Here It Is...

Here's the new piece I just completed: Fall Leaves, pastel on black paper. What do y'all think?

mw

Getting ready to start a new piece! Stay tuned...

mw

My First Sale!

Well, readers, it has happened. I sold my first piece of artwork on Sunday. I cannot be happier! It's starting and it's scary and great and everything in between, but I am really looking forward to this art life. I had an auction on my Facebook page that went better than I could've imagined. I guess I am still so critical of myself that I think others couldn't possibly appreciate or like what I do. Boy was I wrong! Hopefully there will be many more in the future. What a feeling!

mw

Still Life with Bottle and Glasses, 2013

Don't Be Afraid of "No"

My step-son, who is 14 and in his Freshman year of high school, and I get along pretty well, but we just don’t get to see each other that much with my work schedule and the days that he is at our house. We see him mostly on weekends (I work weekends) and he fills us in on what’s happened throughout his school week. One of the major things that we have in common is art…OK, maybe we don’t necessarily like the same things, but he likes to draw and I enjoy watching him progress in the art world.

Throughout the week last week, he was texting his dad (my husband) about being interested in an art program that is offered at his high school. What makes me really proud is that he took the initiative to talk to the teacher on his own (he can be shy) and set up a time to meet with her. Awesome, right? He ended up meeting with her and she liked his drawings. She offered him two choices: he could be in the architecture class or the drawing class next year. Want to hear the really cool thing? The architecture class is only offered to Juniors and Seniors and she said he could join next school year as a Sophomore. That’s fantastic! He has a decision to make and, I gotta say, I couldn’t be more proud either way.

I learn a little something from him (whether he knows it or not) on occasion. From this, I realized that I need to take some more initiative to put myself out there and show people more of my drawings. Stepping out and not being afraid of “no” can be scary, but what’s life if you’re not taking chances every once in a while? Don’t be afraid of “no;” the next person just might say “yes.” 

Facebook Auction!

Don't forget to head over to The Orange Easel's page "like" it and check out the AUCTION post on Facebook for a chance to bid on this original drawing by me! Auction ends Sunday, 9pm Eastern time.

Thanks!
mw

Still Life with Bottle and Glasses, 2013

Happy Birthday, Picasso

In honor of Pablo Picasso's birthday today, I would like to share some of his works. He was the co-founder of the Cubist movement and the invention of constructed sculpture, the co-inventor of collage, and many more styles that he had a hand in developing and experimenting with. He was one of the best and most influential artists of the 20th Century. (October 25, 1881-April 8, 1973)

La Vie, 1903

Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, 1907

Still Life with Bottle of Rum, 1911

L'Homme aux Cartes (Card Player), 1913-14

Three Musicians, 1921

Guernica, 1937

The Weeping Woman, 1937

Joie de Vivire, 1946

Don Quixote, 1955

The consensus on yesterday’s post ended up with black and white as the choice. So, within the next week, I will get busy on drawing the leaf piece. I will post updates as it goes along.

I have attached a piece I did several years ago (prints are available for purchase here) just to get some thoughts on it. There really isn’t much of a place like that around where I live at the moment, but I’m considering finding a park somewhere to do a similar piece. What do you think?

Glen-Helen

Black and White or Color?

I drew these two sketches this evening. I'm trying to decide if I want to do a bigger piece in color or black and white. Color has always been harder for me, so I naturally lean towards black and white. What do you think? 

I'm not hugely into politics. I actually do my best to stay out of any political conversation. However, this article featuring a giant purple middle finger aimed towards Czech President Milos Zeman caught my eye. The artist, David Cerny, said the purple finger was "a middle-fingered salute at the fucking Communist shits in Castle." Some of you may find that statement inappropriate, but I find it hilarious and accurate. Think about how much your government is hated and how much the recent shut down affected everyone. Let's picture what the White House lawn would look like with a giant purple middle finger proudly displayed there. How would you feel about that?

David Cerny's giant purple middle finger sculpture
on Vltava River in front of Prague's castle.

About This Blog

This is a blog about art…my artworks, methods, and frustrations; other artworks that I find interesting or not; and pretty much anything else that is related to art.

Art has been a passion of mine for as many years as I can remember, but, for some reason, I haven’t gotten myself out there in the art world for quite some time. Call it lazy, call it whatever. I received a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Art 13 years ago…wow…and I’ve gone back to grad school at Tiffin University and have almost completed a Master’s degree in Art and Visual Media, so I figured it’s about time to start. I recently posted some of my own works online for sale (you can buy prints here) and I decided a blog may not hurt either. It’s all about sharing art and living the experiences even if it’s just me, this computer, and all the art in the world.

When it comes to my own art, I have painted a few things, but drawing—pencil, charcoal, crayon, chalk, pastel—is my favorite. I hope to share some artworks of my own here with you as well as taking a look at some other folks’ works, including the great Masters. It could be a bumpy ride at times, but it’ll be worth it in the end. I hope you stick around to see how it goes and where this art journey will take me. 

mw

Welcome!

This site is currently under renovation. Please follow and stop back by to check it out again soon!

Thanks!

mw