"Thereafter"

"Thereafter", originally uploaded by fyre_spyryt.

Original Watercolor on CP 140lb Paper.
12" x 9"

"Winter Trees"

"Winter Trees", originally uploaded by fyre_spyryt.

Semi-Abstract Watercolor on Cold Pressed 140 lb watercolor paper. 11" x 15"

"Wishes"

Wishes, originally uploaded by fyre_spyryt.

Mixed Media Watercolors, Ink & Pastels
Abstract
9" x 12"

Journal Pages - November 20 & 21, 2007

Rain, Rain Go Away

Its a bleary, dreary ugly day. It has been raining for days now and I am more than ready for it to stop. I can't seem to get myself up and going to get anything done. The house is a wreck. The dogs don't even want to go out into this mess!

You know, I hear some artists say they paint better when they are in a down mood. Not me. I can't seem to get going when I feel blah. And of course, my emotions show up in my paintings. It is rare that I paint a lot of browns in my paintings and I really don't like using black (or white) at all. But when I tried to paint last night I found myself painting all browns and dull colors and I even picked up the tube of black paint! I still can't believe I actually used black paint. Black ink I use, but not black paint!

What is my world coming to?

Lately I have been hearing, reading, and finding lots of others opinions about what I will refer to as "what an artist is" and "the rules to being an artist". Here are a few of my responses and opinions to the things that are bugging me.

1. "Artists who make or sell crafts cheapen their 'real' art" - hmmmm.... guess I am just "cheap" then. I create both arts and crafts and sometimes there is a fine line between the two and sometimes there is not. In my opinion crafters are just another kind of artist. I paint, sculpt, collage, make dolls, make-over dolls, crochet, do all kinds of needlework, sew, make mobiles and wind chimes, bead, create altered art, and anything else I decide I want to try.

2. "Painters should choose one medium and one style and stick to it" - well, again, guess I haven't followed the "shoulds". I paint in watercolors, acrylics, oils, pastels, colored pencils, oil pastels, ink, and mixed media. I also work in realism, impressionism, abstract and anything else I feel like doing. My interests are varied so I have a hard time sticking to one subject too and paint people, animals, landscapes, still life, fantasy subjects and "who knows what that is" stuff. lol I find a lot of joy in switching it all up.

3. "Real artists have a college degree" - I really don't agree with this one at all. There are many wonderful artists who are completely self taught (I personally have a degree in Fine Art by the way, in case you were wondering). A lot of innovative and original work comes from artists who never received any formal training at all.

4. "Painters must learn to draw well before they try painting" - I disagree with this one too. I started painting as a child but I never really liked drawing that much. I draw now, but even so my sketches have very few "lines" and some of them only make sense to me. And I rarely draw on my painting surface with pencils before painting. Occasionally I do, but mostly I don't. I "draw" with the paint, the method depending on what I am using to paint with. Sometimes I don't start with a "drawing" (even with paint) at all. Oh the shock of it. lol I carry watercolors and oil pastels with my sketchbook more often than pencils or pens. And a camera. Cameras can capture instantly what might be lost before I can finish a sketch. I paint from life as much as possible but thats just not always possible. Another little oddity of mine I guess is that if I use my photos for reference, which I do often, I print them in black and white. I rarely, rarely, rarely paint using a color photo for reference. I would be interested in knowing how many other artists paint from black & white photos as reference.

I am sure there are plenty of artists who disagree with me on these subjects. What can I say? I am an opinionated taurus. lol

Daily Journal - Monday 11/19/07

Daily Journal - November 18, 2007

My version of a daily journal... maybe I will start posting them here.

New Prints Available

Well, once again I haven't posted in quite a while. Unfortunately, this isn't the only blog I have neglected. Having menieres disease can be a real bummer. I have spent the last three weeks in bed or lying on the sofa. My house is a wreck! I love the fall and it kills me that I can't get outside much and enjoy the weather. The most I have managed is sitting on my porch... but still, at least I have that. I have two gorgeous, huge trees in my front yard and I have really enjoyed watching them turn colors. I feel a connection to trees. I always think of them as having personalities. These two definately do.

I think of menieres as a monster. It is always lurking, just waiting until I am not expecting it and then pouncing. It is a life eater. It has managed to take away most of my freedom and make even the simplest tasks difficult. But I absolutely refuse to allow it take away my art. I can't paint as much as I used to anymore but I do paint.

The strangest thing though is this change in me. I have noticed recently that as the symptoms of this disease get progressively worse, my art is changing. Hmmm.... I'm not sure this is good or bad. Perhaps it just "is".

Well, anyway... I have just added a couple of prints to zazzle. If there is actually anyone left who reads this blog... you can find my prints here ===> http://www.zazzle.com/benitasweeney

Also, here are a couple of ACEO size paintings I just completed. I have never tried painting in this format size before. These are my first ACEO's.

New Artwork Posted to My Website

Here are a few paintings I recently added to my website gallery:

Emergence

Semi-Abstract in Watercolor

Dreugan
Semi-Abstract in Watercolor

New Paintings & Prints Now Available

I think I have too many blogs! I can't keep up with all of them. If you are interested in reading my other blog you can see it here http://360.yahoo.com/fyre_spyryt

I have recently added several paintings to my website. Also, I now have original artwork and prints available in my Artist Rising Gallery and also on Sistino.com Gallery (Art.com branded galleries). You can purchase originals and prints at http://gallery.artistrising.com/benitasweeney

Here are a few of my newest paintings.

