Raining today but warm and cheery inside the Provincetown Inn as the day is just about to begin with the morning panel on Creativity in Our Practice. More later because I have to take my seat and get ready to roll.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Provincetown At Last
After a year of looking forward to arriving at the site of the annual encaustic conference (since last year's conference), I am here in Provincetown and welcoming friends as they arrive. Old Home Week was never so sweet, and this year I'm so glad that I arrived several days before the actual start of the conference this Friday, June 1st. I have had a little time to walk around and immerse myself in Provincetown's unique atmosphere before putting my mind to all things encaustic.
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| Sky with parking lot at the Provincetown Inn |
This morning is much clearer than yesterday when it was foggy and so dewy or misty that my glasses kept getting obscured. Yesterday morning when I woke up very early, I took a long walk all the way to Herring Cove Beach a mile or so away.
The foggy morning, the damp and salty sea air reminded me of my original home in Boston, so different from where I live now in the western, landlocked side of Massachusetts.
But Boston never looked like this -- or at least not for hundreds of years.
The history of water's movement across the land was fascinating to me as I walked along. Beach grass, sand, growing vegetation and wood dragged and dropped by tides all formed a textured landscape and a record of movement.
I guess my mind was on bricolage and patterns - as usual.
Well, I had better get moving because today I'm teaching my first workshop on Wax and Bricolage. Everything is ready to roll but I have to fire up the griddles and get that wax a-meltin'.
More latah!
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| Long view across the moors and dunes to the sea |
The foggy morning, the damp and salty sea air reminded me of my original home in Boston, so different from where I live now in the western, landlocked side of Massachusetts.
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| Land sculpted by tides |
But Boston never looked like this -- or at least not for hundreds of years.
The history of water's movement across the land was fascinating to me as I walked along. Beach grass, sand, growing vegetation and wood dragged and dropped by tides all formed a textured landscape and a record of movement.
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| Texture - what texture! |
I guess my mind was on bricolage and patterns - as usual.
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| View of the breakwater side of the inn. The breakwater is the long line at the top of the photo |
Well, I had better get moving because today I'm teaching my first workshop on Wax and Bricolage. Everything is ready to roll but I have to fire up the griddles and get that wax a-meltin'.
More latah!
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Countdown to The Conference
Postcards have arrived and labels have been printed and attached. (Surprising even me - and I did it.) Somehow I managed to fit all those shows on the back and still keep within the mailing guidelines mandated by the Post Office. Yes, it does make the back of the card look strange if it doesn't have a label on it, but it leaves room for notes such as, "Make sure to buy that big red one!" and stuff like that.
So here's the front. This image is of a new piece called Postmortem made just from packaging, tacks and encaustic on a panel. I am showing it at The Schoolhouse Gallery in Provincetown in the Conference Presenters' Show. You'll see all the show details on the back of the card below. (CLICK TO ENLARGE)
Here is the card back listing the five shows in which my work will be shown during the conference (and after). These five are just part of the incredible lineup of shows that Joanne Mattera and Cherie Mittenthal have put together to make a giant encaustic extravanganza in Provincetown from end May and into June.
You can see the whole lineup of shows here. The purple dots on the map below and on the conference blog are the galleries that will be showing work in encaustic. All the openings are on Friday night, June 1st, except the two shows at Castle Hill Center for the Arts in Truro which open on Thursday night, May 31st.
I'm showing the map here, but if you go to the Encaustic Conference blog using the link above or here, you can enlarge it and actually see the street names where the galleries are located. There are two shows at the Provincetown Inn, two shows at Castle Hill and 12 shows in commercial galleries throughout Provincetown. Wow!
Excitement is mounting as we all complete our preparations. I am going to Provincetown early to teach a workshop before the conference begins, to deliver work to various shows and to hang a show. I'll be posting more details and pictures as the countdown proceeds. Once my trip begins, I'll be live blogging on the way and then covering all the fun day by day. (Unless I'm having too much fun - which has been known to happen.)
Oh, the thrills and chills ahead!
So here's the front. This image is of a new piece called Postmortem made just from packaging, tacks and encaustic on a panel. I am showing it at The Schoolhouse Gallery in Provincetown in the Conference Presenters' Show. You'll see all the show details on the back of the card below. (CLICK TO ENLARGE)
Here is the card back listing the five shows in which my work will be shown during the conference (and after). These five are just part of the incredible lineup of shows that Joanne Mattera and Cherie Mittenthal have put together to make a giant encaustic extravanganza in Provincetown from end May and into June.
