Reflection photo taken from our balcony, with the river in the background.
Back in the fall of 2019, I was invited to show my art in a new hotel in Independence, Oregon, a small town about 15 minutes from Salem and across the Willamette River. The hotel, The Independence, was along the river and wanted to feature local artists and makers. I painted three paintings with the hotel in mind and its location along the river.
Working on two of the pieces for The Independence Hotel.Adding more layers to “Patterns Revealed Themselves.”“It Smelled Like the End of Summer” drying on our upstairs bathtub.
The three paintings for the hotel, oil and cold wax over plaster, and 30×40 inches each, were delivered in November, 2019. A reception was planned for the end of March, 2020.
And then the pandemic hit and everything was cancelled.
Fast forward to May, 2021, and we were finally able to visit the hotel and see my art in place. The hotel invited us to stay, so last week we planned a two night staycation. It was lovely to only drive 15 minutes to reach our destination, and what a beautiful destination.
Arrival at The Independence Hotel.
The beautiful lobby.
The hotel lobby.Local art in the lobby.
Into the elevator and down the hallway . . .
Shiny large elevator.
Arrival on the third floor.
Room 320.A special treat and thank you for staying.Our room with a view! Heavenly.Local art above the bed.The cool bathroom in our room.Meow.Standing on our balcony, looking down the Willamette River toward Salem.The view along the river walk.
As soon as we were settled, we took off to visit my art.
Seeing my painting for the first time: 2nd floor elevator lobby.“Patterns Revealed Themselves,” 30×40 inches, oil and cold wax over plaster. This painting is for sale and available.Howard exploring “Remnants of Morning Mist.”Revisiting “Remnants of Morning Mist.”“Remnants of Morning Mist,” 30×40 inches, oil and cold wax over plaster; located on the 4th floor elevator lobby. This painting is for sale and available.Visiting “It Smelled Like the End of Summer,” 30×40 inches, oil and cold wax over plaster, located on the 3rd floor elevator lobby. This painting is for sale and available.Howard taking photos of my painting.
The next thing we did was to grab kombuchas and head to the rooftop patio.
Afternoon kombucha on the rooftop patio.Rooftop patio.Relaxing on the rooftop patio.
Then we did a little exploring in downtown Independence.
A nice little antique store in downtown Independence.Independence has a great used bookstore on Main Street.Exploring downtown Independence.Exploring Riverview Park in Independence.
What a lovely location and a beautiful hotel.
The view from our balcony.
In preparation for our visit, The Independence Hotel interviewed me and posted the interview on their blog. Here’s a LINK.
Coming next month, a visit to The Dundee Hotel in Dundee, Oregon, where I have nine pieces of art on display!
Toward the end of March, my friend Lucy Hewitt texted me and asked if she could paint my portrait. She had been doing portraits of herself, and decided she wanted to branch out and start painting her art friends. I told her, “Of course, I’d be honored.” She wanted to schedule a time to come to my house and take some photos of me painting . . . with the caveat that she wanted me to be wearing my overalls and have curlers in my hair. Her strange request was prompted by a photo I had posted of me in my curlers on Instagram on March 16.
A date was set for photos, I washed my hair and put in my curlers. Lucy took photos of me getting ready to paint, then some action shots of me working.
Lucy had me stand in front of one of my big boards in progress – and then had me choose a pair of prop glasses she had brought along – I chose PINK!
In preparation for our photo shoot, Lucy had me write out words and phrases that describe me and my art. I was in the middle of #the100dayproject where I was creating art on scraps of brown paper bags, so I wrote my list on a scrap of bag.
Fast forward to a week ago when Lucy delivered the painting. My response was an emotional one as Lucy had captured me so wonderfully in paint. She titled the painting Color Can’t Wait. It was a gorgeous oil painting and Lucy captured every detail – from my earrings, to my bracelet, from the bright stripes of the background, to the sassiness in my stance.
On the back of the painting was a magical history of the painting, my words, and a poem that Lucy wrote (using my list of words and painted on the front of my overalls). She also shared how she likened my portrait to the Caryatids (a stone carving of a draped female figure, used as a pillar to support the entablature of a Greek or Greek-style building). And she had written the word contrapposto (an asymmetrical arrangement of the human figure in which the line of the arms and shoulders contrasts with, while balancing, those of the hips and legs).
