Life is a Great Big Canvas

  Basic Drawing Techniques edited by Greg Albert and Rachel Wolf   I picked up this book at a yard sale this last summer for about a dollar, but the information inside is invaluable to any artist. It is Basic Drawing Techniques, edited by Greg Albert and Rachel Wolf, from North Light Books. It covers the basics of drawing, from beginner to portraiture.  I got a degree in drawing and painting from Academy of Art University, and a lot of what is in this book is in the foundation classes an art student would take there. If you are looking for a resource to brush up on your drawing, or even for how to teach others, this is the book for you.  It begins with an overview of the supplies you will need, whether drawing with pencil, charcoal, pen and ink, or marker. It discussed the different types of papers available and how they work with different media. From there, you will learn about basic lines, shapes, forms, shading, perspective, quick sketching, animals, anatomy, fig...

 Morning Sunbeam was an assignment for the advanced still life class I took at Academy of Art University. I was to choose an area in my home and make a composition out of it. This was a challenge for me, a mental and emotional challenge, because although I crave order in my life, my house does not reflect that. My house is often messy and disorganized. But this one area, I was able to find a good composition, and to me it speaks of peace even when there is chaos. You can't see the chaos in this picture, but it's in the room. The focus is on the stillness, the bright sunlight peeking through a window you can't see, slowly creeping over the wall, reflecting in the glass shade of the table lamp. It's a moment of stillness, whispering in your ear to take just a minute and...breathe...appreciate what is in front of you. This is available on by website www.dancingelephantart.com and through my etsy store:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/238017485/morning-sunbeam-original-still-...

 One of the things I enjoy painting is known as "altered art" what that means is that I find an unwanted painting at a yard sale or second hand shop, and I alter it, adding in an element of pop culture, normally. Usually I only alter part of it, and try to keep the additions looking like they are part of the original piece. Sometimes, if the painting was really amateur, I will enhance it a little, before adding another element.  For this particular piece, however, it started out as altered art and just became an original painting. I started on a thrift store painting that was never finished. It was a tree with the outline of a child peeking out from behind it. It was just barely sketched in, with a little green painted in the background.  Some pieces just tell me what they need to be, and this one rasped, "Gollum! Gollum!" So I researched, and ended up using three different reference photos of Gollum and Andy Serkis, to draw out my Smiegol. I am not the greatest lan...

 As a portrait artist, it's challenging to find a way to demonstrate to the public my ability to create an accurate likeness, using private commissions and studies, because, well, nobody knows who these people are unless they are friends or family. They may be done well, may be a perfect likeness, but if you don't know them, you are not going to know if it truly captures their essence. This is one reason why I have created celebrity portraits. The majority of people can recognize them. Even if a portrait is done poorly, you can still get a likeness; but if you are really good at what you do, people will see and appreciate that. Right now, we are looking at the end of a 15 year television series being filmed this week. I am speaking of Supernatural. If you don't know what it is, it's about two attractive brothers, Sam and Dean, who are "hunters". They track down ghosts, vampires, werewolves, demons, and other things, with the help of their angel buddy Castiel. ...

 Trophies is an original still life oil painting, that was painted in 2015 while I was still in art school, in an advanced still life painting class. I was able to choose my own subject matter, and wanted to do something different than the traditional fruit and pottery that often defines the still life genre. My husband and son are passionate hunters, and so I took inspiration from their pastime to create this one of a kind still life.  This painting shows the tail feathers of a turkey shot by my son (good eating although somewhat tough), and an elk antler from a kill, from either my son or husband (also good eating!). It was really fun trying to make the feathers soft, the antler bumpy, and the gun shells look like shiny metal. This painting is available for sale from my website, www.dancingelephantart.com .

 --This piece was originally published in 2015 but has been updated for the new blog format. Early 2015, I received an invitation from Crossroads Carnegie Art Center, to come tour the Baker Heritage Museum. I, along with many other artists, went, and found inspiration for art in the artifacts, exhibits, stories, and people dressed and in character, at the museum. Upon entering the museum, one of the first people I met was a woman wrapped in a red feather boa, with a feather fan in her hand. Her real name is Elaine Logsdon, but her character's name was Diamond Lil. I imagined she had been a burlesque dancer in her youth, and now perhaps ran her own saloon and theater. I am sure she could tell some very interesting stories! I knew I had to paint her, and knew her personality would shine through on the canvas. I decided with the other paintings I made for the museum, to be more creative in the composition. Instead of painting the entire object, I chose to crop it in a way that would b...

