Today I had a little local art adventure – something new to me. I joined the Westchester Sketchers Group (no, not the shoes!) at the Neuberger Museum in Purchase, NY for an afternoon of sketching, sharing and chatting about art.
The Unexpected Sketch
I came home with this. Not at all what I anticipated going in since abstraction isn’t my thing. Quite a bit different from my typical food paintings, right? This abstract composition doesn’t even resemble any of the compositions in my Challenge paintings!
My interpretation of Louise Nevelson, 1973 at the Neuberger Museum
A Global Urban Sketchers Community
This is my second Westchester Sketchers event. The first being last week at the Hudson River Museum in Yonkers. This time around I knew what to expect. Thank you to my friend Betty for introducing me to this group, which is essentially a subsidiary of NYC Urban Sketchers and complement to NJ Sketchers. Both Urban Sketchers groups are a part of a worldwide sketching movement called Urban Sketchers. Who knew?
Their global motto is, “See the world one sketch at a time.” And maybe that’s what I’m going to do… starting by experiencing Westchester County and NYC from this new perspective.
The group meets in the lobby of the museum. Then we have about 2 1/2 hours to wander around the museum and choose something appealing to sketch, and create an image using dry materials (since we’re indoors in a museum). Afterwards, we share our work, and talk about the process.
My Process
After wandering around the museum the first time, nothing resonated with me. So I meandered through a second time. I remained undecided.
I considered these two pieces of art. Ultimately, I passed on the Richter since I thought it would do better in color (which I didn’t have). The African sculpture was still a possibility. Eventually I realized I was short on time (already lost an hour) so I better pick something and just do it!.
You can see another member of the group sketching away in front of this African sculpture.
Hans Richter, Wall Wood Relief IV, c. 1970 by Richter.
Eventually I paused at this Louis Nevelson (below) after reading the title. Even though it’s a black wooden wall relief, it is called Day/Night XX. This name intrigued me since I thought the more appropriate title would be Night, with Day being a white version of this wall relief. And Nevelson did work in white.
So I decided to sketch this as if it the original Nevelson before me was white and titled Day.
Materials
I sketched the whole drawing freehand, often standing (which I do at home when painting on an easel), using a soft graphite pencil (on the right) with a kneaded rubber eraser. (Note to self: Throw a ruler in my bag next time.) The smooth, stiff paper is called Bristol board, which I use for my 6 x 6 inch Oreo Cookie drawings. This was about 2/3 done.
Kneaded eraser, 6 x 6 inch Bristol board, and a soft artist pencil.
All of a sudden there was only 15 minutes left to add the contrasting, darker shading and small details, like the little staples holding those horizontal wires and the shadows on the horizontal molding near the bottom.
Time to stop and meet up with my fellow sketchers, uncomfortable though that is. The “final” version.
As I look at this, I realize my choice of subject was at least partially driven by my left-sided math brain, which was always drawn to geometry when I was a math major. How I always loved the challenge of solving geometric math problems! I guess I still do only in a different way.
Stretching or Sketching Outside My Comfort Zone?
Overall, today was a positive experience – even if I was uncomfortable going in. More so last week when it was my first time. Usually my paintings are carefully thought out, often ruminating in my head for weeks. Quick sketches are a radical departure for me.
However, I believe it’s a good thing to try new approaches and get out of my comfort zone. And to open myself up to different comments from other artists, as well to see how other artists approach this challenge. That’s how we all grow artistically and unlock new opportunities.
And no, the headline is not a typo. The best headline that captures the spirit of today is still Sketching Outside My Comfort Zone and not stretching – although I did a lot of both today and especially over the past few weeks.
Maybe that could be the subject of my next blog….!
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. 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!
In case you missed the Food For Thought Exhibition Opening last week, please join us at One Martine Gallery for the White Plains#SeriousFunArtsFestGallery Hop thisThursday, October 13th from 6 to 9 pm.
Food For Thought is featuring 29 of my paintings and prints through Thanksgiving Weekend (Sunday, November 27th), along with the delectable artwork of Nancy Cohen and rich still life photography by Andre Baranowski. Three of my vending machine paintings are showcased in this window display – of which I am very proud! (I can’t help myself…).
Gallery hours are Tuesdays through Saturdays 10 to 6pm, Sundays 12-5pm, Closed Mondays.
I am very excited about this evening re-opening, which is easy to be now that I’ve seen the show.
Webmaster Laura says this is my best show yet (of course she’s a bit biased, but it’s fabulous to hear!). The spacious gallery has a contemporary Manhattan vibe. Plus the entire exhibit is beautifully designed by Walker Manzke, Director of One Martine Gallery. Thank you, Walker!
Invitation
Here’s is the official email invitation.
Plus Gallery Hop Night is FREE and includes a total of 3 gallery locations all within walking distance of each other, one of which is One Martine Gallery.
One Martine Gallery (located at 1 Martine Avenue), is a new gallery in downtown White Plains, New York, within walking distance of the White Plains train station. If you’re driving, see the parking directions at the bottom of this post.
