GlinkArt4Sale

A Blog Post...

2011-10-24T18:15:00.000-07:00

I miss keeping a blog. This is just an experiment. My old blogs were probably way too personal and exposed too much. OY!

2009-02-03T22:33:00.000-08:00

Grrrr....

I'm smarting a bit over this painting critique this afternoon that didn't exactly go MY WAY. The culture/mix of personalities in this class with this new instructor is one that I'm having trouble adapting to. I'm not going to vent all over the internets about it. Anyway, here are some paintings, and a photo of me as a very young art student (taken by myself in the mirror; I've always been a navel-gazer, of course!) that was the inspiration for them.

I like them. So There! I am supposed to learn from the criticism. It's funny, because in previous classes I've been less than thrilled with some of the amateur feedback. I guess I got what I was asking for...

The painting on the left was the first try, a three session painting, and the one on the right was a quicker one done in one session. The assignment was to do a single-panel Expressionist painting, meaning a painting that evokes a strong emotion in the viewer.

To be honest, I just painted what I wanted to paint and didn't care that much if it evoked a strong emotion in anyone else or not.

Experiment

2009-01-29T20:50:00.000-08:00

The idea was to paint an emotional reaction to this photograph/

Here are the results..........

A Clownz Painting

2007-11-20T06:53:00.000-08:00

From the Fort Mason exhibit: this *still-life* was done last semester as I began experimenting with very loose, somewhat abstract compositions and color schemes. If I remember correctly, my instructor made one of his oft-repeated comments about space aliens perhaps having visited me in the night as he looked at it.

I guess this was a compliment???

Emerging out of Frying Bacon Smell

2007-11-19T07:01:00.000-08:00

My first Group "Exhibit!" My painting class just finished up its two-week show at Fort Mason Art Campus, in the First Floor cafe area. The accompanying photo, which my blog fans can click on to enlarge, shows six of my recent paintings hanging in my very own display case and being willfully ignored by a cafe patron who reminded me of a Duane Hanson sculpture.

I actually received an *inquiry* about the possibility of selling one of the paintings on display, titled "Escape From Queens." (middle lower painting) The gentleman who wrote the note said, "I escaped from Queens myself and this painting really touched me by connecting a visual to my experience." Needless to say, I am now doing a whole "Escape From Queens" series.

A special shout-out to fellow painter Bob B. :-)

NYC/ Queens/ L.I. Tour #5- Scribbling Can Be Art!

2007-10-29T06:02:00.000-07:00

On my first day in the Big Apple I hit both the Metropolitan Museum of Art and MoMA. I didn't take any photos at the Met, although I did see a killer show of Rembrandt works and other Dutch Masters from the museum's permanent collection, including some very famous Vermeers that were awesome to gaze upon. (Remind me to do an entry on this genre painting in the exhibit by an artist named Jan Steen: "The Dissolute Household"-- it was a hoot.)

I also saw some hot Greek and Roman statues. They've completely expanded that section since my last visit.

However, it was at the new MoMA that my breath was taken away by the beauty of the art and the new exhibition spaces. I wish this museum were in San Francisco. Cezannes and Picassos and Matisses--famous ones! I wanted to stay all day and soak them in.

My camera is new and I forgot how to turn off the flash, or else I would have taken photos inside. I wanted to take one of this famous Pollack drip painting, with hordes of people milling in front of it, but the guards were admonishing others for taking flash pictures.... I stumbled on this other painting by Cy Twombly-- I'm not really familiar with his work. This one is called "Leda and the Swan;" it's huge, and it restores my faith in the concept of SCRIBBLING AS ART. My photo came out sucky-- this image is off the museum's website.

Painting: Cy Twombly. (American, born 1928). Leda and the Swan. Rome 1962. Oil, pencil, and crayon on canvas, 6' 3" x 6' 6 3/4" (190.5 x 200 cm). Acquired through the Lillie P. Bliss Bequest and The Sidney and Harriet Janis Collection (both by exchange). © 2007 Cy Twombly

Sad Abstract Expressionist Clown: Revisited

2007-10-11T14:43:00.000-07:00

A detail of the painting, using my new Canon PowerShot SD1000... (too bad I'm not being paid for product placement!) I can finally show my brushstrokes and gradations of color as they're meant to be seen.

