New painting : Operation Sushi

  Today's post is all about my latest painting. I created the watercolour below, "Operation: Sushi" for Hot Art Wet City's upcoming Boobies and Weiners show in Vancouver. Unfortunately time and money constraints make it so that I won't be able to get the piece down there in time. Do go see the show though because I'm sure it will be a good one.

 I don't usually paint nudes of any sort but I was inspired by something I saw in my Facebook feed. In the city I live there are plenty of great restaurants to eat at but there has been a disturbing trend in the food service industry to sexualize the whole dining experience. Large chains like Brown's Social House, Earls, Original Joe's,Cactus Club, and Moxies have aggressively expanded and have required their serving staff to fit to a "grooming standard" that would be unacceptable in most industries today. 2 1/2" high heel minimum, hem lengths 2" or more above the knee and a look of "sophisticated sexiness" are written rules the servers have to to abide by. I'm not kidding here, these are facts. Added to the list are the unwritten rules that you should be very slender, attractive and young. I know I've had this rant before. It's not that I'm just a seasoned server who can't fit the Barbie mould but I think this standard of service is dangerous. It's damn scary slipping on a wet tile floor with a tray full of glasses, I can't imagine doing it in stilettos and a mini-skirt too. As well, I think this style of service puts an unfair burden onto the server when interacting with the customer. Not only does the server have to sell food to the customer using her body(?!) but she has to always consider the relationships between the patrons themselves and between her in relation to her attire. I don't know how many times I've heard people tell me how awkward it feels to have "breastaurant" server clear plates from their children or see the face of their own daughter in them because the server is so young. Why? Why and when did we decide that men needed hard-ons to eat?!

So.....just when I thought the restaurant culture couldn't get any worse I saw a headline about a new food service concept that's come to Vancouver by way of Japan. This new low is called Naked Sushi where diners can order a selection of sushi that will be served on the body of a young, beautiful and naked woman. This young woman is not to speak, the customers are not to touch her or make lewd gestures but rather she is just supposed to lie still and be a plate. Yup, a literal object. You've got to be fucking kidding me. I'm going to end this rant with a big "Fuck You Assholes" and I hope everyone involved with this new venture has mothers, daughters, wives, girlfriends and sisters who are discounted, disrespected and treated as nothing more than a source of desire for other men. Oh, and thanks for the painting inspiration. Jerks.

The translation on the chopsticks are: man, mouth, men and geisha

Showing at Fat Cow and Oyster Bar

  So you remember that creative funk I've been in? Well I saw a showing call that was put out by a local independent restaurant that I admire. With eyes wide I jumped at the opportunity and met up with Chris, the owner of the Fat Cow and Oyster Bar to look at the space. 

The Fat Cow is tucked in a little industrial plaza that would be so easy to miss if you weren't looking for it. Kudos to Chris for creating a restaurant that serves food you're willing to search for. Langley is abundant with large corporate restaurants that serve safe standard dishes for the masses coupled with mediocre service. My heart is always warmed when there are chefs willing to make great food with fresh local ingredients and who are responsive to their guests. Too bad there aren't more.

Back to the showing space.....the walls are quite high at the Fat Cow so I had to put up mostly larger pieces. I went with a recent food series I've been working on. I however didn't have anything for their large brick back wall so I had the genius idea of buying a 30" x 40" canvas and creating something. I haven't painted that large in ages and I had to wrestle with a lot of negative self-talk to get it done. Thankfully my timeline was short and I forced myself to get it done. How's that for confronting the demons?!

Below is the painting "Lotus Tea". I was able to work on a few things in this piece that I've been putting off for ages. The pattern on the cups is from an uneditioned linocut block I cut years ago. My mantra for this piece was,"less thinking, more doing". I have mixed feelings about the finished piece but I'm proud of myself for having done it despite my insecurities.

If you haven't made your Valentine's Dinner plans yet I recommend checking out Fat Cow for their yummy looking Valentine's Aphrodisiac menu. Tell them I sent you!

I'm inspired by....Rebecca Green

Today's post is on one of my latest inspirations and art crushes. I recently discovered the art of Rebecca Green and I am so smitten.

