itsajoyful Life: January 2010

Yesterday I took a previous failure to a new spot to see if I can turn it into a success! I don't know why this scene caught my eye, but I felt it was an interestingly bland part of Glendale. I'm leaving it really raw and easy but with a certain 'right'ness... you never know what you're going to paint on top next! ;) oil on canvas, 36 by 24

Toad Hall

14"x20" oil on linen ................... sold

-----------------------------sold

16"x20" oil on linen

This is Toad Hall bar on 57 Grand street in Soho. I discovered it during one of my regular trips to Soho last fall. The place is kind of dirty beauty: friendly and cozy and it has pool table in the back. I immediately came up with some fresh idea for my next paintings.
I started two compositions of this bar in October, but put them aside due commissioned work I mentioned below. They are finished now and I've enjoyed working on these pieces.

teaching

I gave a lecture and demo to the San Gabriel Fine Art Association tonight. I think I got referred to them by the San Fernando Valley Art Club where I recently gave a similar talk. It was pouring rain and there was a low turnout, but for the people who showed up I think they really enjoyed watching and learning. I didn't get a great photo of the portrait demo, but here's how it came out. The club held a raffle and I drew a winning ticket out of a hat, who then sat for the portrait and got to take it home as their prize! oil on canvas, 16 by 12

p.s. I'm in a show this Saturday Jan 23rd from 6 to 10 p.m. at La Galeria Gitana in San Fernando. It's called Urban Spaces: the San Fernando Valley and since I have some nice plein air paintings of 'the Valley', I'm a good fit for this show. Click here for gallery info

Haiti 2010, The Dolls, Toothpaste, a Little Girl, and the BBC

Note that the Angels and the Devils are in the details. I think the detail of reports coming out of the rubble of the Haiti Earthquake that burned like lightening through my heart, was that of the toothpaste. Even the dolls could not compete, doll person that I am, little girl that I was, alone as I felt in those days.

The young man reporting from Haiti for the BBC told of a detail of the catastrophe, a detail of a little girl alone. His voice from the radio by my bedside was obviously overwhelmed by his desire and his inability to help, to do more than merely report; what tore him inside was his inability to help at all in the face of so much need all around him. I heard it in his voice.

He reported a few days after the Earthquake from the street where finally people desperate for food had been able to gain access to a store. He was obviously moved, I could hear it in his voice. He told listeners of a little girl, about seven years old, a little girl alone. She had been in the store broken into by desperate others, in one hand she held a bag of dolls, she held in her other hand a tube of toothpaste,the only goods she had acquired from the store. Chaos all around her, a man ran by, grabbed her bag, and the toothpaste tube out of her hands. The young reporter described her cry, pain in his voice, helplessness all around, even as he held the microphone to the keening wail of the little girl, and even as I write these words, my own heart is rent by the remembered sound.

It seems to me her family, her only home, whatever she might have had before the horror of the quake, was gone, and she was alone. It seems to me she took the dolls in desperate need of any kind of family. Her only family was now taken from her, cruelty upon cruelty, a child kicked when clearly down. All children are down, even in the best of circumstances. Care and soothing were not forthcoming for this one in need. She was trying to care for herself and her family of dolls. She had been taught to brush her teeth, and knowing how to care for herself in this way was important to her dignity and sense of reality. In this moment however, dental hygiene was not a comfort allowed her, alone and traumatized though she was in the hellish world she inhabited. I think of her daily since I heard the story, I wish her help and comfort, I wish her soothing and love.

EXERCISE with Mr Lets Paint TV

This video has made me laugh so hard over the past couple days that I had to post a blog about it to try and give it some wider exposure. This is talented plein air painter John Kilduff aka Mr. Lets Paint TV working the exercise ball. For years I have been a big fan of trying to stay physically fit, as was Matisse! Your body is the the chariot your soul rides on its journey through this physical dimension, so keep it in good shape. Mental happiness is related to physical health, so move your body! As Mr Let's Paint says, "As long as you're not hurting your body, your body is loving it!" If anything just dance more!

motel plein air

I'm in a group art show in DC opening Feb 6th. I'm showing a blast from the past,a motel room interior that I painted in 1997! In fact it might be the first or second one I did in the series, and was still one of the "plein air" motel interiors. I later started painting them in the studio from drawing studies made on location. It's so funny how I got into this show. First off it's titled "Empty Time: the lovely banality" and it's at the Fridge gallery curated by talented artist Trevor Young We met recently through Let's Paint TV, the best creativity show on the web! But the funny thing was that Trevor had met my painting years before either of us had even heard of LPTV. Stumbled across it on the internet, liked it, printed it out, hung it on their studio wall as I'm sure most artists you know are prone to do. Then all this time later through mutual friend and genius John Kilduff we have e-met and we'll get to really meet at the opening! fun times. It's either a bunch of cool coincidences or the spirit of painting moving in mysterious ways to bring us all together. And fitting the theme of the show, here is the painting Griffith Park Motel, oil on canvas, 35 by 27

Make Your Own Soft Pastels

Hey all you soft pastel lovers! The Street Painting Society is having a pastel making day in Los Angeles, February 27th. Open to members and non-members, alike, you will be able to learn how to make your own soft pastels from scratch.

