The Best Laid Schemes O' Mice An' Men.........

Theresa's Pansies 8x16 Oil Sold
I always say I am going to blog continuously like so many other bloggers...then life gets in the way...or should I say living life gets in the way. I have been plenty to say (just ask my boyfriend and friends...I am more than opinionated at times....and always have something to say. So here I am yet again...and yet again behind in blogging...I haven't even been on Facebook but momentarily.I have been more than busy living life, also.
As last mentioned I have acquired a patron who is more than generous in keeping me busy....and more than generous with emotional support. I have completed several paintings for a musically themed suite of paintings. Several other pieces have been acquired to there collection. You can see them below.
Gardening is another lifelong hobby and the vegetables, fruit, herbs and flowers are rolling in. Thank goodness Max (who also has a very green thumb) likes to garden also or I could not do it all!! I have pictures and will try to get them up also.
I have also been doing a lot of studying....just trying to get better with edges and color. So I read a lot, I am especially enjoying my two new books one on Sorolla the other on Sargent. That makes five Sargent books I have now.....Oh, if I could only paint like him now...or Schmid or 100 other artists who have aspects of their work that I deeply admire!
I also attended a plein air paint out that was great fun even if rained most of the time...I still got a couple of decent paintings out....and one sold. There is no better training than painting from life!!!!
I hope everyone is enjoying there summer...we have been. There has been everything from a party on Memorial Day at our house to a sadly attended funeral of our 92 year old neighbor and dear childhood friend of Max's to toiling in the garden in unbelievable humidity and enjoying thunderstorms on our front porch.
Below find some recently sold pieces and some not sold yet.
Next up large step by step portrait and the story of a painting that I never cared if I sold...but did!
Best to Everyone and Enjoy Life,
Theresa



Rose Bower Oil Sold Plein Air



Rose Trellis Plein Air (finished at home)

A Worthy Opponent.......

Abendessen (Dinner) 20x20 Oil Sold

When I was asked to paint another crab for a collector......my first thought was "oh, what fun" and it truly was! On the other hand my self-challenging and creative ideas often get the better of me. I immediately had an image that came to mind.
I grew up with this old stein and a few more...seeing them often in the house and creating little stories about the pictures represented on them. This has always been my favorite ever since I can remember. I loved the color, shape and decoration since I was a little girl. Sooo...it was the first thing to go in the setup aside from little crabby that has been stored in my fridge since last year. After all I wasn't going to eat it...just paint it....so the age of this crustacean being frozen was not an issue. Then with a little more consideration...I decided on the green glass mug...the little brass pitcher and the onions...and finally some beer to go in the mug. I had a considerable debate with myself on choosing the backdrop. I made my final decision and I was off an rolling!
I set the still life up at Cherry's Gallery and completed it there....many people stopped by and watched the this painting come to life. Then, as sometimes happens....difficulty set in. I began to over think...the stein started to give me fits. I did not realize that there was so much detail and how was I going to handle it. Well...as almost always....I soldier on...and completed it. The client loved it...and wanted periodic reports while it was in progress since he was out of town while I painted it. He has paid for it since and picked out the framing material. As an added benefit he also bought the one off the easel that I was working on at the time. I will post it next.
No one knows how grateful I am for such wonderful things happening to me.....and no one knows how hard I am on myself when I am temporarily in doubt over what I am doing.......until now...:)
I am actually very,very pleased with this piece....now that I am not looking at it anymore. As artists I think we sometimes tire of what we are working on....we become blind...and I think many of us are perfectionists....I know I am!!!
As always...I will continue striving to grow and learn and improve my technique....a little looser is what I am trying to accomplish in my still life work.
Until Next Time,
Theresa


Day One and Setup


Day One


Day Two



Day Three



Day Four



Day Five


Day Six (Final)

Happy Earth Day

By the way I still have my first Whole Earth Catalog....!

A New Work....

