Semmesonian

The ever-tireless Mary Rodning (far left) once again got up an exhibition for the Semmes Library gallery, a.k.a. the Semmesonian, the annual Artists of Semmes show. I'm on the far right.
Thanks, Mary!

Show's Up - Woot!

Thanks to Rich's ahead-of-time R&D organizational skills, it only took two hours to hang the show. That left time for sushi lunch at Samurai J, almost next door. Zach and Gigi are SO nice! Zach is going out of his way to promote the arts.

I think the reception on the 9th will be fun. And if you can't come then, but would like to, there will be a repeat on October 14th, with a few changes to the work.

Maybe now I'll have time to actually create some art.

It's SHOW TIME (Almost)

My exhibition at Edward Jones is almost here. Am I ready? No. But I will be. Just have to pick up some framing at Southern Art & Framing, pick up some work here and there, pack the car, hang the work (thank the gods for Rich's major help with all that!). Then all that's left is to show up for the reception(s).

So here are the facts:

My show is entitled Ars Gratia Artis.
Located at Edward Jones Financial, 159 Dauphin Street, across from Bienville Square.
It will run from September 5 to October 31, 2011.
The receptions will be during the LoDa ArtWalks, September 9th and October 14th.
From 6 - 8 p.m., both times.

Come see! And bring your friends, especially those with money!

Also, something new: I've produced a book of some of my work for the occasion. Some new and some old favorites. Check it out: http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2416103

And last but more fun, Rich has made a promotional video. Nice geek to be married to!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRiMubnH75Y&feature=youtu.be

Piling On

Never ceases to amaze me how things come up all at once, and then there's nothing for a while. Right now is one of those all at once times. Maybe it's the new normal.

There are two back to back - overlapping even - Watercolor & Graphic Arts Society shows. One opened last Sunday at the Mobile Museum of Art. It's the Shared Expressions exhibition and I found it quite good: http://www.mobilemuseumofart.com/index.php?sector=3&view=2 Go by and take a look.

Next Monday is the take-in for the WGAS exhibition at the Eastern Shore Arts Center in Fairhope. All I had to do was get two pieces scanned and framed. Calagaz let me down on the scans. They had trouble with the scanner, so they photographed them. If I wanted them photographed, I could have got Rich to do it. Not only that, but they looked really bad: distorted, crooked, and unevenly lit. They should have told me they were going to do that. When I asked for a do-over, they said their scanner wasn't meant for that kind of work. Maybe not but I have been having that done there for years, and except for an occasional line that needed to be Shopped out or some such, it had never been a problem. In the event, I did get Rich to photograph them, and that was much better than what they had done.

So then I framed the first of the drawings - colored pencil. Turns out that the mat I'd had cut was wrong - my fault - but happily it was too big, so I was able to fix that. The next day I started on the second one and broke the glass. This morning I went to the hardware store (Ace on Moffat Road, if you're following along in your program) and got them to cut a piece of Plexiglas for me. Fine. Except when I tried to put the frame together, it was about 1/8 of an inch too long!!! Another trip back to Ace, ("OK if I cut it a little shorter than 30 inches, just to be sure?" NOOOOOOO!!) a looooong wait whilst he tried to re-cut the first piece, then gave up and cut a new one. Finally they are both framed and ready. When I win the Lottery, I'm never framing anything myself again.

Now I am working on a scrapbook for WGAS, which I'd like to have presentable by the opening on August 5. How do I get into these things? Oh, right, I volunteered.

My own show(s) are coming up at Edward Jones on Dauphin Street in September and October (instead of October only, as I originally thought - but that's good, right?).

And I will be at the Gulf for 2 weeks right before that - barring hurricanes. I hope to relax there, stare at the water, draw, read, photograph, and relax. It deserves to be mentioned twice. Unfortunately I will be gone for the first 2 weeks of classes at the College of Medicine, where I work. So I would expect there to be a load of work for me upon return.

On the other hand, two quail sauntered by our window this afternoon, so that makes up for most everything.

Lake Louise Comes to Mind

Lake Louise was mentioned by a FaceBook friend today. Made me think about how lovely it is there, and I went looking for a photo to post. This is a view from across the valley on Mt. Whitehorn. See the hotel there in the lower right, on the edge of the lake? I know, I know, it's also a tourist trap, but once you get any distance at all from the hotel on the trails, it's just so beautiful. I'm glad we did as much hiking as we did back in the day; got to see lots of out-of-the-way spots that the tour buses never go to.

I've never been tempted to paint/draw anything from there. (Except a drawing of rocks, once.) The paintings of the area that I have seen never measure up.

Mardi Gras!

The carnival season has been building up for a while now, ending tonight. It's easy to get in the spirit, even if you aren't a hardcore participant. Our Girls' Night Out group met before a parade at the Bicycle Shop (uummmmmm suuuuushi) and then watched the Stripers in front of the Garage. On that Friday our friends the McKinneys hosted our monthly supper club group, so we could attend the Daphne parade. And finally (for me) Joe Cain Sunday was a day of walking from party to party in the Oakleigh district, watching Cain's Merry Widows arrive, eating and drinking my way through the day. Though I'm off work today, that's usually it for my Mardi Gras. I like to end with the "People's" parade.

Just learned on NPR that it all started because way back when people had to eat up all the things they weren't allowed to eat during Lent. Otherwise it would all spoil. Now it all makes sense!

Now I can dial it back till ArtWalk, this Friday night. Join me!

The more I do...

...the less time I seem to find to write about it.

Cirque du Soleil tonight!