Happy Thanksgiving!

New Fabric Collection

I am always so happy to see a new fabric collection. This is my new Neptune's Garden line. This is just a preview; the line will be in shops in Feb. I love how it came out!

 

The line is based on the wonderful trip to Key West we took this summer. I feel that in order to capture the feeling of a place in a painting you really need to go there in person.

 

 

The line will be available from Wilmington prints and sold in quilt shops.

 

 

Designing for fabric is such fun!

 

 

Journaling

I find it really hard to switch off from work-mode and to let myself just make art for relaxation, do you? I feel like everything has to be licensable. I am trying to break myself of that habit though, but it is making my art feel a bit stressed. I need to get back to just creating for the sheer joy of it, without worrying about the end result.

To that end, I got my journal back out. It has been ages since I just doodled. I thought I would share some of my journal pages with you, dear friends. Sometimes my journal pages are pretty basic and functional, like this spread above.

 

 

Sometimes I use lots of collage and paint. Sometimes I print out my scanned in painted pieces and collage with them! I also have fun with the set of antique stamps I bought in Wisconsin.

 

On other days, I am just in the mood for something fairly quick. A little pen and ink, a little watercolor, ta-da!

 

 

Sometimes I am happy to just leave things in black and white. I draw everything freehand with the pen; I don't draw with pencil first.

 

 

Sometimes I want to use lots of color and all sorts of media. here I have used pen, watercolor, Pan Pastels (love them!), collage, stamps, whee! After several days of letting myself have journal playtime in the evenings, I feel much refreshed!

 

 

 

Beachy Dreams

Oh, it is summer, and what a good summer it is! Except for my recent bout of pneumonia, of course! But thank goodness for antibiotics, because it means I was able to take a wonderful and inspiring trip to the Florida Keys. I even went snorkeling on a coral reef for the first time. Now, I know that according to my clients I should be painting Christmas designs right now, but I just couldn't bear to wait to paint all the beachy goodness. Hooray for the beach!

What is on your drawing table this week?

Bears

The weather was beautiful, so my daughter and I decided to do some wildlife watching. We drove to Keenesburg, CO where there is a wildlife rehabilitation center. What a wonderful trip. I was especially fascinated by all the bears they have on the 400 acre property. Since the weather was mild, the bears were feeling very playful. It was wonderful to see them engaging in this behavior in a natural setting.

 

 

Of course, I had to do some sketching.

 

 

I got the wonderful chunky mechanical pencil from Aaron Bros. Art and Framing. I really like it, it is great for loose sketches. The sharpener is in the bottom of the pencil.

 

 I decided to do a watercolor study as well. Perhaps it is time for me to do another lodge series, featuring our friends, the Bears!

 

 

Giveaway

Looks like most people signed up for the giveaway over on my Facebook page. And we have a winner! Hooray for Debi Matlack! Stay tuned, more exciting things will be happening soon.

A Giveaway!

Okay, it has stopped snowing, the kids are healthy, and life has settled down again. That means it is time for a giveaway! I have put together a box with 2 notepads, a magnet, a boxed set of cards, three flags of assorted sizes, and a jigsaw puzzle. Fun stuff, right? And all you have to do to be entered to win is to leave a comment on this page, or one my facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/JaneMadayStudio. Extra entries by liking my facebook studio page, or this blog.

 Here is a closeup of the puzzle. There will be more giveways to come! Good luck!

Creative Lettering

 

One thing I will admit is that I am not very good at hand-lettering. I do want to improve though, because I love the casual lettering that is so popular right now. I would also like my journal pages to look better. And, I must also admit, it bugs me when there is something I can't do, and that makes me want to practise it!

 

So I purchased this book by Jenny Doh, and I am very glad I did. The designs in the book are inspiring to look at, and the artists give tips on how they work.

 

 

This is a page from my sketchbook where I did one of the projects in the book, from the Flora Chang chapter. I love her work, so I was happy to see she was included in the book. As you can see, I still have a long way to go before I am proficient, but I am having a good time playing with it.

 

Meow

Here is what I am working on today. Just because it seems like a long time since I have painted a kitten! Meow!

Busy Days

Things are busy here at the studio, as usual! It seems to be sample time, too. I love seeing how my products turn out.

 

 

 

I got two big boxes of sample goodness from my agent the other day, and she says two more are on their way. Lots of puzzles, of course, and flags, and some nice stationery products.

