CIRCLING

If my blog seemed abandoned it was due to first tax mania, my computer crashing often and glitches with this site.  Let's hope they are all resolved as I have so much to say.  Since January I have been working on a series of flower paintings in watercolor.  Many are still unresolved or in transition.  This one, called Circling, is finished and currently my favorite work of the year.  It is 22 x 30 on 300 lb paper.  

ACCEPTANCE

Last night I received the email telling me two of my paintings will be in this year's SeARTS loan program at the Bass Rocks Golf Club in Gloucester, MA.  They chose Central Park (here on the left).   This painting is done with watercolor, gesso and graphite on 300 lb paper. The frame size is 36 x 28.  And Westside (shown below) is also the same frame size (only reversed  to 28 x 36) and the same media.  These were painted last summer while I was in Maine thinking of other places I have lived.  Both will hang all year at the stately club house of the golf course.

For eighteen years New York City was my home.  I spent lots of days, all  four seasons, enjoying the magic of Central Park and lived in different areas of the city with my favorite place to inhabit being the upper west side.  Like memories of my former city life,  the email brought a good feeling last night.  No matter where we are in our careers, a note of acceptance of our art is always a good feeling. 

LAST YEAR

I am still muddling through my taxes but after cataloging various categories of being an artist here are some interesting facts.  In 2009,  I entered 22 shows and spent $435.00 in entry fees.  A open studio weekend cost $200.00 and resulted in no sales.  Several paintings were donated to worthy causes and sold but I can deduct a pittance.  Still, I would not trade last year for a 9-5 and a steady paycheck.  I may not have had the huge sales but the feedback I received over the course of the year from a viewing public at many venues is worth every brushstroke.

TRAVELS

Thursday I received a truly lovely rejection letter from a show on the west coast.  The organization actually addressed the letter to me the artist.  A personal touch is nice even if they are saying no.  Though the entry fee was outrageous I had decided to venture west with my work.  Not to be, but, at least, I will now save on shipping costs of the actual painting.

Yesterday I went south to pick up my paintings at the RIWS juried floral show.  Happy to reclaim them as it has been a month since I last saw them and I still feel they are strong works.  (This is a rare feeling for me when it comes to my work.)  These are paintings that resulted from a time of patience and exploration.  Last night I was reading Wolf Kahn's America, An Artist's Travels by Wolf Kahn.  (Highly recommended!)  He writes about seeing a portrait painting, admitting not his strong suit, he had painted several years earlier and was happy to see it again painted so freely.  It is good to like one's work in retrospect and one must learn not to judge oneself harshly while working.

NOT SURE WHY

I am not sure why I have not been posting lately.  The good news is I have been working at the studio.  The bad news is today I am organizing all the receipts, papers, expenses and  other paraphenalia that is involved with taxes.  Not a fun day to review last years' totals of expenses versus salary. Still I am lucky to be able to have this time to pursue this career and the year is young.