It's Spring and we are so glad to be out and about! Working with the soil makes me feel connected on a very elementary level...which is an extremely good thing.
I have also been painting regularly at Cherry's Gallery ( and helping put together a website exclusively on art).......it has been a wonderful place to work! I still like being home but unfortunately dishes, laundry and other domestic chores continually call my name and compete for attention. So I have taken up semi-permanent residence here and am forced to get dressed (no more painting in jammies..that I rather love) , brush my hair and attend "work" on a more regular schedule! It feels good and it is a good work habit. I have just finished a commission which I will post next. I have also "cut up" another painting....and I must say it is better than ever now!!
The above piece is a plein air piece...the heron was added later in the studio...it was just missing something in my eye.
Gardening is a priority now also....peas, lettuce, spinach, onions and more. Twenty eight lilies are now planted and also nasturtiums and hollyhocks......next up English and cabbage roses.
There is also a picture box of my my baby brother and I.....:)
Until next time,
Theresa

Back From California and Arizona....

Me and Max at Disneyland

I am making this real quick...and I mean really quick....I have been gone for three weeks to California and Arizona....visiting and seeing Disneyland. Upon my return I started painting at the local gallery here in Carthage, Mo, Cherry's, and spent a week painting there. It was a great deal of fun.....old students and aspiring painters stopped by, friends, supporters of the arts and collectors, also. At times there was a whole lot more talking then painting! Normally this piece would take far less time...that's okay...I had great fun catching up with everyone!! I will be back again this week. Painting another crab.....I think it is going to be great....but only time will tell!!!
Below a few pics of paintings and moments on vacation. Until more time allows have some fantastic creative days!!
Theresa



Me and my baby brother....so happy to see each other...




Setup for painting at Cherry's





First day (which was very short)...



Second day.....




Final....Oil and Onions 11x14

"Painting is so damn hard, that if it weren't for the occasional win, it would kill us."

Summer Dreams...Sold


Snow On Jenkins Creek....Sold


Scaling Eggs...Sold



Approaching Storm II....Sold

Well, as usual I am constantly playing catchup! Again I find myself with less and less time for writing...but spend a lot of time thinking about it. My thought process generally run along art...I visualize constantly...painting a picture in my head, considering the effects of light....color and edges...which brings me to MY big problem for this year.
Every year I paint, I consider certain key aspects of painting...in the beginning it was drawing, composition, color, handling paint, subject matter, mass, photo or life..each subject taking a self-imposed year of consideration....then how to paint from a photo and make it look like it was from life. Then I started painting a whole lot more from life....that took care of the photo issue....pretty much. I still use photos...but I don't like to.
Then came marketing...that took up a whole lot of time! The time I spent marketing has definitely helped....In the last two months I have painted three paintings...all sold and the few remaining from last year have sold also! I still feel weak in so many areas. That really is okay....since this is a constant learning process....and I will be learning for years to come..hopefully!
This year...it's edges...more and more I find my edges unsatisfactory...sometimes I like them...most of the time I am weak in that area. So this year I am going to concentrate more on edges...any advice from people out there is more than welcome. I find lifting the brush at the end of a stroke works well....painting wet into wet and also using a paper towel to scumble the edges...also a value change at the edges also works in many cases. At any rate...I still work at getting better....constantly!
Things have also been selling well....thanks to the marketing time I guess....I actually have a collector that has a "Theresa Rankin Room"...now that is an honor!! Here are some pieces that sold recently and the step by step I promised a month ago which got waylayed while I was sick and finishing a commission!
One can never know how grateful I am to have people actually buy my work!! I will continue to work hard...through the daily "stuff"...the hard times.....the emotional ups and downs..and the dreaded blocks! In the case of blocks I highly recommend Terry Miura's post and all the replies...well worth reading....we are not alone!!!!


The Start......Approaching Storm III



Some more work


Ugh....readjusting the composition (took out the foreground shrubs)


Adjusting yet again....Took out a hay bale....What do you think?....input please!

