Harmony

A few years ago a photo was taken of me and one of my dogs "Thelma" running around the ring at a dog show. This photo was the inspiration behind this sculpture. Although it was raining on the day and I was wearing a rain coat and Thelma's feet were wet we had such harmony in the photo. Our hair was blowing the same way, we were in the same synchronized movement, her back left foot was stretched out, my left foot was stretched out, I was looking at her, she was looking at me, she was in full flight and I was just coming down on my right leg. Since this photo, I had a vision of one day completing a sculpture and that day has come. I am pleased to say it is complete and I will be taking it to the foundry tomorrow. Just in the nick of time. Both armatures have become very weak and the statues are barely hanging on. My husband has tried to fix them a few times this past week, but they keep coming loose. Maybe this was a sign to me to get finished! Details on pricing, patina's, availability, the edition, type of base etc. will be discussed tomorrow and #1 and #2 will be ordered. #3 has been reserved. I have enclosed a few photos of the sculpture in plasticine for you to view. Until next time, ENJOY THE ART! Terry

UPDATE: Harmony will be a limited edition of 15, on a marble base, the patina sounds absolutely breathtaking, can't wait to see the finished piece. The first 2 pieces #1 and #2 have been sold and will be available for viewing by July 1, 2008, #3, # 4 and #5 have been reserved also. I will send photos immediately after completion of the first two. I am taking reservations on the rest of the edition at this time. Time for completion is 3 to 4 months normally, depending on how busy the foundry is. I will accept payments. Prices on request. shacone@aol.com

In answer to a couple of questions. The lady is 15 1/4 in. the dog is 8 in. tall and 12 1/4 long. Plasticine is a non drying clay. Click on this link for more info. Plasticine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sam Maloof Gardens

Today I painted at the Sam Maloof Gardens in Upland, Ca. What a day! The Plein Air Artists of Riverside have been asked to paint the gardens every Thursday and Sat. for the next 6 weeks. The gardens are in full bloom. We will have an exhibit of the paintings from the gardens in Sept. at the new Sam Maloof Gallery which is on the property. Please click on the link to see and read more about this wonderful and talented master woodworker and his late wife who have put together this treasure for all of us to enjoy. Maloof Foundation This will be such an honor for our group to be able to show our work in their new gallery, stay tuned for dates and reception date.

When I first arrived at the garden I went into the gift shop to let them know I was there. The docent was very excited that we were back again. I walked around the whole garden and thought I had found a place to start painting. I went back to my car to get my gear and started down the path. I looked to my right and saw this curious path and wanted to see where it would lead. As I walked down the path I came to the most beautiful sight of color. The flowers were blooming, red, purple, yellow , orange, pink - just a terrific sight and I knew this would have to be my first painting from Sam Maloof. You could stop and paint any place on the grounds and come up with a beautiful painting, but what I liked most about this spot was looking up the path to a mystery setting with the beautiful mountains in the background.

It was quite cool when I arrived and I set up in the shade under this big tree. We were expecting it to warm up, but I was quite comfortable in my hoodie and left it on all day. After completing my first painting I walked over to talk to one of the other painters (Ginger Pena), and spotted this beautiful arrangement of Iris's. They were the most beautiful color of purple, more like a periwinkle. Just gorgeous. I am not sure I did them justice in this little 5 x 7 gem, but it did turn out to be a nice painting. I just know the color I was trying to get is not there, I would like to give it one more try before they are gone. When I got home I noticed the exact color of the iris's was in the larger painting. You can see it on the right side of the path. That is the color the iris's should be in the painting below. Well better luck next time. Enjoy the ART. Terry

