HOLIDAY ART SHOW, Dec 4

I can't believe that we are nearing the end of November already.
Thanksgiving is a week away and Christmas is fast approaching and with it brings holiday gift shopping and have I got a great place for you to do that !!!

Univ. Wisc.- Parkside, has their annual Holiday Art/ Fine Crafts show, Sat. Dec. 4, 10:00am-4:00pm at  900 Wood Rd, Kenosha, WI.

In my booth # 122 I will show some of my paintings, 

Bringing Home the Tree



 along with my hand-painted silk scarves and airbrushed glass
ornaments.

See you on Dec. 4, 2010, UW Parkside,
Kenosha, WI., 10am-4pm

ALONE

Do you like to be alone?  How do you feel when you are ?

Here is a video shared  by a friend with the question of  "What does being alone mean to you?"
I hope you watch the video and can answer this question yourself.

Here was my answer: "ALONE. Its a very special thing to be. To me it means that I am at peace within myself. If I like being with just me, than I know that others will like me also.
I can talk to myself and no one cares. I crack myself up much of the time with the goofy things I do, ......on purpose or not.
ALONE. Nothing to be ashamed of, or afraid of.
Learn to like who you are by being ALONE once in awhile"

oceancolors-bonnielynnsblog: Pink Ribbon Month

oceancolors-bonnielynnsblog: Pink Ribbon Month: "October is the month designated to promoting breast cancer health, mammograms, research and pink ribbons. So many of us know a woman who has..."

Pink Ribbon Month

October is the month designated to promoting breast cancer health, mammograms, research and pink ribbons.

So many of us know a woman who has or has had breast cancer.                 

Many factors are linked to breast cancer risk. Some of these factors affect risk a great deal and others by only a small amount. Some risk factors you can’t change. Simply being a woman and getting older increase your chances of getting breast cancer. Other factors you may be able to change. For instance, leading a healthy lifestyle can help reduce your risk of breast cancer. Understanding what factors may affect your risk can help you work with your health care provider to develop a breast health plan that is right for you.

Getting regular screening tests increases the chances that if you do develop breast cancer it will be found early when it’s most treatable. Self breast exams are a good way to become familiar with the way your breasts normally look and feel, so in between our yearly mammograms, if there are any changes, you will know the early warning signs: lump, hard knot or thickening; swelling, warmth, redness or darkening; change in the size or shape of the breast; nipple discharge. Be aware of your body and its changes. Become involved with issues of national importance in the fight against breast cancer.

Since cancer has hit my family four times in the last ten years, two of them breast cancer (both survivors because of early detection!), I made a promise to donate 10% of the sales of my art to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Milwaukee affiliate. I show my support by wearing a pink ribbon pin and hand painting a pink ribbon silk scarf. http://bonnielynnsart.com/OceanColorsSilkScarves.html

Are you an artist??

I just read this blog from the MN plein air painter, Marc R Hanson, and liked the humor in it so had to share it with you.
This is a paraphrase from his blog:

I have a question... Is there a school out there that teaches the two questions that almost everyone who walks up behind me asks?

1- "Are you an artist, are you painting?"... Easel is up, brushes in my hand, paint all over the palette, paint brush with paint is on the canvas...

2-Remember, they're behind me looking at my painting and what I'm painting... "What are you painting?"

Tonight the last people in the park, besides me, were rock climbers. A young lady clinging and clanging from all of the climbing gear hanging from her body came up and asked me both questions. To answer her first one I said "Yes...Are you a climber?" She stretches out a big grin and says "Why yes I am!".

To answer the second question, I just pointed out in front of me.

Either I'm not doing a very good job, one that she can recognize, or she took the course... I just don't know!!!

Facebook Fan Page

As yet another outlet for my art, I have created a Fanpage on Facebook.  Im told that this is the newest way to get yourself noticed.  You create the page, send invitations to people via Facebook to LIKE you, and somehow you are famous !

