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| Taos National Entries (4/28): I finally decided which watercolors to enter into this years Taos National Exhibition of American Watercolor XIII. I mailed the CD with my three images to Taos this morning. I submitted two paintings of children - the one of "Tiffanie Sleeping" and my first painting of "Little Miss Sunshine". My third painting submitted was the one of "Taos Horno Shadows" which was in the recent MasterWorks of New Mexico exhibition.
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| Indian Pueblo Cultural Center (4/25): Yesterday, Frani and I had lunch at the new and improved "Indian Pueblo Cultural Center" here in Albuquerque. We had not been there since they completed the new front and expanded the restaurant. The The Pueblo Harvest Cafe & Bakery is a real treat. I had a Zia Burger served with green chile and cheese on frybread. Frani feasted on the laguna steak sandwich - sliced flank steak chargrilled served with green chile on frybread. They also serve Starbucks coffee - the entire meal was a treat. Check out their breakfast and lunch menu here. Our real reason to stop there was to see an exhibit titled "Works in Clay" by Kathleen Wall of Jemez Pueblo. We are lucky to have two of her pieces and had to see her new work. Here is a link to Kathleen Wall in the process of creating her masterpieces. Now we have to go back for more of the great food on the menu. This week is "American Indian Week" - April 18th through the 26th. A lot of activities are planned at the cultural center. The "GATHERING OF NATIONS" Pow Wow is being held at the Pit this weekend, but we decided to skip the event this year. Perhaps, next year we will take it in. If you want to be overwhelmed by color and pageantry do attend one Gathering of Nations Pow Wow in Albuquerque. |
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 "nude artist" |
Taos National Exhibition of American Watercolor XIII (4/24): This years deadline, for the Taos National, isn't until May 23rd, but I thought I'd put the word out in case someone is looking for a quality show. This is an excellent national exhibition and it will be on display at the prestigious Millicent Rogers Museum in Taos, New Mexico. You can read about the exhibition on the Taos Watercolor Society web site or simply download a prospectus here. The opening reception is August 8, 2009 from 5:30 - 7:30pm. The exhibition runs from August 9, through September 30, 2009. I've been fortunate to be selected twice and sold my watercolor both times. Juror of selections is painter, teacher, juror and National Watercolor Society Member Robbie Laird. I decided not to enter Watercolor USA at the Springfield Art Museum so I'll enter those watercolors in Taos instead. I've also decided to enter the Mississippi Watercolor Society Grand National juried show this year. We had planed a trip to Mississippi in October already, and the Grand National is at the Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson. The 2009 Exhibition will be juried by Don Andrews. |
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 Click On SW Pieta to see public art in Albuquerque |
1% for Art - Albuquerque (4/22): The Albuquerque museum docents boarded a bus at 9 am for a tour of some (a few) of the 600 plus art works installed around the city. This actually was a trial tour so the city could explore how to conduct a tour for visitors coming to Albuquerque. We docents were being used as willing guinea pigs. Albuquerque's One Percent Program has been around for 30 years now. But you don't have to visit Albuquerque to see the public art - the city has put the images up on Flicker for everyone to view. I choose a couple of well known pieces of public art to use as links to Albuquerque's Flicker page. One is the "Southwest Pieta" by Luis Jimenez. The other one is best known as "Chevy on a Stick" but is more correctly named "Cruising San Mateo" by Barbara Grygutis. With so many pieces of public art around the city - maintenance becomes a real issue. Today, 30 % of the 1% for art funds must go for upkeep and restoration of the cities public art.  ...... We stopped to get a lesson on cleaning and restoring public art from an expert. "Gorilla Route #66" by Sarah Perry Artwork Located at the Citys Solid Waste Offices |
 Click On Chevy to see public art in Albuquerque |
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| Photography Lecture (4/20): Today at docent training we heard from Miguel Gandert. He talked about his education as a photographer. He showed us images he had taken over the years. He was born in Española, New Mexico in 1956. For the last twenty years Gandert has photographed the social rituals, people, and landscape of his native New Mexico. His work is very impressive. It chronicles the history of the varied peoples on our state. Below is a photo I took this morning as he spoke to the docents.  Miguel Gandert Speaking - Monday, April 20th, 2009 |
 Ground Cover in Bloom in our Backyard |
