Daily Artsy Design Foraging

Friday Faves:  Think Pink

In honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, this Friday Faves round up is dedicated to the color pink.  Pink is the color of femininity, yes, but it is also becoming a symbol of positivity and the power to overcome.  This month and always, Artsy Forager encourages you to Think Pink– breast cancer is a threat to us all, but what an encouragement it is to see so many women ( and men ) winning their battle!  I hope you’ll consider making a donation or linking to The Pink Fund on your blog of Facebook page, look for the link at the bottom of the post.

Rabbit Girl by Denise Nestor, acrylic on canvas, 20×30

Lilly by Michelle Armas, acrylic on canvas, 18×18

Monet’s Dahlia, acrylic on canvas, 36×30

Torn Dress by M.A. Tateishi, mixed media and resin on board, 36×48

Mariposa by Sarah Ashley Longshore

To see more of today’s featured artists’ work, please visit their websites:

1.  Denise Nestor

2.  Michelle Armas

3.  Lisa Ernst

4.  M.A. Tateishi

5.  Sarah Ashley Longacre 

Don’t forget to check out The Pink Fund, a non-profit whose mission is to provide short-term financial aid to women and men who are in active treatment for and recovery from breast cancer.  Getting well shouldn’t mean financial ruin.

Abstract Art Daily Artsy Paintings

Abstracted Ambiguity: John Dempcy

Georges Braque said,  “There is only one valuable thing in art. The thing you can’t explain”.  The best of abstract art is, in my opinion, work that is so ambiguous that trying to explain it is kind of pointless.  There are so many “things” it could be, could represent, that trying to nail it down just seems futile.  The work of Seattle artist John Dempcy strikes me as just that sort of work.

Mingling Fates, acrylic on panel, 36x36

His caleidoscopic-like imagery brings to mind microscopic organisms..

Inner Fictions, acrylic on panel, 40x30

.. or sea life..

Sea Nettles, acrylic on panel, 40x30

.. or the wonders of the universe..

Quantum Leap, acrylic on panel, 30x30

.. or whatever you would like to see.

Renewal, acrylic on panel, 36x36

If you’re intrigued by John Demcy’s work, as I am, please visit his website.  I first saw his work at Augen Gallery in Portland, but you’ll find a list of galleries all over the US in which his work is featured.  There’s bound to be one in your path!

Featured image is Deepwater, acrylic on panel, 48×36.  All images are via the artist’s website.

Daily Artsy Photography

Milk And Honey Landscapes: Raquel Edwards

One of the things that really drew my hubby and I to the Pacific Northwest is the dynamic, breathtaking landscape.  For a photographer to be able to truly capture not only the natural beauty here, but the atmospheric mystery found in this place is no small thing.  Today’s artist, photographer Raquel Edwards‘ landscape imagery not only catches the physical elements of a place, but the magical feeling one might get being there.

Pacific Pine

Channel Markers

Waterfall

Sea Stack

Want to see more of Raquel Edwards’ work?  Please visit her website— make sure you check out her encaustic photography, too and her still lifes– tons of gorgeousness!  She’ll be showing in November at the Annie Meyer Artwork Gallery in Portland.

Featured image is Alders On Kachemak Bay.  All images are via the artist’s website.  

Daily Artsy Figurative Paintings

Bare Naked Portraits: Lu Cong

Remember when I said that I have a wish list of portrait artists?  Well, modern portrait artist Lu Cong has been at the top of the heap for quite a while.  He infuses his portraits with a soft glow that is at once ethereal and alien.

Tabitha #9, oil on panel, 36x40

His soft palette creates a peaceful atmosphere, juxtaposed with the slightly off-putting direct gaze of the subject.  The result is a stunning image of not just the portrait sitter, but of a momentary glimpse into their emotional world.

A Song At Dusk, oil on panel, 30x30

Eyes wide and lips slightly parted, there is an intense vulnerability captured in these images.  Not merely paintings of physical features, but souls laid bare.

Corbin #2, oil on panel, 32x28

My Name is Tabitha, oil on panel, 36x48

To see more of Lu Cong’s haunting portrait paintings, please visit his website and Facebook page.  ( Don’t forget to follow Artsy Forager, too, while you’re at it! )

Featured image is A Moment With Liza, oil on panel, 24×18.  All images are via the artist’s website.

Daily Artsy Landscapes Paintings

America The Surreal: Deborah Martin

America is often a strange place and seems to just keep getting stranger.  Los Angeles artist Deborah Martin captures the sad desolation found across our country  in her poignant paintings.

Aces and Spades, oil on canvas, 36x36

Slab City Chairs, oil on canvas, 36x36

Her use of a limited, pastel neutral palette softens the sometimes oddly grim reality of many lives in America.

