I recently rediscovered a part of myself when I gave my “Just Desserts” painting demonstration and art marketing talk to the Scarsdale Art Association.
The experience of speaking about art was so much fun that it took me back to my life as an Art History Teaching Fellow at the University of Michigan. I loved it then, and as I found out, I love it now.
The difference was that this time I was speaking from an artist’s perspective, rather than an artist historian. This was a major shift as I found out years ago from many art students in my art history class, who groaned loudly every time I began talking about any topic from ancient to medieval art.
My original plan had been to be an artist and to support myself as an art history professor. That was before a depression hit Detroit in the 70s and art funding dried up, so I went back to the drawing board to sketch out a new marketing career. With this lecture, I came full circle.
The challenging part of this particular presentation was the painting demonstration, which meant I had to talk and paint at the same time (think of President Gerry Ford, also from Michigan, who reportedly found it hard to walk and chew gum at the same time…).
Since I usually paint while listening to classical music by my favorite composer Aaron Copland, it took some adjustment to painting while answering many thought provoking questions from an enthusiastic audience. I was up to the challenge and thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience.
For all you artists out there looking to exhibit and sell your work, I offered up a few art marketing tips – definitely a subject for a separate blog post. For now, the best advice I can give would be to start by picking something you love as your subject, with a personal story behind it that is easily communicated, and focus on getting a cohesive body of work together that is linked visually or conceptually before going to galleries or other organizations. Becoming an expert in that area and developing a niche that is distinctive and memorable is a good thing.
And how did the afternoon end? With desserts, of course.
Thank you to the Scarsdale Art Association for inviting me to speak on “Just Desserts” (and for helping me revisit the Fountain of Youth for one afternoon). Thanks to everyone who came out and supported this event, and to Jackie Lupo of the Rivertowns Enterprise for this terrific article.
I got a kick out of the first line: “Breaking into the art gallery world is no piece of cake.” So true.
In the future, I want to pursue lecturing about art, and capturing the joy that goes into it. I hope to see you all again soon at my next talk – wherever and whenever the opportunity presents itself.
Have you ever wondered how this drawing becomes that painting?
You are invited to a behind the scenes look into how I turn a drawing on canvas into a finished oil painting. I am excited to announce that I will be giving a demonstration and talk to the Scarsdale Art Association this coming Saturday, September 6th from 1-4 pm on “Just Desserts” at:
The Girl Scout House
37 Wayside Lane
Scarsdale, NY 10583
Since I am known as The Oreo Lady, I am going to demonstrate the artistic process by painting this Oreo on a 24 x 36 inch canvas – my biggest one yet! My favorite part is building up the texture by piling on the paint, so I’ll start with the crumbs and white filling.
Of course, we will be serving Oreos and other desserts at the reception afterwards. It would be rather frustrating if we were all salivating over the painting and didn’t have anything to eat…
I will share a bit of my own background in advertising and marketing, how this has been instrumental in promoting and marketing my own dessert art, and answer your questions.
I hope all of you will learn a few tips that you can use in the art world. So come on by this Saturday, September 6th.
The entire event is free. Registration is not required. Parking is available at the Girl Scout House and in the lot next door.
I first met Gina Thorne when she walked through the door in 2015. Gina was in charge of programming for the Scarsdale Artist’s Association, and asked me to do a Just Desserts Talk and Painting Demonstration. It sticks out in my mind because I enjoyed speaking in front of a group, especially about art and niche marketing, which you can about in The Sheer Joy of Just Desserts. At moments like these, my yearning to be an artist history professor re-emerges.
This particular Oreo was chosen because of the way it split into 3 pieces, yet it still looks like a classic bite. I’m almost finished with it, but I have to put it down tonight since I’m getting up at 6am tomorrow morning. – and it’s already past midnight. I’m going to the Awakenings Fair in Manhattan.
When I come home from the city, I’ll darken the craggy edges but lighten the dark “hotspot”, put in a little shadow on the white filling, and add more contrast to the rest (aka darken it with a softer drawing pencil). Then I’ll be all set to start my Day 30 painting.
Or maybe I’ll wait a few days so I can start my next painting before my eye doctor’s appointment on Monday.
Unfortunately my eyes will be dilated part of the day, and I won’t be able to paint. If I hadn’t waited months for the appointment, I would have re-scheduled. So my planning finally went a bit awry. I’ll just add this to my lessons learned. No eye doctor’s appointment during a painting challenge!
I have a painting in mind for Day 30 that I simply have to do for myself, and you’ll probably find it intriguing at the very least.
Have I piqued your interest? If so, come back tomorrow.
After looking at everyone’s else’s artwork for 3 days at 6 New York City art fairs in early March, I was inspired to hunker down and focus on my own painting for the fast approaching Open Studio. I am pleased with what I have accomplished so far. Today I hope to finish up the raw double yolk painting (on the right).
I will be opening my Ardsley, NY home studio to the public as a participant in the 2015 RiverArts Studio Tour. This event will take place on Saturday, April 25th and Sunday, April 26th from 11am – 5pm. The location is 36 Sheldon Street, Ardsley. So save the date!
You are all invited to enter my annual Oreo Cookie Contest. Come and take a bite out of an Oreo to submit your entry! It’s that simple. I paint the winning Oreo and name the oil painting after the biter since it’s your “portrait”. Here’s what my kitchen table looked like last year.
There were so many entries that were good, it was difficult to select one winner. While I did some oil sketches, I need to pick the winning entry (and stop procrastinating!) and finish a detailed oil painting before the upcoming Open Studio.
Some of my newest works will be on display, including the largest Oreo I ever painted, call Cosmic Oreo. (Gotta keep the Oreo theme going strong….) This work was started for my Just Desserts demonstration and art marketing talk at the Scarsdale Art Association in October, 2014 (see The Sheer Joy of “Just Desserts”).
I named this painting Cosmic Oreo since the finished work reminded me of the cosmos with its planets, stars, and even space debris. How’s that for a new take on crumbs?
Of course, no Open Studio would be complete without desserts – real and painted! Besides Oreos, we’ll have some of our favorite cakes, pies, and tarts from Riviera Bakehouse in Ardsley on hand. Bonnie is already picking out the dessert menu. You can see for yourselves what we served last year. Maybe something you eat will turn into my next painting… One thing you can be sure of is that I”ll be taking lots of photos!
