"In The Red" - Lynnwood Library Show

Garden Gnome, Contemplating His Latest Work
© Barbara A. Freeman

Small Work, Acrylic on Gessobord, 5 1/2" x 5 1/2"

I just got word that my painting, Garden Gnome, Contemplating His Latest Work has been chosen to be in the annual themed show, In The Red - Juried Art Exhibit at the Lynnwood Library Gallery.  Forty-three artists will be in this exhibit. I noticed a few familiar names on the exhibit list that are art friends of mine.  Congratulations to Eden Hopkins,  Naoko Morisawa and Susan Jones! I'm looking forward to this fun show and am happy to be included!

The show runs from September 26 – November 17 at the Lynnwood Library Gallery, 19200 44th Ave W, Lynnwood, WA.   Three winners, chosen by the Lynnwood Arts Commission for prize baskets, will be announced at the reception and awards ceremony on Saturday, October 1 at 11am - 12pm at the library.  I'll be attending and hope you can make it too!

Just a quick update to let you know I have been creating new work!  I have three new miniatures that I will be posting soon.  They are in the varnishing stages now and once dry, will be scanned.  It's been a very busy summer.  I have taken some time away from my studio to do some "research exploring" by hiking some of the beautiful trails around here, gathering reference photos.  There are so many exciting places to discover and I need to take advantage before the weather changes.  It's also a great way to clear your head and make room for new ideas and allow images to come forth.  To me, taking a hike among the forests and rivers is a way to connect with the spirit. As always, I thank you for taking the time to read about my work and hope you will retun. 

LiveARTS Bothell Reception Photos and New Work in Progress (WIP)

Here are a few photos of the Artists' Reception and Preview Party from last weekend at LiveARTS Bothell.   There was quite a crowd in the lobby. 

Wayne snapped this shot of me getting my award for First Place in Miniature for my work, Mister Pelican.  When I came back on Sunday after the show to pick up my work, I found out that it had sold!

Above, artists Eden Hopkins and Susan Jones in deep conversation. 

 

This fun photo was being taken at the same time by both Wayne Freeman and Ron Stocke, so we are all directing our eyes at two different cameras!  Starting left, Ursula Stocke, Josey Wise, Barbara Freeman, Janie Olsen and Eden Hopkins.  It was fun meeting up with everyone, all in the same place at the same time.  These talented artists all had work in the show.

What I'm Working on Now...
 
is another graphite and mixed media on film.  It has a female figure in the foreground with one of my fantasy trees behind her.  I have enclosed the image in a circle and will be adding color on the back side of the film, the border of the circle, her body color and the sphere.

I'm not sure yet what I'm going to do with the central sphere she is holding.  I have a lot of ideas but I'll wait to see what she wants to do with it.  This drawing has taken a lot longer than I thought it would.  The tree is always the easiest part, the figure, not so easy for me.   Right now I am making some corrections to the arm and hand.  I may add something to the four corners, I haven't decided yet.  I like the vision so far.  I do have a competition in mind to enter it into if it's finished in time.  It may be a long shot as you never know if your work will fit the theme or if the juror will like it.  However, when I head about this show, I was inspired to create this new work with that goal in mind. To me the inspiration and creation of the work are what's important!  Until next time, thanks for taking the time to read about my work.  Enjoy your summer!

Another New Wood Nymph Miniature - UNCLAD 2011 and Gallery North Miniature Show Updates

I've just finished another Fine Art Miniature in the "Wood Nymph" Series. This one has a rather dreamy look to it, hence the title, Dreamer. I'm really enjoying creating figures in my work. I would not have attempted this had it not been the challenge of the UNCLAD show. I am so glad I submitted work to it! As all my "Wood Nymph" Series, this was done on Dura-lar Matte film with graphite, then colored pencil on the back side of the film and finished with Golden Interference color glazes on the wings, front side.

Dreamer © Barbara A. Freeman

Graphite and Mixed Media on Film 3 1/2" x 3 1/2"

Speaking of UNCLAD, you can see Janie Olsen and your's truly, in front of our work. I was so happy to see that Sharing Secrets had a big red dot on it when I arrived at the Artists' Reception!!! I also sold my miniature, Gathering the Morning Dew. Gayle Picken, owner of Gallery by the Bay, said my audio really helped with the sale of the work. The buyer was curious about the process and in my audio I explained how it all came together. The Wood Nymph and the other two, You Too Shall Have Wings and Moonbathing, fine art miniatures in the gift shop are still available. Janie was also very happy because her beautiful work, Lost Heart, sold on Sunday!

UNCLAD 2011 Barbara Freeman

with her two works, Sharing Secrets and The Wood Nymph

UNCLAD 2011 Janie Olsen and I together with our work.

A couple of photos of the artists' reception at UNCLAD 2011. The show continues until March 27th, with more events so if you haven't seen it, there is still time, - click UNCLAD 2011 for more information. It's a great show you won't want to miss. I'm already thinking about what I want to create for next year!


Tonight is the Edmonds' Art Walk and Gallery North in downtown Edmonds will be participating. I have three works in their . I was at the gallery during the opening reception and met up with artist friends, Eden Hopkins and Janie Olsen who also had work in the show. It was a fun time and there were lots of visitors to the gallery, all the work is for sale. This evening would be a great reason to go see it during the Edmonds' Art Walk! The show continues through the end of the month.

Gallery North - Eden Hopkins, Janie Olsen and Barbara Freeman

My next show will be the Mystical Realm Show at Happy Delusions in Renton, WA. I'll be blogging about that one soon. Until then...thanks for taking the time to read about my work.