New Paintings Added to My Website

I have meneires and it has made me very ill for the past couple of months. So I haven't really kept this blog or my website updated the way I should. For anyone not familiar with meneires it is basically an inner ear disorder. When the symptoms are at their worst, which they have been for many weeks now, I can't really accomplish much. I just basically lie on my sofa hoping to feel better soon. Despite that, I am happy to say, I have managed to start a new painting and a new doll. It has been slow the last few weeks due to the symptoms but I am hoping for a few good days so I can finish them.

I am currently working on a painting of a dancer. So far, I am pleased with the way she is turning out. I am however, my own worst critic so I am sure I will find something I don't like before long. lol

I am painting in oils on canvas with this one and I started with a complimentary underpainting. I always keep my underpaintings pretty thin so they dry fairly quickly. I then "work up" from there adding layer on top of layer until I achieve a final image that I can live with. I am never completely satisfied but I have learned that overworking a painting is just as bad as stopping too soon.

I am also working on a customized fashion doll that I have been commissioned to do. This one will be a fairy and I will be adding her to my website in a couple of weeks if you are interested in this type of craft. I will also be adding some new art dolls soon.

In the meantime, I have added a couple of paintings to my online gallery. One was completed several years ago. It is a portriat of my grandfather, who died a couple of years ago, and is titled "Riley's Garden". I also added a painting of an angel that was completed at the beginning of this year. You can see both of these paintings on my website at http://www.benitasweeney.com

Painting the Night

"What counts is not the number of hours you put in, but how much you put in the hours"

...Unknown Author

I love to paint the night. It seems to be a consistent recurring theme in my paintings. Although I tend to "jump around" from painting the human figure, fantasy themes, landscapes, flowers, birds, etc and even change up styles realism, surrealism, abstract... I still find there are certain themes, such as night scenes, that keep recurring in my paintings.

I know I say that as though I have no control over what I choose to paint and really most of the time I don't really feel as though I do. An idea forms in my imagination and suddenly I am scrambling to get it down on paper with sketches, notes, anything that will help me work through it. Sometimes that's the end of it. And sometimes it gets a hold on me that just won't let go. That's usually when I feel my best work is accomplished. Most of my artwork, both paintings, sculptures and dolls, have their own story. It plays like a mini movie in my head complete with its own soundtrack. But I rarely tell the story myself. Instead I prefer the viewer discover their own if any. Sometimes I wonder, does anyone ever see any of my art the same as I do? Probably not. It feels like magic while I am painting (or sculpting or making a doll) and actually I do feel it is a borrowed gift from The Creator. When an artwork is finished, I tend to be much more critical of my own work. I believe that to be because I know... if a viewer finds something good in my work it is from The Creator but all the mistakes, well they are purely mine. And I try to own my mistakes too. I always try to post at least most of my paintings on my website. Even if I decide I don't really like them that much. Well, at least for a little while. I even add in small paintings I do as studies but now I am thinking that since I have this blog, I will post them here instead.

I receive more requests for prints of the painting above than any other I have created. Although I am satisfied with the painting I don't really feel it is my best but it usually attracts the most interest for some reason. The photo isn't that great but I am working on that. I painted this paticular painting several years ago but I have never offered the original for sale before now. I hope to be able to offer prints of this painting online soon.

New Painting & New Store

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."

--- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I just added this painting to the figurative gallery on my website. It is titled "The Third Sorrow". Its an 18"x24" oil on hand stretched canvas.

This one has a lot of emotional meaning for me and because of that it took me several months to complete. I usually work on several paintings at once but not this time. I guess I was a little obsessive so instead of other paintings I have been working on a few sculptural object art pieces and several dolls during the paintings drying time. Those will be added soon also, once I get the "final touches" added. They just don't feel quite finished yet. It used to be I could complete several paintings a week but I now have an inner ear disorder and chronic back pain that slows me down quite a bit. Its a bummer to try to live with but still, I refuse to give up my art!

Also, I opened a store with cafepress.com. So far, I have only added a few products/gifts featuring some of my watercolors. I prefer oils, acrylics and pastels but sometimes I use watercolors to work on "studies" of a subject. I am not usually very satisfied with them as a painting but I thought they would make decent designs for gifts, t-shirts, etc. Check it out at http://www.cafepress.com/benitasweeney

Peace and happiness

My Website

It is snowing in Alabama! We don't get much snow here so thats all there is on the news right now. lol Everything shuts down here when it snows so I'm sure they will be closing roads and schools today. It is absolutely beautiful.

I finally have my website up and running. Well, it's almost finished anyway. I have some of my artwork on there now and I will be adding more soon. I just simply don't have time for everything I need to do. I would much rather be painting and sculpting! You can see my webpage at http://www.benitasweeney.com .

I switched to SiteKreator because it is so much easier for me to manage. I just simply don't have the time to work on creating webpages and this is a great solution for me. For anyone else interested, they give you 10mb free and you can purchase a larger account if you need more. It is pretty easy to set up. So far I recommend it. I have added them to my links for artists if you would like to check them out yourself.
Peace and happiness

What big eyes you have...

said Little Red Riding Hood to the Big Bad Wolf. "The better to see you with my dear".

Ok, I admit it. I am completely new to blogging. But I was told I couldn't really "do this wrong" (ha!) so here I go. I plan on adding more info about myself and my art and a list of links of interest to art collectors, painters and doll artists. I will also add a few posts about what I'm currently working on in my studio and any events I am involved with.

Comments and suggestions are welcome. Thanks for stopping by and check back soon!

Peace and happiness