Green Earth Day Dos Lagos 2008

Yesterday the Plein Air Artists of Riverside Dos Lagos Collection group was invited to paint at the 2nd annual Green Earth Day event at Dos Lagos. We arrived around 7:30 a.m. to set up our booth which were were sharing with PAN and the Riverside Art Museum. Some of the artists brought paintings to hang and sell and each artists was obligated to spend 30 minutes out of their day manning the booth. We had a great day, 3 artists from PAAR sold paintings. This is what we have been working for this past 3 years. We want to be a recognizable group where the public is interested in purchasing our paintings at different events. The artwork was well received by the public, lots of questions were asked, so it was a good day. 30 Artists set up around the festival and painted. I set up around 10 a.m. and painted the painting above. I really was not interested in painting the festival itself, I did this last year and still have the paintings hanging around in my studio. I wanted to paint something that would draw interest from my customers. I walked around and could not keep my eye off the hills behind the tents and the floral garden around the walk way next to the lake. So I took artistic license and cut out the festival and put in what I thought would make a nice painting. After completing the painting, a few other artists were finished also and wanted to go see about getting some lunch. Debbie Kotaka said she found a place in the shopping center that had sweet potato fries and I said, that sounds good to me. Helga, Jordan, Louise and myself walked up to Counters and indeed everyone had the sweet potato fries. Louise and I shared a hamburger as we had dinner reservations that evening to celebrate the day with other artists and didn't want to over indulge ourselves. I was really tired by this time. So I chose to go back and sit at the booth for the afternoon instead of doing another painting. It was nice talking with friends and sharing about our group to interested folks. The Corona Art Association group was set up next to us and they are always a fun group to be around. We closed up the booth around 4 and headed to Fridays with a group of artists. Had a nice casual dinner, talked about the day and our many future events and celebrated the artists who had sold their paintings. Congratulations Judy Schroeder, Joan Coffey and Durre Wasseem. Until next time, ENJOY THE ART. Terry

This painting is for sale, if you are interested please contact me.

Painting for the Dos Lagos Collection 2008

This year Mr. Sahabi would like 30 artists to paint for his Dos Lagos Collection. Last year we were invited to paint at the two man made lakes during the one day Green Earth Day event. The pressure was on to get a good painting for his collection. Later in the summer he invited all the artists and their families to a lovely dinner celebration. I was unable to attend because of a previous commitment but everyone had a wonderful time. This year Mr. Sahabi wanted the artist to paint his up and coming golf course. The entrance to the golf course is across the street from his Dos Lago Shopping center and lakes. Joan Coffey set up the times for 8 artist to come out to the Golf Course and be taken by golf cart to 1 of 4 locations. We were each given 2 days. The first day I was given was on a Wed. It was a chilly morning, but sunny. The nice gal that carted us around asked me what I like to paint and I said I would like to paint the creek. Unfortunately to keep the artists safe from flying golf balls from the golfers we had a lot of restrictions. I had to paint from a bridge that actually went over the water. Not getting much of a view I decided to paint the green of hole #9. The shadows when I arrived were in front of me and along the creek bed by the line of cottonwood trees. I thought this made for a good composition. After finishing the painting I decided to put in the rock quarry that was in the distance. I figured if I ever painted this scene again, that would certainly be the difference. The trucks and large equipment worked all day which I am assuming they do this every day. So the chances of that mountain being in the distance in the future will be slim to none. The golfers came and went during the time I was painting. I did manage to capture a couple of them on the green putting and their cart in the distance. The next day I was able to paint was the following Monday after a weekend at the Afghan Hound Club of California specialty and Hound Classic. Boy had the weather changed. It was scorching hot. I wanted to get through the painting quickly in the morning as I knew we were expecting 97 degrees that day. Louise Smith painted along side of me. I opted to go to the back side of the golf course and up in the mountains that overlooked the fairways of #16. I liked the formations of the mountain and the way the cut into the mountain for the fairway. The man made lake was on the side and the mountains in the distance had special interest and color. I am not sure which painting I will turn in to Mr. Sahabi. Right now I like them both equally, so I am asking opinions. Whichever painting is left over, I am sure my son Matthew will love to add the other one to his collection of golf course paintings. So let me hear your comments. Sometimes an artist that has worked on paintings cannot see a first impression like others. So what is your first impression. The first painting is hole #9, second is fairway #16. The painting at the end of this post is from last years Dos Lagos. The 30 artists chosen this year for the collection will be painting at Green Earth Day this Sat. April 19, 2008. Hope to see you there. Look for the PAAR booth which will carry some paintings from the 30 artists. Terry

Santa Barbara Mission 2008 "Lavanderia"

