Some New Work, Some Old Thoughts

Small Sunflowers, 5x7.

Since I became "without job" a few years ago, I paint.

I paint and I play with  clay, and when I'm not playing with the clay, I'm painting it... and then I switch off and play with water colors and soft, smooshy pastels whose colors would not let me pass them by when I was in the art store many months ago. They bellowed to me until I came back around the corner from the masking fluid and stared at me until I counted all the single dollar bills and whatever change I had in my purse to see how many of them would accompany me home that day. It was precisely four. I wanted eight, but burnt orange, sage, turquoise, and Navajo reddish brown were the ones that were chosen and wrapped delicately in tissue and then placed in a small, sturdy box so that they would make the trip home safely. They remind me of New Mexico. The colors sharply contrast just like the weather and the air and the everchanging sky there.

About Painting . . . . .  I will put off dishes. I will put off cooking. I will put off laundry. I will put off eating........and if I have things to do during the day, which I often do, I will stay up until I'm falling asleep with my brush in my hand because I'm rather addicted to color and watching it move across paper. I've fallen asleep with a brush in my hand and a strange line across the paper... but I never understand those who can't make the time. How can someone who wants to paint say that they can't make the time? It's like breathing . . . . .  or maybe more like being addicted. I simply must. I don't feel the need to talk so much when I paint. I don't need to fill up space or time with words.  I just feel what I'm doing and let my thoughts spill onto the paper. And why speak when color can convey so much better what I'm feeling?

A couple of new things. And if you'd like to purchase - please do - I desperately need new paper, more paper. Just drop me a note at Dreamrkate@yahoo.com I'll get back to you soon.

6 x 18 inch watercolor,
matted in white, $40.
Available

Big Love, 9 x 12 inch, $50. Available

6 x 8 inch watercolor, in a glass clip frame.
Ready to go - $22.



9 x 12 inches, prints for sale only, $35.



Small Bouquet, unmatted, 5 x 7 original, $25.



Special art for a birthday boy, SOLD.
Commissions start at $45.

  

Sold, 11 x 22 inch watercolor, $65.

9 x 12 /watercolor, $25, unmatted.
Available.

 

Happy Doodling

Here are some of my recent doodling pieces - above are the Travelling Chicks who will be referred to by names that pop in my head. They are all loosely based on my Girl Trip Girls - Pat, Susan, Kathy, Sonnya and Cori ... and me.  If we ever head to Mexico we will be known as the Travelling Chicas.


So .... the LOVE art that I showed previously is done, and SOLD but here it is in it's finished glory.





6x18 - I love this size, a small panoramic.


And here are some of the Girls -





"Ohhhhh......Dearie Me, I have to run.........."



"You know I can hear you don't you?"



Here are the Girls relaxing at the lake.

The "Magic Bus," magic because it got us and
four kids pretty much whereever we
needed to go."

And finally our family van. My husband wouldn't probably let me paint it like this........ but I've personally gotten a lot of votes "for" it.

Stay tuned.

Kate .....absolutely a dreamer!



Both are 6x18 - the PEACE original is SOLD.

ART FOR SALE........

When my daughter was small she loved books, she still does, but when she was young she loved a book titled "Caps For Sale." I never knew if it was the story she loved or if she just liked saying the title but it was a funny little story about a man hustling his caps "for sale" and the challenges he had with a bunch of mischevious monkeys along the way. I kind of feel like that man some days. Every once in a while that book title still pops up, randomly, in our conversations, the same way that the phrase "Beautiful! Wish you were here!!" pops up. Totally unrelated and you would have to belong to our crazy family to know (and expect) that if my oldest son was present he would pop up with "What's that from?" and we all chime in "French Kiss." It's kind of like free association therapy around here sometimes. Moving on...

So now that I've got you in a "WhAt was THAT all About? zone - I have art for sale. Really bright, vibrant art. Pretty much all of my art is for sale all the time, but today I just need to step out there and say "Yes. I paint and this is what I do, and it's an occupation and I'm doing it." So I'm letting go of a few of my newest and most favorite pieces in an effort to make myself let go of them.

So here are brief descriptions, size, and price. If you're looking for art for yourself or as a great gift, now's the time.

You can contact me at DreamrKate@yahoo.com or call me.

K

This is my chicken/rooster. I'm non-
commital for some reason. And yes
it is really this vibrant! It's 11x15, unmatted.
$65.

This is also every bit as vibrant as this picture
indicates. It too is 11x15 watercolor. One of my
favorites just for it's watery movement.
$50.

You might need to be a child of the 70s to
get the whole Peter Max-y kind of thing, but
maybe not. Yes, it's WAY BRIGHT but it
reminded me of my old concert posters so I
just went with it. Also 11x15 watercolor.
$75

I need to add the bits in the background on
this one. It's a very clean, simple 11x15
watercolor.
$55

So both of these are in progress. I'm thinking of making a limited amount of prints because
someone suggested to me that it would be a fun thing for people to 'color'
The original is promised but I will be doing a very few other originals similar to this.
This is 8 x 18". Price is $75.

In progress. Soon to be seen. Stay tuned.

K

 

New Energy, New Work

What can I say? I'm obviously not a keeper of time and certainly didn't want to let this much time go by between posts - maybe I was uninspired.That may not even be it but as the season got colder before Christmas last I sort of went into hibernation mode I think. We had moved and I still havent found everything and just felt all-a-jumble. I was teaching an adult clay class, art in the schools, some subbing, and now I'm winding down on lots of reading tutoring. Now I'm ready for some creative time. SO .......I'll show you a few things I've been working on, some dogs who have been taken to live with other families .......not "taken out in the country to live on a farm."