February 27th 2010 11am - 5pm

All supplies will be provided by SPS and all the pastels you create will be yours to keep.
Lunch and snacks will be provided as well for a day of pastel & fun.

Fee:
Members $25 Non Members $35

All fees are per person and paid upfront to reserve your spot and cover the cost of supplies. Reserve your spot today. In the event of an under-booking, all funds will be refunded.

Last reservation will be accepted February 1st.

"We were here before you were born" McSorley's

------------------------------------NFS
-------------------------- McSorley's Old Ale House
----------------------------------36"x42"
-------------------------------- oil on linen
--
It’s my largest commissioned painting to date that I’d been working for last couple of months. McSorley's Old Ale House is the oldest and unique ale house in NYC. Women were not allowed into this establishment until 1970.
I've enjoyed working on this large piece and happy with how the painting turned out but still nervous enough about how it will be received by the buyer. Yesterday I got an email from the client and he is very pleased with the painting. While working on this painting, I was so curios about interior of the bar, that we went there with my husband one day and had to wait in line just to get in. I managed to take a good pictures despite the crowdedness and one day I’m planning to do the painting with interior of this amazing place.
----
---------------------------------- CLOSE UP

Faster Donuts

About a year ago I painted a landscape of Faster Donuts (click here for the old one) but I never really was thrilled with the painting. I didn't like the backlight because it didn't make the sign stand out. I got around to going back and giving the painting another coat, this time earlier in the day than the first time, and it was just what it needed, a bright, frontal blast of sunshine! I'm having more and more fun going back to previous landscape locations where the first attempt was a dud. It makes me realize how much I can really be rough and loose the first time around at a landscape, it doesn't need to start off perfect, just close enough and painted with a lot of dash and flavor. Plus I really like the more complex paint surface that happens when you work wet over dry. Here's the painting and a location shot from my camera phone. oil on canvas, 30 by 24

Wedding Slideshow!

We haven't gotten all of our Wedding photos back yet but here's an amazing slideshow sneak peek put together by the bestest photographers ever...Root!

Check it out! http://clients.rootography.com/sarahjared/

Make sure you turn on your speakers too, I get all teary when I watch it. :)

XO

Sarah

ps. Oh and just in case you missed it. Here's the link to our engagement slide show too. http://clients.rootography.com/sarahjared/engagement/

Adam and Eve XVIII

This is one of a pair in a series, as were the originals,(see below).

The sculptures, also in the grouping of Adam and Eves, stand alone in the crowd.

Adam and Eve and the Short Distance of Time Surrounding an Object

As relative time passes and relative distance grows it becomes clearer what is important to me. This is relatively important as I am the creative person that I am, and I am not you, or any other. There are times to be swept up in the minutiae of daily and bureaucratic life because there are times and places when we really seem not to have a choice in such matters. Such a time it has been for several months, and my life has been the place around which the objects of law, the requirements of material, and the obstacles to freedom have seamlessly flown into my path.

And so has finally arrived the moment of some creativity, when I allow myself to briefly comment on this seventeenth Adam and Eve I painted or sculpted out of twenty-nine that I created seemingly, but not quite, out of thin air. This for example is oil paint on canvas.

More important to me than material concerns (although as one glorious Art Professor at UCSC, Donald Weigant pointed out--- "art is SUCH a materialist pursuit"---and he did of course refer to visual art as that is what he taught) are not the spiritual either, as Kandinsky would have it, but the personal/psychological in art, in Adam and Eve, in life.

This began to emerge from my work in a much more literal than ever before way in this Adam and Eve series, some of which appear further down this blog, some of which I shall post above, with as little explanation as possible. Suffice it for now to say that for me they are an original male fantasy of bearing no burden of guilt, of finding yet another use for the female of the species, that of Carrier of Collective Guilt. The more interesting question is how it happened that the guilt itself through the culture of at least one of the three religions influenced by the story was interpreted. Through the ages (time and space again) sex and the perception and resultant feelings surrounding all of these became the fulcrum of debate, shall we euphemistically call it. Actually, as many understand the myth, the tasting of the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, resulted in the sin of knowing what only God heretofore had known. Tragically, it was a story told by men, notorious deniers, hiders from many truths, that set the world up for destruction by thousands and thousands of tiny cuts, as the Doctrine of Manifest Destiny continues to cut it's swath through the diminishing jungle that should have been this world. Or should it have been the Garden of Eden? It's all relative.

