itsajoyful Life: August 2011

talk talk talk

Today was a great episode of the Alex Schaefer Hour!

CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO TODAY'S SHOW!

John "Mr. Let's Paint TV" Kilduff was our guest. I think you all can probably imagine what all we were talking about. I did a portrait of John during the interview and at a certain point I painted his head on fire... it was an experiment and John informed me that his actual head did not feel hot at all! So we learned that painting something on fire doesn't actually raise the temperature of the object being painted whatsoever. I'm relieved! After the show John and I went out for a little, old-fashioned plein air painting! Good times and a beautiful day to do it. This piece still feels a little bit "work in progress" but I think it's a good looking block-in

the Alex Schaefer Hour

TODAY on the Alex Schaefer Hour, live at the Hive Gallery 1pm California time on coagula.com our guest is the amazing JOHN KILDUFF! also known as Mr. Let's Paint TV! He's a good friend and the most amazing and inspirational painter I know! Visit his website at www.letspainttv.com We'll be talking about life and art and the life on the artist! It's been an exciting week with all the publicity I've been getting so you know that'll be part of the discussion too! If you want to call in, feel free! 949 203 4726. It'll be some HOT talk and we're going to SET FIRE to the internet!

Grazie di Curtatone

Madonna con Bambino

In August of 2010, I had the distinct honor of winning the Maestro Gold Medal at the 39th Incontro Nazionale Madonnari in Grazie di Curtatone, Italy. It is the highest honor you can achieve in the competition. As part of the award, I was commissioned to create the 2011 festival poster. This is something I have dreamt of since the first time I competed in the event back in 2002 when I won a Gold Medal in the Simplici category. (3 categories in all, simplici, qualificato, maestro. Everyone begins in Simplici and you must win a gold medal to move to qualificato, and again to reach maestro status)

Unfortunately, I was not able to revisit Grazie to compete or see my poster hung around the beautiful city of Mantova...It was a happy occasion none the less because I gave birth to my own little bambino just days before. So it was a wonderful time for me none the less. And, I was fortunate enough to have friends to take a few pics of my poster and also bring me back a few ;)

Next year is the events 40th anniversary and I can not wait to return to Mantova to be part of the worlds first street painting festival, new family in tow.

2011 Festival Poster

the Huffington Post

wow more links to more news sites! today I'm on the Huffington Post!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/29/los-angeles-artist-alex-s_n_940823.html

and I just found more:

http://maxkeiser.com/2011/08/28/another-brillian-chase-on-fire-by-alex-schaefer/

http://maxkeiser.com/2011/08/28/alex-schaefers-depiction-of-a-chase-branch-going-up-in-flames-drew-the-attention-of-l-a-police/

http://www.artinfo.com/news/story/38481/chicago-curator-defends-marilyn-statue-looking-at-steve-jobss-design-flubs-and-more-must-read-art-news/

http://laist.com/2011/08/31/plein_air_painting_of_bank_freaks_o.php

http://www.observer.com/2011/08/artists-paints-burning-banks-attracting-police-attention/

http://www.deathandtaxesmag.com/136006/la-artist-faces-police-questioning-for-painting-banks-in-flames/

http://100gf.wordpress.com/2011/08/31/los-angeles-artist-alex-schaefer-visited-by-police-over-painting-of-burning-bank/

http://gregcookland.com/journalnews/2011/08/29/la-artist-paints-burning-bank-gets-visited-by-police/

http://www.infowars.com/la-artist-faces-police-questioning-for-painting-banks-in-flames/

http://www.prisonplanet.com/artist-labelled-terrorist-for-painting-of-bank-on-fire.html

http://www.ieweekly.com/cms/story/detail/unleash_the_revolution/4160/

http://theintelhub.com/2011/08/31/la-artist-faces-police-questioning-for-painting-banks-in-flames/

http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=213404

http://www.datalounge.com/cgi-bin/iowa/ajax.html?t=10785271#page:showThread,10785271

http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread748011/pg1

http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread748011/pg1

http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message1615248/pg1

Price Discovery

I've gotten so many offers on this painting that I've decided to auction it on e-bay! I've never sold anything on e-bay before so I'm curious to see how the experience turns out! Click here for the listing!

Here's how I'm pricing the piece: In 1873 one French franc equalled .290322581 g grams of gold. Legend has it that Vincent Van Gogh sold one painting in his lifetime, the Red Vineyard at Arles, for 400 francs, which would have equalled 116.129 grams of gold, or 4.1 ounces of gold. Today an ounce of gold costs $1835, so 4.1 ounces of gold is $7523.50. Not a bad price adjusted for inflation and given the amount of money his work auctions for nowadays quite a steal! I'm going to auction this painting on e-bay, it's just "too hot" not to! I've been getting offers and I think this is the most democratic and frankly interesting way to monetize this artwork. I'm going to float this painting on the open market and engage in a little real-world price discovery. And I'm going to be setting the auction starting bid at the cost of just a half an ounce of gold in today's prices, or $920.

the LA Times

Wow this is really cool! The Los Angeles Times published the piece about me! A great photo and well written article! Click here for the link: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-bank-painting-20110828,0,4395501.story

painting at 7th and Broadway

earlier in the week I went out with a couple friends, John Kilduff and Jose de Juan, and we all set up and painted the scene from the corner. What a beautiful day! I think i need a little more time on the lower right but I really like the feeling for the light! I love color... oil on canvas, 28 by 22

life drawing

Tuesday was life drawing at the Hive, I'm become a regular at the Weekly Scribbler! It's from 7pm to 10pm and the cost is $15 at the Hive gallery Here are my drawings, 2, 5, and 10 minute poses

