A Touch of Autumn, Framed

Here is what my latest miniature painting, A Touch of Autumn looks like in the frame and in a setting for scale.


A Touch of Autumn, © Barbara A. Freeman, Acrylic on Polymin, 2 1/8" x 3 1/4"

A Touch of Autumn

A Touch of Autumn, © Barbara A. Freeman
Acrylic on Polymin, 2 1/8" x 3 1/4"

This new miniature titled, A Touch of Autumn, was painted in acrylic on *polymin. There seem to be a lot of old barns in the countryside around western Washington. Many seem to be used for storage and become overgrown and mossy from all the rain. One of my favorite things to do when I have time is explore the countryside.

I love the color changes up here and Autumn is one of my favorite times of year. I think this painting was inspired from an area around the small town of Arlington.

*polymin - Synthetic ivory painting surface for oils, watercolors, and acrylics. It can be found at miniartsupply.biz

"Finding Time" Delivered

I've delivered Finding Time today, along with my bio and statement. I'd already mailed in the requested paperwork. Here's what it looks like in the mat and frame. Now on with the show!

Of Clocks and Crows, Monte Cristo Building,
1507 Wall Street, downtown Everett, WA
September 3rd thru October 20th.
Gallery hours, Monday through Friday, 10 - 5, Saturdays 11 - 4 Reception, September 3rd, 5 - 8.




Finding Time, Graphite on Film, 8 1/4" x 10 1/2 "

Miniatures Accepted into Arts of Snohomish 6th Annual Juried Art Show

I received my acceptance letter from the Sixth Annual Arts of Snohomish Juried Art Show yesterday and my three miniature entries, Buddha in the Pacific Northwest, Joey, and The Old Barn are in the show! This is the first juried art show at the Arts of Snohomish Gallery that include a juried miniature art catagory. Thanks go to Susan Dawson, a memeber of this non-profit community-minded artists gallery, for being the one responsible for gathering the money for the miniature art awards. The show opens on September 1st and runs through September 27th. There will be an artist reception and awards presentation on September 12th from 5-7pm. The Arts of Snohomish is located in historic downtown Snohomish, WA, 105 Cedar Avenue. For more information please call 306.568.8648. I hope to see you there!

Part Three, "Finding Time", Of Clocks and Crows

I received my acceptance letter this weekend from the Arts Council of Snohomish County, and I'm happy to report that my new graphite drawing, Finding Time has been accepted for the show, Of Clocks and Crows! If you've read my earlier posts on this work, you will remember that I wasn't sure I even made the deadline because it was submitted at 8:30pm that evening via email! This is the first time I've submitted work here and I'm excited. Now all I have to do is get it in the frame. I already have the frame and mat for it, but need to get the glazing. I want to get UV protected, non glare glass. If you live in this area and know of a place that I can get this for a reasonable price, please contact me via Barbara@bfreestudios.com. That would be great!

My friend, Janie Olsen is also very pleased. She entered two works for this exhibit and they are both in! Janie will also have prints of her work available in the gallery store.

The exhibit, Of Clocks and Crows, will be held in the beautiful, historic Monte Cristo Building in downtown Everett, WA at 1507 Wall Street. The show runs from September 3rd thru October 20th. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 10 am to 5 pm, and Saturdays from 11 am to 4 pm. There will be an opening reception on September 3rd from 5 - 8pm. It's a beautiful space and they have great receptions. I'll be there! If you can make it, be sure to say hello, I'd love to meet you!

It's a Small World, Elder Street Gallery

Yesterday I shipped my work to Houston, TX, for the Elder Street Gallery's 1st Annual International Miniature Art Show called, It's a Small World. Terrence Boggs, the gallery owner and curator of this exhibit, will be using the gallery's website to promote and sell the miniature artwork in the show, online as well as in the gallery. Their website is at this point a work in progress, but please keep checking back as he keeps adding more artists' miniatures. I'm especially excited to be exhibiting in this show because my daughter who lives in Austin will be driving down with her partner to see it. It will be her first in person miniature art exhibit! My five works on exhibit are shown below left to right, Around the Bend, Chuckanut at Lunch, the new graphite with colored pencil work, The Sentinel, bottom left to right, In Fair Condition, and Innocence.


