Blogging again-our new rescue, Piper

I am going to be sharing our journey with Piper.  She is a chihuahua mix with some of the worst issues we have encountered in our years of rescuing.

She came to us with an injured eye that had never been taken care of and eventually needed to be removed.  She also is a highly reactive dog and has required ongoing behavior treatment.  She is also a wonderfully beautiful dog.  We call her our 7 pound German Shepard.

Some of her issues we will be talking about are her health issues, resource guarding, reactivity and her issue with men.

We hope you will follow our journey so that you will consider adopting a dog that may not be "perfect" but well worth the effort of saving.

Piper and I will talk to you soon,
Jennylynne and Piper

Back in the Saddle-So to speak.

Well, I have been busy reworking my new studio since the move back to my home.  The new space is wonderful and full of light.  It is also a little isolated from the main part of the house which affords me the quiet and peace I need when working.

I managed to get all of my Christmas commissions out the door on time and glad to report that everyone was happy with the art.  That may have been the best Christmas present that I received.

It has been calming to be busy with the new studio, show opportunities coming up, plein aire events and getting back into the business or art.  It has helped to transition myself from a caregiver back to an artist.  While taking care of my Mom, I used art as an escape and a shelter from the chaos of watching someone you love die.  Now, with a little time passed, I can once again enjoy the creation and productivity of art for itself.

I have many things lined up for shows.  I currently have a painting on display and for sale at the Lake Quivera, Ks. country club and also four paintings at the Lakewood Golf and Country Club in Lee's Summit, Mo.  I just got word that I have made it into the Blue Springs Art League Art Festival in March.  I will have one pastel and one oil entered in this event.

I have also signed up for the Augusta Plein Aire Event which takes place the end of April into the first of May.

I have also been elected President of the MidAmerica Pastel Society.  This is probably the most exciting thing so far, as I have always loved this group.  They have two juried member shows coming up this year, so hopefully I will be accepted into one of both of these.  One will be at the Southwind Gallery in Topeka, Ks. and the other at the Tim Murphy Gallery in Merriam, Ks.  Can't wait to see all the great art that the pastelist will create for these shows.

So, as you can see, I'm off to an exciting year.  I will be posting pics of my paintings, giving tips on making art and keeping you up to date on the shows and events for this year.

So, happy painting,
Jennylynne

I must admit that the most fun I have as an artist is doing portraits of people's pets.  This beautiful Goldendoodle lives down at the Lake of the Ozarks, with her best friend who adores her.  I love doing pets in pastel on velour paper.  There is a wonderful texture that happens on this paper and the luminescence of the pastel medium lends itself divinely to the fur of animals.

The only drawback when using this substrate is that it is much less forgiving than my kitty wallis paper.  So, that usually means more planning and careful placement of strokes so I don't build up and fill the tooth too quickly.

One of my neighbors has a great time watching me wack the back of my pastels on my front porch pillar to knock off any excess dust.  It took me a couple times to explain my madness but now he just laughs and says "another one done, huh?" It's nice to have an understanding with your neighbors so they don't call the loony bin people for you.

So, now I only have five more to do before Christmas---- no problem.
Have a great day and Happy painting,
Jennylynne

Well, it has been a few months since my Mom's death and I have been back up in my studio painting.  This is my latest effort which I am doing for the MidAmerica Pastel Society's Small Painting Show.  The show is in November which is coming up quicker than I thought.  I still have one more painting to go for entry in the show but I am pretty happy with this first effort. 
Sometimes, when life happens in a way you have trouble coping with, it takes awhile to find your groove again.  The solitude of my studio has been a calming and peaceful place to re-connect with who I am as an artist. 
The process of painting has been a wonderful way to honor my Mom, who was my biggest fan.  It has also made me re-evaluate my life as an artist and my artistic goals.  Made me think about what truly makes me happy when I paint and where my future as an artist lies.  I think every artist goes thru periods of restructuring and soul searching throughout their career.  It's how you emerge on the other side that is important.  I'm not sure I am ready to commit to the new ideas yet, but the process has been fun and enlightening.
So, if you are struggling a little, take a step back.  Quiet the noise around you and go on your search.  It is worth the effort.
Happy painting,
Jennylynne