I always look forward to this weekend – and to seeing all of you
2024 Scarsdale Public Library, “A Bite Size View of Food in Art”, Scarsdale, NY
2022 One Martine Gallery, “Food For Thought”, White Plains, NY 2018Studio Tour, Ardsley, NY 2017 Michael Good Gallery, “You CAN Have Your Cake and Eat It Too”, Rockport, ME 2014 RiverArts 2014 Artists’ Studio Tour, Ardsley, NY 2006 Wiregrass Museum of Art, “Great Temptations”, Dothan, Alabama 2004 Freelance Gallery, “Great Temptations”, Piermont, NY 2003 Jerald Melberg Gallery, “Just Desserts”, Charlotte, NC 2002 O.K. Harris Works of Art, “September Revisited”, New York, NY 2001 O.K. Harris Works of Art, “Great Temptations”, New York, NY 1998 SUNY/Westchester College Art Workshop, NY
Selected Group Exhibitions
2019 LCA Bedford Gallery, “Off Menu: Contemporary Art About Food”, Walnut Creek, CA 2017 Studios on the Park, “Sweet Art Invitational”, Paso Robles, CA 2016 Super Fresh Food Art Gallery, Food, Novato and Healdsberg, CA 2015 Cavalier Galleries, Annual Small Works Online Exhibition 2015 Cavalier Galleries, “American Realism: Past to Present”, New York, NY 2015 Cavalier Galleries, Summer Group Show in Nantucket, MA; Greenwich, CT; and New York City, NY 2015 The Katonah Museum, “Line Describing a Cone: Tri-State Juried Exhibition”, Katonah, NY 2015 Silvermine Arts Center, “65th Annual Art of the Northeast Juried Exhibition”, New Canaan, CT 2015 Upstream Gallery, “PaperWorks 2015“, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY 2015 RiverArts Studio Tour, Ardsley, NY, April 25th/26th 2015 Gallery 52, “Desserts”, Rye, NY 2014 Westchester Arts Exchange, “Unabashedly”, White Plains, NY. 2014 Warms Springs Gallery, “Painter’s Table”, Charlottesville, VA 2014 Aljira, A Center for Contemporary Arts, Juried Exhibition, “Viewpoints 2014”, Newark, NJ. 2013Upstream Gallery, “PaperWorks 2014”, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY. 2013 Picassowhat, Opening Group Exhibition. Rockland, ME 2012 Robert Kidd Gallery, “Sweet Spot”, Birmingham, MI 2011 Lazarus Gallery, “A Feast For The Eyes: A Food Themed Exhibition”, New Rochelle, NY 2011 RiverArts Studio Tour, Ardsley, NY 2011 Donald Gallery, “Just Desserts”, Dobbs Ferry, NY 2010 The Katonah Museum Artists Association Juried Show, “A to Z”, New Canaan, CT 2010 The Nicolaysen Art Museum, “I WANT Candy: Sweet Stuff in American Art”, Casper, WY; travels to Lake Charles, LA and Wausau, WI, Fresno, CA. Originated at The Hudson River Museum, Yonkers, NY 2008 Galerie LC. “Les Hyperéalistes Américains”, Paris, France 2007 Elaine Baker Gallery, Summer Exhibition, Boca Raton, FL 2007 The Main Street Gallery, “Stuff Your Face”, Groton, NY 2005 Robert Kidd Gallery, “XXX – Three Decades of Art”, Birmingham, MI 2005 M.A. Doran Gallery, “Contemporary American Realism VIII”, Tulsa OK 2004 Schoharie Country Arts Council, National Small Works Exhibition, Cobleskill, NY, Award 2004 New Century Art Gallery, “Seven Deadly Sins”, New York, NY, Award 2003 Anderson Galleries, “Selected Contemporary Realists”, Beverly Hills, CA
My three decade long fascination with painting desserts has heightened my craving for more. Fortunately, there are still many sweets to try to feed my artistic appetite. Now my dessert repertoire is expanding from individual desserts and bakery displays to vending machines.
Using a wet-on-wet technique, I paint in oil directly from the subject or a photograph, applying the oil paint to the canvas like icing on a cake. The oil medium allows me to capture the luscious, tempting nature of desserts, with their enticing textures, shapes, and colors that seduce me with promises of mouth-watering rewards.
Often the subjects elicit childhood memories, when life was uncomplicated. They evoke a time in my life when an Oreo Cookie, Dunkin’ Donut, or candy bar was the center of my universe.
“Cosmic Oreo by Beverly Shipko, Oil painting on canvas, 24 x 36 inches,
“Five Dunkin’ Donuts in a Box” by Beverly Shipko, Oil, 20 x 24 inches
“America’s Favorite Candy Bars” by Beverly Shipko, Oil on canvas, 10 x 20 inches
My serial images of cakes and Oreo Cookies portray nostalgic moments of transitory pleasures. The Oreo Cookie is a subject I return to year after year. My daughters, neighborhood kids, and now my friends’ grandkids, take part in the process by coming to my Oreo Cookie parties and annual Oreo Cookie Contest during my Open Studio.
The kids (and adults!) enthusiastically bite the cookies and joyfully play with them. They pull the halves apart to lick the icing, dunk them, stack them, and try to eat a whole Oreo in one bite, just leaving the crumbs. Often while I am lighting the entire table of half-eaten cookies, I see exciting images take shape amidst dramatic shadows, and realize I am looking at the next work in the series. I name the painting after the person who bites the original Oreo since it is their “portrait”, albeit an untraditional one.
A few years ago, I started working on a series of small Oreo Cookie pencil drawings to represent the whimsical nature and unlimited possibilities of this particular icon. These images opened the door to making original limited edition art prints of Oreos, the first being Oreo Mandala, a composite of 9 images in the series. Then I was inspired to paint dessert ingredients by an entire carton of double yolk eggs that randomly made its way into my kitchen, which led to a series of egg paintings and another print.
More recently, I started painting snack food and candy in vending machines, which are rapidly disappearing and one day will be viewed as fond memories of America’s past. My first two vending paintings in 2015 and 2017 were small 5 x 7 inch Challenge paintings. Now I’ve created larger paintings in the series that include vegetables, and am exploring options referencing the current pandemic.
I believe that on some level all people are attracted to things they are not supposed to have. I am no exception. My particular challenge is to paint the subject matter on one hand, while not devouring these “forbidden fruits” with the other. It is particularly ironic that I’m obsessed with painting delectable desserts with my history of diabetes while I was pregnant, a father who was a dentist, and a recent change I made in my diet by going gluten-free and dairy-free. Thus the name of this body of work, “Great Temptations”, appropriately reflects the tension, conflict and even longing that I feel while painting irresistible desserts.
Beverly Shipko September 30, 2022
Resume Highlights
Selected Solo Exhibitions
2024 Scarsdale Library, “A Bite Size View of Food in Art”, Scarsdale, NY, May, 2024
2022 One Martine Gallery, “Food For Thought”, White Plains, NY 2017 Michael Good Gallery, “You CAN Have Your Cake and Eat it Too”, Rockport, ME, Summer, 2017 2006 Wiregrass Museum of Art, “Great Temptations”, Dothan, Alabama 2003 Jerald Melberg Gallery, “Just Desserts”, Charlotte, NC 2002 O.K. Harris Works of Art, “September Revisited”, New York, NY 2001 O.K. Harris Works of Art, Serial Images of Desserts, New York, NY
Selected Group Exhibitions
2019 LCA Bedford Gallery, “Off Menu: Contemporary Art about Food”, Walnut Creek, CA 2018 RiverArts Open Studio, Ardsley, NY 2016 Super Fresh Food Art Gallery, Permanent Installation, Healsberg, CA 2015 Cavalier Galleries, “American Realism: Past to Present”, New York, NY 2015 Cavalier Galleries, Summer Group Show in Greenwich, CT; Nantucket, MA; and New York City, NY 2015 Silvermine Arts Center, “65th Annual Art of the Northeast Juried Exhibition”, New Canaan, CT 2015 The Katonah Museum, “Line Describing a Cone: Tri-State Juried Exhibition”, Katonah, NY 2014 Aljira, A Center for Contemporary Arts, Juried Exhibition, “Viewpoints 2014”, Newark, NJ 2014 Warms Springs Gallery, “Painter’s Table”, Charlottesville, VA 2013 Picassowhat, Opening Group Exhibition, Rockland, ME
Bibliography
2022 Oreo-Center Artist Takes Viewers Deeper Into Temptation, Rivertowns Enterprise, Pages 9 and 14 2018 How Much Do Artists Gain by Opening Their Studios to the Public?, article in Artists Market 2018: How and Where to Sell Your Art, North Light Books, Pgs 72-75 2017 Taste in Art, Portland Press Herald, Front Page Masthead, Front Page Food and Dining 2014 A.I. Friedman Artist of the Month 2014 Success Is Sweet For Desserts-Only Painter, Rivertowns Enterprise, Pg 8 2014 Just Desserts, Scarsdale Inquirer, Page 11 2012Expiration Date & Other Stories 2007I WANT Candy: Sweet Stuff in American Art, video, and catalog 2007Sweet Success, Westchester Times Tribune, Page 6
Professional Experience
1984-2002 Hudson River Museum, Yonkers, NY – Worked with the Board of Trustees and Director on the Program Committee and Audience Development Committee
It gives me great pleasure to present Chef Bonnie and her extraordinary Thanksgiving extravaganza.
This feast is a labor of love that is several days in the making, but much longer than that in the planning. As a result, we enjoyed this fabulous, mouthwatering spread of 17 dishes that makes me salivate for more… although I admit I already stuffed my face with leftovers twice today…
There are 14 main dinner dishes – Lemon Turkey Breasts Stuffed with Herbs, Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecans, Cauliflower Puree, Pears with Goat Cheese and Cranberries, Green Bean Casserole in Cashew Sauce, Cranberry Orange Sauce, 2 versions of Popovers and 2 versions of Bonnie’s Signature Stuffin Muffins (Gluten Free and Gluten Full).
Plus 3 homemade desserts – Apple Pie, Sour Cherry Tart, and Pumpkin Cheesecake that is both gluten free and dairy free – but you would never know it!
And did I mention this whole dinner is gluten free and dairy free – except for one set of Stuffin Muffins and Popovers for the Chef herself? With 15 dishes/desserts to choose from, I’m in heaven! Bonnie thoughtfully separates the two gluten items on the left and the equivalent GF items on the right.
Planning and Grocery Shopping on Tuesday
For the last few weeks. Laura, Bonnie and I have been talking about the menu.
After reaching a consensus, Bonnie made a detailed ingredients list. Since she was cooking in my apartment starting Wednesday, she sent me the list and I started pulling out items that I already had. That way when she wouldn’t come back from the grocery store on Tuesday night with duplicates.
In preparation for Thanksgiving, I ordered a new table protector, and made a Vegetable Ikebana table arrangement during my Monday class. In addition, I made several trips to my storage unit to return artwork from my recent Studio Tour. It was the least I could do.
However, the table stayed like this for all of 10 minutes before I pulled out all my pie pans and utensils, serving dishes, and more – which I am deliberately not showing you. I would rather you remember these two images.
Vegetable Ikebana. The concept in my head was an Ikebana version of a cornucopia.
Prep and Pie Night
Pie Night on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving has been a family tradition going back many years. It’s Bonnie’s time to focus on baking at least 2 desserts. You can read more about Pie Night at Bonnie’s Thanksgiving Feast Challenge 2020!, when she baked and cooked in her own apartment during the pandemic and brought everything here.
This year she made a Sour Cherry Tart and Apple Pie for Pie Night. She started by making the pie dough for both desserts from scratch. The dough quickly went into the refrigerator to firm up for rolling.
Early on she strained the tart cherries, thickened the cherry sauce, and then filled the pie crust.
The Apple Recipe called for Granny Smith Apples. I love tart apples, and cherries too! They make the best desserts.
I wish Mom were here to see this masterpiece of a pie. It looks as good as the ones she and I used to bake together. Our secret was lots of lemon and cinnamon, which has now been passed down to Bonnie and Laura.
Here is the Apple Pie with the top crust on. For the sake of time, she passed on doing a lattice pie crust.
Into the oven they go.
While waiting for the desserts to bake, the Chef made Cranberry Orange Sauce and Butternut Squash Soup to give herself some breathing room on Thursday, the big cooking day.
It’s so interesting to watch as Bonnie cooks and bakes – and posts along the way on her Instagram account @bonniesbitesoflife. There’s a certain rhythm to it all.
Then she put the butternut squash and Granny Smith apples in the Vitamix blender to give it the smooth, creamy texture.
Bonnie also slipped in a quick rejuvenating nap (with all the lights on!) while the pies were baking. This nap was well deserved since she had been teaching in the morning and was already up for 16 hours.
What a difference a nap makes! And what a delicious-looking tart she just took out of the oven! I’m salivating….
Here comes the apple pie.
Now it’s time to clean up for the Big Day before going to sleep. I hate waking up to a bunch of dirty dishes in the sink.
Thanksgiving Day
Bonnie always begins the day by turning on the Thanksgiving Parade. Then she started cooking by soaking the cashews for the Green Bean Casserole from @daniellewalker. Ah, she’s sure got the art of multitasking down as you shall see..
I could barely keep up with Bonnie as she moved from one dish to another, with hardly anything written down.
One could say I was her sous chef, which I like the sound of. In reality, my job was to help her avoid logjams at the blender, mixing bowls, pans, sink and utensils. Thus I hunkered down with rubber gloves and did a lot of washing and scraping. Not as sexy sounding, is it?