Our painting class is going to have a group show in the cafe/exhibit area down at Fort Mason, Building B. My instructor told me this morning that he will give me an entire case to myself to display several paintings! I am really excited. This glamorous exhibit space is further enhanced by the morning smell of frying bacon from the nearby takeout concessions area. It's the hip and happening place to spot *Emerging Artists* -- that is, artists emerging out of a vaporous cloud of overcooked bacon...

Blonde Tech Issues-- Making Progress!

2007-10-10T10:29:00.000-07:00

A downloaded and resized image from my new digital camera.

YAY!!!!!!!!!

St. Francis Update

2007-10-08T06:21:00.000-07:00

The press conference where my artwork appeared was held last Thursday. Unfortunately, our charismatic and pro-big business mayor Gavin Newsom, who has never spent a day in his life wondering how he was going to pay for his next meal, decided to hold a competing press conference at a location away from City Hall and drew all the major media away with him! He was making headlines all last week regarding his plans to make police sweeps of a tourist neighborhood downtown and hand out more citations against the homeless, while throwing out some misleading statistics about how he's helping to get these people off the streets.

Dirty politics, to be sure.

I have liked Newsom because of his outspoken support of Gay Marriage, but I had turned a blind eye to other policies of his that clearly do not favor the underpriviledged and disenfranchised. I am torn now about how I feel about him. He's up for re-election (hence, another crackdown on a convenient scapegoat: homeless people). I want to vote for someone else.

Two other liberal city supervisors did come to our press conference and spoke with passion about the work of Sister Bernie (seen in photo standing next to St. Francis) and her colleagues.

Anyway, the display looked great and my art looked great-- a flaw or two bugged me, but overall it was a very successful project. I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to do it and to meet these folks.

There were several inspiring speakers at the event and in the end Religious Witness With Homeless People got enough media coverage to make it all worthwhile. They got their message out: that criminalizing homelessness and spending tax dollars on citations and arrests is an ineffective and non-compassionate response to this problem.

Gratitude

2007-10-04T07:38:00.000-07:00

The Religious Witness With Homeless People organization's press conference is this morning, with my 7 1/2'-tall painted portrait of St. Francis being displayed as part of the exhibited material. The event will take place at City Hall.

I'm wondering if Mayor Newsom will be there? Homeless issues are in the headlines right now, as there are renewed efforts by the mayor and his aides to involve the police in sweeping tourist areas of pesky homeless people and issue summonses for public intoxication and other "crimes."

Religious Witness with Homeless People believes that only the most threatening or abusive homeless people should be handled this way, and that the majority would be better served by social work outreach efforts to help connect them with social services. A more effective, less costly and more compassionate response.

In a major effort to keep myself from ever having to live on the street: I got my Artist/ Performer business cards printed up, and also (FINALLY!!) bought a really cute little Canon digital camera.

Thank you God/ Goddess/ Universe/ Tao/ Spirit!

Abundance

2007-10-03T05:04:00.000-07:00

The Sad, Abstract Expressionist Clown Reaches Out to Grasp a Flower
Oil on Canvas, 20" x 24"
2007

Revving up this blog again. I am getting some very strong, clear messages these days that my Right Livelihood lies in the direction of making and selling my artwork. Accepting commissions. Working in a wide range of styles and sizes. Working through fear. Expressing gratitude for all the creative opportunities that are manifesting in my life.

Tomorrow: Religious Witness for the Homeless Press Conference, with my 7 1/2'-tall St. Francis painting displayed!

Samson Portrait

2007-09-12T07:14:00.000-07:00

by Mike Harvey. Thank you GGUTS for the creative abundance in my life today!

Yesterday's Work

2007-08-01T07:42:00.000-07:00

It's not *perfect*, in fact, there are things about it I really dislike... I've titled it "Definitely an Experiment"-- doing a larger scale drawing, combining acrylic, ink, pencil, and a bit of collage (that's a shape cut out of a frozen pizza package on the left eye, lol).

But I worked for at least 2 hours.

And today I'm getting my start at 8:30am...

Trying to change profile pic!

2007-07-17T07:38:00.000-07:00

I am so determined to change my profile pic. It will eventually work.