In addition, the Gallery Hop is part of a much larger Serious Fun Arts Fest 5 Day event in White Plains running from October 12 to 16, sponsored by Arts Westchester and presented by Montefiore Einstein. Specifically, it includes everything from concerts to live mural painting, a public art walking tour to dancing in the streets. Click here for more information.
While the official Gallery Hop time is 6 to 9 pm, I will be there closer to 5:30pm to greet people coming directly from work.
Normal gallery hours are: Tuesdays through Saturdays 10 to 6pm, Sundays 12-5pm, Closed Mondays. Food For Thought runs through Thanksgiving weekend.
Parking and GPS Instructions
Since I got a lot of positive feedback from my previous parking instructions, I am repeating them again here.
One Martine Gallery (not to be confused with the apartment complex 1 Martine at City Square on your GPS device) is located on Martine Avenue, a one way street going south towards the White Plains train station.
The parking garage entrance is just past the gallery as Martine starts to curve to the right towards Bank Street. You can see Seward Johnson’s statue of an embracing couple right before the driveway. See below for a photo and parking instructions provided by the gallery.
Finally, if you pass the entrance, don’t panic! Simply keep going around the block and try again. I found the entrance easily the second time – and that was without this photo.
You are invited to the Opening Reception of a two woman show all about my favorite subject – food!
The exhibit features over 20 paintings and prints of my work, including my latest and largest vending paint, Food Choices.
Food for Thought opens on Thursday, October 6, 5:30-7:30pm, at One Martine Gallery (located at 1 Martine Avenue), a new gallery in White Plains, New York, within walking distance of the White Plains train station. If you’re driving, see the parking directions at the bottom of this post.
I like what is written in the official invitation below, “Food sustains our bodies as art sustains our soul.” So this is your big chance to get a lot of sustenance – not to mention a sugar fix! The show continues throughout October.
Nine 6 x 6 Challenge Panel Paintings, mounted on black board (24 x 24 inches) with velcro, by Beverly Shipko
I am exhibiting with Nancy Cohen, a talented painter who also shares my predilection for sweets. And if you want to see more of her work, go to Nancycohenstudio.com.
Candies, 20 x 20 inches, Oil on linen, by Nancy Cohen.
PARKING
One Martine Gallery (not to be confused with the apartment complex 1 Martine at City Square) is located on Martine Avenue, a one way street going south towards the White Plains train station.
The parking garage entrance is just past the gallery as Martine starts to curve to the right, with the Seward Johnson’s statue of an embracing couple right before the driveway. See below for parking instructions from the gallery.
Finally, if you pass the entrance, simply keep going around the block and try again. I found the entrance easily the second time – and that was without this photo.
Sometimes we have to take some time to catch our breath and celebrate our achievements – no matter how large or small. And today I’m doing just that.
I almost titled this blog Finished! because that’s what I’m celebrating today – the completion of this painting. These days we are often so preoccupied with our chaotic world that we can be unfocused and leave projects half done. I am proud to say I got “in the zone” and finally finished Food Choices (formerly called Choices)!
Food Choices, Oil and acrylic on canvas, 36 x 36 inches
It’s now hangs in the place of honor over my couch.
Temporarily, the painting of a Box of Dunkin Donuts that was here for 3 years is “on break” until I figure out where to put it.
A Lot of Firsts
At 36 x 36 inches, this is one of my larger painting, similar in scope to my Bakery Display paintings. There are a lot of firsts here. Certainly it’s my largest vending machine painting to date. It also has the most food items (20) and most logos (15). So many logos! It’s the first time I attempted bananas, carrots asparagus and corn. Obviously it’s the first time I put them together in one image. When I began this painting, I didn’t realize how ambitious a project it was.
Nor did I realize all the intervening events that would keep me from finishing it. I started it when we were living in our spacious house where there was a dedicated room for my home studio. Unfortunately, I had to dismantle my home studio to stage the house for sale while going through a divorce. The unfinished painting was relegated to a display easel in the family room before going into a storage unit for more than a year.
Eventually I retrieved Food Choices and brought it into my much smaller apartment. In order to take up where I left off, I first had to figure out a whole new way of working creatively in a modest, compact space. No more sprawling trays of paint tubes for me! It has been a struggle to adjust. After commiserating and brainstorming with other artists about this common challenge, I eventually got into a flow and finished it.
A Blast From the Past
As I just proofed this post before publishing it, I realized that there’s a song running around in my head, Celebrate The Moments in Our Lives!, the tagline from a General Foods International Coffees (GFIC) campaign I worked on years ago. It’s funny how it stuck in my subconscious when I wrote the title to this blog – Celebrate the Moments.
In this particular GFIC commercial, a major lifecycle milestone was celebrated, the birth of a baby. But we don’t have to wait for these infrequent, monumental events to acknowledge our accomplishments. We can all benefit from stepping back and giving ourselves credit for more common and modest events that we are proud up – like the birth of a… painting!
I thoroughly enjoyed our Ikebana class this week! Ikebana is turning out to be an unexpectedly creative outlet for me, and has opened up new horizons that are here to stay.
The last time I posted Ikebana arrangements, they were beautiful centerpiece lessons from our Sogetsu school textbook, and made of typical flowers like red and pink roses and greenery, which you can see in Joy and More Joy.