Im not quite understanding the logistics of this whole thing, but I did create my page and will feature my artwork on there.   I thought that was what my website was for !!?? 

With all of these places Im supposed to be, .........Twitter, Facebook, FB Fanpage, etc, I don't know when I'll find time to paint !

But if you get the inkling to do so, visit my Fanpage  and LIKE me if you like !

Celebrating Life in the Sea

 Painting colorful underwater subjects is an expression of my love and respect for our oceans.
Finding inspiration and then creating works of art is a problem often faced by artists.  My inspiration comes from the underwater photos I take as reference material of the sea life, fishes and corals.  I then let the subjects dictate if the piece will work better in watercolor or oil paints.  The transparency of watercolor's on the smooth surface of hot pressed paper may be what is needed for the delicate shape of a triggerfish or the heavier application of oil paints on canvas for the bulkier body of an octopus or shark.

When people see my art, I would like for them to feel happy and invigorated by the bright colors I use and to feel, if just for a moment, that they have entered this beautiful underwater worlk and become a part of my adventures.

A delicate balance exists between our lives and with that of the oceans.  Educating and increasing public awareness through my art is my mission to get people to think about the health and survival of our oceans for future generations to enjoy.

Gidgets, Widgets and Gadgets

(OceanColorsSmallPaintings)

I have been wondering for weeks just how to get my blog entries to go to Facebook.  I have poked, prodded and twinged everything I could in my blog dashboard, but to no avail.

Then I noticed a few days that a friend of mine, Carrie Jacobson, did exactly what I wanted to do with her blog ( carriejacobson.blogspot.com ), so I emailed her. After a few back and forth emails, she decided to phone me.

Here was how our conversation went:

Me: How did you do that?

Carrie: Hmmmm. Let's seeeee... I don't really remember. I have no idea where that thing was. It was on a page with tabs on it, I remember that.

Me: Dashboard?

Carrie: Dashboard? Maybe. The place where you can design your stuff. Is that Dashboard?

Me: I don't know. I don't see it in Dashboard 
 
Carrie: Well, its probably not on the Dashboard.  Maybe its where you make a new posting.  Yes, there it is ! See the tabs ?  Click on the one that says Amend or Arrange or something.  Then look down near the bottom, about halfway, for a button thing that gets you to the doodad or something like that.
 
Me: The gizmos?
 
Carrie: The widgets.
 
Me:  The gadgets?
 
Carrie:  Look there. Look for something that says 'edit', then hit it and a box will pop up, with a whole lot of other gizmos you can have, and the Facebook one is there.
 
And the conversation went on like this for a few minutes more.  Somehow, through all that clatter and nonsense chatter and laughter, we understood each other and I accomplished my feat.  Now if I can just do it again !!
 
Life is like that sometimes. We stumble, bumble and fumble through it, wondering how we did it in the first place.  But that is what makes it all interesting.

Sketchbook Tour 2011 entry

And yet another page for my sketchbook,  http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject

7 Reasons Why I Scuba Dive

7 Reasons Why I Scuba Dive:

Diving in Cozumel

1. Appreciation for beauty: I love color--in my art and in the world around me.  The colors in the fishes and corals I see underwater are so spectacular and beautiful that it brings tears to my eyes at times when I think that HE created it all.

2. Sense of Adventure:  I love trying new things.  I guess I have a touch of reckless abandon.  People always told me I couldn't, ........but I can !

3. Photography: Photography with my Nikonos V underwater camera make the reference material I use for my underwater themed watercolors and oil paintings.

4. Peaceful Feelings: Underwater, I am alone with my thoughts.  All I hear is my own breathing.  Comfortable, relaxed feelings take over my body and mind.

5. Commaderie: I have something wonderful in common with the three girls I dive with and the people we meet on our dive trips.

