It's Good to be Back...

Saturday morning I finally made it over to the Oregon College of Art and Craft for their Open Life Drawing Class. And oh was it good to be back in that setting! I really enjoyed college and I love everything about an art studio setting. The first thing I noticed when I entered the room was the smell. The wonderful scent of oil paint. It smells like hard work and passion and happiness. 

Another wonderful thing about studios are the floors. Concrete splattered with gesso and paint and the blood, sweat, and tears of art students. So many hours are spent in these rooms. The history is on the floors. My painting studio space during my senior year at UCLA was...well, it was a mess. But a mess that I loved. See for yourself...

Time to get to work! I can't make that kind of a mess in the studio I have now, but someday I will be able to unleash my wild messy side again. :)

Artists: Yinka Shonibare, MBE

Fact: Art is my passion. And a huge part of being an artist is studying other artists and understanding the history you come from. I'd like to start sharing work by some of the artists that inspire me and have made an impact on my growth and development. First up, Yinka Shonibare, MBE. 

I first saw Yinka Shonibare's work at the Venice Biennale in 2007. His piece stood out in my memory among the hundreds of artworks I saw there. That fall I took a Modern and Contemporary African Art History class at UCLA with Professor Steven Nelson, and I had the great opportunity and pleasure of learning more about Shonibare's work. 

Shonibare creates elaborate Victorian clothing from what is recognized as African prints. These cloths were originally made in Holland and sold to colonies in Africa. This cloth made in Europe is worn by millions of Africans and is intended to signify an indigenous identity. This brings up questions of authenticity and acknowledges the elaborate history of the cloth itself. Is identity a construction? Many of the figures are also depersonalized (often headless or covered in cloth) and we are left with the material as a primary signifier. 

His works are so beautifully constructed yet so charged with questions of identity and politics as well. I think that's why I am initially drawn to his work- it's stimulates both the mind and the eye.

All images via the artist's website. You can view it here. 

Drawing

The Oregon College of Art and Craft offers inexpensive Open Life Drawing Classes every Saturday morning at 10:00. This is something I discovered a while ago but for some reason I always forget about it! So I have made grand plans to attend this Saturday's open studio. It's a great resource for artists since they provide the space and model at a low cost. I am looking forward to get my creative juices flowing! I haven't worked with a live model in years so this should be fun! The photo above is of a sketch I did while attending UCLA as an undergraduate. I still remember that day fondly. Here's a sketch of an abstract version of the same figure:

I love getting to experiment with different techniques and materials to create something new and different. Sometimes it is nice to just allow yourself to be free and not over analyze every detail. This technique quickly became a favorite of mine. Here's another example:

I apologize for the terrible photo quality. These were taken when I was still in college, and clearly wasn't concerned with editing. Yikes!

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MoMA

Friday afternoon Tim and I took off on our own little adventure to eat at Shake Shack and visit the Museum of Modern Art for their free Friday nights (score!). I have never seen so many people packed into a museum to look at modern and contemporary art. It was really refreshing! 

It was one of the biggest and best collections I have seen. There was an excellent Cindy Sherman exhibition on the top level and it was such a treat to see the entire span of her work over the years. I also enjoyed Monet's water lily pieces including the one photographed above. Impressionist works are reproduced so often that they start to lose their beauty. Seeing this work in person was an entirely different experience- it was breathtaking. The brushstrokes are fabulously abstract and the colors seem to glow on the canvas. The large scale also allows you to get lost in the work and just enjoy the beauty of the painting. 

There was also an excellent Mark Bradford work on display. I find his ideas regarding abstraction and craft intriguing- particularly his view of the map as an abstract grid. He takes collage to a higher level and inspires me to do the same with my own works. Let's "zoom" in to the piece:

It's madness. I love it. 

A few more:

Let's also talk about the wonder that is the Shake Shack. It had been such a long time since I indulged in a cheeseburger and it was worth the wait. It was just the right size and super tasty, and to top it all off I also ordered a peanut butter shake. Yum.

