Floor Art

I've been thinking about carpets a lot lately. Thinking how great it would be to make custom carpets with my paintings on them. This can be done now days. Isn't technology wonderful??  Back in the day I made a few floor cloths but they had no soft coziness to them. I've chosen a few of my paintings that I thought would look great as carpets. Now on to research the process and see if it's indeed in my future.

 Untitled 7553  40x40x2  acrylic on canvas

$2500.

 Ocean View  48x60x2

$4000.

 Horizons  48x60x2  acrylic on canvas

$4000.

 Untitled 7558  40x40x2  acrylic on canvas

$2500.

 Global Traveller  16x20  acrylic on paper

$350

 Desert Evening  30x40x2  acrylic on canvas
$2000.

Coastal  12x36x2  acrylic on canvas
$750.

New Website Coming Soon.

Swan  30x30  acrylic on canvas

Available at Art Interiors

I've received quite a few emails asking about my website ritavindedzis.com. Unfortunately, it's still undergoing construction and it will be a little while longer before it goes live again. The delay is my fault as I've been so busy painting in the studio I haven't had a chance to make some important decisions about its design. 

In the meantime you can check out the 'available in studio' section of my blog as I update it with new paintings often. You can also check out the 'galleries' for links to the galleries that carry my work. Have questions about a special order or how to purchase? Drop me an email, Tweet or connect through Facebook.  

Live Life With Gusto.

Gusto  30x30  acrylic on canvas

$1500.

I am finally done! All the paintings are wrapped and ready to go. So far this is my favorite painting in my foodie series. I started out small (6x6) with the paintings of the restaurant signs last year but then wanted to go larger. Along with Gusto, I'll have Swan, Kit Kat, and Here's Lucy at the show tomorrow. Hope they all find good homes.

Inspiration Overflow.

Last week I dug out my inspiration board from our downstairs storage locker. It's been over two years since we moved and it's been sitting down there ever since. My inspiration board is a purchased cork bulletin board that I framed in a some what ornate frame.

I pulled from my many files of torn magazine pages and paper bits that I've saved over many years. After setting up a pleasing display of pictures, images, and colors that are inspiring me at the moment I set them with clear pins.

These pages come from my mountains of magazines, a nice combination of art, design, home, decor, craft, food, travel etc. etc. The 'Warhol' is a mixed media piece I created just for myself. You can see my process here.

Inspiration comes from everywhere lately. It seems my mind is racing overtime with creativity. If I wake up in the middle of the night I find it hard to get back to sleep because almost immediately I'm thinking of what to do in the studio the next day and what to paint. A nice problem to have.

Inspired by color, the season, changing and falling leaves, the sky, magazines, walking around my neighborhood, nightlife, bright lights, great music, learning new things, love, an occasional Ghirardelli square, blogs, books, inspiring people, life.

And of course my studio cats Iggy and Nami. They are the perfect companions to long quiet days alone in the studio.

I'd love to hear what your inspiration is.

Artist Highlight- Veronica Funk

It's been 5 years now since the inception of Inner Works, an altered book round robin collaborative of six artists. The original group consisted of Supria Karmakar, Seth Apter, Veronica Funk, Jill Zaheer, Roxanne Evans-Stout, and myself. It's very exciting to see how each artist has grown, and to follow their accomplishments in their fields. I thought it would be fun to highlight each artist here and I'm starting with Veronica.

I am so excited to see the direction that Veronica has gone in her painting. She just finished up a community arts project where she painted a utility box.

"Funk's newest undertaking will give Airdrie residents and visitors the opportunity to view her work.  On Sept. 4, Funk, who was one of the founders of the AIRdirondack project and a former Creative Airdrie board member, will begin painting the City-owned utility box on the corner of First Ave. and Main Street.  The piece will be painted in her colourful new style with animal and arrowheads depicted, as well as images referencing Nose Creek."

Veronica continues to exhibit in solo and group exhibitions and her work has been published in numerous magazines, books and publications. I've just given a very brief introduction to Veronica's beautiful art. Please visit her website to view all her beautiful work. You can also see her utility box transformation in full here on journal here.

One DIY Project Completed.

Last week my studio was a little crazy. While working on my summer DIY from my previous post, in a burst of creative energy I started on two more projects. I even grabbed my camera (yes, I was fearless!) and started filming my progress as I worked. I held the camera in my left hand as I painted with my right hand all the while describing my technique. I don't think any of it is good enough to share, at least not without a lot of editing, but with the right set up I could definitely get into it. Is Youtube in my future? Perhaps. Maybe a few segments on Cityline? now that would be fun. But enough daydreaming...

Here is the inspiration that started this whole project. These gorgeous carpets from Modern Weave. They are sooooo beautiful but not in my budget at the moment, so I decided to make my own.

I had an old abstract landscape painting that I painted a few years ago, on a stretched canvas. A good size for a carpet at 48" x 60". The idea was that I'd paint it and then remove it from the stretcher to use as a carpet.

The look/feel I was going for is from the Modern Vintage collection. I used my fave Benjamin Moore paints and instead of a brush I used my trusty brayer to apply all the paint. By using the brayer all the textures and even some of the original painting show through giving it that vintage look.

From the Benjamin Moore Colour Trends 2012, Earth & Sky I used Wythe Blue, Sharkskin, Fresh Olive, and Battenburg. I also used Crown Point Sand and Lemon Chiffon. There are only hints of the old colors (cobalt blue and unbleached titanium) of the painting showing through in spots. By using the Benjamin Moore paints it will hold up to the wear and tear that a carpet would get.

