Woody - and 100 Cubed

Woody

Oil on Canvas, 10x10

At long last, I've started a Carrie Jacobson Artist Facebook Page (click here to go there)  - and have put up all the 100 Cubed paintings I can find in my computer.

The 100 Cubed is a series of 100 10-inch-by-10-inch paintings that I'm selling for $100. Nearly all of them are plein-air pieces... I'm using them to focus myself, to experiment, and to loosen up!

According to myself (not the most reliable source), I have completed 57 of the 100. Well, 58, counting little Woody here, the terrorist tsar of Wachapreague. I normally wouldn't do a dog on a 10 by 10 canvas, but I was painting at the South Norwalk show, and all I had was 10 by 10 canvases!

My question for all of you, and my request, is: Please go to my facebook page, look at the 100 Cubed project, and let me know if there are paintings that you remember, or you own, that I've not posted! I would really appreciate it.

And while you are there, please like me. Oh, please, please like me.

Sheesh, what Facebook has done to us.

Thanks!

Burton's Shore

 Burton's Shore

Oil on canvas, 10x10

sold

One of the reasons, I think, that Wachapreague and the surrounding areas on the eastern shore of Virginia are so beautiful and untouched is that there are really no beaches there.

Instead, there's a gorgeous salt marsh that draws all sorts of birds, and deep inlets that are home to all sorts of sealife.

And there are barrier islands with beautiful, untrammeled beaches - but they're out between the bay and the Atlantic.

I am thankful for this, much as I love beaches. It has kept the eastern shore from looking like Virginia Beach or the Outer Banks, or any of a thousand other seaside spots that have been built up and built up and overbuilt up.

Here and there, of course, there are strips of sand, small beaches - like this one, on Burton's Bay. It is lovely, and filled with fiddler crabs. One of these days, I'll go swimming there. This time, I just painted.

Here's my painting in the landscape. 

Mystic Outdoor Art Festival - Yay!

My booth in Mystic on Saturday

The Mystic Outdoor Art Festival was great for me for all kinds of reasons. It was HOT, and that was not so good, but that was one small thing.

Homeless (the house is empty though the sale has not closed), I stayed with one of my very best friends two nights, and with my daughter and her family two nights. Both were just great.

At the show, tons of friends came by to say hello, friends from my recent life and friends from past lives - high school, The Westerly Sun - and it was great to see them.

People who have bought paintings from me came by to say hello, which was great! They are all loving the paintings they have, and that made me feel really good.

Lots of people were very interested in my new paintings, and took cards and post cards. They asked great questions that made me think - and they generously shared insights and moments in their lives with me. That's part of the shows that I really like.

And sales were excellent! A friend from Patch bought my turtle painting. A new friend - and collector - bought two of the 100 Cubed pieces. And a woman who had been in love for years with the Canadian Cows painting - my biggest - bought it! I helped her hang it in her living room, and took this photo. Doesn't it look great?

My painting in the buyer's living room

I don't know that I have ever been happier to sell a painting. The buyer had been at the very first show where I hung this painting, and had fallen head over heels for it. But it was large and expensive, and she couldn't quite bring herself to do it. She came to show after show, visiting the painting, (I have done this myself and I know what it's like) - and on Saturday, she realized she had to have it.

I delivered it and helped her hang it. She was so right, the painting was perfect for the space.

And the show was perfect for me.

My booth in Mystic on Sunday, cowless

Storm Coming, Parksley

Storm Coming, Parksley

Oil on canvas, 24x24

sold

So an interesting - and scary - thing is happening. My big paintings are selling - and I need quality big paintings to replace them!

As challenges go, this one is grand and delicious. I love painting big, love it! And the challenge gives me an emotional carte blanche to USE the big canvases I have, to USE the paint I have, to USE the time I have to make big, juicy paintings.

My tendency, and you can hear my Scottish and German heritage in this, is to pinch those pennies till they bend. Save the big canvases. Don't use one drop more paint than necessary. Don't gamble.

But one of the many joys of big paintings - especially big plein-air pieces like this one (24x24 is medium big, but big for a plein-air piece) is the risk. Especially when I am painting in the face of a storm. Gotta do it quickly, gotta do it without fussing, gotta be bold!

The sky down here on the Eastern Shore is a huge, marvelous, inspiring thing. The clouds climb like mountains into the clear air, the sun reflects their size and beauty, and the flat open land gives me full access. I love painting here!

