Peter's Peppers

8" x 8" acrylic on 1.5" deep wrapped canvas w/painted edges

SOLD

I love my art group!  We continue to meet almost every week and it's the very best way to stretch and grow for me!  I painted this one on Thursday.  Here's how the day went....9:30 meet & greet at the depot gallery in Barnesville, set up painting station, lay-in sketch, cup of coffee, paint, critique each others' progress, walk to 'Slices' pizza  and meet up with three other friends for lunch, talk, laugh, plan our new year-long art adventure(more later), hurry back to the depot, paint some more, call for critique, finish painting, gel time & place for next get-together and start breaking down around 3:00. Peter was busy framing his paintings for our Fall Line Painters show coming up while Eleanor, Bambi & I were painting.  He was telling a funny tale about some jalapeno peppers at a tailgate party, so I named these peppers after him.  They aren't as hot as his story!

"Close Connections" Opening SOON!

Monroe County Arts Alliance has a very impressive art show coming up!  Thirty-five local and regional artists with over 100 artworks vie for $700 in cash prizes plus honorary ribbons in a display that showcases the area’s best.  “Close Connections” set out to encourage artists who had a connection with Monroe County to participate.  All counties that touch our borders are included, as well as artists who are connected by family, work or organizations.

As coordinator for the show, I am excited about the response from the art community. We put out the call for artists and they responded!  We hope the community will come out to support these artists and the devoted efforts of so many MCAA volunteers that desire to keep the fine arts alive. 

The opening reception is Thursday, Sept 1, 5-7 PM at the gallery at 54 N.Jackson St.

Judge, Karen Strelecki, will speak at the awards/reception evening at 6:00 PM, explaining what she looks for in a show piece and how she has come to her decisions regarding the winning entries. Not all judges are willing to give this critique and it is valuable information for artists entering the show arena as well as the general viewing public, who sometimes wonder why a particular piece has won an award.

“Close Connections” will hang from Sept 1 to Oct 21 and will be viewable during regular gallery hours of 11-4 Weds –Fri.  Chamber of Commerce’s Business After Hours will get to see the show, as MCAA hosts their September meeting.  The gallery will also be open during Monroe County’s annual ‘Taste of Monroe’ for the community’s viewing pleasure. 
Awards
$300 Best of Show
$100 First Place 2-D
$100 First Place 3-D
$100 First Place Mixed-media
$100 First Place Photography
Peoples Choice Ribbon - Please come vote before 6PM at the reception!
Honorable Mention ribbons at the judge's discretion.

Participating artists (over 100 artworks!):

Debbie Anderson - http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/debbie-anderson.html
Betty Arnold
Sharon Bailey
Nancy Barnes - www.metallikos.com
Dr. Steve Barnes
Sue Bond
Ashlin Breland - breland_ashlin@hotmail.com
Donna Brown - http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-donna-brown.html
Pat DeVane Burns - patburnsart.com
Hazel Caldwell - hazelcaldwell.com
Markey Duensing
Pat Freeman
Doug Fromm
Cheryl Hildebrand
John R.L.Isaacs XV
Cynthia Jenkins
Gloria Joy
Mary Leslie - http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/mary-leslie.html
Gypsy McKinna
Coni Merritt - http://www.facebook.com/pages/Merritt-Pottery
Peter Nishanian - joycines@gmail.com
Mary Parks - http://www.artfromtheheartbymary.blogspot.com/
Bambi Rogers- http://facebook.com/bambi.rogers
Bill Rogers -http://www.jacksonprogress/-argus.com/news/2011/jun/21/popular-panes-stained-glass-artist-83-earning/
Gloria Smith
Joy A. Smith - http://www.paintingsbyjoy.com/
Linda Sosebee
Alan Stecker
Eleanor Stecker
Martha Thompson - Martha Adams Thompson on Facebook
Martha Tisdale - http://www.marthahtisdale.com/
Sam Traina - myspace.com/samtraina
MJ Venrick - http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/m-j-venrick.html
Paula Williams
Julie Yamamoto - http://www.windwalkerdreams.com/ 

I invite you to visit our event page on Facebook.

MCAA is appreciative of local sponsors Jonah’s, Prime Palate and Grits, who all helped with printing promotional material for the show.  Enjoy their delicious eats and please tell them "thank you!"

