Thursday, November 10, 2016

Liquidambar in Pittsboro---Showing new work

I'm headed out the door to Art of the Carolinas.  

The Carolina Mixed Media Art Guild works in the demo room providing demos using vendor products and provides hands on (cleaning tables, changing out water, etc.) support for the workshops.  It is a wonderful experience for our members to enjoy each other's company and to experiment with all kinds of art supplies.  Thank you vendors (too many of you to list here) and thank you Sharon DiGiulio for giving us this opportunity. I think this is our ninth year to work at AOC.

I am one of the featured artists at Liquidambar in Pittsboro from now until the end of the year. The 3D featured artist is Sylvia Coppola. I will be at the December reception on December 4, 2016 from 2:00 to 4:00.  Please stop by to say hi!

Here are a few images of new paintings in the show.  Unfortunately, the photos don't show the depth of the paintings, but you can get an idea here.






Elemental Energy II
24"x24"x2"

In Elemental Energy II, I developed my own gold metallic ink that creates the almost snowflake pattern. Click to see a close-up. 



Yugen
20"x20"x2"

In Yugen, I used a word for a title that I found this definition--an awareness of the universe that triggers emotional responses too deep and powerful for words.  I suppose this could be extremely good or extremely bad.  I hope this one shows the good.



Between waking and dreams
Triptych
24"x6"x2" Each

This triptych required much restraint on my part to stop when I felt I had painted enough. It was hard to stop as there are always more possibilities of patterns that may show up that I have never seen.


This weekend at the former Carolina Artists' Colony in Sanford, we are having an arts and crafts show on Saturday and Sunday.  This will also go on for the month of December.  I delivered some new work there as well.  Stop by and check it out!



Helix of Life
20"x20"x2"


To Infinity and Beyond
36"x48"x2"


Here is a link for my first newsletter.  If you would like to receive my monthly newsletter, you can subscribe at the bottom of it.







Saturday, October 22, 2016

My New Obsession---Pēbēo Paints

About two years ago, I decided to try to paint with oil paints. The alcohol inks that create the patterns that I love to make are becoming more difficult to find. I needed to branch out. 

I have always liked a challenge, but I also like to work with art materials that by their very nature create interesting effects. This is not usually a desired characteristic if working in realism as one may be fighting what the paints want to do and what they were made to do. However, I work mainly in abstraction so these types of paints enhance or provide more possibilities.

After painting with several brands of oil paints, I ran across Pēbēo paints and was hooked. The paints, Vitrail, Prisme, and Moon, out of the bottles create three unique patterns without mixing with other paints, thinners, or solvents. 

The Prisme™ paints create a honeycomb effect. The Moon paints create a marbled or hammered effect. The Vitrail mimics glass. When these are combined, there are many variations of effects or patterns possible.




I have not taken any classes working with Pēbēo paints, but I love experimenting to discover my own style and techniques and possible patterns.

Right away, the primary disadvantage that I discovered was that the paints tend to dry out when 1/3 to 1/4 of the bottle is left and it turns to a thick gunk. The Prisme line appears to be the one that has this problem most often although the Moon line occasionally gets too thick as well. When so thick, the paints lose their ability to make the effects that they were created to make, and worst of all if too hardened, one must throw them out. 

Two weeks ago, I decided that I must find a solvent that would save this last 1/3 to 1/4 bottle of paints. After testing seven different solvents and some thinners, I found one that works!  I have tested this over and over with the Prisme paints, and it has worked every time for me.

This magical thinner is Winsor Newton Sansodor™. Although this is technically mineral spirits (according to my research), I tested three other mineral spirits and could not get them to mix into the paint well and so the effects would not develop once they were added. One of the mineral spirits would not mix in at all and one could pour it off with none of the color of the paint mixing in.


I use a dedicated eye dropper and drop in only the amount that I think makes the paint about the same consistency as a new bottle and mix it well. I suggest dropping a few drops in when bottle is down to 1/4 remaining if not painting soon so it will not harden in the bottle before you get to paint again. 