I could have started with a large piece of new canvas but it made more sense to me (and my wallet) to recycle and re-use the  painting that I didn't want anymore. In this detail you can see how painting with a brayer picks up on the texture from the previous painting on the canvas.

Here is the finished canvas. At this point I could remove it from the stretcher and fold the ends under and use it as a carpet as I had planned, but I decided to put a wire on it and hang it in the bedroom just to see how it looked.

Well, you guessed it. I think it looks great here and works well in the bedroom. I like it so much that I'm having second thoughts now about using it as a carpet at all.

I think I'll live with it for awhile and perhaps it will stay on the wall for good. Then I'm back to square one and will have to paint another canvas to use as a carpet in the living room. Stay tuned.

*Please note you can see the colors I used as well as all the colors in the many Benjamin Moore collections here in the color gallery.

Kingsway-Lambton United Church Art Show and Sale 2012

This past April I was invited to participate in the Kingsway-Lambton United Church Art Show and Sale. I was thrilled to be a part of this well known and long running show and I wrote about it here. The show organizers featured "father and daughter artists" with an article about the four of us here. The article also features artists Anja Karisik and her father Ciba Karisik.

 My booth at the show.

 My dad's booth.

 Nandor Horthy-My dad's art

I'm happy to announce that once again, I will be participating next year. The show takes place on April 14, 2012. I know it's many months away but I am already starting to think of which paintings to include and the new paintings I'll be working on for the show. I love my job!!!!

Halloween Owls.

Have you noticed that owls seem to be a very hot trend in home decor lately? Perhaps it's because they've been on my radar, but I see them almost everywhere I go.  It's a trend that seems to come back every so often (I remember in high school in the 70's they were big) and so the saying goes-everything old is new again.

I was asked to do some illustrations of owls this past summer. This pair of owl paintings are 18x18, mixed media on canvas. A perfect opportunity to use up some textured papers and play with some mixed media techniques. The cool gray tones and hits of bronze give them a rather moody feel. Almost spooky, so with Halloween coming up I thought I'd share them.

The publishers ended up using 2 other owls that I painted in the series and I'm left with 4 paintings of owls.  In fact there are paintings and illustrations crowding the shelves and the floor of my studio/living space. Perhaps it's time for a studio sale.

Monday September 19, 2011

Today is September 19th and a great excuse to re-share this mixed media piece that I created for Create Mixed Media back in July. You can see the full post here and my process here.

Inspiration All Around.

Inspiration really is everywhere. I keep my camera with me at all times (like many of you I'm sure) and snap away when I see something that really catches my eye. 

The colors of nature.

While window shopping.

After a great meal.

Before a great meal.

Fading signs.

Wonderful texture in peeling paint.

Art supplies of course.

How about you? Where have you been finding inspiration these days?

Looking Forward.

Haven't been around the blog much lately. Taking a bit of a break from much of social media these days. I've turned inward these past few weeks. On a private journey. Soul searching. Cleaning house so to speak.  Figuring out what stays and what goes in my life. Changes are definitely happening. I'll be back with more regular posting next month. For me, September has always been a month for new beginnings. So there will be new stories and art to share and a few surprises. Stay tuned.

Seasons

At ten years of age if someone had asked me "what's your favorite season?" without hesitation I would've answered summer. The seemingly endless days home from school without a care in the world, friends, and fun. That was my summer.

As an adult the seasons for me are all about the senses. Sight, smell, touch, sound, and taste.

Spring is a visual explosion of fresh greens, pinks, whites, and yellows. Buds and blooms. New beginnings. Hope

Summer is sensual. Hot humid days and steamy nights. Beaches. The waves lapping at the shore. Biting into cold crisp watermelon.

Autumn is cool breezes that can turn into a cold wind. Gray skies with bursts of yellow and red from leaves so bright they almost look artificial.

Winter is quiet and still. Lacy frost on windows. Giant snowflakes falling gently like feathers onto a frozen pond.

I'm grateful that I live in an area that has all four seasons because each one brings me so much joy. How about you, what's your favorite season?

Summer Gallery Hours.

The lazy hazy days of summer are upon us. The downtown core seems quieter than usual, I suppose many are off on vacation.

Things are busy here in the studio with an assortment of projects on the go. This is a great time for me to lock myself up and paint, paint, paint in preparation for the busier art season in the fall. My galleries need new paintings.

Many galleries here have their summer group shows up and are open shorter summer hours. I'm taking my cue from them with the blog and will be around but only casually. This will give me a chance to concentrate more on studio time and a few surprises I'll share soon. Of course there will be a little bit of R&R thrown in.

The Week as Art.

I'm thrilled to have my mixed media work featured on Create Mixed Media this week. Thanks so much for this opportunity Tonia, Major gratitude here.

Here are the final pieces each representing a day of this week.

 Each piece was assembled, photographed and then disassembled.

I used an assortment of materials. Original background papers, magazine pages, tracing paper, photo transfer.

 Ephemera, stones, original painting on canvas and cut up scraps, acrylic paints, gesso, and markers.

It would've been easy to superimpose numbers onto images of paintings that I had already completed,

but I wanted to challenge myself, have some fun and come up with something new. I created seven little temporary assemblages.

Whether you are accomplished or just starting on your artistic journey Create Mixed media has something to offer you.

Have a great week.