This week our lesson was a freestyle arrangement with a Halloween/Fall theme, which means that I got to break out my box of light colored driftwood from my naturalist friend Steve who volunteer to work the trail behind my apartment. I tend to think more sculptural in freestyle too.
Leslie also gave us the option of creating Haunted Halloween Ikebana (clearly an American take on Japanese Ikebana), taking advantage of seasonal materials. I was so inspired that I ended up making 3 different arrangements, using various Ikebana techniques.
#1. Fall Theme. Orange is the salient feature of the first one.
This arrangement features gourds and flowers from Trader Joes, light gray driftwood, and a piece of dark, textured wood I found walking with my friend Ronna in Dobbs Ferry. (Sometimes it takes a village!) Of course, I can’t forget the water in the black container (or suiban in Japanese) which is an important part of this arrangement. I finished this pretty quickly since the design came easily.
#2. Haunted HalloweenTheme. While working on a second arrangement on a round white container (similar to the black above), I was startled to hear Leslie suggest that I take the container away.
I actually forgot that she could see what I was doing. It felt like Leslie was in the room, but she was on zoom. And it was a great suggestion and gave the design a more natural look. This was as far as I got in the allotted time. I wasn’t happy because the branches felt so bleak.
I asked the group for feedback during the last half of the lesson when everyone shares. I explained my original vision, and that I had looked for spider web netting to drape on the branches for that spooky quality, but never found it.
Then someone suggested using Spanish moss, and pulling it apart. It was like a light bulb went off! What a terrific idea that is, I’m thinking, especially because I can finally use those two small unopened bags of moss that have been sitting in my closet for a year!
Adding the moss made a major impact and this arrangement finally felt finished. It was conceived of almost as a tableau – almost like a stage set in its own little world. Somehow the addition of the moss reminded me of the Rose Bowl Parade floats with hanging moss that I watch every year on New Years Day, since the Big Ten always played in the Rose Bowl… hopefully with Michigan in it..
Getting spookier?
#3. Halloween. What would you call this one?
This last arrangement I made Sunday night before class. What I’ve found is that it’s a good idea to plan ahead for Monday’s class. I try to pick a direction on Saturday, and then go to Trader Joe’s at 8am on Sunday morning when the flowers are delivered… most of the time.
As I had already bought my orange flowers and was going through this planning process Sunday, I remembered that Steve had given me another piece of wood that had possibilities for this theme. I won’t say that the wood was ugly, just that it has character and I tried using it so many times before but could never make it work. Here’s a closeup of the top.
This time around, I thought it looked rather haunted, and maybe evoking scarecrows I used to see in old movies in the middle of corn fields (am I thinking Wizard of Oz?). So I put the wood in the vase (propping it up on rocks), and added dried grasses that reminded me of straw and scarecrows. Finally, I cut little white mums from large pots on my little patio that I bought at Westchester Greenhouses (a bargain at $8 each for such a large size).
This is what I ended up with. While I designed the arrangement so it could be viewed from all sides on my kitchen counter, this was my “front” when I began.
Here’s the side view.
Here’s what I considered the back, until Leslie got all excited the “back” so it became the “front” of the arrangement.
Leslie said it reminded her of the gargoyles on Notre Dame, which I included below for myself as much as for you.
Now that I’m comparing the two images (the middle gargoyle in the photo vs. the arrangement), I really do see why she said that. The wood has a head (even has an eye!), with the horn coming out, similar to the gargoyle. There’s the beige grass that almost feels like a shoulder, or wing, or whatever is coming out the back of the left gargoyle. The dried grasses come forward almost mimicking the corner curve of the Notre Dame architecture under the gargoyle (any one know what that’s called?).
Arrangements By The Other Students (aka fellow Ikebana addicts…). Carin and Susan had fun with this too. I was impressed with what they both came up with.
Let’s start with Carin’s, which has that decomposing feeling of Dutch vanitas and memento-mori still life paintings, reminding us of the transitory nature of life with its semi-bare branches, fading sunflowers and berries. All that’s missing is the skull… Carin even made her own container by carving out the inside of the pumpkin. She wins my Most Creative award of the week!
Ah, but the skull is here in Susan’s arrangement, which I thought was absolutely delightful! What a happy and macabre skeleton this is in its coffin-like container. She made the dark spider web herself using orthodontic rubberbands, and had wonderful white plant material that felt so ethereal like real spider webs do. (I admit I was envious at the time.) Susan wins my most Spooky Fun Award of the week.
The coincidence is that we both used the same orange flowers even though we live on opposite coasts of the US. When I looked up the flower on my seek app , my new favorite app that identifies species at the click of a photo, it turned out to be a pot marigold. Maybe Susan went to Trader Joe’s too in Oregon, or maybe she’s just lucky enough to have these growing in her backyard, which has been an amazing source of plant materials for this class.
Ikebana is having a major impact on my life – both in my everyday and artistic worlds. I take longer walks and look for different trails and habitats, studying the plants and trees as I go. After working with natural materials every week for a year, I went down to the garage to get my fake gourds with the stand I’ve been using forever for the fall. This time I had to put the fake ones back and fill the stand with real gourds from Trader Joes.
