Another Breif Update

I realized after my lion post that I really haven't done much of an update on my work so far this year (not that there's much finished anyways!) But here's a breif recap of where I'm at right now...

Gargoyle Drawing (more finished now than shown here)

not a very good picture, but this is my gargoyle scratchboard in the first gallery show

Last year's project right? ... Not for long. With a different subject matter, I'm going back to this style background and graphics for my next project... A bit of a self portrait... but about the election... ( I don't know how my idea's going to be recieved - but I'm REALLY excited for it!)

Big Canvas, Big Challenge

One of the pictures I have been using as a reference/inspiration 

I thought just a quick note on my newest project would be in order since I posted nothing about it before starting as I usually do. I decided to paint a lion, and to be honest I don't know why. So now, I have a 24x36" canvas with most of a lion painted on it.
I can't exactly decide what I want to do for the rest of the canvas.. solid background? a little more artsy and creative? another jungle cat? (that'd be a challenge).... but I'm going to just try to get through the lion first. This alone is a challene because I'm actually oil painting! I never thought I'd try it again. Definitely a good idea to practice with it more; I think it's been beneficial. Is it my new favorite medium? Absolutely not, but I'm glad I gave it a try. It's been fun. One thing I have noticed: I really like working BIG! I expect to finish at least the lion in the next week.

I've kept this picture around on my easel too.. just for fun :)

whatever wigs and whatever other ideas i'm swirling around my head

I love the concept of "Water Wigs," and the idea of using the body as a canvas. I thought the choice of using bald men was clever so that the viewer was more able to conceptualize the water as the hair. The use of the triad of colors, thus how the photos are enhanced to take a simple action of dousing someone's head with a water balloon, make not only the idea - but the individual images themselves truly unique. The idea is ingenius, and the use of human models in art is exactly what I want to be doing for my first project. Rather than using a canvas to paint, I'm going to use people as my canvas. Focusing on the head and shoulders, I plan to paint scenes, or "twenty first century" tribal designs (it made more sense the way Smitty explained it) onto people. It's fair to say that at this point, before I'm too frustrated with paint, I cannot wait for my materials to come in! :)

summer thoughts

i've set up a miniature studio in my room and i've been practicing watercolor. at the end of this year, i realized i really love the medium. i've dead set on getting good enough to have watercolor be my medium-of-choice in the studio come September.
however (dare i even say it?) i have been intrigued by pencil once again.
thanks to the lovely Stumbleupon, i have found yet another talented artist (this is the same place that I found my favorite mentor, Marion Bolognesi)....
Presenting My Summer Doodling Inspiration: Laurie Lipton 

Laurie's subjects, almost exclusively focused on people (or skeletons as the case may be) range from comical to creepy. However, that is exactly the kind of subject matter I am interested in! A few works include, though I dread to admit it, charcoal; should I even contemplate attempting that deathly medium again? Though some pieces may be a little unnerving, I am LOVING this work!

"The Self Destructive Optimist"
one of the happier pieces for sure even though the title is a bit gloomy - the girl is so cute!

"Tete a Tete"
there are some other similar pieces to this one on her website - i think they are incredible!

"The Illusion of Control"
probably my favorite. i love the pieces she did that focused on gadgets and machines, the detail is so cartoony yet intricate. this looks like it belongs in a storybook! 

Fork in the Road

Next project idea? Yeah.. I'm at a loss. I have two options that I'm thinking of.

Possibility #1:
This option would be based off of the prompt we were given to "have a discussion with a mentor." My mentor, Marion Bolognesi (see previous post) does portraits I reallyyy enjoy! I think part of the reason I appreciate her work so much is that it involves some of the same elements and principles, as well as mediums, that I have been experimenting with recently. The focus on dark, graphic lines combined with dripping, bold paint relates to what I focused on in my last project, The Snake Lady. Doing portraits like this (preferably more than one, I liked making a series) is VERY tempting.

Possibility #2:
Dare I say it? ... oil paints. It seems crazy, even to me, to go back to a medium I struggled with sooo much the first time around. I don't know what I'd want to paint though. What I do know is that I would want to either do one large painting of something simple, that I could focus on rendering with or a series of very small paintings in bright colors (like flowers). I haven't really developed this idea much but I want to be a better painter so it's on my mind. Picking a subject matter is definitely the hardest part.

Ok, I lied. There's a third option I just remembered...

Possibility #3:
Street Art. Graffiti. This style of artwork, the kind you see on buildings, has been inspiring me lately. I don't mean the curse words people crudely write onto subways; I like the detailed, stenciled or freehanded, elaborate pictures, or tags like the kinds I saw in Paris. My inspiration for this idea came from a friend of mine who does work like this in his studio, the artwork I saw in Paris, and my always inspirational stumble upon account. I want to experiment with spray paint SO BADLY! I don't really know how else I could develop this idea, but it's been on my mind for a very long time. The street art inspiration underlying my last project was really fun for me to think about and I liked where it took me, so I might want to try again.

Artist Statement: Kristen N. Mabie

Kristen N. Mabie

            My art is my way to express how I see the world. When I can’t express myself through language, I turn to art. Though I love focusing on the little details of a piece, it is the larger message behind those details that helps my process what I observe and learn in everyday life. I make art because I want to show how I see the world. Art is my way to find the words I can’t quite find and make sense of the thoughts I can’t quite make sense of.

            I draw my inspiration from everyday observations and an acute attention to detail. Being very sentimental and optimistic, I try to see everything as being beautiful. However, as I have worked to convey through the Snake Lady series, I am more complex, both as a person and an artist than just “sunshiny.”

            My art focuses on two-dimensional images, most often drawings, or lately, mixed media. When I see something captivating my first reaction is always “how could I draw that?” Drawing has always been the most accessible way for me to act on inspiration and try to understand why shadows, reflections, shapes, colors and lines create the emotion and image that they do. Line is my element of choice. By having more than one image present in any one piece, I feel like the meaning of the piece is more profound and has more of a narrative.

The series, “The Snake Lady,” is rooted in personal conviction that there is more to me, and most people, than appearance may suggest. As the project continued, the message, the snake, and the woman began to evolve. The work began to flow more naturally, and I was merely telling a story rather than forcing an idea to work. In my mind, the lady and snake had become complex characters with an unfolding narrative that stretched beyond my four pieces. The narrative told through the lady, modeled after myself, and the snake is one I am very invested in. Though I don’t plan to continue this subject matter in my next piece, The Snake Lady series has been one of the most profound messages and effortless processes to date.

mentor

Even though I do not actually have a mentor post due anytime soon... I found one. Using the brilliant website "stumbleupon" I have "stumbled upon" Marion Bolognesi.
Reasons I LOVEEE this work:
- i hate drawing heads, i love drawing faces
- it's watercolors rather than oils
- the dripping watercolors is a technique i have been using in my most recent series
- ever since the last portrait project i have been on the lookout for cool portrait ideas
- these images all have the "person's look" without being a completely detailed rendering

www.marion-b.com

My Spring Break journal (which has turned into both my new sktchbook and the book i attempted to make in the studio) is being brought on my flight to France in an hour - can't wait to be inspired by another country's beautiful art!!