Another day, another face...

2006-11-30T16:33:00.000-08:00

Guess who I added to my collage painting this past Tuesday?

I took this pic at the bus stop on the way home from class. I was pretty excited with how it turned out. At the rate I'm going though, I'll be done with the painting in around two years or so.

Collage Painting continued...

2006-11-27T18:50:00.000-08:00

Added some faces in over the weekend and today-- a Picasso lady, a Fauvist portrait by Alexey von Jaylensky, and an African mask (still needs some work). By the time I got rolling and was feeling relaxed, it was dinnertime already. Oy. Also, my kitty Speedo tormented me when I first started painting, which was stressful. Scratching on the carpet instead of his scratching post and doing other things to try to get my attention. He was not being respectful to the Genius At Work!

Work in Progress 1

2006-11-24T17:06:00.000-08:00

We have an assignment in class to do a painting using at least three photo sources-- they can be pictures of others' artwork if we want.

I'm doing a self-portrait surrounded by weird faces and masks, some taken from paintings of artists I admire. This is the start, using two images from this Belgian artist, James Ensor, whose work I remembered from when I was an art student looking at a lot of 19th- century art. He was a contemporary of Edward Munch and Egon Schiele-- I love those guys! I wonder what drugs they were all on...

Collage Painting: in Progress; oil on canvas

Thanks, God/dess, for the chance to express my creativity!

2006-11-23T13:29:00.000-08:00

Wishing everyone who is taking this journey with me on my new blog a very, very Happy Thanksgiving!

And the same to my old online pals, from AOL-J days...

Oct. 2o Oil Study

Journal Doodle

2006-11-22T10:14:00.000-08:00

Posting on a regular basis in here seems important.

Scribbling, doodling, pushing paint around on a canvas daily seems important.

I've been looking at the luscious paint of the Abstract Expressionists in museums. I recently went to see this big exhibit of this German artist, Anselm Kiefer, at SFMoMA... his materials are so THICK that they are a conservator's nightmare: chips of paint/dirt/ash are known to fall off his paintings onto gallery floors. There is an audaciousness to his work that I admire.

Monday Journal Doodle; Ink on journal paper.

"Difficult" Art

2006-11-21T07:04:00.000-08:00

Some of the artwork that is coming out of me right now is not "pretty." I'm trying to let myself do it anyway. Who knows where it'll lead? Here's a piece I painted on Sunday.

I'm going to start putting prices on this stuff, postage will be extra...

TVHead
8"x10", acrylic, glitter, collage on canvas-paper
$25

Pricing Artwork

2006-11-18T16:39:00.000-08:00

Wil, in his comment in the previous entry, brings up a simple and complex issue: pricing my artwork so that I actually could perhaps sell it. Mr. Anxiety, as you can see here, is not reacting too well to this challenge! But I had thought about it myself already. Anyway, thanks Wil, the point is well-taken.

I have to think more about this. I know that there are fears: about putting a price on things and not getting any offers, on how to deal with logistics (online) if I do get an offer, etc.

And then, a deeper fear of having to say goodbye to my babies............................

"Keep Doodling" --Alex S.

2006-11-17T07:51:00.000-08:00

Still a bit unsure about this experiment, but proceeding anyway.

My therapist believes in my art, especially my more abstract stuff, more than I currently do.

I made a birthday card for a friend, flowers in a little vase, using acrylic paint--which is a medium I'm not that used to. She really liked it and is going to frame it and hang it. The card took maybe an hour and a half to paint. I know I have talent-- I just wish I had more confidence and motivation.

Above: Scribble-Boy, pencil on paper, 7/20/91

This is an experiment.

2006-11-16T19:02:00.000-08:00

This is something I've been thinking of trying for a long time: a separate blog aimed at WRITING ABOUT selling my artwork and attempting to ACTUALLY SELL my artwork.

I'm putting it out into the Universe: I want to sell my artwork! I'm beginning to believe that part of why I am on this planet is to create art, and selling art is the only way that I believe I can truly live up to that potential. The only images on this blog are going to be examples of my artwork; old and new.

Not sure what'll happen from here...

Above: Mr. Anxiety, chalk pastel on paper, 1986