New oil study and new Snow!

"Gray day on driftwood bay" oil on canvas 8" x 10" by Hilary J England

We have new snow!!  Enough said about that :-o   

Things are moving along well for my campaign regarding the Florence Biennale.  I have some nice pledges coming in, and the press has picked up my story, so I hope that the general public has some Art lovers out there that will want to kick in and help, even if it's only a few dollars.  Hey, little bits add up to big things!

I have been working away on my newest pieces, and doing some little still life paintings at night.  I made a promise to myself to keep "limber" by producing one rapid little painting a day, on top of the usual studio time I put in.  When I am working on big pieces, it's easy to get absorbed into them.  These little paintings or oil studies, just flow quickly--it's like a lightning rod between mind and brush...they clear the cobwebs out and keep the painting flowing smoothly.  It's not about producing a masterpiece with the little paintings...think of them as your notes before your final report.  Even if it is good, it's not the final piece, and never will be.  That's what these little paintings are about.  Practice and preparation!

Red Dot NYC is nearly upon me!  The show goes off on March 3rd and runs that weekend through to March 6th.  It's at 82 Mercer Street in New York City, and I'm told it's a really amazing exhibition.  I am looking forward to it.  I have printed up some materials to be distributed during it, but I don't know if the printer will have them in time...oh well.  At least the stuff isn't dated and can be used in the next show...

Anyway, enjoy the little study above.  It's from when we were in Maine, and it's called "Gray day on driftwood bay."  Say that ten times fast!!!

And remember friends, I still need your help, so please support an Artist!!   http://www.florencebi.com/

Think Spring!!

"Butterfly and lilac study" by Hilary J England, oil on canvas panel, 8" x 11"

We're supposed to have some warmer weather coming our way, and that is a great relief!  I'm getting tired of hauling my paints in from my studio so they don't get all funky.  Plus, I have been working on some sculpture in clay, and that needs to remain indoors as well, so it's getting pretty cramped in my little office...

Working on several new projects, and of course, my fundraiser.  I have gotten some private pledges, and am working to bring everything to the public...i.e.:  Publicity.  The dirty word...Anyway, one step at a time.  I never did like getting ahead of myself, although that seems to happen on a routine basis! 

In the meantime, enjoy my study from last year of the monarch butterfly.  That always brings memories of warmth and sunshine!

Getting in gear!



"Sand dollars and sand swirls study" by Hilary J England, oil on canvas panel, 8" x 11"



I am getting geared up to go live with my http://www.indiegogo.com/ campaign to fundraise for the Florence Biennale.  It was hard work, and there is still alot of hard work that needs to be done, but I am up to it. 

First and foremost, was making a video under a deadline.  Making a video was like trying to take a crash course in Chinese...certainly was not an easy thing to do!  Shooting the footage was easy enough, but when I got it into Photoshop to edit it--what a nightmare!  I had never used the Photoshop Premier Elements before (their video editing software), and it is NOT user friendly for a novice.  I was literally ready to rip my hair out of my head by the end of the sixth hour!

As time wore on, and other tasks started to press on me, I had no choice but to abandon the Photoshop in search for a more basic program that didn't require a Master's to operate.  I settled on good ole Window's media player, but, to add to my frustration, the video footage I shot was in Quicktime, and was incompatible with the Window's program.  At this point, I put up my white flag, and scrapped the whole thing...I had to make this deadline, and had to do it with some degree of sanity and at least a cohesive video.

I decided to go with a good old, albeit it somewhat simple way of communicating the video....slideshow format of the work, interspersed with on scene photography, background tracks, and viola:  the video was done in about an hour and a half.  Whew! 

So, when Indiegogo goes live, I will post the link!  I am excited to work on this project, and look forward to the positive end result of it...

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy my study of sand dollars...I've got the beach studies out to keep up the warm vibes!  Maybe Spring will come early after all.