Wood Signs for Woodland Nephews

One of my very favorite friends is going to be Aunt Mel for the second time (this May), and I did a carve+stain+sand on this tree truck cross-section for her to take all the way back to her nephew's nursery, in Sandpoint, ID. 

Copper Lion

Acrylic, metallics, ink, plastics on wood. 9" x 5 1/2"

Personified: to live as though we expect the lion to live, unaffected by much, could be a great gift. 

New Index

I was curious to see if I would work better (+faster) with a hands-on version of "every piece of artwork I've ever made" in tiny piece of paper form. It helps and I love it. It's like an odd little game every time I comb the images selecting which work samples to send off. 

Just for the sake of place holders I used things that were unfinished (pear below) but only one shot per mural. New categories coming soon on scbaker.com.

Found: North American Slides

Another tiny, red-toned drawing;

5"x7" ink, acrylic, pastel on paper. 

Based on slide below:

Whose slides?

In 2010 I used to go to the American Corner/Federalsburg, MD auctions. This is deep into Maryland's Eastern Shore.  One night I took three slide packs from a completely discarded table where everything was free, after the winning bidder took only what they were gunning for. They are labeled Alaska 1965, Plane trip to Slippery Rock, Some beautiful mountain landscapes, Cabin Caliadonia [meaning Caledonia?] *Special one, Mary & Walter, and Beach scenes. They are all very gorgeous slide photos. This particular one is a runway in Canada, of which there were several. Out of 90 slides, there is only one with people, (two people standing on a beach). There has to be some universal old photo lost and found. The ones I saw online seem junky. So if you read this and take interest, pass it along. 

Key info: slides, Alaska, Maryland, A. Curtis Andrew Auction, 1965, Canada, Caledonia, Walter & Mary.

Sketchbook Project

The Maryland Federation of Art celebrated their 50th anniversary by putting together a local chapter of the Sketchbook Project (endeavor of Art House Co-op). 100 sketchbooks were on display this summer at The Art Gallery, University of Maryland College Park, before joining the masses in Brooklyn. Mine was there, filled with little fragments and ink.

(Cover [tiny pear with tiny gold leaves, on gloss white])  

("Are you getting enough? [Vitamin A]")

("coffee fox")

(Page 2: "Pear, identical to a new painting of a pear. Except that one looks like this: [arrow]

And then, I agreed to an adventure with an adventurer and a photographer.")

 ("On our way to Centralia, PA in Tucker's green jeep")

They even gave me this odd little sketchbook tattoo!

The Cape, Boston, and the Mapparium

Last month I took Forrest to Boston for his 30th birthday. One of the most unique and outstanding features was unexpectedly the Mapparium. This is a multi-story, stained glass globe that was built in 1935, and correct politically to the world map at that time. You aren't allowed to take photos; so that's why I'm attaching this link "Mapparium". Not to mention that this whole thing is in the Mary Baker Eddy Library, which taking the time to read the tour signs, I found there to be a more complex rise of a religious movement than expected. The acoustics on the glass bridge of the globe were also surprising; you can hear yourself whisper in surround sound. 

While in Boston, we stopped at the site and love abounding memorial to the Marathon victims. On the 6th, Forrest was king of champagne and lobster. We stayed with the lovely Heather Falardeau, my roommate while in Savannah (and half of Two Girls Making Stuff)! I wish I had a photo of her very accurate studio. We also made it to CAPE COD. Warm enough to swim, smelled good like blankets of seaweed, awesome coffee shops. That last photo is some type of metals studio/renegade apocalypse shelter outside of the Cape. *ALSO* I was working on The Sketchbook Project during this trip-  more posts on that to come.

(instagram by Heather)

Gifts for great couples

Making art pieces for friends, whether it's a surprise or a commission, usually leads down a path less traveled. I recently had the chance to come up with a wedding gift, and a first year anniversary gift for four of my lovely friends.

This was the first time I have ever replicated a family crest: Duvall, for the new Grover and Jessica Duvall. 18"x24", colored pencil, ink, and water color pencil with flecks of gold leaf throughout. My reference copy became easier to use when I figured out that up above is a little gryphon(?) and not some type of plume..

An abstract route for Brandon and Jo Wildman (in violet). Acrylic and gold leaf on panel, 18"x14". Cancer meets Sagittarius in a sea of commemorative items from the month of November.

For the homeland, Pro Patria. From the French Mareen Duvall lineage.

James Esposito

Several things that were made during James Esposito's stay last month. If you get the notion, just look him up. Bold strong lines, and an art-minded mind.

All the renditions of Forrest

And then began the game of folding a big sheet of sketch pad paper into sixths, passing it around and trying not to take too much from the one before you. Obviously successful...

"We are [good] vegetarians"

What started out as wine glasses, filled.

A runner-up in the favorite segments.

Still my little favorite.

Hurricane Drawing

Hurricane Irene 10:55 pm wine shadows. (After the fact.)

With a floating rosemary vessel.

Barcanard

This is an old charcoal and water drawing from 2002. Jonathan was nice enough to drop by my class in high school to model for us. He wore a suit. Jonathan Morrissey, 5/2/88 to 5/11/11. I remember him sometimes crying tears of happiness "for no reason at all"... He was music, passion and love.