EAFA Exhibit at Columbia Winery

I went to the EAFA Member Exhibit last evening at the Columbia Crest Winery. My friend Janie Olsen , above, is standing in front of her two paintings, Too Beautiful For Her Mask and Crow to Crow. Cecelia Venolia, another artist friend also had two of her works in this exhibit, sorry I didn't get photos of Cecelia and her work. It was a very nice show and reception in such a lovely place. Eden Hopkins was at the reception, but like myself, not in the show. We both agreed that we needed to become members so we could participate in their member juried shows! I think Eden has already joined, so hopefully, we will all be in the next one together!


The other reason I have a photo of Janie is because she brought along with her the work that she commissioned from mosaic artist, Gina Ballew, (my daughter) to show me. Janie has a friend who is a retired teacher and every year she gives him a gift with an apple theme. She saw some of Gina's work and asked if she would do a mosaic for her for this years' gift. The work, Jazz Apple is the small 6" x 6" she is holding. Gina said that Jazz is the variety of apple that she used for the model. I think it's a perfect title for a perfect apple!

As to my new work, I am waiting to get some photo software on my computer so I can post my new miniature. Hopefully it will be soon. Thank you for taking the time to read about my work and hear about what I've been up to.

Group Show at Meyers Cafe at the Marina

A Meditation on the Pacific Northwest, © Barbara A. Freeman
Acrylic on Gessobord, 5 1/2" x 5 1/2"

I will be participating in a group show curated by Everett artist Shannon Leah Danks at Meyers Cafe, 1700 West Marine View Drive, at the Marina in Everett, WA, (425) 259-3875‎. It will be an eclectic mix of works from many local artists. The work I contributed is my Buddha painting, A Meditation on the Pacific Northwest. I'm not sure who all the other artists are that will be in this exhibit, but I do know that Janie Olsen and Eden Hopkins have both contributed work. When I asked Shannon what she needed, she said,

"the group show is very eclectic...whatever you want to display is what i want."

I thank Shannon for putting this together! All work is for sale so go have lunch or brunch at the beautiful marina and support your local artist! Oh, and if you go on Sunday, you can enjoy fresh veggies, flowers and more from the Farmers' Market, all taking place at the Marina!

As to other things... I know I've been absent for too long here. I have been busy trying to get new work done for the deadlines for the miniature shows I do every year, MPSGS in Washington, DC, MASF in Florida and a local invitational Holiday Show at Kaewyn Gallery. There will be other small shows and festivals that I will be submitting work to that are coming up as well. I will be posting all the shows that I will be in as they come up. I will be gone for a bit more than a week in September to make a much needed trip to visit family in IN. Then hopefully sometime in the beginning of the new year my husband and I, along with our daughter Gina, will be visiting family in FL. Both our parents have been dealing with illness so we want to make the trips to spend some time together. Also it will be great to see Gina again! We are in touch everyday via IM and Facebook, but it sure doesn't make up for real hugs! Until next time, thanks for taking the time to read about my work and sometimes other things.

"$2.00/bunch" Art of the Garden Exhibit - Arts Council of Snohomish County

$2.00/bunch © Barbara A. Freeman
Acrylic on Gessobord, 5 1/2" x 5 1/2"

My latest acrylic work, $2.00/bunch will be in the Arts Council of Snohomish County's Exhibit, Art of the Garden. There will be works of over fifty artists in this exhibit showing quite a mix of work from paintings, to glass, cement castings, sculpture, and so much more. I'm excited to be a part of this! My two friends, Janie Olsen and Eden Hopkins will also have some of their fine work in this exhibit. The show opens on Thursday, July 8, with a “Meet the Artists” reception from 5-8pm. This event is free and open to the public. The evening will be perfect for viewing local art, for and of the garden, inside and out. Hope to see you there! The gallery is located at 1507 Wall Street in downtown Everett. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday 10-5pm and on Saturday from 11-4pm. The show runs through August 19.

As to my work in progress of the forest and dragonfly, I haven't been able to post due to some life issues getting in the way. Because of dealing with these things, I missed some studio time and then when I came back to it, I ran in to some problems with the dragonfly. I decided something just didn't look the way I wanted it. My in house second opinion person, (Wayne), helped point out what he saw as a potential problem. I'm happy to say I think I've solved that problem. I'll be posting images soon. If you have been following this work in progress, thank you for your patience. As always, thanks for taking the time to read about my work.

"Alice in Wonder- Lowell" Local Art Opening

Janie Olsen and Eden Hopkins both told me they were going to submit work to this show, and Janie said she thought my work would fit as well. So I decided to check it out, and took my two pieces, Our Neck of the Woods , and The Dwelling Place , to Lowell Art Works for their show, "Alice in WonderLowell", Fables, Fairy Tales and the Fallout. It's in the SoLo District, south of Lowell Park in Everett's historic Lowell neighborhood, near the railroad tracks and overlooking the Snohomish River. This will be an interesting and very different kind of show for me. I'm not sure if my work will fit with the "fallout" part, but these two works do get one's imagination going. I'm looking forward to it, sounds like a fun time! Lowell Art Works, 5205 S. 2nd Ave., Everett, WA. September 19th through October 11th. Opening party and part of the Everett Art Walk, September 19th, 4 - 9 PM. Gallery hours for the show, Saturdays 1 - 5 PM, and Sundays, 1 - 4 PM. Hope to see you there!