Four paintings at once-Whoa-how did that happen

Oft times, I wonder what is really going thru my mind.  Have you ever had that thought?  Well, it enters my mind quite frequently.  I tend to overachieve on multiple levels.  Like now-I currently have four paintings going at one time in my studio.  There is the one I'm working on today which is on the easel.  Then there is the one just hanging out up against the wall with it's back to me, waiting patiently for me to decide if it's finished. Then there is the sketch on my table which is taking on a life of it's own waiting for me to decide if it is ready to become a painting.  Then there is the one that I have a commission for that needs to probably be the one on the easel rather than the one currently there.

Then, there is my blog and the need to figure out how to upload my photos from my IPad, since Google has changed their way of doing things.

Oh, and then there is the wall in the basement needing its final coat of paint and the ceiling in the half bath waiting for its skim coat and final paint coat.

I think most artist(well maybe everyone in business) feels this way at times.  Like you have forty million balls you are juggling and hoping you still have the skills to keep them all in the air. LOL

Well, it is just another day in the life of an artist.  I will upload the photos of the puppy as soon as I figure out how.

Till then,
Happy Painting,
Jennylynne

Commissions and other stuff

Well, things have been humming along in the studio.  I still have a lot of stuff to transfer from the old studio but it is coming along swimmingly.  Still have not ordered my new chairs yet, but plan to do that this week.

The studio is organized enough for me to start painting again.  Which, since I currently have four commissions to get done, is a great blessing.  I have several pet portraits to get done, so I am starting on them first.  I am using pastels because I love the way that they make fur look.  I am also using the velour paper for the same reason.  Velour can be tricky to work on since it is not as forgiving as other papers.  Once you make a mark on the velour, you need to be committed to that mark.  It also doesn't hold as much pastel and so needs to be put on with a little lighter touch.  I usually bang the heck out of my works to get rid of any excess pastel dust so that is not a problem.  Other than my neighbors think I've lost my marbles when I'm outside banging the backs of my work against the porch supports.

I have not done pastels in a couple of years because I have been devoting any painting time I had to portraits and landscapes in oil.  It has been an interesting journey back to them.  I need to move my air cleaning filter up to the studio soon.  The pastel dust can be a little hazardous if you don't have an air filter system.

I have also been incorporating using my IPad to work from for the photo reference.  It is much lighter than my computer monitor or my laptop.  Thus, I can have it closer to my work area, 

I'll post some pics of the new doggy painting next week. 

Have a great day and Happy Painting,
Jennylynne

Working on a home studio space

Well, the studio space is coming along.  The main decisions have been made and I am off and running with the plan.

I am going to share some of the planning process that went into my new space with you.  First I measured the area and planned on paper how best to use the space.  My new studio is in our second master bedroom space so it is a nice size room with ample closet space.  It also is next to additional walk in attic space for additional storage.  It has running water, a toliet and even a shower(just in case I get a little carried away with my creating).  What it didn't have was good lighting.  The only window is huge but faces east.  Morning light is great but once the sun is on the other side of the house, it is a little dark.  So, I have had to compensate with additional lighting using lamps and spots.

It also has a hallway that connects the bathroom with the bedroom space.  I have a cold air return on that wall, so was limited in what furniture could go in that area.  Luckily, my favorite cabinet fit just perfect which also provides me additional storage.(do you see a theme emerging here?).  It has a lovely linen closet in that area which now holds my reference photos , small canvases, pastel papers and drawing sketch books.

Just beyond that space is a walk in closet with great shelving and drawer space.  I have allocated additional photo space, office supplies and storage of my larger canvases and pastel papers to this area.  Beyond that closet is the attic space where there are more shelves for storing my frames, glass and finished paintings.

In the main area of the room, I have my easels, my glass top desk(I use this for my palette), an additional porcelain top table for my computer and framing and a matching cabinet next to that for all the gamsol, pastels, etc.  On the other side of the room, I have a large three piece book case which will hold my books, still life things I use and just stuff I like.  I also have a glass cabinet with mementoes and things that make me happy.  Also included in the room, are two doggy beds and their water bowl.

