The Affordable Art Fair

One of the many advantages of living in NYC is the all-access pass to art that you get 24/7/365. It could be the museums, the galleries, the auction houses, the graffiti on the walls, or the myriad of art fairs that seem to be held every weekend from September through May.

This weekend, the Affordable Art Fair has come to town. To be clear, affordable is artwork priced $10,000 or less. Happily, I have to say that some of the best work I saw was in the lower half of that price range.

For you locals, the fair runs through Sunday and is most definitely worth a visit. For those of you who cannot come to NYC and do not have access to these types of events, consider this your (very biased) private showing of some of my favorites.

Lee Kwan Woo

Lilac Gallery

Lee Kwan Woo hand carves every stamp that is used to create the undulating surface of his unique works. They are mesmerizing in person.

Russell Frampton

Will's Art Warehouse

The closer I got to these pieces from Russell Frampton, the more I was entranced. It is the smallest of detail, mark and line that makes a large impact in these vessel-like structures he creates.

Michele Mikesell

Decorazon

I have seen Michele Mikesell's work at the AAF for many years and I am always drawn to the figures that she paints that seem to have their own personality, emotions and just the right amount of quirk.

Russell West

Woolff Gallery

I have seen Russell West's work before both in NYC and in London. These pieces are quite compelling and fascinating. His piece below was so new that it still carried the scent of the oil paint.

Noelle Hamlyn

Lustre Art

Noelle Hamlyn layers these bobbins (and other objects) with salt-encrusted hand spun paper. They are gorgeous and completely unlike any other surface treatment I have seen before.

Michael Phillipp Schnitzer

Galerie Juliane Hundertmark

I loved the surfaces created by Michael Philipp Schnitzer, who was one of the few artists actually at the show and who graciously took the time to explain how he created this effect layer after layer.

Daniel Sueiras

Galerie Juliane Hundertmark

This salon-style wall of art from Daniel Sueiras captivated me, as did his portraiture of animals, complete with the perfect choice of frames. Front and center was this wonderful piece.

And speaking of, artwork featuring animals of all sorts and in all forms was a huge trend at this show.   While there was of course the requisite dogs and cats, it looks like rhinos and elephants - often juxtaposed in unexpected backgrounds - are trending.

Gabriele Buratti

Palma Arte

(detail)

Nathalie Boissonnault

Arteria Gallery

(detail)

Edouard Buzon

Galerie Envie d'art

(detail)

Sebastien Levigne

The Linda Blackstone Gallery

(detail)

Also trending at the show were portraits with flowers.

Minas Halaj

Retrospect Gallery

The work from Minas Halaj was hands down my favorite in this category, with his florals collaged with appliqués, fabric, buttons, and painted paper. 

Share your favorites in the comments.

The Affordable Art Fair runs through Sunday March 25 at The Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea.

Emerald Creek: Recap

It has been a great week, highlighting projects from 5 artists using my Emerald Creek Baked Texture embossing powders. It is always a thrill for me to see how other people use my products in their own unique ways. This group served it up and I wanted to share the links once again in case you missed any the first time around. You can see and order all 7 flavors of Baked Texture here.

The bakery is open!

GUEST ARTISTS

Mary Beth Shaw: Mary Beth, the creative mastermind behind StencilGirl Products, has created  a video that shares 8 techniques to use embossing powders with stencils. Yes...I said 8!

Becca Feeken: Hands down, Becca creates the most elegant artwork I have ever seen and her product collections allow you to do the same. She is sharing 3 finished projects and shares her technique for creating "cracked glass" with embossing powders. Hint: it involves a freezer!

Tammy Tutterow: Tammy takes Baked Texture to a place I hadn't even imagined. She uses the "heat, dip, heat, dip, heat" technique to create the most amazing beads to use as flower centers on her handmade flowers. I can see applying this same technique on my found objects for to my mixed pieces.

Debi Adams: Using all 7 flavors of Baked Texture, Debi has created the coolest, mixed media wall hanging ever made. A huge array of techniques were used but my favorite has to be her combination of Chunky Rust and gel medium - half baked!

Gwen Lafleur: Gwen is a master of all-things-embossing and she has created a texture-lovers delight using all 7 Baked Texture flavors. In the process, she used a ton of techniques - my favorite of which is definitely the High Solid Gel Medium. She even included a video of the process.

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It's An Embossing Powder Party

This past January, Baked Texture - my new line of embossing powders for artists - was released by Emerald Creek. Since then, we are doing our very best to get these powders into you creative hands. And it is looking like March will be the month when we are able to get most, if not all, of the outstanding shipments delivered. Thanks to all of you for your passion, enthusiasm, and (especially) patience for this product.