It’s funny but I’m already looking forward to next year’s Halloween Ikebana arrangement. That’s how I know this is really the start of a new tradition.
For weeks I’ve had this odd feeling that there’s a special anniversary I have to remember in October. I looked it up both in my hardcopy birthday/anniversary book and digital contact file, and found… nothing.
It took a while, but last week it finally hit me. The date I was trying to remember was October 27th, and it is Debbie and Mike’s anniversary! A few years ago, Mike commissioned me to do this vending machine painting as a surprise gift to his wife on their 6th wedding anniversary – which was their candy anniversary! Who knew?
“Candy Anniversary”, Oil and acrylic on canvas, 10 x 20 inches, by Beverly Shipko
At the time, I kind of kicked myself for not knowing the 6th anniversary was the candy anniversary given my confection background in advertising (a marketing opportunity missed!) and my addiction to painting candy.
Looking at Candy Anniversary now, I am pleased with how this vending machine painting came out. Maybe it’s because I can feel all the love that went into it. There isn’t anything I would change, and I can’t say that about all my paintings. As my mother used to say, artists have high standards and are a tough bunch to please, especially when it comes to their own art.
The Process
Mike gave this painting a lot of thought.
Once we decided on the size, I ordered a specially stretched gallery wrap canvas (1 1/2 inches deep) from SoHo Art Materials in New York City since Ampersand no longer makes a 10 x 20 inch canvas. This was the first time I used a canvas stretched on aluminum stretchers (vs. the typical wood stretchers) so the panel would never warp, and framing is truly optional. A real advantage. I’ve had many a canvas warp in me through the year.
From an artist’s perspective, aluminum is much heavier than wood to carry and transport (4 of these were very heavy!), which will increase shipping costs. I don’t know what’s more expensive – the cost of a frame or the incremental cost of shipping. Fortunately Mike picked the finished work up.
His vision was to use bright, colorful candies like M&M Peanuts and Reese’s Peanut Buttercups that they both liked to eat. Then Mike focused on making it personal and meaningful by embedding their wedding date, 10/27/2012, into the vending machine visual. The prices are the same as in 2012 when they were married. Note that when I painted my first vending machine in 2015, candy bars already cost $1.25.
Sketching is a critical step in any commission since it’s easy to make changes in pencil that won’t be visible in the final painting. As you can see above, initially I put in the anniversary date in a prominent place where it was easily readable.
Mike had a different concept in mind, more of a subtle “Easter egg” that you might not notice at first. (FYI. The term “Easter egg” in this context refers to a secret message, joke or screen buried in a software application; in this case a painting.) We moved the anniversary date under the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, where it is partially covered by the wrapper.
Once the sketch is approved, I start by painting the black acrylic background, as I have in previous vending paintings. I prefer acrylic to oil for the background since it has less texture and better simulates the smooth black metal of vending machines.
Notice that I take the painting off the easel to paint on a flat table. Usually it takes several thin layers of black acrylic paint to obliterate the texture of the canvas – and knock out those telltale little white spots that you would never find on a vending machine. This gives me more leverage to paint the details and avoids dripping onto the images.
I start with the logos in the center and move outward, defining the salient features of each bar, which also minimizes the chances of smearing the logos. The challenge is always to find a dry spot to brace my hand. That’s another advantage of using the acrylic background – it dries completely in an hour or two and offers a “safe haven” for bracing. Then I moved to the rest of the wrappers.
At this point, I’m refining the logos and doing little touchups. I like how the dimensionality of the bars comes through. Mr. Peanut M&Ms looks like he’s alive!
And here is Candy Anniversary in its new home.
Happy 9th Anniversary, Debbie and Mike! I certainly will remember the date next year. It’s forever printed on my psyche.
Hope the 9th anniversary is as sweet as the 6th. Next year your 10th anniversary is aluminum or tin. Maybe there’s a Warhol-type Campbell’s Soup Can painting in your future…
Wishing you love, laughter and happiness for many years to come.
Recently I went to the Preview Show at the Hastings Municipal Building of this years abbreviated 2021 RiverArts Artists Studio Tour, this year as a visitor rather than a participant. I decided to take a break this year to figure out my 2022 post-Covid strategy now that I’m living in an apartment. (In 2020 I only got as far as my postcard…) The Hastings show is up through October 24th, while the Dobbs Ferry Library Preview is up through October 29th.
Now let me introduce you to a new face on the Tour.
My walking buddy and fellow realist, Linda Friedlander, decided to participate in the Studio Tour for the first time. She is an accomplished artist, and her striking still life painting greets you on the left as soon as you enter the Hastings Municipal Building.
Linda Friedlander, “Elaine’s Bowl/Amy’s Apples”, 2015, Oil on canvas, 24 x 36 inches
Lets take a closer took. The details of the fabric and porcelain are so rich, the apples so enticing, and that pierced dish is so exquisitely painted. I would never have that kind of patience!
Linda caught all the subtleties of the glass reflections and cast shadows from the pierced porcelain.
This is the best of contemporary realism. Linda’s fascination with transparency and complex tabletop compositions evoke the work of Janet Fish (who had a fabulous retrospective at DC Moore Gallery in NYC a few years back) – the ultimate compliment to Linda since I love Janet’s work and she’s such an acclaimed artist.