Keep Out, oil on canvas, 36x36

Yet somehow, these aren’t dark, depressing images of life in one of the richest countries in the world.  They don’t feel critical or satirical, but rather reverent and dreamy.

Fifty-two, oil on canvas, 36x36

To see more of Deborah’s work, please visit her website.  If you are in the Los Angeles area, she is currently showing at The Red Arrow Gallery in Joshua Tree, CA.  I have a feeling these paintings are even more intriguing in person!

Featured image is Yellow Camper, oil on canvas, 36×36.  All images are via the artist’s website.

Daily Artsy Design Foraging

Friday Faves:  Falling For Fall

Said it before, I’ll say it again.  Fall is my favorite season.  The cool, crisp air, the golden light, the colors, the comfort food, I love it all!  For the very first time, this Florida girl is experiencing a real Fall.  With boot weather and incredible changing leaves, I’m so excited, I can barely stand it.  While in this autumnal frame of mind, I thought I’d share with you some of my favorite Fall-inspired art…

Trees and Light by Debbie Martin, 40x40

Tree View #7 by Kristi Taylor, acrylic on canvas 18x24

Penelope Dullaghan

Nine Full Moon Maples by Mary Chomenko Hinckley, pigment print on archival german paper, 21x21

Please visit these artists’ websites to see more of their work– some Fall-ish, some not.  I’m hoping George & I might see some real Fall color this weekend here in Southern Oregon.  What about you?  Any autumnal activities on tap?

1.  Debbie Martin

2.  Kristi Taylor

3.  Penelope Dullaghan

4.  Mary Chomenko Hinckley

Daily Artsy Photography

All The World’s A Miniature Stage: Grace Weston

I find it intriguing when artists let us into their imaginations, giving us a glimpse of the world as they see it, scenes of life as they interpret it.  Portland photographer Grace Weston creates small, staged vignettes that take on big, universal themes and canonical artwork.

Winter Wish, Winter Dream

The images are simple in their composition, poetic in their imagery and completely relatable.  Their dreamlike quality is, depending upon the image, entrancing, wryly humorous or slightly disturbing in an intentionally sweet yet creepy way.

Lovebirds

Baby Makes Three

I especially love her take on iconic artwork such one of The Unicorn in Captivity tapestry from the Metropolitan Museum in New York and The Son of Man by Rene Magritte.  What can I say, the art history major in me totally geeks out on these kinds of references and reinterpretations.

Petting Zoo

The Overseer

Grace Weston is represented by G. Gibson Gallery in Portland, Oregon, so if you’re in that area, stop in to see her work in person or visit her website.

Featured image is Laundry Day.  All images are courtesy of the artist’s website.

Artsy Dwelling Daily Artsy Interiors

New Feature!  Artsy Dwelling

I am constantly inspired by how people live with art in their own homes.  I love the way folks are thinking outside the box in terms of the art they collect, where and how they display it.  I’m hoping these short little visual features, Artsy Dwelling, will help inspire you!

We spend so much time in the kitchen these days– let’s face it, this room is the hub of any home.  It is where people inevitably gather during any party!  So why not display some of your favorite art in the spot where you spend so much time?  The only guideline?  Keep valuable original art away from cooking & prep areas to prevent damage.  Otherwise, feel free to think outside the icebox!

How about you, Artsies?  Do you have art in your kitchen?  Or have images of how you live with art in your home that you’d like to share?  We would love to see!  Feel free to email digital images to artsyforager@att.net and we might just feature your home on the blog!

Image sources can be found by clicking on the image.

Daily Artsy Mixed Media

Her Own Private Utopia: Melissa Loop

Do you ever wish you could just escape?  From your cares, stresses, work, technology, you name it.  Take a moment to run away with me into Minnesota artist Melissa Loop‘s landscapes of fantastical refuge.  They are part wonderland, part social commentary, but fully contemporary and brilliant.

Walmart, acrylic and enamel on panel, 36x24

Slide down a huge pink curvy slide as tall as a skyscraper leading down to a river coming out of a mountain shaped like a bear’s head?  Don’t mind if I do!

City Park 3, acrylic and enamel on panel, 48x36

Her use of flat shapes, vivid colors and perspectives make these a bit reminiscent of vintage travel posters, but then the added contemporary pops of patterns such as swoopy stripes and repeating textile-like shapes add more dimensions of interest.  These truly are works that I could escape into– just to try to figure out all that is going on!  They are like a crazy dream gone wild.  And I love them.

U.A.E. Arc Intervention, acrylic and enamel on panel, 24x36

St. Thomas All Inclusive, acrylic and enamel on panel, 36x24

To see more of Melissa Loop’s world, please visit her website.  Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to close my eyes and dream of curvy pink slides.