Three works juried in Unclad October 2012!

River Siren   © Barbara A. Freeman 

Graphite and Mixed Media on Film 6"x 9"
Framed size  13" x 16"

Just Between You and Me  © Barbara A. Freeman

  Graphite and Mixed Media on Film  6"x 6"
Framed size  12" x 12"

Keeper of the Sphere © Barbara A. Freeman
 Graphite and Mixed Media on Film  7" x 7"
Framed size 14" x 14"

Great news that my three works have been juried into the UNCLAD show taking place in Stanwood, WA in October!  UNCLAD 2012 is the 15th Annual Art Show dedicated to celebrating the Nude Figure in art.  River Siren,  Just Between You and Me, and Keeper of the Sphere are all from the series, Wood Nymphs and Other Curiosities.  All three works were done using graphite and colored pencil on film using both sides of the surface.

UNCLAD takes place at the Floyd Norgaard Cultural Center (map) and runs from October 12th, 13th, & 14th.  The show is opens to the public, 10 am to 5 pm (Admission $5 suggested donation).  On Friday, October 12th, 6 to 9 pm, there will be the ARTISTS & PATRONS PARTY (tickets $10).  On Saturday, October 13th from 6 pm to 9 pm there will be a Wine & Cheese event with Vicki Artimovich, giving a "Nude in Art" lecture (tickets $10).  Check the website, uncladart.com to view the show online, (be sure to check out my three works in the online gallery,  River Siren,  Just Between You and Me, and Keeper of the Sphere).  It's a great looking show with over 150 artworks (all nudes) from artists across North America.  This is a show that is much anticipated, with paintings, sculpture, photography, glass and including a great Gift Shop!  Hope you get a chance to view the show in person! 

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.

"You Too Shall Have Wings" Fine Art Miniature - from the Wood Nymph Series

This is the third of my miniatures in the series of "Wood Nymph" drawings that will be in the gift shop at Gallery by the Bay during the UNCLAD show. This one, You Too Shall Have Wings, is of a male wood nymph. I wanted to have the male figure represented and chose this posture with him looking forward. Once I had the figure worked out, I still wasn't sure what I wanted him to be looking at. Then one night when I couldn't sleep, I remembered how beautiful the wood nymph caterpillar was. I loved its beautiful orange and black markings. I knew then that I had the focus for my figure.

You Too Shall Have Wings © Barbara A. Freeman

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

You Too Shall Have Wings © Barbara A. Freeman

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

Moonbathing © Barbara A. Freeman

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

Gathering the Morning Dew © Barbara A. Freeman

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

All three of the framed miniature works together.

Sharing Secrets © Barbara A. Freeman
Graphite and Mixed Media on Film, 6 1/2" x 9" Framed

The Wood Nymph © Barbara A. Freeman
Graphite and Mixed Media on Film, 8 1/2" x 8" Framed

Above are all five of my framed works that will be on exhibit at Gallery by the Bay during the UNCLAD show. There will be an audio of my work so be sure to bring your cell phones to hear about how I created them, they are number 50 and 51. There will also be a magnifying glass available to view all the fine detail in each work. All five have been created in the same way, graphite drawings on Dura-lar Matte film, with colored pencil on the back and Golden Interference color glazes on the wings. You can read about them on earlier blog posts by clicking on "Wood Nymph". There will also be catalogs available at the gallery of all the works in the show. The UNCLAD Exhibit will run from March 12th through March 26th. Gallery by the Bay is now open 7 days a week, 11 am to 5 pm every day. They are located in Stanwood, 8700 271st NW. For more information, phone: 360.629.4297 or Email: gayle@gallerybythebay.com.

Thank you for taking the time to read about my work. Mark your calendars, you are invited to experience the 10th Annual UNCLAD Art Show at Gallery by the Bay, featuring over 150 works of art by artists from across North America, a wonderful Gift Shop, a free Audio Tour, artist Demos, special Events, and all the energy, excitement and inspiration that comes when artists, friends and art enthusiasts gather to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of this unique community event. I hope you can make it! Support your local artist!

