Palm Tree and Fish Kissing Canvas ACEO Original Art Cards

Kissing Fish

Oasis

Two more canvas mini art works.  These original ACEO carrds are on canvas and I used acrylic for the main body of the work.  I did however, do a watercolor was on the kissing fish.  I was not sure this would work but liked the muted affect.  It is important that you seal your work when finished, especially when they are tiny enough to be handled.  I found I do not have room to include a full signature so decided to put my initials on the front and full signature on the back.  My Limited Edition Prints on Ebay start at .99 cents but Originals will start at 4.99.  I have seen Original ACEO cards go for over 5,000.00  Wow!  Don't get your hopes too high, most sell between 5.00 - 30.00.  Since we all want to stay inspired and constantly improve our own skills I look at this as a wonderful way to get paid to do what I would do anyway.  Collectors get to enjoy the mini art pieces and I get more practice.  Win - Win.

New Starfish and Jelly Fish Original ACEO Canvas Cards

Starfish Bright

Jelly Dance

I purchased some canvas sheets from Hobby Lobby and cut my own Art Trading Cards or ACEO's.  They are always 2.5 x 3.5" and I found that you get more for your money by making your own.  Of course, you can do the same thing with Watercolor, Mixed Media or Drawing paper.  I have had some success listing ACEO Limited Edition Prints on Ebay and thought I would give ACEO Original's a try.  This little mini art fits in perfectly with my desire to create every single day.  While having my morning coffee I will often listen to relaxing music and play with mini art.  It is important for the collector that you include the title, date, medium, signature on the back.  I always also include a stamp with my website address.  I did find that canvas is a bit trickier to work with this small  and I admire some of the artists that get really detailed.  I will try to update you with new creations as I go along and hope to inspire fellow artists out there to take a few minutes and create each day.

Orca / Killer Whale Tribute Painting

Dance of the Deep

I was contacted by Veronica Wolski once more and asked if I would be willing to donate a work of art for the organization: Fragile Waters.  https://www.facebook.com/fragilewaters?fref=ts&ref=br_tf   I donated an original "Baby Seal" watercolor last year to help with their Spring Fling Lolita Auction and am thrilled to help them once more.  I wanted to create something just for them and decided to do an acrylic on canvas titled "Dance of the Deep".  This years auction will be May 23rd - June 7th.  The funds raised will be going to help Fragile Waters, Orca Network's documentary regarding the Chinook Salmon and the Southern Resident Killer Whales of Washington State, and also raising funds for banners for Seattle's highways to educate the residents about Lolita's plight.  If you would like to bid on this work or some of the other artists works please click on the link above for more information.  

Houston Skyline in Purples

Houston Skyline 1

Houston Skyline 2

Houston Skyline 1 & 2

I only get to Houston once or twice a month now and love the skyline.  I decided to prepare my canvas with an abstract background in purples and add in the skyline once they were dried.  While I love all that is available in Houston, art galleries, restaurants, shopping, after a full day I am ready to get back to my quiet country life.   I admire the local drivers and how they manage to navigate the craziness.  Maybe it is because I now live in the county, but I find myself clutching the wheel and doing lots of praying when I get into the heart of downtown.  The galleries are worth the white knuckles and so far I've made it unscathed.  My tribute to all the beauty Houston has to offer., 

Texas Longhorn Cows

Texas Longhorn

 

 

 

Decided to add in a few new pieces indicative of Texas and the Longhorn was the first animal to come to mind.   I love driving by and seeing these majestic animals in the field but got to thinking about just how much work they would be to raise.  Top of my list would be the fact that they could impale you with one of their horns and then you have to have all your barn entrances large enough to accommodate those lethal weapons!  Overall, I think regular cows would be a lot easier but appreciate those ranchers who are committed to raising these Texas Icons.  This is my tribute to them.

ACEO or ATC ?

What is the difference between the two?  Years ago at an art show a friend of mine showed me some small works of art that she had created on 2.5 x 3.5 paper.  She explained that they were ATC's (Artist Trading Cards) and according to her, could not be sold, only traded or exchanged.  The idea was to encourage artists to share and collect the works of others.  While on ebay, I noticed the acronym ACEO and did not know what the difference was, since these little gems were also 2.5 x 3.5 inches.  I did a search on www.aceo.org  and have copied their description below.

 ACEOs are miniature pieces of art that measure 2-1/2" x 3-1/2". If a small piece of art has different measurements than this, it does not qualify as an ACEO.
The acronym "ACEO" stands for Art Cards, Editions and Originals. They can be original art, print editions or photographs.
The majority of ACEOs are two dimensional, but three dimensional elements may also be incorporated. Pop-ups, books, collages, and sculpture can all be ACEOs as long as they measure 2-1/2" x 3-1/2"!