You can see Linda’s work for yourself this Saturday at the Dobbs Ferry Presbyterian Church. She’s number 11 in Dobbs Ferry on the Studio Tour map.
If you can’t make it, you are invited to the Opening Reception of her solo show on November 14th at the same location from November 7 -December 12.
Back to the Hastings Preview Show for a moment. I must point out this epic painting by veteran Studio Tour participant, Madge Scott. It has much more presence in person.
“Identity Series Welcoming Committee”, 2021, oil and other media, gold leaf, 24 x 50 inches, by Madge Scott.
When you come right up to the painting, you see that a section of the dress is a beautiful collage (which I actually missed the first time around until Linda pointed it out to me.)
Vicky Youngman, “Breaking Free“, 2018, clay and glaze, 15 x 12 x 3.5 inches
Here’s Vicky on the right with Kara Lenkeit, who is on the Studio Tour Committee.
Below you can see more of the tribe. Thank you to Kristen Javier (on the left below), talented mosaic artist, who posted this photo on Instagram.
I wish I had taken more photos of people like Doug Coe, retired RiverArts Executive Director, not to mention a selfie or two… But wouldn’t you know that I found this ethereal photo of me entering the Hastings Municipal Building on Instagram. There I am, in all black, with my big purse.
It was such a shock to see the front hall empty. In this new world of Covid, the banquet table of delicious food from past years went AWOL, but I was somewhat consoled by outdoor music near the Hudson River.
I’m looking forward to going to the Studio Tour this Saturday – and seeing what Linda and other artists have been up to lately. That’s the value of the Studio Tour. It’s a great opportunity to talk to artists and hear firsthand about their techniques, materials, and how they think about the creative process.
It’s an annual tradition that has been sorely missed. I’m glad RiverArts didn’t wait until the spring to return. Hope you can make it.
What a gorgeous day it was when I went to the New York Botannical Gardens to see Kusama: Cosmic Nature which runs through October 31, 2021. 65 degrees and sunny. Perfect. I still get excited to see art again in person instead of on zoom.
Knowing I was seeing a sculpture installation by Kusama, aka The Dot Lady, I put on my polka-dot mask to get in the spirit of things. And what do you think greeted me at the entrance to the garden?
Polka dots, of course! I fit right in.
The cool thing about this sculpture was how dramatically it changed as you walked around this whimsical sculpture, called I Want to Fly to the Universe.
From the back, it looked like a completely different sculpture.
What I like most about the Kusama show is the variety of the installations. It turned out to be important to look at the map to see the highlights.
For example, one unassuming building near the entrance delighted with a mesmerizing experience of being indoors in an unending room of light-infused polka dotted pumpkins, called Pumpkins Screaming About Love Beyond Infinity, 2017. I would have totally missed this without the map.
A short distance away, I came upon this green house-like structure teeming with red flowers of sorts, appropriated named Flower Obsession.
As I waited online to enter, I was given this sticker on plastic and was invited to place it where I wanted. This was truly a participatory, interactive experience, a nice change of pace.
When I walked in, I could see flowers everywhere! From the wheel barrow, to the dining room table and chairs, everything was covered in red flower stickers. I took my time looking, carefully picking the territory I wanted to mark with my sticker.
I finally found some virgin territory on this philodendron plant in the corner. You can see my sticker on the right side of the leaf. It felt strange putting a sticker on a living plant, but I did it anyway. Notice how different stickers with blue centers and larger pink-ish daisies had been handed out to previous visitors.
Then I headed off to the conservatory, but was drawn instead to this large polka dotted series of irregularly shaped fingers, which turned out to be a pumpkin in motion. You can feel the motion from this view. I probably should have figured out this was a pumpkin since Kusami is obsessed with them, which she exhibits frequently around NYC and the world.
While I was waiting in line to walk through Dancing Pumpkin, a fellow visitor actually asked me if I planned my mask around the visit! Someone actually noticed.
I had plenty of time to study this view since only a few people were admitted at a time, not so much from covid precautions, as much as to prevent damage from having too many visitors walk through. The guard said this artwork had already been repaired several times.
As I finally approached Dancing Pumpkin, these finger like projections beckoned, and somehow reminded me of Louise Bourgeoise’s spidersculptures; I’m not sure why. Maybe because these spiders and pumpkin installation are so large, and are both representative sculptures with “legs” that you walk through, unlike so many abstract installations, such as those by Richard Serra. (Ok, maybe the spider comparison seems like a stretch….but it works for me.)
This is the view from inside out, where the pumpkin’s legs look like octopus tentacles or giant drips, take your pick. Ever hear of an old horror movie called The Blob?
I decided to look for a signature and finally found it.
After the Dancing Pumpkin detour, I wandered over to the ticketed Enid A. Haupt Conservatory show to be greeted by this series of whimsical, exuberant polka dotted flowers – which seemed to carry on the dancing theme.
I was delighted to find this monumental golden pumpkin hidden amidst a larger greenhouse installation, but it felt so static after seeing and experiencing Dancing Pumpkin and those exuberant flowers.
There were more polka dotted flower sculptures installed in the outdoor reflecting pool.
