2010
08.05
Robin, who goes by AdornedByRobin on Twitter, is a Texas native transplanted to Saint Louis. By day Robin is a digital production artist and by night she is one awesome jewelry designer.
All the beautiful artisan jewelry shown on her Adorned By Robin Etsy shop is uniquely designed and created by Robin who works in fine silver, sterling silver, bronze, copper, brass, natural stones, pearls and glass. As someone who has created jewelry in the past I recognize her unique style and the care and detail that goes into each piece.
Much of Robin’s inspiration comes from nature. The unique forms found in seed pods, gnarly woods, veins and leaves, stone textures, and the fanned ridges of sea shells, always fascinate Robin and move her imagination toward new creations. Robin’s one-of-a-kind fine jewelry is like no other. These are truly works of art.
Tags: artist, brass, bronze, copper, digital, glass, jewelry, metals, pearls, pendant, silver, sterling, stone Category Artists, jewelry, Products |
2010
08.05
Sharon started her quilting much in the same way many quilters did, buying the wrong fabric, using the wrong batting, and using the wrong needles. It took a little time but she learned, through trial and error, to use what worked for her even though that particular product, piece, or application, might not generally be known as the correct choice. One more thing Sharon learned was not, under any circumstances, to compromise her standards.
In the beginning Sharon had to learn the difference between a scant quarter and a fat quarter, translating all those unusual terms that quilters use. The first year for her was just a continual spin of learning and creating, and learning and creating again, in order to establish her base for future quilting efforts. For the novice the learning curve proved quite steep.
Sharon remembered her grandmother quilting back in the ’60s but everything then seemed so different when compared with modern practices. “I hope that the quilt world will be just as different for my grandchildren,” Sharon says. When first she began she had no idea that quilts were being machine quilted. “I remember only that quilts were all hand-pieced and hand-quilted,” She said.
Sharon remembers her Grandma Larsen counting the stitches per inch and ranting about being inconsistent, so that is where she started, setting out to find exactly how many stitches per inch were needed to make her quilts “just right.” She asked the wrong person, and was told that to ask was just rude. It was Sharon’s first indication that she needed to be a teacher.
Today Sharon is both teacher and artist. Her exceptional quilts, and her courses, can be found on her website: Sharon Schamber.
Tags: fabric, fat-quarter, quilt, quilting, stitches, textile Category Artists, Products, Textiles |
2010
07.26
You decide.
These bone and wood fish hook talisman necklaces have been created by Pacific islanders for centuries and are currently available from KK Pacific in Hawaii.
Tags: bone, carving, Hawaii, island, jewelry, Pacific, pendant, tradition Category Products |
2010
06.09
Sally Trace works mostly in acrylics and oils and produces a range of abstract creations that tug at the senses. She explores the patterns of nature, mathematics, physics, and divine intelligence as she pursues the human compulsion to perceive patterns. “Abstract art,” she says, “speaks the language of form, and can address the nature of form in a way that is music. It can be eloquent, delicate, playful, ethereal, dramatic, passionate, evocative and forceful.”
Sally’s more recent acrylics are all about the physical properties of the paint. The process, she says, “sometimes feels like I’m shepherding the paint around the canvas…” She forms a partnership with the paint, working in tandem, working wet into wet, finding the beauty in the chaos, as she manipulates the fast drying acrylics, finding that each stage of the painting process is like performing a piece of music. “It has a lifespan within which I can work with the paint itself to reach a conclusion.” It is a cooperative effort between the materials and and the artist.
“My oils are more cerebral,” she says. “They’re made by building the paint on an armature-like drawing, combining hard edges with gradations, glazes and lively brushwork.” Her oils are more controlled compositions with more considered colors. Sometimes representational elements are incorporated. Sometimes it’s a more pure organic geometric design. Her oils are, she says, “a quiet, meditative and very personal approach to painting.”
Tags: abstract, acrylics, cerebral, divine, form, geometric, mathematics, music, nature, oils, organic, paint, patterns, physics Category Artists |
2010
06.08
Walt Curlee has been a freelance illustrator for more than 25 years. The oldest of five boys, and now living in rural Alabama, Walt’s life was shaped by his early years in a military family, his formal art training, and his vast corporate experience. Today Walt enjoys fishing, hiking, and playing horseshoes. He continues to pursue his painting, which speaks for itself.
