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I had a fairly crazy week last week with a Saturday show and family in town, but I managed to sneak a few sketching opportunities in along the way. First was Thursday night dinner (steak special!) at Ecco with my fellow sketcher Christina. We both had fun drawing from the patio in the midst of the 1920's neighborhood. Predictably she focused on a building, and I focused on a tree, but we both had a ball.
Friday the weather remained perfect, so Henry and I walked to the pharmacy, and the clouds behind Crosstown were perfect as I rounded the corner. One thing about lingering fatigue is that walks are easier with breaks, which is a perfect opportunity for sketching. We sat for a while, picked up necessities, and headed back home.
Friday the weather remained perfect, so Henry and I walked to the pharmacy, and the clouds behind Crosstown were perfect as I rounded the corner. One thing about lingering fatigue is that walks are easier with breaks, which is a perfect opportunity for sketching. We sat for a while, picked up necessities, and headed back home.
Finally I sketched the interior at Muddy's Bake Shop while I was their featured artist at a Saturday pop up. I love the space (any place is happier with a disco ball!) and also the whole crew of kind people working there. Another fellow sketcher Jan came and hung out for a while to talk palettes and travel and other fun things. Unfortunately I had refilled my paints and forgot to tuck them back in, so I worked instead with fountain pen and three watercolor markers (gamboge, cobalt blue, and paynes grey). I tend to go all paint everywhere as my default setting, so it was a good exercise in restraint for me.
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I just hung all these for this weekend’s Open Studio, but it occurs to me that some of you might be too far away (or too busy) to make it to midtown Memphis just now. Here is the batch of small edible still lifes that are available this holiday season. The two oils have deep gallery sides and are ready to hang, and all the watercolors and gouaches are framed and ready to go. The oils are 8” square, and the others are in the 10-12” range. $225 each. It’s fun to see them hanging up all in a group in my hallway, but I’d be happy for anyone who wants to give the present of an eternal eclair or perfect avocado to take one home.
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It’s been show season, and this weekend is the final one for me for the holidays, and always my favorite. If you’re around Memphis, please come out on Saturday or Sunday (the 14th & 15th) from 12-5 both days at 1780 Autumn in Midtown. As always, I’ll be joined by Melissa Bridgman and her gorgeous pottery. I recently hung up all my finished oils from the last year or so to look at and invite folks in to see. It’s fun to see them all together, dressed up and ready so to speak. I’m hoping to find an out of the house showing for them at some point, but Open Studio visitors will get a sneak peek.
I also have several recent prints and one set of brand new ones for this show. After my Daily Pleasures still life show this fall, I took the cherries image on the “choose joy” plate (one of Melissa’s!) and made a print. The show had been all paintings, but I really liked the image and wanted to play with it graphically as well. It’s a single plate, but I’ve been hand rolling different color combinations on it. Each one is a little bit different, and it’s been fun to play with them. Come see us if you’re able, and if you’re not, I’ve also been shipping prints off in a good quantity, and there’s plenty of time to get them before Christmas if you’d like to give some original artwork. My online store is at https://squareup.com/market/martha-kelly-art. I’m selling what’s left of the still life gouaches and oils too. I haven’t added them all individually, but if you’re interested, I’ll be happy to put up any that are in demand as needed. See the bottom photo for a sample of them. Give an eternal eclair or macarons with no calories!
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I'm trying something new, and just in time for Valentine's Day. I'm offering a winter/spring note card subscription. I'll mail a 6-pack of hand carved letterpress note cards to the recipient of your choice for four months running. I'll carve a new design for each month and ship out a package in mid-February, mid-March, mid-April, and mid-May. You or your giftee get four presents (and postage x 4) for $65 total.
My Valentine Open Studio Sale is this Tuesday, Feb. 5th, 5-8 pm at 1780 Autumn. If you'd like to pick up the first one to give in person for Valentine's, I'll have them ready, along with a gift card explaining the subscription. You can also choose a different set to start with, if there was an older card you really liked (the baby owl or tree and moon, for example). Otherwise each new month will be a brand new design.
You can sign up in my online store at https://squareup.com/market/martha-kelly-art
My Valentine Open Studio Sale is this Tuesday, Feb. 5th, 5-8 pm at 1780 Autumn. If you'd like to pick up the first one to give in person for Valentine's, I'll have them ready, along with a gift card explaining the subscription. You can also choose a different set to start with, if there was an older card you really liked (the baby owl or tree and moon, for example). Otherwise each new month will be a brand new design.