Most of the artwork will be for sale, although ‘not for sale’ pieces are also entered for competition.

Gratefulness

I'm grateful my dog's foot missed these new sprouts literally by a hair!

Yesterday I got Robert Genn's twice-weekly letter about being grateful from his blog , The Painter's Keys.  I heartily thank you, Robert!  It promised to be a hectic day of artistic errands instead of painting, which usually puts a wrinkle in my brow for the day.  His letter completely changed my attitude and turned what could have been a harried day into one of pleasure.  As I finished reading his letter, I looked out the window from my computer and saw new sprouts breaking ground in a row of zipper peas in my garden due to a nice rain we'd had the previous night.  Gratefully, I took out my camera and took a picture of them. Would I have "seen" them in my previous state of mind? As I did, a photographer friend from down the street showed up to take pictures of the butterflies on the volunteer zinnias that bless my abundant garden.  We gratefully shared a brief time while I unloaded my car in preparations for the 3-hour trip I had to make to retrieve artwork from a gallery today.  I knew I would have a full load picking up a fellow artist's six pastels as well as my own ten or so paintings, several 'Spirits in Stone', some wire sculptures, prints and notecards.  The gallery is changing it's focus to double its' classroom size and promote the art of the two owners.  The economy is affecting everyone!  I am grateful that I can still do what I love to do. I wished them well, grateful that all our paperwork matched and everything fit into my car.  I made a quick phone call to Preston, whose pastels I had, and luckily he was having lunch with Peter, another of my paint buddies, not too far off my route home.  I met up with them and shared a glass of tea and some laughs while Preston retrieved his work from my car.  I'm so grateful for art friends... they 'get it'...they understand...they keep me reaching for the next level! Stopped at 'A Novel Experience', the bookstore that held a show for my plein air group, to retrieve a small painting and deliver some promotional material for the fall show I'm coordinating for my local art alliance. I'm grateful to have venues that welcome and promote my artwork!
Home again, after adding a few groceries to the car, to a full answering machine.  My husband showed up about the same time.  He is an independent cuss like me, so I'm grateful that he 'gets it', too!  We check all the mail and phone calls and head back out to meet the couple we have selected to rent our old farm house on five acres.  I'm grateful that we took applications until we found what we hope will be a responsible couple who will take good care of the property.  We have learned from past mistakes, folks!  I took pictures of the house while we were there, grateful that the previous tenant left the house in spotless condition.... and believe me, that is something to be grateful about!
Home again with a glass of wine on the porch while the charcoal fires up.  Late supper tonight, but grateful that it includes fresh veggies from our garden... grilled zucchini, zipper peas, okra, tomatoes and baby bell peppers.
No TV tonight.  We both have computer work to do to finish up the day around 10:30.  Reading a few pages in bed before gratefully dropping off to sleep.

Thank you again, Robert, for making me aware that being grateful is the key to making each day a successful entity unto itself.  I can only live one at the time anyway.  I look back on the day and can see how each thing I did could have been a hassle.  Attitude makes the difference!  Sound sappy?  So what!

Dog Days of Summer reception

There was so much to share about this fun show that I created an entire static page for it on the blog.  Just click here or on the right hand sidebar on "Dog Days of Summer".  Enjoy....I know I sure did!

Rubbing elbows with the Governor

Me with Georgia Governor Deal

July 26th, I had the pleasure of meeting Governor Deal and his wife at the Capitol in Atlanta.  My friend, Judy Neal, went with me and was such a treasure to have along.  Judy has worked in and around the Capitol for many years and definitely knows her way around!  As Gov. Deal said to me..."She(Judy) is multi-talented!"  Gov. Deal hosted a reception for approximately 22 Arts Clayton juried artists who currently have over forty pieces of artwork hanging in his and his staff's offices for a year.  He personally selected the artwork and I'm happy to report that he chose all four that I submitted.  For the next three years, the Arts Clayton group will submit new work to be selected.  Now that we have had a tour of the Capitol and the spaces where the art hangs, I have a better idea of what to submit in the upcoming years.  Many thanks to Gov. Deal for carrying on a 25 year tradition of including Georgia art in the Capitol!

Gov. Deal speaking to the Arts Clayton artists, Board of Directors & guests