I plan on purchasing two chairs for the space.  One recliner and one with an ottoman for resting and reading my art books, having visitors or just napping after a hard days slog.

Well, that's it for now.  I'll be posting pics soon.  So stay tuned,
Jennylynne

Most of you know that I have taken care of my Mother for the last four years.  She lost her battle with LBD on 3/31/13.  It has been a really trying time dealing with her funeral and her personal things but now I am starting to move back into a life of my own.

To that end, I have decided to blog about my journey back into the reality of my own life.  When you undertake care giving, you tend to give up your own life so that you can focus all your energy on taking care of your loved one.  Now, I am starting a new life.  I have decided to take this next year and rediscover myself and my art.

I am going to blog about my journey thru this process, in hopes of inspiring and teaching and learning.  I invite you to join me on my journey.

It started with deciding to reorganize my studio and move it back into my home.  I had originally thought about having a studio/gallery space at another location and I still may do that in the future.  For now, I have decided to concentrate on my own art and rediscover my passion. 

I'm currently working on the new studio space and will post pictures when I get it up and running or maybe a progress picture.

Stay tuned,
Happy painting,
Jennylynne

Well, it's time for the Stems Event again this year.  All the painting has been done and now the paintings will be taken to the Rice Gallery for judging and hopefully sales.

 

I have done the Stems every year since it's beginning and it is a wonderful event.  What's not to like, flowers, water features, horses, buildings, etc.  There is a wide variety of subjects to appeal to all the painters out there.  I tried my first flower painting this year and am pretty pleased with the results.  I encourage everyone to try to get out of their comfort zone every once in awhile.  It's an awesome experience whether it works out or not.

I love doing landscapes with a combination of brush work and knife strokes.  It is a chance for me to get out of my portrait mindset and into a different creative mode and mood.  Landscape painting for me is an ongoing learning experience.  I really don't like painting still lifes but do enjoy the learning and experience you get from painting from life-so-for me-I plein aire paint.

I encourage all of you to try it and get out there and enjoy our world.

Wish me luck at Stems,

Happy Painting,

Jennylynne

We had a great time and our first workshop at The Art Cottage.  Ken Chapin demoed in the morning and afternoon.  The morning session was all about creating depth in your plein air paintings.   He started with a block in phase and proceeded thru the ending phase of completion. 

This is the block in phase of the demo on depth.  He told us to think in big and simplified shapes.

This is the final phase of the depth demo.  I don't know if it's his final stage of his painting:)
I will post the start of my own depth painting on the next blog.

Happy painting,
Jennylynne

Exciting News:

SAVE THE DATE: MAY 11, 2013 FROM 9AM TO 4PM

The Art Cottage is having it's first workshop just in time for a warm up before the Stems Paint out.  Our instructor and workshop leader will be Ken Chapin.  He is a wonderful plein aire painter and an even more exciting teacher!

Cost of the workshop is $50.00 per student and class size is limited to the first 10 students.

Objectives:
In the morning session, we will cover the basics of showing realistic, deep space in a landscape, atomospheric perspective, etc.  A demonstation will be followed by student practice.

In the afternoon session, we will explore more challenging impressionist style color techniques(with broken brushwork, analogous and complementary enrichment stokes, etc. ) A second demostration will be followed by student practice.

Supply List:
Oils or Acrylics
Required colors"
Titanium White
Cadmium Yellow Light
Alizarin Crimson(oil) or Napthol Crimson(acrylic)
Ultramarine Blue

Optional colors include:
Yellow Ochre
Cadmium Red Light
Pthalo Blue

Painting Mediums and Thinners:
For Oil: Gamsol or Turpenoid Natural(not odorless paint thinner, turpentin, or other toxic materials as we will be working in an enclosed space).