You can sign up in my online store at https://squareup.com/market/martha-kelly-art
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I got my Chandler and Price printing press (see previous post for a video of it in action) in 2010 just before Valentines Day, and the first block I carved for this new love of my life was a valentine. I try to do one every year to celebrate this magnificent beast. This year I did two, one more traditional, and one for Mr. Darcy, my love and muse.
I'll be having a Valentine Open Studio Sale this Tuesday evening. It's a happy hour affair, 5-8 pm at 1780 Autumn Avenue, Memphis, so come have a glass of wine, see my new prints (the Memphis bicentennial pair should be ready by then), see Melissa Bridgman's new pottery, and meet Katrina Perdue. She's a knitter and has collaborated with Melissa on knitted cosies for coffee cups. She'll also have a selection of great hats.
I'll be having a Valentine Open Studio Sale this Tuesday evening. It's a happy hour affair, 5-8 pm at 1780 Autumn Avenue, Memphis, so come have a glass of wine, see my new prints (the Memphis bicentennial pair should be ready by then), see Melissa Bridgman's new pottery, and meet Katrina Perdue. She's a knitter and has collaborated with Melissa on knitted cosies for coffee cups. She'll also have a selection of great hats.
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I’m printing valentines today on my Old Style Chandler and Price press. It’s treadle operated, as you can see in the video, so it keeps me working off my grandmother’s apple cake I have leftovers of from a dinner party over the weekend. I’m doing two different valentines (currently having second tea after the first and gearing up for the second one). This press is so easy to print with once you get it set up. There is a bit of time getting everything inking evenly and dropping in straight, but after that, I can easily do several hundred at a time. I wish I could print all my prints like this, but it only take small prints and note cards. It’s a total joy, though, and I’m working on more smallish prints I can do this way instead of hand inking and lining each one up separately, then carrying it to my other press.
The valentines will be ready for my Open Studio Sale next Tuesday. We’ll have a small happy hour for painless valentine (or other) shopping on Tuesday, Feb. 5th, 5-8 pm.
The valentines will be ready for my Open Studio Sale next Tuesday. We’ll have a small happy hour for painless valentine (or other) shopping on Tuesday, Feb. 5th, 5-8 pm.
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I've been packing art lately rather than making it, since I had two shows this past weekend, and my Open Studio Sale is Dec. 1-2. I'm looking forward to getting back to making art again after this mad rush, but I'm also deeply grateful to the folks who show up to buy local art for holiday presents instead of choosing large manufacturers and mail order. Y'all make it possible for a bunch of us to do what we love and create a little beauty for the world, and I'm so grateful.
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Here's the second new holiday card this season. See the last post for my owl one. I figured the world could use a little more kindness, affection, and, if we're all very lucky, kissing. A small push for greater happiness.
This is a handcarved linoleum block paired with wood type. I can put them on the press locked into a single chase. I build wood pieces around them, called furniture, that are a little bit shorter than the block or letters (so the ink won't hit them and print them as well). I tighten it all down with "quoins", metal bars along the sides that expand as you use a small wrench in the holes to open them out a bit. Then the whole thing can be vertical in the press without dropping pieces everywhere. See the last post (again) for a video of the press in action.
This is a handcarved linoleum block paired with wood type. I can put them on the press locked into a single chase. I build wood pieces around them, called furniture, that are a little bit shorter than the block or letters (so the ink won't hit them and print them as well). I tighten it all down with "quoins", metal bars along the sides that expand as you use a small wrench in the holes to open them out a bit. Then the whole thing can be vertical in the press without dropping pieces everywhere. See the last post (again) for a video of the press in action.
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I had a big printing day yesterday. I hit a personal best with about 1000 cards printed on a heavy, turn-of-the-last-century, treadle operated press. It’s good exercise for me, and I ended up with 600 postcard invitations for my upcoming Open Studio Sale (December 1st and 2nd), plus a bunch of new note cards for the sales. I based this owl on a baby rescued barred owl I got to meet a few years ago on his way to a wildlife rescue group. He was adorable.
Here’s a video of the press running. I love the majestic way it orbits and works so quietly. It’s such a pleasure to use.
Here’s a video of the press running. I love the majestic way it orbits and works so quietly. It’s such a pleasure to use.
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I'm pleased to announce my holiday shows this coming season. I always have my own Open Studio, which will be with Melissa Bridgman again. I love spending the weekend with her and her gorgeous pottery. (Something always stays with me when she leaves. I'll be back at Tsunami again for their nicely curated, one day, manageable sized sale that I love. And this year, for the first time, I'll be joining MAC for five weeks at Crosstown Concourse. I've never done such a long show before, and I'll be curious to see how it goes with my stock. I'm excited to do a show at Crosstown, though, and it's a neat group, so here's to new things!
