Art in Texas

                                                   Flowers by the Sink-Acrylic on media board

It has been a whole month now since having moved to San Antonio and at times, seems like a blur and that I am living on another planet. San Antonio is HUGE and surprisingly the seventh largest city in the US. Everything I have to do seems like a struggle though; losing my way on these crazy highways, learning where to go to get what, meeting new people and trying to remember names, places and how to get there...The fact that I am completely directionally challenged doesn't help a bit. I have met some lovely people and everyone is just so darned NICE and Friendly! Still, the hot weather is an adjustment and I keep hearing, "Just wait til' August!". Yup.
The Lighthouse for the Blind event at the Witte Museum was such fun. People were everywhere, the food was great and I met a number of folks who said some very nice things about my painting. The couple that ended  up with it was particularly nice, so I'm glad my child has a nice home.
The opening at the Mercury Project on Roosevelt Avenue on Friday night featuring Lars Hundere's work and was lively and full of his fantastic assemblages and paintings. I talked with Lars several times and his true and complete focus on exploring this current work is inspiring and fascinating. In much of his work, one thinks that the "script" written is some kind of verbiage that would enlighten the direction of the painting. But surprisingly, on closer examination, one finds that there is not ONE single, identifiable, real word. Lars told me that if he "accidentally" creates a real word while working, then he messed up and then has to start all over again. So these assembled pieces with their graphic, calligraphic look are not actual words or true symbols as we have come to think of them. They are Lars' words and only he knows their meaning. There are other words stamped out in reverse, some foreign words coupled with music as well as often an accompanying large, graphic, eastern looking symbol(s). Hard to explain it all, so I will insert a piece of his work here and as I always like to say, Let it speak for itself. He sold a number of pieces on Friday night and people were thrilled with being able to acquire some of his work. If I had an inch to spare in our tiny apartment, I would have bought something as well.

I keep hearing from so many of you about my blog and how you enjoy seeing work and reading  up on what I'm doing. Please comment or just sign up as a follower, then I will know for sure that somebody is out there!

Art in the Dark Fundraiser at the Witte Museum this Friday

A little over a week ago while driving down Broadway Street here in San Antonio, I saw a large banner hanging across the street that said, "Art in the Dark" at the Witte Museum. Of course, I Googled it immediately to find that an art auction to benefit the children's program for Lighthouse for the Blind was being held on the 14th of June. I thought of the painting above entitled, "Peonies in the Dark" and wanted to donate it to the event. Nancy Lipton, replied to my email and was gracious enough to accept my painting. What a dedicated, enthusiastic woman she is! She articulated her love of her work as the Director of Public Relations for Lighthouse for the Blind and how the event at the museum would unfold. The artwork that is 3 dimensional will be draped and bidders at the silent auction will only be allowed to "feel" the work of art underneath the drape. Work like mine, that is a painting, will not be draped. What a fascinating, fun idea!
The event kicks off at 6:30, is open to the public and tickets for this event are 25.00 per person. I know that this will be a fun and entertaining evening for all involved and for such a good cause!

Also, the Mercury Project, where my new studio is located, will be having an art opening on Friday, June 21st at 6 pm. Lars Hundere will have his work featured at the show called "Found Language/Cursive Words".  I have seen one of Lars' paintings and they are so very interesting and like nothing I have seen before. Antonia Richardson, Cindy Palmer, Louis Trevino, Kim Bishop and I will have work featured in the front galleries as well. Since I am new to all of this, I can only say that Antonia has told me that the gallery is jumping; people and food and drink and music are all happening! The show lasts from 6-9 and the Mercury Project is located at 538 Roosevelt Avenue in San Antonio.

If you would like to know more about the Mercury Project, you can find them on facebook or go to the http://mercuryproject.net.

I am still taking it all in and haven't really been doing much painting as it seems to be taking forever to get settled in.  I can only say that living here is so very different from Virginia, the people here are wonderfully friendly, it has been hot as the dickens and I can't wait to learn more about this city. My desire about my work seems to be the same...every time I see something beautiful or interesting, I just want to paint it. I know that the act of studying something carefully and then painting it, somehow makes in "mine" and that it then becomes embedded within me forever. So, the different trees here, the hill country, the HUGE sky and the Mission Concepcion that I saw on Sunday are all things that I want to paint. I don't care if every artist in town has painted this mission or not, I loved its cool walls; ancient, pale frescoes; and majestic presence. I've put a picture below and hopefully will paint it soon.