I couldn’t resist taking photos of these vibrant tulips scattered around the perimeter of the reflecting pool, I wondered if I could ever paint them, but they look unreal to begin with. Maybe I’ll stick to photography…
I could see the Infinity Mirror Room from a distance, which was closed when I went due to covid.
Webmaster Laura was kind enough to share her more recent photos of the Infinity Mirrored Room, saving me the $10 entry fee.
Kusama’s installations are very cool! And this one looks particularly colorful.
Then I encountered a series of white on red polka-dotted wrapped trees, a la Christo’s wrapped installations of islands, the Arc de Triumph, and more. Kusama presents us with her own unique perspective on wrapping in Ascension of Polka Dots on the Trees.
Polka Dot Row, Photo by Webmaster Laura Sloofman
Finally, I went in to the LuEsther T. Mertz Library Building to see the Cosmic Nature show. Can’t miss that polka dot banner, can you?
More polka dotted cellular creatures greeted you in the entrance hall.
As I entered the gallery, I quickly encountered this sketchbook of flowers. Apparently Kusama filled numerous sketchbooks with flowers at a young age in Japan. I was enchanted by these drawings, which I couldn’t photograph myself, especially since our upcoming Ikebana lesson had us drawing details of our arrangements.
After studying the few Kusama’s drawing included in the exhibit, I was eager to get started on my own sketches. I hadn’t drawn flowers in years – I was too busy with food and vending machines.
As you moved deeper into the gallery, Kusama’s vibrant, whimsical, biomorphic cellular shapes and colors greet you, like old friends.
There was one painting called….that spoke to me. It called to mind my Cosmic Oreo.
By this time, it was past 1pm and I was hungry for lunch. My last stop on the map was this major installation. From a distance, I thought it only merited a quick walk through.
As I got closer to Narcissus Garden, 1996/2021, I realized I had been too quick to judge. I had underestimated the multisensory aspect of the installation. So I dug deep in my purse and found a small pumpkin seed snack bar (how appropriate for this show!) to tide me over.
The first surprise was that each sphere reflected the white fluffy clouds floating in the blue sky, like mini holograms of the cosmos.
Then, what looked like a static installation was anything but. The silver balls drifted slowly from side to side as the gentle breeze kicked up a notch. I took a seat and watched them move back and forth, which put me in a meditative state for a while.
Not only did the balls line themselves in natural rows, which was unexpected, but they clinked against each other making subtle sounds. The longer I stayed and the more present I became, the louder their “voices” seemed.
As I walked out, the balls were on their slow, steady march across the pond once again, accumulating along the opposite side.
This was a satisfying end to a lovely day.
I would highly recommend a visit to the NYBG to see the show, and to enjoy the gardens. The restaurants are open, which makes it easier to spend the day there. Reservations are required, and are sometimes more difficult to get than expected, even for members. So make reservations ahead of time especially on the last 3 weekends in October before Kusama Cosmic Nature closes.
Remember, if all else fails, you can probably get a Garden Pass to see everything in this blog post that’s outdoors – not to mention the rest of this expansive garden. I just made another weekday reservation for myself to stroll by and view Kusama’s whimsical installations again, this time against the beautiful ever-changing cosmic fall colors. I wonder if the silver balls in Narcissus Garden will be reflecting some rusts and reds this time around.
Something new and exciting crept onto my dinner plate tonight. And it’s an exuberant yellow and orange.
Here’s the backstory. Maybe you won’t be so surprised if you have read More Joy.
There’s been a silver lining for me during this pandemic.
Over a year ago, my sister-in-law, Leslie, reached out and asked if I would be interested in taking an Ikebana class from her over zoom, which she was trying to teach with for the first time (as was everyone when the pandemic began). Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. I jumped at the chance to study Ikebana with her! And I asked my friend Carin if she wanted to join in the fun. There’s 5 of us on zoom every Monday morning, including Leslie.
For years, I’ve admired Leslie’s Ikebana arrangements from afar since we never lived on the same coast, let alone the same city. Leslie took her first Ikebana class after college, when she lived in Japan with her husband Leigh, who was stationed there for a few years.
I have been deeply touched by this class, which could perhaps be described as a mini-addiction – only rivaled by my obsession with painting food.
During class, Leslie has wondered out loud several times how Ikebana was going to affect my painting. So have I.
I have painted flowers before in my pre-food years. They tend to be focused, single images. One of my favorite flower paintings is hanging in my daughterBonnie‘s apartment. Purple is still her favorite color.
“Iris“, by Beverly Shipko, 1980s, Acrylic, 36 x 24 inches
During my small 30 Day Painting Challenges, I interspersed flowers among my subjects. I have always enjoyed flowers and admired Georgia O’Keefe’s bold images since I was a kid. You can read more about each of my flower paintings below – Sunflower, Peony, and Tiger Lily.
“Sunflower” by Beverly Shipko, Oil painting on panel, 6 x 6 inches“Peony” by Beverly Shipko, Oil painting on panel, 6 x 6 inches“Tiger Lily” by Beverly Shipko, Oil painting on panel, 6 x 6 inches
When I recently spotted a clamshell package of brightly colored edible flowers at a new local grocery store, Mom’s Organics Market, on an impulse I bought it.
