Abstract Acrylic ~ Awakening ~ Upstairs Gallery

"Awakening"
24" x 24" Acrylic on Canvas, 1 3/8" depth gallery wrap, black edges

This is one of four abstract paintings I've completed for the Upstairs Gallery Show and will deliver them today. I wasn't planning on painting abstracts anytime soon but a chance encounter changed all that. Yesterday I "awakened" way too early after a painting dream and my mind was racing about how to get down on canvas some of the ideas in my head. Blank canvases had been sitting for months in the entry hall and I started gathering up supplies and clearing off the kitchen table. (I have a painting room upstairs but it's too cluttered, too far from the water, snacks, and cd's). This one is abstract #1.
Several things just came together - meeting Jonas Gerard at Southlake, visiting with Maureen Brouillette Sunday about seeing his performance art at Artizen, and it could have been the buffet dinner the previous evening at the Dallas Museum of Art.

The Farewell Party for Corinne Sunday at the Upstairs Gallery, Maureen front right in yellow:



Monday evening at the DMA was Arts and Letters Live and Texas Bound, stories connected and "bound" to Texas. Four short stories were read by Sally Nystuen Vahle, Ash Smith, Raphael Parry and Judith Ivey. Authors were Bret Anthony Johnston, Tim O'Brien, Sybil Raney, and Steven Salzman. (Tim O'Brien has been hailed as "the best American writer of his generation" by the San Francisco Chronicle." The buffet before the program is always fabulous. Copies of Texas Bound I and II can be purchased here.
The previous evening's food and stories could have played a part in this early morning rising and painting foray but I think it was a convergence of events that just shouted "Do it now..now is the time." And it resulted in an all day affair with some abstract paintings.
Next on the agenda, watch for Canvas by Canvas to sally forth and see what happens when 9 collaborative artists try their hand at an abstract. Stay tuned.

LYLAS 4 ~ "Maginty" ~ J. M. W. Turner Exhibit ~ DMA ~ Angel Painting

LYLAS 4
SOLD
LYLAS 4 "Maginty" Acrylic
9" x 12" Gallery Wrapped Canvas, 3/4" profile black (depth)
This is the fourth in the Lylas series. See this post to read how the paintings came to be.

Now to the DMA

J. M. W. Turner "The Angel Standing in the Sun" 1846
was painted in his 70's and it shows where the light of the sun dissolves the boundary of Heaven and earth and an angel appears causing a bridge between Heaven and earth.
The Turner exhibit closes at the Dallas Museum of Art May 18 and it was very busy when I attended Thursday, April 17. I recommend you make the trip and get the audio guide. I'm an artist without an art history degree and much of my Turner education came from this visit. From this brief day of information, I think Turner would have been an art blogger with a web site promoting his art. I'm an art blogger and I think I know one when I see one. He embraced the technology at the time and was a canny business man. While other artists would wait until their painting was hung to put on the final varnish, Turner opted to do some actual painting on his, in other words a short free demo and then varnish causing more hype. Usually his paintings included some descriptive statement with a few lines of poetry and sometimes the poetry was written by him. Sounds like a blogger to me.
Turner, at times, used watercolor like oil and oil like watercolor. On several paintings the oil was used so thinly the texture of the weave of the canvas was visible. The exhibit is a dazzle to the eyes with approximately 140 works and there are over 20 stations discussed with the audio guide. It is the largest and most comprehensive retrospective ever held in the U.S. of J. M. W. Turner's works in oils and watercolors (1775-1851). One word, LIGHT, has always been associated with his work and it is prominent in his depiction of seascapes, mythology, religious themes, imagination and historical events.
The one above, The Angel Standing in the Sun, spoke to me as I'm been painting some angel type figures and up close you could only view one wing.
Here are some links of this particular angel piece and gives more insight and explanation of the work. Eat a hearty breakfast before going as you will want to linger and read the additional information posted by the paintings or you can take a museum lunch break and go back in the afternoon but please go. If you have time, the Wikipedia article would give a little additional information before attending.

Another view of the painting.

Art Notes.

The TATE.

Fire Dancer ~ Dena's Dogs ~ Texas Bound

"Fire Dancer"
7 1/2" x 11" Acrylic on paper, no mat or frame
$45.00

I recently attended Texas Bound in Fort Worth, March 31 to hear compelling short stories read by noted actors, all with a Texas connection.
The Dallas Museum of Art is presenting its 17th season of Arts and Letters Live and it's a great way to feed your brain and fill your soul and a place to meet Texas writers and readers. Some of the stories are offered in tapes and books.
It was a delightful evening enjoying great stories read at the Fort Worth Central Library after dining at the Reata Restaurant.
There are a few photos in the slide show.
I've read and reread Anne Lamott for years and now I've finally seen her
and heard her speak in person at the special event in Dallas, March 13. What a treat! She's honest, funny and enchanting. Read the nonfiction: Bird by Bird, Grace Eventually, Operating Instructions, Plan B, and Traveling Mercies. Anne also has some fiction works. Some of her writings appear here.

The painting, "Fire Dancer" was done at Dena's at the Robert Burridge Workshop. Also in attendance were Dena's 2 dogs, Sadie the Saint and Jody _____, fill in the blank. Sadie is a 14 year old 3 legged Blue Heeler and all she wants to do is hang around and observe without being hassled. Jody is another story. She's a 4 month old Blue Lacy pup, still chews her tail and makes mad dashes into the painting barn on snatch and grab missions and the little bandit takes our collage materials and shreds them in the nearest ditch. I'm still looking for my blue denim painting shirt that was lost there. I wonder if pieces of blue denim are hung up on a piece of barbed wire somewhere on the ranch? One evening she was half asleep on the couch, we heard a thump and she had fallen off the couch - a bad dream perhaps or just bored with all of the painting talk? When Jody really gets out of control, Dena puts on her "Jody-be-good" collar.
I fixed some Hebrew National Hot dogs for dinner one night and I was really ignoring Jody's plea for a bite and hoping she'd disappear when I felt a huge heavy tug on my shoulder and Jody was all but standing up with her mouth open for a munch. Yes, she was given some bites. I did learn from the Wikipedia site that since 2005 the Blue Lacy is the official State Dog Breed of Texas and Dena, the article states that after age two they have calmed down significantly. They certainly added to the ambiance of the workshop along with "The Girls", the donkeys.

Mouse over slide for caption: