Make An Artist's Plumb Line

Image by Mark Norseth

I have been looking for a plumb that is more convenient than the big ones you find at Home Depot. While it is possible to use anything with a little weight to it, I wanted something pleasing to the eye as well. I could picture what I wanted, but couldn't find it anywhere. That is, until I came across this post by Mark Norseth. Check it out for step by step instructions. 

Amazon offered a package of two, so I promptly placed an order. My husband said that Home Depot carries them, and that they are probably cheaper, but I got two for about $5 and I am a happy camper. Thank you, Mark Norseth!

Degas: A New Vision, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Part Two

Here are a few more of the photos from the Degas exhibit at MFAH in Houston. Click here to see more of his beautiful works. 

Again, please excuse the reflections and glare on the photos.

Roman Beggar Woman, Oil on canvas

Woman Drying Herself. Charcoal and pastel on tracing paper on paper

Yes, that's what it said.

Dancers, Pink and Green. Oil on canvas

Mary Cassatt at the Louvre: The Painting Gallery. Etching, soft-ground etching, aquatint and drypoint, on China paper, intermediate between 15th and 16th of 20 states

Degas: A New Vision, The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

What a treat to see the Degas Exhibit at MFAH, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. I must admit to having had Degas in a mental box entitled "Pastel Ballerinas". I knew he did a few oils and a sculpture or two, but WOW!  The following photos were taken with my iPhone, so please excuse the glare and reflections.

Self-portrait in a a Soft Hat, Oil on paper mounted on canvas

The Dance Class, Oil on canvas (cropped) 

Woman Seated on the Edge of a Bath Sponging Her Neck, Oil and essence on paper on canvas

I love the beautiful pink bow and ballet slippers.

Portrait of a Young Woman, Oil on canvas

Dancer Stretching, Pastel on pale blue-gray laid paper

(Sorry about the crooked photo)

Group of Dancers (Red Skirts), Pastel

The titles of many of his paintings indicate that he painted those subjects so often that specific names became quite a challenge. What a prolific and masterful artist! I now have an even greater respect for Edgar Degas. 

More to come...

2017 Texas Top Ten Competition is OPEN

Texas Top Ten Competition Call For Entries All Artists Living in Texas The "Texas Top Ten" is a FREE online competition open for artists living in the state of Texas; Portrait Society of America membership is not required. This online competition is presented to you by the Texas State Ambassador, Gaye Sekula, in coordination with the Portrait Society of America.  Certificates recognizing the Top Ten winners will be awarded. The winners will also be featured in the Portrait Society of America's Website, State Ambassador E-News and our quarterly journal, The Art of the Portrait . The submission form is available now through Sunday, December 11, 2016 at midnight. Rules and Eligibility Artist must reside in Texas. (Portrait Society faculty, juror, board members, and Texas ambassador are not permitted to enter the competition.) Only one work may be submitted per entrant. (Sculptors may submit up to four views of a single work.) Submit Portrait and Figurative works only No works involving photographic printing or mechanical processes in the actual final product will be permitted. No classroom works or works produced under assistance of instructors will be permitted. Image Specifications The .jpg format is required. Your file dimensions should be at least 400 x 400 pixels but should not exceed 1024 x 1024.  Please label your .jpg image with your first and last name. For example, gaye-sekula.jpg   ENTER  If you have any questions or concerns about the Texas Top Ten Competition, please contact the Portrait Society's  Texas State Ambassador, Gaye Sekula, at sekulastudio@gmail.com.

Portrait Society of America presents: The Art of the Portrait Conference April 20 - 23, 2017, Atlanta, Georgia  The Portrait Society of America is returning to Washington, D.C. to celebrate our 19th annual conference. Attendees will have a chance to fuel their artistic journeys with exciting programs from new and returning faculty. Join us, along with 800 artists from around the globe, to spend four days experiencing a diverse array of demonstrations, illustrated lectures, portfolio reviews, our 6 x 9" Mystery Art Sale, an exhibit of finalists of the prestigious International Portrait Competition, and so much more. Click HERE to visit our website for more information and to register today.   STAY CONNECTED

Art News DFW Article, "We the People" Exhibit, Keller, Texas

There is a very nice article on the Art News DFW website about the current "We the People"  exhibition in  Keller, Texas. The exhibit features six Texas members of the Portrait Society of America, including yours truly. If you are in the area, please come by and visit with D.K. Richardson, Kathryn Holter, Gene Dillard, Ken MacFarlane, Tim Woolsey, Stefan Huyghe and me, Gaye Sekula,  at the Artist's Reception and Face-Off!