This past weekend after 3 days of painting at Art Alive, my hubby, Tootsie, April and myself took a short trip to Santa Barbara. Tootsie had a veterinarian appointment with Dr. Shaw on Monday so I decided this would be the perfect opportunity for me to paint the Santa Barbara Mission on Sunday. Being the good sport that my husband is, he said he would go along for the ride. When we arrived in Santa Barbara we dropped the dogs off with Abbe and Gary and got to the Mission around 3 p.m. The sun was starting to come out and it was a bit on the chilly side. My very first painting I ever did was in my art class in 1999/2000 was of Ch. Shylo Marquis Malachite better known as Hubert at the Santa Barbara Mission. I painted this painting from a photograph. The photo was on the cover of the Afghan Hound Review way back when also. My art teacher at the time thought I was sure taking on a huge project for my first painting but said I could give it a try. I will also put a cropped portion photo of that painting for you to see at the end of this post. For some reason I don't have a photo of the whole painting. I will try and find that photo at another time. Meanwhile I always loved the lavanderia (clothes washing basin built in 1808 by the Chumash Indians) at this Mission and also liked the view of the Mission that I had painted so long ago. Painting in Plein Air is sure a lot different than painting from a photograph. You really see so much more when you are on location. I am sure in the past 8 to 9 years some things have changed. We all change with age!!!! I quickly got the drawing and placement of the scene I wanted to paint. My husband watched this and told me later he was wondering how a painting would every emerge out of what I was doing. But he said he had faith in me as he knows my work. I first do an abstract design while drawing with a small brush, paint and turp. Mostly just to get an idea of placements of the subjects. I then put a quick wash over the painting paying special attention to the shadows and the lightest lights in the scene. By this time I am on a roll, or I can tell if I need to make adjustments before continuing or give up and start something fresh. Eddie decided he would go take a tour of the Mission while I continued. The sun finally came out and I quickly got in the what I was seeing and started to warm up just a little. I loved the way the sun hit the towers, the tops of the roof in spots and the trees in the foreground. The lavanderia was in full shade at this time except for the sun on the mountain lion figure at the top. Yep, that is a mountain lion, so funny how when I was painting the Hubert painting many years ago, from the photo I thought it must be a pig then. Still looks like a pig to me, but after the tour Eddie had gained a lot of knowledge about the lavanderia and how it came about and its many uses over the years. At this time Eddie decided he would read the newspaper, he was so worried about all the people who pass by and stand behind me watching me paint and taking photos of me painting that he thought he needed to stand guard so to speak so he moved the car where I was in full view as he read his paper. About 5:30 I was really getting cold and the light was changing so fast. I quickly finished the painting, put it away and hurried to the car. It was so nice to sit in a warm car. My hands were freezing. I didn't take the painting out of my carrier until we returned home on Monday. I was pretty pleased with the results. This painting will be on display starting April 15, 2008 at the Banning Center for the Arts Mission Show, featuring the Plein Air Artists of Riverside. If you are in the area be sure to contact me for directions. You do not want to miss this exhibit! Until next time, ENJOY THE ART. Terry

Art Alive Day 3

Yep, you guessed it, I got up early did my doggie chores and some other things and made it back to the museum to paint just one more painting. But, I wasn't the only one who came back again. Originally there were 3 artists signed up for Sat., but so many were having such a good time, that at least 12 artists came back. I just love painting these floral paintings and I knew that this would be my last chance for another year to be able to do something like this. I thought if I got everything done, I could groom Tootsie when I got home. Today I chose the display with the white picket fence. I loved the variation of color. The artist work in this display is a photograph that has been enhanced on the computer. It was framed nicely and the florist did a great job with their display. At about 12:30 my friends came to tell me they were hungry and wanted to go grab a bite to eat. By this time the other artist who were painting in the gallery had left to go paint the other gallery and I was the only artist left. I didn't even bat an eye, grabbed my purse and left everything sitting out. We went to this little sandwich shop called "Simple Simon's" for lunch. Nice place with homemade bread and wonderful desserts. When we returned the gallery was full of people and I went to get started on my painting and thought it odd that it looked kind of weird. Well while we were away someone grabbed one of my brushes and tried to paint my painting for me. I was really upset about it at first but after I worked it out, it really did not do too much damage, just was upsetting that anyone would do this. I just realized that there are camera's in the gallery and I will make sure they take a look and see who did this to my painting. Hummmm, this will be interesting and I will be sure to let you know. Until next time, ENJOY THE ART. Terry