Walt sells his work on line, displays in galleries, and has recieved numerous awards and extensive recognition. You can learn more about Walt from his eBay About Me page and on his personal website, waltcurleeart.com.
Tags: awards, commissions, Galleries, gallery, illustrator, paining, recognition, website Category Artists |
2010
06.03
Seven easy steps to displaying your work on a virtual wall to create a room effect for a sales listing or blog post:
Just about any graphics editing program will do to create this type of image. Here’s how it’s done — exact details will vary from program to program but the concept is the same:
1 – Find an image of a room with a setting and wall suitable for displaying your image. It may already have pictures on a wall.
2 – Clear the wall by cutting and filling to make room for your image. Keep one of the pictures if it has a suitable frame for your own image.
3 – Find an image of a picture in a frame suitable for your image. You may be able to use a picture you removed from the wall in the previous step.
4 – Crop the picture from the frame and fill space with matting color.
5 – Re-size your own image to fit the frame and paste it in place leaving matting as appropriate.
6 – Re-size your framed picture to suit the size of room image. It’s best if you can get it close to the actual scale of the room image. Use other items in the room as a guide.
7 – Paste your framed picture onto the wall of the room image. Save and you’re done!
The exact commands and functions for the above steps will vary depending on the graphics software you are using. Photo Shop, Irfanview, Gimp, and Paint Shop Pro are typical programs used for this. I personally use Paint Shop Pro.
Tags: couch, furnishings, picture, posting, room, scale, virtual-display, website Category General |
2010
05.31
I do periodic website work for a friend in Australia. He is an artist in his own right, a photographer who specializes in aerial work. But that’s content for another post. His work regularly takes him in contact with people who need websites and he turns to me for the basic installation and hosting. The rest he takes from there.
Myocum School of Sculpture is one of his more recent sites. Started by Samantha Welch, the school offers classes conducted by Samantha and the well-known Australian sculpter, Damien Lucas, whose work is seen throughout the country.
Damien says of his approach to teaching, “My practical focus is to promote excellence in traditional clay modelling , plaster mould making & casting, which provide the foundation & understanding needed to fully develop one’s potential.”
Taking a hands-on approach students gather in small classes working in pleasant surroundings under the direct tutilage of their instructors.
Tags: australia, modelling, mould-making, school, sculpture, wire-frame Category Schools, sculpture |
2010
05.31
With an interesting mix of quality materials, old masters’ techniques, and both realistic and surrealistic inspiration, the works of Daniel Cristian Chiriac are spread far and wide across Europe and North America and around the world. From his home in Romania his works are proudly displayed by his many clients in Romania, France, Spain, UK, Italy, USA, Canada, and even Japan and Australia.
Through multiple careers, qualifying first as an aviation electronics technician, then studying law, and finally teaching English, Daniel always returned to what he loved best, his art. Living with his wife (and muse), Daniela, he continues to share his unique perspective on the world around him.
The years have passed quickly for Daniel as he added experience to his life, from a couple of years of the obligatory bohemian living that many great artists go through, through the serious classroom and employment, to his current married life — all adding to his appreciation, and interpretation, of life.
Daniel is also available for commissions. You can visit his website, which he also created, here.
Tags: oils, painting, surrealism Category Artists, Paintings |
2010
05.30
Being retired doesn’t hinder Patricia, who hails from Orange County, California. She’s been selling her art, including watercolors, oils, and acrylics, on eBay for about a dozen years now, and on other sites including Esty, Main Street Mall Online, and Bonanzle. Additionally Patricia has her own website and blog.
Being found on the Internet is no accident. Patricia works at it and she has sold over 2,000 paintings online as a result. She does accept some commissions. Of her serene watercolors (her favorite medium) she says, “…with practice the hand just knows where to go.”
The most intriguing site she operates, I think, and perhaps the least known, is Angel Babies where she offers Miniature Art, Half Bamboo Pendants, her line of exquisite $10.00 Pendants and Brooches and Tatting Just For You.
Tags: jewelry, miniature, painting, pendant, watercolor Category Artists, General, jewelry, Paintings |