  Here are some more of my marbles. These were painted on 8x8" wood boards for the Little Big Show in Baker City, Oregon. Some of these sold, but some are still available at  www.etsy.com/shop/AmyVanGaasbeckArtist  . It's the perfect size canvas for these marble paintings. It's always so fun to see each marble turn from just shapes and colors to marbles. This one is called Big Blue. Many of these marbles were from a collection owned by one of my oil painting students, an elderly woman, who had a large jar full of them and they had been in her family for decades. This particular one was very old, and not perfectly round...just a little bit off. As an artist, I have to judge when to idealize and perfect something, like remove a blemish, leave out a few wrinkles, make someone thinner, or leave it in and embrace the imperfection. I decided to leave in the flaw in this marble, where you will see my others appear perfectly round, this one feels just slightly off, just by a hair...

There have been many theories as to the identity of Mona Lisa, the portrait painted by Leonardo Davinci. Some think it is a feminized self portrait. Some say it's DaVinci's lover. I found an article in The Artist's Magazine that makes a very good case for the identity of LaGioconda. The article is called Who's That Girl? written by Katherine Mesch, in the June 2005 issue of the magazine. I read this many years ago and thought it was very interesting. I recently rediscovered the article and thought I would share it. In this article, the author explains that "after 17 years of research, historian Maike Vogt-Luerssen ...claims that the Mona Lisa is really Isabella of Aragon, the former duchess of Milan." The paintings themselves give clues, as well as documents from that period in history, She goes on to explain: "The woman is wearing heavy mournful garments (Isabella's mother died a year prior to the painting of the portrait--she would have still ...

I have recently fallen in love with painting marbles. The challenge of getting them perfectly round---not just round but getting these little glass globes to look like they have form. Distorting the image of what is behind its round surface, and making the surface look smooth and shiny. Oh, then there is the reflected light on the ground surface that is fun---the intense light in the center and the colored shadow surrounding it. Prepare to see more of these types of paintings from me. They are intense. Each marble can take two hours to paint...so you can imagine how many hours any of these took! Check out more of my work at www.dancingelephantart.com  or go straight to my Etsy store,  https://www.etsy.com/shop/AmyVanGaasbeckArtist  .

This was an assignment from my last still life class in college. I love vintage Pyrex pitchers, and have a collection of them. I also love painting the illusion of glass and metal. I am thinking about expanding from this one painting into a series of Pyrex pitchers. What do you think?

One of the biggest excuses we all have for not doing something is this: I don't have time. We all have 24 hours in a day, we just choose to use them in different ways. The objective is to use those 24 hours on those things which are most important. How much time is spent watching tv, or surfing the internet? How much time do you actually spend on your art, or on marketing your art? According to Constance Smith, author of Art Marketing 101, of the time that an artist sets aside for art, half that time should be spent on marketing. If you think that's a lot, then work up to it, but do work on marketing your art on a regular basis. If you don't have a schedule or a daily routine which includes creating your art, begin to adjust that now. Set aside a definite amount of time each week for art and marketing. If you don't, you may be shocked to realize how little time you actually spend on art each week. Make time one or two days a week for marketing, and not on the same d...

Many years ago, there was a man named Judah, and he had three sons. The eldest, named Er, married a woman named Tamar. Er was a wicked man, and the God of Israel struck him dead because of his evil ways. This left Tamar childless, which meant two things: her late husband would have no heir, and Tamar might be left to survive on her own, which was very difficult, if not close to impossible, for single women and widows in those days. Judah told his second son, Onan, to take Tamar as his wife. If she conceived, that firstborn son would become Er's heir. Onan agreed to marry her, but used means to keep her from becoming pregnant. God saw this, that he was undermining the plan Judah had for Tamar and Er's heritage, and so God struck him down dead. Judah had one son left, Shelah. He was but a child. It would be many years before he would be old enough to have a wife, so Judah took in Tamar as part of his household, to wait for that day. Tamar, however, had doubts. This so...

I  first learned about Lorenzo Ghiberti in an art history class I took in college, and I wrote a paper about the doors he created, The Gates of Paradise, and how they compared to Bernward's Bronze Doors of St. Michael's. Lorenzo Ghiberti was a shining star of the Early Italian Renaissance, best known for the aforementioned bronze doors of the Florence Baptistery. He was trained as a goldsmith and sculptor, and wrote Commentari, what may be the earliest autobiography of an artist. Ghiberi was born in 1378 In Pelago, near Florence. His father was Bartoluccio Ghiberti, a goldsmith, who taught his son the trade. Later, he worked for Bartoluccio de Michele, where the famous artist Brunelleschi also trained. In 1400, the Black Plague struck Florence, and to escape, Ghiberti moved to Rimini, where he helped complete frescoes in the castle of Carlo I Malatesta. The Sacrifice of Isaac Most of Ghiberti's career was spent working on commissions for the Florence Baptistery....