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| Here's a better view of Postmortem (click to enlarge) |
You can see the whole lineup of shows here. The purple dots on the map below and on the conference blog are the galleries that will be showing work in encaustic. All the openings are on Friday night, June 1st, except the two shows at Castle Hill Center for the Arts in Truro which open on Thursday night, May 31st.
I'm showing the map here, but if you go to the Encaustic Conference blog using the link above or here, you can enlarge it and actually see the street names where the galleries are located. There are two shows at the Provincetown Inn, two shows at Castle Hill and 12 shows in commercial galleries throughout Provincetown. Wow!
Excitement is mounting as we all complete our preparations. I am going to Provincetown early to teach a workshop before the conference begins, to deliver work to various shows and to hang a show. I'll be posting more details and pictures as the countdown proceeds. Once my trip begins, I'll be live blogging on the way and then covering all the fun day by day. (Unless I'm having too much fun - which has been known to happen.)
Oh, the thrills and chills ahead!
Monday, April 30, 2012
New Work for a New Gallery
I am pleased to announce that some of my new work is moving West to Park City, Utah. The Meyer Gallery, established in 1965 in Park City and located in the former First Bank of Utah Building, will be receiving this week nine works in my Running Stitch series. Here are a few of them. (Click on the image to get a bigger view.)
You can see that I really got into the naming from record albums thing. Of course these works also include book parts, painted paper and cardboard, treated metal and who knows what-all.
I am also sending some larger works that I have shown in this blog previously, and here are a couple more:
That last one may look familiar if you've been paying attention. I have reworked an older piece and made it brand new. Isn't that just what artists do?
So if your're out there in Utah for the summer activities such as hiking, swimming and other water sports, resorting at the three big resorts there, visiting or whatever, I hope you will stop by Meyer Gallery and take a look. Here's a link to Park City that tells about some of the attractions. You may know it as the site of the Sundance Film Festival and of major skiing and snowboarding activity. It's also home to the Kimball Art Center which will be constructing a major new building, as seen below:
In case you can't quite imagine how this unusual structure would fit in, here's a rendering of the building in situ with the rest of Main Street:
I hope that my work will make a contribution to the other fine work shown by Meyer Gallery and that collectors will throng to purchase it - but of course!
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| Mario's Song, 2012, mixed media (including pieces from record albums) plus tacks and encaustic on panel, 14" x 14" x 1.5" |
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| Carmen's Eyes, same description and size as above. |
You can see that I really got into the naming from record albums thing. Of course these works also include book parts, painted paper and cardboard, treated metal and who knows what-all.
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| Artur's Ivories, 2012, mixed media with tacks and encaustic on panel, 12" x 12" |
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| Nicholas's Stories, 2012, materials same as above, also 12" x 12" |
I am also sending some larger works that I have shown in this blog previously, and here are a couple more:
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| Rubbery Stripes, 2012, painted paper and cardboard, rubber, treated metal, book parts,pieces from record albums, tacks and encaustic on panel, 24" x 24" x 1.5" |
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| Divided Stripes, 2012, painted paper and cardboard, rubber, treated metal, book parts,tacks and encaustic on panel, 24" x 24" x 1.5" |
That last one may look familiar if you've been paying attention. I have reworked an older piece and made it brand new. Isn't that just what artists do?
So if your're out there in Utah for the summer activities such as hiking, swimming and other water sports, resorting at the three big resorts there, visiting or whatever, I hope you will stop by Meyer Gallery and take a look. Here's a link to Park City that tells about some of the attractions. You may know it as the site of the Sundance Film Festival and of major skiing and snowboarding activity. It's also home to the Kimball Art Center which will be constructing a major new building, as seen below:
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| The new Kimball Art Center, as designed by competition winners, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) |
In case you can't quite imagine how this unusual structure would fit in, here's a rendering of the building in situ with the rest of Main Street:
I hope that my work will make a contribution to the other fine work shown by Meyer Gallery and that collectors will throng to purchase it - but of course!
Monday, April 23, 2012
More New York Shows
Ever wish you had a secretary? Having been one in years gone by, I sure wish I did so that I could lean back in my chair, put my feet on the desk and dictate this post to someone with a steno pad on her knee. Ah, those were the days! Must be the Mad Men influence.
Anyway, where was I? Oh, yes. In Chelsea running over to Blank Space on West 25th Street to see Debra Ramsay's show, Desire Lines.
The title of Debra's show refers to a landscape architecture term for the paths that people take through a landscape regardless of which path they were meant to take. This heedless traffic results in visible pathways, usually the quickest routes between desired points, that circumvent intended control or restrictions. (Note that many of the images will expand if you click on them.)
In the same way, Debra's recent paintings at Blank Space are based on a predetermined system of mark making that retains control to a certain point but then allows accident and chance to take over. The works above and below are from the "Pouring Over Time" series. Here is Debra's program for these paintings as quoted from the show's press release:
"For the 'Pouring Over Time' series, Ramsay developed a methodology based on a fixed linear constant: time. Each panel is divided into six columns, representing the two-digit numerals of the month, day, and year of the painting's title. Those numbers determine the number of times a line of poured wax will start in that column, thereby encoding the date in the painting. The starting point of each poured line retains the hard edge determined by the original division. Ramsay allows the effect of gravity on the molten wax to direct the quality of the line, and this new line creates its own representation of the time of its making."
"In this latest group of paintings, I've continued to explore the shift towards greater abstraction through color and movement. The new work is more celestial, and the forms less clearly describe organic structures; rather they feel like the sum of entire universes. The particles that define these galaxies merge and shift, expanding and contracting, and each disruption reveals an ever increasing unpredictability. As the paintings progress, what is complex and what is simple becomes relative and continues to change with time. The tension I often feel when making the paintings is reflected in the cosmic chaos captured in each piece. As I continue to explore the folding and flexing of these abstract worlds, I allow myself to be more and more consumed by the random bursts of energy defined by the unique gravity of these paintings."
" The exhibition and series’ title, Quanta, takes its name from the physics term that refers to a discrete quantity of radiant energy. Each individual square on the canvas’s grid releases its own unit of light and color, resulting in an overall dynamism. In Tottenheads (2011), Prussian blue peeks out from under the foreground of supple squares of cadmium red, thrusting the red towards the viewer. Lee sees painting as a ritual act and each square on the canvas as binding a relationship between her and the individual painting. The titles are often drawn from the artist’s own poetry, adding another personal element to the work."
Here is Joanne's statement about the work:
"For the past year or so, I have been turning my square panels diagonally so that they become diamonds, a shape that both punches into the space around it and rests in perfect equipoise en pointe. Within that diamond field is a formal arrangement of attenuated diamonds bisected horizontally so that the surface appears almost faceted. In a largely monochromatic palette, light hits the diagonal grain so that structure and pattern are pronounced. For the paintings in Lush Geometry at DM Contemporary (http://www.dmcontemporary.com/exhibitions/lush-geometry/intro.html) I upped the ante with iridescence and the shimmer of metallic. The color, though mutable, is more luminous."
Anyway, where was I? Oh, yes. In Chelsea running over to Blank Space on West 25th Street to see Debra Ramsay's show, Desire Lines.
The title of Debra's show refers to a landscape architecture term for the paths that people take through a landscape regardless of which path they were meant to take. This heedless traffic results in visible pathways, usually the quickest routes between desired points, that circumvent intended control or restrictions. (Note that many of the images will expand if you click on them.)
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| Debra Ramsay, Week One, 2012, wax on panel, 6" square |
In the same way, Debra's recent paintings at Blank Space are based on a predetermined system of mark making that retains control to a certain point but then allows accident and chance to take over. The works above and below are from the "Pouring Over Time" series. Here is Debra's program for these paintings as quoted from the show's press release:
"For the 'Pouring Over Time' series, Ramsay developed a methodology based on a fixed linear constant: time. Each panel is divided into six columns, representing the two-digit numerals of the month, day, and year of the painting's title. Those numbers determine the number of times a line of poured wax will start in that column, thereby encoding the date in the painting. The starting point of each poured line retains the hard edge determined by the original division. Ramsay allows the effect of gravity on the molten wax to direct the quality of the line, and this new line creates its own representation of the time of its making."
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| Debra Ramsay, Cruel Desire, 2012, wax on panel, 12" square |
The beautiful, saturated color in these works really stood out as contrasted with the graphite and white palette of Debra's wax and eggshell works also in the show.
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| Debra Ramsay, Gratitude for Agnes Martin, 2012, wax on panel, 12" square |
On the other hand, there were also lovely pale greys and taupes such as the soft palette of this work just above. This coloration was taken from Agnes Martin's painting, Gratitude, and the painting encodes the date of Martin's birth in pink, the date of her death in grey.
Here is the link to Debra's press release on the Blank Space site that describes the show in detail. Desire Lines is up until May 19th so there is still plenty of time to see it. Go, go!
Reed Danziger at McKenzie Fine Art
Right across the hall from Blank Space, McKenzie Fine Art had a great show of paintings by Reed Danziger. This work was as complex and layered as Debra's work was pared back and reduced to essentials. All three of us (if you recall it was Greg Wright, Binnie Birstein and me) just loved the work even though our own work ranges all over the map.
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| Reed Danziger, Angles of a Particle, Phase E, 2012, 20" x 20", mixed media on paper mounted on wood |
These works were painted with a delicacy and fineness of detail that compounds their expressive movement and dense accumulations of marks. There is such a lot to absorb in the masses of marks centered on the scumbled and stained backdrops, but they feel perfectly balanced and uncrowded. Here's what the artist said about them:
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| Reed Danziger, A Differential Coherence, 2012, 36" x 36," mixed media on paper mounted on wood |
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| Reed Danziger, A Second Order Reaction, 2012, 36" x 36," mixed media on paper mounted on wood |
This show is only up until April 28th so you have one more week to get there. Worth the trip!
Catherine Lee, Galerie Lelong
As we strolled down West 26th Street, we saw some interesting paintings when we looked into Galerie Lelong. These glowing, gridded works are painted with repetitive brushstrokes that are meant to mark the passage of time.
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| Catherine Lee, Chocolate Cadmium (Quanta #21), 2012, 54" x 54", oil on canvas |
For example, in Chocolate Cadmium, the underpainting is a chocolate brown and the grid on the surface is cadmium red. However, you can see the color variation of each square in the grid that gives the work its feeling of being lit from behind. Each square is painted with a separate brushstroke, meaning that smaller grids are painted with smaller brushes and so on.
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| Catherine Lee, Like the Bright Sky All Fired Upon (Quanta #24), 2012, 30" x 30", oil on canvas |
Here's a description of the work from the gallery's press release:
" The exhibition and series’ title, Quanta, takes its name from the physics term that refers to a discrete quantity of radiant energy. Each individual square on the canvas’s grid releases its own unit of light and color, resulting in an overall dynamism. In Tottenheads (2011), Prussian blue peeks out from under the foreground of supple squares of cadmium red, thrusting the red towards the viewer. Lee sees painting as a ritual act and each square on the canvas as binding a relationship between her and the individual painting. The titles are often drawn from the artist’s own poetry, adding another personal element to the work."
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| Catherine Lee, Act III, Scene IV (Quanta #31), 2012, 8" x 8", oil on canvas |
The blue pieces were my favorite because they really were exceptionally glowing. When we asked the price for this 8" x 8" piece, however, we were astounded. I won't even mention how astronomical it was. I guess if you had to ask...
Lush Geometry at DM Contemporary
Finally, after a long slog to East 29th and Park, we arrived at DM Contemporary, our ultimate destination and true motivation for the New York trip, the opening of Lush Geometry featuring our guru, mentor and friend, Joanne Mattera.
Lush Geometry is a show of work by five artists: Steven Baris, Richard Bottwin, Carole Freysz Gutierrez, Joanne Mattera and Louise P. Sloane. The standouts for me (and my pals) were Joanne and Steven. I have given the website links for each of the artists so you can see what their work is like, and I'll just include here three of Joanne's five Diamond Life paintings that were in the show. I'm sure that Joanne will be writing more about the show as a whole on her blog.
This subtly-colored beauty includes unpigmented wax with a pale metallic so that the diamonds seem to appear and disappear depending how light strikes the piece. The bisecting horizontal lines seem to ground the verticality of the diamond-shaped panel and add a counterpoint to the grid of diamond shapes. Brushstrokes on the surface of the wax add physicality to the work and show the artist's touch on the sensuous and "lush" surface.
Lush Geometry is a show of work by five artists: Steven Baris, Richard Bottwin, Carole Freysz Gutierrez, Joanne Mattera and Louise P. Sloane. The standouts for me (and my pals) were Joanne and Steven. I have given the website links for each of the artists so you can see what their work is like, and I'll just include here three of Joanne's five Diamond Life paintings that were in the show. I'm sure that Joanne will be writing more about the show as a whole on her blog.
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| Joanne Mattera, Diamond Life 18, 2012, 22.5" x 22.5", encaustic on panel |
This subtly-colored beauty includes unpigmented wax with a pale metallic so that the diamonds seem to appear and disappear depending how light strikes the piece. The bisecting horizontal lines seem to ground the verticality of the diamond-shaped panel and add a counterpoint to the grid of diamond shapes. Brushstrokes on the surface of the wax add physicality to the work and show the artist's touch on the sensuous and "lush" surface.
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| Joanne Mattera, Diamond Life 20, 2012, 22.5" x 22.5", encaustic on panel |
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| Joanne Mattera, Diamond Life 21, 2012, 22.5" x 22.5", encaustic on panel |
Here is Joanne's statement about the work:
"For the past year or so, I have been turning my square panels diagonally so that they become diamonds, a shape that both punches into the space around it and rests in perfect equipoise en pointe. Within that diamond field is a formal arrangement of attenuated diamonds bisected horizontally so that the surface appears almost faceted. In a largely monochromatic palette, light hits the diagonal grain so that structure and pattern are pronounced. For the paintings in Lush Geometry at DM Contemporary (http://www.dmcontemporary.com/exhibitions/lush-geometry/intro.html) I upped the ante with iridescence and the shimmer of metallic. The color, though mutable, is more luminous."
The End of a Perfect Day
We had a great time at the lively, crowded and very noisy opening at DM Contemporary and enjoyed seeing friends and meeting new people. We capped the evening with a great and inexpensive dinner at a Thai restaurant right down the street and had a fun ride back to Connecticut chatting, dishing and laughing all the way home.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Looking Quickly But Deeply
Yesterday was a treat for me when I emerged from working so hard in the studio to make a road trip with my friend Greg Wright for a couple of art visits. It's always worthwhile to come up for air and get enthused by looking at some great work.
Martin Kline, Romantic Nature
Our first stop was the Martin Kline Retrospective at the New Britain Museum of American Art in New Britain, Connecticut. I have seem images of Kline's work in Joanne Mattera's The Art of Encaustic Painting, but this was the first time I saw his work in person. Unfortunately, photography was not permitted so the images here are taken from Kline's website. However, it's impossible to appreciate the beauty and skill of his work unless you see it in person.
Kline's show, Romantic Nature, includes about 75 works, mostly paintings in encaustic. Many of the pieces are absolutely spectacular. There is one tall vertical piece at the entrance to the show painted in a metallic silver or aluminum that appears to be a waterfall of threads falling from the top of the painting and cascading down its length. Greg and I were absolutely in love with it. For artists who paint in encaustic, this show is a must see because we can appreciate the technical skill involved but also how Kline is able to employ that skill in creating truly beautiful works that speak to his fascination with the natural world.
We enjoyed seeing how Kline is not hung up on making precious works but lets drops and spots of paint stay where they landed surrounding the works and on the edges of panels. Greg and I were unsure that we could let such "blemishes" remain, but they do serve to let viewers into the process of painting -- a messy and often uncontrollable business no matter how much skill you have.
Also really great were Kline's sculptures cast from wax paintings. Even more than the cast parts, I loved the bases and supports that Kline left apparently just as they came from the casting process, with no smoothing of rough edges or manipulating into "art." This rawness contrasted with the skillful building up of was forms was very effective and I thought gave the works an African appearance -- and you know how much that appeals to me!
The museum was selling Kline's book Romantic Nature in the gift shop for $50 or in a special slipcase for $100. It's also available on Amazon for less. If you can't go to the show, you should at least get the book. We were also very pleased to see Joanne Mattera's book prominently displayed right next to Kline's.
The Missing Link
No, of course I'm not saying that Binnie is part of homo sapiens' evolutionary history; I'm just indicating that Greg and I had to link up with Binnie Birstein, our arting pal, before making the trek into New York City. Binnie has just moved to Old Greenwich, CT so that was our next stop, and then the three of us entrained.
A Pop-In to Chelsea
Our ultimate destination was the opening of "Lush Geometry" at DM Contemporary at 29th and Park Avenue, but we detoured first to Chelsea for a quick look at a couple of shows.
Lloyd Martin at Stephen Haller Gallery
After trudging all those long Chelsea blocks over to 26th Street, we made it to Stephen Haller's to see Lloyd's show, Mettere (Italian for "put" or "place." Although none of us have ever met him, we felt we knew him somewhat because of his interview on Lynette Haggard's blog. (And by the way, Lynette was supposed to be the fourth member of our little art gang, but could'nt get off work.)
We enjoyed seeing Lloyd's work in person. These pieces seem to be much less about horizontal movement and more about smaller rectangular areas brought into the flow and appearing to move forward or backward in space.
Here are two pieces I liked particularly - Large Mete, above - and Shim Series (5) below.
To Be Continued
Uh-oh. I thought this would be a quick post with just a few mentions but instead it's turned into a book. I have to go watch one of my guilty pleasures (America's Next Top Model - which Bonnie is telling me I shouldn't admit to, but what the hey), so I'll continue to post some art highlights tomorrow.
Martin Kline, Romantic Nature
Our first stop was the Martin Kline Retrospective at the New Britain Museum of American Art in New Britain, Connecticut. I have seem images of Kline's work in Joanne Mattera's The Art of Encaustic Painting, but this was the first time I saw his work in person. Unfortunately, photography was not permitted so the images here are taken from Kline's website. However, it's impossible to appreciate the beauty and skill of his work unless you see it in person.
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| Martin Kline, Intimate Universe Revisited, 2010, 48" x 48" x 4", encaustic on panel |
Kline's show, Romantic Nature, includes about 75 works, mostly paintings in encaustic. Many of the pieces are absolutely spectacular. There is one tall vertical piece at the entrance to the show painted in a metallic silver or aluminum that appears to be a waterfall of threads falling from the top of the painting and cascading down its length. Greg and I were absolutely in love with it. For artists who paint in encaustic, this show is a must see because we can appreciate the technical skill involved but also how Kline is able to employ that skill in creating truly beautiful works that speak to his fascination with the natural world.
 |
| Martin Kline, Eros, 2010, 48" x 48" x 4", encaustic on panel |
We enjoyed seeing how Kline is not hung up on making precious works but lets drops and spots of paint stay where they landed surrounding the works and on the edges of panels. Greg and I were unsure that we could let such "blemishes" remain, but they do serve to let viewers into the process of painting -- a messy and often uncontrollable business no matter how much skill you have.
Also really great were Kline's sculptures cast from wax paintings. Even more than the cast parts, I loved the bases and supports that Kline left apparently just as they came from the casting process, with no smoothing of rough edges or manipulating into "art." This rawness contrasted with the skillful building up of was forms was very effective and I thought gave the works an African appearance -- and you know how much that appeals to me!
The museum was selling Kline's book Romantic Nature in the gift shop for $50 or in a special slipcase for $100. It's also available on Amazon for less. If you can't go to the show, you should at least get the book. We were also very pleased to see Joanne Mattera's book prominently displayed right next to Kline's.
The Missing Link
No, of course I'm not saying that Binnie is part of homo sapiens' evolutionary history; I'm just indicating that Greg and I had to link up with Binnie Birstein, our arting pal, before making the trek into New York City. Binnie has just moved to Old Greenwich, CT so that was our next stop, and then the three of us entrained.
A Pop-In to Chelsea
Our ultimate destination was the opening of "Lush Geometry" at DM Contemporary at 29th and Park Avenue, but we detoured first to Chelsea for a quick look at a couple of shows.
 |
| Studio shot of Lloyd Martin's Mettere paintings |
Lloyd Martin at Stephen Haller Gallery
After trudging all those long Chelsea blocks over to 26th Street, we made it to Stephen Haller's to see Lloyd's show, Mettere (Italian for "put" or "place." Although none of us have ever met him, we felt we knew him somewhat because of his interview on Lynette Haggard's blog. (And by the way, Lynette was supposed to be the fourth member of our little art gang, but could'nt get off work.)
We enjoyed seeing Lloyd's work in person. These pieces seem to be much less about horizontal movement and more about smaller rectangular areas brought into the flow and appearing to move forward or backward in space.
 |
| Lloyd Martin, Large Mete, 2010, 84" x 42", oil & mixed media on canvas |
Here are two pieces I liked particularly - Large Mete, above - and Shim Series (5) below.
