Group Show at North Seattle Community College

I've been asked to participate in a show called "Shrunken Treasures" at the Gallery at North Seattle Community College. It's a show of small works and miniatures, (all work must be 12 x 12 inches or smaller). For Small Works, I'll have two colored pencil drawings on film, and two on paper. I will also have five Miniatures, three in colored pencil on paper, from my Italian Landscape Series, and two other works done in colored pencil on film. Together they should provide a nice grouping. The show runs from October 13th through November 6th. There will be an opening reception on Tuesday, October 13th from 1 - 3pm and again, from 6 - 8pm. I"ll be attending the evening reception, 6 - 8 pm. The Gallery is located in room IB 1322, the address is 9600 College Way N, Seattle. I hope to see you there!

This is proof that having a website and blog are helpful. Brenda Anderson, the curator for the gallery saw my work on my website. When Brenda contacted me for this show, she wrote in her email...

"We are a small Art Gallery on the North Seattle Community College campus. Our main purpose is to expose the students and local community to art. We strive to have professional shows that allow students to see work they may not otherwise venture out to see. We also have a wonderful art program on campus and the gallery is an important part of those students' education. We have 6 art shows every year, 5 professional and one student show for the art students to showcase their work."

I am honored to be a part of this exhibition. I know that community college gave me a place to explore and further my art interests. I gained confidence in myself, my work and met many a mentor at both Valencia Community College in Orlando, Fl and Cabrillo Community College in Aptos, CA. Community colleges are a great resource for adults as well as students.

Parking and Directions: If you are coming from I-5, you will get off at the Northgate exit and head west on Northgate Way. Turn left onto Meridian Way, it will turn into College Way. When you get to the campus, you want to turn left into the 2nd drive/entrance. You will come to a "T", turn right for visitor parking. If you somehow get lost on campus, look for the Bookstore. The gallery is in the same building, directly behind the bookstore.

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!

Update

A quick note to say I have been busy with finishing work, plus matting and framing. My deadline for MASF is so close!! I will be back to blogging once this is done, so please come again!

Yesterday, however, we did take a much needed day off to go to the Festival of Family Farms Tour in Skagit Co. and what a beautiful day! We visited several wonderful farms with, sheep, alpacas, and Highland cattle. In the wilds we spotted an elk herd off in the distance, and eagles soaring overhead! It was a breath of freshness and beauty that I sorely miss! We didn't want to come home.

Today it's back to my studio to work. I hope to be back to regular blogging by the middle of the week. Meanwhile, I hope your days are filled with health and beauty!

Second Place Miniatures! Mountlake Terrace Art Show

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

We went to the 31st Annual Mountlake Terrace Juried Art Show, Reception and Awards Ceremony, on Friday evening. What a nice reception they put on! My Second Place in Miniature Award was for A Touch of Autumn, one of my new miniatures. I'm happy it was for this one, as I sure put a lot of work into it. Working on polymin for me is rather tricky. It's good to know that my frustrations of laying on many layers and building them up slowly, paid off! A nice sized crowd showed up spilling into the various rooms in the library's galleries. The awards ceremony was held in the library itself, while the art was on exhibit in two separate galleries off the library lobby. Paintings, drawings, 3D, etc., was set up in one room and photography in a smaller room. An additional room off the larger gallery was opened up to serve food and drink after the ceremony. There were a few tables and chairs set up for folks who wished to sit, and lovely chamber music supplied by students to further the enjoyment. I love the way all the small communities here have their art festivals. They all have a different personality with an enthusiastic group of community volunteers. A note of interest, my friend Janie Olsen won an Honorable Mention for her miniature, Baby Stripes. Congratulations Janie!

An Award at Mountlake Terrace 31st Annual Juried Art Show!

I just got an email reminder from the Chair of the Mountlake Terrace Arts Commission for the reception and awards ceremony tomorrow night, Friday, at 7 for the Mountlake Terrace 31st Annual Juried Art Show. It stated that I have won an award!! How Exciting! We are of course, planning on being there. This is my first year entering this show. I don't know which work nor which miniature art award, so I'll have to wait and see! I'll add it to my blog as soon as I know. Hope to see you there!