The viscosity and the applied thickness of the paint determines the size of the honeycomb pattern of the Prisme. I found that I could make a pattern much larger than what is ordinarily created by varying the amount of the Sansodor™.  The Prisme remained workable even after several days.

In the photo below the pattern made on the left had Sansador™ added to very thick Prisme that would not flow at all. It was not solid or dried out, but so gunky, it would not come off of a wooden stick. The one on the right was from a new jar of Prisme.



This is also Prisme that had Sansodor™ added as it had thickened to the point of no longer making a pattern. The resulting pattern was not the mini honeycomb pattern, but a much more interesting design.



Now all is not lost if your ink has become so thick that it barely will come off a wooden stick. 
The pattern below with the texture is a result of thick Prisme and Moon that had not thoroughly dried when I applied resin.  I will never waste Pēbēo™ paint again!



The most important tip that I can give when working with the Pēbēo™line is to never use a tool---brush, stirring stick, eye dropper, pipette---when changing from Prisme to Moon or to Vitrail.  Keep them separate.  Otherwise, the patterns these paints were made to create will no longer be possible.  

I will be demo'ing the Pēbēo products for the Carolina Mixed Media Art Guild at Art of the Carolinas on November 12 at 2:00.  Please stop by to see me and try out some of the products.  

Jerry's Artarama carries the full line of Pēbēo products in their Raleigh store.  They have the large and small bottles of the Prisme, Moon, and Vitrail and many accessories. 

Note added in response to comment below.

These paints are not inexpensive, but it is possible to use them with other mediums.  I did this with this jellyfish painting.  The body/head of the large jellyfish is Pēbēo Prisme and Moon paints.  The border is my own mixture that I developed years ago, but Pēbēo makes a tube of a product that will work to contain the paints.  








   

Preparing for Fall Shows!

It has been a whirlwind in the last couple of months trying to reorganize, regroup, and move on after the Carolina Artists' Colony's closing.

Just a few things I have been working on...

I have added new stock including charms, cards, magnets, coasters and lots of new paintings at Creative Studios in Vass, NC.  Be sure and check out my new work there. There are many classes going on, and it is always fun to visit the on site studios of Jean Kessler Skipper and Jodi Ohl

 New coasters have been sent to North Carolina Crafts Gallery in Carrboro, NC.  These are great stocking stuffers for the holidays. This gallery has lots of the finest crafts in the area.  This month, the president of our Carolina Mixed Media Art Guild, Michelle Davis Petelinz is the featured artist there.  Her work is always striking, curated, and displays so beautifully.  

At present I am working on a new show for Liquidambar in Pittsboro.  I will be the featured artist November 6 and December 4.  Just a sneak peek of what I have been working on for that show.  


Sunday, September 25, 2016

Ampersand Guest Artist Interview

I am the featured artist this month on Ampersand's blog. If you are curious about my process and how I began working with alcohol inks, you can read it there.  Hope you enjoy!

http://www.ampersandart.com/blog/2016/09/featured-artist-jeanne-rhea/

Friday, September 2, 2016

Huge changes and going with the flow

It has been awhile since I posted here.  Lots of things have happened and I chose to let my blog go in order to create and deal with life.  

The biggest news is that I am sad to report that the Carolina Artists' Colony has closed after almost five years.  It was a wonderful gallery for me and I have made some life long friends.  The owners and managers worked hard to make it a success, but it was difficult to keep it open. Considering that the Colony was open seven days a week and this is a small town, I can see the challenge, but they still did an amazing job for a long time.

I loved that I could hang my work and change it out any time I wanted and no one limited what I exhibited.  But that is all over and I must move on. 

During the month of September, I will be moving my work from the Colony to my studio. Rearranging my studio to hold my work will be a big challenge, but I will make it work.  I am a very organized person, but I have so much 'stuff' that I will need time to make the transition.

My temporary plan is to have a monthly open studio to show my work. Hopefully, after the first of the year, I will have found 15 local artists who wish to start a co-op and work a few days a month and rent space for their artwork. If you are a local artist and are interested in this venture, please email me.

