Art Display in December

Here is the PR I prepared for a show coming up in December if anyone is interested in seeing some of my work up close and personal.

Who:
Akron Area Artist, Barbara Krans Jenkins

What:
Art Show featuring a retrospective of Wildlife, and Botanical Art.

When:
December 6th through December 27th, 2008
Opening Reception: Saturday. December 6th, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Where:
The North Water Street Gallery 257 N. Water StreetKent, OH 44240
Contact information:
Gallery Hours: Thursday-Saturday, 1-5 pm.
Or by appointment
Jeff Ingram/Executive Director 330-673-4970 http://www.standingrock.net/

Why:
You will feel her passion for the woodlands we all live in here next to our wonderful Cuyahoga Valley National Park. In addition to viewing Barbara's Wildlife paintings, this show will also feature her newest direction into the realm of 3-D art ... Gourds. These gourds continue with the same subjects she loves doing in her 2-D paintings. However, they contain line drawing done with a Wood Burning tool, and sculpting done with Dremel Tools. Finally, she finishes them off with colored pencil and coats of UV protecting clear acrylic spray to seal her art permanently on the surface of these gourds.

Shows and Gallery Representation

Up-coming 2009 Show Schedule:

February 3rd through February 27th, 2009
Gourds on display in showcases plus 22 Paintings in Art Gallery (back where the Tax information is, in the back of the first floor) from February 3rd through February 27th, 2009.
Location: Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library
3512 Darrow Rd.
Stow, OH 44224
Contact Information:
Phone: (330) 688-3295
Library Web site: http://www.smfpl.org/

April 3rd, through May 14th, 2009
Reception Date: Friday, April 3rd, 2009
Location: Holden Arboretum
9500 Sperry Road
Kirtland, OH 44094
Contact Information: (440) 946-4400
(Holden Arboretum is open daily from 9 am until 5 pm)

Galleries currently representing my work:

The Harris Stanton Gallery in Fairlawn, OH handles some of my Gourds. Location:
2301 West Market St.
Akron, OH 44313
Phone: 330-867-7600
Email: Info@harrisStantonGallery.com
Web site: http://www.harrisstantongallery.com/

The Hudson Fine Art & Framing Company has a few gourds, and also some 2-D paintings.
Location: Brewster Mansion
9 Aurora Street
Hudson, Ohio 44236
Contact Information: 330-650-2800
Web site: http://www.hudsonfineartandframing.com
Email: hudsonfineartandframing@gmail.com
Hours: Monday thru Friday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Thursday Evening till 7 p.m.
Saturday 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

The Dovetail Gallery and Studio
Location: 7901 Hwy 42
Egg Harbor, WI 54209-9602
Gallery Owner: Kathy Mand Beck
Phone:(920) 868-3987
Web Site: http://www.treasuresof.com/
Email: kathydovetail@hotmail.com

New Cardinal art

Just finished this one yesterday and took it out to MD Garage in Boston Township (on Boston Mills Rd. just north of Peninsula, off Riverview Rd.) where it will be on display through October. It's quite small (5"x5" image), but, nice.

BTW, next weekend, Oct. 11 & 12th, the Art @ M.D.Garage Show will be temporarily closed because of a Marathon for the weekend. "Art @ MD Garage" will then continue, Sat & Sundays, Oct 18 & 19, and 25 & 26th. Then, M.D. Garage closes until next Spring.

Thanks to those of you who have stopped by to see these shows on the weekends this year. I have enjoyed working there often. I like "Gallery Sitting", because I can get in a whole day of work on art. I set up in the Garage there beside the Towpath which runs through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. We artists (many of us are original members of the "Crooked River Gang" ... I am one of these) take turns manning the Garage Shows for the National Park and each other.

Later-Gater (dating myself, I know) Barb

Crinson and golden leaves in the woodlands as Chipmuunks gather the Fall harvest!

Just thought you'd like to see something seasonal here...

Today I am working on finishing up some small pieces for the October final M.D. Garage Show of this year. Perhaps I will post a few later.

MD Garage is an old garage located on Boston Mills Rd. just off Riverview Rd near Boston Mills Ski Lodge north of Peninsula, OH. Its located next to the Towpath as it meaners along the Cuyahoga River through the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

The Park service gave our Art group use of this building and made us panels to display our work. So, next time you are riding your bike, or hiking along the Towpath between Cleveland and Akron, do stop by the MD Garage there in Boston, grab a bite to eat and drink across street from us at the "Trail Mix" Country Store, and come see our Art Displays. They are manned by the artists, and open to the public on Saturdays and Sundays, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Many of us bring along whatever we are currently working on and paint during our time minding the Gallery.

BTW, re: MD Garage artists ... we are called "The Crooked River Gang" after the translation of the Indian title of the river, "Cyuahoga". I am part of the original group of Artists started up by Don Getz (fellow artist) who lives in the Park. Knowing we love to paint in the Park, Don would get a bunch of us together with him during Peninsula events and we'd set up our gear and work wherever we wanted along the Towpath. Don encouraged us to stop often to talk with interested hiking visitors about our love of working in the Valley. The National Park enjoyed having us around, so, thats why they offered to bring us on board with their other activities and gave us the use of the Garage on the weekends, May through October each year with show themes that vary each month. Our displays have really grown and now feature many other artists also from the area who love working in the Park.

