Saturday, June 30, 2012

Sign Saturday


I spotted this sign on Ledoux Street as I walked back from the Harwood Museum. The Harwood is just a couple blocks from the plaza. I was beginning to feel more comfortable getting around Taos, and I should have since this was my sixth visit.
Ledoux Street is lined with interesting shops and galleries; lots of things to look at as I strolled along on a hot June day.
Then I came upon the "horse of a different color", that as far as I know can only be spotted in Oz, Taos, and Amarillo, TX.

Friday, June 29, 2012

Clayprinting continued

Miki adding color to her plate


Rick checking a print

 There were seven of us registered for this workshop; we came from both coasts and in the middle, plus our Taos host couple. We all caught the vision and worked diligently to produce a clothesline full of prints each day.



Finished prints hanging out to dry

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Clayprinting

The reason for my trip to Taos was to learn clayprinting from Mitch Lyons. Mitch was a printmaker, then moved to ceramics, and by trial and error combined both of them for a unique printing experience.

Kathy & Michael prepare their plates

Pricilla prepares her plate with Ammador clay
 Printing is done from a leather hard clay plate.









Plates drying in the New Mexico sun for 20 min.
               Mitch says that the process can't be explained, so he demonestrates.
 
Mitch preparing color


Pots of color


 Adding color transfered from newsprint
 
Adding powdered pastel to the plate

Plate is ready to print


Here's the print!
                      

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Wordless Wednesday

Banner

Look at this beautiful handpainted garden banner. It's on display at the Wild Horse Gallery in Guymon, OK. And for a contribution of only $150 to Art Incubation it can be yours. Contact Becky at director@atistincubation.com

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

On the Santa Fe Trail

I followed the Santa Fe Trail on my way to Taos last week. Taos was the gathering place for artists interested in learning "clayprinting".

Mitch Lyons is the inventor and teacher, and says the process can't be explained; and so he demonstrates. Check out his work at http://www.mitchlyons.com/

Workshop pics to come later this week.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Father's Day

Google celebrates "Good old Dad"!

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Sign Saturday

Last Saturday's Sunflower Festival had a little bit of everything. Booths displaying paintings, drawings, photographs, jewlery, ceramics, and face painting. Face painting isn't just for kids any more; the adults were lined up as well. There was also food and wine tasting going on. Everyone was set on having a good time.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Quote of the Week

"One never knows what one is going to do. One starts a painting then it becomes something quite different..." Picasso

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Sunflower Festival

Today's the day. It's happening on Main Street in Guymon. The annual Sunflower Festival.
You will find: Art
                    Vintage cars
                    Food
                    Wine
                    and a crowd enjoying it all.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Happy Birthday P G

My art education began in the galleries of the Minneapolis Art Institute. I lived in south Minneapolis and close enough to walk. I loved the place and visited often. No one ever questioned a girl roaming the galleries by herself. I saw so many great things there; one of which was I Raro Te Oviri by Paul Gauguin. It was an image that stuck with me, at the time not knowing about the elements of design. It probably was the color that attracted me to it.
I Raro Te Oviri by Paul Gauguin
Today is Gauguin's birthday. He was born in 1848 and was part of the Post-Impressionist movement. Vincent van Gogh idolized him and in 1988 they even painted together for 9 weeks in Arles, France. But a friendship never clicked between them. They both suffered from boughts of depression; maybe they just got on each other's nerves. I have many fond memories of the Minneapolis Art Institute; I'm having pangs of homesickness as I write this.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

The Ladies Have a Show


Kayla Helms





Mallory


Kaye Spriggs
 The OPSU 2012 Senior Art Show was a gathering of talented women: Kayla, Kaye, Hannah, Shannon, Nancy, Mallory & Nikki. The show was a visual treat for all who attended. The artists displayed, with flare, their best work from four years in the OPSU art department. This show is a requirement of all art majors; it requires a lot of planning and work, and these ladies were up to the challenge and put on a great show. 

Nancy Angeles

Hannah Harrington

Shannon Smith


Nikki Treon
 

Monday, June 4, 2012

Abstract Expressionism

What have Americans given to the world of art, an art movement all our own. It is a 20th century phenomenon that started after WWII, and turned New York into the premier art center.
One of the personalities of the movement was Clyfford Still. A North Dakota boy who joined artists like Willem de Kooning, Robert Motherwell, Jackson Pollock and Mark Rothko, to produce emotionally charged paintings.
Abstract Expressionism is characterized by:
*abstract forms
*expressive brushwork
*monumental scale
*universal themes
Speaking of Abstract Expressionism Harlod Rosenberg said: At a certain moment the canvas began to appear to one American painter after another as an arena in which to act. What was to go on the canvas was not a picture but an event.
Clyfford Still today has his own museum in Denver which opened in 2011; it's near the Denver Art Museum.
I'm relatively close; maybe I should make a visit.

Here are examples of Still's work; including an early self portrait.

Sunday, June 3, 2012

Quote of the Week

"I never wanted color to be color. I never wanted texture to be texture, or images to become shapes. I wanted them to fuse together into a living spirit." Clyfford Still

Friday, June 1, 2012

Fabulous Furniture

Here's Nikki Stork. When she's not driving a school bus, or working at the flower shop, or leading the church youth group she is bringing new life to old furniture pieces. Oh, and BTW she has a family as well.

Here she is with a table and chair set that you can see at the Hallmark shop in Guymon. Her company is called Drab to Fab and you can reach her at stork@ptsi.net.