Birmingham, MI and a beautiful weekend!

"Hibiscus" found a home quickly!  I had just finished it the day before we left for Birmingham and felt quite good about it.  I have been thinking quite a bit about language and nature and the points at which they intersect and diverge.  When work is process driven, I find that much evolves that one doesn't anticipate.  This comes as much of my work does, through the process of layering/removing/layering, and so on.  In those layers are thoughts and pieces floating.  The implied "window" may be the looking through to that which my mind knew or remembered, or wished to see again. 

The couple who purchased this piece spent quite a while in quiet contemplation and conversation with each other.  They each liked some different aspect.  When they decided to take Hibiscus home, it felt good to me - it felt as if they worked together to make a decision each would be happy with and that they were happy with one another. 

I hope you all will find my new website dedicated to my paintings - www.whitneypeckman-painter.com.  It's a softly grey and cool day here in NC - one to take in to my cells to revisit once the real southern summer is upon us.

Helping a great kid...and other stuff

Does anyone out there know of a math tutor/mentor in the Poughkeepsie, NY area who would be willing to help a kid in need, and for next to no money???  This isn't about art, or shows, or my travels, or thoughts.  This is about a bright kid who is about to start a new school but who may have to stay back a year because of very poor math skills.  There is no extra money in the family, so I'm looking for someone who just want to help out.  Any ideas?

On another note, keeping up with all this IT stuff is taxing my brain.  I don't have the "blending" quite right yet...how they all connect w/o spending my life at it....really, I need to paint.

And speaking of painting, I'm part of a show Aug-Oct of artists who work in more than one medium.  I am showing tapestries (seems like ancient history now!), gourds, and paintings.  This is the tapestry photo I sent for publicity purposes - and it's odd how appealing it was to me, after years of not weaving...mmmmm, I can feel the threads in my fingers now and all those gorgeous colors blending into a painting..........

"The Garden House"

Handwoven tapestry.  Silk, wool, rayon, cotton.  1998

Fulfilling his dream

5:00 pm 4/08/10
Near the Grey and Donley county lines and the town of Jericho, Texas, we pulled the van over to the side of the highway to wait for Al Slusser who was walking along the highway, to catch up to us. At first we thought he was on a recumbent bike, but no, he was walking, pulling a two-wheeled cart behind him from which a bit of water was dripping. He had that weathered look of someone who spends most of the time out in the wind and sun, wore a scrunched hat with “Arizona” across the front, beat up jeans, and a tee shirt with a highway worker’s yellow vest with green iridescent stripes and a message on the back – about Unity and Pray for the USA. He caught up to us and seemed pleased and surprised to hear we had pulled over for him. And he told us his story. He is 71 and fulfilling his dream of walking coast to coast, and collecting knots in a red, white, and blue rope. Each knot is tied by someone he meets along the way who can take the pledge to “stand up for the USA and kneel down for her.” Al was inspired by John Kennedy’s “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.” He carries only a small section of rope, about 3’, with him. When it is full of knots, he sends it to a group in AZ who adds it to the other pieces and Al hopes that when they send him the completed “Unity Ball” when he reaches Washington, DC, that it will be quite large, and he hopes to present it to the President as a symbol of so many Americans praying for the unity of their country. Al said it all started with his “bucket list”, things he wanted to do before he dies, but it has grown into a larger vision – one of inspiration – and indeed, he has dedicated his walk to senior citizens and disabled Americans.  Al's got a website - www.c2cw.com.  We will think of you often, Al.  God bless you on your travels as you walk the talk.

 

12 Step program for artists!!!

You simply gotta read this - http://bit.ly/brvveW  TOOOOOO good!

Transmitting thought by sensing color

I was thinking today about "feeling" transmitted by artwork, in particular, through painting.  What does that mean - "feeling" through artwork?  Mine? Yours?  Or is it the transmission of something intangible between us - the artist and the viewer?  Working on this piece, I was deep in thought about coming through dark times by tapping into "feeling" - literally the physical awareness - of the moment.  As the texture and darks developed, I "felt" the need for the sensation of light, bright and opening - whence came the yellows.  Stepping into that physical space of brightness brought forth the reds/oranges.  The delicate balance of sensing the awareness within and trapping it in color both frustrates and feeds me.  Such is the dilemma of painting unencumbered by specific images.  For other well articulated "feelings" about painting check out http://bit.ly/bXtiWw

If you want to see this piece, come to the Celebration of Fine Art - it's the last week!  Time evaporates!