6. Learn respect: Seeing life under the sea can do nothing but make one respect our environment and want to preserve it.

7. Educating: As I learn more and more about the oceans and the inhabitants, I like to pass this information onto school children.  They are like sponges in that they want to learn and they ask a million questions when I'm done speaking.
Educating and increasing public awareness through my art is my mission to get people to think about the health and survival of our oceans for future generations to enjoy.

Better blogging

My friend, Elizabeth, is a big blogger, who is always trying to nudge me to get at least one entry a week in my blog.

We had lunch together last week and while we were enjoying each other's company she pulled a thick folder out of her canvas bag and handed it to me.  As I opened it she explained that she was taking an online class (with about 400 other women) to better blogging and she challenged me to join her in this endeavor.  

Liz doesn't need to encourage me to find time to paint, but she likes to "push and nudge" me to be a better business person, and that I don't blog faithfully is one of her biggest beefs about me ! 

So..........after much deliberation, I decided to take the "31 days to a better blog Probloggers Challenge."

Task one is to write an "elevator pitch": a short description of the focus of our blogs.  When I started this blog two years ago, I wrote that I was "Talking to you about my life as a scuba diver and the art I have created because of it. "   The painting I put with this tag-line is called "Parrot Talk".  It shows 3 parrotfish in conversation.  I like my original tagline and think I will keep it as such.

Task one completed !  

Sketchbook Project Tour 2011

A sketchbook is a place to put down your heart and soul.

There is a website called Art House Co-op.  It is based out of Brooklyn, NY.  Every year they have a sketchbook tour open to anyone from all over the world. 

You purchase an 80 page small sketchbook from them, chose a theme from a list they provide, and then when they mail you the sketchbook with a UPC code on it, you have a time limit to fill it and return it to them.  You can draw, color, write poetry, paste pictures............anything you want, just so you fill it and do not change the dimensions of the book.  The sketchbooks then go on tour to 6 major cities around the United States, and people can check them out just like a library book with the UPC code. When they return to Brooklyn, NY, they are put into the Brooklyn Art Library as part of a permanent collection.

I have heard about this before, but never thought of doing it until now.  The theme I chose is "Below the Surface".  I am using it to educate people who do or do not have the opportunity to see what I have seen "below the surface" of the ocean.

I am doing sketches, small watercolors, original poetry and whatever else I may think of that will  depict life under the sea.

I'll keep you posted as I progress with the sketchbook and let you now what cities it will be touring.

My blogging

In case you have not noticed, I have fallen behind on my blogging. 
I have promised myself that I am  going to get better at this.  I am going to try to make at least one entry a week.
Starting now !

Readying for Mothers Day shows

My unruly flowers beds must wait. I have to devote my time to preparing my art for two upcoming shows.

May 1, 2010 is the Lakefront Artist Fair, Festival Park, Racine, Wi.
 www.racinemontessori.com/lakefront_artist_fair.htm

May 2, 2010 is the Affair of the Arts, 7908 Winn Rd, Spring Grove, IL

http://www.affairofthearts.org/

Along with some new watercolor and oil paintings, I will also have a line of hand-painted silk scarves.  These would make a wonderful gift for mothers, grandmothers, aunts or yourself.

Hope to see you at one or both of these shows.

Pink Ribbon scarf

Its always a good time to think about our health.  One of the things we should be thinking about is breast care.  So many of us know a woman who has or has had breast cancer.

Many factors are linked to breast cancer risk. Some of these factors affect risk a great deal and others by only a small amount. Some risk factors you can’t change. Simply being a woman and getting older increase your chances of getting breast cancer. Other factors you may be able to change. For instance, leading a healthy lifestyle can help reduce your risk of breast cancer. Understanding what factors may affect your risk can help you work with your health care provider to develop a breast health plan that is right for you.

Getting regular screening tests increases the chances that if you do develop breast cancer it will be found early when it’s most treatable. 

 

Self  breast exams are a good way to become familiar with the way your breasts normally look and feel, so in between our yearly mammograms,  if there are any changes, you will know the early warning signs: lump, hard knot or thickening; swelling, warmth, redness or darkening; change in the size or shape of the breast; nipple discharge.

