Spring is officially here! As much as I adore winter, there is something about spring that brings out the joy and hopefulness in us, don’t you think? Like when I owned my little house in Florida, how excited I would get every spring to go to the local nursery and buy pretty flowers and mulch and transform my little yard, keeping my fingers crossed I could somehow keep everything alive! ( Hint: I usually didn’t. ). Even while we’re vagabonding it and renting, I long to transform each space in the spring. This year, I’ll have to just gaze longingly at all the wonderfully artsy gardening products popping up all over. Here are a few of my favorites found in my design foraging this week–
Any plans to do some diggin’ in the dirt this weekend? Mr. F and I are heading over to San Diego for some much needed time with friends. I’m hoping we’ll see some glimpses of spring while we’re there!
What do you get when you take one part line sketch + one part abstract expressionism + a flair for fashion? The stunning work of Denver artist/photographer/designer, Leigh Viner. Leigh elevates what could be a simple fashion sketch to fine art by her extraordinary eye for composition, figurative expression and well-placed explosions of color and texture.
Push
Look closely at the women Leigh is painting. These models aren’t faceless mannequins, each one has a story to tell. Their faces are full of subtle emotion– vulnerability, longing, confidence.
PerceiveGatsby
The strength of her work is in it’s simplicity. She is an artist that understands “less is more”. In her hands, a simple line drawing becomes a striking portrait with just a few limited dashes of color.
Draw The LineAbstractions Aside
To see more of Leigh’s work, visit her website. Her work is available for purchase in her Etsy store, jkldesign, which features original art, as well as prints of her artwork and photography. Leigh also writes a delightful blog, CREATE. You’ll be inspired.
Please enjoy this oldie by goodie while I spend the next two weeks camping, packing, visiting with the mom-in-law and moving from WA to OR. See you in September!
It is a huge misnomer that only the rich can afford to be art collectors or even to purchase original work. When most of us think of an “art collector”, we tend to think of the stereotype of the wealthy patron, attending auctions at Christie’s, buying artwork for more than many of us make in a year, heck, in a lifetime. Or maybe you’ve gone into a higher end gallery and seen a price and thought to yourself, “Self, no way you’ll ever be able to afford that.”
Well, I’m here to tell you, the times they are a changin’. It has never been easier or more affordable to purchase original artwork and/or high quality limited editions. No, I’m not talking about the kind of “original art” you buy at the fleamarket or from a sale in a hotel ballroom. I’m referring to original, gallery worthy fine art. The kind you can be proud to hang on your wall.
Here are some suggestions for finding the artwork of your dreams and getting your collection started:
Online galleries/exhibition websites– These are popping up all over the place and many of them represent some very talented artists and you can usually find wonderful work in every price point.
Etsy— Possibly the largest online art & handmade marketplace, complete with a powerful search engine, you’ll find a wide range of artwork available. Many artists are using Etsy to reach a wider audience and as a way to sell their work independantly. ( Note that many of the artists with shops on the “exhibition sites” will have their links on those sites connecting back to their Etsy shops. )
Into the Mystic, photgraphic print, 8″x8″ $30
20×200— this New York City based website works with artists to offer limited editions of original work. Starting at just $20 for the smallest size, 20×200 offers affordable, quality work for newbie collectors.
Well-Being I, limited edition on archival paper, 8″x10″, edition of $200, $20
Papernstitch— I must admit, I’m a little biased toward this one, as it is run by my friend ( and fabulous artist in her own right ), Brittni Wood. Started as a blog, Papernstitch is a growing online exhibition site, curated monthly by Brittni and features handpicked, talented artists, designers and craftspeople. The Papernstitch blog is still going full force and features daily posts from Brittni and a handful of other talented contributors. Papernstitch is definitely worth a look when you are searching for something special.
Open Space by Rachel Austin, original mixed media on canvas, 8″ x 8″, $85
Artwelove— Founded in 2008, ArtWeLove “offers exclusive, museum-quality art editions by today’s inspiring artists”. A big difference with this site is it focuses on offerings from artists whose work is found in top galleries, museums and exhibitions throughout the world. The work is curated and commissioned directly from the artist to ArtWeLove exclusively– you won’t see these prints anywhere else. The site has a “learning engine” similar to Amazon.com, which tracks your artwork preferences over time and makes recommendations for you.
Petal, Pixel and Stain by Nina Tichava, limited edition on archival paper, starting at $50
PoppyTalk Handmade–Founded in 2008 by a Canadian husband and wife team, PoppyTalk Handmade is a monthly curated and “themed” marketplace showcasing artwork, handmade and vintage goods from around the world. Sort of an online street fair/festival, PoppyTalk provides an online marketplace to emerging and indie artists and craftspeople.
Pillow Land, sewn print by Clare Elsaesser of Tastes Orangey, 4.75″ x 4.75″, $20
Stay tuned over the next few days for more suggestions on ways to buy original art on any budget!