Somewhere along the way, this tray of cauliflower florets showed up roasted to perfection for the Cauliflower Puree. I couldn’t resist a taste test.
Then Bonnie turned her attention back to dessert, and to getting the Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake into the oven. Thus I got to sample the leftover batter, once I got it off the blender, that is. I savored every minute of this task!
The Turkey
This year, Bonnie bought a 4th turkey breast vs. the usual 3. I admit to being skeptical about whether it would fit in the roasting pan. She was confident it would fit, and it did.
I love the expression on her face as this picks up this slippery turkey breast.
The recipe called for herbs to be stuffed under the skin. She used fresh rosemary, thyme, sage and basil.
Lastly, she added some dijon mustard to give the turkey a pop of flavor.
Then Laura was recruited to mash the sweet potatoes before they could move on to the next stage – the hand held mixer.
Often I forget how many steps there are to these recipes. Below Bonnie is adding the chopped pecan topping to the sweet potatoes to finish off the dish before it does into the oven with the turkey.
After a few hours, and several checks of the meat thermometer, the turkey is ready. Bonnie reports the pan is heavy (“Mom, take the picture already!“)
She took a brief break to pirouette around in her favorite apron (wish I had a video of that!). Bonnie loves the deep pockets. Don’t we all?
Joy!
Look at the absolute joy on Bonnie’s face as she take the popovers out of the oven and assess’s how much they popped! This was one of the best batches ever. They are really tall and fluffy. Success!
Maybe there’s not so much joy in the photo below. Can you guess which popovers are the gluten free ones?
Although this batch didn’t pop like the other one, these little muffins taste fantastic! You would think that they have butter in them when they don’t. These popovers remind me of the Bloomingdales ones I craved for years. When I got up the next day, they were the first thing I ate.
We’re getting closer to dinner! Hurrah! Bonnie is carving the turkey. I took this photo since it reminded me of a Wayne Thiebaud painting where he stuck a big black knife into a roundel of cheese.
It was surprising how fast Bonnie could carve the turkey. Clearly her knife skills are superior to mine.
Once the turkey was plated, it was a signal to start unwrapping the other dishes and place them on the buffet counter.
Photo op time!
“Only be quick about it so we can take our food while it’s still warm!”, says Bonnie. (Note: Besides removing the garbage bag, please remind me to take the sticky notes off the door next Thanksgiving…)
Bonnie always likes photos from up high. Hope she sends me this shot.
Soup’s On!
We started with the Butternut Squash Soup, which was simply delicious!
Dinner Is Served!
At last it was time to dig in for the main course. Very serious stuff…
Well, maybe not so serious….“Mom, enough pictures already! It’s time to eat.”
Menu
Here’s a photo of each dish so this blog can double as a 2023 menu planner:
Lemon Turkey Breast with Herbs (Rosemary, Thyme, Sage, Basil)
Quinoa with Apples, Broccoli and Braggs Vinagrette Marianade
Lastly, we come to my two contributions.
Roasted Broccoli with Rosemary and Thyme
Long Grain Rice with Fresh Dill
And here she is, the satisfied Chef.
The Chef’s Plate.
What a big hand I have! That’s a good thing for a sous chef…
The Finale – Dessert!
The unveiling of the Pumpkin Cheesecake.
What an amazing taste and texture this Cheesecake Pumpkin pie has!
I won’t say that Bonnie, Laura and I fight over the this addictive GF dessert, just that we’re on the honor system not to take more than our fair share. But it’s so tempting… I’ve been eating the teeniest slices since Thanksgiving to make my leftovers last as long as possible.
Finally, I have to close this blog with our annual Thanksgiving family selfie. It’s a tradition. As you can see, our Thanksgiving family motto is Let’s Get Stuffed. And so we did. The best tradition of all.
In addition, the tradition continues as we stuff ourselves for several days with leftovers. That could be the highlight of this holiday season… eating so well and not cooking for several days afterwards.
Food for Thought
After looking over the photos and thinking about all the dishes, I realize what an extraordinary meal this is. I know I’ve said this before in Mother’s Day: A Ballet of Flavors, but watching Bonnie put this together is a unique experience, like watching a choreographer arrange a dance. This is described more eloquently in the blog.
Bonnie, now I’m talking directly to you. You performed like the veteran food artist you are, and are in control of every step along the way. Even when things go awry, you calmly make adjustments but don’t lose your cool. These impressive character traits serve you well in cooking, teaching and, most importantly, in life.
This is truly a fabulous feast – and fabulous feat too! Thank you, Bonnie, for making this day so exhilarating and memorable.
For those of you who have visited in the past, this is the same event that was traditionally held in April. Studio tour preparation involved planting spring flowers… While I’m still in Ardsley, it’s at a new location. See Directions and Parking below for details. The most important thing that never changes is my passion for painting desserts – and sharing them with you!
Consider this an official invitation.
You are invited to my Open Studio this Saturday & Sunday, November 5 & 6, from 11 am – 6pm
Beverly Shipko’s Home Studio at The Lofts
423 Saw Mill River Road, Third Floor Lounge, Ardsley, NY 10502
Please note: The Lofts management has graciously offered the beautiful, contemporary Lounge space on the 3rd floor in my building (Building A) for this event. So I will be able to show you more than in my own apartment. While technically this isn’t my working studio, there will be work-in-progress and materials to show you. Plus, I’ll just picked up my newly framed prints that I am proud of!
When you arrive at the building, you will have to be buzzed in. Scroll down to read more about that.
And, the bonus is that another talented realist painter, Linda Friedlander, is a short walk away in the 3rd Floor Lounge of Building C (1 Mill River Lane). So this stop is a twofer (two artists for the price of one!).
Please feel free to contact me with any questions though email at beverlyshipko@mac.com or by cell at 914-954-7779. You can also reach me on Facebook (Beverly Shipko, Artist) and Instagram (@beverlyshipko).
Tour Maps For the RiverArts Studio Tour Weekend
As you can see from the official Studio Tour poster below, 80 artists in the Rivertowns (Hastings, Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry and Tarrytown) will be participating in this event. You can download the map in advance and print it at home and plan your strategy. I’ll be happy to help you plan your route.
For your reference, I’m #24 on the Studio Tour map and Linda is #23. Another fellow Ardsley artist and friend, Carol Sommerfeld, is #25 on the map.
2022 Studio Tour Weekend is here!
This is really a major milestone year for RiverArts which is celebrating its 60th year anniversary. Congratulations, #RiverArts!!
RiverArts Studio Tour Registration
Please click here to register in advance to help secure future funding for this annual event. “Attendance” matters (sounds like we’re in school again…).
Directions and Parking
Please contact me at beverlyshipko@mac.com for information for directions and parking.
