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. 

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

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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! 

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? 

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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! 

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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? 

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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. 

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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. 

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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! 

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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. 

Turquoise Longhorn - and a Good Decision

Turquoise Longhorn

Oil on canvas, 15x60, sold

I can see autumn coming now, even in these hot and humid days. A certain brightness has gone from the leaves and from the grass. The greens are deeper, more dry, less rich, less lush. The light seems to have changed, as though a little sparkle at dawn has been replaced by something more serious, more soft. And even in the most scrupulous gardens, the weeds seem to be winning. 

Autumn is out there, on the horizon, and in this low, flat place, you can see it, if you look hard. 

I will welcome it, the change, the coolness, the sharp breeze that will rise off the ocean. I will welcome the slow and subtle changing of the colors here, and the chance to go north and paint the riot of autumn in New England. I will be glad to wear long pants and sweatshirts, and to try a new spate of autumn shows, here and there, and maybe even in Texas. 

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I DID INDEED pull out of the show in Pittsburgh, and I am glad I did. I slept much of Thursday, and some of Friday, and by today, I'm feeling like myself. 

I had not factored in the emotional stress of Sam's death; that explains a lot to me about my oddly deep fatigue. 

Thanks for all the kind words, everyone, and the support. 

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THOUGH I DID pull out of the Pittsburgh show, I've added the Brandywine Arts Festival, Sept. 6-7, in Wilmington, Delaware. This was a fun show to do last year, in a very pretty place, and I'm looking forward to doing it again. 

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Dog of the Day

I met these guys at a Wawa in Dover, Del., on my way home from Montauk. What you can't see is that there's a fourth one. These three just stepped all over him, until eventually, he stuck his head up between the legs of the one standing on the window frame. After I took this photo, I had to stop, because that dog had climbed up onto the window frame, and had his front legs on the mirror. All four were wriggling and wagging and begging to be petted. They were so funny! 

Want your pet to be the Dog of the Day? Send me a photo by email, carrieBjacobson@gmail.com

Mia - and, Sigh, a Downer in Delaware

Mia

Oil on canvas, 12x12, commission

Well, the show in Wilmington was terrible for me, sales-wise, terrible, terrible, terrible. And to make it even more disappointing, it was a lovely show, well advertised, well attended. The people were terrific - friendly, supportive and polite - but they weren't buying, or at least they weren't buying my stuff. 

Four paintings sold, all my smallest pieces, $100 or less. People said they loved the bigger pieces, but didn't buy them. Maybe they were simply priced too high for the venue. Or maybe it was location - I was the third booth in from the main entrance, and I think that didn't help. No one wants to make their major purchase when they've just entered the event. 

Or maybe it just wasn't my day, and my buyers simply were not at the show. I did have a lot of interest from some really great people who loved my stuff and might want commissions, and so, perhaps, that's where the sales from this show will be. 

Still, there's little in life - outside of the major events - that feels worse than ending a show in the hole. 

But ending in a hole means that the next step is likely to be up. So I am keeping that in mind. It's a new day, a new week, and I have another chance next weekend. 

Here are some photos from the show: 

Here's my booth

The show was in a beautiful park in Wilmington, DE, along the Brandywine River. 

There were TONS of people at the show, so that wasn't the problem. 

I loved this. "Kindness to God's creatures is a service acceptable to Him," it reads.

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Dog of the Day

There were great dogs at the show, and this little cutie was one of them. 

Delmarva Farm - and a DelMarvelous Show!

Delmarva Farm

Oil on canvas, 10x10, $100

Sold

I was painting this farm - half-hidden by the soybeans, nearly ready to be harvested - when the farmer who owns the place came by.

He'd farmed there all his life, he said, but had sold off a lot of the land recently, as he was 78, and slowing down. Right now, all he has is 300 acres. Soybeans is what he mostly grows, and corn, too, and he rotates the crops year by year.

His kids don't want to farm, he told me. His wife had been a schoolteacher, and his kids had gone on to get higher degrees, and schooling he'd never had. One was a teacher, and the others were in business.

And he was happy, he said, that they had decided not to farm. 