 

Be aware of your body and its changes. Become involved with issues of national importance in the fight against breast cancer.

Since cancer has hit my family four times in the last ten years, two of them breast cancer (both survivors because of early detection!),  I made a promise to donate a percent of the sales of my marine art to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Milwaukee affiliate.  I show my support by wearing a pink ribbon pin and I make a pink ribbon silk scarf.

  http://bonnielynnsart.com/OceanColorsSilkScarves.html

Silk Scarves

I have been busy creating a new line of product to add to my Ocean Colors Art collection.
  

Besides my brightly colored ocean paintings (and Artistic Wanderings paintings), I am now offering you beautiful hand painted silk scarves in 54", 60" and 70" http://bonnielynnsart.com/OceanColorsSilkScarves.html

There are, naturally, my beloved ocean themed pieces, along with looks for everyday. 

I use 100% Habotai silk and the finest Jacquard silk dyes.  They are then "set" to retain the brilliance of the dyes and to enable you to hand wash them in cool/warm water.  Each comes in a gift box and with its own "care" tag.

I will also custom design a scarf especially for you, of your choice of colors.

Van Gogh STARRY NIGHT (pastiche)

For a project at our gallery, Antioch Fine Art Foundation, in Antioch, IL, a few of us painted on 4'x4' pieces of plywood, a pastiche' of a well known artist, whose work we think the general public will recognize.  Our plans are to put them outside of our gallery to attract the attention of passers-by, or to hang them around town with the blessings of the town Chamber members.
The one I chose to do was STARRY NIGHT, by Vincent Van Gogh.

Springtime Jewelry

If you are looking for beautful Spring-time jewelry, see Danielle Renee's seaglass rings, bracelets, necklaces and earrings........ http://www.jewelrybydaniellerenee.com/ .

Danielle hand picks seaglass from the beaches in New England.

Alaska and other Wanderings

My paintings, Alaska and other Wanderings are being exhibited  for the month of March in the White Room at the Antioch Fine Arts Foundation, Antioch, IL.

My 2 cruises to the Alaskan Inside Passage and my many scuba diving trips, have armed me with tons of photographs, both topside and underwater.  I then come back to the warmth of my studio and interpret these photos into oil and watercolor paintings. 

 I photographed the hammerheads near the Galapagos islands of Wolf/Darwin from underneath the school, thereby giving me a great silhouetted shot.  This is the painting I did from that photo.

Visit the Antioch Fine Arts Foundation at 938 Main St, Antioch, Il to see my exhibit OR visit my website at http://www.bonnielynnsart.com/ to see these paintings plus many many more.

I will be a featured artist at the 40th Anniversary of Our World Underwater this weekend at the Donald E. Stephens Convention center in Rosemont Illinois, Feb 19-21.


This is the largest consumer scuba diving exhibition in the Midwest, and will include seminars, workshops, scuba clinics, an underwater photo film festival, and best of all, my Ocean Colors Art booth, #911.


I will also be debuting an exciting new dimension of my work......silk paintings and scarves.  I feel the silk captures the feel of shimmering water, dappled by waves and sunshine.  I will also have many new small matted watercolor and oil paintings, underwater themed postcards, and assorted prints will be offered at a show special of 40% off, and a free gift with every purchase.


If you are a scuba diver, then Our World Underwater is the place to be this weekend, Feb. 19-21 !

CLC Gallery Members Exhibit

The Robert T. Wright Community Gallery of Art, Grayslake Il, will hold the annual members exhibit from Jan. 15-Febr. 21,2010.

This group show features Lake County artist who are members of the gallery.  Works on view include a wide variety of styles and media.

Gallery hours are 9am-9pm, Mon-Thurs; 9am-4:30pm Fri/Sat; 1-5pm Sundays.

My watercolor, "Rocky Overseer", my interpretation of the Split Rock Lighthouse, MN, is hanging in this exhibition.