For Acrylic:
Matte Medium or Gloss Medium, Three water cups

Burshes:
These 4 brushes are required:
two softer, synthetic brushes--one smaller(such as #3) & one larger(such as #6)
two bristle brushes--one smaller (such as #3) and one larger (such as #6
Bring more brushes, if you have them.  Oil painters use more brushes than acrylic painters.

Paper towels and/or paint rags and a small trash bag for taking your trash with you.

Canvass boards(or stretched canvases, gessoed panels, etc. )
Bring at least 4.
size options include 8x10, 9x12,11x14.

The workshop will be from 9am to 4pm on May 11, 2013.  Please bring a sack lunch and a drink.  there is a frig at the cottage for students to store food or drink that may need refrigerate.

To sign up or for any questions, please call Jennylynne Gragg at 816-898-6646.
The Art Cottage, 1100 NE Delta School Rd., Lee's Summit, Mo. 64064

We are humming along again on the The Art Cottage.  Hubby knee injury is feeling better so we are going to try and lay the new carpet on the stairs this weekend.  We are also going to decide on the hallway trim-whether to do new or keep part of the existing and just add new where needed. ARGH-I hate all these design decisions-like the doing better.  We may also get to the flooring in the hall but not setting the pressure to high for now.

We got all our paperwork back from the State of Missouri and are halfway to getting the City of Lee's Summit on board.  Still a little work to do in that department, but hopefully will get there soon.  In the meantime, my studio is open by appointment only. Just give me a call and I'll give you the five cent tour:)

I have started a new portrait and am very excited about it so I'll be posting the progress pics from time to time.  It is hard to juggle care giving duties, gallery remodel and my art work but somehow it is all getting done.  I am learning patience and that the world will not stop if something doesn't get done right away.

I have been working on the garden design for the front of the cottage and it is almost complete-on paper at least.  I love designing gardens and this one is so fun because it is a themed garden.  We are going to have lots of perennials and roses.  I have designed a new porch idea and can't wait to get that put together and up along with the new railing system that will line the sidewalk.

Hope you have a great day,
Happy Painting,
Jennylynne

Great and wonderfully exciting things happening at the new gallery space.  Have finished the studio space and the gallery space and are almost done with the kitchen space.  Just need to paint the bottom 1/4 round and then we are headed up the stairs.

Next stop, carpeting the stairs and laying laminate in the hall and main bathroom.  Hall is painted, still need to do some door trim and paint that.

Had a great time tearing out the last of the wall separating the two rooms that will be the classroom space.  Hubby says the two things he will have to be careful to say are 1. It's not a load bearing wall and 2. where the sledge hammer is. :)

We are still debating about taking the existing tub out and replacing with just a shower.  More on that later.

The name has been chosen and registered so I can now let you all know what we named it.

The new gallery is The Art Cottage.  We are still on track for the opening on March 1, 2013.  My studio space and gallery is open now by appointment, so if you want a tour, just give me a call.

Happy Painting,
Jennylynne

It has been so much fun, designing, painting and planning the new gallery/studio space.  This two pics are of the front door and the new window trim outside.  I can't wait to add the black shutters to the windows and get started on the replacement of siding in the porch area.

 

The color in the room where I'm painting the new door is the new studio color.  Today, I am going to paint the trim, and put a second coat on the walls and then we will be ready for the flooring.

 

Once the flooring is in, the moving can begin.  It is an exciting time and I'm sure it will be worth all the work going into it.

 

Stay tuned, peeps,

Happy Painting,

Jennylynne

This is the start of the gallery space makeover.  This is one of the rooms we will be using for classes.  This room is next to the other classroom which is currently divided by a wall.  The wall will be coming down soon.(photos to follow)

 

I will be looking for artists interested in teaching in these spaces, so if you are interested just email me to get in on the "ground floor" so to speak.

I'll be posting the progress as we get more done, so stay tuned,

Happy Painitng,

Jennylynne

Well, I am starting a new venture soon and excitement is running high for me.  I have negotiated a new space for a gallery.  My studio will also be housed there.  I am just in the planning stages.  There is sooooo much to do and get done.