I look forward to seeing you this upcoming weekend – and restarting this annual tradition!
I had a fabulous time on Thanksgiving 2020 – despite eating with my kids over Zoom – thanks to Chef Bonnie’s extraordinary culinary and planning skills.
My family and friends were almost afraid to ask about my Thanksgiving since they knew I would be eating alone. But the thing is, I didn’t feel alone at all! It was actually fun! I had plenty of company… starting with our traditional “Let’s Get Stuffed” family mascot… who was soon replaced as you can see here…
My Tablemates – Flat Laura and Flat BonniePLUS their zoom equivalents!
You might be wondering why the chairs say Flat Bonnie and Flat Laura. This was inspired by the Flat Stanley series of books, which Teacher-Chef Bonnie told me about, and Flat Stanley’s worldwide traveling adventures. The concept fit Bonnie’s 2020 Thanksgiving Feast very well since it was a traveling event. FYI. Here’s the official Flat Stanley 50th Anniversary template, if the spirit moves you to make your version.
Bonnie was determined to cook her usual feast, without any compromises – especially when it came to her signature popovers. She willingly undertook the challenge of cooking in her Manhattan galley kitchen and bringing the entire meal to me, with Laura’s help.
There were 4 basic phases to this traveling Thanksgiving event, both in Manhattan and Ardsley, N.Y. 30 minutes north of Manhattan.
Baking on Pie Night
Cooking the feast in Manhattan, which actually started 2 weeks earlier with a few side dishes (soup, cranberry sauce) that were frozen in advance.
Delivering the entire dinner to me in Ardsley, and sampling the desserts (yes, this is backwards, but it’s 2020 and the chef needed her sugar fix)
Driving back to Manhattan, baking more popovers, warming up dinner, and zooming with me. And taking lots of photos along the way!
Now for the details, and the devil is in the details.
Here’s Bonnie in 2020 rolling out one of the pie crusts on the big folding table that functioned as Bonnie’s living room work station, on loan from sister Laura for the big event. And then we can see the fruits of her labor.
Bonnie’s extended kitchen for the dayPumpkin Cheesecake Fresh Out of The OvenCherry Pie Filling on Bonnie’s New Non-Stick Miracle Pan from Our PlaceBonnie putting the finished almond touches on the Cherry Pie
Plus she made a Lattice Apple Pie. Bonnie always did like weaving loop potholders as a kid. Now she’s moved on to bigger and better things!
Phase 2 began on Thanksgiving Day, when Bonnie moved into high gear to cook her signature side dishes like Stuffin Muffins (3 versions this year!), which she had started prepping the night before. It’s a good thing Laura brought over such a big table!
Bonnie made the popovers in 2 shifts, which didn’t hit me until I saw these photos, the first round below being the GF popovers for me in Ardsley. I had just assumed the cooking was finished before they left. Wrong!
Then she got to work on the Stuffed Pears with Goat Cheese and Cranberries..
For the main course, Bonnie made her Lemon Herbed Turkey Breasts, which are amazing leftovers that seems to get more flavorful with age – if that’s even possible!
I’m always impressed by Bonnie’s ability to stuff all these herbs under the skin without ripping it. I don’t know how she does it! I tried it… once….
Usually I’m in the kitchen cleaning up after the chef, but this time I was home watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade (surprisingly good for a pandemic event without spectators!) and reading a book, far removed from all the action.
All day I was salivating at the prospect of getting a home-cooked Thanksgiving Day Feast delivery from Bonnie and Laura.
Finally, after a whole day of cooking, Bonnie shifted into Phase 3 and loaded up her cart full of food, and drove the 30 minutes to Ardsley. Where did all this energy come from? Ah, to be young again!
Finally, they arrived with food in hand!
Here’s she comes!Bonnie jumping the fence to get to my patio. I always chuckle when she does this.
I introduced the girls to their dinner stand-ins for the first time. Laura conveniently dressed in teal to match Flat Laura and make it feel more real.
Bonnie and Laura meet their doubles.
Bonnie started unloading all my Pyrex containers that she picked up two weeks ago. This time they were full of delectable food! I don’t know how I stopped myself from doing a tasting right then and there.
She arranged everything on my kitchen counter, with the side dishes appearing one by one.
Butternut Squash SoupSweet Potatoes Casserole with Pecans Green Bean Casserole with Crispy ShallotsRoasted Garlic Mashed CauliflowerStuffin’ Muffins (Gluten Free Version)Brussel Sprouts with GrapesThe Lemon Herb Turkey EntreeHomemade Cranberry SaucePopovers (Gluten Free Version)Sour Cheery-Almond Pie recipe from the Food Network Magazine, with a GF pie crust from Danielle Walker.Pumpkin Pie “Cheesecake” (which I savored for a week afterwards!)Lattice Apple Pie from Against all Grain (the flakiest crust yet!)“Here it is, Mom. Happy Thanksgiving!”Bonnie carefully documenting everything for her Instagram @bonniesbitesoflifeThe desserts before they were attacked…
Then Bonnie surprised me by unexpectedly announcing we were sampling the desserts before she and Laura drove back to the city. The chef said she was hungry and couldn’t wait any longer to sample her wares. Besides, it was already 7pm.
Bonnie served all 3 desserts to each of us, and we ate in different corners of the apartment – with the windows and the patio door completely open, fans on to get the air flowing, and the diffuser running with powerful anti-viral essential oils. I am proud to say we were CDC compliant.
While Bonnie was serving, I greedily gobbled my plate up. How’s this for a future painting?
They left me my one-third share of each dessert, which I used as a reward after walking every day the following week.
My hunk of the Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake. Wish I had that now!
Of course, I had to take photos of the partially eaten desserts for future paintings.
You can tell that leftie Bonnie cut this pie.Here’s my potential composition.
Then the kids packed up the remainder of the desserts for the trek back into the city.
And I waited patiently… sort of…
We’re now into Phase 4, where the kids did a repeat set-up in Bonnie’s apartment. Little did I realize how Bonnie had so thoughtfully choreographed the entire evening. I was given permission to eat the soup while waiting for the formal dinner festivities to start.
The kids set their table with soup at the same time.
Then silliness began.
After the soup course, Bonnie made two more rounds of popovers, one GF for Laura and a gluten pan for herself. FYI. My popovers were GF and dairy free.
Admittedly I was a bit sad that I was missing the real life big reveal, the moment when Bonnie pulled her signature popovers out of the oven – until I saw these epic photos around midnight. Even now looking at this photos, Bonnie’s unbridled popover joy shines through, and I get my warm fuzzies.
At the time, I wouldn’t figure out why I was being asked to wave.
Finally, dinner is served! We were all instructed to load up our dinner plates with each dish.
