New Beach

Here is the latest in the Beach Series. This one is 36" by 36."

A couple of reminders:

1. No class on Monday, the 18th of July.

2. The next Friday Night Painting Party/Workshop is on July 29 at the studio from 7-10. Food, fun, a project and lots of learning. No need to bring anything but yourself (and some wine if you choose.) We provide it all; sign up today!

Peace and creativity.
Kelli

Save the Date

We all had such a good time at the Painting Party/Workshop in June that we are doing it again in July! Save the date-July 29 from 7-10 PM at Hershberger & Huff Studios, we will be painting an abstract textured beach piece similar to the one above. And yes, it's a party, BYOB (drink and paint responsibly) and we will have food and fun and instruction. You will leave with a piece of artwork that evokes memories of the beach, studio wrapped, no need for framing. Bonus discount on merchandise for attendees!

Space is limited and the first Party/Workshop was sold out, so get your reservations in by July 22. Hope to see you there.

Peace and love,

Kelli

Sand and Water

Sand and Water #1

Acrylic on Canvas

12"X12"

Hi All,

Here is a new piece in the beach series. I am using a new name for the next phase of the series, it will now be Sand and Water. I like the color and values on this one but do not know what else I will do with it yet. As always, your comments are welcome.

This coming Friday is our next First Friday Art Walk in Ocala, FL if you are anywhere near the area.

Peace and Love to you all,

Kelli

Remember This?

Remember this piece of slate with it's lovely textures and shape? I took photos of it before I did anything at all to it and now I have added a little more texture and some burnt sienna. (I really had no choice, it just cried out for burnt sienna.)

This is a close up of what it looks like now, I loooooooooooooooove the textures and color. HOWEVER, where do I go from here???? Heeeeeeeeeeelp meeeeeeee, pleeeeeeeeese.

Oh, and don't' forget, we will be at Bakers and Cooks this evening from 6-8 for the monthly First Friday Art Walk in downtown Ocala, FL. Be there, just off the square!

Peace and love,

Kelli

Textures R Us

You may be wondering what these photos are and why I am wasting time and valuable Internet space with them. Well, by way of introduction, let me say that I discovered something about myself last weekend. While at the Artist Within event on Saturday evening (refer to previous posts for more info), I found myself looking down at the floor in the lovely bathroom/locker room of the golf clubhouse. (We did not have Italian tile floors and carved wood lockers when I was in high school.) Knowing that I look down a lot at tile, the textures, the colors, the veins, the value nuances, I realized that if I were not an artist, I could sell tile. It would probably be more lucrative, too.

Anyway, I am finally admitting that, as an artist, I not only cannot get away from texture, but I am drawn to texture of all types in many different places. I have decided that I am just going to hand it over to my higher power and give in to the need for texture in most everything I do.

So about these photos. One of our students brought back some slate roof tiles from Canada all the way to Florida in her car. Did we not teach this woman well, what is important in life and car space???? Anyway, thanks to Lea, I have a lovely piece of slate to play with. I have no idea what I will do with it but I am looking forward to finding out, and I will definitely enjoy the process. I wanted you to see what it looks like before I start. I will update you as it proceeds, and suggestions are always welcome.

Oh yes, I know what you are thinking, roof tile!! What's next, painting on saws? Can Elvis on black velvet be far behind? Don't worry, not going to happen. Although velvet has a wonderful texture and I love the colors of rust on metal, hmmmmm.........

Peace and love,

Kelli

Pretty Tree

Hi All,

Just had to share this with everyone. This is a photo of the poinsettia tree at St Paul's United Methodist Church in Ocala, FL. It is something I look forward to and is one of the highlights of every Christmas season for me.

I am trying very hard to not get stressed this year about what I need to get done and instead, I am focusing on the things I really enjoy about this time of year. The food, the music, the people, the fun times. I hope all of you have a very joyous and relaxing holiday.

Peace and love,

Kelli

Beach Series #48

5X5

Hi All,

When I was a child, I thought my Mom was weird. When I asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she said, "All I want is a little peace and quiet." Well that was a really odd thing to want for Christmas from a kid's point of view. Of course as an adult, I understand what she was saying. As a very young widow with 6 small children, her life was working anywhere from 1 to 3 jobs to put food on the table and then trying to meet her children's other needs. She had little time for things like napping or reading the paper. When she went in the bathroom, one of us was usually standing at the door waiting for her to come out or pounding on it to get immediate attention. Of course she wanted peace and quiet, wouldn't you?

