'Tis the season for visual artists to show everyone what they've been up to for the past 6-12 months and hopefully clear the decks for a new year in the studio by finding homes for their artwork.
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But first some good news:  my painting, "Fall Harvest," won first place at Norseman Distillery's fall art show. I was very surprised!  Many thanks to the judge, Sarah Schulz of the American Craft Council, and also to Norseman for supporting local artists with a no-entry-fee show, a beautiful gallery space and even some prize money.

My work will be showing in three locations in November/December.  First, on November 29 and 30 (10-3 both days) I will be participating in our second Bryn Mawr neighborhood crafts fair.  Once again, we can't hang things on the walls (!) so I will have small oils (pets, eggs. still lives) as well as drawings and watercolors.  The following weekend, December 6 (4-8) and December 7 (11-5), I will be having an open house at my studio.  Many people have asked about where and how I work and now you will have a chance to stop by, have some wine, coffee, and treats and see some of the larger works actually hung on walls.

Finally, my friend and fellow artist, Dyan Padgett, has graciously allowed me some wall space in her beautiful studio on the 4th floor of the Northrop King Building (Studio 400A).  Northrop King will be open every Saturday starting November 30 through December 21, as well as the usual First Thursday event on December 5.

For 2020, I hope to focus on portrait (look out friends and family - you will be modeling), figure, and maybe some more pet portrait commissions.  It's so much fun to work on cats and dogs, and it's kind of a relief to have to paint from photos.

Hope to see you soon - and happy holidays!

Spring has at last arrived in Minnesota (we hope) so that means it is time once again for Art-A-Whirl, the largest open studio artist event in the U.S.  This year I will be exhibiting at a small pop-up gallery, Salted Artist, located in the Steller Connect Space, 945 Broadway St. NE, Minneapolis 55413 (right next door to Spyhouse Coffee on the corner of Broadway and Central).  Salted Artist promises a very diverse selection of art, from paintings and prints to digital works to up-cycled clothing.  I will be showing about a dozen new small works (6" x6" to 6" x 8"), mostly alla prima dog and cat portraits, Many of these can be seen on the new Small Works page of my website.  This year Art-A-Whirl runs May 17, 5-10 pm, May 18, 12-8 pm, and May 19, 12-5 pm.  Hope to see you there!

Thanks to all of my wonderful friends and neighbors who stopped by the first ever Bryn Mawr holiday arts and crafts sale.  Four paintings and three watercolors found permanent homes at the sale and I am very happy about that.  For those of you who might still be interested in egg paintings for yourself or for gifts this season, only the three shown below are still available.  If you are interested, please get in touch soon so I can get them to you ASAP.  

​Happy Holidays everyone!

The Bon Appetit show is beautiful!  Two works by Jeffrey Larson, the show judge, are on display and, if you have never seen his work in person, you are in for a treat!

My final marketing event of the year is a fun and friendly one.  About 8 neighborhood artists are gathering in the Bryn Mawr community space at Penn Ave. and Cedar Lake Rd. to show and sell our wares on the two days after Thanksgiving, 10 a.m. -3 p.m.  We aren't allowed to hang on the walls, so I will be bringing only small framed paintings and watercolors.  If you tell me you learned of the sale from this post, I will give you a 20% discount on any purchase.  There will be beautiful jewelry, pottery, handmade wood frames, wind chimes, salsas, quilts and much more.  The space is opposite Cuppa Java in Bryn Mawr and is should provide a great place to start (or end) your Black Friday shopping.  Hope to see you there.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by during Art Attack at the Northrop King Building.  It's a long walk - or a steep climb - to Studio 402B, but Colleen and I really appreciated seeing you.

Two of my paintings, "Fall Harvest" (seen on the home page of the website), and "Heirlooms" (a new work), have been accepted into a juried art show hosted by the Studio Pintura Gallery on the second floor of the Northrop King Building (Suite 293 - right across from the passenger elevator- YAY). The show is entitled "Bon Appetit" and features about 30 food themed works.  I will be at the opening on Saturday, November 17, 5:30-930 p.m.  The show runs through January.  

Where does the time go?  Seems like I just set this up for Art-A-Whirl and now it's time for another great Northeast Minneapolis event, Art Attack.  Art Attack is exclusive to the Northrop King Building, 1500 Jackson St. NE, Minneapolis, 55413, and I will be a guest artist in Suite 402B, home to Michael Speaker, an amazing sculptor.  Joining me will be my Atelier buddy, Colleen Semmer.  Art Attack runs Friday, Nov. 2, 5-10 pm, Saturday, Nov. 3, Noon-8 pm, and Sunday, Nov. 4, 10-5 pm.  There will be live music, great food trucks and of course you will be less than a block from two great craft breweries.  HOWEVER, if you can't make it to Art Attack, Michael, Colleen and I, together with Dyan Padgett and Carrie Kleinberger in Studio 400A, will be having a Sneak Peek preview party on Thursday, November 1, 3-8 pm.  No parking hassles, no crowds and we'll even put out some simple snacks.  I will have several new pieces to show, oil still lifes, chalk and charcoal portraits, and even some small watercolors.  I will post some pics of these works as soon as the dust settles from preparing for this event.  Hope to see you soon - and don't hesitate to get in touch if you would like more info about these events.

Thanks to everyone who visited me at my first ever Art-A-Whirl.  I met lots of wonderful people, sold a couple of small paintings, learned a lot about the business of selling art, and got lots of ideas from my fellow exhibitors.  However, I am wondering if people really would be interested in seeing my work in my studio.  Should I have my own open studio event?  Let me know what you think in the comments.  

Some of the paintings I sold were studies of different colored hen eggs.  I painted six of these studies in February, then set up two small still lifes that featured these eggs.  Since it was March and I was going crazy with the endless winter, I decided to try my hand at painting clouds into one still live and - voila- the painting that my spouse calls "Eggs on the Beach" was born.  Images of one of the studies and the painting are below.  Please contact me if you are interested.  Happy summer!

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Welcome to my new website!  Inspired by some amazing courses presented by the non-profit, Springboard for the Arts (free, I might add, something that makes every artist's heart beat faster), I joined the Northeast Minneapolis Arts Association (NEMAA), found a great place willing to host non-Northeast Minneapolis artists during Art-A-Whirl, and now have twelve feet of beautiful wall space to show my work during the largest open studio arts weekend in the country.  Please come and see me.  I will be in the Architectural Antiques Building, 1330 Quincy St,, Minneapolis, 55413.  I will be on the third floor.  For those of you forced to travel with reluctant art enthusiasts, you should know that the AA building is conveniently situated between Indeed Brewing Company and Able Seedhouse Brewing. Art-A Whirl will be up and running on Friday, May 18, 5-10 pm, Saturday, May 19, 12-8 pm, and Sunday, May 20, 12-5 pm.  Check out NEMAA's website, www.NEMAA.org,, for more info.