"Moonbathing" Fine Art Miniature - from the Wood Nymph Series

As promised, here is the second miniature in the series of "Wood Nymph" drawings. This is the final finished image below.  I will have it along with two other miniature works available in the gift shop at  Gallery by the Bay during the UNCLAD show, opening next week.

Moonbathing © Barbara A. Freeman

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

This is the the initial drawing where I worked out the position of the body, especially the hands and feet, always the hardest for me!  At this point I wasn't sure where she was going to be, I just liked the posture.

I then transferred her to the Dura-lar Matte film and as shown above, where I placed her on a shelf-like ridge next to an opening in a tree.  I started the drawing on the top left.

Here is my set up with my mangnifier and tray of graphite pencils and tools.

In this photo you can see I've gotten fairly far along.  I've done the figure, face and hands.  The best part for me is the tree textures and values.  I love doing that part, so meditative!

You can see the shelf I've placed her on.  I was using the idea of fungus that you often see growing on trees.  Then I added the steps leading inside, which seemed to be the right thing to do.  I wanted to keep the flow moving to create the rhythm and lead your eyes around the work.

This is what the back looks like when I add colored pencil to it.  I used it for the wings, body and sky and a few touches where the night light shows on the steps.

When I had the opening in the tree, I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it.  I had the choice of making it a view to a forest real or imaginary and then it just hit me that it would be great to have the moon and stars show through.  The circles in her wings repeat the shape of the moon and the colors set a mood.  I added glazes of Golden Interference Blue (fine) to the wings, the stars and the moon.  You can see I was excited about this one.  I am having so much fun with these imaginary creatures! I have one more finished miniature that I will be posting soon.  I will be delivering all my work for UNCLAD tomorrow and meeting up with my friend Janie Olsen.  Janie also has work, Lost Heart,  in the show. Her beautiful work has an interesting story behind it and you can hear Janie tell all about it with the audio tour by listening on your cell phone.  I also have audio for my works, Shared Secrets and The Wood Nymph, telling how I work on film.  I hope you can make it to the show!  It's going to be a great time.  Lots of fun things going on at the gallery and in the community.  Thank you for reading about my work and I hope you will return to see my next miniature in the wood nymph series.

"Gathering the Morning Dew" Fine Art Miniature - from the Wood Nymph Series

Since I created the last two works using the figure as a "Wood Nymph", I wanted to continue with that theme in miniature format. This first one, also done in graphite on Dura-lar Matte film, has colored pencil on the underside of the film for wing and body color. There are some acrylic touches on the front on the wings and the on dew drop. The wings have a layer of Golden Interference Violet (fine) on them as well as some gold to add sparkle. Being a miniature, you can hold the work in your hands and when you look at it in different angles, the wings will change color. The dew that she is reaching for is actually lighter in the work than what I see here on my screen. There is a very bright highlight on the left side of the dew drop. I'm not sure why that section didn't scan as well as the rest, but it views much better in reality.

Gathering the Morning Dew © Barbara A. Freeman
Graphite and Mixed Media on Film 3 1/2" x 3 1/2"

I've had a lot of fun with these figures and have another one I am working on. I will post it as soon as it's finished. It will be the same size and done in the same way. I hope to submit both of these to the gift shop as part of the UNCLAD show. If not, they will be submitted to one of the upcoming miniature shows. Both will be 3 1/2" by 3 1/2" matted and framed in a simple 5" x 5" black frame. I hope you enjoy seeing the work and reading about the process of it's creation. If you live near, do try to see the UNCLAD show at Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood, WA. There will be a catalog of the work in the show and my two will be included. You can check out the work in the show, now online at UNCLAD's website and you can also "like" them on Facebook! Thanks for taking the time to read this.

Both Works Accepted in this year's UNCLAD 2011!

Woo hoo!!  I'm doing the happy dance today.  I just received my acceptance email that my two works I submitted for the UNCLAD 2011 exhibit, The Wood Nymph and Sharing Secrets have been juried in the show!!

UNCLAD 2011 is the annual art show dedicated to celebrating the nude figure in art.  This year is the 10th anniversary!  This popular juried show in Fine Art Nudes will feature a broad range of styles and approaches in all mediums.  Last year's show featured 108 artists from all across North America.

