Announcing; The Other Art Fair Chicago!!
I’m thrilled to announce my next show for 2021 will be in Chicago, exhibiting with The Other Art Fair. The fair will open on the 30th of September and runs through the evening of October 3rd.
Where I’m showing; Revel Fulton Market! This is a new venue for the Fair, but it looks pretty sweet. Booth numbers will be announced soon!
What I’m showing; NEW THINGS! I’ll be bringing a collection of work that stemmed from my experiments in lock-down; pared down materials, repetition of marks, contours inspired by my studio surroundings. I’ll have a few sneak peeks up on my instagram, so make sure to follow along to see the process.
COVID Precautions; Thus far it looks like there will be timed entries and mask requirements regardless of vaccination status (except at the outdoor bar)- so I’m feeling pretty good about my decision to attend.
I’ll have some codes for free entry to share soon, so if you’d like to attend make sure you’re on my email list for the code announcement!
Looking forward to seeing you!
Color & Contour - Show Recap
Opening night! (pre-storm)
I loved this room.
We had wind, rain, lost balloons, champagne, puppies, cheese and - art.
Color & Contour - About the Work
Many of these paintings had lives as other paintings. During the first days/weeks of the pandemic we were told to wipe down our groceries (remember that?) my canvas supply began to dwindle and I wasn’t sure how to safely replace it.
But I still needed to paint.
Out came old, unfinished or unsuccessful work that had been stored away. It was re-gessoed, added to, painted over, given a new/different life.
Marks had begun to emerge as my process shifted from one informed by what was outside of my studio, to one that existed purely within it’s four walls. I spent a lot of time making contour drawings of my immediate surroundings. No plant was safe from still-life set-ups.
These sweeping arm/wrist movements became familiar over time and carried through the various lockdowns, and when I could leave the studio again - remained.
Similarly, the colors that previously were taken from new environments and new places became extraordinarily localized. I found myself returning to the same plants, same shadows and these tones dominated much of the work.
I’ve broken down the process among several paper collections to give the viewer a look into these marks as they existed in my sketchbooks and provide a little more insight to the movement and colors explored on the canvas.
If you couldn’t make it, here’s a little photo recap. New work from the show hasn’t been listed for sale yet, but will be soon.
(Make sure you are a part of the VIP list to get first dibs when it goes live!)
The set-up.
I adore this space. LOOK AT ALL THESE PLANTS.
The show was so much fun and I am so incredibly grateful to everyone who made it out / sent good vibes from afar. Thank you all so much for spending some time with me talking about art and sharing what you saw in the work - it was just so wonderful to get to see you all after this strange and scary year!
NEW STUDIO!
Welcome to my new art space!!!
(well, eventually.)
After many fruitless tours and meetings - I finally found the new home for my art practice. And, it’s not what I thought it would be, but it’s perfect.
A three car garage with a nook and a loft and fits alllll of my criteria from my other post. Or, rather it will fit all my criteria - with a few adjustments.
We’re adding plumbing for a sink/laundry tub and bathroom, insulation and a mini-split for heating and cooling, drywall and track lighting, and eventually replacing the doors with frosted panels. It’s going to be a big, fun project. I think I’ll paint the floor as well? We’ll see.
A peek into the loft!
The nook. For shipping? Snacks?
The first floor will be a combination of workspace and show space; tables and rolling walls for painting and display. I can’t wait to host an open studio and roll around the walls for a nice, cohesive walk-through.
The second floor will be mostly storage, maybe a small painting nook, and possible shelving for my plants by the windows.
I’m trying not to get *too* excited for the space as the remodel certainly won’t be quick -- but I keep finding myself sketching floor plans, mentally taking measurements of furniture, crossing my fingers for an affordable wine fridge to pop up on Facebook Marketplace...
It’s been a long journey to find this place and I am overjoyed to be able to call this place my studio. I’ll be posting photos of the progress here and there to instagram, so follow along if you want to watch the transformation.
Moving Studios!
As we have decided to cancel our move to Palo Alto (husband’s new office was shut down during pandemic and he is quite liking working here from home!) I’ve been on the hunt for studio space.
If you have been following me for a while you know I’ve predominantly worked out of my home, except for a brief period in 2019 right before we got our puppy (...and then I was too busy with him to justify renting the room!)
I love working from home.
I love waking up and stumbling down the stairs to get coffee and sit in my studio. It’s my favorite room in the house.
But.
I really need more space for the ideas I want to work with and the projects I’m currently working on.
So, now that we are 100% for sure staying in Ann Arbor - I’ve begun the process of checking out office spaces and artist areas for rent.
Here’s what I am hoping to find in no particular order;
Natural light. (I have my own lighting kit for photos)
Within my budget. Needs to make sense financially.
Dog friendly. Chew won’t be with me everyday, but the ability to bring him along occasionally is really important.
Easily accessible water/not a fancy sink. ( This seems like a silly list item, but I’ve toured some places with shared bathrooms WAAAAAAAY down the hall - too far to lug jars/brushes as often as I need to. Also if the only sink is a fancy one, I’ll be spending just as much time cleaning the sink as I am cleaning brushes. Laundry tub is ideal.)
Moderate temperature control. I’m ok with underpowered ACs/heat - but I can’t have super high humidity when I’m working/storing paper.
Ability to host events, bring collectors in for tours.
How pretty is this space!? A serious contender.
I’ve got a few more tours lined up for the weekend, fingers crossed for something to pan out soon-ish. I’ve got a lot of big ideas ready to go.
Updating my Photobook
The last time I updated this book was before a show in summer 2019. (Thanks Covid….)
So, it’s safe to say a lot needs to be adjusted before the opening of my show on June 11th: Sold work taken out, new gallery pieces and contact info added, and of course, an updated CV.
This book comes with me to shows (space allowing) so anyone can flip through the pages and see additional work that may not have fit for the show, paintings that are currently in galleries and photos of commissions. For previous shows I had these up on a laptop/ipad, but I feel like there is something slightly more personal about leafing through an actual book. (And, on a number of occasions after the show I’d discover open tabs to people’s personal emails…. That was always an odd moment.) Archaic, analog book it is!
I use a sturdy binder with a slim profile. I love big, bold Leslie-Knope-styled binders for personal record keeping, but wanted something a tad smaller for the show setting.
I rotate out photos and info, making sure that what’s between the covers presents as a cohesive collection and not just a hodge-podge of work.
If there are fun texture moments or interesting process photos I’ll include one or two - but the emphasis is on full shots of the work in various settings. Currently I would say it’s more akin to a ‘lookbook’ rather than a ‘portfolio’. I have a website for that. (and you’re on it!)
This book (in it’s final stage!) will be with me for my upcoming solo show, Color & Contour.
The show opens on June11th at 6pm, with an RSVP-only digital preview at 530. Follow this link for more info and maybe see the book (and work…) in person!
