It seems that the only time I get around to doing something on my website is near the end of the year. But, it’s been over a year this time and I can’t come up with a good excuse for why I haven’t blogged more recently or even added new art to the website. Today I uploaded a few of my recent new works and did some website housecleaning. It’s cold and overcast outside so that must be my motivation. Christmas is in a couple of days and we’re just waiting to see if highways are going to be open on Saturday to make it to our daughter’s house on the eastern part of the state.
I did three shows this year, but hope to maybe get another one squeezed into 2012. The Newman Center continues to be my best audience and I hope that the Placitas Holiday show will be a good one for me as well. I continue to have good comments about my art and the popularity of my giclees and notecards help me to have something for everyone.
I attended the icon painting workshop at the Pecos Monastery for the 4th year in a row. This year’s teacher was Fr. Anthony Salzman, a Greek Orthodox priest from Atlanta. The previous classes have all been in acrylic but this year we used egg tempera. I’m excited to be using the natural pigments, but must admit the painting techniques are quite different from acrylic. So, now I’m taking classes with Jacquie Nelson in Santa Fe who is a wonderful icon painter who’s medium is egg tempera. The big difference in the Byzantine (or Greek) style (Fr. Anthony) versus the Russian style (Jacquie) is significant and I usually combine the techniques when I’m working alone. Hopefully my skills will advance along with my confidence in using this medium on my own.
Must be a New Year’s trend
Retrospect
As 2009 comes to a close, I look back at a year that turned out pretty successful without much help from me. I painted a few new pieces, but mainly had enough inventory from previous years that I was able to participate in two small shows. I chose not to do the New Mexico Arts and Crafts Show in June and the GO! ARTS FEST in Sept. because of travel and family commitments. I did a small one-day show in Santa Fe on the weekend of Indian Market. I didn’t sell anything at the show, but booked a commission to do a Greek icon of St. Nicholas from a business card that someone took to give to a friend. So, what looked like a bust turned into a very lucrative sale just from being there. In Nov. I participated in the Arts and Crafts Show at the Aquinas Newman Center and had a very successful show once again. This is my best show…about half a day’s work and it brings in great sales.
I have also marketed my Evangelist Series note cards in several gift shops and they’re doing pretty well. I hope to put them in more places in 2010.
I was asked to teach a retablo painting class for adults at the Newman Center in early December. We had 15 sign up with another 9 on a waiting list. The class painted a very simple version of Our Lady of Guadalupe and everyone did a terrific job. It was very positive for me the teacher, but the students really enjoyed it and are wanting to paint more. Perhaps there will be another class later in the spring.
My volunteer activity at Habitat for Humanity has recently taken on a fundraising theme. They want to have a “Recycled Objects Art Exhibit and Sale” and asked me to be the lead on it. We’ve got 3 others on the committee now and we’ve set a date for the show to be the week before Valentines Day. Canvassing the various parts of town with fliers and cards has taken quite a bit of time…I’m hoping to have a couple of weeks of down time before we have to start putting the show together. Hopefully we’ll get some really great art to exhibit and earn some money for the great work that Habitat does.
Here at home, we recently changed the looks of our studio/office space just in time for our kids to visit for Christmas. I love the new layout and I can’t wait to start painting in there.
I can’t believe tomorrow is Jan 1, 2010…time is really flying and I want to do so much…I need to keep focused on this goal of not only painting the St. Nicholas commission, but I’ve got ideas for so many other paintings…I really am hopeful to do a lot of painting this year.
Missy
My Website
I must congratulate Bruce Shortz (my photographer, web designer and printer) for using SSDP to allow me control of most of the content on my website. I’ve spent several hours today labeling, changing text and generally feeling really proud of myself for being able to do everything. I haven’t downloaded (or is it uploaded) any photos from my files yet, but I’ll tackle that on another day…once I learn how to resize them! 
Crazy me, I’ll just try to add something right now…I’m pretty confident it worked, so I’ll save this and see.
YEA ME!!! Aren’t you proud of me Bruce? I’ll work on placement later!
Travel, Travel, Travel
Well, you’d think we must have quit working…and you’d be right. Since Gerald retired, we’ve only been at home for a week or two at a time. Things are beginning to slow down and we’re off on another trip but it will be the last for another couple of weeks. Then, we’ll go to see our CA kids and celebrate a 3 year old’s birthday. For sure there won’t be much more until Christmas! Home projects are getting planned and hopefully in OCT we’ll be able to get a few things done. I have a new commission for an icon of St. Nicholas and am doing a lot of head planning for that. Other things on my agenda are Uriel the Archangel icon for a friend at church. Both of these will be the first time I’ve written them, so am preparing prayerfully for guidance and wisdom. While in Tucson just last week, we saw an exhibit of an altar piece from medieval Spain…wonderful halos on all the figures…something I hope to incorporate in the Nicholas icon.
Gentle rain
There’s a gentle rain falling and I’m imagining how our community garden must be loving it. This idea started in March and one of the residents offered her vacant lot next to her house to use for a community garden. Once we had enough people interested, feverish work began. The compost was delivered, the soil was amended, water lines and drip irrigation with a controller was installed and now we have an incredible improvement to a lot that had no redeeming features. Sowing seeds and plants and now reaping the harvest has been wonderful. Getting to know our neighbors has been one of best results. We no longer just know the people right next door, but those from several blocks away. It’s made the neighborhood much smaller!
Joel Peter Witkin
On Pentecost 2006 I spoke to a man in the gathering space at the Newman Center. He was someone that I had seen at Mass for several years, but didn’t really know who he was…I just thought I’d be friendly so I approached him and said hello and asked how he was doing. He had been asked to take part in the processional with about 11 others to take lighted candles into the chapel and place them in a large cauldron near the altar (to represent the tongues of fire of the Holy Spirit.) Talking to him I learned that he is a world renowned photographic artist and his name is Joel Peter Witkin. He is shown in galleries and museums all over the world, but I was unfamiliar with his work. The next week Gerald and I spoke to him for a while after Mass and learned even more about him. He’s been quite an enigma to me. When you look at the work he produces I find it hard to believe that we know him from church.
Last week Joel handed Gerald an envelope after Mass. It contained a flyer about a presentation that he would make to the American Society of Media Photographers. We decided that we’d go and RSVP’d. The talk was last night and we took a friend from out of town along with us. Even though I had seen Joel’s work online, it certainly was more meaningful to hear how he came up with the ideas for the montages he creates for his photography. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to the content of his work…very creative and yet often times, very disturbing. He is fascinated with using cadavers, body parts, and what most of us would consider ‘freaks of nature.’ Listening to him describe the why and how of many of his creations was very interesting and thought provoking. He wants to make us really examine how we think about those that are not like most of us. His creativity is so vivid, what a wonderful thing to keep coming up with all these incredible images full of statements about our society (whether I agree with them or not.) He stopped to say hello and when I squeaked out that I had lost me voice, he asked right away if I left it somewhere? He is very genuine and generous with us and we are pleased to know him and call him our friend.
Posole
Recently I made ‘posole’ for the first time. It was ok…we ate some and put the rest in the freezer. Then, about a week ago I needed a quick something for dinner and pulled the posole from the freezer and started reheating it. When I originally made it I didn’t prepare any red chile to serve with it, so this time I made up a batch of red chile sauce while the posole thawed and came to a boil. This time we LOVED the posole. The chile sauce made tons of difference and I couldn’t quit eating it! The Chimayo red chile powder is so flavorful…I can’t believe I didn’t make the sauce the first time. Lesson learned.