Rebecca Green

via Rebecca Green Blog

via Rebecca Green Blog

I love the muted colours, the strong drawing skills, the sweep of the lines, the paint quality, the subject matter and overall melancholy and quiet character of the work. Love, love, love! Please check out Rebecca's website for more of her work and I'm sure you'll be inspired too.

Local Showings

Just thought I'd let let you guys know that I'm currently showing works in a couple places right now. I have one series of landscapes and moon images hung up at the Terry Fox Library in Port Coquitlam. If you're that far into the 'burbs you take a look and take out a book.

My second show is hung in the Upper Rotunda of the Richmond Brighouse Library. This new series is all about mushrooms and I taken the theme and explored it in a variety of ways. I really enjoyed creating the works for this show because I gave myself permission to experiment and learn things that I had been putting off for ages.

If you happen to be in the downtown Richmond area, take a look and you'll see monotypes, watercolors,photography, digital painting, encaustics and linocuts all inter-mixed. I haven't yet properly documented this work but once it comes down I will and I will start adding the pieces to my shop. As always, these pieces have spurred some new ideas. If only my studio time were more often.

My monotype process video

Ever since I've done monotype prints I've been confronted by the fact that most people don't know what they are. Although they are a printmaking technique, they are a little different in that only one image can be produced. They are kind of a hybrid between printmaking and painting. I've also found that once people find out that they are prints, they sometimes dismiss them as being of "lesser value" than an original painting.

It's been a bit of a struggle to explain a rarely used technique in an already misunderstood medium. I've asked around on the forums about this and I have gotten some great advice from other sellers. Most suggested that I needed to show my printmaking process more and explain some of the terminology so that the average person could understand it.

Because I'm a visual person, I can appreciate watching  demo. videos. For more than a year I've been wanting to post a video of myself doing a monotype. I finally made one but I had some major hurdles with editing and uploading. So after my Sony handi-cam bit the dust I invested in a Flip video camera which cost a third of what my Sony did. And guess what? I filmed on a Sunday and I edited and uploaded my movie by Monday. The Flip comes with its' own editing software which is just great. If I want to though, I can edit with iMovie or another movie program.

Take a look at my video and feel free to leave comments. At five minutes long I think I will edit the next one to be a bit shorter and.....I can now because I have the technology!
You can view the painting process of my "I think we need to have a chat" here which was done with my digital camera. I set my camera to take a photo every 30 sec. for each session. A not bad solution but it still required a LOT of editing.

Stay tuned for more YouTube videos.

Work in progress

Now that we're well into January I thought I'd show you what I've busily been working on. For ages now I've been wanting to work in encaustic but I've been too intimidated by the process and the expense to try. It always seemed so mysterious and potentially toxic. Alas, I couldn't shake the interest in was and started researching it more.

This January after having realized that I had double-booked myself for art shows, I thought it would be a fantastic opportunity to create an entirely new series of work based around encaustics. This new series will continue with the mushroom theme I've been doing but it will incorporate linocuts, encaustic paintings, monotypes, drawing and watercolors. I will be tackling many new techniques that I've never tried before and it's gotten me wishing that there was some way I could get rid of sleep and work so I could work in the studio more.

Above are a couple of photos of a encaustic painting in the process. The second one is of painting being carved with my linocut tools to help me create details. The wax really is magical and it's always on the verge of being out of my control. I love that kind of creating. So what do you think? Do you work in wax? Do you have any hints or tips for me? I would love to hear them.

Opening night at the Firehall Arts Centre

With the first week of the year finished, I'm happy to say that my show opening at the Firehall Arts Centre went really well last Friday. I haven't regularly gone to show openings in ages (read: since before kids) and I felt a little out of place. Once I had a glass of wine in hand and was able to take some photos of the work up, I felt a little more comfortable.

Roz Maclean, the other artist showing with me, had a great set of small pieces displayed and I was really taken with her pen work. Layered with paint, paper, ink, the pieces were evocative in their illustrative style. Each piece seemed to talk about a story and their size really captured the feeling of perhaps being whispered personal thoughts. I am really pleased to be showing with Roz. Please click on the highlighted link to see more of her work.

