Fresh Art for Etsy

It's almost Art Hop time again!  I'm cranking up my matting and framing in the studio, trying to get ready, as once again I've got a space.  Meanwhile, here are a few close-ups of pieces that just went live 
on my Etsy shop.  More to come soon...

Waiting At The Station (detail) ©Sweet Enemy Art 2010

 Waiting At The Station

Walnut ink and gouache, two great mediums that go great together!  

This little guy is rather melancholy, waiting faithfully on his bench...

Gothic Reader (detail) ©Sweet Enemy Art 2010

 Gothic Reader

Walnut ink and gouache again, with a liberal dose of colored pencil and snaky hair.  

This Is My Cheese (detail)  ©Sweet Enemy Art 2010 

 This Is My Cheese

From a series of pieces I did when experimenting with some new-to-me acrylic mediums... the whole thing started off with this lovely yellow cheese-like surface, so the subject just had to reference that.

Grandma Sweater (detail) ©Sweet Enemy Art 2010 

 Grandma Sweater

Walnut ink strikes again!  And so does Grandma, with yet another bizarre sweater at Christmas. 

This piece shall now proudly take its place with the other Mode De Monstre.  

Bright Bird (detail) ©Sweet Enemy Art 2010 

Bright Bird

From a lovely day of printmaking down at the Burlington City Arts Print Studio, here is a monotype done in a technique which I always love but don't often have a chance to use.  And because I can rarely leave well enough alone, there is colored pencil and possibly some watercolor along with the dry-media and ink that the print was originally made with.

15 microseconds of fame!

Well, maybe not fame exactly, but when I checked into Etsy last night, I discovered a friendly little note from bythebead saying that one of my pieces had been picked for a treasury.  Treasuries aren't that rare, it's not like being posted on the main page or anything, but still, nice to see my work in a collection picked by someone else.

Here's the link

So what's YOUR vote for my next Etsy batch, oh internet peeps?  

Should I post more line drawings, or bigger pieces, or what? 

Until then, looking forward to this heat breaking a bit.  It's too stuffy in the studio, and we just found our awesome vintage fan needs an overhaul.  

Cheers

The shop! The shop!

The shop is alive!

Ten original pieces have made their way onto Etsy.  I feel like I've done a technology workout this evening, but it was all worth it.  Here's a few pieces that you'll find there:

Ghost Cat, one of the most recent mini-cat watercolors (1.25 x 1.25 inches) is at the top of the list.  Now that I've blown the image size up here on the screen, I don't know if I can part with him!  Excuse me while I go jack up the price.  Just kidding.

Favorite Book Bug

Celtic Pup, loose in the book of Kells

My imaginatively-named "Bird Number Two" 

At Arkonbey's suggestion, I've set Mondays aside for business-related activities.  Tonight was one of the more rewarding Mondays, even though it overlapped into Tuesday.  Next week should see a few more pieces in the shop.  Till then, Goodnight!

A pair of birds

I'm waiting to hear if the recipient likes this design.  She'd missed her chance on obtaining an earlier piece of mine, so I'm revisiting the theme, but it's turned out quite different from the first.  

There's just something I love about the way a crow quill pen scratches across textured watercolor paper.  This may get a bit of color later on.  Remains to be seen.
While drawing this, I took advantage of my fancy-pants laptop's DVD-playing abilities, and went through three episodes of "All Creatures Great And Small" (Season One.)
Fantastic show, and I'm familiar enough with it that I just listened to it, audio book style.

Private lives of sophisticated cats

Private lives of sophisticated cats
Originally uploaded by Sweet Enemy Art

Here are two 6x6 pieces I started last week.

If you dropped by the studio on Sunday, I had just started the one on the right. On the left panel, I let a few folks try out my white acrylic ink and watercolor crayons. Most of that has now been covered up, though this absorbent ground has done its best to play tricks on me.
Sometimes "permanent" just isn't, at least on this stuff.

Paintings find new homes

This year's Open Studio weekend was a wonderful experience, as I've mentioned previously.  Here are a few of the pieces that have found new homes:
First, Lizard With Sandwich (24x18")

Young Rabbit (10.5"x5.5")

Two of the following pieces sold, and of the one in pink & blue, I just realized I might not have a better image! Nuts! Perhaps I'll discover otherwise if I do a little digging...  Anyways, pink & blue is "You Listen To My Stories" and the other that sold is "Nest Egg."  

The last one I have an image of is the Polar Bears, done on an interesting shaped piece of paper (it's scooped in the upper right corner.) They're just hanging out, listening to some stories. In their cozy little igloo, perhaps.

(size @ 2.5"x4.5")

Wrap it up and plant that garden!

Another Open Studio weekend has come and gone.  Before too long, I'll have some new progress shots of new work.  But first, it's time to say thank you.

Thank you one and all, those of you who came to find me specifically, and those of you who just followed signs and happened upon our house.

All in all, I believe we had almost sixty visitors.  Whew!

Special shouts out to:

Mister Brunelle (and many others of you) for describing my work as: 

"Illustrations for a story that doesn't yet exist"

Lorrie, for bringing freshly baked cookies (they were lovingly devoured)

Theresa, for loaning me her display panels, thus saving my walls.

The fearless ladies who conquered our rocky hill on their road bikes, you were awesome!

Marcia & Skip, who saved the eight-foot-tall monster dress drawing after it came loose from the side of the house...

Those of you who came from afar:  Richford, Plainfield & Newport, Vermont;  Connecticut, Massachusetts and Philadelphia, even an artist from New Zealand!

Rick, for helping me with all the last minute set-ups and keeping me sane.  

(And for letting people visit your studio space and see your work too!)

You all gave me great ideas to pursue, other artists to look up, and you all shared some wonderful stories.  THIS, not to mention your wonderful encouragement, is what makes these events worthwhile!

As Sunday drew to a close, we celebrated with home-made sangria, local pizza, and Big Trouble in Little China.  Bernie--our new cat--celebrated his release from the bedroom.  Next year, perhaps he'll be brave enough to greet the guests.