Category Archives: My Art

My Art at the Heart of the Home ~~ the Student-built PGCPS Home!

I trekked over to PG County yesterday to attend the reception for the PGCPS students who built and decorated a primo house.  I was delighted to find that three of my works had been incorporated into the kitchen/breakfast nook — the heart of the home.  (And some of my pieces also snagged prime placement in other essential spaces — the powder rooms!  Well, someone’s had to go there! LOL). My works could also be found in the office and upstairs hallway.

Here are a few pictures from the exuberant celebration, where students, parents, grandparents, builder/mentors, teachers, student musicians, and the press mingled and munched.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

 

My Art for PGCPS Student House Project & Upcoming Reception

Prince George’s County Public School interior design students selected the following artworks of mine for display in the student-built house that opens to proud parents and friends next Thursday, May 6, and to realtors on May 8-9. The young folk chose oil paintings, water color paintings as well as digital art.  They also used artwork from the Black Panther movie, an idea I’d suggested for the children’s rooms.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

 

I am truly honored to have been chosen to participate in this wonderful project.  Kudos to the young folks for their hard work and obviously effective results, as pictured in my last blog post.

Providing Art for Fab Students of Prince George’s County Public Schools!!

Every year students from Prince George’s County Public Schools build houses — YES, HOUSES!  The teens serve as carpenters, floor installers, plumbers, electricians, etc. and even decorate the completed house with rented furniture so realtors can show & sell it.  (Proceeds fund the next year’s project.)

This year, rather than use rental art, they recruited an artist — me!! — and a photographer, to supply the art.  How cool is that!!  I pulled together photos of about 200 of my works, from oils, to water media and digital art, and invited my 7 Palettes friends to contribute as well.  The students then selected a number of pieces to complement their visions for the various rooms.

Here’s the fabulous 2018 house.  Next post, I’ll show you the art pieces the students chose.

2018 PGCPS House and Proud Teachers

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

Striking while the iPad ‘iron’ was hot! More unanticipated PR!

Pink Rooster features Maureen’s iPad Painting on its Facebook banner.

When I sent Marc his thank you drawing, I also sent another iPad thank you to Linda Rosetti, delightful owner of the charming Pink Rooster in Ocean Springs, MS.  Ms Rosetti had hosted the workshop participants and Marc one evening after our plein air session for the day.  Wild hair, paint-spattered clothes, sunburns and all.

In a surprise equivalent to Marc’s Instagram posting, Linda posted my image as the banner photo for the Rooster’s Facebook page.  Again, the ‘likes’ were a heart-warming follow-on. Thanks, Linda!!

SaveSave

SaveSave

My iPad art has been getting lots of ‘likes’ lately!!

Marc Hanson post of Maureen’s iPad sketch of him. ArtRage. 2018.

After a recent workshop down in Ocean Springs, MS, I sent teacher Marc Hanson a quick little iPad sketch of himself as a thank you for a wonderful experience.  He promptly posted it on his Instagram account – surprising me greatly.  I was tickled to see it and was especially delighted when it gathered 550 likes and a number of comments and questions.  Wow.  Thanks, Marc, for the exposure!

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

SaveSave

I’m sending a painting to the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art auction! Help us fundraise!

Marsh and Blue Skies. Oil on Linen. 20×16. 2018.

Am just back from UPS, having sent one of my ‘babies’ down to the Ohr-O’Keefe Museum of Art in Biloxi MS. It’s a contribution to an upcoming auction to benefit the museum. I hope someone saves me from the embarrassment of it going unsold!!!! (I’m sure they’ll let you bid long-distance if you call! Help me help me help me!). That was tongue-in-cheek!  [NOT!]

For those of you in the area, the auction is going to be at a fabulous event — enjoy a beautiful home, wonderful food, and play murder-mystery as entertainment.  If I were down there, I’d definitely be there!  Contact the museum for tickets if you’d like to attend.

Painting Without Pressure

Over the last few weeks I’ve been working on portraits of my three grandchildren — a task much less ‘fraught’ than the commissioned portrait I showed you last time.  Here’s the one that’s farthest along, after about eight hours of work.  I see lots of ‘issues’ still to be resolved, but it’s in a much better place than the other one ever reached.  Can’t wait to see how it turns out!

Four Months. Oil on Linen. 9 x 12. 2018.

SaveSave

Performance Anxiety in a Portrait Painter!

I spent a helluva lot of hours on this grandmother/grandson portrait.  It took me over a year and a half(!!) — though most of that time was spent dreading painting, rather than putting brush to linen.  It was commissioned by a friend and based on her photos from years earlier, rather than observation — never a great thing.

Grandmother and grandson, with hydrangeas. Oil on linen.

My next post will show a portrait that I did in a weekend  ~~ things work (and look) much better without anxiety!

Africa: Motherland, not S***hole.

I’ve been busy on our Gallery B exhibit, which kicked off last night with a public reception.  The weather cooperated and a number of folks came by to enjoy chocolates and art.

I woke up today with different thoughts on my mind ~~ recent denigrations of people based on their home country (and skin color??).  I love the phrase ‘out of Africa’ for its pithy recognition that all of us are children of Africa.  We have a common lineage.  Where we settled ~~ hot equator or cooler clime ~~ determined whether our skins darkened or not.  I’m sensing T-shirts, mugs and other swag for this one!

happy figure bursting out of the motherland, Africa

Out of Africa. Original iPad Painting. 2018. 1:1 aspect ratio.

 

Last One ~~ Crispy White x 3

Here’s the final painting I’ve just finished for the Gallery B show that started yesterday in downtown Bethesda.  This one is close to home ~~ drama glimpsed during a morning walk.  A blindingly white, newly refinished house, over which a white-crusted eastern plane tree rose like a majestic crown, over which floated  the daintiest puffy white clouds I’d seen in awhile.  I quickly captured the stunning column.  Here.

IMG_7978

Crispy White x 3. Oil on linen panel. 2018. 16×20.