ACEO history

ACEOs stemmed off of Artist Trading Cards (ATCs), an idea developed by the artist M.Vänçi Stirnemann. He based the size of ATCs on sports trading cards. ATCs can only be traded or given away. Their purpose is to share art and to encourage creative exchange between artists. Like ATCs, ACEOs may be made with any media, material, or method as long as they measure 2-1/2" x 3-1/2".
ACEOs are made with the intention to sell. The artist Lisa Luree started the ACEO group on eBay in part to make cards available to collectors.

So there you have it!  Personally I love both ideas.  As artists we are always searching for new ways to market our work and printing little ACEO gems seems like a good idea to me.  I think I may create a few originals too, just for the fun of it.  What a great way to start an art collection on a budget.  Just think, years from now you could have hundreds of little masterpieces from around the world, reflecting your own taste on what is beautiful and support the art community in the process!  Sounds like a win - win to me.  

Rooted in Texas

Rooted in Texas

I grew up in California and still love the State.  I loved that I could drive only a few hours and have such a variety in scenery.  One direction was the Pacific the other mountains.  I have to admit I really miss the beach.  I use many blues and greens in my work and gravitate toward marine themes.   That being said, we are not firmly rooted in Texas.  We have bought a piece of land, are in the process of homesteading that property and trying  to learn as we go (see my Budget Homesteading blog for more on that).   I am fortunate to have three out of my four children living on our property and get to have my grand babies help me in my garden and around the house. There is always so much to do and I have to make myself sit down, make a list and try (yes try) to stick to a schedule to get anything done.  We live in such a busy time and as mom's often are pulled in so many directions.  I got over trying to be "Super Mom" years ago but I still just keep piling the projects on.  As a wife, mother, grandmother you try to make sure that your family knows just how important they are to you and want to be there for each one.  Homesteading has its own requirements that requires attention and time.  We are building and construction needs to keep moving forward.  We have animals, gardens and are constantly trying to stay ahead to the forest that wants to take back the land.   It is important to me to provide good meals for my family and simple things like running errands seem to take up a whole day (it doesn't help that town is 30 min. away) and if I need something like art supplies it is a good hour plus away.     Finding time for art, blogging, on-line listings, teaching and creating new work for our local art gallery is always a challenge.   There was a time that my art took a back burner as I raised my family and did humanitarian work in Romania.  I am now dedicated to somehow make the time.  That means that sometimes I have to get up in the middle of the night or work early in the morning.   I've learned that if you really love something, you can find little nuggets of time to pursue that love.  I have to credit my kids and grand kids for teaching me this valuable lesson.  All of them love taking our country walks.  Such a simple, sweet pleasure.  It is a time to talk, a time to enjoy the beautiful creation and a time to smile at the efforts of my daughter trying to catch a butterfly or my grandson pretending to be a new superhero.  I love them, so I make the time!  I am so grateful that we finally have a place we can put down roots and even more grateful that we can do it together.    

Celestial Planets

Celestial Planets

This particular work started out as a simple abstract focusing on greens and blues.  Some of my favorite color combos.  I had so much fun with my last "out of this world" painting that I decided to add in different planets.  Finding different sized circles around the house to use as templates came in the form of bowls, lids to jars, coffee cups and soda tops.  When you look around it is amazing how many different shapes you can come up with, using everyday items.  It is important to determine which direction that  the light  flows in any painting but especially in round objects.  I choose the upper left and therefore knew my shadows would fall on the lower right hand side.  One of the things I love about abstract is that you can allow yourself the freedom to just GO.  You do not have to think too much and I find it more relaxing than other forms of art.  There really is no right, or wrong.  As adults I think we often forget to just play, just for the fun of playing.  Abstract allows you to do just that and really become more instinctual.   If you haven't tried it, give it a go.  Enjoy the process.

Aussie Roo

Aussie Roo

Australia

This work was inspired by my granddaughter Australia.  Everyone calls her Aussie Roo and she is a doll.  I love when she tilts her head and gives me that sly little smile.  Once again I used the tiny brush strokes to complete this work.  I wanted to give the impression of movement so left the kanga a bit to the left and only added splatter to the bottom right.  I cut out a part of a newspaper and covered the areas I wanted to protect and left the areas open that I wanted the splatter of paint to fill.  Warning: splatter goes everywhere!!!!  I was even trying to be careful but still ended up with splatter on the window and wall.  I really NEED an art studio!  As many of you know we are in the process of building a tiny home (which will one day be for our oldest daughter) but in the meantime 4 of us live in a little over 400 sq. ft.  With all my art supplies and constant projects it is a tight squeeze to say the least.  My grandbabies come to visit and "help" yaya (that's me) paint and then the fun really begins.
One of these days we will actually get the house finished (that is if I can get more focused). See my budget homesteading blog for more on our house.  The reality is..... painting is so much more fun! 

Dot Abstract Octopus

Dot Abstract Octopus

Love the ocean and all the sea creatures.  My daughter Brittania refers to these beauties as "wormy things"!  The arms and lines of the octopus were perfect for my dot abstract painting.  I used colors that you would actually see at the ocean and love the flow of the finished piece.  The background is solid white and it has a very clean look.