Creativity coach Eric Maisel has recently assured me that there are healthy obsessions and unhealthy obsessions.
I think my on-going love of painting owls falls into the former category!
I’m calling this series, “Further Insight,” because owls have symbolized wisdom and mystery for many cultures and I like the punnish quality since these paintings are all centered around a single eye.
Hope you enjoy them!
Trying out some new ideas is always fun...
I suppose it’s understandable that after a year like this one, my art would see some changes. I have been doing a lot of experimentation and have been a bit shy of showing it to anyone. But what’s the worst that could happen? You hate it? Oh well. I like them all so the heck with you! (Only joking.) But I feel brave enough to put some of them out there.
But I am working on a new series that is really really different and very personal. Not sure when I will share that one.
But please visit my site and click on the experimental section to see what’s new and available…
And let me know what you think!
So the Sharon Arts Center in Peterborough NH has invited me to teach an Introduction to Acrylics course this spring. It’s a 6-week course in which I will lead folks through the many wonders of painting with this versatile medium. No experience is required and I’ve designed it so it is appropriate for experienced watercolor or oil painters too. Here’s the course description:
Exploring Acrylics
Rosemary Conroy
MAY 4–JUNE 8
SESSION 1: TUESDAYS, 10AM-1PM (P4A) / SESSION 2: TUESDAYS, 6-9PM (P4B)
Acrylic paints have come such a long way—the harsh colors and plastic-y look is totally a thing of the past. If you’ve always been curious about acrylics but didn’t know where to begin, then this class is for you. We’ll explore their incredible versatility and have a lot of fun doing it, to boot! You’ll get a chance to put the paints through their paces, discover how to achieve a variety of different effects, and see how well acrylics mix with other media. It could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship with a whole new kind of painting—or just the inspiration you need to take your art to the next level. All levels welcome. Materials fee payable to instructor: $20. M $145, NM $165.
To sign up, click here, or call (603) 924-7256. And of course, you can contact me for more information about the course.
I love being an east coast girl except I wish we had more charismatic mega-fauna like this...
Thanks to the fabulous photographer (and my former neighbor) Brent Doscher, I have finally got more of my latest painting shot and uploaded on my website. And did I mention that my website is all new and improved too? Check it out folks — I’d love to get your feedback.
So I’m pretty happy with the latest 350 paintings — and I’ve even pulled out a few that I am really, really happy with.But I’m not going to show them all at once — what fun would that be?
So it’s been a busy and productive few weeks — yay! And New Hampshire Magazine assigned me to write an article about grass-fed beef and I even did a painting to go along with it! Despite being without power for three days, I managed to pull it off.
So that’s the latest news here — it’s hard to make time to blog, I have to say. It feels so dear diary. Guess I am not as loquacious as I thought I would be… Could be worse, as they say in New Hampshire!
Tigers? We don't need no stinking tigers in North America...
So, apparently metal tigers aren’t that lucky. But ONLY if your lucky element isn’t metal. Happily, mine is, thank goodness. Whew — I feel like I could use a little luck this year!
So to update: After a bright and determined hit on the re-start button, my enthusiasm for my 350 project came to a crashing halt in the darkest days of January. But after some interior regrouping, I am back at it, albeit with some adjustments. For a variety of reasons, (my sanity being first and foremost amongst them) I am extending my deadline for the project. Originally I picked Earth Day 2010, but quite frankly, that will make me crazy. I didn’t want to admit, but there it is. I’ve done crazy and, despite it’s reputation, it isn’t that much fun.
And I’m discovering that I want to paint more than just 6 x 6″ portraits of animals.
BUT I still want to complete the project! So I’m making Mondays “350 Day” and the rest of the week are “paint whatever I want” days. So far it’s working really well.
When will it all be done? Who knows?! The journey has to matter as much as the destination…
Yay! it’s finally a new year and 2009 is officially in the past…
So I’ve started my new schedule: four days of focused painting and one day of teaching/networking/adminstrative/blogging/etc. (Not all at once of course.) The way I figure it that will give me 24 hours/week of solid painting time. Is this enough? Not sure.
Especially since I just calculated that I have to average 12 paintings a week to make my slightly adjusted deadline of May 1. Gulp.
But believe it or not I think I can do it! These are mostly 6 x 6″ paintings. And many of them, if I stick to all of North America’s mammals, will be rodents. Portraits of rodents — little pointy faces with black beady eyes. Piece of cake!
Hmm. I may have to reconsider that one. Not sure I can handle that much rodentia, despite the temptation of ease of execution.
I think I will end up doing some birds too…
So I took out twelve canvases and put them on my work table yesterday. It’s not that bad. I can do this!
But I did take out some I already started to help me ease into the new year.
Yeah they’re my rules and I can bend them. As long as they get done right?!?! Right!
I can do it!
I’ll post a picture next week of the best of the twelve…
This is the cover of the postcard promoting my open studio
So I have been working non-stop getting ready for my open studio. Got the postcards done (see above) and in the mail, got some reproduction prints and yeah I even got the t-shirts all ready! And oh yeah, the original art is coming along, slowly but surely.
I think it should be a fun weekend and I put my order in for some lovely weather. Now if I could just get some sleep — I get wicked bad insomnia when I have a big event coming up. And this one, at this moment, feels kind of big. Not earth-shattering big, but probably the biggest thing I’ve done this year.
If you’re around New Hampshire on October 24 & 25, come on by and see it for yourself. I’ll be open from noon to 4 pm each day. Visit my website for more information and directions. Hope to see you there!
A painting that I worked on in between my 350 project paintings -- it's metaphorical of course.
So yeah — auspicious. That’s what I’ve decided this will be. I’ve been working on getting ready for my open studio at the end of October and I’m really getting excited about it. It’ll be fun to show people all of my 350 paintings to date (I think I’ll have about 45 by then, plus a few from my co-artists.)
Part of me sighs when I think how far I had hoped to be by now, but in the interest of cutting myself some slack, I don’t think this project will be irrelevant just because it won’t be finished this year. Listening to the news, it kind of seems like it may take a while to get a world-wide consensus on what to do about global climate change anyway. Of course I HOPE they can pull their act together when our great world leaders meet this December in Copenhagen — this is, after all serious stuff!
In the meantime, I’ll keep plugging away towards having a show of all 350 paintings by the spring of 2010…
Recent painting on yupo paper
I’m heading to a black bear workshop this week and hoping to restart the 350 project (in a slightly revised format) when I get back.
I’ve spent the last few months processing all the events of this past spring — soul-altering stuff. But I guess, as they say, that which doesn’t kill makes you stronger!
I have done some painting — just not the 350 stuff. For some reason, I often turn to bears when life gets hard.
By the way, my open studio will be held on October 24 and 25 this year and will feature a sneak preview of the 350 project! Don’t forget to sign up for my e-newsletter so you can get a reminder email.
350 -- Flying Squirrel
Life has thrown me a rather strong curve-ball recently and so this project will have to take a backseat for a while. I’m still determined to get it done, but it won’t be getting much attention for a while.
So here’s a creature that manages to sail through darkness with grace and apparent ease. Seems like a good metaphorical note to pause on.