I will be heading to Los Angeles in the next week....so I may not post until I get back!!
Thank you, everyone who has joined up and who has commented....it really tickles me..I learn much from the other bloggers...every single one of you!!
Whole Lot of Shakin' Goin' On,
Theresa

A New Year and New Thoughts....

Coffee and Persimmons 11x14

After an exceedingly busy, cold and yet, satisfying holiday...I am finally back in the studio! Well actually three days ago. I will make a quick update of events over the holidays...
1. Removed work from the Artcentral show, two large pieces sold.
2. Accepted into the Oliviero-Block Auction, coming in April.
3.Thanksgiving..here at our house and also at relatives.
4. Max's 18 year old son's, Wyatt, visit from Christmas to January 17th....lot's of visiting!
5. Sub-zero temps for most of December and January....with a lot of snow!!
6. Two pieces sold from Cherry's gallery....and a party attended there!
7. Photographic trip in the snow...we had several inches...fairly uncommon here.
8. Various car problems.
9. Christmas and all that entails...cookies, cooking, decorating, parties, gifts, visitors.
1o. A trip to see Avatar and and eat hot wings....I had catfish...the guys had hot wings.
11. Hosting a birthday party and cooking prime rib and all the trimmings for our friend, Tom's birthday.
12 Attending a dance recital for local dance group that Max's daughter teaches and performs in and a friends, Linda Simpson and Jim Bilgere, opening in Joplin.
13. Found three large plastic bags of paper work that never got organized from when I moved....thankfully most of it got tossed!
14. Finally got the studio completely organized.
15. Gained 10 pounds....:(....lost 6 pounds....:)!
16. Started 2 paintings and finishing the commission for my Doctor.
17. All the daily junk, cleaning, washing, animals, etc.........
18. Updated website.
19. Read two books...the new Richard Schmid book and one called Fake! that a friend loaned me.
20. Back to my blog and limiting Facebook time.
21. First New work of 2010...!

So let me start with the story of a painting a did a while back. Of Saints and Sinners was originally 20x30. I had it exhibited in a few shows.....everyone loved it but it never sold. I was going through some older paintings deciding what to junk and what to save and the thought occurred to me....cut this one down. This is something I have done before by the way. Small paintings are doing very well these days. So I did. I carefully placed a frame around different sections and decided it definitely had two really good parts. The rest was somewhat extemporaneous. Then it occurred to me....Make it a diptych. So that is exactly what I did. I had Cherry frame it in the perfect framing material and it turned out beautifully! It sold immediately at a Christmas party at the gallery I am in to two local interior designers. Another small painting also sold earlier to a local Doctor who has begun to collect my work. Never let it be said that bigger is better!
Next time step by step....and more.
Here are the before and after pictures.
See you later,
Theresa




Before "Of Saints And Sinners" original 20x30





After "Of Saints And Sinners II" Diptych 25x15 Sold





"Music!" 8x10 Sold

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Okra The Cat Wishes You A Merry Christmas

I am going to keep this short, at least for now....everyone is busy right now and I am among the many!
I just want to wish all the followers and the people who comment...from My blog, to my website and to Facebook a Very Merry Christmas! I am enjoying the holidays with family and friends...I wish some of my family and friends were closer...but that is life these days...nevertheless....everyone is in my thoughts and prayers and I hope you are enjoying your time with everyone as much as I am.
I will be back after New Years to post again....and continue the ongoing story of struggles, conquests and light bulb moments!
Baking cookies is my current art form...:)
Love and Kind Wishes,
Theresa

ArtCentral....