I have begun to see a huge variety of projects online using Baked Texture and have been loving what you have been baking. I have learned many new techniques and uses for the powders thanks to you.

I have invited 5 artists to share projects they have made using Baked Texture. Anything goes with these posts and there will be videos, tutorials, finished artwork and more. Check back here all week for the updated links to the posts that will be appearing daily from today through Friday, March 23rd.

GUEST ARTISTS

Mary Beth Shaw: Mary Beth, the creative mastermind behind StencilGirl Products, has created  a video that shares 8 techniques to use embossing powders with stencils. Yes...I said 8! 

Becca Feeken: Hands down, Becca creates the most elegant artwork I have ever seen and her product collections allow you to do the same. She is sharing 3 finished projects and shares her technique for creating "cracked glass" with embossing powders. Hint: it involves a freezer!

Tammy Tutterow: Tammy takes Baked Texture to a place I hadn't even imagined. She uses the "heat, dip, heat, dip, heat" technique to create the most amazing beads to use as flower centers on her handmade flowers. I can see applying this same technique on my found objects for to my mixed pieces.

Debi Adams: Using all 7 flavors of Baked Texture, Debi has created the coolest, mixed media wall hanging ever made. A huge array of techniques were used but my favorite has to be her combination of Chunky Rust and gel medium - half baked! 

Gwen Lafleur: Gwen is a master of all-things-embossing and she has created a texture-lovers delight using all 7 Baked Texture flavors. In the process, she used a ton of techniques - my favorite of which is definitely the High Solid Gel Medium. She even included a video of the process. 

You can see and order all 7 flavors of Baked Texture here.

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Art Auction for Cancer

AUCTION DETAILS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE POST

This past January I was invited by the incomparable Dyan Reaveley to participate in the 2018 Ranger Challenge. Every year, one of the signature designers with Ranger Ink sends a selection of their products to a handful of artists to create a project that will be displayed in the Ranger booth at Creativation, the annual trade show for AFCI. How could I say no to DY?

Opening the box was exciting and daunting, as was seeing the contents. The main component for the project was a cardboard, kraft-colored top hat. And lots of Dyan's signature bright paints, washi tapes, embellishments, and the like.

My mission: use her products in my style. My technique: layers and more layers.

So why am I sharing this now? The project was recently returned to me and I had the idea that maybe some of you would consider bidding on it in an auction for charity. Together we can benefit an important cause and you will have a one-of-a-kind, never-to-be-made-again, original piece of art.

AUCTION DETAILS

So how will this work? Simply contact me via email at shap97@gmail.com with your bid and I will update the bidding total on this post as bids come in (as quickly as I can). The bidding will start at $25.00 but I am hoping to raise substantially more money for a good cause. Bids will be counted in the order in which they are received. Bidding ends on 11:59pm EST Sunday March 25th. The winning bidder can either make their donation directly to the charity via credit card or through me via check or Paypal. You are more than welcome to leave a comment to this post but bids will only be accepted via email.

100% of the proceeds will benefit Cancer Research Institute and their efforts to develop a breakthrough cure to all forms of cancer with immunotherapy. The cause was selected in honor of a friend currently battling the illness.

CURRENT BID

$25.00
$30.00
$50.00
$150.00
$225.00
$250.00
$275.00
$325.00
$350.00
$375.00
$425.00
$450.00

Auction now closed. Thank you to Patti Euler for her winning bid!

Art Deck 6

After a long break focused on other work, I have had a chance to work on my Art Deck - 52 small artworks, all under 6 x 6 inches and available at accessible prices ranging from $35-$55. These pieces, numbers 40 to 45, are now in my online shop. You can see all the other work from the Art Deck here.

TIMELESS (sold - thank you)

TUESDAY MORNING  (sold - thank you)

SIMPLICITY  (sold - thank you)

BULLSEYE  (sold - thank you)

COLORBLIND (sold - thank you)

CROSSHATCH (sold - thank you)

=

The Friday Five

1. Follow your gut. Always.

2. If it seems too good to be true, it is.

3. Put in the work.

4. It is okay to say no.

5. Always be authentic. Always

PaperArtsy Paint Week

Last month, the PaperArtsy blog featured a series of projects made by 9 artists using one of my two, newly released sets of paint colors. 

Set 3: the summer palette

Set 4: the winter palette

The paint is Fresco Finish Chalk Acrylics and the dry quickly to the most beautiful, matte surface imaginable. And it is also perfect for you journal as the pages never stick together and every pen works over the surface. You can see all my custom paint colors here.

Love the wide variety of creativity seen in the following projects. Click on each link for more pics, process shots, and details.

Corrie Herman

Keren Baker

Helen Chilton

Carol Fox

Alison Hall

Sue Carrington

Miriam Grazier

Nikki Acton

Ruth Mescall