I know I've said this before but seeing artwork online versus in person is just not the same and I wish there were more venues in Vancouver in which artists could showcase their work in person. Alas, online is less risky and less expensive and I'm glad to be able to show my work in a format that exposes me to such a huge audience. I do wish people would be aware that what you're seeing on the screen is just a portion of what's actually there. More often than not, I think that when you buy any artwork online you will be pleasantly pleased at how much more that piece is once it's in your hands. That's when you get to see its' soul.

If you would like to see the Firehall show it will be up until February 26th. Gallery hours are Wed-Sat. 1-5pm.
Thanks to everyone who came out that night. Stay tuned for news about some shows I have happening in the spring.

So Inspiring

For today's post I thought I 'd share with you a couple of artists that inspire me with their work. There really are so many that do but today I'm picking Jennifer Davis and Adam Rex as the people who make me want to paint and express myself via the canvas.

I'm not sure where I first saw Jennifer Davis's work but it blew me away. I've clicked all around her shop and blog trying to choose one piece that I can put on my ThisNext wish list.  A very hard task indeed. I find Jennifer's work so beautiful in the most unconventional way. Each piece is unique and has some unusual and peculiar narrative going on. Most fantastic.

The other artist, Adam Rex, I found when I went to the library to choose some children's books for the kids. We always get a pile of books for bedtime and then I choose some just for myself to look at. Because I've had this long range goal of illustrating a children's book one day, I always enjoy absorbing the images and techniques of other children's book illustrators.

Adam Rex's work reminds me of Daniel Adel's in its painterly fashion and I'm enthralled by each brushstroke. Adam paints the way I wish I could. Expressive yet controlled and filled with the textural beauty of the paint. I recently ordered "Frankenstein makes a Sandwich" through my daughter's school fundraiser just so I could add another of his books to my children's book collection. Not only can Adam paint, but can also write a humorous and engaging story. How inspiring is that? I wonder if I'll ever be able to afford on of his originals. Hmmmm....

Tell me which artists inspire you. Are they online, are they historic, is it your own mother? Would love to hear about it.

Stop-over in London

  On our way back home from Greece we had a stop-over in London, England. We had one day to explore this amazing city and I knew  it wouldn't be enough. My only goal was to visit the Tate gallery. In the four years of art school I noticed that some of my most favorite paintings were housed in the Tate. I, of course, didn't know there was more than one Tate.
Since we had the kids with us and we knew they were't too thrilled with walking around art galleries we made sure to bring strollers and a knowledge that we would have to absorb the art fast. The fact that the Tate Britan was free made us feel a little less pressure to take it all in.
I was thrilled to be able to finally see so many amazing paintings that I've only seen in books. I was surprised to learn how big most of these paintings are. My most favorite works were pieces that showed the hand of the artist and their skill. While I did see some beautiful Caravaggio paintings I was dissappointed at how flawless the surface of the painting was. I couldn't tell you how they were painted. The Singer Sargent paintings were some of my favorites and everytime I see one in person it makes me want to paint with fluid, bold and fast strokes.
By some miracle we were able to see the Tate Britan and the National Museum while on our short stay. If I get a chance to visit London again I hope it will be for at least a week because I know the city has so much to offer.
Below are some pictures of some of the pieces that made me "ooooooo" and "aawwwww".

I didn't do any real shopping while in London but I did go into a store which has been established since 1707(!). I only saw a small portion of the Fortnum and Mason store but I have to say that it was just amazing. This is one fine department store! We hit the teas, candy, and pastry floor, of course, but by chance for a washroom we hit the kitchen supply floor and ended up with a new cooking apron. As we walked through we saw beautiful tea sets which the girls loved. As I stopped to pick up a cup I noticed the price....540 pounds! This was not the price of the whole set, this was the price of the one cup. The set will put you back 7,655 pounds.  Below is a photo of the most expensive tea set I've ever seen. I promised the girls that when we got back home we would get some fancy tea cups from the thrift shop for our own tea party but "please don't touch anything!"

So what other places must I visit when I get a chance to make it to London again?