Mai Autumn

inspiration - judith geher

i always love art that pulls off being deconstructed and somewhat abstract, yet still portrays the subject matter perfectly. all of judith geher's brush strokes are mesmerizing to me. her choices of leaving certain aspects "unfinished" also seem so balanced and well thought out. for me, it's difficult to choose when a work is finished, and seeing paintings such as these completely inspires me. find more of judith's amazing work here - judith geher. (found via oh joy!)

inspiration - yao cheng design

i was literally blown away when i found yao cheng's collection of stunning, simple watercolors! i almost posted her entire portfolio here on my blog! check out the collection here - yao cheng design.

inspiration - floral still life

i keep wandering around the internet collecting inspiration lately. i go through bursts like this, where i'll search and save and search and save, until i'm blue in the face! and then suddenly, i'll finally start creating new work like crazy. i am a nut for flowers (if you didn't already know) and i've only painted two floral still life paintings in my life. hopefully the next fit of creativity leads me to paint some pieces nearly as beautiful as the florals i've been finding on etsy. check them out!

images are clickable to the listing. artists are as follows: suzie baker, h. oomen, vitali komarov, sarah f. burns, angela moulton, suzie baker, brent hanson, kerri blackman, h. oomen, jennerifer boswell

daydreaming - decorating

every once in a while, i get to thinking that this lil apartment of mine could use some new accents. decorating is one of those ongoing things that will never feel entirely complete, and i kind of like that about the whole process of designing a space - sort of little reminder that life itself is about constantly growing and changing as well. here are some goodies i've had my eye on lately....

((   hanging planter, throw pillow, succulents, overdyed rug, adorable bottle opener, diy tassel garland, iphone stand, cuckoo clock, flora print  ))

inspiration - joshua petker

these days i've been playing around with some figurative work in my free time, and when a friend of mine mentioned artist joshua petker to me, i instantly became mesmorized by the style of his work - the colors are magnificent and the painterly details immediately grabbed me. i had to share some of his portraits.

you can find more of his work here - joshua petker.

patterns

lately i've been trying to focus on how i want to grow my little business, and i keep thinking about patterns. when i started college, i always wanted to design fabric, and i think it may be coming about that time to actually make that dream a reality. here are some patterns that i find to be oh so fun!

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favorites

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as september comes to a close, i'm realizing time seems to be speeding up and slowing down at the same time. i came across an article that made me feel quite nostalgic, and i thought i'd pop in to share.

a short little article was posted over on zatista a few weeks ago about back to school art supplies. all the talk about crayons got me to remembering that my absolute favorite crayon was always cerulean. i loved it so much that i would use up the whole crayon before any of the others, (and i have to admit, i think i might have stolen a few replacement cerulean crayons in times of need!)

upon realizing this, it dawned on me that quite a bit of my work as an adult centers around shades of this exotic color! it's funny when you notice your favorites still ring true, even through all the chaos of growing up and entering "the real world".

so, in honor of remembering my favorite childhood hue, here are some lovely cerulean sights :)

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portraits

lately i've been off on a bit of an art tangent, and i'm itching to make some new work. portraits have been distracting me for as long as i can remember, so i've been thinking maybe it's time i start experimenting with some portraiture in my work soon. if i have the willpower, i'm going to keep this project on the down low until i know where it's going. so, for now, here are some gorgeous portraits that have been inspiring me these days.

jen mann

 

katherine fraser

 

meredith frampton

 

kelly mckernan

 

charmaine olivia

 

hopefully i can get some pieces coming together soon and i'll have something to share. right now, the ideas are kind of more like little seedlings in my brain, so we shall see.

 

styles

over the past few days/weeks (and if you kind of add it all together, the past few months), i've been trying to refine my artistic voice a little in an attempt to figure out where i should take my new work. i've still been trying to keep myself busy making new paintings and illustrations with whatever is inspiring me during the course of this searching, so i have a lot of (somewhat random) new pieces to share with you soon.

the main thought behind this post today is to make note of the "styles" i've noticed that i'm both drawn to in other artists' work, and when creating my own new pieces. i'm hoping this discovery is leading me in the direction toward more sense in my work soon! so, here are the styles:

botanical illustrations/studies:

(image via little byrd vintage)

basically anything that looks like it could be a plate in a dictionary or reference book. there's something so clean and fresh about an object in the center of the page, not complicated with any other elements.

 

folk art and decorative patterns:

(image via britt herman)

(image via kelim pottery)

folk art has been around me from when i was a wee girl - both in my parents' house and in my grandparents' house. so i'm probably drawn to it because it brings me back to being a kid :)

 

color fields and abstracts:

(image via blin gallery)

one of my favorite artists has always been mark rothko, and you can probably see a little bit of this style in my landscape watercolors.

conceptual illustration:

(image via holli)

i love the juxtaposition of different elements, and the linear quality some illustrations possess. it's a little whimsical, don't you think?

realism/still life:

(image via cathy hillegas)

now, obviously this is one of the most literal styles in the art world. you set up a still life, you get yourself a model, or you sit yourself down in nature and depict things as they really are. sometimes a thing or place is just so beautiful, that it doesn't need any other bells or whistles to be inspiring all on its own.

 

since figuring all this out, i'm starting to conjure up ways to incorporate these styles more cohesively into my work. i'm looking at it like a recipe - i have these ingredients in my cupboard, now how do i put them together to make a delicious meal? i think i'm headed in the right direction though. what do you think?

dreaming the week away...

i have been in my own little world this week. painting and dreaming and planning. here are some things that have been inspiring my wandering mind..

felicia antanasui

halima washington-dixon

bernadette pascua via a blonde's guide to world domination

tina heiska

jenny belin

i wish i could stay in this very fashionable and feminine dream world forever :)