Path Through the Dunes - and a New Gallery

Path Through the Dunes

Oil on canvas, 16x20

Available at J. Gallery, High Point, NC

See that last line, everyone? "J. Gallery, High Point, NC." 

Yes! It's new gallery for me, and a very exciting one. This gallery, run by Julie Delgaudio, is on the walls of the very beautiful J. H. Adams Inn in High Point, NC, and the Brookstown Inn in Winston-Salem, NC.

Julie organized and ran the Piedmont Plein Air Paintout, and impressed me from the moment I met her. Though she had 30 artists, dozens of volunteers, bunches of sponsors, tons of visitors and a couple spouses to deal with, she never lost her cool. The event went smoothly, was well advertised, covered in the media - and the town was excited about it.

The galleries are on the walls of these beautiful hotels, so they are not formal on-the-street galleries. The artists Julie has gathered make paintings that I really, really like. I am excited and honored to be included.

***

I SPOKE WITH my prosperity coach, Joe Skelly, last night.  As always, he had good ideas, asked good questions and pushed me to strive for more. I just want to put a little plug in here for Joe. He's really helped me, enormously. I encourage any of you who would like to see your business become more successful to get in touch with him. His number is 757-675-6569. You can call or text him.

***

MY NEXT SHOW is in Williamsburg, VA, this coming weekend. It's An Occasion for the Arts, and takes place Saturday and Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., in the Merchants Square area of downtown Williamsburg. I'm in Booth A8, on the Duke of Gloucester Street.

*** 

Dog of the Day

Here are Vinny and Patsy, pushing Zack and George 

out of the best waiting places at the door...

Want your pet to be the Dog of the Day? Send a jpg to me at carrieBjacobson@gmail.com

October, Ocracoke - and a Wonderful Woman Is Laid to Rest

October, Ocracoke

Oil on canvas, 16x20

Please email me for price and availability.

I love the wind in this painting, and the sky, and the feeling of a raw, strong October day at the edge of the Atlantic. The muted colors of early Autumn, the bright bits like memories of summer, the feeling of change coming, in the air, I see and feel these all in this painting, and I remember. 

And I love the way the dunes rise and fall, like vertebrae on the spine of the earth. I went to the Outer Banks (this was a few years ago by now) thinking I would paint the ocean and the waves - but what called to me was the sand, the dunes, the ground and the sky. 

I had a chance to go back and look at some photos from the Outer Banks and Ocracoke, and painted a couple of them again. This one will be in my upcoming show in Williamsburg; another that I painted is going to the J. Gallery of Fine Art, in High Point, NC. It's a new gallery for me, and I am excited. 

***

LORI CHOZIK RUNS Center Framing and Art in West Hartford Center, CT, and over the years, I've grown to love her and her family. So it made me very sad to hear that Lori's mom, Shirley, had died this past week. Lori's dad, Harvey, died in the winter, not quite a year ago. 

Center Framing and Art was the first commercial gallery that accepted my work, and Lori has been a fantastic supporter of me and my art for years. She sells my paintings regularly, and has helped me develop a wonderful group of collectors and fans. 

Years ago, when I was just starting out as a painter, Harvey and Shirley were having health issues and really needed someone to be there for them during the days. I ended up with the job, and absolutely fell in love with Lori's parents. 

Harvey was funny, and dry, and very kind. Shirley was sweet and loving and also very funny. Both Lazinsks had tremendous personal stories. They were self-made successes, Harvey as a teacher and founder of a tutorial program, and Shirley as the brains and businesswoman who started and ran Center Framing and Art. And she did it at a time when women just did not start their own businesses. 

We hung around together, mostly. We shopped and cooked, we went for walks and drives, we drank tea, we watched TV, and we talked a lot. Harvey and Shirley would reminisce, and they would tease each other, and banter, and talk about their family and how much they loved them. They quizzed me about my family, and Peter, and the dogs. We shared our days, and they enriched my life beyond measure. 