Soon I discovered how much fun it is to liven up the plate with different colors and textures, and to cluster the flowers together as I do in my Ikebana arrangements. I laughed out loud when I realized I was playing with my food – something we discouraged the kids from doing when they were little. And I was having such a good time!
At the moment, I don’t know how Ikebana will affect my future paintings and body of work. However, I am excited to see the two worlds of Flowers and Food finally come together on this unconventional purple canvas that we call a plate.
A few days later, I went out and bought a bouquet of multicolored pink roses for my weekly zoom Ikebana class, which is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. Marie Kondo would have approved since the flowers sparked joy – in her words – and still do looking at these photos. The lesson was our first centerpiece, designed to be viewed from all angles including top down. So it did well on my low ottoman.
Of course, I couldn’t resist putting the final arrangement near the pink donut pillow and painting, where I could enjoy the combination every time I walked by. (Admittedly the day glow, hot pink pillow in the first photo somewhat overpowers the arrangement, but didn’t in real life.)
It wasn’t just the finished product that sparked joy (which I was initially not sure about), it was the process of assembling the entire centerpiece – and looking at it from every point of view. I was completely absorbed and challenged by the task at hand.
The hardest part was getting the first 3 branches in (actually 2 branches and a long stemmed rose) radiating outwards at 120 degree angles to each other. It was like drawing a math pie chart with 3 equal size pieces in flowers. Only it was more challenging since the center of the design is off to one side, as you can see below. I was struggling until I got out a step stool and looked straight down onto my kitchen counter, where I make my arrangements.
The low cluster of roses in the center went in last. It was an iterative process. Put a flower in, turn the container, take a flower out. Maybe put greenery in, and turn again. Raise a flower, shorten a flower. Turn. Made me think of that song Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is ASeason) by The Byrds.
During our zoom class, I showed my finished arrangement for the end of class critique (just like art classes!) by turning the container the full 360 degrees with both hands. For this blog, I haven’t quite mastered the art of turning with one hand and taking a stable video with the other.
So here are a few of the still photos I took after class of Sogetsu Ikebana Variation No. 6 Horitzontal Style Moribana (meaning low container). Notice how water, with its reflections of light and color, is a key element in this arrangement.
Sometimes I’m not quite sure what my daughters truly think of my pink Ikebana arrangements. It’s fascinating that they both seem to avoid wearing pink (if at all), perhaps because it has Barbie-like connotations from old fashioned generations. I still enjoy putting on deep pink to brighten myself up, with its positive connotations of cotton candy, romance and sweet memories. In high school, Mom told me I looked great in pink, which I should wear if I wanted to “snaggle” a guy…
Ah, the joy of pink endures – aside from donuts. Now it’s manifesting itself creatively in a whole new and unanticipated way through the spirit of Ikebana.
Sometimes the simple pleasures in life give you the most joy. Like eating a sprinkle donut on National Donut Day. Or painting a sprinkle donut for Dunkin Donuts to celebrate the day. Or… finding this whimsical donut pillow on a random shelf in Target.
Oh, the unbridled joy I felt when I stumbled across this pillow in the window treatment section shortly after I moved into my apartment – and had just donated so many pillows from the old house to the Vietnam Vets (www.pickuplease.org).
Intellectually, I knew I didn’t need a pillow. Emotionally, my heart knew I did.
The pillow spoke to me – Buy me, buy me! Take me home and put meunder the donut painting. And so I did.
You can see how I still feel about this pillow from my face. A genuine smile – one that comes from the inside.
What amazes me is that when people come into my apartment, which is packed full of stuff (haven’t converted to minimalism yet!), they make a beeline for this pillow. It seems to have a magical magnetic pull.
Frequently, the first thing they say is, “I like your pillow”. Not my paintings or my apartment, but my $14.95 pillow.
Here’s the unexpected bonus: Should I start craving pink frosting like I did as a kid, I can simply turn this reversible pillow over – and imagine biting this monster size donut in all its sugary pinkness.
After spending over a year of the pandemic in close quarters with this pillow, it still brings a joyful smile to my face.
Perhaps it’s the single best $14.95 purchase I will ever make.
This past week I was talking to my Uncle Melvin in Georgia and we both agreed that we didn’t have any real news since we don’t go out much during the pandemic. We chatted a bit and hung up.
And then I remembered – I did have big news! Even fun news! I immediately called Melvin back and reported that Webmaster Laura (my daughter, his niece) won the March Madness Basketball Pool and $2,000! (Ok, ok, not exactly. It was $1,970. or 70% of the entry fees.) He immediately commented that Laura was following in her Grandma’s footsteps, and he was proud of her! Mom won the pool in 2013 and $1,600, which you can read about at http://A Mom Who Loves Sports
FYI. Laura won the pool in 2009 with her UNC pick, so this is her second win. Both Mom and Laura also took 3rd place in other years. Mom was usually up near the top of the rankings. I don’t know how she did it year after year. And I won once with a Duke pick. How’s that for Girl Power?
Mom indoctrinated my girls with her love of sports at an early age. Here Mom is in 2004 with a youthful Bonnie and Laura, wearing a Michigan block M hat her Grandma gave her (courtesy of a garage sale, of course).