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 My Watercolor |
Mentoring Art Students (4/19): Today at MasterWorks of New Mexico lots of Artists showed up to paint. Many of us volunteered to work side by side with a High School art student. I painted side by side with Becca. While working we talked about painting and art in general. We also walked around and discussed the pastels, oils, acrylics and watercolors on display. Becca talked to other artists as well. They discussed how they approached their type of art. CLICK HERE to see the web page I created today with pics I took at MasterWorks. Becca and I both painted a small stuffed bunny in front of the children's book "The Velvetine Rabbit". |
 Becca Painting |
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 Eric |
Back From Colorado's Snow (4/18): I should have listened to the weatherman this time. We drove up to Denver yesterday for the opening of Joseph Raffael's Watercolor Exhibit. We got as far as a motel on the South side of Denver. We holed up for the night and watched it snow and snow some more. They got a foot of snow on Friday. It was still snowing as we drove home this morning. We never tried to go the extra 20 miles through or around Denver to see the show in Arvada. We will plan another trip up to see Raffael's watercolors before it closes. Of course - spending the night in a motel with a beautiful lady has it's rewards as well. On the way to Denver, we stopped for a couple of hours to visit with my favorite cousin Margaret Jean and her husband Eric. I even shot a few pics of Eric shoveling the bit of snow they had in Colorado Springs. My cousin Margaret recently finished her fourth novel. She publishes under the name of M. J. Brett. Her website is: http://mjbrett.com/ Margaret writes historical novels based on her years of teaching in Germany. Her latest book is "Street Smart On A Dead End". |
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Comments by 4th Graders on Watercolor Mountains  click above for a large copy |
Snow In April: Below is a photo of the snow as seen from our motel window. Frani and I enjoyed our trip to Denver even if we had to drive through all that snow. I remembered from winters back in Kansas how to drive in the white stuff. And I even got to find out how well the automatic traction control worked on my new minivan. It was quite impressive to see it in operation when it kicked in.  Snow in Denver |
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| Buffalo In New Mexico: When we crossed over the Colorado border into New Mexico we were met with beautiful warm sunshine. So we took a detour off of I-25 over to Cimarron. We passed a herd of Buffalo owned by Ted Turner. I had to stop and take a few pics. Frani and I have yet to try a Buffalo Steak at his new restaurant in Kansas City.   Outside Cimarron, New Mexico |
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 Over Our House playing with the new camera |
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| New Lens (4/16): I took some test shots in our back yard as soon as my new 75 - 300 mm lens came in the mail. I wanted to find out if it worked OK when hand held. One pic shows the antennas on top of the Sandia mountains behind our house. It's fun to have a new toy to shoot pics with.   7:00 PM 1:00 PM Testing New Lens click on photo for larger image |
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| Steve Hanks Watercolors: Yesterday, Frani and I stopped by Weem's Gallery here in Albuquerque. We went to see the exhibition of Steve Hanks watercolors. Viewing these wonderful creations can make any artist feel very humble. Now I know how far I've got top go and how hard I need to work. This is one of those occasions when you realize that one needs to view the actual painting to really appreciate it. Magazines and computer monitors just don't do these watercolors justice. Saying that - I'll still post a couple of Steve Hanks watercolors here.   |
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Summer Summit in Tucumcari (4/14): On June 5th and 6th, the New Mexico Art Education Association is having it's first annual Summer Summit in Tucumcari, New Mexico. It's planned as a small fun weekend of hands on workshops about Metal Casting & Printmaking. It will be held at Mesalands Community College in Tucumcari. DeJean Jawrunner is organization the weekend and is conducting the Metal Casting workshop. I am doing both Collograph & Drypoint workshops using the colleges new press. I recently put information about the NMAEA Summer Summit on the web. I'm web master for the organization. We have energetic new leadership in Roni Rohr and Michelle Lemmons. They are both attending NAEA national convention in Minneapolis this month. I know they will return inspired with new ideas for New Mexico art teachers. Also in the planning stage is the NMAEA Fall Conference which this year will be in Ruidoso, New Mexico. Below are links about NMAEA and our Summer Summit in Tucumcari.