Come see us some weekend in October!

Just finished

Anyone out there? No one seems to go visit this Blog. Hmmm, not sure tis worth while. I'll send a new drawing in and give ti a little more time. Whn my son comes to visit late in Oct. He can help me by putting a link to it on my web site home page. (http://www.bkjstudio.com/) I am still needing to learn to edit my web site.

Well, here's one just finished and going to framer tomorrow. Small study. Might make a large study similar, of the same flower. (Matilaja Poppy)

White Feather

Missing White Feather. Hope he's OK.

Its so nice to again have the woods somewhat quiet again (children in school). Enjoyed sitting quietly in the shadows, feeding Chickadees and watching all that is abuzz in the late summer woodlands. Perhaps, I say to myself, I am feeding some fo White Feathers offspring ... anyhow. Possibly. There are Coopers Hawks who also nested in these woods as well, though. I know. I always know life in the woods is a delicate balance. What a wonder and an honor it is, that this brave hearted tiny bird considers me so carefully. Then does indeed, swoop down onto my hand and after pausing to cock his little head at me and eye me mysterioiusly before scooping up a seed (or two, or three) and fliting off to a nearby perch.

Colors beginning to change. The brightness of the Dogwood leaves make me want to get out that little sketch book I vowed to myself would be ONLY for leaves. A single leaf per page. Yes. Perhaps tomorrow.

The Chickadees, though, do tempt me to again get my pastels out. Messy, but, its fun to create something quickly for a change. I love colored pencils most of all, but, lately have put up with the messy pastels, for the sake of just completeing something faster. One local Gallery is makng that worth while too, though. I admit i like that also.

When I went back to my car though, I still enjoyed working further in cp's on the beautiful little study of the Matilaha Poppy. I fell in love with these out in Northern CA. A few years back I had an Artist Residency in Mendocino and the garden outside my room was just alive with these beautiful flowers! They stand, if I recall correctly, about 5' tall, with beautiful crinkly white petalled blossoms nearly 10" in diameter with big golf ball sized (well, almost!) center's. Perhaps I will post it when i finish it. Its just a small study to work out some shadow play from the stamens cast across the white petals. I would love to do a large painting of a closeup of this flower! Maybe. I will see how this little study goes first.

pic of me feeding birds

For some reason, I couldn't get the insert picture thinggy to work when I posted that text about feeding the birds.

Lets see fi I can do it here, folks. Sorry. I am jsut trying to learn to do this. Patience, please. Haven't figured out how to do spell check either, so, please add to your patience enough to get through my typos if I miss any of them.

Chickadees nesting

In the pastel I posted yesterday of White Feather excavating a nest last spring, it turned out that he and his mate left that one for a new one after I did my painting. I heard from Ann Rohr (wrote book called "Mr. Picky and Me") that "T-Bird" and his mate actually used that nest for their brood. This happens alot. Birds work hard to make nests, then abandon them to go off and make another. This can happen becauseperhaps another bird chases them off, or, something abtou the nest doesn't please the birds and they go off to another excavation site. Well, thats my own feelign about the "why?" anyhow.

I was traveling at the time of the final nesting and fledging, so, sadly, I didn't get to see it this year. It may be that "T-bird" rousted "White Feather". You can see these birds depicted on some fo my past posts "White Feather" portrait is "Chickadee #6" (excavation pastel) and "T-Bird" (Ann named this little guy) is "Chickadee #5", for your reference in my past posts.

I need to mention, since I brought up the fact that I feed the wild Chickadees and in turn, get my photo refs for my art work, that there is only one place I do that. The reason being that this particular location is a "safe - zone" ( ... my term). I mean, it doesn't pose a threat to their lives to hand feed them in this location. The particular location is an education center and the birds are territorial, pretty much stickign to one location. So, you see, this place is known to eb "safe" for them.

Anywhere else around here where I spend my time, to hand feed the Chickadees, would be to endanger their lives. Why? you may ask? Because, as will ALL WILDLIFE, its not good for them to learn to trust humans. We who love them can't take that personally, though. For wildlife (like deer, too, for instance), to get them to trust humans ... signs a death warrent for them unfortunately. Why? because too many or our kind (humans) would welcome their closeness to us with a gun for an easy kill. Sad, but, fact.

Still love working in Charcoal too.

more Figurative practice

Occasional Figurative work always excellent practice

Cuffy and Parrot Tulips

Chocolate Mix

Chickadee on Hand

Now you know how I gather my Photo refs to work from for my favorite little bird.

Chickadee # 7

Chickadee # 6 (White Feather Excavating)

"White Feather", the name I have for this particular Chickadee because of his unusual two white feathers on his right back, is continuing to excavate a circular hole begun and abandoned by a Woodpecker abotu 8 feet up a broken tree trunk. When he and his mate finished, this nest actually had a heart shapped opening. Tooooo cute.

Chickadee # 5 ("T-Bird")

Chickadee # 4

Chickadee # 3

Chickadee # 2

Chickadee #1

Coral Beauty, Hybiscus

V-21, Naked Ladies

V-30, Snow Drops and Spotted Salamander

V-27, Fall Cardinals

V-24 Chickadees in Treetops

V-27, Nastertiums and Corgie

V-23, Chickadee and Violets