It makes me sad to know that these two fine people are no longer walking the earth. I am honored to have known them, and to have spent so many hours with them. This world is a poorer place without them. 

***

Dog of the Day

It's Shannon Ferguson's dog Tinker! Isn't he adorable? 

If you want your pet to be the Dog of the Day, send a jpg of him or her to me at carrieBjacobson@gmail.com 

Sunny Field, Route 58 - and a Breakthrough

Sunny Field, Route 58

Oil on canvas, 10x10, $100

sold

Those of you who've been reading this blog for years know that every once in a while, I become dissatisfied with my paintings. 

At first, these times worried me. But as I encountered them more regularly, a few times a year, I have learned to welcome them, because they inevitably precede a leap, a breakthrough. 

I've been vaguely dissatisfied with my paintings since about August, though I have made a string of paintings that I love. I have felt, nonetheless, that there's been something missing, something lacking, something ... I don't know, not as vivid, not as muscled, not as clear as I want. 

The Piedmont Plein Air Paintout, and the drive home afterwards, gave me time and space to think about my paintings, other people's paintings, the winning paintings, and pieces of paintings that I saw over the weekend. I thought about light, and strokes and edges, about focus and sharpness, about academic painting and joyous painting, and where my painting fits. And I thought mostly about ways to make my paintings be even more like my paintings. 

I think that "Sunny Field, Route 58" is a good step down a re-energized road. It has light, focus, brilliance, and a sort of simplicity that I feel has been missing lately. 

So I am even more thankful to have been part of the Piedmont Plein Air Painting. 

Below is the winning painting, by Russell Jewell. It was absolutely spectacular in real life. 

Here is a painting by Lynn Mehta. Her work also won a prize.

Below, a mother and daughter who work in the J. H. Adams hotel. They helped keep the place bright and sparkling, and they were just as sweet as could be to me. 

***

Yes! Gas below $3 a gallon. This was in a small town in Virginia, 

on Route 58, close to the North Carolina border. 

***

MY NEXT SHOW is Oct. 4-5 in Williamsburg, VA. The show takes place in the main square in downtown Williamsburg, and I'm on the main drag of the main square, Duke of Gloucester Street. I'll be in booth A-8. If you're in the area, please stop by. I've never done this show, but have heard it's a good one, and lots of fun, too! 

***

Dog of the Day

It's Zeus! He's been the Dog of the Day before, but he's just so cute, he had to be in again. He's a sweet, happy Pomeranian, who came running up to Jojo while we were walking the other day with our friends Cynthia and Kevin. Lots of sniffing, lots of wagging, some hackles up... but peace reigned. 

Cloudy Day in the Park - and Homer!

Cloudy Day in the Park

Oil on canvas, 16x20

For sale at J. Gallery, High Point, NC

I started painting on Friday at the train depot in downtown High Point. I painted and painted and painted, and still hadn't captured the train station, at least not in a way that appealed to me. So I had lunch, and packed up and headed out to the park, where I found trees and clouds and water and a scene that comforted and excited me.

Today, I'm going to have another go at the depot painting, and then, perhaps, try it a completely different way. 

***

HERE IS a cool building in downtown High Point. I might try painting this today! 

***

Dog of the Day

It's Homer, a Weimaraner pup I met at the Brandywine Arts Festival earlier in the month. His human said he was about eight weeks old. He was interested in everything and everyone! 

St. Mary's - and the Paintout Is Underway

St. Mary's Episcopal, High Point, NC

Oil on canvas, framed, 12x16. 

sold

The Piedmont Plein Air Paintout, here in lovely High Point, NC, started on Thursday with a Quick-Draw event from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., on North Main Street, near the J. H. Adams Inn, where all the painters are staying. 