A still life study dealing with using a large amount of negative space in a way that still brings balance to the eye, "Small Delights" is intended to make us appreciate the little pleasures in life--a cup of coffee, a piece of chocolate, or just a few minutes of peace and quiet. Painted in oil on canvas board, the props for this piece, as with many of my props, are vintage finds, with some wonderful chocolate truffles added, just because I like painting shiny things. I hope you enjoy this, and remember to look for the little moments in life---and therein find a little joy.

Although not necessarily created as a piece of art, Stonehenge could be considered early architecture, which is a branch of art. I have not been to the real Stonehenge, but there is a replica of a complete Stonehenge that I have been to in Maryhill,Washington, near the Columbia River. It's very interesting. What exactly is Stonehenge, you ask? There are a few theories, including being a perpetual calendar, a site for rituals, or perhaps worship of the sun or astrology. In the Middle Ages, it was believed that it was created by Merlin the Magician, or was created by giants. Stonehenge is believed to have been built about 4,500 years ago, in the Neolithic age, which means new stone age. It can be found in Wiltshire, England, and is open to the public to visit. It is a masterpiece of engineering, and using simple tools, and must have taken much time and effort, unless they had some giants or large animals handy to help with the work. Stonehenge is a group of stones placed ...

Vashti, Queen of Persia, wife of the mighty Xerxes. Some believed that she was the most beautiful woman in the world. King Xerxes certainly did. Once, during a great feast, he ordered his queen to reveal her beauty to all the men in attendance. This did not mean just unveiling her face, but unveiling everything. He wanted her to dance before them, so they could receive pleasure at her sight. It was unheard of for anyone to say no to a king's order and live. Perhaps Vashti hated being treated like a piece of meat. Perhaps, being the queen and mother of Xerxes' heir, she felt that she should receive more honor and respect. For whatever reason, she stood up to her husband, the king, and said NO. Vashti, charcoal, 2014, SOLD Xerxes consulted with the wise men on what to do with her. He must have loved her somewhat, because she would not be put to death for this crime. But he had to do something. If he just let it pass, then the other women of the kingdom might rise up ...

I first met Sherri in the weeks before opening my gallery. Opening my own gallery was a big, scary, yet thrilling step for me, and I didn't even know if any artists would support my endeavor, but Sherri was one of the first artists to bring her work, at the encouragement of artist Becky Litke. Throughout the next two years, Sherri and her beautiful watercolors and etchings helped make The Dancing Elephant Gallery successful. I have come to know and appreciate Sherri and her beautiful artwork, and now you can get a little glimpse into her life and art, too. AV: Please tell us a little about yourself, and what kind of art you create. SL: My name is Sherri Kay Linnemeyer, I am 55 years old, and live in Baker City, Oregon.  I have fallen in love with watercolors and can see myself continuing to grow and learn with this media. I am inspired by wild flowers, animals, birds and other wildlife.  I have experimented with acrylics, print making with etchings, lithographs, silk ...

This is my second space painting, "Approaching the Space Time Vortex". I am a sci-fi fan, and what came to me as I painted this spiral galaxy, was that maybe it needed The Doctor's TARDIS somewhere in the picture. I didn't add it in, but it did inspire me to try something Doctor Who inspired. I painted a line of pendants with a TARDIS in them. Here are some examples, all of which are sold out. I will be making more soon, if you are interested, but they do seem to sell quickly. Please contact me if interested.

 Do you have a passion for creating art, and you want to make a career out of it, but don't know where to start? It can be scary starting down a career path without knowing what to do. I am on that path myself. Although at this point I am no multi-million dollar success story, perhaps you can learn from my experience. If you think you can learn from me, please read on. The first thing you should do is really take a long, hard look at your art. Are you at a professional level in your skills yet? Be honest with yourself. When I first determined I was going to become a professional artist, I knew I had talent, but my skills needed some polish. I chose to enroll in art school, The Academy of Art University (their online program); but if that seems too big of a step, find an artist who gives classes or private tutoring. Be teachable. Ask high quality artists to honestly critique your work and show you areas that need improvement, and then make those changes. To become a great artis...

As I am constantly creating more art, I am running out of room to put everything! I am letting these pieces go at clearance prices. Do your Christmas shopping early and get some awesome art at great prices! My loss is your gain! Shipping is based on package weight, free delivery or pickup in Baker City, Oregon. Please click here if you are interested in purchasing. Historic home 1  pen and ink, $30 unframed Geisha, oil, 12x16", $75 unframed Starlight House, pen and ink, $30 unframed South African Man, pen and ink, $20 framed Rainforest, oil, 12x16", $75 unframed The Brothel, pen and ink, $30 unframed Baker Towers Flowers, oil, $75 unframed African Child charcoal, $75 framed The Guardian, charcoal, $75 framed