).  I like that it takes into consideration that life might get in the way so no biggie if I miss a day or 2.  There are no rules and its the kick in the butt I need after the craziness of the holidays.  I know there will be some "misses,"  but unlike when a painting doesn't work and gets sent to my "oops" corner, these will all get posted regardless.  

I painted this guy a couple of years ago from a different angle and thought "what the heck" lets do it again.  He's my favorite holiday Salt & Pepper shaker (pepper is in his hat) 

Happy 2016!

Day 1

Salt & Pepper

4x4” oil ($35)

 

 

 

Art Tip - Ideas for Hanging Your show on Panels

As I was inventorying my paintings for the ValeArts Show I quickly realized I needed a plan. Each artist was allotted 4 (four) 3'x6' flats/screened hanging panels for their work.  I needed  to figure out how many paintings could I hang and what paintings worked together.  I also needed to figure how to get my paintings up quickly.

In group shows, you usually are allowed 2-4 paintings so selecting and transporting aren't a problem.  Those shows are usually hung in a simple line or doubled up.  In the past, in a show with a lot of artists, we've leaned the paintings up against the walls as they were dropped off and rearranged them so they worked together, then hung them.   For groupings of multiple rows of paintings on a large wall, I've laid out paintings on the floor so they could easily be moved around until they worked as a group.  With 9 artists in a small space, laying them on the floor or along the wall wasn't going to happen.  

I always do some pre-planning to get a layout in my head before a show, but that usually changes to some degree once I start hanging.  This time, I fell back on my Bu training and decided I needed to create a written ops plan. 

I had a couple of ideas

Idea #1 was to get a cloth the correct size and lay it on the floor.  A cheap solution for that is to cut an old shower liner (heavier than cloth, so easier to work with) that you didn't toss out because artists don't throw away stuff they might be able to use in an art project!!  Once you get an arrangement that fits, take a picture with your cellphone and off you go.  

I learned quickly that I couldn’t hang

by theme or color, although I 

started each panel that way.  I had to 
find smaller paintings to fill empty spaces

Plan #2:  I thankfully finally remembered I have 4 panels stored that I don't use, but loan out to other artists.  I volunteered to store them for the Springfield Art Guild so my good deed was about to pay off.  If you don't have panels and have time you might be able borrow one.  I set one up in the climate controlled comfort of my studio.  I lined up all the paintings I was considering along the wall and floor.  Then I went to work deciding what worked together and more important... what fit together on the panel.  

After I got an arrangement done, I took photos.  Since I 4 panels, I also assigned each grouping a number and wrote the group # on a piece of blue tape on the back of each painting.  Then I boxed up the paintings for each panel together.  Since most were 20" or under I could get them all into a box.  It worked like a charm!   

FYI: Whenever I transport a lot of smaller paintings, I take a sturdy box or large plastic container and place a piece of cardboard on both sides of every painting.  Once the box is full, but not too heavy, I use bubble wrap or something light to fill in the rest of the space so the paintings do not flop when I'm transporting them. I found that instead of laying them out flat, boxing them saves me a lot of trips. 

Even though I had the photos on my phone, I also printed a working size black & white copy (1/4 page) which allowed me to also have room make notes.  I hung a sheet on each panel (much to the amusement of the experienced artists!...Although they hid it well) so that I didn't have to keep pulling out my phone. 

It was a bit more work on the front end, but it turned out to be a life saver for someone who hadn't hung on panels in a long time.  My 27 paintings went up fast.  

 

August Hot Wheels Reception

THANK YOU  to everyone who was able to stop by my reception on the 10th and the friends who could not make it who called or sent me lovely notes and email.  And I don't want to forget those who couldn't come on the 10th, but have stopped by to see the show.  I am very blessed & grateful for a terrific turnout of so many friends.   Unfortunately, I didn't designate anyone to take photographs at the reception so I don't have pictures from the 10th. Oh well, next time! 

It’s hard to believe that after working for months to get ready for the show the end of the month is getting near.  My show runs until the 30th.  If you haven't visited Occoquan its a wonderful quaint town on the river with a number of nice restaurants, shops and of course art galleries!  

Loft Gallery, 313 Mill St., Occoquan VA (upstairs)