There we were, 30 of us, spread out along a couple blocks in the middle of downtown, painting. It was fun and convivial and challenging. I saw the paintings most of us did, and they were really great, ranging from a lovely painting of a sun-drenched yellow building, to a vivid painting of a Krispy Kreme donut shop, to a small painting of a half-eaten pink-frosted donut. 

I like my painting of St. Mary's Episcopal Church. I particularly love the threatening, shining sky, and the soft glow of the one side of the church. 

Architecture is not my strongest suit, but I am determined to improve, and so I plan to make more architecture-focused paintings during the next two days. 

The other painters here are amazingly talented, and very, very nice. It's an honor and a pleasure to be in their company.  

If you're in High Point and want to say hello and watch me paint, head to the train station on Friday. I plan to spend much of the day there! 

Here's my painting in the landscape. 

***

Dog of the Day

Here's a great, older German shepherd I met at the vet's a couple weeks ago. 

She showed her age a little, when she got up - but who doesn't? 

Blue-Sky Sunflowers - and a Lovely Place to Stay

Blue-sky Sunflowers

Oil on canvas, 48x72

commission

One of my goals in all of this is to do fewer outdoor art shows, and earn the rest of our living from galleries and internet sales, painting trips, plein-air events and commissions. And paintings like this one are proof that that plan can become - and is becoming - a reality. 

I love love love this sunflower painting! It is intensely bright and sunny, and while I'd never have thought of doing the upper background blue, I really like the way it offsets the rich colors of the sunflowers. 

What you don't get from the photo is a sense of the depth of the bright colors, and an idea of the size of the painting - 4 feet by 6 feet. It's so heavy I have to take it off the easel in order to change the height of the easel. And the size is one of the things that makes it so intensely sunny and amazing. I am looking forward so very much to delivering it, and seeing it hang in the gorgeous kitchen where it will hang! 

***

I MADE MY WAY to High Point, NC, on Wednesday, for the plein-air paintout that starts today. It was a beautiful drive, mostly west, through lovely, sunny farmland. High Point looks like an interesting city with some bright and well-polished spots, and some fairly large pockets of what look like economically depressed areas. 

The paintout starts today, with what's known as a "Quick Draw," a three-hour event on North Main Street, very close to the hotel. I imagine that part of the Quick Draw is to draw attention to the event, and I think that's very smart. 

The hotel where we are being put up is absolutely gorgeous. And the paintout is paying for our rooms, and for most of our meals. What a treat! 

Above, the front and back of the JH Adams Hotel, where we are staying. 

Here's my room! 

The back entry to the hotel. 

Here's the outdoor patio. 

***

MY NEXT SHOW will be An Occasion for the Arts, in Williamsburg, VA, Oct. 4-5. It's my first time doing this show, and I'm excited about it! I'll be in Booth A-8 on Duke of Gloucester Street. If you're in the area, or planning to be in the area, please stop by and say hello, and see my new pieces! 

***

Dog of the Day

Today's Dog of the Day is Samantha! She's the mother of Puffy, our other cat, and Kizzy, Puffy's late sister. Doesn't she look like Katharine Hepburn, the Dog of the Day from my most recent post? 

Want your pet to be the Dog of the Day? Send a jpg to me at carrieBjacobson@gmail.com

Rooster No. 5 - and Thoughts on Fear and Courage

Rooster No. 5

Oil on canvas, 10x10, $100

sold

I was emailing a friend who is also an artist and a collector of my paintings, and she wrote about how scary it is to make a painting for someone. For anyone, really. They might not like it, it might not look like the person/dog/scene that the buyer was picturing, the buyer might think you're a talentless hack.... and on and on.

I confessed to her that I'm scared pretty much all the time. As I drive up to a show, and especially to a new show, I am often literally shaking. I'm afraid that the people at the show, buyers and artists, are going to look at my paintings and see right off the bat that I am self-taught, that I don't know the rules, that I'm a messy painter, that I can't draw, and on and on and on.

