Dream Transfer

©A.K.SIMON - Dream Transfer - 8"x8" - $100

SOLD

This work was a "sand off". A while back a friend returned from Arizona with this piece of horse hair pottery for us to paint in a still life set up on Tuesday morning. I started it but it just didn't have the mystery I needed. So I sanded it off today and started over from the ghost image. I didn't have a reference photo to work from because the battery on my tablet died and I left my charger cord somewhere - ugh! Amazon to the rescue - I can get it for $9 but speedy shipping brings it to $20 - really! And no, Verizon nor Radio Shack carry the one I need.

OK, enough whining, I did the piece from memory and tried to get the feel I wanted. It's amazing how dependent we can become on our reference material. I'm reminded of Robert Henri's book, The Art Spirit where he speaks about making students go in a room, review the subject then leave the room to paint what they remember. I'm going to try to do this more often. I think this is probably a speedy way to gaining a handle on my own voice. 

Glad To Be Here

©A.K.SIMON - Glad To Be Here - 8"x8" $100

SOLD

This is one of those paintings that didn't just flow off the brush/palette knife. This one had a totally different look when I finished it for the "first time". Did you ever have those days when you left the studio one day satisfied with what you've done then come back the next and you say, "what was I thinking?" Gladiolas are a particular challenge for a square canvas and I just didn't have that sense of "life beyond the canvas." I think that this composition portrays a better sense of flowers expanding beyond the confines of the square. 

Funny thing too is that it looks really good with the Daily Paintworks widget because it matches the colors. (My new favorite color is Utrecht's cobalt turquoise - you know you can't help but buy one of those premixed colors once in a while!)

Precarious Perch

©A.K.Simon - Precarious Perch - 8"x8" oil on linen - $100

SOLD

Sometimes to get the best worms you've got to just land on a perch not knowing whether it will hold your weight. Oh yeah and you've got to get there early too! This was an exercise in going farther out on my perch and being less cautious about end result. Parts I love and parts I don't - but then again I could say that about everything I paint. Just glad it's Friday!

Rainiers In Season

©A.K.SIMON - Rainiers In Season - 10"x10" oil on linen $375

SOLD


We got kicked out of our upstairs painting loft for a few weeks so the class met in my studio for the past two weeks. Last week I had just finished a big show and didn't have the energy to finish the painting I started on that day. So, what did I do this week? Started another one. I think I have a good start on last week's painting but as my friend says, "that's a good start, don't screw it up." Do you ever find yourself wanting to stop in the middle of a painting because you don't have the confidence that you can finish it as well as you picture it in you mind? After painting for many years I still get that "icky" feeling in my stomach that things are just going to to end poorly.

So, I started this one on Tuesday and didn't get it finished so I made myself finish it today in the studio. My goal was to switch up the composition rut that I seem to be stuck in and place things a little more random. This setup was in the middle of a large table and the group painted it from their unique vantage point. This is mine - I like it. The plate is an antique on loan from one of Donna's student's, grandmother - it was this beautiful aqua color - perfect for harmony with apricot color.

In Season

©A.K.SIMON - In Season - 10"x10" oil on linen - SOLD

About a month ago I painted this painting. It was based on a small sketch I did with the upstairs painters. I love how this turned out - loose and a sense of place and space. This is one I submitted for jurying into the All Ohio Show at the Zanesville Ohio Museum of Art. Well, it failed to meet whatever the standards are for this year. I was bummed because I thought it really commanded some attention (of course I did). But, this Saturday at a show I did in German Village, OH this was the first painting to sell. The gentleman looked at it, didn't hesitate and said, "I want that, frame and all." When we finished the transaction, I said, "thank you so much for supporting my work." He said, "no thank you for painting it."  Makes you want to cry right? We all know how hard we work for this validation.

Sometimes I wonder if works are pre-screened for big shows and the juror only gets to see what the event planners want them to see. Sour grapes? I'm not so sure, because this is a small painting and probably wouldn't bring in much for the museum. But after selling paintings for years I have realized that the universe works to get the paintings exactly where they should be. Long story short, I need to get busy painting because it was an awesome show. It was a ticketed event and people came to appreciate art and artists - how awesome is that?!

Sturdy Rose Stock

© A.K.SIMON - Sturdy Rose Stock - 10x10" oil - $125 

SOLD

A few years ago I planted some beautiful roses. Long story short - they died. Don't know what I did but they just wouldn't survive. About two years later this plant started growing along the fence and bloomed with these beautiful little white flowers that smelled just like roses. The plant grew like a weed and I was constantly trimming it back (notice I said "was" - I had to get rid of it because walkway interference and thorn issue). After doing some research I found that it was the sturdy stock that all hybrid roses are grafted too so they will thrive. The amazing thing is that it waited two years before resurfacing. It was such a natural fit putting these sturdy flowers in this beautiful "earthy" colored pot (thanks Donna). 

I used my rubber blade to paint quite a bit of this painting and my new favorite color, cobalt aqua by Utrecht.

Wild Red Roses

© A.K.SIMON - 10"x10" Oil on Birch - $125

Another Tuesday morning "Zen" moment. It can be really difficult to paint complicated, compact flowers without getting too fussy. So, I just started by placing brushstrokes side by side without much fuss and they suddenly became an interpretation of what I felt. These are from Donna's garden - I love this time of year! Gotta love permanent Rose!