Art & Light Gallery Show

      FIRST FRIDAY is coming up FAST!  I've been designing, painting and creating my 10" wooden letters for three months!  Now, suddenly it's time to wrap it up, pack it up and take them all down to the  Art & Light Gallery for the December Show.
    
      I'm honored to have my letters included in Art & Light's Toyland "Not For Kids Only" art show!  (Remember that Jerry Garcia CD called "Not For Kids Only?" That's one of my favorite CDs!)

      I hope everyone can make it out to the Pendleton Street Arts District in West Greenville on December 4th (First Friday) from 6:00pm to 9:00pm.  The Art & Light Gallery is located in the flatiron building.

     Click on the title to this post to see Art & Light's blog!
 

Little Medusa Magnet

     Color, texture, pattern.   Mystery, history, fantasy.  Danger......from a safe distance.  These are a few of my favorite things.

      This is my little magnet version of Medusa.  She is 2 1/2" x 3 1/2".  Created from prints of my original artwork, each little magnet has several layers of crystal lacquer applied to each tiny, painted "tile".  I leave the tiny "grout" lines flat.  This gives each magnet the same texture and shine as the original painting.  Although it's very tedious, detailed work, the outcome is worth all the extra time I put into each of my little magnets.


     All of my little mosaic magnets are $8.00 or 3 for $20.00.  Shipping is $1.00 for up to 3 magnets.  You can see a whole album of magnet choices on my Facebook page.   http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/kaylarch?ref=profile   Thanks!

FISSURE MAGAZINE

     My Day of the Dead skull mosaic is on the cover of the current FISSURE magazine!  Fissure is a small chapbook style magazine filled with cool poetry and short stories by writers all around the world. The publisher is a small, local underground press right here in Greenville, South Carolina. (Actually, Greenville has a lot of cool little secrets to discover!)


     I met the owner/editor of Shadow Archer Press, Gail Gray, a few months ago when she asked me if she could use my art on the cover. It was--and still is--really exciting!  Since then, Gail and I have become friends.  She's an amazing person.....a multi-talented artist/writer/poet/weaver/painter.....well, the list goes on and on.  Gail's novel, Shaman Circus, is due to hit the stands, soon.


     If you want to learn more about Fissure or Shadow Archer Press, (or if you want to order a copy of the issue with my cover art ;) you can find the link by clicking on the title to this post. 

    
 

SNEAK PREVIEW.......

     This is a sneak preview of the project I've been working on for a few months!  I've been creating LETTERS!  I've almost completed the entire alphabet.  These 9 1/2" high wooden letters will be part of the December First Friday Show, at Art & Light Gallery on Pendleton St. Greenville. (Pendleton Street Arts District)

      The process I use to create these letters is very similar to the way I create my smaller magnets.  There are several differences, though:  First, I designed the shape of the letters and had my friend, Jude, cut out several of each letter for me. I then began painting 26 original designs...one for each letter. I painted them in the mosaic style.  I painted little "tiles" and little "grout" lines.  I did them all in a '60s-peace-and-love style.

      When an originals were complete, I made several prints of  each letter.  I painted each wooden letter black and glued on the matching print. When dry, I applied several layers of crystal lacquer to just the "tiles". I left the "grout" flat, so these letters have the texture and shine of a mosaic.

       These are limited edition, signed prints, but because of the huge amount of time and detail on each one, they are much, much more than prints.  Each letter is its own work of art, if I do say so myself!! The originals were painted for the sole purpose of  creating this collection of letters.  The originals themselves will not be made into wooden letters and will not be for sale.

        My letters are $28.00 each.  They will make perfect, unique Christmas gifts as initials or to spell out whole names or cool words.  If you have any questions, please leave a comment :)

       EVERYONE is invited to the December Show at Art & Light Gallery!

