Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Halloween

"Pumpkin Worthy"
© Nancy Laliberte
6" x 8" oil on panel
Sold

It wouldn't be Halloween without pumpkins. This time of year, I crave pumpkin pie, apple pie and all things cinnamon and spice. And coffee. And chocolate. Wait, those last two are year-round cravings. Oh well.



And continuing in the spirit of Halloween, over the weekend my family and a friend carved up some Halloween fun. Three jack-o-lanterns now grace our front steps. We had a good time and my youngest is pretty stoked about heading out this evening for some trick-or-treating fun. He and a buddy are going as the Kratt brothers from the PBS show, "Wild Kratts."   

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Poppy Glow and more...

 "Poppy Glow"
© Nancy Laliberte
4" x 4" x 1-3/8" oil on gallery-wrapped canvas
sold
 side view

In my previous post I talked about being open to new opportunities. Recently I was asked to judge the 2011 Colorama art show for the Wisconsin Visual Artist's Guild. They are a very talented group of artists who show their work at the Reaching New Heights gallery inside Marshfield Clinic in Weston, WI, among other venues. Last Friday evening they had the awards ceremony, and a fundraiser for Marshfield Clinic's cancer research foundation. 


Every time I judge a show, I come away with an even deeper appreciation of what it takes to create, not only quality  and meaningful art, but art in general. Every piece is a part of you. And that is pretty amazing. 

Pictured here is Sharon Dowis receiving the Best of Show award for her piece, "My Kids." Sharon also won an Honorable Mention award for her photography. 

Here, Cindy Markowski receives a second place award for her painting, "Coloration: Nuthatches." Cindy has also had her work in the Woodson Art Museum's international Birds in Art show.


Thank you to the Wisconsin Visual Artist's Guild for the opportunity to be a part of your event! And a big THANK YOU to artist Sharon Feathers who provided these photos of the evening, and also received First Place for her piece, "Lost Hopes and Dreams."  


Click here to check out the Guild's blog and a complete listing of winners from the show.

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Being open to opportunity

Earlier this year a physician friend from Aspirus Wausau Hospital approached me about being a guest artist for a women's breast health event she was planning for October. As a woman, wife, mother, artist, and breast cancer survivor, I did not hesitate. Of course, I would help out and direct an art project as one of the sessions. I came up with the idea of a collage as it could incorporate journaling, doodling, painting, stamping, in other words a variety of techniques for all levels of "artists." I also contacted Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson (queen of collage), ordered her DVD and got started.

I painted a slew of collage papers prior to the event to experiment (what a blast!), and to have some on hand for participants who, perhaps, would be "shy" about actually painting. There are always a few in the mix. ;-)

 I worked with five different groups of gals over the course of the evening. They came up with some pretty amazing collage papers that included journaling, doodling, painting and stamping. I am so proud and excited about the results--they are works of art in and of themselves.

 Prior to the event I made an acrylic under painting on a 1-1/2" cradled wood panel from American Easel ordered from Blick. I had never used these before and I really like them!

The work in progress, incorporating collage papers made by "artists" from Aspirus Wausau Hospital's "Goin' Out for the Girls" event. I'll continue to post this as it progresses.

And, here is Elizabeth St. Hilaire Nelson's blog link, Paper Paintings. Her work and her life story are both pretty amazing!

Check back tomorrow and I'll have another post about being open to opportunity.
Have a great day!
N

Thursday, October 6, 2011

For Maisie

"A Sunny Day for Maisie"
© NancyLaliberte
4" x 4" x 1-3/8" acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas
NFS

My step-daughter and her husband had a baby girl on Tuesday. Being the biased grandmother that I am, I have to admit little Maisie is beautiful! And, like my other two grandchildren, Maisie is now also an art collector. You're never too young to appreciate art.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Petite Peinture: Vacation Sky

 "Vacation Sky"
© Nancy Laliberte
4" x 4" x 1-3/8" acrylic on canvas
SOLD

With a few beach combing finds...

Do sunrises and sunsets seem to be the most beautiful ever when we are on vacation? Is it because we are intentionally slowing down and savoring every moment away from the daily routine? I say, pause and take the time to make every sunrise or sunset a vacation sky.

Perfect for yourself or gift-giving, all of the petite peinture paintings are wired for hanging or can be displayed on a shelf or table top.