The first step was negotiating the lease and terms.  That was a fairly easy task but a little tricky since my hubby owns the building that I want to lease.  But having gotten through that hurdle, I have been making lists of the required remodeling that will need to be done to turn the space into an art gallery.  It is actually the part I like best.  We have walls to move, paint, trim and flooring to install, signs to be made, a walker system and lighting to be installed.  The list gets bigger and bigger.  There is also outside work to be done. Some sprucing up of the facade and some new plantings.

There is also the name of the gallery to consider.  This has to be researched to ensure one does not currently exist with that name.  City licensing and state have to be dealt with in addition to all the other stuff.

Plans for the gallery exhibits, classes, openings, artists, etc. have to be laid out and formalized.

But, I'm getting ahead of myself.  I take possession of the new space on November 1, 2012.  The first thing that needs to be done is the cleaning and remodeling.  In the front gallery space, we are taking a dividing wall half way down to open up the room and let in more light thru the space.  This half wall will also divide the gallery space from my studio space.  We have to lay new flooring and tie it in with the existing flooring and of course, paint all the walls and trim.  I also need to have a store front door storm door installed on the entrance door.

This is just the first in a series of posts about the new gallery.  Stay tuned-
Busy and happy working away on new gallery plans,
Jennylynne Gragg

the new gallery space will be at 1100 NE Delta School Rd., Lee's Summit, Mo. 64064

Studios-Which is better-in home or away

Currently, my studio is in my home.  However, started in November 2012, I will have a new off site location.  It is exciting to have a new gallery/studio space but also a little daunting.  It is nice too be able to come down in the middle of the night(when sleep does not come) in your pj's and work in your studio.  However, open studios and classes can present challenges when working from home.

My studio space in home is small and cramped and my storage must compete with the household storage needs and available space.  While there is no additional costs for an in home studio, the distractions can be overwhelming.

A space away from home can be a god-send.  I am looking forward to having such a space again in November and will be posting about it's set up, location and planning as we go along thru the process.  It will also be exciting to have a gallery space, not only for my art, but for artists who I can feature as well.  The space will be much more conducive to classes than the livingroom of my home and I will be able to expand on additional ideas for sharing with other artists and clients.

So heads up and I'll post more soon,
Jennylynne

Happy painting!

Final stage of the Monarch butterful series Painting 1

This is the first in a series on Monarch butterflies ad goldenrod done from photos I took in St. Ignais, Michigan in 1983 during the start of the Monarch butterfly migration.

I have started the underpainting for the second in the series which I will post shortly.  I am doing a series of three of these paintings and they will all be for sale.  I have been having lots of fun painting weeds again.  Weeds are just a flower that is in the wrong garden.  Lucky for them, I am a fan.

Hope you enjoy this painting and the ones to follow,

Happy Painting,

Jennylynne

Series:Weeds and other beautiful things

I am currently working on a series of "weeds" paintings.  These are done in plein aire and also from photos that I have taken trough the years.

This is the first of a series of three that are done from a photo taken in 1983 in St. Ignace, Michigan during the monarch butterfly migration from Michigan to Mexico.  The park where we stayed was filled with golenrod and thousands of monarchs.  They landed everywhere!  On the goldenrod, on us, on our camper, and even our little dog Wiggles.  It was an absolutely wonderful experience!

Sometimes, painting from these experiences and photos make a good place to start for inspiration.  Not only do you remember the feelings you had during that experience but also the fun, emotion and location.  This is the starting of the first painting in the series.  I will post my progress and the final painting soon.

Happy Painting,

Jennylynne

Art Exhibit and Sale at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art in St. Joseph, Mo

These two paintings will be on display and for sale at the Annual Members Exhibit at the Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art in St. Joseph, Mo. thru the end of February, 2012.

Took the painting up to the museum today and walked thru the current exhibit.  On the lower level is a wonderful exhibit of works by William Rose entitled "In Light-Faces & Figures".  His rendering of the faces and figures with wonderful lights radiating within are truly a joy to behold.  He is a Kansas artist known for his work in figurative works. 

This beautiful museum is a small gem of the midwest and well worth your trip.

Happy Painting,

Jennylynne