Fairy Tales and Art: The Perfect Giveaway!

I have always been drawn to fairy tales, folktales, and myths. As a child I was drawn to them on a gut level.  As an adult I've studied them from a Jungian perspective, which has made me love them even more.  They are powerful stories with transformative power.

I have always loved art too.  Creating it, admiring it, owning it.  Since retiring from teaching (High School English) in 2014, I have spent most of my time painting.

Now artist Tam LaPorte has created a new multi-instructor mixed media art workshop called Ever After - it's all about fairy tales, and each instructor is giving a way a spot!!  I am entering this wonderful giveaway, and offering you the opportunity to do the same.  One of the wonderful artists taking part in this workshop is Effy Wild.  You can enter her giveaway by clicking here: Ever After Giveaway

First Lessons from LFI 2016

Lesson one - draw/paint a face that shows your current level of talent.

Graphite drawing from a reference

Painting without a reference

Lesson 2 - Show Your Journey

Lesson 4 - Instructor Petra Stein

Dry Brush Technique - acrylic, oil pastels, watercolor, charcoal, graphite, and collage

Journal 52 Week 1: Choose Your Word for the Year

I chose "surrender."  I want to surrender to my HIGHER self this year.  I'm my own worst enemy, and if I can just stop fighting the better me that wants to emerge.......Just imagine!

Win a seat - Yay Effy!

 Check out this blog hop giveaway!  

http://effybird.com/2016/01/spectrum-giveaway/

Robin Laws and Let's Face It - this just keeps getting better and better!

Robin is giving away a seat in Let's Face It.  Click here to enter!

Olga Furman and Let's Face It 2016

Mixed media artist Olga Furman is giving away a spot in Let's Face It 2016!  Click here to enter!!

Another chance at Let's Face It!

An amazing artist and one of the Let's Face It teachers, Juna Biagioni, is giving away a seat - another chance to win!

Online Workshop Giveaway!!!

Check this out - I'd love to win a spot, and you could too!
Let's Face It Online Workshop Giveaway

Win A Spot in Radiant II

The amazing badass artist Wyanne Thompson is giving away a spot in Effy Wild's Radiant II !!!!

Enter the giveaway!!!

LIfe Book 2015 - Beacon of Light

I am loving Life Book 2915!  This is my take on one of the first lessons, done on sturdy watercolor paper.  Full of mixed media yumminess!

"You've Got A Friend"

I'm excited!  I am beginning to feel that I may actually have some modest, very modest, financial success at this art thing.  I finally started creating on canvas and other substrates, instead of only in my art journal.  This piece, titled "You've Got A Friend," is a mixed media/collage on 11 x 14 stretched canvas.  I posted it on my Facebook art page, J's Art Playground, and it sold in less than 2 hours!  I've also done some research and found a place to get my artwork professionally scanned so I can venture into giclees and note cards, etc. 

Pinterest Collection

This post is simply a place to collect my signed artwork for posting to Pinterest.

Sombody Loves You

This is my first commissioned work.  It is 12 x 16 cradled wood.  I learned a lot creating this piece.  The client had several aspects he wanted in the painting as a Christmas present to his wife:  peacocks, her jewelry he had made for her, the tree he proposed under, and two sayings that held special meaning for them.  The entire notion was so romantic!  And suddenly, creating art became stressful because I wasn't creating just for me;  someone else had to love it as much as I did.  And that was scary.  End result - he loved it, and she loved it, and I sighed in relief.  I immediately told myself, "No more commissions!"  But given a few weeks distance, it was a really great feeling to create something so special for someone else and have them love it.  So, maybe I'll accept another commission, given the chance...