I'll have more information on Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood, WA and UNCLAD 2011 as it gets closer to the show.  It will be featured as an online show as well as in the gallery.  There will also be an audio tour of the work.  I will want to take advantage of making an audio to talk about my work and how it can be viewed under magnification to see all the detail and about the process of working on film.  As I stated before, this is a new show for me and a stretch since I don't usually include the figure in my work.  I'm glad that I did because I have continued with the wood nymph as a subject and am currently working on her in miniature!  I'll be posting that one as soon as she's finished.  So far, she's looking good!

Thanks for taking time to read about my work.  Hope all of you are staying safe, warm and dry where ever you live.

"Sharing Secrets" - wood nymph (nude) - Graphite on Film

This new work is of another wood nymph. After finishing up my last work, The Wood Nymph, I wanted to do another one but with wings this time. Staying with the wood nymph butterfly theme, I gave her wings with similar markings. The drawing was done on Dura-lar Matte film, in graphite. I did the wings in colored pencil on the back of the film. On the front, her eyes and the smaller butterfly were painted in acrylic. I also added a gold glaze on the wings for a bit of sparkle. I used the same tree and forest references as in the last work but bringing it all closer.

As with the last work, this one was done for submission to the *Unclad 2011 show. Wish me luck as I have no idea if they will be accepted or not. This is my first time ever to submit to this show. I won't know until sometime in February, I'll keep you posted. Now it's time to get busy making some fine art miniature works for all the upcoming miniature art shows and miniature categories in the summer art festivals.

Sharing Secrets © Barbara A. Freeman
Graphite and Mixed Media on Film, 6 1/2" x 9"

I was traveling with this drawing with the intention of working on it when time allowed (see below). I did make some progress, but not nearly as much as I needed to. I do know that I will take more care in packing a larger work if I travel with one in the future. In past traveling trips, I had no problem with miniatures. I sandwiched the film between foam core and it stayed protected. This one, however, was not packed as well and because it was larger, it had more area that could be smudged! I was a bit anxious about it. However, all was well and I was able to finish it and get it submitted.

I just returned last week from a trip to Florida visiting my Mom and Dad. My daughter, Gina flew in from Austin to be with us. It was wonderful to be all together again, a long overdue visit! While there Wayne, Gina and I made an overnight trip to see the Miniature Art Society of Florida's Exhibit in Dunedin, FL. We had a great time seeing the show and eating great food. The quality of the work far surpassed any I have seen in any miniature art show. I do hope I get to go again!

Thank you for taking the time to read about my work. Your comments are always appreciated. I hope you will check back soon.

*Link to the Unclad show at Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood, WA.

Work in Progress #4 "The Wood Nymph" (nude) - Graphite and Mixed Media on Film

The Wood Nymph © Barbara A. Freeman
Graphite and Mixed Media on Film 8 1/2" x 8"

See finished work above. This is the last of my Wood Nymph, work in progress. The rest of the work is in developing the area under the tree, and the foreground.

I added two more butterflies, then added colored pencil on the underside to all three of them. They didn't seem to have the impact I was looking for so I added some acrylic paint on the front. I also added a bit of color to the figure on the underside with colored pencil and then back to the front with acrylic on the eyes. One of the things that is so much fun in using film is the ability to work both on the back and front of it and in different media.

Above is a close-up view of the wood nymph and foreground. If you look at the first image as compared to the above image, you can see where I was leaving a mysterious light source under the tree on the left side. When I get toward the end of a drawing or painting, I like to step away from it and look at it with "fresh eyes". Putting the work in a different setting, like propping it up in a different room with different lighting, or looking at photographs of it on the computer screen, all help to assess a work. Once again I found myself getting side tracked, having that light area under the tree took away the focus from the figure. I darkened all the underside and brought the attention back to the wood nymph. Her subtle color and her butterfly friends direct your eye to the figure.

This is the completed work of The Wood Nymph. I hope it will be well received. I am currently working on another "unclad" figure with the same theme of the wood nymph. I haven't done the new one as a work in progress, but as soon as it is finished, I'll be posting it here. I'm on a tight deadline and hope I am able to finish it by the deadline of January 15th.

Again, if anyone is interested, here is the link to the Unclad show at Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood, WA. Thank you for taking the time to read about my work. Your comments are always appreciated. I hope you will check back soon.

