83rd Annual International Exhibition of Fine Art in Miniature - Honorable Mention for The Return

This weekend is the opening of the Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers Society of Washington, DC's   83rd Annual International Exhibition of Fine Art in Miniature.  I'm so happy that my two graphite entries, Sanctuary and The Return were both accepted in the show!  I'm even happier that my entry, The Return was awarded an Honorable Mention!  There will be more than 600 tiny treasures from around the world for this ever-popular juried exhibition.

 Sanctuary © Barbara A. Freeman, M.A.A.

3 5/8" x 3 5/8" Graphite and Mixed Media on Claybord

The Return © Barbara A. Freeman, M.A.A.

3 5/8" x 3 5/8" Graphite and Mixed Media on Claybord

Awarded Honorable Mention

 Sanctuary and The Return  © Barbara A. Freeman, M.A.A.

 3 5/8" x 3 5/8" Graphite and Mixed Media on Claybord - Framed

The Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers Society (MPSGS) of Washington, DC is the second oldest Miniature Arts Society in the world, the oldest in the United States. The 83rd Annual International Exhibition of Fine Art in Miniature show is held at The Mansion at the Strathmore, 10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda, MD. They are open, Weekdays 10-4 • Wed. 10-9 • Sat. 10-4 and Sun. 12-4 (closed Mon. and Holidays). The Exhibition Opening is Sunday, November 20th, 2016, 2 to 4.  The show runs November 20th through December 31st, 2016.  This years Judge is Judy Lalingo, Professional Artist.  If you are in the area, this is a beautiful venue and a show not to miss.  These tiny treasures make great holiday gifts!

THE SPIRIT OF A MINIATURE (Taken from the prospectus)

This unique art form, based on a minute scale, traces its roots back to the book paintings and illuminated manuscripts set in the 7th century.  A work of fine art in miniature is a particularly personal object that draws the viewer into an intimate, concentrated little world that is breathtaking in its execution.  Every single detail is miniaturized – the scale of the subject matter, the brush or pencil strokes – so that only with high magnification can one behold the immaculate details of the artist's technique which may include stippling, hatching or pointillism.  These techniques are a specialized means of producing a perfect balance of color and detail in a series of thinly applied layers of exquisite color intended to reflect light. The miniatures show a high standard of design and the artist’s mastery of the chosen media and palette.

As always, thank you for taking the time to read about my work.  I will also have work in the Miniature Art Society of Florida's show coming up in January - more info soon.  May you find many things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving! 

Gold and Glory, New Acrylic Painting in Miniature

This work is another recent miniature I've done in acrylic. It's a painting that I'll submit to one of the upcoming miniature art society shows*. It was inspired by the small country church, The Little White Church on the Hill.

I saw a peek of this church as we were driving by and had to stop to photograph it. I love our drives in the country, this one was on the Pioneer Hwy, close to the town of Silvana, WA. It's near the bridge overlooking the scenic Stillaguamish River Valley. The Little White Church on the Hill is an historic site completed in 1898 and is listed on the Washington State Register of Historic Places.

Gold and Glory ©Barbara A. Freeman

Acrylic on Art Board 2" x 2"

It was in late autumn and the trees had already lost most of their color. I didn't have as much information in the photograph to work with as I would have liked. I decided to give the tree colors a touch of autumn gold. It worked well with the whites, bathing them in a golden glow. I tried two different frame styles on it and I think the one above is the best choice, more delicate. It works well with the theme of Gold and Glory.


In the above photo you can see where I started the painting by covering the entire surface with a blue wash to tint the illustration board. Then I built up the layers with thin applications of color. On the upper right side next to the first tree you can see the color of the first blue layer. This helped me to lay in the whites of the church and the blue was a great contrast to the orange. I painted the roof and shadows with tints of blues and lavender. Actually, this piece is filled with complementary colors. I also used a bit of metallic gold paint on some of the trees. The bell in the tower was a real challenge, it was so tiny! I decided to mat it in a smaller format to create a more pleasing composition.

I selected this frame and the first one above as possibilities for the finished piece. I think the first one is the better choice, more delicate and the yellow gold is a better match. Sorry, as you can see the first gold framed work is not very straight. I'll post a better photo of the final matted and framed work at a later date. As always, thank you for taking the time to read about my work. Your comments are always welcomed and appreciated.

*I am in the process of putting the final touches on my work and will be shipping them out soon to the two Miniature Art Society Exhibits coming up, the Miniature Painters, Sculptors & Gravers Society of Washington DC, (MPSGS) and the Miniature Art Society of Florida, (MASF).

Work accepted in MPSGS!

I got my acceptance notice in Saturday's mail and I'm excited to say all three of my works were juried in to this year's 76th Annual Miniature Painters, Sculptors, and Gravers Society, (MPSGS) exhibit. I am thrilled!! Here is the blog post (second paragraph) with my three works that will be in this exhibit.

On another note, I just got back from North Seattle Community College where I delivered my work. Brenda and her gallery helper, Wendy were busy hanging the show and from the peek I got, it's going to be a very nice show! I can't wait to see it when all the work is up for viewing. Mark your calendars for the opening reception, Tuesday, from 1 - 3 and 6 - 8. The show will be up until November 6th.

Frustration and Perseverence!

Wow, what a week!!! I finally got my work shipped to the Miniature Art Society of Florida, (MASF) for their 35th Annual International Miniature Art Show. It was a really close call as the deadline is this Friday, tomorrow, October 9th! I thought I had the right sized mats cut for the two new works I just finished, (varnish still drying) but they didn't work out. So, I had to cut two new ones, and that is the worst for me!!! I don't know how it always looks so easy when you watch a demo, but I end up cutting so many before I finally get one that is without flaws! I got so frustrated, I thought about giving up and not doing this show. Seriously! It's not only one of THE two most important miniature art shows of the year in the USA, but it's the largest miniature art show of the year and I am a society member! MPSGS in DC, the oldest miniature art society in the USA, is the other most important show, (work shipped on time). I made myself take a deep breath, persevered and was able to get everything together and made a mad dash to the post office and shipped five works priority mail, 2 to 3 days on Tuesday! I love usps online shipping and printing! Thanks to Wayne for all his help!

I'll be posting the two new works as soon as the images are sized and my copyright put on them. The one that I recently posted as a work in progress is the new Italian landscape I submitted. The other new one I submitted is done on film with graphite and acrylic. It's an image of trees and a crow with a key! It was inspired from the larger graphite on film, Finding Time. I love how one work can send your mind into other possibilities for future works. Never did I think I would be watching crows as a subject in my work, but now I see crows everywhere, (course they are everywhere!). I'm hoping to post these images soon. I told that to my "webmaster" and he just smiled at me, so we'll see. SOON!

Prospectuses

Wow, can you believe it's that time already! I just downloaded the prospectuses for the two Miniature Art Society shows, MASF (Miniature Art Society of Florida) and MPSGS, (Miniature Painters, Sculptors, & Gravers Society, Washington, DC) and put the deadline dates on my google calendar.... already in to 2010! If you are a miniature artist, or would like to find out about the societies and their shows, their websites are on the lower right hand side of this page. Just click on the names. You can also download the prospectus from their websites and see some of the winners from last year. Now I gotta get off this computer and get busy! Happy painting everybody!