The "call to artists" for this miniature show was handled differently. All the artwork was chosen by digital submissions, then after notification of acceptance, shipped. This is not the norm for a miniature art show. All the miniature shows I've been in, the submissions are chosen from the actual artwork. If not all the work is chosen to be in the show, the remaining is held until the closing when the unsold work and the unaccepted work are returned together. If none is accepted, they are usually all returned after judging. Mr. Boggs, at Elder Street Gallery, has chosen the artwork by digital submission to avoid having to store unaccepted artwork until the show's closing. Therefore, there will be no cost to the artist for admission fees, nor for the shipping of the work if it is NOT chosen to be in the show. He also requested the jpgs of the submitted work be 300dpi to use for promotional purposes. All work is under 25 square inches and uses the 1/6th rule. You can find more about miniature art and it's definitions at the Association of Miniature Artists website.
The show, It's a Small World, Elder Street Gallery, 1101 Elder Street, Houston, TX 77007, runs from September 19th through October 3rd. For more information contact: Terrence Boggs at elderstreetgallery@gmail.com, or call (281) 250-4889. If you live in the area and have never seen a miniature show, don't miss it! Seeing the work in person is quite an experience. Here is an online press release: GuidryNews.com

Please keep checking back for information on the opening reception. When that information becomes available, I'll be sure to post it here!

A New Drawing Easel

Yesterday was spent cutting mats, not my favorite thing to do, and getting work ready to ship off to a show in Houston. (more about this later) While the framing and matting of the work is going on, I thought I'd share with you a new easel I made recently.

What I had was a make-shift platform that I had been using for the last three years! It's so laughable! It was made out of styrofoam blocks, using the velcro ties that are wrapped around lettuce. The board was from the backing of a used watercolor block. Talk about recycling!! But it worked, or at least used to work!

Old drawing/easel.



After all this time, it started to slip. If I put any weight on it, the whole thing would collapse. Time for something new! As an artist of miniatures, I prefer to work at an angle, rather than upright. There really weren't any easels small enough to fit on my workspace under the magnifier and lights that I use. Drawing boards are nice but looked too large for my space and the really nice ones were expensive. Since the old one worked great, I decided to use it as my design.

I found most of my materials at the craft store, the velcro at the office supply, and then some masonite sheets from Dick Blick. I only had to make one cut on a piece of bass wood, and used scissors on the velcro. The wood glue and C clamps I had on hand.










List of materials: A wooden box with lid, (mine was called a Memory Box and I only used the lid) 5.99, two pieces of lightweight Basswood, 2" x 4" x 12", 14.99, and 1/2" x 1/2"x 24", 2.97 , Velcro and Glue.

I used the lid to the box as the base. The thin strip, 1/2" x 1/2" x 24" needed to be cut to fit on the base. It would be the stop for the board.








Next I glued it to the bottom of the base. I used wood glue and clamped it on with C-clamps to secure it. I used the rest of the strip on top of it all to protect the wood from indentation.



Here I used a wooden paddle to protect the underside of the base from the C-clamps.









The rocks were to hold it in place on the edge until the glue was dried. Once it was set, I cut the velcro in strips and put them on the base and the bottom of the 2" x 4" x 12" back support.

Here's a side view of the finished drawing easel/board.



Here's the front finished view.





It's working great! The only thing I've had a problem with, is when I packed it up to take to the hotel on the day of our 103 degree heat wave, one of the center strips of velcro pulled off the wood. It was easily put back in place and has not come off since. It could have just been the heat that weakened the glue. If it continues to be a problem, it can be easily remedied with gluing it back down. Another minor change I would make is to use a half round rather than square strip for the stop. It would be a bit easier on the wrist when it rests on the surface.

It was very inexpensive, quick and fun to make. It also travels very well! I'm very pleased with it.

Part Two, "Finding Time"

After being chained to the table in my studio all weekend, I finally decided to call Finding Time finished! It's been a really close call since yesterday, August 3rd was the deadline! I'm wondering though, since one of the options of submission is by email, if the deadline is by time or date? I declared the work finished by 6:30pm last evening and took it over to my web master's office (husband Wayne) for the scan. One problem, the scanner wouldn't come up!! He's recently done an upgrade for the Macs so now needed to do the same for the scanner drivers. After some minor mutters, sotto voce, he got them installed and the scanner to work. However, then he had to redo all the settings! I stayed out of his office until it got quiet. : )

Finally, after a record breaking heat wave, scanner problems, and lots and lots of graphite foliage and grass, I finally got the email with my info and jpg attachment of my work sent off around 8:30pm! Now all I have to do is hope that it's considered within the deadline. If not, well, it will be ready for the next show!

Submission for an exhibit for the Arts Council of Snohomish County, called, Of Clocks and Crows.

Finding Time, Graphite on Film, 8 1/4" x 10 1/2 "