Winter Art Show Downtown Boise

During the month of December 2010 I have a solo art show taking place at LUX Fashion Lounge downtown Boise. This is my second show featured at LUX this year. I had a show during the summer in June when the sun was out, the pavement was hot, and people were downtown in shorts and sandals. This time the streets are covered in snow, the trees & buildings are decked out with colorful lights, and people are bundled up to stay warm.

I have new art being displayed. Keeping with my abstract expressionist style...I took simple themes and explored different ways to speak emotion. Some of the paintings were created on unstretched canvas, other paintings were created on sheets of cardboard (I was inspired by Idaho artist James Castle who utilized objects around him (things like cardboard, food boxes, matchbooks, and other printed materials as his canvas; soot and spit for his paint; and string to bind things together).

I used black metal clips and wire strung across the top as an edgy way to hang. This allows for the viewer to focus on the art & hanging materials as one piece. No traditional frame required. The 3 large paintings that I created on cardboard were originally a 3 piece series that I did in my art studio. The series is titled "Have Your Way" with "Fill Me Up" placed on the left, "Sing Over Me" placed in the middle, and "Rain Down On Me" placed on the right. I think that each painting can actually stand alone though, so I hung them away from each other.

There are a few paintings (the tree in this photo & the trees & the corn field in an above photo) that I did as studies from Van Gogh while at Open Studio in the VineArts Studio. He has been such an inspiration to me throughout my art career. I've spent a lot of time studying his work, his techniques, his philosophy, his life. Many of my impressionistic oil landscapes were influenced by his paintings. Currently though...I've been taking some of his paintings and creating similiar ones...but with my own RevelatorArt abstract expressionist twist. The 3 paintings here are layered acrylic paint with splatter techniques.

I did have one painting that I created on stretched canvas...but it is mixed media of oil, watercolor, acrylic paints, and pencil. The painting was a study I did during Open Studio in the VineArts Studio. I found the original in a "how to" watercolor book. I'm not much for "how to" books...I would rather create original ideas. So I decided to make it my own by mixing and layering different mediums and utilizing splatter & drip techniques that the book didn't offer.

This painting is oil with some acrylic paint splatter. I did this one in Open Studio at the VineArts Studio also...I had brought my Winsor & Newton, and Sennelier Oil Bars in to demostrate to other artists and this was a painting I created on the spot. Oh...and there's also a little watercolor whirlpool painting (featured in one of the photos above) that I did in Open Studio as a study for a larger painting I was planning to do in layered acrylics.

OH...and all paintings are for sale!

Having an art show once in awhile is something I enjoy very much. There's something about prepping, painting, & planning for an installation that brings about a sense of accomplishment once it's hung and in view of the public. Over the last 12 years I have shown in NUMEROUS art galleries, art supply stores, coffeeshops, various kinds of retail shops, libraries, state fairs, auctions, juried shows, indoor & outdoor art & music events, & even private home shows. The exposure my paintings get during art shows has always allowed for sales & some great contact with future clients and also for continued relationship with venues & establishments.