**When using film, the product is Dura-lar Matte film by Grafix.

Work in Progress #3 "The Wood Nymph" (nude) - Graphite and Mixed Media on Film

As in my previous post WIP #2, I'll let the images show my progression on this work. One thing I forgot to mention in the last post was that I used a small brush to blend the pencil marks when making the soft shift in values on the figure. Another change is to the right of the figure where I moved the "bark" straight down rather than curving to the left.

One of the things I am really pleased with is the way the main tree developed. I needed the base of the tree to support the figure. I liked the idea of the figure half reclining as though relaxing on her throne. The model for the tree was a mass of open roots. I kept the idea of the open roots but only those under the tree.

If anyone is interested, here is the link to the Unclad show at Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood, WA. I hope you will check back soon. Thank you for taking the time to read about my work. Your comments are always appreciated.

**When using film, the product is Dura-lar Matte film by Grafix.

Work in Progress #2 The Wood Nymph (nude) - Graphite and Mixed Media on Film

I have been in a bit of a rush lately with finishing this blog post and working on another drawing for the Unclad competition. Since many of the photos are self explanatory and you can get the idea of how I work, I'll let the progress images speak for themselves.

At this point I wanted to have the Wood Nymph interacting with another subject. I decided to use one of my favorites, a crow. However, I was a bit unsure of the crow, its body seemed the wrong shape. I made several attempts to correct it. I think it wanted to be a chicken! I added a wood nymph butterfly on the figure's knee.

I continued to work on the background hoping it would help the crow.

Problem solved, the crow is removed! I came to the conclusion that the crow was taking the focus away from the figure. After all, the unclad figure is the focal point and I needed to keep it that way. The crow will have to wait for another time.

If anyone is interested, here is the link to the Unclad show at Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood, WA. Thank you for taking the time to read about my work. Your comments are always appreciated. I hope you will check back soon.

Note: *One of the things that I like about film is that when using graphite on it, it is very forgiving and erases well. More care is needed when using colored pencil.

**When using film, the product is Dura-lar Matte film by Grafix.

"The Wood Nymph" (nude), Work in Progress - Graphite and Mixed Media on Film

This latest work is a new stretch for me. It's been quite awhile since I have done any life drawing. Normally, I don't have the human figure in any of my work, exceptions are the Buddha paintings and the Gnome with beets painting. This new work is for a local, annual, juried show I want to submit to called, Unclad. I went to see the show last year and the ideas started to brew! I knew if I did something for this competition it would have to be in a landscape and trees would have to be involved, of course. I had the perfect tree that I wanted to use. All I needed to do was find a way to get a nude figure in it as the central focus. The "unclad" figure is after all, the whole point of the exhibit.

The figures are from an artist's book of model poses that I used as a guide. I played around with different positions in my sketchbook and had several studies worked out to see which would be best suited.

I drew the outline for my tree with some guides for the forest trees and border area on larger paper. The outline of the figure I transferred to a piece of film so I could place it on the tree and move it around for the best placement. The little blobs are sticky putty to hold things in place.

When I had the composition worked out, I put a sheet of film over my drawings, then drew them in with light pencil marks. I only use a basic outline of my composition because I create the drawing as I go.

You can see where I started to create some of the trees and foliage.

The forest is further developed.

I'm still not sure at this point if this is going to work and am anxious about the figure so I started to work on the area around her head. Normally I like to work from the top left and work my way across and down. It's very easy to smudge the graphite with your arm. I always try to protect what I have done with having a barrier between my hand or arm and the work, I use a fold of soft cloth. You also want to protect the film from indentations or scratches. I had to be very careful since I was working in an area that would be in the path of my arm when I did the area above!

Here you can see further work on the forest and foliage. I've also started drawing the upper branches on the central tree. I do use my reference photo, I have it up on my computer screen. It is mostly a guide for light and shape. Much of it will be changed to form my visual idea. This is many, many hours of work and at this point, I'm happy to say, I decided that the figure appeared to be progressing in the right direction. I will continue on!

Thank you for taking the time to read about my work. I hope you will return to see the progress continued in the next post, coming soon.

**When using film, the product is Dura-lar Matte film by Grafix.