I am going to go dream of delicious burgers and fries now. Mmm....

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At Work

Despite the gorgeous weather outside I decided that today I would stay in and work on my paintings in the studio. I am glad I did because I ended up finishing a piece I have been working on for a while now. I have a habit of completely losing track of time while I am working and like to make sure I give myself a big chunk of the day dedicated to doing nothing but creating. I listen to music while I paint and enjoy all of the different memories and feelings that come with listening to a particular song. Here's a sampling of my playlist for today:

1. Electric Light Orchestra "Living Thing": ELO always reminds me of my father and all the great music he introduced us to at such a young age. 
2. Elton John "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road": Old school Elton is the best Elton.
3. Neil Young "After The Gold Rush": "Harvest Moon" is my favorite, but this is pretty good too. 
4. Jovanotti "Penelope": I discovered Jovanotti while I was living in Italy in college. Italian rap is kind of amazing. 
5. Coldplay "Fix You": Sometimes I forget just how long I have been listening to Coldplay. This album reminds me of the summer I spent traveling Europe in 2005, especially the sunny days in London. 
6. The Black Keys "Tighten Up": The Black Keys are a newer addition to my music family but I can't seem to get enough!
7. Electric Light Orchestra "Hold On Tight": I am kind of obsessed. 
8. Miike Snow "Song For No One": Ok, I take it back. I am actually obsessed with Miike Snow right now.
9. Harry Nilsson "Without You": Are you familiar with "The Puppy Song"? If not, you should be. My dad used to play it for me and it was only the best song ever. Once I finally get a dog, it will be our theme song. 
10. Cut Copy "Lights and Music (Moulinex Remix)": 'Cause you gotta mix it up a little.

And here's the painting I finished today:

Amanda Donahue, "The Cubans", Acrylic on Canvas, 2012.

Happy Places

There are certain places I can go and spend endless amounts of time wandering around in pure happiness. For me, the art store is one of those places. I have to go up and down each and every aisle, making sure I don't miss a single possible treasure. Confession: I might go up and down every aisle twice.

Oh, paint brushes. You are one of my favorites. I love the way the soft synthetic bristles feel. And finding the biggest brush out of the bunch. On the inside I feel like a child again, wanting to run up to the next person I see and tell them "Wow!!! Did you see how big this one is?!" 

Unfortunately, I can't seem to enter an art supply store without leaving with a bag full of goodies. There's always a new paint color I haven't tried, a brush that needs replacing, or canvas that needs to come home with me "just in case". You never know when there could be a canvas crisis!

Art supply stores of the world, thank you for being one of my happy places!

What are some of your special spots?

Butter Goes To PAM

One night last week Tim had to work late, so I decided to take myself on a date to the Portland Art Museum to see the Mark Rothko exhibit. I always end up roaming the oh so familiar modern and contemporary galleries while I am there, and leave feeling energized and inspired. 

"The subject of painting is the painting itself" -Mark Rothko

 This is the first comprehensive Rothko exhibit I have been to and it was such a pleasure to be able to see his journey into abstraction. I am obsessed with the electric blue in the painting above, "Untitled (Harvard Mural Sketch)", 1962. However, one of my favorite qualities of walking into a room full of Rothkos is the power that the large scale paintings evoke. It feels as if you are literally walking into the work. 

Duane Hanson, "Dishwasher", 1973.

This piece completely startled me when I walked into this gallery. I only caught it out of the corner of my eye initially and thought someone was sitting in the gallery contemplating one of the pieces. Even after I realized it was actually a highly realistic sculpture I still felt like I was encroaching on a private moment. 

I found these little treats in the museum gift shop. I adore French macaroons and was delighted by these  tiny trinket boxes. Museum gift shops are a treasure trove of unique objects.

A night at the museum is always a lovely night. 

*Artwork depicted in title photo is "Untitled (To Donna)" by Dan Flavin. I always love a good Dan Flavin piece!