Bonnie’s dinner plate in ManhattanMy dinner plate in Ardsley
We sampled many of the dishes together, from the pecan sweet potato casserole, to the moist turkey breast with cranberry sauce with just the right amount of tartness (Bonnie has it down to an art), to the second round of desserts.
Bonnie’s Instagram story at @bonniesloo told it all. Here is her summary of the 2020 Thanksgiving Challenge in a nutshell:
And eat together we did – joyfully and gratefully. I am so lucky the girls are both close by.
What I’ll always remember about 2020 is that Bonnie took the Thanksgiving Challenge and excelled on so many levels – the initial idea, the planning, the execution, the humor and the love. So much thoughtfulness and love went into this 2020 Thanksgiving that I felt like we were together the entire time – even though we spent less than 30 minutes in my apartment!
It was the most unique, creative, clever Thanksgiving ever, while maintaining so many of our family traditions. As the same time, we were CDC compliant! I will always remember how happy we were despite the health challenges of the times.
Of course, I’ll end this blog with our Official 2020 Thanksgiving Day Photo.
2020 Thanksgiving Day Challenge Photo
Beyond a shadow of a doubt, this was the best day of 2020.
Thank you, Bonnie, for willingly, lovingly, and so skillfully taking up the 2020 Thanksgiving Challenge!
Tonight is the night before Thanksgiving, Bonnie’s traditional Pie Night when she bakes 4 Thanksgiving desserts, including an apple and pumpkin pie, of course.
I can’t stop thinking about a year ago tonight, when she made her sweet creations in my new apartment for the first time. It’s an annual tradition that I look forward to every year, and it feels strange, almost surreal, not to be her sous chef instead of Laura right now.
For some reason, I keep thinking that the spirit of Jacob Marley and his Ghost of Thanksgiving Past (ok Christmas, I’m taking creative license) are going to appear tonight, just like they did to Ebenezer Schrooge in Charles Dickens’ novel. At first I attributed this thought to covid brain. Then I realized the Ghost appeared to Schrooge to help him relive past holidays, and learn that he has to change. That’s what 2020 is all about – change. The idea actually makes sense now.
So lets revisit Thanksgiving 2019 when Bonnie enthusiastically cooked much of the main gluten free meal on Thanksgiving Day – before we start talking about change in 2020.
Maybe you caught the gluten free (GF) part and are less than enthusiastic about the feast. But who says you can’t have a delicious gluten-free Thanksgiving meal? Gluten free food often gets a bad rap. Doesn’t taste good. Lacks flavor. Last year, Bonnie plowed ahead with her GF Thanksgiving concept, and never looked back.
She disproved all the naysayers by delivering such a flavorful meal that we didn’t even notice it was gluten free!
Thanksgiving 2019 tested Bonnie’s organizational and cooking skills on many levels like never before.
Did you ever try and put together an ambitious GF Thanksgiving dinner menu of 2 main courses, 10 side dishes, plus 4 desserts, for a total of 16 dishes – in a small, strange kitchen without the utensils or pots & pans that you need to make a meal?
How did Bonnie handle that? She showed up with her strategically packed red suitcase that functioned as a traveling kitchen cabinet – with a rolling pin, baster, spatula, pie tins, honey packets and a popover pan!
That was the challenge Bonnie took on in 2019 as she prepared her menu, shopped, and cooked in my downsized, ill-equipped apartment of less than 2 months. To top it off, Bonnie was used to cooking Thanksgiving dinner in a huge kitchen, on large counters, and in a double oven.
I confess to being antsy beforehand since I was having a hard time finding kitchen items and serving plates from previous years that I suspected were still in storage, but Bonnie was undaunted. She eagerly started planning the menu weeks before, I helped gather up her ingredients.
Along the way, Bonnie and I realized we were missing a few things, and that more boxes of kitchen items were in storage than we thought. After looking around and comparing notes, I made a quick trip to Bed Bath & Beyond for a potato masher and a few plastic mixing spoons (I melted the only large plastic spoon I had in the dishwasher….great way to make an impression on everyone in the building by smelling up the whole floor….). Then we had to retrieve the big soup pot and 2nd muffin tin from storage, with the rest of my kitchen. (As you can see, she threw a few other boxes on the cart to help me out.)
Bonnie summed it up by saying this wasn’t her most elegant meal prep effort. Certainly things didn’t go as smoothly as in previous years. But she did end up making all 16 planned recipes last year. Here goes:
Butternut Squash Soup
Lemon Herb Turkey
Stuffed Mushrooms
Her Signature Popovers (that didn’t pop as well this because Bonnie tried a different Bob Red Mill 3-in-1 GF flour…oops!)
Green Bean Casserole With Crispy Shallots
Sweet Potato Casserole
Brussel Sprouts with Grapes
Stuffin Muffins (GF and Regular – only gluten item on the menu)
Roasted Garlic Mashed Cauliflower
Goat Cheese Pears
Cranberry Sauce
Here are the three GF desserts:
Apple Pie from Against All Grain
Sour Cherry-Almond Pie from the Food Network Magazine Pumpkin Pie (and this extraordinarily spicy version froze so well it lasted well into 2020!) from Bakerita
It was a fabulous, flavorful feast! Full disclosure: Bonnie made the gluten pumpkin pie in her own kitchen for her dad.
This year we are adapting our plans because of the pandemic. Bonnie is preparing the entire Thanksgiving Dinner in her Manhattan apartment for the first time. She and Laura are bringing dinner to me (masks and all, windows open) on Thanksgiving Day. After they return to Manhattan, we’ll eat dinner together on zoom, like so many people around the country in 2020.
During the week, Bonnie picked up my all my empty Pyrex containers and Mason jars. (Didn’t think to take photos.) The plan is to deliver them back to me filledwith her delicious feast food tomorrow. And it will all be gluten free and dairy free so I can eat everything. Am I lucky! I’m salivating just thinking about what awaits me tomorrow.
Now it’s after midnight and I just spoke to Bonnie. She finished the 3 gluten free pies with Laura’s help, and they decided to bring the finished desserts in tact tomorrow. We’ll have the dessert table unveiling (I better move my paintings off the buffet before they come!) like we did last year only with masks, and cut them together. I’ll get my share, and Bonnie and Laura will take the remnants back, if I leave them anything…. With 3 pies, that shouldn’t be a problem.
Thanksgiving 2019 seems like an eternity ago. When I thought about it last week, it felt rather ethereal and unsubstantial, like it was a ghostly dream. But after looking at all these photos, the entire fantastic eating experience is coming back to me. And I remember how Bonnie certainly debunked the gluten-free myths about Thanksgiving. I’m sure she’ll do the same this year.