After Lucy had explained her inspiration and process, we called Howard in to see the portrait. His reaction was priceless; he laughed, saluted, then bowed down. As it should be.
When we asked Lucy if we could purchase the painting, she graciously consented. Howard and I both love having Color Can’t Wait in our Art House and have hung it in a place of honor.
My show, Turns of the Kaleidoscope, officially opened on Friday night, May 7, from 5-8 pm. It was part of Salem’s First Friday Art Walk and the weather was perfect. With more people vaccinated and things slowly opening, there was a steady stream of friends and art lovers throughout the evening.
Masks down for a quick photo.
The evening was magical and I’m sharing a smattering of photos that give a peek into the celebration of the opening of my show (which runs through May 29th).
Arlene and Janet were first to arrive.Melanie, gallery owner and master curator.First visitors.
With Olivia. I was a high school mentor for Salem Art Association and Olivia was one of my students. She is now graduating from college!Jo and Jim, fellow artists.It was a lovely evening.Paula and Jeff.Social distancing in action.Susan, Ruth, and Susan catch up.Amy greeting visitors and Dave entering a drawing for a gift certificate.Daughter Amy and Chris.Longtime friends and fans of Pat Wheeler! Hi Pat.Longtime friend Paul – I trained as a counselor under Paul many years ago.It is fun to watch visitors interact with my art.Alicia and her friend – Alicia’s hair matched a lot of my art!Family.A quiet moment to catch up.A lively evening with a steady flow of visitors.Family and three of the grandkid brood.Orly and Dayna, kindred spirits. I love that we only live a short distance from each other . . . .Art appreciator, who also happens to be my husband (and now my business manager).Friends. Such a treat to finally be able to gather.New art friends!Timmy and Dayna!!First Friday Art Walk at the end of the night.
I am excited to share my newly designed logos. Here is a short story about how they came to be.
My logos were designed by my friend, neighbor, designer, and artist, Susan Napack. I sent Susan some examples of logos I liked, then we went for a walk and had a chat about why I create art, my use of wild color in my art, and how my art and life are intertwined. Susan sent me an initial set of ideas and the round ones immediately captured my heart. Susan continued modifying the design, using different sections from my art work as the back ground. And then, in addition to the round logo format, she designed two rectangular logos. So many wonderful options.
Working with Susan was a highlight of choosing my logo(s)!Reviewing proofs . . . so exciting!I got to look at my logos every day, but didn’t announce them until my first newsletter was ready to be sent to subscribers.Lots of formats for use in the future.
Drum roll, please . . . . . . . .
To see more of Susan’s design work, please visit her website and to see Susan’s innovative art, please visit her website.
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Yesterday I dropped off 17 new plaster, oil, and cold wax paintings at Salem on the Edge for my show Turns of the Kaleidoscope. The pieces range in size from 12×12 inches, up to 30×60 inches, all created to be hung on 48 feet of wall space! When I began working on this series, I had trouble imagining filling that long, blank wall. But I did it with one painting to spare. (If you happen to see the show during the month of May, ask Melanie to see the 36×48 inch piece, Life’s Distractions and Enticements.)
Rather than blather about creating the pieces, I’m going to share my process with a series of photos, after all, this is a post about an art show. Here we go . . . .
Sealing the board with fluorescent paint.Bucket of mud!Applying plaster.I love this stage of applying plaster.Plaster being sealed.A brand new gallon of Gamblin’s Cold Wax.Early layers.Working on a 12×12 inch piece.Active studio.Rolling wall comes in so handy.New trend in makeup?Painting the edges.Works in progress.Paying the price.Sweet spot.Doing a demo on Instagram about final coat of wax. (My IG: DaynaLovesArt)Feedback and critique from Howard.Peeling off the tape.Sanding the backs of the boards.Drying in the warm, dry air.Choosing titles.Signing paintings.Preparing to photograph.Photographing paintings in the perfect outdoor light.Arrival with paintings!The namesake piece, “Turns of the Kaleidoscope.”Howard carries in “Baffled Amazement,” one of three 36×48 inch pieces.Melanie sizing things up.The beginning of the curating process by Melanie.Arranging and rearranging . . . .“Where does this go?”Happy that the pieces are at the gallery and ready to be hung.