I joined the Sanford Brush and Palette Club and will be exhibiting some work at the Temple Theatre the middle of September.  I also plan to participate in the SBPC's 52nd Annual Fall Art Show in October.

During September and October, I am working on a show that I will be the featured artist for November and December at Liquidambar in Pittsboro. I am attempting to make all new work for that show!

November is Art of the Carolinas.  I will be demo'ing Pebeo paints for the Carolina Mixed Media Art Guild.  We have a Make and Take room and guild members demo products that are sold at the trade show.  If you live near Raleigh (or even if you don't), it is a good time to test new products and buy art supplies, take some workshops and enjoy spending time with other artists.

Here are a few images of recent paintings and experiments.

Enjoy!  

If you wish to be added to a mailing list, please send me your email address or snail mail address and I will keep you posted when I have open studio events!



The above painting is made with alcohol inks, and the large jellyfish is Pebeo paints.  It is coated in resin.


Below are some experiments using metallic paints with alcohol inks. 






The painting below has a new alcohol ink in it.


Thursday, April 7, 2016

New paintings

It has been a busy year and I am behind, but gradually catching up.  I am working on a few commissions and that put me behind with my painting a day.

I also realized that to do the types of paintings that I do that it is next to impossible to do a painting a day. So now this blog will focus primarily on what I complete each month and what I am in the process of creating.

These are the completed paintings and a little info about a couple of other experimental projects.



#1628 Night Vision
16"x16"x2"


#1629 Metamorphosis
16"x16"x2"


#1630 Dream Patterns
30"x24"x1.5"



#1631 The Dance of the Jellyfish III
48"x36"x2"
SOLD


 #1632 Flow



#1633 100 Pendants or Charms

I made 100 charms or pendants using some oil paints and some blank metal frames.  I am experimenting with using oil paints similar to my process of painting with alcohol inks.  Instead of using different chemical compositions of alcohol inks, I am using solvents to make patterns with the oil paints.  These are small experiments. Notice the man in the top upper left.  I did not intentionally paint him there, but he just showed up. These have a resin coating on the surface that adds dimension.  All are highly reflective due to the resin so I could not get a good photo of them.



#1634 Don't Stop Now

I accidentally started pouring the resin on this prior to the inks drying. One type of alcohol ink 'chased' the resin away and pushed it over the edge of the board. I will use this technique soon on a painting that I have an idea to do. This painting is not for sale. Just wanted to show it to you. I experiment a lot and almost every day I discover something new.

Monday, February 22, 2016

February is flying by!

I must admit that my plans to do a painting a day did not pan out.  I am still going to pick up in March and hope to go ahead with the painting each day.  

I went on a trip for several days and have had to work on getting stock priced for my booths at an antique mall----and working on taxes! Many distractions this month, but I have still found time to paint every day except for the five days on the trip.

Several paintings are in the works.  I have finished two paintings that were on my table that I wanted to get out of the studio.


#1626
At the End of the Rainbow
Rainbow Mountains, China
24"x30"x1.5"
Oil


#1627
A Salute to Midnight
16"x16"x2"
Mixed Media

Friday, January 29, 2016

A Painting a Day - Second Report

I have not been able to complete a painting a day as planned, but the good news is I am not too far behind to still catch up.  I realize now that to paint a large painting is sometimes more than a week's worth of work so to add other paintings each day along with the business of being an artist, I was overly ambitious!  But that is my nature.

I am not going to alter my expectations just yet as I have more paintings in the works even though not complete.

To view my first ten days, you can see them here.

First painting that I completed this session was an oil painting. It is an abstract based on the Outer Banks Coastal Line.



24"x6"x2"
Outer Banks, NC

I taught a class in how to turn a non-porous surface into a porous surface to accept watercolors or silk fabric dyes. I completed these gourds for the class and the day after the class. # 1612, #1613, #1614






A couple of months ago, I sold the painting, The Dance of the Jellyfish.  I had two requests to paint two more jellyfish paintings by different people.  I started the new one at the beginning of the year and had just finished it on the 15th and had been holding it until the weather was good to get a good photograph. 