It’s an understatement to say I’m eagerly awaiting the delectable food Bonnie and Laura are bringing tomorrow. In preparation, I started setting the dining room table that has my first Thanksgiving Ikebana spreading arrangement on it (my new obsession, more on that another time).
The familiarity of the tradition kicked in, and my mood shifted into full celebration mode and gratitude, a welcome change of pace.
And to think I’ll have a hiatus from cooking, with lots of leftovers.
Now it feels like the Thanksgiving holiday we all know and love. To Jacob Marley and your Ghost, I say, “Stay home!” I got the message. It’s time to enjoy ourselves in the present moment, and embrace our family motto, “Let’s Get Stuffed”.
Thanks to popular demand, I am posting photos from my Open Studio. The original post never made it up since it was scheduled for 2019… (my bad).
It was a glorious weekend! The weather was great, as was the turnout. The week leading up to the Studio Tour was less hectic too than in previous years; we learned from past experience.
This year’s guests were greeted by this Oreo themed display, including oil paintings, pencil drawings and original giclée prints, covering a span of over 15 years. Thank you, Bonnie, for putting together this visually pleasing retrospective. It made quite a first impression, especially for first time visitors.
My studio never looked so clean! I had plenty of room to show my latest vending machine paintings. I discovered I could fit eight 20 x 10 inch panels over the fireplace, which turned out to be the most requested spot for picture taking.
Vending Machine Series by Beverly Shipko
Husband Jay Sloofman, Beverly,our friend Rhonda, Daughters Bonnie and Laura
My friend Linda
Annette and her students
Work was scattered all through the house. At times, it was really packed with visitors. We somehow never get photos of those moments since we’re all so busy… It would have been smart to ask other people to take photos. I guess there is always more to learn…
The Three Muskateers from Central School
Desserts waited in the dining room for guests who were craving sweets after looking at so many food paintings.
The dessert table from Riviera BakeHouse in Ardsley
The very first arrivals
A lot of the fun comes from being surprised by who walks through the door, from different times and places in all of our lives. I’m happy to say the Shipkos were represented by my first cousin Robert, who I grew up with in Detroit, and his son Harrison, who grew up in New York like my two daughters.
Every time I looked at Harrison, I kept seeing my brother Stuart in my minds eye at the same age. It’s funny how strong familial resemblances can be. I was delighted that my Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates found a happy home with Sarah, who had been admiring it since first seeing the painting in the Hudson River Museum exhibit called I Want Candy.
And I can’t end this blog without moving into the kitchen for the annual Oreo Cookie Contest – where we had the unexpected pleasure of being entertained by Samantha’s amazing flexibility.
Finally, this year was a first when Charli and Jack brought their own work – and gave me an art show! That was just plain fun. I look forward to seeing more of their creations in the future.
As usual, I enjoyed Studio Tour weekend. Thank you all for coming!
Thank you to the team – my daughters, Bonnie and Laura, husband Jay Sloofman, and friend Maritza – for helping make this event a success. I could never do this without all of you! A special shout out to Doug Marouk-Coe and RiverArts® on the 25th Anniversary of the Studio Tour.
P.S. Despite our best efforts, there were several surprises that were out of our control, creating some concern in the weeks leading up to the Open Studio (an understatement…). I leave you with these two photos, when we were working on Plan B, just in case…
In case you’re new to my blog, let me introduce you to our in-house chef, Bonnie, and her sous-chef for the day, Laura. You can see what has become our Thanksgiving motto, Let’s Get Stuffed!
Bonnie is the mastermind behind our elaborate Thanksgiving dinner – and happily stuffed we are. In fact, we’re gleefully stuffed full of leftovers (a word that doesn’t do justice to the magnificent flavors) the entire weekend!
She is incredibly organized, starting with her typed up menu and shopping list. The ingredients are lined up on the counter in advance and ready to go – whetting our appetites for what’s ahead.
Wednesday night before Thanksgiving is Baking Night. It’s a family tradition that no one wants to miss, especially those of us who want to lick the spatulas… Bonnie starts by preparing her pie crusts, which is fun to watch. She stands on a stool to get more leverage with the rolling pin when she rolls out the dough. Smart lady.
In past years, Bonnie has made 4 or more different desserts. This year she found a Food Network Recipe for 4 Pies in 1. Why make 4 different pies which you can make only one? You can see the 4 different fillings: pecan, apple, pumpkin and cherry.
Bonnie recruited me to help with the crust since she says I have a particular talent in smoothing down the bumps and cracks. Probably something to do with being an artist, and the practice I had with my mother making apple pies. Glad to help. Here Bonnie is putting the cherry filling into the crust.
I thought the 4 Pies In 1 was done at this point. However, Bonnie still had to put the finishing crusts on the cherry and apple pies before baking.
Since this was a new recipe, Bonnie prepared a backup pumpkin pie for Jay, just in case. And she made gluten-free pumpkin muffins for Laura and I, which somehow I neglected to take a photo of. How can that be?
Pumpkin Pie
On Thanksgiving Day, Bonnie was up bright and early. By the time I got up, Bonnie had already prepped several dishes on her 17 dish menu, 20 items with desserts. Several variations of stuffing were included.
Bonnie with her signature Stuffin’ Muffins and Sweet Potato Casserole
Stuffing for Stuffin’ Muffins
Stuffing for the Mushrooms
Making the popovers is the highlight of Bonnie’s cooking odyssey. No doubt about it. She loves putting that popover pan into the over and watching the popovers rise.
The best part of the day is watching Bonnie’s face glow when she takes the risen popovers out of the oven. She loves it so much she does it twice, with and without gluten. No Thanksgiving or blog would be complete without these two popover photos.
For the first time, the gluten-free popovers seemed to rise higher than the regular popovers. Bonnie’s secret is the new 1 for 1 flour from Bob’s Red Mill, which is engineered so you can use the same amount of flour in the gluten-free recipe as in the original recipe – which turned out to be delicious!
As Bonnie started preparing the turkey breasts and I was documenting her progress, things got a little rowdy in the kitchen.
And then to here (remind you of the Magic Mirror from Beauty and the Beast?). So there is some silliness going on in the kitchen in this behind the scenes view.
At this point, I couldn’t keep up with the dishes and pots and pans. I called for reinforcements.
While the team was in the kitchen, I put the finishing touches on the table.
Bonnie hung the Friendsgiving banner over the mirror since we were having friends over. Somehow Bonnie managed to sneak upstairs, change into a sophisticated outfit, and greet Barbara and Bruce – just in time to finish rolling zucchini with guacamole for appetizers.
Zucchini with Guacamole
Stuffed Holiday Mushrooms
Barbara brought her bread bowl with dip and chips. Thank you, Barb!
One by one the warm dishes moved from the oven to the buffet table as we all enjoyed these delicious appetizers, while trying not to overstuff ourselves before the main meal.
