A cool group show I was in at Gallery 114 - Happy New Year!

Gallery 114 Pozzi Room Exhibit

I am proud to say that I was accepted as a part of an art gallery cooperative last August. It is called Gallery 114, which has been in exhistance for almost 20 years. This month, December 2010, I have a show in the Pozzi Room, which is a little ante-chamber in the back of the gallery. When preparing for the show, I became inspired with a new idea, (like ususal!) I decided to make all of the paintings out of a single 11.25 inch wide pine wood plank, cut into pieces. This means that all of the paintings are the same hieght, but different widths. The wood grain in a pine wood plank is much more distinctive than birch wood paneling, which is what I usually use, and I took advantage of that and exposed the wood as much as I could.
Then I became inspired about the subject matter. In playing around with my collection of photographs, I decided to depict paintings of 6 men and 6 women. The men are all depicted with a vehicle; a motorcycle, car, or jeep. All of images of the women had one thing in common; they were alone. I felt that there was something about the combination of the vintage images and the juxtaposition of the genders engaging in separate activities that created an atmosphere of disengagement and longing.

Based on a vintage photograph from the 1960's, a beautiful woman of a certain age gazes with dignity out at the viewer. It is minimally painted, with lots of the wood grain and original drawing still showing.

I love the way the wood grain resembles clouds during a sunset, and the way the huge Coca-Cola sign resembles a setting sun. I also am intrigued by the round rear-view mirror silhouetted against his chest where his heart is, and how that circle echoes the circle of the sign.

"Look Into My Heart" 9"x11". Acrylic on pinewood panel.
I adore this crazy dress, and her quintessential eagar teenage expression. The huge polka dots on the dress form a perfect hexagon. The design registers as being perfectly flat instead of an organic, three dimentional dress on the body of a living girl.

An original acrylic painting on pine wood panel, 9"x11". Based on a vintage photograph from the 1940's, a pensive woman sits in a park, holding a pine cone in her hand. It is minimally painted, with lots of the wood grain and original drawing still showing. I found this lovely photograph in Reminisce Magazine. In the original, the woman is wearing an emerald green blouse. Something about it made me want to change it to red. I love the angle of her arm- it is so dynamic in contrast to the pensive tranquility of her pose. It implies an undercurrent of drama amidst the tranquil scene. Perhaps she and her companion (the one taking the photograph) are having an emotional discussion?

More Blueprints and collage

While exploring the River Mill Dam with the other artists during the Art Jam, I spied a group of tall cabinets with their doors where partially ajar, because each cabinet was stuffed to overflowing with rolls of paper which turned out to be blueprints. Some these were very special because they were actual cyanotypes from 1911, when the powerhouse was built. With permission I came home with a few of these treasures to make art on them. Then, while perusing the internet, I came across an early picture of a group of men from Estacada, who may have been Dam crew workers. I have drawn some of these men on top of the blueprints, in attempts to bring to life the extraordinary accomplishment of this dam and the brave workers who helped build and run it.

Doing artwork over such an extraordinary back ground with its brilliant, cyan blue and delicate white lines was a joyous challange. I had to keep the images very pared down and simple. In fact, I drew only with dry media, meaning pastel, conte' chalk and charcoal. No paint.