My Holiday Auction Tree

Halloween is in two days and I'm working on a tree sculpture for the Christmas season. No wonder life seems to be racing by!

My tree of soft whispy white branches draped with watercolor ornaments and chains will be just one of many holiday trees to be exhibited in December at Amato's Gallery. Each of Amato's artists was challenged to create a tree sculpture reflecting individual style and medium.

My main struggle was choosing a form that would display my watecolor ornaments. After several unsuccessful starts, I finally settled on a white ceramic vase filled with sand and pretty manufactured glass stones. I can't claim creating the vase, sand, stones, or fake tree branches, but all the ornaments are designed and handcrafted by me. I used old less-than-successful paintings as my main material, cut them into strips, wove the strips together, added little watercolor collage elements here and there, strung strips together to make colorful paper chains, and then placed all my unique ornaments carefully on the very delicate branches.

The trees will be featured at Amato's Gallery starting on December 4, with an afternoon reception from 1-4. Each tree will be accompanied by a bidding sheet with a starting bid recommended by the artist. Bidding will begin during the reception and continue until noon on Saturday, December 18. The highest bidders for each of the trees will then be notified and will have their own one-of-a-kind holiday tree to enjoy this Christmas and for years to come.

I can't wait to see what all the artists design!

A New Painting!!!

Monday night, instead of getting ready and heading out to The Canvas Bistro for an evening of drawing, I stayed home in my pj's and painted in my studio. I worked from a photo in my collection of a scene in Roussett, France. My husband and I had taken a cruise of the Mediterranean and selected to take a day trip to this region where the soil is red clay and the buildings reflect the area's natural resource in their coloration. I started with watercolor and ended with a gouache painting. I find myself using this process frequently, which allows me the freedom to make changes and experiment more with the image. I'm happy with the results.

November Event at Amato's

As you can see, our next artist to be featured at Amato's Gallery is an abstract painter who obviously loves color. Bruce Ulrich will share a series of his latest paintings and collages in a show entitled, Exploration in Abstraction.

The show will run from November 6 through November 30, with an evening reception from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, November 6.

I hope you'll join us at Amato's for the reception and visit with Bruce and the other ten Amato artists. Mark your calendars!

Today at Amato's

I spent this afternoon staffing Amato's Art Gallery; during the quiet time I began work on a special project for the month of December.

All of Amato's artists will create a sculpture reflecting their design style and primary medium, and the results will be featured at our Artists Reception on December 4.

I began with old paintings that were started on 300 lb. Arches watercolor paper and just never quite made the grade. The old pieces provided the weight and durability I was looking for, not to mention a use for paintings I will never finish.

I applied wet washes of w/c paint to the backs of the old work so the images can be viewed from both sides and then cut everything into strips of various widths and lengths. When all the strips were dry, I wove them together and varied the edges.

The image above is not finished but you can get the idea of what the final assemblage will look like. It still needs to be embellished and secured. Not sure at this point how many of these I'll need for my finished sculpture but the project has begun and the problem solving is underway.

It was fun to do something creative today. Hope your day included some time for creativity.

Amato's Reinvents Itself

It's been an exciting time for me since I last posted something on this blog. Amato's Gallery in Beaverton has undergone a major restructuring and I've been right in the middle of everything.

First of all, the gallery moved to the Historic District of town and we now have a Broadway address, 12570 SW Broadway Street. Never thought I'd be on Broadway, but anything can happen if you believe.

The dynamics of the business structure changed as well, and I am now one of four "partners," who took the big step and put our names on the lease. Joni Mitchell, Bert Cohen, and I have joined ranks with floral designer, Karen Amato, to run the collaborative business, Amato's Floral and Fine Art

Gallery. Eight other creative souls followed us from the previous location to keep our family of artists complete.

The lease was signed on August 23 and the transformation began immediately. The previous tenant must have raided Ikea's storage supply and confiscated gallons of their signature blue and yellow paint. It was everywhere - inside, outside, you name it. Check out our blog to see photos of the hired hands (better known as family members) at work.

The signage went up today and we stood across the street to see how it looked from a distance. I have to say it was a proud moment to realize what had been accomplished in just six weeks. We will celebrate this Saturday evening with a re-opening celebration. The work is done and it's time to party!

If you read this in time, call some friends or family members and make arrangements to join our gala....to check out the art and lights on Broadway! Reception hours are 6 to 9 p.m.

Despite some moments today when I felt like pulling out my hair - and I just had it highlighted in the morning - it was a good day; maybe even a great day. Hope you can say the same!