I'm behind on the updating.   Yes, I'm still working on the beach series.  I've also begun a series of paintings based on photos I've taken at some jazz performances.  In addition, I purchased an iPad mini in December and so am experimenting with iPad drawings.  Here are two of the sketches from my new toy.

After hearing from a few of you, I decided post all the sale paintings at once.   I created a page on my website.   

Just go to www.mariegagnon.com and click on "SALE".

This weekend!

Come delight in good company, enjoy noshy bits and beverage, revel in the little hot pink feather tree and see what I've been working on. I will also have many paintings for sale between $25 & $100.

Death and Rebirth -

I have been reading up on all the devastation Sandy left in her wake. So many stories. So much heartbreak.

Some of the stories that struck me involved artists…not only the damage to all the galleries, but more importantly, the studios and therefore years of work destroyed.

It begged the question "what if it happened to me?" I realized that it would hurt more to lose my creations than my personal belongings such as clothes, furniture, books, camera, etc.

A common theme in my life, but one especially brought to the forefront by the recent storm, probably because of my proximity to affected areas, is impermanence.

I always have paintings that I hold onto because of emotional attachment. They may not all be successful work but they have moments that keep me connected such as subject, color or paint handling. But when I would look at them I believed they would be wonderful grounds for new paintings. And yet I didn't have the heart to touch them.

Sandy demonstrated to me that it is crazy to hold on to something that I know can evolve into something greater.

So what have I been doing this week?

Painting over paintings I never thought I'd touch. It feels good.


Here are some before and after photos from this past week's post-Sandy painting frenzy. I'm using a new medium with the oils and it is taking far longer for the paint to dry. It will be at least a week before I can touch these again.

On Thursday I reworked my Jill painting which I loved because of the light, the idea…and was totally infatuated with how the big cat was painted. It's 30"x40". Oil on canvas.

BEFORE


AFTER



On Friday I took the plunge and went into my beloved Sophia Room painting. It was a very emotional experience. That space was my solace and my home. The painting is 60"x30". Oil on canvas.

BEFORE


AFTER



On Saturday I touched a painting that had been featured almost full page in the March 2011 issue of Seattle Magazine. Again, I loved the light and the geometry. But it was time. This painting is 36"x36". Oil on canvas.

BEFORE


AFTER

After four inspiring days in NYC of being immersed in art, I returned to the studio and pulled out a painting I hadn't touched in two months.  Today it drastically changed and I find it exciting.   Part of the Beach series, oil on canvas.  28"x22"

Opening Tonight:

This Is Not Your Grandmother's Still Life

I am honored to have been asked to show seven of my Bleeding Vessels paintings in this group show, exhibiting with artists I've admired for many years.  

This Is Not Your Grandmother's Still Life opens tonight at Bherd Studio Gallery in Seattle.

Bherd Studio Gallery

312 N 85th St, Ste 101

Seattle WA 98103

Opening Reception: Friday, October 12 from 6 – 10pm
Showing through Friday, November 2

"For their fourth appearance as guest curators at Bherd Studios Gallery, Seattle artists Kate Protage and Chris Sheridan explore contemporary artists’ approaches to an essential theme that is sometimes undervalued because of its traditional roots—the modern still life.

This is Not Your Grandmother’s Still Life showcases the work of eight artists who are breathing new life into the genre by making drawings and paintings of objects that are relevant and contemporary, whether that’s through their choices in subject matter or their technique. From gorgeous, intricate stencil-based paintings of tattoo equipment to intaglio prints of seemingly straightforward objects that offer subtle commentary about society’s current hot-buttons, Protage and Sheridan present work that encompasses a wide range of subjects, styles and resulting emotions.

Exhibition runs from October 12th through November 2nd and includes the art of: Marie Gagnon, Sullivan Giles, Steve Klinkel, Molly Peters, Albert Shelton, Chris Sheridan, Kellie Talbot and Mark Tracy and Andrea Wicklund."

I needed a little break from the dune paintings and so began a second painting of Henry and Parker, the sons of a friend.  The painting is based off a fabulous photo her husband took while the boys were napping.   K was kind enough to give me permission to paint from the photo.

This is only the second day and it still has a ways to go, but it's settling in. Note, I still have to deal with the hands.  Sometimes it feels so good to simply work from a photo and paint from observation instead of creating fully from within. 

24"x24", oil on canvas.

I spent last week in Provincetown.  It was a self-imposed mini residency where I could study the landscape in more depth for the new Beach series.   The week was fruitful, with over 800 photos taken while experiencing the dunes by foot, by bicycle and by 4wd.   Many notes later along with a few watercolors and ink sketches.   This is a larger one I worked on during the week.  11"x14", in pen.