The first time my daughter was old enough to ask me what I wanted for Christmas, I immediately thought of my mothers reply and knew that was what I wanted too. But my desire for peace extends beyond my own life. Yes, sometimes I want to be alone, and I often want silence, and I feel like I never have enough of either one. But more than that, I want peace for the whole earth. I want to wake up one morning and hear that peace, instead of fighting has broken out all over the world, and for at least one day not have to worry about bombs, and refugees and children maimed and dying, and soldiers not coming home. Not have to think about graves and families torn apart. Not worry where the next terrorist attack will strike and change the world forever. Not have to wonder who will make the next nuclear bomb. What a wonderful world that would be and what a wonderful Christmas gift for us all.

In case you are wondering what this has to do with the artwork at the top of the page, I realized this morning that what I like about the beach is the peace. I like the quiet and the smell of the sand, the sound of the waves and the birds, the feel of the wind. The lack of obligations, phones ringing and stress. The beach is all natural and not man made. Before man there was peace. Total peace.

Love and peace to all,

Kelli

Aren't We Special

Beach Series #43

5X5

Hi all,

Just to update those of you who follow us on Etsy, we have created a new section called We Are Special. It contains original artwork that have reduced prices. Get it, special,...special prices??!!! Well, anyway, they are 20% less than the original listing price. Yes, folks, it's a sale on small original paintings! There are 5X5 mini paintings on canvas board and 8X8 paintings on stretched canvas. Just in time for the holidays. And we have always had free shipping on our small pieces. Check it out and watch for additions to this section.

Peace and love,

Kelli

Photo phobia

Beach Series #49

5X5 acrylic textures

Hi All,

I know I seem to have it all together to everyone else, but shocking as it may be, there are some things I am not good at, and some things I am downright afraid of. (I am pausing here to give you a chance to absorb this stunning news.)

You know how artists hate to market their work, well that is not a fear to me as much as it is an annoyance. and a dislike. My greatest fear, well, maybe not my greatest, I mean there is the fear of having the next painting turn out to be crap and then the fear of putting your work out there, and then the fear of sounding stupid in an interview and don't get me started on the pictures they take of you and publish in magazines, books and newspapers. OK, sure, there are a lot of things I am afraid of in this career I have chosen, but I digress. The one I am talking about today is my PHOTO PHOBIA. Technically I think that means fear of the sun or light or something, but for me it is fear of taking photos of my artwork. This is really hard!!!!

All my life I have had a problem understanding the whole f-stop thing, even when I was young and my memory was good and I could still learn new things. You know, the aperture gets smaller as the number gets bigger and the light must be compensated by the yada-yada-yada-yada.... Whatever. I have tried, I really have. I've taken classes, I've practised, I even have a very supportive husband, Greg, who once drew a really good diagram to explain it to me and help me remember it (I am a visual learner). It really helped, but I didn't retain it.

Anyway, fast forward to today. My creative partner (in books, teaching, blog, Etsy, blah, blah, blah) Carlynne Hershberger had to learn to photograph our artwork for our first book(Creative Colored Pencil Workshop). I say "she had to" because if we had depended on me to do it, our publisher would still be waiting and I would be under my bed in the fetal position sobbing and mumbling to myself. You remember how in the old days, artists used slides to enter competitions and also to publish work in magazines and books. Well, ours was chosen for publication just about the time that digital photography was getting really big. Our publisher, F & W Media, gave us the opportunity to be their first authors to do all of our photos digitally. Carlynne was magnificent (we do tell each other periodically that we are brilliant or genius, but magnificent is a new word that we have not used before.) She acquired a new camera (Canon 20D) and learned to use it with very little help from me, although I did read the manual aloud to her, but the translation from Chinese was not very helpful.

Carlynne became wonderful at it and we both benefited from her expertise. Well, eventually I had to learn to do my own. So when we started our Etsy shop, she did the beginning photography to get us started and then she gave me a lesson in doing my own. I had nightmares before we got together to do this. I thought about checking myself into a hospital and having a triple by-pass instead. I needed a root canal, but didn't have the money to pay for it. My other alternative was to change my name and leave town with no forwarding address. But, being the responsible person that I am, I did show up. She was so kind to me (I get teary just thinking about it now) and she gently lead me through the steps and then I realized it wasn't nearly as bad or as hard as I had thought. In fact, I knew right then, that I had nothing to fear but fear itself! (At this point, there are angels singing and a ray of strong sunlight beating down on my head.) I would like to take a moment here to thank, not only Carlynne, but the person who invented digital photography.

So, what have I learned from this experience? That I am not stupid, or old or have a bad memory? No, that is not what I learned, in fact I may be all those things. But I did learn that fear is of the unknown, once it becomes known, the fear can disappear quickly. It was my mind telling me I could not do this, in short I was not good enough. We are all good enough, we just have to tackle our fears head on. And if you are an artist, you need to learn this fast, because unfortunately, our art lives are filled with possible phobias (this post, paragraph 2, lines 3-7). I wish I could give the author credit, but cannot remember where I read one of my favorite quotes: If you are not frightened and depressed, you are not growing as an artist.

Love and peace to all,
Kelli