....more magnets

     Here are a few more examples of my art magnets. As I said before, these magnets are made from prints of my own original artwork. I have well over 200 images of my work to choose from when I begin making a magnet, so I'm having a lot of fun with them! 
     I add the texture by applying several layers of crystal lacquer to the painted "tiles" while leaving the painted "grout" flat. This is the same time-consuming technique I use on my original paintings, so these "prints" are more than just prints.  I work with very tiny brushes and a stand-up magnfiying glass to create these   2 1/2" x 3 1/2" magnets!
     First Friday was this past weekend and I sold a bunch more magnets. I've been working hard on a new project for December First Friday, so I haven't had time to produce any new larger paintings. (Tomorrow, I'll post a preview of the project I'm working on.) In the meantime, I'm glad I have these little magnets as something new in my studio/gallery! People who are curious about my style and technique, but can't purchase a larger painting at this time, have found the perfect solution with these little magnets!
     If you missed my earlier posts, you can click on 2009 on the right of my page to see more.  Thanks!

MOSAIC MAGNETS

    I'm making little Art Magnets from prints of my original miniture art
cards.  They are the size of a wallet photo.  I have about 200 different
little mosaics to choose from.  I'm adding the textured lacquer to the
pictures, so they are really more than just prints.  Each one takes about
45 minutes to create.  I'm not getting rich, but I wanted to have
something affordable for everyone.
    
     They're $8.00 each or 3 for $20.00.  I've made about 60 magnets
so far.  I've sold about 35 of them, so I'm really encouraged by the response!  I think I'll go now and make some more............

Medusa

Medusa was accepted into the Trillium (Travelers Rest) Juried Arts Show. The reception was last night. I went to the gallery by myself, because there was a Dodger playoff game on and I knew Paul was  dying to watch it. My Medusa mosaic didn't win any awards.....well, they did say I was "a very close runner-up" for the People's Choice Award......but, I had a great time, met some new friends and drank free wine!

Upstate Visual Arts Juried Show

    This is the Painted Mosaic I entered in the UVA Juried Show. It's called "STILL WATERS" (from the phrase, "...still waters run deep..."  It won the "People's Choice" award!!! That was three weeks ago. Then last week, I took it to the Trillium Arts Festival in Travelers Rest SC, and it sold to a private collector.  I will miss this painting........  

I'm looking forward to next weekend. This will be my first ever outdoor arts festival. I'm borrowing a tent and gathering up all the artwork I have and heading out at the butt crack of dawn on Saturday morning to set up.
The First annual West Greenville Arts Festival will be held in the Pendleton Street Arts District in West Greenville. All of the studios and galleries will also be open. The music and entertainment will be top-notch. The food and Juried Show and raffle and kid's area and of course, the ART will be amazing! Please stop by my tent and say hello! See you there!

I'm on the planning committee for the first annual West Greenville Arts Festival. So, today I'll be taking posters around the North Main Street area and asking businesses to hang them. Then I'm off to buy a ton of construction paper, glue sticks and crayons for the Children's Area. It's going to be a fabulous festival! Over 75 artists (I'll have an artist's tent there, so come see me!), live music and entertainment, food, a juried show, raffles, a self-guided stroll through the district to see all of the open studios and businesses and of course the huge Children's Art Area that I'm working on.... It's going to be a FUN day!

I just rented and moved into my own little corner of an art studio in the Pendleton Street Arts District in Greenville, South Carolina. I'm sharing the studio with two very talented artists: Suzanne Vitti and Ben. My easel is set up right near the window, so I can paint in the natural light.

Last night was "First Friday" art walk. We had quite a crowd come through, considering it was Labor Day weekend and many people were away. "First Fridays" is always on the first friday of every month. All the studios and galleries in the district are open and displaying a wide range of incredible art. Some of the studios have live music and many serve free food and drinks. All up and down the Arts District you find special events, book signings, guest artists, raffles and nice people. It's the hottest party in town!

I sold a painting last night.....life is good.