Category: Artist

It Takes a Whole Lot of Organizing to be a Creative These Days!

It Takes a Whole Lot of Organizing to be a Creative These Days!

I’ve had my Silhouette since April. Completed a good number of projects for family. But I’ve only just today labeled the storage cabinet drawers I bought months ago to help keep myself organized.

So up until now, every time I started a project, there I was rummaging through drawers looking for scraps. I had purchased hanging folder type thingies for my Vinyl and HTV, but odds & ends were stuffed quickly and haphazardly into drawers.

Heavens Above! WHY does it take me so long to get organized? Life is better organized. I get more done organized. I can find what I need 1,2,3 when I am organized!

But as a mixed media artist there is SO MUCH to organize! Acrylic paint, oil paint, cold wax, matte medium, glossy medium, alcohol inks, solvents, pencils, graphite, charcoal, stubbies, brushes, markers, watercolors, pastels, oil pastels, papers, collage papers, paper cutter, napkins, canvas, cradled wood, wood slabs, tiles, fixatives, do-dads, embellishments, old jewelry pieces, ribbons, silk flowers, dried flowers, glues, glue guns, adhesives, mats, frames, a little of this, a little of that, Silhouette Cameo cutting machine, vinyl, HTV, cutting boards, rulers, scissors, fabric, sewing machines, thread, art journals, spiritual journals, handmade journals, HOLY MOLY! It’s a veritable treasure cache of creative material…oozing and overflowing every inch of my space. Not to mention easels, drawing tables, work tables, display panels, hardware, computer desk, super duper bright lights and overhead lighting. Along with all the magical machines, cameras, laptops and ipads…

Then there is the whole world of the internet to organize as well. WordPress, FaceBook, Instagram, Webpage, Design, Marketing, Selling, Bookkeeping, Classes, Tutorials, Professional Groups, Art Groups…Whew!

Yes indeed! It takes a whole lot of organizing to be a creative these days!

Take care,

Kathy Ann

Inspiration. It’s a Funny Thing…

…the sentiment of a moment in time.

He Is Risen
He Is Risen! Watercolor in my art journal

Inspiration

Someone had posted a photo on social media that I just loved. It touched me in it’s simplicity and it’s beauty. The image stayed with me. I found myself reflecting on it. It was the inspiration for this watercolor in my art journal. You never know when inspiration will strike. When something you see or experience in some way, becomes ingrained in your soul. I sat at my drawing table and wondered if I could do the image justice. If I could capture the feeling it left with me. I love that we get to take the memory of a concrete thing and turn it into a piece of art that evokes the emotion and the sentiment of a moment in time.

 

Evening Drive in the Woods

Creative spirits have discovered the wonderful gift of time to create.

Evening Drive in the Woods
Watercolor in my art Journal
approximately 5″ x 7 “

Coronavirus…Interesting times for us. Lots of uncertainty, fear of the unknown, fear of the known.
One thing I think many of us have discovered is the gift of time. Time to dream. Time to pray. Time to sit quietly. Time to reflect. Time to value and give thanks for all the good things in our lives; our family, our friends, our health, our homes, our freedom.

Creative spirits are loving the wonderful gift of time to create. To explore our creative potential. To play. Maybe to start an art journal or learn a new medium. Perhaps to practice. To perfect a technique. To bask in the glory of creation. To acknowledge that we have been blessed with the gift of being able to create with the greatest Creator of All!

It’s has also apparently opened the door to dreaming about an evening drive in the woods!

Take care of yourselves!
Kathy Ann

Rise Up!

Rise Up!
An Intuitive piece
Oil and Cold Wax on Cradled Wood Panel 10″ x 10″

Oil and Cold Wax. There is just something about it. It draws me in. It constantly surprises me. I’m never quite sure where it will end up, and I love that! 

This was an amazing piece to create. First I added gesso to the wood surface, then added a layer of blue and teal acrylic so that when I scraped it back, it wouldn’t be just to a white surface. When working in this medium I work 100% intuitively. I just immerse myself in the glory of the color palette and play with the all that scrumptious, creamy paint. What a wondrous texture! The thing I love about the process of painting with oil and cold wax is the fact that I could never ever create the same piece twice!

 

 

 

 

Fire on the Mountain

Fire on the Mountain

I have long been interested in encaustic art. I even bought all the various supplies…small crock pot, griddle, wax, temperature gauge, all of it! But I was intimidated by the process and worried about the fumes since I have asthma. Then I saw a painting from a fellow artist, asking her if it was encaustic and she replied no, thereby introducing me to the world of Oil & Cold Wax.

Of course it took me a while to actually start experimenting with cold wax…starting with this portrait, since I was primarily focused on faces at the time.