 

 

Here are some pretty new journals from Enchante. They are available at Ross stores.

 

I love this group of four puzzles from Holdson. 

Unfortunately, I think they are only available in New Zealand and parts of Europe.

 

 

Here is a close up.

 

In other news, the Surtex show in New York is fast approaching, and like all my artist chums, I am painting away so I have lots of exciting new art to show. I am just bursting with new ideas and I don't know what to paint first!

 



Happy Easter!

 

Happy Easter, everyone!

 

We are so ready for Spring here at the studio. Our last snowfall is finally starting to melt, so now we are entering the phase of muddy little paws coming in and out of the house all day. Nevertheless, I love the changing seasons. The wet weather means that the grass and flowers will soon be coming back to life. I am wearing bright pink today, no more winter grays for me!

Emerald Green

St Patrick's Day is coming up, and that has me thinking about the color green. Pantone's color of the year for 2013 is Emerald green. I can't say that this is my favorite green, as I generally prefer more natural "woodier" greens, but Emerald can look very modern and classy. (actually neither of those adjectives really describe me, so maybe that is why I don't paint with Emerald much!).



Here is a Pantone suggested color palette using Emerald. I am going to see how I can work this fresh color into my designs this year. To mix Emerald in watercolor, I have used Peacock Blue and Permanent Yellow Light. The watercolors I use are Mijello Mission Gold.

 

I have been experimenting with finding natural subjects where I can incorporate the new color palette. This is lots of fun and has led me to subjects that I might not have thought of painting otherwise! Happy Painting, everyone!

Creativity

Last week, I set the photo collage below as my profile pic on a social networking site. I had no idea I would set off a big debate on the nature of creativity, both on and off the site! The debate centered on whether everyone has innate creativity, or whether it is a special gift that only certain people are born with.

Certainly, some people are highly creative. These are the people who make great strides, both in art and technology. Scientific American Mind magazine featured an article last year, which stated that highly creative people are missing a "filter" in their mind which helps process information. Because that filter is missing, these people group sensory input in different ways from other people, and this leads them to make new connections, both visually and cognitavely.

However, I think that everyone is born with a certain amount of creativity. You only have to look at the way children play to see them use their imaginations. As children grow, though, many of them start to suppress their creative impulses, from fear of not measuring up, of being mocked, or of not fitting in. Our school system also contributes. The fact that teachers now are required to "teach to the tests" mean that there is little room for creative or out of the box thinking in the standard classroom. My compliments go out to all the teachers who manage to overcome the regulations set in place and make the learning process fun and stimulating. That requires some real creativity!

Creativity doesn't just mean that someone is good at an artform or can come up with a new invention. Do you ever deviate from a recipe, adding ingredients that you think will taste better? Do you add your own touches when you sing a song? Do you play with your children and come up with new ways to encourage or inspire them? How about the outfits that you wear each day; I bet you don't wear head to toe monochrome, day in and day out.

Creativity is part of every day, whether we realize it or not. It is up to you to nuture whatever feeds your creative spirit. Dance, sing, hug your children. Draw, paint, cook. If nothing else, put your head back and daydream. How do you express yourself? I would love to know.

I'm on Facebook!

Hey, Gang! I just made a Facebook page for the studio! Stop over and let me know you "like" me (you really like me!). We're going to do fun stuff like have giveaways so make sure you check in every now and then to see what we're up to.

https://www.facebook.com/JaneMadayStudio/photos_stream#!/JaneMadayStudio

Waiting for Spring

Oh, I am so ready for Spring! I want to paint all the bright and pretty colors, but outside my window the snowflakes are falling. Oh well, soon it will be summer and I will be complaining that I am too hot, so I guess I should learn to appreciate the moment.

 

I have been thinking about how technology has changed my life since my college days. When I was in art school, the school only had three computers, and there was only one small class to teach how to use them. Then I graduated and went to work at Hallmark. Computer art was in it's infancy then. I was trained in using them (reluctantly) and we had to save everything on these giant discs called Bernoullis, that were about the size of an ipad today. They could only store one piece of art. (Do I sound like a dinosaur yet? You must think I learned how to draw by chiseling my art on rocks!)

