PUBLICATIONS

Images: Front and back covers of the American Art Collector

Front cover of Inquiring Mind

Lots of stuff happening!

I just received my copies of the "American Art Collector", which I wasn't expecting until the end of November. I am excited to be a part of it--the book has turned out very nicely. This was a juried competition, and the book is published by Alcove Books in Berkeley, CA. It includes over 300 artists from all over the US, working in 2D and 3D formats. There is quite a range of styles and overall the work is of very high quality. These are distributed to art galleries nationwide, and are also available for sale at bookstores. And there are 3 of us featured in the American Art Collector who are part of Point Reyes Thanksgiving Open Studios! Myself, photographer Philip Loring Greene and ceramicist Carolyn Means.

The latest issue of Inquiring Mind arrived about a week ago. Inquiring Mind has been using my artwork for several years now & I have a large image of the "Mountain Lions" painting in this issue. IM is published in black and white only, but the I love the large format and each issue is really beautiful and the writing is superb. Subscriptions to Inquiring Mind are by donation and it is published twice yearly. It is produced for and supported by the vipassana community and is a non profit venture.

I will have both of these publications displayed at my Thanksgiving Open Studios for your perusal--& copies of the Inquiring Mind to give away to those who are interested. And just so you don't forget, here is the scoop on Open Studios:

Point Reyes Thanksgiving Open Studios

Friday Nov. 27 through Sunday November 29

11:00 AM to 5:00 PM each day

Group Exhibition at Toby's Feed Barn in Point Reyes Station

Opening Reception on Saturday Nov. 7 from 2:30 to 4:30 PM

Brochures with maps are available at local retailers and at artists' studios OR

on our website

http://www.pointreyesart.com

We have over 20 artists participating and you can see their work and read about them on the website. So check it out and plan your holiday weekend!

FINISHED

And here's the finished piece.

WORK IN PROGRESS

I have been working on this painting of a barn owl in a persimmon tree. It is close to being finished (I think) And I have been having encounters with REAL barn owls since I started working on it. (This is what always seems to happen to me--somehow I "call in" what I am painting to where I am seeing & experiencing it up close & personal.....always interesting & always a thrill.
And I "discovered" that I have a timer on my camera (who knew?) & I figured out how to use it (imagine that!) so that enabled me to take this "self-portrait" of me working on the painting. Those of you who are technology-challenged, like myself.....will understand this---the rest of you can just roll your eyes. :-)

NEW DIRECTIONS

Well, maybe I shouldn't say "New Directions"--I have done ceramics off & on since the 1970's. But it had been AWHILE--like since 1997. YIKES. And I missed doing it, but I didn't realize how much I missed it until I started again. (Funny how that works) And the most interesting thing to me is remembering how the ceramics and the painting complemented each other & bounced off of each other---& what an incredibly fertile time it was, when I was doing both at the same time. And now that is coming back--how wonderful!!! It feels just right.

And I will be debuting my new pieces (whatever I can get finished) at my Open Studios on Thanksgiving weekend. (That will be the Fri.-Sun weekend of Thanksgiving from 11-5 at my studio in Pt. Reyes Station) After that, I will be adding ceramics to the rest of my display at the Farmer's Markets.

The pieces pictured above are all hand made in either Navajo Wheel or Hawaiian Red clay---fired to cone 5 and glazed with blue and green cone 5 glazes in an electric kiln. Some of the raw clay is left between the glazed areas. I love that look & feel.

I am experimenting a lot, so it's hard to say what you might see in the upcoming months. Come by & check it out!

NEW MARKET

I have been showing with the Marin Farmer's Markets Association for about 5 years now.....

They just started a new market this summer in the Stonestown shopping center in SF.........

It is held year-round, on Sundays from 9 AM-1PM--in the parking lot behind Macy's.....

I was there a couple of Sundays ago for the first time.......

It is a small market at this point, but quite varied--these pictures will give you a little taste...

There was live music and vendors selling prepared foods, as well as fruits & veggies....

The neighborhood is very excited about the market & the turnout was pretty good....

The location is near my old neighborhood in the city, so I felt quite at home....

It was foggy and cool that day, which was perfect for me as I had Joey (my St. Bernard) in the truck.....

Here's what my booth looked like....

And here are some paintings done by my friend Mike, who was next to me....

Hope you enjoyed seeing these pictures.....

Stop by & check it out some Sunday when you are in the neighborhood!

OS GEMEOS MURAL

Os Gemeos (meaning "twins") is the name of two twin brothers from Brazil, who are "so called" graffiti artists. They recently created this mural in NYC & this photo is taken from the article in the NY Times. They have done major pieces all over the world, but this was the first time I had heard of them. I am totally ENCHANTED with their imagery and imaginations--but also blown away with how they are creating these paintings. Yes, it is spray paint, but they have come up with ways of using things like templates to create a hightly detailed and incredible world. There is a slide show on the NY Times website, showing various aspects of this work and also them at work on it. You can see that here. I googled them and there are lots of links with pictures of various projects they have done--also a very profound and moving interview with them which you can see here. Check it out--it is worth seeing! You will be amazed.
In other news, my etsy shop is coming along nicely. I have been working on it since the beginning of July--it seems non-stop. I am getting closer to having it pretty together as a site----but then, of course--your shop is never really DONE. Go here to see my updates. If you have any comments, suggestions or whatever--I would be happy to hear them!

ETSY

I joined ETSY in the beginning of May, but didn't start to post any items until July. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Etsy.com----it is a website for artisans and retailers who sell handcrafted items and art, vintage clothing and accessories and craft supplies. It has been around for a few years and has become quite a phenomenon. I liked the idea of it, and I like the fact that it is so community oriented. There are forums and conversations that members can participate in, and ongoing workshops and a blog with tips on selling and creating your shop. Sellers get their own online shops----Etsy provides templates & instruction on how to create your look. Paypal is available as are the options of accepting checks or money orders. There is no fee to have a shop--there are minimal fees to list each item (.20 for 4 months) and a small percentage taken on each sale. It is perfect for me as an addition to my website and blog--giving me a venue where it is simple for my supporters to drop by, check out what is available & order cards, magnets & prints---even some originals--and just pay securely online with a credit card.

Setting it up has also been a challenge and a learning experience for me in computer-land. I am getting more practice with Photoshop (which I desperately needed) and I am feeling pretty proud of my improvements in that area. I am not totally "set up" yet, but I am on my way.

I hope you all will stop by and visit my shop and check out the rest of Etsy.com as well. You will be amazed at the range of things that people are doing!

Image: "Pelican's Dream" gouache and watercolor with gold leaf on paper 16" x 20" This is a new painting and is currently being shown at The Pelican Studio Gallery on Hwy 1 (main street) in Point Reyes Station.