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| New Watercolor: Saturday, I began a new watercolor. It's from a photo I took one morning driving to Taos. On the side of the road, I spotted this old crumbling house with the morning sun hitting it. As my painting Buddy Phil suggested, I'm going to get back to painting a few landscapes. He says he liked them better than the watercolors of children I've been painting of late. I began by sketching directly on my stretched paper. Even though the drawing was light - I still erased everything to make it even lighter. Then, I applied liquid mask to the brightest areas. Next, I dampened the entire sheet before applying yellow tones for the warmth of the morning sun.
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Tiffanie and Timothy "At The Zoo" >>>
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New Toy (4/10): While in KC, I bought a new digital Camera. It's a Canon EOS Rebel XS. Since it is an SLR, I can change the lenses. I've got a 300 mm lens on order. I tested out the camera on the grandkids - of course. On the right is a pic I took of Tiffanie while she was doing her cross stitch. The three photos below are not my photos. click on pic for a larger image >>>
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 May 2009 Joseph Raffael's website CLICK HERE children's book features Joseph Raffael  Joseph Raffael's book on amazon.com |
Must See (4/9): Talking to another artist today, I learned of a write-up about Joseph Raffael in the May issue of Artist's Magazine. Now I find that he will have two exhibitions in Colorado this Spring and Summer, then one in Ohio before going on to New York. His work is powerful and I must make it up there to see his work. Normally his paintings are on display at The Nancy Hoffman Gallery in New York City. I listed the other two exhibits in case they are closer to where you live.
 Joseph Raffael Projecting An Image To Paint Is it ethical to trace a projected image ? April 17 - May 31, 2009 - Joseph Raffael:
The Arvada Center is fortunate to partner with the Fort Collins Museum of Contemporary Art to bring Joseph Raffael one of America's foremost contemporary realist painters to Colorado. Raffael's realism, however, is no ordinary picture making. Rather his paintings incorporate many tenets of modernism: abstract composition, unconventional views, large scale, flattened space, simplified color, and vigorous brushwork. Over a career spanning nearly six decades, the 75-year-old artist has had more than 70 one-person shows. His work is in more than 50 prominent American collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago, Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. After its venue here at the Center, the exhibition will travel to Fort Collins, then to the Butler Institute of American Art in Ohio and the Nancy Hoffman Gallery in New York City. Opening Reception: April 17, 7-9 pm, free open to public
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 Joseph & Lannis Raffael Joseph Raffael Bio CLICK HERE About Joseph Raffael on handprint.com Interview with Joseph Raffael |
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| Cutting Back On Art Classes (4/8): When we were back in KC, I visited with the district's art supervisor. I found out that the district was in a budget crunch. Schools were told to cut 10% from their budgets. Art will be cut from Rosedale, my old middle school, and a few other buildings. Each building handled it differently. Cutting long running art programs are not at all like trimming rose bushes, they don't always grow back. I did check to be sure the equipment (kiln, slab roller, printing press, etc) would be saved or used by another school. I was also concerned about 25 years of Scholastic Art magazines and the hundreds of art exemplars I left in the classroom. This is a really sad change - that hopefully can be corrected. Now that I'm back home, I plan to write a carefully worded letter to the superintendent and the school board members. Why take all the magic out of learning ? When the art and music is gone from young lives, there leaves little reason to learn to read or compute anymore. |
 click above for Collage Lesson |
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| Click On Tess for day one  Tess Creating Her Collage |
Back From Visiting the Land of OZ (4/07): We just got back from a short week visiting our fantastic triplet grandkids, back in Kansas. While I was there - I taught art classes to three fourth grade classes. Tim, Tess and Tiffanie are each in a different fourth grade class so I taught the two day lesson three times. They have a great school and very good teachers - but this rural school in Eastern Kansas does not have art. Perhaps my visit, exposing them to what they are missing will help bring change. On the second day of the lesson a reporter from the local paper visited the morning class. The article, with photos I hope, will be run this week. On the first day I showed, each class, a quick powerpoint of mountains before we started. That was Friday, the students tore various types of white paper to create a collage of overlapping mountains. CLICK HERE to see them working. Then on Monday we used watercolor with wet-in-wet techniques to paint our mountains. CLICK HERE to see the fourth grade paintings. I really enjoyed the chance to teach again. The fifth grade teachers want to know if I'll come back next year to teach art again.  Painting Mountains |
Click On Tiffanie for day two  Tiffanie Painting |
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