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| Lloyd Martin, Shim Series (5), 24" x 24", oil & mixed media on canvas |
To Be Continued
Uh-oh. I thought this would be a quick post with just a few mentions but instead it's turned into a book. I have to go watch one of my guilty pleasures (America's Next Top Model - which Bonnie is telling me I shouldn't admit to, but what the hey), so I'll continue to post some art highlights tomorrow.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
What You Missed
Uh-oh! A month has passed without a post. Good thing that writing this blog is not a paid position or my salary would be docked.
Here's what you missed in the meantime: (You can click to enlarge images.)
1) New Work
With these pieces, I'm trying something a little new - a sense of movement in color and value to indicate the passage of light or journey from one side of the piece to the other. You may hear more about this work in the near future.
2) Kirby gets sick and has surgery
Facebook people have heard all about this, but for those who spend their time more wisely, our younger Yellow Lab, Kirby, - age 7 1/2 - suddenly began having difficulty walking, going up stairs and movement in general. His condition worsened rapidly to the point where he could barely walk. Our veterinarian discovered that he had a loss of sensation in his rear legs. She suspected that his condition related to a spinal problem. We had tests run to rule out other illnesses but nothing showed up in them or in x-rays. We were referred to the neurology team at the world-renowned Angell Animal Medical Center (formerly known as Angell Memorial) in Jamaica Plain (Boston). (Here's the link to Angell via the Boston MSPCA, with which it's allied http://www.mspca.org/ .)
We met the wonderful Dr. Arendse this past Monday with Kirby. After she had examined him and had him perform a few tests, she correctly suspected that he had a compression problem in his cervical spine (the top of the spine in the neck area). Here's a description below of what happens to a dog with this problem. I hope you will read this so if it happens to your dog, you will be aware of what's going on.
(This info is from http://www.ehow.com/about_5110444_spinal-disc-problems-dogs.html )
Signs will vary depending on the location of the problem.
With cervical (or neck) disc disease, sudden onset of neck pain is usually the first sign that something is wrong. As the discs in this region can affect a dog's front and back legs, clumsiness or an inability to walk also indicate presence of the disease. One or both sides of the body may be affected. A lower back disc injury can present only in the hind legs.
Neurological function is lost in a particular order and the dog owner should seek veterinary help immediately for the greatest chance of recovery. In the first stage, the dog loses its ability to locate its limbs. Next, the dog will lose its ability to move its legs and, finally, it will lose the ability to feel its legs.
Intervertebral (between the vertebrae) discs act as spinal shock absorbers. A disc typically has two sections: a gel-filled center and an outer fibrous ring. It turns degenerative when the gelatinous material calcifies into a gritty substance that can no longer cushion vertebral movements. The disc center then becomes prone to bulge and rupture into the spinal canal, resulting in spinal pressure, pain and paralysis.
Small dog breeds with long bodies and short legs, such as dachshunds, are prone to the form of spinal disc disease referred to as "disc extrusion". Disc extrusion occurs when the disc center explodes into the spinal canal.
Large breed dogs, such as Labradors, are more prone to "disc bulging". Disc bulging occurs when the disc center protrudes into the spinal canal but does not explode.
Dr. Arendse told us that to see just where the problem was, Kirby would need an MRI and probably surgery. The outcome with other treatment such as rest and steroids does not work long run. We placed our doggie boy and ourselves in her hands, and said that we would go along with her advice. She recommended that Kirby stay overnight for the MRI on Tuesday and if the results were what she suspected, he would undergo surgery on Wednesday. This made sense because it's about a two and a half hour drive for us to Angell and he would settle in better if he just stayed at the hospital.
Here's what you missed in the meantime: (You can click to enlarge images.)
1) New Work
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| Duet, 2012, Mixed media with encaustic on panel, 36" x 36" |
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| Shifting Red, 2012, mixed media with encaustic on panel, 24" x 24" |
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| Shifting Blue, 2012, mixed media with encaustic on panel, 24" x 24" |
With these pieces, I'm trying something a little new - a sense of movement in color and value to indicate the passage of light or journey from one side of the piece to the other. You may hear more about this work in the near future.