We all entered the March Madness pool run by our accountant’s office every year, a family tradition. I can feel Mom smiling down at Laura, as she reads this screen shot showing there were 140 entries with Laura at the top. It’s something we all aspire to.
This screenshot below shows Laura’s #1 entry with 314 points, 15 points ahead of the #2 entry. It’s noteworthy that Bonnie placed #20. Good job, Bonnie! I get a particular kick out of seeing Laura’s name at the top of the heap, ahead of so many macho men who are self-proclaimed sports experts.
Given that we are Michigan and not Baylor fans, we didn’t have any t-shirts, stuffed animals or pennants to cheer Baylor on to making history. Instead, Laura started her lucky sheet below with her predictions before key games. Ok, so Michigan flamed out to UCLA in the last few seconds, as did my entry. And UCLA lost to Gonzaga. But we have to thank UCLA for wearing Gonzaga down in overtime on Saturday, April 3rd, just in time for the Monday night championship game against Baylor two days later.
Laura didn’t want to jinx Baylor by being overconfident before the game started. But after Baylor had a consistent lead in the second half, she wrote Baylor in large caps on her prediction sheet to cheer them on. Whoever thought the game would be such a lopsided win for Baylor over undefeated Gonzaga?
The tournament’s name – March Madness – was especially fitting this year. Since 2020, when the tournament was cancelled altogether, we’ve seen defining upsets and victories, both on and off the court. We are so grateful to the players and their support staff for bringing the tournament, and our spirits, to life.
Webmaster Laura, congratulations on your second exciting March Madness win – although you’re always a winner in my book!
Happy Valentine’s Day Weekend! There’s no better time to look at boxes of delectably rich chocolates, is there? As I went through the series of three paintings, I was somewhat surprised by what I found.
This blog was triggered by this painting that I basically forgot about since I didn’t have it in hand. I never took a photo of it to put in my digital painting library. After an extended Michigan “art tour”, this Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates painting (oil, 11 x 14 inches) recently made its way back to me.
Mom had this painting hanging in her condo for more years than I can remember, and loved it! Isn’t that what Valentine’s Day is all about – love? It all fit together for her given that hearts are symbols of love. Out of all the paintings I had, she chose this one for her Valentine’s Day present.
It hung to the left of that patio door for more years than I want to remember.
When you get close, you can see the impasto technique that I was experimenting with. It was very loose and free and all about the paint texture.
Impasto Detail of Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates, 11 x 14 inch
While I always liked it, and am pleased to have it again, at the time maybe I felt it was a little rough around the edges compared to the vision I had in my head. I do love revelling in the luscious, thick paint of the impasto style, and return to it every so often.
That realistic vision came to fruition in this Large Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates (Oil, 16 x 20 inches) that preceded Mom’s impasto painting. This composition had so much detail with its 30 chocolates, and back then I had so little time when the kids were little. I confess that my patience was running thin during the execution phase.
Large Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates, Oil on canvas, 16 x 20 inches
I’m actually surprised that I chose such an ambitious, complex composition as my first painting on this subject. Usually I start more simply and work up to the more complex.
The end was worth it though. I can feel the love that went into it! Apparently the couple that bought it from my Freelance Cafe show in Piermont, NY thought so too. They bought it right away, along with a complimentary comfort food Carrot Cake of the same size to hang as a pair.
Later that year, I explored painting a square mini-sampler box of chocolates. I experimented with different shades of white, always a challenge as you fellow artists know. You can see one of my first crumbs next to the half eaten chocolate.
A few years later, I returned to a smaller version of the Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates (Oil, 9 x 12 inches), also in a mini-sampler. After playing with whites, I was attracted to the contrasting bright red box and its distinctive heart shape.
Since it only had a few pieces of chocolate, I took my time and painted in more detail. The crumbs are bigger and play a more prominent role in the composition. While the texture of the paint is still important, especially in the background, my technique is much more refined. I like the light and cast shadows, and the translucent wrapper. There’s something to be said for practice.
Small Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates, 9 x 12 inches, Oil on canvas,
This little gem was exhibited in the I Want Candy: The Sweet Stuff in American Art at the Hudson River Museum (HRM, 2007-2009), along with Bonnie’s Carrot Cake (in 4 panels). Being a traveling exhibit that lasted several years, this painting saw parts of the country I may never ever see.
Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates also had the honor of being placed next to one of Wayne Thiebaud’s pastels in the catalog.
Afterwards when Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates came home for one of my Open Studios, it found an admirer in my friend Sarah, who remembered it from the HRM show. For many more years, she raved about it and enjoyed it from afar. Finally, several years ago it spoke to her during my Open Studio and she bought it for her collection.
It’s funny because I recently saw this painting hanging in her house. Sarah and I were on zoom with some friends, and the next thing I knew she turned her computer around and showed us Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates. It was like seeing an old friend!
As I write this post, I realized how much pleasure I got out of working on this subject. Maybe it’s time to return to a image with so much HeART.
Finally, Happy Valentine’s Day, Mom! With your painting on display in my apartment, I can’t help thinking of you. You’re in my HeART, especially since you’ve always been such an ardent supporter of my art.