"The Last Acre" On Hold 24x30 oil New Work

The show at Artcentral was also quite successful...the deadline to hang was November 16, and the show opened on the 20th.In some respects it was right down to the wire...framing materials had not arrived and we were praying daily that the molding I wanted would come in at Cherry's..I also had a painting I was working on that was taking longer than I expected (above). In the end, though, it all came together and the paintings, invitations and framing all arrived on time.
I had been working on putting all the addresses of collectors and artists on a word document...with a mailing label..that really made things easier....after the initial typing in of names and addresses...one click and there they were ready to be pressed onto invitations stamped and dropped in the mail. I highly advise keeping this up to date...don't be like me and have a mass of addresses you have to sort out after a few years of collecting them!
The opening was very well attended and pieces were sold the first night...yeah! Another piece sold the next week....and I received a lot of encouragement from fellow artists attending the show.
April Davis was my co-exhibitor....she was also a student when I was still teaching. Her fabulous ceramic work and lovely paintings helped to make this show a wonderful end to the Artcentral calendar year! Thank you, April!
There was also an auction going on at the same time...to help raise funds for a bronzing of fellow artist Bob Tommey's tiger for the Carthage High School....a painting sold through this venue also.
For those of you who don't live around here or haven't been here to Carthage or Joplin and surrounding area we have several famous artists that live in this area or who were born here...the arts in all forms are alive and well here....and there is always something going on! Below is a brief list of some of the artists and events that are most notable:
Andy Thomas
Joe Beeler
Jerry Ellis
Bob Tommey
Lowell Davis
April Davis
Jeff Legg
Doug Hall
Midwest Gathering Of The Artists
Artcentral
Spiva Center for the Arts
Red Oak II
Cherry's Gallery
The Dancers Studio
Stones Throw Dinner Theater

Coming up...commission with progression.....more sales...more new work....next event.....Christmas..
See you next time,
Theresa



Co-exhibitor April Davis with Dr. Edwards


Andy Thomas talking with Max


Arriving....


Greeting....


Dina Thomas admiring my diptych...


Host and Director of Artcentral, Sally Armstrong


The Party getting started....


Sold


sold


Sold


New work

More........

Scaling Eggs 12x24 oil

As I said earlier....it has been a busy several months. After the MGA and all the thank you cards and house stuff.....it was time to get ready for my next event. A two woman show at the local art center here in Carthage. Myself and artist April Davis were to put on a show for November 20, 2009. Not a problem...except most everything I had painted in 2009 had sold.....so I was again panicky. Yikes ....I need more work...new work! So what does any artist do...back to the easel and start painting.
The still life paintings had been doing so well that I decided to do a few more....or at least try. Max's Dad had an old egg scale hanging around the house that I had taken a real liking to. It had a pleasing abstract form.....there were some fallen leaves out side the back door, rich in color, deep crimsons and warm ochers! I had visualized the setup for some time. But alas life intervenes, again....it is all good and enjoyable...I just needed to organize my time!
We had some visitors here for part of October....this was a fantastic surprise. Old friends from when I lived in Hawaii were here in the mainland and we got in touch through one of my children and planned a visit. Doug and Luana drove here and spent two weeks...we had a wonderful time!! A little Hobby Lobby shopping (material for the still life, a tube or two of paint and a frame on sale that was pretty nice) checking out some furniture and several trips eating out! Some drinks and hors d' oeuvres at our house and there travel trailer. Lots of catching up....lots of fun and good conversation. In between I worked on paintings to a small degree...and planned Max's and my costume for an upcoming Halloween Party! Medusa and Slingblade.
Everything worked out even though I got a little anxious about deadlines. I managed to complete three new paintings and cut another large one into a diptych, plus a few framed prints for the upstairs gallery at Artcentral. It was all going to be okay...thank goodness!
Here are a few pics from the good times and a few new paintings.
I will continue my update and pictures tomorrow,
Deck the halls with boughs of holly,
Fa la la la la, la la la la.
Tis the season to be jolly,
Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Theresa...:)


Midnight On Clinton Street 8x10 Oil






De La Mer 18x18 Sold oil






Me( Medusa) and Max (Slingblade) and a friend ( The Cisco Kid)...Halloween 2009




Me, Max, Jim and Linda (our host)