Open Studio!!!

You are invited to my first east coast open studio!
Saturday, Sept 8 - 10 am to 4 pm
Sunday, Sept 9 - 10 am to 4 pm
3rd floor - C302 (with the big purple doors)

The Mills
545 Pawtucket Ave
Pawtucket, RI 02906
easy off Interstate 95

I will be showing the new Beach series, completed and in progress works. There will also be selected paintings at discounted prices.

Statement for the "Beach" series:

After 14 years in Seattle my return to New England has affirmed that its coastline is my home. Reintroducing myself to the dunes on the Cape and Martha’s Vineyard I knew this landscape would become my first east coast series.

The series first began as a love letter to this magical landscape and an exercise in light, space and color. It still is, but over the last few months I’ve watched the substance behind the paintings take hold. In painting the dune path I am painting the artist’s journey. We know the ocean is over the crest yet it remains hidden as we climb the hot sands. It is a landscape with an ever changing personality: its calm and dramatic nature. A character of extremes, it can feel isolating and yet that space is full of emotion, of ideas, and of color.

More Beach paintings. These are all 28"x22", oil on canvas.

Each are 14"x11", oil on canvas.

Much of June was spent checking out many beaches, old and new. Near the end of June I was generously gifted with some time on Martha's Vineyard. I think it had been almost 20 years since I'd stepped on the island. On my last day before returning to the ferry, I went to South Beach. Stepping onto the dune path that lead to the ocean I was filled with joy. I had forgotten how much I loved this stark and extreme landscape. It became my new muse and I began the "Beach" series.

Both are oil on canvas, 24"x12"

After not painting in oils for over 7 months, I was excited and apprehensive to return to the medium. What would I paint? I had moved 3000 miles, and although I'd returned to New England, I'd never lived in Rhode Island. There was a surreal sense of the familiar and the strange. While in the studio my eyes fell upon a photo my sister sent me. It was a photo of me, at seven years old on of my favorite beaches, Ogunquit, ME. I smiled and realized it would be the perfect way to begin painting in my new life. I came back to New England because I couldn't stay away from its coastline.

It has been a busy few months. I am settled in Providence RI and have signed a lease on a new painting studio in Pawtucket, right on the Prov/Pawt. line in the 545 The Mills building.

It's been a while since I posted. In September all the artists from the 619 Western building had to move out of our studios because they were closing the building for retrofitting and viaduct demolition. Everything went into storage except for some acrylics, drawing supplies and watercolors. I've had to work out of my little 375 sq. ft. apartment and it's been quite an adjustment.

Slowly, I'm getting back into a regular practice, focusing more on exploring various mediums. This is the first painting I've completed since moving out of my work space. It's a little painting for a group show being held in Antartica. This is where I learned of the call for art.

I'm not comfortable with acrylic paint but am pushing myself to work with it because I can't imagine painting until I access new studio space.


Antartica, 8"x10", acrylic on canvas

from the "Studio Series", oil on canvas, 14"x11"

from the "Studio Series", oil on canvas, 24"x12"

from the "Studio Series", oil on canvas, 36"x18"

"The Sophia Room" from the "Studio Series", oil on canvas, 60"x36"

from the "Studio Series", oil on canvas, 24"x30"

from the "Studio" series, 28"x22", oil on canvas

from the "Studio" series, 22"x28", oil on canvas

My recent paintings are scenes from my studio in the beloved 619 Western Arts building.

28"x22", oil on canvas

18"x24", oil on canvas


11"x14", oil on canvas


24"x18", oil on canvas


18"x242", oil on canvas


www.mariegagnon.com

from the Viaduct series, 12"x12", oil on canvas

approx. 10"x6", charcoal and wet brush on paper


approx. 10"x6", Ebony pencil on paper


approx. 10"x6", Ebony pencil on paper

11"x14", oil on canvas

11"x14", oil on canvas

11"x14", oil on canvas

11"x14", oil on canvas

14"x11", oil on canvas

12"x16", oil on canvas

30"x40, from the Viaduct series, oil on canvas

60"x60", oil on canvas

It was the final day of my month long sabbatical and I had a huge hankering to work large. Pulling out an older painting, I tipped it on its side and began to paint. Work in progress.

28"x22", oil on canvas

18"x24", oil on canvas

18"x24", oil on canvas

6"x8", acrylic on paper

22"x28", oil on canvas

11"x14", acrylic on canvas

18"x24", acrylic on canvas


8"x10", acrylic on paper