Painting, Deadlines, & Shows

I've been chained in my studio trying to get work done for the deadlines fast approaching! Right now I am working on a painting on polymin to submit to MASF. That deadline is on October 9th, so that means the work needs to be out the door by the 5th or 6th, which is really close! The new work is another from my miniature Italian landscape series. I also just finished one (also an Italian landscape) on gessobord that is ready for the isolation coat and varnish. Besides those two, I also have a graphite on film piece that is in the works, but not quite finished. So you see, not much time for blogging, unfortunately. I also miss reading and seeing all the new work my blogger friends are doing. I know you all are doing wonderful work and can't wait to see them!

A reminder, this Friday is the Artists and Patrons Preview from 7 to 9pm with an Awards Ceremony at 7:30 at the Mountlake Terrace Show. I'll be attending.

Also, I've been asked to participate in a show with small works and miniatures at a local community college. More details on that later, so stay tuned.

I also have a few photos for the Elder Street Gallery, It's a Small World Exhibit in Houston and what my daughter thought of the show! (She loved it!) She sent them in an email, so I'll be sorting them and posting real soon.

TWO Art Openings and Receptions Tonight!

If I could be in two places at once, now would be one of those times. Tonight is the opening reception for the exhibit "Alice in Wonder-Lowell", Fables, Fairy Tales and the Fallout, at the Lowell Art Works, 5205 S. 2nd Ave, in Everett. The opening party, from 4 - 9PM is part of the Everett Art Walk. My two pieces in this show are, Our Neck of the Woods , and The Dwelling Place, be sure to look for them. I'll be there and I'd love to meet you. Arr, and don't forget matey, it's International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Another art opening I'd love to go to is also tonight. It's at the Elder Street Gallery's First Annual International Miniature Art Show, It's a Small World, in Houston, TX. I won't be able to be there, however, my daughter, Gina will be going. She's so excited because this is the first miniature art show she's ever had the opportunity to see in person and she gets to see Mom's work, I have 5 in this show! She's seen some of my miniature work (owns a couple), and of course seen other shows online. But tonight she will get a close up view of some of the work of the top names in miniature art! I wish I could be there with her. She's also going to take some photos of the reception, so keep a look out as you may see them posted here! The show, It's a Small World, Elder Street Gallery, 1101 Elder Street, Houston is hosting the reception tonight, from 5 - 10 PM. Sounds like a great show, and I know Gina will have a great time!

"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!

Happy Anniversary!

Just a little personal note to wish my in-laws Herb and Mary Louise Freeman a Very Happy 69th Wedding Anniversary! They are such an inspiration!

First Place! and Local Shows

Last night was the Artists' Reception at the 6th Annual Arts of Snohomish Gallery Juried Art Show. I had three miniatures, Buddha in the Pacific Northwest, Joey, and The Old Barn in this show, (this was the first year they included a miniature art catagory). It was a small show of carefully chosen works by two jurors, Trish Harding and Ted Pankowski. Even though it had been a very warm and beautiful day, the early evening heat didn't keep folks away from the show. It was a nice gathering of artists and friends, as well as people just dropping in from outside the street to see what the fuss was all about. The show was very eclectic with styles ranging from anime, sharp hyper-realism, loose flowing watercolors, soft focus pastels and everything in between including throughout the exhibit, a few 3 dimensional pieces.

Now the best news for me was that my work, Buddha in the Pacific Northwest took First Place in Miniatures!!! Yay! That was exciting for me and I was glad that this particular piece was given First Place. I had felt it was a strong piece from the time I created it and hoped it would reach out to others. The juror, Trish Harding said some good things about the work, she used the word, "fullness" when describing it.

It was great seeing friends and all the work in the show. I always enjoy the music, and the mix of friendly folks of all ages. This is a jewel of a gallery with many hard working artists that keep it running smoothly. The show continues through September 27th. Check it out and don't forget to view the miniatures up close.

Arts of Snohomish Gallery, downtown Snohomish, WA, 105 Cedar Avenue. For more information please call 306.568.8648.

Another local show I've had my work accepted in is the 2009 Arts of the Terrace, in Mountlake Terrace. I'll have three miniature pieces in this show, a new show for me. One of my miniatures and two of my larger works were rejected, so I'll be interested to see the look of the exhibit. My three miniature works in this show are, Moss and Mushrooms, Sunday Afternoon, and the new piece, acrylic on polymin, A Touch of Autumn. I'll be delivering these on Friday and will have more information on this exhibit later.