Spring Green, Lime Green, and Fern Green are Hot Trends

In the 70s, I had a hallway that had light green walls, white baseboards and door, and a black table. Flipping through a current “Better Homes and Gardens” magazine, I discovered those same colors are a new trend teemed up with orange, hot pink or watermelon accessories.

Trends come and go; they also get revived and recycled. The problem is so does taste in fashion and art. Instead of buying art for aesthetic reasons or because of how it makes you feel, people buy art to decorate a room or to add a pop of color.

It has always been so. Our day and age is no different. At least there is a reviving interest in the arts, if only for its ability to shock or entertain. Street artists and their messages of activism and boldness are exposing more people to art and its impact on political action.

Chalk artists spend hours on three-dimensional art that is often a singular experience enjoyed by a few. Temporary by nature, better ways are being found to save and preserve these artistic expressions by housing them in covered walkways and on interior walls. 

Acrylic paints enable bigger and broader coverage that is changing the urban scene and filling its dark decaying walls with hope and color.

Artist Joe Bucci, who combines impressionist and expressionist styles was featured in a June “the Artist Magazine.” I was impressed with his colorful landscapes and his use of vibrant color.

Speaking about the changing art scene down through the centuries, Joe said: “one thing hasn’t changed: in order for a visual statement to become art, it must have an abstract quality. It’s not enough that a painting be a picture of something—it must communicate via composition, shape, color, rhythm, line, texture, mass and planes (visual or ‘plastic’ elements).

“The skill that causes an outstanding artist to rise above the pack is not the talent to draw or paint objects, but the ability to see relationships between those visual or "plastic" elements and their relationship to the artist's overall vision.”

How well an artist pulls this relationship off makes the difference between remarkable art that's remembered or so-so art that's soon forgotten.

Featured Artist

Deb Haugen – the “Organic Artist” has been featured in galleries and museums, and has won many prizes and awards. Deb is from Malibu, California. Here is a fantastic sample of one of her paintings. To see more of her work, go to Deb’s facebook page (see below):

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Deb-Haugenthe-organic-artist/112218349805?ref=stream#!/pages/Deb-Haugenthe-organic-artist/112218349805

Down on the Farm

I was born in a farming community, but I've lived in the city most of my life. I never had farm chores to do, but I grew up around those who did. I learned how to milk a cow, but I did it for fun not because I had to. I enjoyed feeding my aunt's goats, but I was on the other side of the fence. I simply pulled up hunks of long grass and fed it to them through the chicken wire. I loved listening to them crunch the sweet-smelling grass and feeling the vibration of their chewing on my fingertips.

My aunt taught me how to do many things on her small farm, including how to gather eggs. The chore frightened me, especially after receiving a few sound pecks on my arms and wrists from the hens for intruding on their nests.

When I visited my daughter in Seattle after she'd given birth to her second child, I was given the job of gathering eggs from the wild ducks which frequented the pond behind their house. A nesting hutch and been built for them, and my daughter and her husband gathered the eggs and sold them on the side. Many people prize duck eggs for their use in cooking. Apparently, their large yolks make cakes and other baked goods rise into fluffy deliciousness.

I disliked gathering duck eggs even more than hen's eggs. The job was noisier; wild ducks are a loud lot. The chore was slimier and dirtier. I wore a pair of oversized boots to protect my feet from slipping and slopping in the mud. I wore a pair of gloves to protect my hands as I gathered the doo-doo covered balls. The eggs were a bear to wash and clean. Gentle scrubbing was required to get them ready for selling. Why am I telling you this? Because Im planning to paint a rooster, and I don't want my negative experiences to effect the final product.

The rooster is the pet of a veterinarian, and a daughter of a friend of mine. He is saucy and brilliant and as proud as he can be. When I saw a photo of "Chicken Nugget," I knew I had to paint him. He's truly grand and in a class all by himself. "This ain't no ordinary rooster, folks!"

The only thing missing in my reference photos are the feet. Now if I can just find a good picture of a rooster's talons, I'm good to go!