But I told her that I just get a hold of myself, pull myself together, and go on and do it. Be scared, sure - but do it. We are all scared - or at least, I suspect we all are.

After I wrote this to her, I went to the home page of the Piedmont Plein Air Paintout, that I'm participating in this week. I started looking at the paintings by the participating artists  - and totally freaked out again. Sigh.

I left the site, got a handle on my fear and paranoia, and went back to the site later in the day. When I looked again, I could see clearly that my paintings do stand up next to everyone else's - and after all, I was chosen to participate! That should be enough to quiet the fears, right?

I'm sharing all of this not so you all will tell me that I'm a good painter, etc. I'm sharing it because so many people tell me all the time how frightened they are - of painting, of trying to paint, of applying to shows, of thinking of quitting their jobs to follow their dreams. People tell me how brave I am - and I just wanted to share that, really, I am not brave. I am scared and hesitant, but I go ahead and do it anyways. And anyone can do this. It doesn't take not being afraid. It takes not letting your fear paralyze you.

My faith; my belief in what I'm doing; my dear and supportive husband; my dear and supportive daughter, brother, sister, father and stepmother; and all the people who read this blog, go to the shows and buy my paintings, all of these people, all of you, help me find the courage that I need to go ahead, fear in hand, and do what needs to be done.

***

JUST A NOTE, in passing. I've changed the title of "Fat Guy at the Diner" to "Room at the Counter." I gave the painting that title in part because it has the same rhythm as "Nighthawks at the Diner," one of my very favorite paintings. But several long-time readers of this blog said they loved the painting, but wouldn't want to buy it, because of the title. Being a person who has struggled with my weight for my entire life, I do understand their point of view, and agree. 

***

Dog of the Day

It's Katharine Hepburn, who lives with Lynn Hoins, a faithful reader of this blog. 

Kate looks a lot like our cat Samantha, mother of Puffy and Kizzy, who appeared 

in my most recent blog entry. 

Room at the Counter - and the Passing of Puffy's Sister

Room at the Counter

Oil on canvas, 36x48

Available at Center Framing and Art, West Hartford Center, CT

I've become really interested in painting people, as those of you who follow this blog know. After a couple more commissions, I'm going to start the portrait project that I wrote about a while ago. 

The American Moments idea is an adjunct to that. Another person-related series, it began with "July 7."  "Room at the Counter" is the second of the series of paintings of small moments, the scenes that we see every day, and that give shape and color to our lives. 

Who hasn't seen that guy at the diner? He's alone, he doesn't have a book or a magazine with him. He's just waiting for his breakfast, as he has done every day for the past who knows how many years. He's young enough to wear shorts, and have a full head of hair, but life - and diner breakfasts, no doubt - have gotten him to the point where he can't get around without the cane. 

For the past few years, I've been taking photos of little scenes like these. I hadn't known what they were for, but now, I'm pretty sure they're for this project. 

I have no idea whether I can do these paintings well. I don't know if they will be appealing to people, or whether they will sell. But I feel a real need to do them, and so we shall see. What do you think? 

***

About 15 years ago, we adopted a nearly feral cat named Samantha. She was not spayed, but we promised the shelter we would spay her. A few days after we got her, we moved to Maine. A week or so later, Samantha got out. We had a devil of a time getting her back in, but eventually, we got a Have-A-Heart trap, and captured her. 

But during her brief outing, she got knocked up by a neighborhood Tom. She had four kittens, which we named Puffy, Tuffy, Snuffy and Scruffy. We kept Puffy, and gave the other three to friends. 

One, shown in the top photo, was taken by Liz, an editor at the paper where I worked. Liz named her "Kizzy," and though she'd been a little hesitant to take her, she fell in love with the kitten. 

Kizzy died recently, after a long, happy life. Liz said she was a great cat, who helped her through good times and tough times. She was much loved. 

Puffy and Samantha are both going strong. Here's Puffy, below. I think she still looks like a kitten. 