"For Rent - no fee"

--------------------------------- sold

--------------------------------- 16"x20"

-------------------------------- oil on linen

One of my friends happen to get rich and decided to buy a multi-million dollar apartment in Manhattan. I was always curious about how some of the apartment looked on the inside, so I decided to tag along with him for some of the showings.

We saw a verity of places, some recently remodeled and looking gorgeous, as well as old that needed much work. As we went from one showing to another, the interiors started to inspire me. The high ceiling, large windows, views, fireplaces, moldings, open spaces all quietly waiting for the new owners. I decided to experiment with this new subject. I took a lots of photos and notes, and made a few sketches.

Currently entertaining the idea of possibly renting a space for a week, so I have more time to find the perfect light and composition that would create a more intriguing atmosphere.

CLICK HERE for a purchase info.

5 New Videos!

Well it's freezing outside and I'm sick at home with a cold. :( I've been playing more with video so you can check it out if you like. I desperately need better lighting and a better table setup or something because I'm not loving the video. Yes, I'm a bit of a perfectionist. hehe I can't believe the color difference in the video opposed to the photos (non-color corrected too). Maybe I just need a new camcorder. *shrug* Anyhoo, I hope you enjoy a sneak peek into how I work. :) (oh and btw, the reason there are 5 videos is youtube now only allows 10 minute clips at a time. Lame huh? I need to find something else that I can use that won't break them up like that. )

XO

Sarah

the flaying of marsyas

I've always loved Titian's painting the Flaying of Marsyas. And the more I've learned about this mythological episode the more I've wanted to paint MY Flaying of Marsyas. So here is my slap-dash lay-in which I executed on an unrecorded, late night episode of Let's Paint TV. oil on canvas, 38 by 24 (work in progress)

FOX NEWS AUSTIN

this is too funny! The Fox New crew from Austin that filmed me painting the Colorado Bridge yesterday ended up using the footage on their newscast! Here you can see it from their website:

"Exit"

----------------------------------------sold
............................................... 12"x16"
.............................................oil on linen
.
"Boom" is a restaurant in Soho on Spring street and has been a favorite of mine for some time. this painting is a view of the restaurants exit.

The Colorado Bridge

The past two days I've been painting the Colorado Bridge in Pasadena. I started it yesterday and went back today to keep working on it. That's something I'm trying these days, going back and continuing to work on a painting, and it's been fun! I got filmed twice by FOX news crews for stuff to broadcast because of the big game at the Rose Bowl tomorrow, Texas versus Alabama for the National Championship. If you're watching the game in Austin, you'll see cut-away footage of me painting! ahahahaha! I come in around 1 minute into the video. I'll post how the painting looked yesterday and how it looks today. oil on canvas, 18 by 36

Soul Journaling Workshops Open!

This year I am changing the way I run Soul Journaling workshops. Now all classes will be ongoing with no start or end date! All class lessons are already uploaded and waiting for you as soon as you sign onto the class group. This enables you to work at your own pace and always have access to our private class Yahoo group and myself. I have an enciting new lineup of classes for 2010 planned and the first will be announced later this month. Stay Tuned!

But for now, Soul Journaling: Advanced Techniques is open and waiting for you! Check it out: http://www.souljournaling.com/SJAT.php

XO

Sarah

Soul Journaling: The Shared Experience Project

Please be kind as this is my very first video ever. I am working hard to make my videos better in the future. :)

XO

Sarah

For more information or to sign up to be a part of this project, please join our Soul Journaling Community at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SoulJournaling/

Shows I'm in January

January 9th @ 7pm: THE BIRD SHOW at Cactus Gallery: http://www.eclecticcactus.com/

January 9th @ 9pm: Bee Here Now 2 group show at the Hive gallery: http://www.hivegallery.com/

January 23rd: URBAN SPACES: The San Fernando Valley at La Galeria Gitana: http://www.galeriagitana.com/

A Few Newish Paintings

Hi Guys,

Because of the crazy busy last few months I haven't had a chance to post any new artwork. So here's a few moody new paintings I made a few months ago. I really enjoyed working on them and am planning on continuing the series. I've got two more that are sitting in my studio halfway done. I call these my OlD SOUl Series. They may not be everyone's cup of tea but I like them. :)