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THIS WEEKEND, I'll be at the Brandywine Arts Festival in Wilmington, DE. It looks like a nice art fair (DelMarvelous, even!), and I've heard it's good, though I've never been. I'll be in Booth J03, frighteningly close to the entrance (sometimes a great place to be, sometimes a terrible place...). The show is Saturday and Sunday; admission is $5, and children under 12 get in free. The entry price includes admission to the zoo, another frightening thing for me, as I really don't like zoos. 

So if you are in the area, please come by. And if you're not, please send your good thoughts my way! 

My next show is the following weekend, in Leesburg, VA. I did that show last year, and while I didn't do well financially, I had a great time, and got a number of commissions. Click here for more information on the Leesburg Fine Arts Show. 

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Dog of the Day

Here's Django, who lives with Ashley Harper-Oberle near Austin, TX. I met Ashley through this blog, and we've become online friends. She writes Zen Daughter, a blog that I like very much, and it's been a real pleasure to get to know her. 

She and her kids named the dog Django because they liberated him from the pound - and in Texas, that's a life-giving move. 

He is half Great Pyrenees, and half golden, she writes, "nine months young and a big bundle of love." 

Morning in Wachapreague - and Success in Charlotte

Morning in Wachapreague

Oil on canvas, 10x10, $100

Sold

When I was in Charlotte in May for a show in the convention center, I met a wonderful man named John. He bought a painting from me, and commissioned me to paint his dog. Magically, it seemed, we became instant dear friends. I felt that I'd known him all my life. 

With his help and guidance this week, I am now represented in Charlotte by Judith Weston Voglesanger. She has a gallery in her home, and holds art events there; places art with clients throughout Charlotte; and is hanging her artists' work at a new wine bar and restaurant in Charlotte called J. Sam's. 

You can check out her website by clicking here (http://www.jwvartists.com/) - and you can also find her on Facebook under JWVArtists .

I'm pleased and excited to be represented in Charlotte, which is a fascinating city that seems to pay real attention to art. And I really like the work of the other artists Judith represents. So, yay! 

Here's the photo I used for "Morning in Wachapreague"

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AN INTERESTING EVENT coming up in early October is a plein-air paintout at Olana, the Hudson, NY, home of Frederic Church. I am one of 30 artists accepted to paint on the grounds there, and I feel that I am in excellent company.

Truly, I have to say that I am amazed, really, at my good fortune. I look at the work of the other artists in this show, and the other artists represented by Judith, and I am sort of stunned that I am among them. I am so grateful, and truly so surprised and excited.

Since I have a show the weekend of the Olana event, I won't be at the auction itself, but I will have a piece in it, and will be on site painting for two of the days. So if you are in the area and want to say hello, come by on Thursday or Friday morning. And if you want to bid on my piece, or the work of the other artists, please go to the wet-paint auction on Saturday!

And for anyone who is not familiar with plein-air paintouts, what happens is that a number of painters go out into the landscape and paint, then choose a piece and bring it - wet! just finished! - to an auction, and the buyer takes it home as is. They are really, really fun times.

Here's the url of the event - http://cccaartswalk.webs.com/olana-plein-air-festival - and below is a postcard about the event.

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MY NEXT SHOW is this coming weekend in Wilmington, DE. It's the Brandywine Festival of the Arts, and is supposed to be a good show, and great fun! So if you're near Delaware, or if you want a post-Labor Day destination, come to the Brandywine Festival! 

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Scenes from the Drive

Beautiful flowers along a North Carolina highway

A cool car somewhere in North Carolina

The sky, as I drove across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel

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Dog of the Day

YEARS AGO, around the time that my mother died, people began sending emails to another Carrie Jacobson, instead of to me. The difference in our addresses is that I use my middle initial - B - between my first and last names, and she doesn't. 

This delightful Carrie Jacobson, who lives in upstate New York, has gotten a lot a lot a lot of emails meant to go to me - some of them very personal, very private. She has also gotten lots of painting emails, lots of work emails and lots of inexplicable emails. She has sent them all to me with tremendous grace and patience. 

Eventually, we met. She's really nice, smart, funny, individual. I liked her enormously. And she bought a painting from me, too, so how great is that? 

So this is her dog, Vince. And my guess is that he's not as fierce as he looks. 

Want your pet to be the Dog of the Day? Send a jpg to me at carrieBjacobson@gmail.com  - and don't forget that "B"!