Please enjoy this oldie but goodie while I spend the next two weeks camping, packing, visiting with the mom-in-law and moving from WA to OR. See you in September!
Swimmingly [ swim-ing-lee ]
–adverb- Definition: without difficulty; with great success; effortlessly.
‘Tis the season for swimming. If you’re in Florida at least, maybe if you’re elsewhere ’tis the season to dream of swimming. I recently came across the paintings of New York ( by way of Minnesota ) artist, Samantha French, bathed in sunlight and clear blue water.
Reminiscent of summers spent on Minnesota lakes, French’s work seeks to recapture those fleeting, carefree days of summer. Days spent in the water, underwater, by the water.. nothing compares to the lovely worn-out feeling of a day spent swimming and relaxing in the sun.
The swimmers and sunbathers in French’s work are reminiscent of days gone by.. of colorful convertibles, hotdog picnics, the days of Hepburn and Tracy.
French has a show titled “Open Swim” opening at the Left Bank Gallery in Essex, CT this Thursday. To learn more about the artist, visit her website and be sure to fan Samantha French Art on Facebook! Prints of her work can be purchased through her Etsy store.
There are certain artists whose work is so striking that once you’ve seen it, it will be immediately recognizable when you happen upon it again. Clare Elsaesser is just such an artist. I first saw her work a few years ago while reading the blog of interior designer Erika Powell, principal at Urban Grace Interiors. Not only does Erika have great taste in furnishings and shoes ( her boot collection is amazing! ), she also has a great eye for artwork, which she incorporates beautifully into her designs.
Bedroom project in progress, Urban Grace Interiors
I then happened upon Clare’s work on the Papernstitch handmade exhibition site, started following her blog and the rest, as they say, is history. I’m not sure why it’s taken me so long to feature her on Artsy Forager, but as I’m usually fashionably late anyhow, here we go!
Wrapped
Clare works in acrylics, painting on either wood panels or heavy watercolor paper for her “sewn” work. Many of the pieces in her Etsy shop are originals or prints with a single-line, hand-stitched “frame” around the perimeter. The stitching adds an intriguing textural element to the work and ties in with the fabrics so often featured.
Undress
These little paintings are at once charming and innocently provocative. The simplicity of line and form, coupled with the capturing of a private moment are reminiscent of the drypoints and aquatints of Mary Cassatt.
Stripes
The white sheets and pillows glow against the dark neutral backgrounds, like the moon glowing in the night sky. Or the translucent light in the blue sky of day.
Comforted
Whether night or day, Clare’s work makes me long to lounge in a tangle of sheets and pillows, reading a good book or daydreaming myself into a glorious nap. Grab a pillow and spend some time peeking around Clare Elsaesser’s Etsy shop, Tastes Orangey or stop by her blog to say hi and see her latest art, fashion and music recommendations.
I love art. I love design. Why not put the two together on the blog? There was a time in my life when I thought my career path lay ( Thank you, Suzanne Decuir for the grammatical help ) in Interior Design. I took courses, devoured design and shelter magazines. As often happens in life, circumstances got in the way and the path detoured. But that’s a story for another time. Let’s focus on the fun stuff today!
One of my absolute favorite things while designing ( OK, it was THE absolute favorite thing ), was creating moodboards. To begin with an inspiration and build a room or facility around it was thrilling to my color, texture and pattern lovin’ soul. And for me, it always began with the artwork. While doing project management/art consulting, I worked with a lot of designers and many ( but by no means all! ) viewed the artwork for a design as an after-thought. Like adding sprinkles to a cake. Still a cake without the sprinkles, but oh, if we add them, won’t that be pretty! But if we don’t have sprinkles, it’s OK. It’s still a nice cake. Instead, I think of the artwork as the frosting– not just smoothed across the top, but spread between the layers and all over. It is what holds the cake together and gives it the extra texture and sweetness that keeps us going back for more.
( Wow, anyone else craving cake now? )
So you’ve purchased this beautiful painting by Christina Foard. You love it, it speaks to your heart and reflects your style and everything you love about life. But maybe you live at the beach and are unsure how to design a room around it. Aren’t all beach houses supposed to be full of palm trees & seashells?
Seaside Reflections by Christina Foard, oil on canvas, 60×48
This piece to speak more to the feeling of being on the beach just after a storm, while the skies are still a bit gray but the sun is beginning to peek through, warming up the sand to both the eye and the touch. So let’s take our cue from that and begin with soft, grayish tones, layering on the warmth of the sun in our accent chair, rug and window coverings. An important component in Christina’s work is texture, so we’ll make sure there are plenty of interesting surfaces to draw our eyes in, just as Christina’s painterly build up does in her work.
Modern Reflections, a beachside home for a contemporary art lover
Have you ever designed a room around a piece of artwork? Or bought a piece of artwork not knowing where exactly to hang it in your home but you couldn’t live without it? Have a beloved piece of art sitting in a closet somewhere because you don’t think it “goes” or can’t figure out how to incorporate it with your current furnishings? Um, yeah, me too. 🙂