Damsel in the Garden

  

Here's the painting I mentioned yesterday.  See it at the Celebration of Fine Art in Scottsdale.  The texture and layers make it delectable up close.  The deep colors pull you in from a distance.  24 x 30 I think, acrylic on board.

"Summer Rain" acrylic painting on board

I decided to have a giclee made of this piece. I've never made prints of my work before, but this painting is so joyful in color and image that I want to make it accessible to more people. I did the color check with the printer last week and it should be in my studio at the Celebration of Fine Art today.

DUBAI

Exciting venture coming up...we're going to Dubai to research galleries and the art haps on our way back from Malaysia! We'll keep you posted.

HOME AT LAST!!!

It was just too depressing to report on our 2nd breakdown on the way home, so I didn't. Till now. After getting "fixed" in Tucumcari we were only on the road for a day when we broke down with the SAME problem, in Joplin, MO. It was Friday, so no one to do to work till Monday. But, having gotten on the NPR Car Guys site, Syed found us a great mechanic and we were on our way by Tuesday afternoon last week. Expensive trip, especially since we had to transfer everything from the van and trailer to a U-Haul to get home.

But, we arrived to gorgeous NC weather, a hip new restaurant in town, and a Saturday full of fun local events, including our own Salisbury's Got Talent! Great, great, great to be home! Check out www.EastSquareArtWorks.com to see what we're up to in our building!

Last Day at the Tent

What a great show! Thanks to all of you who helped make this one of my best years! Tomorrow we start packing up, but tonight we just unwound with friends from the tent, swapping stories and eating, eating, eating....tomorrow we return to health food, try to lose the ten pounds I gained in the last six months. We're all tired, but full of ideas for next year - new work, better booth spaces, different living accommodations. Nine months and we'll be back in Scottsdale at the Celebration of Fine Art. We hope you'll be there too!

Meanwhile, keep an eye on my blog for news about our trip back to NC where we'll be making some additions to our building, getting ready for our Open To the Public month of May, with workshops, classes and work in the galleries. Check out the link to EastSquare ArtWorks.

This next week we'll be all about packing up, but if you want to reach me, you can call the number on my home page.

http://www.eastsquareartworks.com

Two weeks left!

YIKES! Only two weeks left at the Celebration of Fine Art this year. I can't believe how fast the time has gone, and we are all still creating NEW pieces - what an amazing group of artists gather for this show! I was out for a few days with the flu and while I was gone my show neighbor and friend, Ken Newman, sold his beautiful wood carving of a Pheasant. If you can see this before it gets shipped, it will linger in your memory. And painter Linda Koch has new pieces hanging. Linda's work is so beautifully imagined and painted that it brings a whole new expression to the terms organic, abstract and botanical. It is the perfect crossover work for those seeking something less representational and yet organic and natural. She is the best colorist I know! I'll post some pics of all this tonight.

Today, back in good health, I'll be glazing the Geisha pot. Come on in and visit!

Friends At Work

Michael Jones (left), steel sculptor and so GQ in his work clothes - at work at the Celebration of Fine Art, Scottsdale. Show runs through Mar. 23. Michael can tell you amazing stories about Native American petroglyphs and glass insulators (!)...interesting guy. http://www.michaeljonessculpture.com/

Eric Poulson , painter, also at work at the Celebration of Fine Art. Eric works with palette knives only and gets the most amazing effects in his paintings of gorgeous desert scenes, stone buildings, and my personal favorites, great ceramic pots of flowers. His little studies for larger paintings are fun to see grow up into full sized, and sometimes very large paintings. http://www.ericpoulson.com/

http://www.celebrateart.com

Celebration of Fine Art

From the Celebration of Fine Art
January 31st, 2008
by Whitney
Fantastic first two weeks here at the Celebration os Fine Art in Scottsdale! Thanks to all of you art addicts who continue to make this show my biggest and best. We’re rolling into Super Bowl weekend, so if you’re looking for a diversion from football, come on over and check out some of my new work, and see Syed’s new glass too.
The big Mesquite tree looks great as the backdrop to Michael Jones’ huge steel gate. And have we ever kicked it up a notch at our end of the big tents! Our “group of seven” spent the year planning our new “gallery” look and it’s fabulous. Each artist’s work complements the others - come watch the work being created.

http://www.celebrateart.com
http://www.syedartglass.com
http://www.michaeljonessculpture.com