So now here I am in 2020 and there has been a definite shift in my art. I joined Matt Tommey’s online artist mentoring program, that I credit for somehow influencing this shift. I have been participating in Created To Thrive for a few months now, and even though I have been sporadic in participating and taking advantage of all the advice and guidance available, I am glad I joined. It feels good to belong to a group of like-minded creatives.

But that’s not the only influence on my dive into oil and cold wax…I have been watching YouTube videos that have inspired me as well. Gently guiding me through the process and man oh man am I having FUN!

So, anyway…here is my jump back into the medium. I feel a newfound passion for the medium and enjoy experimenting like never before! A sense of freedom and a lessening of the fear of failure or screwing up. SO glad I am on this journey and so glad I live in a time with such a tremendous access to learning on the internet!

Take care,

Kathy Ann

 

Summer Art Journal 2016…Just for Fun!

I spent so much of today engaged in art of some sort…a wonderful day!

I am having fun working on an art journal for a class I am taking, Art Journal Summer 2016 thru Bloknote Academy online classes. For those who don’t know…Art Journaling is a fun way to create, practice, try out new techniques, mediums, & styles…just for fun, not for perfection.


I have been wanting to start an Art Journal, but wasn’t sure where to start…I figured this short, fun, summer long workshop would be just the ticket!

I was right! So much fun and so helpful to have talented guides as a beginner.

Happy Dance!

Take care,

Kathy Ann

Mysterious in Turquoise & Gold

Whew, this was some sort of challenge from beginning to end.

She was inspired by this sketch from late the other night…the one I told you about that seemed to take on a life of her own(nothing new about that!), going thru many different phases and ending up here.

She seemed to have a story to tell, and I hope this is where she ultimately wanted me to go…
Mixed Media, pastel, acrylic, paint pen, stencils, and ribbon on canvas.

I am glad she is finished. I think I will be creating more like her.

Thank you for joining me on her journey.

Take care, 

Kathy Ann

It’s not Summer without a Pretty Wreath on the Door!

Enjoying today’s Flagstaff summer monsoon storm…Perfect weather for finally getting around to creating my summer wreath for the front door. What better way to welcome guests than with pretty flowers on the door!


Too bad these are not quite as popular as they once were…I used to have my own dried floral business back in the day…Always so easy to get lost in the creation of pretty arrangements. Still love it! And it’s second nature to me….I can whip out a wreath in no time at all. 

I could never figure out a good way to ship them…otherwise I could perhaps still sell them in my Etsy shop…I know there are places were they are still popular and people would prefer hand made to Walmart mass-produced versions….

Anyway, Happy Summer!

Take care, Kathy Ann

Something New…#2

Still working on teeth…

This one of my daughter, Teresa, who recently received her Masters Degree-while taking care of her new little baby girl, and taking care of the rest of her family…she is truly amazing!…was coming along nicely until…

I kept working and reworking those darn teeth…and yep…it ended wadded up in the trash…sigh

 I need to learn when to stop messing with it…it was all downhill from here…😳<<<<<<<<
.another day…

I can and I will…I just don’t know exactly when… 😜

Take care,

Kathy Ann

Ahhhh, Summer…How I’ve Missed You!

Ahhhh…Summer! How I’ve missed you!

So good to have warmer weather and flowers blooming!

Back on my porch swing, listening to bluegrass music, the honeysuckle is coming back, the birds have returned to their houses & nests…..life is good!

Went into Flag for the new Urban Flea & Artisan Market this morning. Talked with some lovely, friendly vendors…weather was impeccable…Love this town!

The roses are going bonkers !   Love it!🌺💗🌺

Spent these last weekdays weeding, planting and tending to the front flower garden…ah yes, this makes me happy…The front is basically a shade garden… which is such a beautiful wonder when you step under the canopy of  aspen leaves…damp, wet, smelling of fertile soil…it’s like a different world from the hot, dry weather of June! It’s heaven!

Here is my latest( and current favorite) inspired by the springtime winds…acrylic, watercolor and Stabilo.

I joined a relatively new local art cooperative a while back…Art35N…as a supporting member, hopefully one day to become an exhibiting member…and also started volunteering with the Flagstaff Arts Council.

These two entities converged this past Thursday at Coconono Center for the Arts for the first ever Art35N Gallery opening titled The New Latitude(referencing  Flagstaff’s location on the map).

I found myself manning (or as someone pointed out to me…”womaning” the bar with another volunteer. Great fun!

It seemed to me the event was a great success and enjoyable for all who attended. We have some phenomenol artists in the group and I am honored to be a part of it.


So, here I am enjoying the promise of summer…sitting on my swing, burgers on the grill, and these two…

…playing in the sunshine by the vegetable garden.

Life really  is a Wonderous Adventure❤️

Take care, 

Kathy

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