Wednesday Morning Salt Marsh

Wednesday Morning Salt Marsh

Oil on canvas, 10x10
sold

The show in South Norwalk, CT, was fabulous! It was my first time in it, and I was nervous. I've never been to South Norwalk - or to much of any place down in that corner of the state. I had heard that this show had very high-quality work, and of course, that made me nervous, too. Finally, it was my first time "camping," (sleeping in the camper in a "campground") and that had me nervous, as well.

I had a good spot, next to my friend, the extraordinary artist Ronet Noe. I drove to South Norwalk and found my spot Friday night, and I was glad I did. I got lost four times - and set-up was Saturday morning, which is always difficult; I had no time to spare.

There was a good crowd, and they understood art and were there to look and buy. By and large, they liked and responded to my paintings - and that's always great!

The big Clinton Marsh painting sold, as did Saltwater Farm, one of my long-time favorites. I was a little sorry to see both of these go, but I was happy for the sale. And a delightful couple who have been collecting my work bought three of the 100Cubed pieces!

Staying in the teeny camper made for a totally different experience. The "campground" was pretty much wall to wall GIANT RVs, many of which spend the entire summer there. I did see a few tents, and I believe I saw one woman and a dog sleeping in a van. I wouldn't call what I did "camping," but would call it RV-ing - and it was fun. There are a few hurdles I have to get over still, but it seems like an enjoyable and relatively cheap way to stay during at least some of the shows.

This weekend, I'll be at the Mystic Outdoor Art Festival! That's such a fun show, and if you're in the area, I hope you'll go. I'll be at the corner of Willow and Main streets, across from the post office and near the bagel place.

Here's my tent at SoNo:

Millwrights Restaurant!

Four of my five paintings in Millwrights! 

Well, it turns out the restaurant folks didn't buy 11 paintings - but they bought five! And they look fabulous up on the wall in the very lovely Millwrights restaurant in Simsbury, CT.

The restaurant is a treat for the eyes and I would bet good money that it is a treat for the taste buds as well.

It is narrow and high-roofed, with lots of wood and an earthy but high-flown feel. One entire wall is glass, looking out on a beautiful river and waterfall. The other wall is filled with my paintings. I couldn't get far enough away to get all five in the shot, but don't these four look wonderful?

I met chef/owner Tyler Anderson, who is very well known around Connecticut and nationally, too. In CT, he ran the famous and much beloved Copper Beech. And he won "Chopped," the TV show where chefs make delicious dishes out of incongruous ingredients.

He was as nice as he could be, despite the fact that it was several days before opening, and the chaos was just about overwhelming.

I also met maitre d' Brent Bushong, who was riding herd on the restaurant before Tyler got in that day. Brent was all angles and energy, seeming to know everything that was going on in minute detail.

These two could not have been more welcoming, taking time from their intensely busy days to shake my hand and tell me how much they love my paintings.

The restaurant focuses on inventive, sophisticated American food, locally sourced and fresh as possible. The value of local foods and local farms has long been a passion of mine, and so it makes me even happier that my paintings are hanging in a place with an ethic and a mission in which I believe.

So if you're looking for a delicious, interesting meal, go to Simsbury and check out Millwrights. And be sure to tell them how much you like my paintings!

***

If you're in western Connecticut this weekend, please come to the SoNo Arts Celebration in South Norwalk! I will be in Booth 448, on the plaza near the railroad overpass, at the intersection of Washington and North Main streets. I am excited about a new show in a new place - new for me! Please say hi if you come!

Grimlock

Grimlock

Commission

For anyone following the ins and outs of our home sale here in CT, feel free to let up a little cheer - the water test came out A-OK, and so the sale of the house can go through.

I am doubly, triply glad about this, because my water duties this past weekend (running the hose for 10 minutes every hour) meant that, at the very last minute, I had to pull out of the Meet the Artists show in Olde Mystick Village. Again, I apologize to anyone who went to the show looking for me!

This weekend, I'm in a show in South Norwalk, CT, the SoNo Arts Festival. I'm in Booth No. 448.... Don't know where that is, but I imagine the booths will go in numerical order, so I should be findable. This is a new show for me, and I have heard it's excellent!

The following weekend, it's the Mystic Outdoor Art Festival! This is a good, busy time.

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