Rise and Shine - and a Grand Coincidence

Rise and Shine

Oil on canvas, 20x20, sold

The weather people delivered their proclamations of doom this morning with their typical dramatic flourishes. I looked at the weather map and decided to put some extra weights on my tent, but otherwise, not to panic. 

By 3 p.m., the 52 percent chance of rain had diminished to 30 percent. And just as I saw this, I heard a big thunderboom overhead. Shortly thereafter, the organizers of the Brandywine Arts Festival here in Wilmington, Del., decided that, to be safe, the show should close at 5. 

So I packed up and left, and kept my fingers crossed. But as I was packing, a lovely couple came along and bought this rooster painting. Yay! 

The show here in Wilmington continues on Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Stop by if you're in the area! 

***

IN A REMARKABLE bit of coincidence, two young women walked into the booth this morning, attracted by that very same rooster. Turns out they want a 48x48 rooster for their kitchen, and I laughed at this, because I had a 48x48 canvas that I'd considered using for a rooster. Instead, I painted sunflowers, and they do look great - but I had kept wondering and wondering about a bigger rooster. 

I took their contact info, and did notice that their last name sounded a little familiar. They asked where I lived, and when I said Wachapreague, they bubbled a little. Their uncle lives there, they said. Did I know James Swineford? 

No, I said, I didn't.

And then I thought about it for a minute. 

"You mean Jimmy?" I asked. "Nitty-Gritty?" They nodded. "He lives across the street from us!" 

We've never called him "James," and while I guess I knew his last name at one point, I quickly and completely forgot it. We call him "Nitty-Gritty," because that's the name of his boat, and what he has on his license plate. Jimmy is a good neighbor, solid and available. He has a little bit of a lawn-mowing fetish, driving the mower at least weekly, and while he has a slight propensity for curmudgeonliness, he is always happy to share a joke and lend a hand. 

Isn't life amazing? 

***

Dog of the Day

It's Fred! He belongs to Tamara, a faithful reader of this blog. She sent the picture when I started painting roosters, and I will surely paint Fred one of these days. He's a looker! 

Want your pet to be the Dog of the Day? Send a jpg to me at carrieBjacobson.blogspot.com

Sun Rings, Peter Chang, and the DOD Takes a Dip

Sun Rings

Oil on canvas, 20x20

commission

When something rears its head repeatedly in my life, I pay attention. I've ignored signs and coincidences all too often, and felt the dismay of clearly missed opportunities. 

So when three people asked me to go back and paint more of these sun ring paintings, I agreed. I painted them originally in 2011 (click here to see one from back then)  and they were fun then. But this time, I had such a blast that I'm going to paint another one today, no matter how tropically hot and humid it is out there. 

***

COME SEE MY NEW PAINTINGS at the Brandywine Festival of the Arts this weekend in Wilmington, Del. I don't know where I'm going to be yet, and it is a pretty big festival, but I will let you all know when I know. If you have friends in the Wilmington, Del., area, please let them know about the festival. There is an admission fee of $5, I believe. Click here for a link to info on the festival. 

***

ON SUNDAY, PETER and I went to Virginia Beach for a fast supply visit to Jerry's Artarama. On the way back, we took my brother's advice and tried Peter Chang's in Virginia Beach. My brother - Rand Cooper is his name; click here to read some of his food writing - knows his cuisine. He said we'd have the best Chinese food of our lives - and we did. It was truly amazing, subtle, interesting, and miles above any other Chinese food ever. 

The best dishes were the steamed dumplings, which were smooth and rich with subtle flavors - and dry-fried eggplant, which is so delicious it nearly defies description. The eggplant taste was creamy and fresh, and at the very end, there was a hot zing of Szechuan peppers. Yum! 

***

Dog of the Day

It's Tucker, who fell into a little water feature while visiting my friends Cynthia and Kevin. 

Tucker was none the worse for his experience, and had a nice cooling bath, besides.