Arabian Mountain

After posting on my website a photo of an encaustic painting I have just finished, I decided I wanted to write about the image because it interests me. The original photo was taken with my view camera on an old majestic tripod atop Arabian Mountain. For those who are not familiar it is a foothill of Stone Mountain in Georgia. I don't remember exactly how I found out about the spot but in any event the story was that the KKK had meetings there at one time. I honestly do not know if that is true but the day I climbed with my heavy load of equipment it was deserted. Not a soul anywhere. Truly it was a an eerie experience as the photos I took still make me wonder. At some time I think I'll revisit them all, the prints that is. One photo of a fissure in the stone looks like an open grave. I know this sounds creepy perhaps but I found myself wondering as I reinvented the original photograph in encaustic and silk why this pics still fascinate me.

Studio

Remarkably I am spending at least six to eight hours a day painting. It is glorious. Nothing has been better for me than my studio space. When I left this evening it was only because I need to give it a rest. Myopia is sometimes not a good thing. Tomorrow I will go to work and see the two paintings I have been working on simultaneously with new eyes. Even though I wanted to start the next two, I said to myself get some rest and start fresh tomorrow. That is very hard to do when the paint is flowing, or should I say fusing in this case. There is a certain obsession that follows the passion for art making and as many experts have said....keep your balance. Very hard to do.

So here is a snap of my studio. That's Joanna whom I have mentored since she was in Kindergarten. She is a joy to work with and a gifted artist headed for a successful career in art someday.

Thank You

I had a great email this week from a client who purchased one of my paintings from Griffith Gallery. It was a "thank you" for a painting that he placed in his office. It's so rare when I know where a painting finally ends up and I was very grateful for his message. Not only did he hang it in his office but he planned the interior decor based on the painting. Now that is a dream client! I am the one who is thanking him.

It's been a great August (and still is). I'm working on commissions, have great people to mentor, am joining fellow encaustic artists in a local group of the International Encaustic Artists, and meeting and working with a group of artists at the complex where I have my studio. In other words, I'm having fun.

Is it fall yet?

Amazing to me that in two short weeks school starts in Georgia. It is so hot right now, I can not imagine teaching or learning anything. What happened to summer? In another sense I'll be glad people will be back in town. Either vacations or the economy is keeping people from the galleries. I would hazard a guess that it is the economy if all the financial pundits are correct.

On the other hand life goes on...I paint...that's what I do no matter what the financial markets do. I ask myself once in a while, why would I choose art making for a career. The answer comes very quickly, that's what I do. It's my passion, my vocation...but don't tell me that I am following my bliss. To be an artist is sometimes blissful but that is a rare indeed or so it seems to me. When a painting really works, I mean really works to the point that you shudder with delight as you stand before it, then blissful it is. How many times does that happen? May I say again, rarely. There is truly nothing like recognizing that I have created something and I do not know how I did it. I mean literally I do not know how it came about. I guess if I did know then I'd be turning them out one after another. Quite a search goes on for that image I look for all my life. It takes a lifetime of work and I will never be sure I will find THE image. Good luck.

New Work

I just posted a new image on the index page on my website. I've been working on it for weeks. The photo is really a detail since it is a large painting 30 x 60 inches...the largest that I've attempted so far. I'm now hooked and know that more larger paintings are on the horizon.

Tonight I'm taking it easy. I didn't go to the studio today, taking a little break since I teach tomorrow morning early and then plan to start fusing and painting later in the day. More paintings! Now that I have air conditioning in my studio I can work any time in utter comfort. No, the temp is still around 80-85 but the humidity is gone. Working in the South in the summer can be daunting. When I first moved into my studio I had to take paintings home because the heat was keeping the wax a little too soft when I didn't need it soft. It was a challenge getting ready for the exhibit at Thomas Deans.

Outside my new apartment there is a virtual garden of eden..plum, apple, and fig trees and beautiful flowering plants everywhere. I know that I will be busy with my camera taking advantage of so much beauty as fodder for my new work.

Encaustic Workshop

I'm in the midst of planning for my upcoming workshop. I look forward to conducting workshops for encaustic painting I guess because I love the method of working. There are so many variables involved that no way will I get bored. Fusing is not the most fun I ever had but on the other hand there are times when the process allows me to wait. Yes wait. That time for me is a good thing since I am a bit impulsive...shall I say.

This time around I want to take some photos during the workshop. The last workshop in the fall was so much fun. I always learn as much as I teach to others. Really a win/win. The workshop will be at the Atlanta Artists Center. What a great place. It's a pleasure to work in a room with space to move around, plenty of amenities along with their helpful members. July 19th, all day should prove to be a creative day. We'll work with pastels, monotypes, charcoal, photographs...you name it.

Too Long

Time to post! I have been in the midst of working on a large encaustic, the biggest I've worked on so far and of course I like working big. I think my best work has always been of the larger variety. It's just something that I understand; it's freeing. The work I'm creating now is photo based and that in itself is news because it takes me back to my photographic roots. I feel as if I have come full circle. How phenomenal. I'm energized to keep my camera at my side and this time it's so much easier in the digital world. Though I must admit working in the darkroom was one of my favorite activities. I'll always miss the beauty of the BW print created in the dark. As a matter of fact I even enjoyed the process of developing my film.
My studio is up and running and I love the space, perfect for larger format work and for working in general. The work is flowing in the best way possible.

Great weekend opening at Tannery Row. The "Word" reception was great, poets were interesting and art outstanding. The artists' studios are definitely worth a trip to Buford, Georgia. Interesting town too.

The work above is an encaustic that is now on view at Thomas Deans Fine Art on Bennett Street in Atlanta. Love the gallery and this is one of the paintings that is currently in the exhibit, "From Nature". More to come.