Lemon Herb Turkey Breast
Cranberry Sauce with Orange
Roasted Asparagus with Tomatoes
Brussel Sprouts and Grapes
Sweet Potato Casserole
Cauliflower Puree (aka Mashed Potatoes)
Roasted Pears with Goat Cheese
Wild Rice Stuffing
Popovers – a Thanksgiving staple
Oh yes, I can just hear Bonnie saying that I forgot the Butternut Squash Soup (which was stored in a Mason jar that I somehow overlooked. I’m also missing a good closeup of the Pumpkin Muffins, but she didn’t notice yet…)
Bonnie got everything on the table, and took a second to sit and enjoy the fruits of her labor.
Bonnie still beaming with 2 different recipes for Popovers
Finally, dinner is served! The dining room is open. Help yourself while everything is still warm!
The girls: Laura, Barb, Bonnie, Beverly
Buffet Table
After taking a break to make room for dessert in the dessert stomach (an inside joke of the night), Bonnie presented her piece-de-resistance dessert. Turns out I had to move quickly since the tray is really heavy. (Take the photo already, Mom!)
Then the chef could sat down for the night, listen to our rave reviews, and take satisfaction that this was another job well done.
Of course, we marked the end of this wonderful Thanksgiving dinner with our traditional selfie. This time Bonnie set the timer on my new iPhone 8 and put it on a shelf. (Our arms weren’t long enough to include 6 people. I don’t know how you did it, Ellen Degeneres.)
After Barbara and Bruce left, the girls wandered upstairs for sister bonding time. Jay and I spent a while cleaning up, basking in the afterglow of a terrific evening.
We marveled at Bonnie’s ambitious menu and the super human energy it took to execute it. The menu featured distinct flavors, yet everything went well together. Jay and I were especially amazed by her Wednesday night baking adventure, which kept Laura and Bonnie up until 1:30am after both working day jobs.
Up to her elbows in pots and pans on Thanksgiving, Bonnie looked content and happy. Sometimes people ask why she does this every year. The answer is that it is a labor of love for Bonnie – and it shows on her face. She is focused and totally engrossed in the task before her. Everything else falls away. Of course, we are so grateful that she shares the love with all of us.
Later I went upstairs and found Chef Bonnie and her sous-chef.
So maybe Chef Bonnie is human after all…. Bonnie, thank you for making Thanksgiving such a superb eating experience (click for 2015 and 2014 when Bonnie established herself as the Other Food Artist in the Family).
For those of you who couldn’t make it, here’s a mini photo-blog tour. FYI. I meant to take an action video once people arrived, but I was too busy – and forgot to ask anyone else to do it.
When the big day arrived last Saturday, Bonnie and I were ready and waiting for our first guests, who arriving promptly at 11:00am.
My studio was amazingly clean, with just one table of oil paint tubes and brushes. I even surprised myself!
This display greeted everyone at the front door, totally arranged by Bonnie. Bravo! My big Confection Obsession painting was in the front hall too.
Confection Obsession by Beverly Shipko, Oil, 36 x 48 inches
With the new white walls, it really felt like a gallery.
And can you guess what got the most comments of all?
The broccoli, of course! Over the mantle and on the easel.
This panel of sweets attracted a lot of attention too.
It’s always fun to see who walks through the door. There’s never a dull moment. Here we are with Theresa, who made the first purchase of the weekend.
Liv of Riviera Bakehouse thoughtfully arrived with a box full of her tantalizing mini-cupcakes for our dessert table (yes, we had real edible desserts!). Perhaps there’s a mini-cupcake painting in my future…
Of course, our traditional donut holes were on hand from Dunkin’ Donuts – ostensibly for the kids, but downed by adults. Naturally, Jay dug right in.
We had neighbors.
Friends.
Loyal fans who come back annually. Somehow Samantha magically grew up into a young lady since last year!
After a whirlwind two days – including an artists party on Saturday night – our last visitor arrived on Sunday. Here’s Kathy, from my Kraft General Foods days. How nice it was to finally sit down and catch up!
And how funny it was that Bonnie looks like her daughter in this photo with all the curly hair.
Oh yes, did I forget to mention all the kitchen action with the Oreo Cookie Contest? We’ll get to that in my next post.
Where else can you bring your whole family to eat Oreos and look at art in one time – and be happy about it?
Stop by and participate in the Oreo Cookie Contest. Just take a bite out of an Oreo to join the fun. If I select your cookie to paint, I’ll name the painting after you since it’s your unique portrait.
Bring your kids and grandkids too! Feel free to invite your friends and family members.
They’ll be plenty of paintings to look at too. And desserts galore to go with the paintings, of course.
NOTE: Since there’s construction on the Sawmill River Parkway Exit #17 to Ardsley going north is closed, please exit at Lawrence Street Exit #16. You can e-mail me at beverlyshipko@mac.com if you have any questions.
Printed tour maps will be available. 80 artists from Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry, Hastings, Irvington and Tarrytown will be participating in the tour. Or you can go to www.riverarts.org to print the tour map.
Frankly I’m surprised by how much I like this little painting.
“Cinnamon Bun” by Beverly Shipko. Oil painting on cradled wood panel, 5 x 7 inches
There’s something about the combination of the swirls and the stripes of icing interrupting the circular pattern that I find appealing, as well as the cropping buns around a central image. Do you have any thoughts on why Cinnamon Buns just works?
Perhaps I’m attracted to the ancient symbolism of the spiral, would can mean growth and evolution. It can also symbolize female energy, the womb and abundance.
I started with this photo, which in hindsight looks rather unremarkable. At this point, my expectations were very low (more like nonexistent) for a cinnamon buns painting.
Then I cropped it dramatically on my computer, and thought it had possibilities as either a square or rectangular painting. In the end, I went with the horizontal format, cropping the image further.
The photo was so unmemorable that I had absolutely no idea where I took it. Fortunately, we’re in the digital age and I could go back and look at everything I took that day.
It turns out the photo is from the buffet at The Samoset Resort where Jay and I stayed in Rockport, Maine last June. It was a lovely day outside with clear blue skies. We had a huge breakfast before walking out to the Rockland Breakwater Light, which is about .7 miles. We carefully navigating our way around these big crevises.
I could barely see the lighthouse as we approached.
Fortunately someone had the foresight to add a pontoon extension out into the water for picture taking.
I thought about painting the lighthouse, but found another one that is more dramatic. It may make an appearance in a week or so as I make my way to non-food paintings.
However, I’m not ready to leave desserts or food just yet. Maybe I’m simply seeking out comfort foods in this cold weather. Right now I’m thinking about a cup of warm tea or coffee with this cinnamon bun. Another time.