An Evening with the Artists Reception

Date: 11/10/2016 7:00PM - 9PM

Join us for refreshments and enjoy as Texas Members of the Portrait Society of America participate in a "Face-Off". 

"We the People" Exhibit 

November 1 - 23, 2016; 8 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Friday

LOCATION:
Keller Town Hall

1100 Bear Creek Parkway 

Keller, Texas 

"We the People" Exhibit, Reception and Face-Off

"We the People" Exhibit, Reception and Face-Off

EXHIBIT: WE THE PEOPLE November 1 - 23, 2016; 8 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Friday An Evening with the Artists Reception Date: 11/10/2016 7:00PM - 9PM Join us for refreshments and enjoy as Texas Members of the Portrait Society of America participate in a "Face-Off".  LOCATION: Keller Town Hall 1100 Bear Creek Parkway  Keller, Texas
Featured Artists: Texas Members of the Portrait Society of America: Gene Dillard, Kathryn Holter, Michael Holter, Ken MacFarlane, DK Richardson, Gaye Sekula and Tim Woolsey. 2015 Keller's Got Talent "Best in Show" and 2016 First Place - Oil Painting awards recipient, Stefan Huyghe.

  

As we come together to elect a new president, the Keller Public Arts Program shares an exhibit of portraits which draws the viewer into the diversified citizenry that encompasses our societal melting pot. The Texas Members of the Portrait Society of America; Gene Dillard, Kathryn Holter, Michael Holter, Ken MacFarlane, DK Richardson, Gaye Sekula and Tim Woolsey, along with our own 2015 Keller's Got Talent "Best in Show" and 2016 First Place - Oil Painting awards recipient, Stefan Huyghe bring their interpretations of the human face and its similarities and complexities to life through oil, acrylic, pastel and scratchboard media. 

Visit Keller Town Hall between November 1 and 23, between 8 am and 5 pm Monday through Friday, and view the portrait creations of these nationally known, award winning artists. You are invited to attend Thursday evening, November 10th for our Evening with the Artists, from 7 to 9 pm. Some of the artists will be demonstrating their artistic talent while our guests enjoy the art, conversation and refreshments.

Gene Dillard, currently a Plano resident has a background in graphics. He received a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Texas, Austin and another from The Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles.  Visit his website at www.legacyportraitpainters.com. 

Kathryn Holter, "has a passion for creating realistic images that tell a story. Every person has their own unique inner beauty which I hope I've captured on canvas." See more of Kathryn's work at www.kathrynholter.com. 

Michael Holter says "My work is impressionistic. I like to represent people or places and allow the painting to evolve from the recognizable. The challenge is to balance the care needed to make the representation interesting...and perhaps believable.."

www.michaelholter.com 

Stefan Huyghe, born in Antwerp, Belgium and raised in Switzerland, says "My art has been the means to an end, the tool to find my true self and to discover the real world around me. Painting for me is a spiritual experience. I try to bring straight-up photo realism with a twist. When my hand adds or subtracts from reality I don't only report, I create." www.facebook.com/stefanoilpaintings

Ken MacFarlane was raised in Carrollton, Texas and has homes in both Tucson, Arizona and Breckenridge, Texas. He has used pencil as his primary media, "turning a flat piece of white paper into horses and people and rivers or anything I want." More recently he has discovered the art of scratchboard. "It is like pencil in reverse." www.muleheadstudios.com 

DK Richardson offers, "For millions of years humans have portrayed their story on cave walls, animal hides, papyrus, linen, and silk in their fundamental need to leave their legacy for a measure of historical eternity." Her art is a mix of contemporary and classical painting, with the focus on realism. www.facebook.com/DKRichardsonPortraitsAndFineArt

Gaye Sekula believes "Painting is much like meditation. It is being present and keenly aware, but at the same time, letting go and trusting in all you have learned thus far. Whether it is described as "following the muse," "Feeling the hand of God on yours," or "being in the flow," it is something undefinable, yet undeniable. The following quote sums it up quite well, "We lose ourselves in the things we love. We find ourselves there, too." www.sekulastudio.com