 

Fast forward to today. I still paint the traditional way, but I simply must have my photoshop programs to manipulate the art afterwards. The painting above can now be placed on all sorts of different backgrounds and products with (practically) a touch of a button. And if I accidentally splash some paint, whoosh, I can erase it, just like that. But a worrying trend in the outside world seems to be that the actual skills of drawing and painting are being neglected because it is just so easy to whip something up with the computer. There are some people who create the most amazing art with the computer, and I do admire them so, but there is also a lot of slapped together work.

 

When I go for a few days without actually drawing or painting, I get a bit irritable, do you? I need the tactile feel of the brush or pencil in my hand. I need to escape to the art planet and pour out my heart onto the page. So I would encourage you, for the benefit of your heart, your soul, and your skills, to draw, draw, draw!

Paintin' Peacocks

I am still painting away on peacocks and just loving all the colors! I thought you might like to see this painting in progress. Thank goodness for gouache paints, because the tail needs lots of layers. I have done the underpainting of the feathers with Raw Umber watercolor (Daler Rowney is my fave brand of Raw Umber as it is warmer than some other brands). Now I am using a mixture of French Ultramarine and Turquoise gouache over the top. Finally, I will use blue and green watercolor pencils to finish. It is lots of fun to have so many tools at my disposal! I love to play with different mediums. My job is such fun!

I am also lucky to have good friends to walk with me on my journey. Yesterday I was really struggling with the background to place these birds on (using photoshop). I sent out a cry for help to a dear clever friend, and she helped me see what I should do. Big hugs going out to all my art friends today, even the ones I haven't met yet!

Etsy

Hello everyone! Jane's assistant here, things have been busy here at the studio, but we just wanted to let all of you know that some of Jane's prints are now available on Etsy! There will be more added soon within the next couple days.

Are there any specific peices that you would like to see as prints in the store?

http://www.etsy.com/shop/JaneMadayArt

In the Studio This Week

It looks like a chilly week in the Studio this week, and I do have Spring Fever! Still, even though we got a little snow here in Colorado, at least we didn't get the three feet that they got in the North East. I like snow, and we are having a drought, but I do draw the line somewhere!

I'm painting peacocks this week. I love the colors, but it is proving to be more of a challenge than I thought. There are so many layers in that tail! I'm struggling with the background as well. I really want to make use of the new "color of the year": Pantone's Emerald. I am sure it will come together eventually!

Jane's assistant here! I will be guest blogging to help with Jane's workload. It is sample day here at the studio.  Here are some beautiful new journals and a photo album from Enchante that will be going on sale at Ross. What a great way to organize your thoughts and memories! We're looking forward to lots of fun new products from this company this Spring.

Do any of you have any thoughts or input on what you you would like to see updated more frequently? We would love to hear them!

Atlanta Gift Show 2013

Time for another trip to Atlanta for the winter gift show! I love going to this show. It is so stimulating to see new products and I am always so happy to hang out with my artist friends! Since I work at home most of the time, getting out to shows like these is just vital. The America's Mart, where the show is held is huge. There are three buildings that range fro 15-18 stories tall. There are 5000 permanent showrooms, and 3000-5000b temporary showrooms.

 

This gives you an idea of the size of the Mart. This was taken on the 18th floor at the top of the escalator, and yes, it was very scary to hang over the edge and snap the photo!

 

 

And here is a view of the temporary showrooms.

 

 

One of the most fun things about the show is finding the products with my art. So, to show that I am not a snob when it comes to which products I will license to, let me present: Toilet Tattoos! Ta-da!

 

 

Of course, there were lots of flags showcasing my art. This is one of my favorite product categories. I love designing for flags.

 

 

 

Evergreen has come out with a nifty new product; greeting cards with an enclosed flag. What a fun thing to get in the mail!

 

 

It is always fun to design for home decor. Here is a pillow from C&F Enterprises. They did kitchen towels as well.

 

 

And mugs are always fun. The Rustic Lodge line from Downeast concepts also has matching stationery products.

 

 

But "hangin' with my peeps" is always one of the best parts of the show. But yikes, I look a bit drunken there, don't I! Believe me, I only had iced tea that night! What a wonderfully kind and talented group of friends I have made through this career I have chosen. I am very blessed. In this photo are Joy Molina Hall, Sharon Himes, Terri Conrad, and me when we went out to dinner on Friday night. Three days of laughing, hugging, and inspiration, and now I am ready to get back to painting, hooray!