I delivered it to the Carolina Artists' Colony yesterday and it was purchased by the same buyer as soon as it entered the doors.  I am thrilled, but will need to stay focused on making another since this one had been started for others interested in a jellyfish painting like the first that had sold. Although I did not intentionally make this one to go with the first, they have a mirror image look to them and this one has a couple of seahorses.  They will be hung in a beautiful home in Florida on each side of the fireplace.

This photo is not good, but with the sheen to the surface, it is almost impossible to get a good photo without a sunny day.




  #1615
The Dance of the Jellyfish II
48"x36"x2"

A friend, (Hi Elena!) came to visit for a day and we decided to use some paints that I seemed to never touch. I was just getting the hang of the paints by the time I painted the third one shown here. We spent the day painting 6"x6"x1" paintings---hearts for Valentine's Day. 


#1616 The Dotted Heart
#1617 Every heart has a question(mark).
#1618 The Purple Heart



#1619
Deep in the Volcano
6"x6"x1"


#1620
Eye of the Feather
6"x6"x1"


#1621
I carry your heart in mine.
6"x6"x1"


I am testing new alcohol inks.  These three are 12"x12" and are not for sale until I determine how colorfast the brand is.  #1622, #1623 and #1624. It is very difficult to get an element this large so I hope it turns out that they do not fade over the next year after being exposed to my studio light and some sunlight every day. 








#1625
In Search of Gold
12"x12"


Update:  Today is January 31 and I ended up with 25 paintings completed for the month instead of the 31 that I had planned. Some of the 25 were small ones, but I also taught a class, and did numerous other things needed to keep home and studio flowing. I began a new series for February today and have two already in the works.  I will be out of my studio for a week in February so will need to work double time the rest of the month. Wish me luck!

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Sunday, January 10, 2016

Happy New Year 2016

Welcome to my new blog for 2016! Please note that this blog has my name Jeanne Rhea. My older work can be viewed at Art for the Heart blog. My website is JeanneRhea.com.

For my New Year's resolution, I will attempt to paint a painting a day for as long as possible. Since I always said I would never be a painter and would probably sculpt or make assemblages, this is a major undertaking for me. In addition to new paintings, these will include finishing older paintings that had refused to cooperate, reworking paintings that were not just right, and small art projects that require painting.  

For the first ten days of the year, I have managed to complete a painting a day. Although it may seem simple to paint one painting a day, it has been a challenge.  I had planned to post daily photos to document this and to keep me focused.  At the end of the day, it was just too much to try to get done.  

So my modified goal is to post photos and document what I accomplished once every ten days instead. Since my goal was to complete one painting a day and not to start this new blog and document the activity, I have still fulfilled my intention---so far!  I hope you enjoy following me in my journey.

This is the painting that I had started in March of 2015.  It is now finished and at the Carolina Artists' Colony in Sanford, NC.


#1601 Winds of Winter
40"x30"x2"
Alcohol and acrylic inks, resin
Ampersand Claybord™



I painted these little chicks for my grand babies for their Valentine's Day. I had a blanket when I was three years old that had similar little birds on it. It was my inspiration for these three paintings.




#1602, #1603, #1604

For Finn, Amara, Emme

I had taught a class using silk fabric dyes and had two large gourds that I wanted to paint.  This was my break from serious painting!  #1605, #1606

 


I am exploring painting with oils and have painted these four paintings. These are all 10"x10"x2" on Ampersand Claybord™. The first three were inspired by photos that the Amazing Geologist posted on Facebook. I did not attempt to paint any specific rock, but rather use the overall effect from looking at their photos have on me. I have always loved rocks, trees, and fungi so will paint a few more with those items in mind. 


#1608
World Within
10"x10"x2"


#1609
Aftershock
10"x10"x2"


#1607
Dream Portal
10"x10"x2"


#1610 
Heartbeat of Winter
10"x10"x2"

So that's the report of my first ten days of 2016! I'm on a roll!

Website       JeanneRhea.com
Blog            JeanneRhea
Old Blog      ArtfortheHeart
Facebook   JeanneRheaStudio