2) Kirby gets sick and has surgery
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| Kirby with his usual smiling face |
Facebook people have heard all about this, but for those who spend their time more wisely, our younger Yellow Lab, Kirby, - age 7 1/2 - suddenly began having difficulty walking, going up stairs and movement in general. His condition worsened rapidly to the point where he could barely walk. Our veterinarian discovered that he had a loss of sensation in his rear legs. She suspected that his condition related to a spinal problem. We had tests run to rule out other illnesses but nothing showed up in them or in x-rays. We were referred to the neurology team at the world-renowned Angell Animal Medical Center (formerly known as Angell Memorial) in Jamaica Plain (Boston). (Here's the link to Angell via the Boston MSPCA, with which it's allied http://www.mspca.org/ .)
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| Dr. Avril Arendse, board certified veterinary neurologist and neurosurgeon on the neurology team at Angell Animal Medical Center |
We met the wonderful Dr. Arendse this past Monday with Kirby. After she had examined him and had him perform a few tests, she correctly suspected that he had a compression problem in his cervical spine (the top of the spine in the neck area). Here's a description below of what happens to a dog with this problem. I hope you will read this so if it happens to your dog, you will be aware of what's going on.
(This info is from http://www.ehow.com/about_5110444_spinal-disc-problems-dogs.html )
Signs will vary depending on the location of the problem.
With cervical (or neck) disc disease, sudden onset of neck pain is usually the first sign that something is wrong. As the discs in this region can affect a dog's front and back legs, clumsiness or an inability to walk also indicate presence of the disease. One or both sides of the body may be affected. A lower back disc injury can present only in the hind legs.
Neurological function is lost in a particular order and the dog owner should seek veterinary help immediately for the greatest chance of recovery. In the first stage, the dog loses its ability to locate its limbs. Next, the dog will lose its ability to move its legs and, finally, it will lose the ability to feel its legs.
The first sign we had is that Kirby started walking as if he was walking on eggs and his legs would go out from under him from time to time. He had a frantic, scared look on his face. We thought it could be Lyme Disease because sometimes that shows up with these symptoms initially. By the time we brought him to the hospital, Kirby was probably in the middle of this deterioration of functioning. But as with many dogs and most Labs, he did not let on that he was in pain until it must have been excruciating.
Kirby not only had "bulging" but rupture of a disc:
Intervertebral (between the vertebrae) discs act as spinal shock absorbers. A disc typically has two sections: a gel-filled center and an outer fibrous ring. It turns degenerative when the gelatinous material calcifies into a gritty substance that can no longer cushion vertebral movements. The disc center then becomes prone to bulge and rupture into the spinal canal, resulting in spinal pressure, pain and paralysis.
Here are the dogs that are most susceptible to such problems:
Large breed dogs, such as Labradors, are more prone to "disc bulging". Disc bulging occurs when the disc center protrudes into the spinal canal but does not explode.
Kirby had surgery on Wednesday and Dr. Arendse reported that she was able to repair the problem quicker than she expected and he did very well. This is an involved surgery with a long incision from his trachea to his sternum because she had to be able to move aside his esophagus and other organs to reach the spine. This morning Dr. Arendse reported that Kirby was doing even better than anticipated and is recovering nicely. We expect to pick him up and bring him home on Saturday morning.
The convalescent period is pretty extensive and will require us to limit his activity for four or five weeks by confining him to a small room and just allowing short walks on a harness. Whew! This was all so stressful! Of course the financial burden is a big item, but we are focusing on getting our high-energy, smiling little guy back to health. Dr. Arendse says that we can expect 100 percent recovery of all function!
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| Our glum chum Hercules |
Meanwhile, our other dog, Hercules, who is Kirby's father, has been totally sad. He is moping around and keeps looking for his boy to appear. They were inseparable and had huge reunions if they were apart for even a few minutes so this is really not good. We know we will have to be careful to prevent the usual roughhousing when Kirby comes home.
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| Typical bone-chewing postures (Kirby in foreground) |
3) My own physical problems
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| Image from sciencedaily.com via the internet |
I've been having trouble with a pinched nerve in my hip plus general inflammation in my body. This is making me tired, irritable and cranky - and not inspired to write blog posts. Fortunately, I have found a very good acupuncturist in Amherst (http://amherstchinesemedicine.com/index.html) who has been treating me with needles, heat and acupressure massage. This is pretty painful, but not as painful as her suggestions that I also need to exercise regularly and restrict my diet to foods that are not so inflammatory. Here's a list of things I should avoid http://theconsciouslife.com/top-10-inflammatory-foods-to-avoid.htm among others.
Ever notice that it's always something?
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