I'll be working on dogs and cats and the occasional other animal as it strikes my fancy but I'll be directing some of my efforts to creating the stories that will be included with the animals.  At the recent Artists Open Studio Tour it was the dogs stories that sold them not my handiwork. They seem to create their own destiny.

Kate

Clarence has yet to be colorized.
He may get his color this evening.
He's quite refined and particularly
finicky about his clothes. He studied
at the Shakespearean Theatre in
New England and is a bit of a snoot.

Fraidy, the cat, is my only
cat to date and she
was snatched up by a
cat lover who told me
that Fraidy would be
needing some friends soon.

Hannah came from Sweden or Denmark, I forget
and spoke in such broken English with a lot of
"yah"s that I could not really understand what
she was trying to tell me but she spoke of fjords, A LOT. 
???? I have no idea what that was all about.



James is an aspiring thespian, He has
tights and likes to wear them
couples with colorful collars. He's a
bit of a girly boy.



Juan Valdez smuggled his way in to The States on a coffee
barge bound for Florida and has made his living playing maracas
for Gloria Estefan. He has lovely rhythm!

George and Wilbur respectively......still telling me their
stories but it's sad. They were strays and had no
clothes when they arrived. They were tossed out
and the only things they could take with them were
their most prized possessions - a stick and a ball.

Our Rosie, now a year old, and some of the
inspiration for my stories. 

You remember Princess..... big, girlie,
not really a watchdog. Loves to
fetch but so highly excitable that
she (shhhhh) pees just a little
when people come to visit. Shhh!

This is Spike Junior.......he's just a big oafy puppy.
More on him later.

Some larger beads and buttons I'm toying with.
They're peaceful and don't talk so much.

A lovely terra cotta dish.

Meet the King and Queen of
Mybrainia. I'm still trying to get the stories out
of them. There's a lot of humpfing and odd
noised that come from the King when he's
talking ......very upper crust and such. And
I've grown very weary of hearing about

how things are done in the Mother Country.

And so my friends.......that is all for the moment, but I do have more in the works!

K

Good Morning World!

Two cheery little works ~

Both are 4x6 inch watercolors.

I love the summery colors don't you?          

Whoops!  Forgot to sign the umbrellas. I'll do that now.


K

Two New Watercolors

In a color-thirsty day I tried my hand at a little 7x10 inch abstract of "The Woods."
Would look great framed simply with a 4-inch wide white mat.
This will be posted on my Etsy shop for $25.



This painting is quite a bit more color saturated than my screen shows. The red pot is deeper and the
flowers are a little bit brighter. This painting is on 11x15 inch 140 lb watercolor paper and
would look best framed with a bright white mat. This will be posted on my Etsy shop
for $45.


http://www.etsy.com/shop/DreamrKate

Tomorrow - something different maybe.

Kate



New Here At "The Pound" -

....  and they're all paper trained......!!

I told you that I like to go back and forth between paint and clay. While clay is drying, I'm painting. While paint is drying, and we all know how swell that can be, I clay. Since I have SO much going on in my head I need folks to share with.....so I make my dogs. A couple of years ago it was birds, but they've pretty much all flown the coop. So the dogs entertain me. And they can entertain you too if you are so inclined - they'll be in my Etsy shop here - http://www.etsy.com/shop/DreamrKate.

Anyway - new to the litter -



Meeeeet Spike!
He's a loveable character, always doing the whole-body wag, always ready to run for the stick.
He's a good watch dog too! He's gruff when necessary, loveable puppy slobber
for all the rest of the time. He does have a bit of a tic though - when he
jumps on the bed he likes to stand ON you, not next to you.
Just be forewarned!  





Meet the Bassett Sisters!
They're dainty, they're sweet. They wiggle when they walk,
and giggle when they talk, which they do incessantly. These little girls
and the best puppies. They're soft and don't bite and look
they even had their baby toes done. Everybody wants
a puppy for Christmas - and the girlies are the best
kind - and they're paper trained.



A Couple of New Things

As I've mentioned before, I am ever torn between clay work and painting. I love color (paint) but I really find it soothing to work with my hands smoothing, patting, carving a lump of clay into just something.Sometimes I start out with a plan but that's kind of rare. There are two ways I can look at this - either I'm totally rebellious by nature and just don't want to be told what to do.....and I could see how that might be correct but not terribly flattering; or, that I just want spontaneous design, when I sit down to make a bowl, it might want to turn into a multi-holed lamp, or a small dish might aspire to being a wonderfully appointed circus dog..... which as it turns out ......is just what happened.



Meet Beatrice, she's a real character.
If there's a good party around, she's in heaven,
and she really loves it when it's in her honor.





Meet Alice, she's sort of a dreamy, airy
character, humming and singing to herself all day.




Meet Pete. Pete is quite a guy and quite the looker too with that magnificent
nose and those long eyelashes. He's the Circus grip, a Pete-of-all-trades if
you will. If anyone needs anything fixed, they come to Pete.



Meet Cornelious. He's one of my favorites. He's happy,
friendly and a joy to have around. At the moment he's celebrating
his birthday.



Meet Max. He's a lover of cards. He sort of fancies
himself he "big dealer". I told him that it's not such a great profession
to go into but he didn't listen. He blew to pieces in the
kiln the other day and while I have most of his parts,
one is never quite the same after such a difficult
surgery. *sigh*

Now......painting. I've been working with watercolor for a while and decided to change it up a bit so I switched to oil paints. Not only do you have quite a bit of control but the colors are crazy vibrant as well.

These are both 8x10 oil paintings. They look better in person.

I have not  quite gotten the the cameral thing down.

Thanks for stopping by.

K. Pethoud