Los Feliz

I went out early this morning to paint another bank en plein air. This is the Chase branch on the corner of Los Feliz and Hillhurst. This used to be the Derby up until a few years ago, I remember it was a hot place for drinks and swing dancing. Now it's a bank. oil on canvas, 22 by 28

The Alex Schaefer Hour

What a week it's been. Here's a link to today's show, we spend a good deal of time talking about my recent run-ins with the law! I ended up meeting two La Times reporters today back at the scene of the "art crime" to talk about the whole hullabaloo! They say I'm going to show up in Friday's edition of the LA Times. You know me, as soon as I see it, I'll post it to my blog! Here's a photo of me in Van Nuys with photographer and writer Genaro Molina and Bob Pool...

a chilling effect on speech

This is a supplemental post without any photos, only words. I just had a visit from two of LAPDs finest because of my recent Chase Bank painting, officers Israel and Tuffs. They were "following up" on my previous encounter with LAPD out in Van Nuys when I did the painting. They asked me if I was a terrorist and if I wanted to "do that" to the bank, and said things like "well you know ever since 9-11" etc, etc. They were nice, I joked around with them, and they left without incident, but I gotta say this entire experience is troubling me...

carrot cake cupcake

I've been having a good run on these cupcake paintings so it's turning out to be a fruitful venture! here's the latest pre-sold cupcake portrait, carrot cake flavor! painted on location at Big Man Bakes. alkyd on canvas, 8 by 6 inches.

turning a profit?

My oil painting of a low res 8-bit mona lisa has been very popular so I thought I'd try opening a cafepress store and seeing if anyone is interested in any 8bit mona lisa consumer products... I know of people having quite a bit of success in the reprouction of certain artworks they've made, so maybe I'm hoping to find a little of that with this painting. Get a coffee mug or mouse pad or t-shirt and be the coolest person in the neighborhood. CLICK HERE FOR THE 8-BIT MONA LISA STORE

a cupcake, some life drawing, and painting talk

Here's a little Red Velvet cupcake painted from life outside Big Man Bakes! I had my (cup)cake and ate it too! Then later that day it was life drawing at the Hive gallery! Come join us every Tuesday from 7 to 10pm, it's the most artistic fun you can have for $15 bucks. And Wednesday was the Alex Schaefer Hour talking aesthetics with painter Sean Joyce. Click here to listen! good times!!

NYC Subway Train

"Hold the Door"

8x10

oil on board

The final eBay painting for this week, is the third one in what has become a series of NYC Subway paintings. Now I’m getting back to commissioned work I had started. It’s five large paintings.

Also I'll post more 8x10s for auction at the end of next week. I have a few ready, but they are drying.

where there's smoke...

There's not always fire! Here's a work, in progress of a Chase bank branch that a fan e-mailed me to paint. This series is turning out to be so popular I'm getting unsolicited requests to "paint my local branch!" I have no idea where this one is but I like the added internet angle to the whole project. I haven't busted out the bright yellows oranges and reds yet to "start the fire", I want to wait for a live event and do it then because its more fun. But I like the piece so far with lots of snowy cool blues and purples, its a good setup for the flaming hot colors to come! Oil on canvas panel, 18 by 24

On the Way to Manhattan

                                         "On the Way to Manhattan"
                                                      8x10
                                               Oil on board

Early summer morning – on the way to Manhattan This view is from Gowanus express the section around Costco supermarket.

"Brooklyn Bridge - City Hall Station"

                                                              sold
                                           "Brooklyn Bridge - City Hall Station"
                                                                8x10
                                                         Oil on board

Continue with my NYC train stations series.

a failed painting

This started off a failed attempt at a nightscape outside a Mexican produce store. In fact if you turn it upside-down you can still make out the boxes of fruit and veggies and the pinatas hanging from the ceiling. It didn't turn out very good but I never got rid of the canvas. It's been scraped down and sanded and turned into a riot! When I turned the piece upside-down I could let my imagination see a composition out of the mess of dark colors that made no sense to me anymore and then start indicating the movements of people and smoke and fire and buildings that I see... like seeing things in the clouds. oil on canvas 11 by 14

Wall Street - Broad Street

sold

                                             "Broad Street Station No.2"
                                                               8x10
                                                      oil on hardboard
Here is my latest painting of Wall Street. When I started the painting I didn’t expect that when I finish it the place would be once again at center of the headlines with aftershock from S&P’s credit downgrade.

corporal punishment

Here's a new painting for sale in the erotica show this month at the Hive Gallery, opening Saturday Aug 6th at 7pm. Its a mash up of a few vintage photographs, I really enjoyed the limited color palette and big simple shapes in the composition. We all need a spanking sometimes! Maybe I should paint the chase bank logo on this one too! Ahaahhaah! Also I have a choice selection of 11 sexy paintings for sale in my workspace. Come on out and buy some! Trade your rapidly declining dollars into something real... great art! Oil on canvas, 36 by 24.

Also click to listen to the Alex Schaefer Hour during which I was working on this piece!

itsajoyful Life