Art Alive Day 2

Back for another day. The museum is open until 4 so we planned on staying the whole day. It was so much fun painting inside. We had to laugh as all of us are so used to the elements outside, the sun changing, the shadows moving that we are all pretty fast painters. It took us a while to realize that the light was not moving, the shadows were staying the same on the scenes/still life that we were painting. I think everyone who came thought the same thing. You would find yourself really painting fast and then quickly realize, I don't have to paint fast, I can walk away for an hour come back and my scene will be the same. I don't think it is as fun to paint still life as it is to paint on location, but it certainly is more relaxing. Maybe I like more of a challenge and that is why I have taken up Plein Air.....Today I chose a painting and exhibit by my friend and fellow PAAR member Helga Batman. She is a terrific painter and decided a long time ago that flowers were her thing. I don't know of anyone who paints them better. I quickly put in her painting in a very impressionistic way, and spent more time on the arrangement of flowers below that the florist did to capture her beautiful painting. We were told we could paint the paintings as long as we did not copy them. So swish, swish was the way. I loved the colors in this arrangement, very different from the day before. After finished this painting and having a great lunch at the museums new restaurant, I decided to paint a small 5 x 7 of the beautiful sunflowers in the lobby. They looked so neat as some of them were trying to fade and some were still bright and sassy looking. I really loved this little painting and when it was finished I put it in a frame and the sunflowers just popped. I turned in the Sunflower painting and the mirror image painting for the Art Sale on Sunday. It was a hard decision on which paintings I wanted to leave. All in all it was a great 2 days painting. I was sad I could not go on Sat. I needed to get my dogs groomed and ready to go to Santa Barbara. I want to paint the Santa Barbara Mission and my Afghan Hound Tootsie needs to see the veterinarian. Until next time enjoy the ART. If you like any of the Art Alive paintings please let me know and I will send you prices. Note cards, giclee prints, tiles, music boxes with tile lids and other keepsakes will be done from these wonderful florals. Terry

Art Alive Day 1

On Monday morning Bobbi Powell from the Riverside Art Museum called in a panic to let me know that some of the florist were not going to be able to do the show. She was so upset and was trying to figure out how to use all the paintings and fill the 2 large galleries in the museum. A friend had suggested that the paintings without flowers could have poetry painted on the walls either above or below and that since it was a French theme it would tie in. So she wanted to know if I could gather up some Plein Air artists and come help. I told her I would do what I could, but painting on walls was a lot different than painting outside, we laughed. I got on the phone and started calling. What a great group. Sharon Suhovy said she actually had the day off and would go over and start painting. The next day Pat Ford, Luz Perez, Rita Pacheco, Joan Coffey, Susan Dearmond and myself went over and finished up. It looked great and we were all laughing that now we could add another style of painting to our accomplishments. On Thursday Louise Smith, Luz Perez and myself met at the museum to start painting. I walked around looking at the different exhibits and found this lovely exhibit near the corner of the room. I knew the galleries would be full that afternoon and especially in the evening as it was Art's Walk and that usually brings in a crowd even with a regular exhibit. With the reception for the Artists and the Florists I figured there would be a lot of people and I was right! I felt if I were backed in a corner I would have less chance of anyone falling over my easel and knocking my painting off. When I started the painting I asked myself if I were crazy. This was quite a difficult task to paint not only were there different elevations, glass and water but also mirrored images to tie it all in. But I liked the corner and decided to do my best. When I finished I was amazed and very pleased with my accomplishment. The people started to flow in and I was getting a little antsy so decided to push my easel up towards the wall and work on something smaller. That is the second painting you see at the top. The display on this particular wall took up 4 large paintings (see photo below), a display that practically reached to the ceiling. I took a portion of arrangement and painted it on a 5 x 7 canvas. I just loved the variation of color. After becoming exhausted from a full day of painting, we left to go home as we had to be back the next morning by 10 a.m. We were allowed to leave our easels set up, so that made it easier on us coming back the next morning. Parking is at a premium around the gallery on most days and with Art Alive and the Plein Air painters it was hard to find parking. Pictured below are two of my friends Luz Perez and Louise Smith with their paintings. It was a great first night, lots of compliments and lots of friends visited the gallery.