Feature Friday!

Feature Friday
by Evelyn McCorristin Peters
November 12, 2010

Margaret Zox Brown 
 

"Home in the Couch" by Margaret Zox Brown 2010

I was lucky enough to "meet" this wonderful artist when I first started on Twitter. Sometimes you're lucky enough to find someone you just "click" with even though you have never laid eyes on each other!

Maggie is an amazing artist. Every piece she creates is a celebration of form and color. There is an immediate intimacy in each work that draws you in and makes you feel part of the composition. 

Maggie's philosophy toward painting is a bit simular to my own, which may be why I'm so strongly drawn to her work.

"For the past several years, the 2 dimensional canvas has really been my muse with color being the true subject and my subject matter being the introductory form that leads the viewer through the journey of each painting. My paintings are neither representational nor abstract but somewhere in the middle. And, what I have ultimately created is quite simply the emotion behind whatever it is I am expressing."

Maggie's work is collected extensively throughout the United States and Europe. Please take a moment and savor her work, you will add a bit of joy to your day!

Margaret Zox Brown


Thanks as always for stopping by, have a wonderful weekend!
 

A terrific idea from artist Kendra Smith!

I follow @Kendraart on Twitter. When I tell you she's an absolutely amazing artist I am not exagerating! Her work takes my breath away! Each piece she does brings me into its depths. Her scenes are translucent with the cold and snow she depicts from her home area in Canada. I can almost feel a little chill when I look into them. Which is really nice since I'm sweltering here in Florida!

Last night on Twitter I read that she was adding banners from two other artists onto her website. These are also two wonderful, talented and kind tweets @AnnieDoodlebugz and @Whimzicals. So I asked Kendra how she was doing this. She was kind enough to email me and share her method. So I am now in the process of doing this on my blog and she will of course be the first link I add!

So if anyone else wants to share this great idea...just let us know!

Here is some more beautiful work from Kendra!

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How Twitter Actually Changed my Artistic Goals ~ 2 in the series

If you're new to this blog and the series I'm doing, head over to "How Twitter Actually Changed my Artistic Goals" ~ 1st in the series! Here you can find out why I'm writing about this topic and more about the first artist featured, Aaron Caycedo-Kamura, make sure to follow him on Twitter @AaronCK!

Before I highlight the next artist I would like to thank everyone who has visited my blog and left such lovely comments. I have received so much wonderful feedback, some on a very personal and emotional level, it has quiet simply been overwhelming! In a strictly positive way. What was an attempt to thank my "Twitter Friends" for their support has come back to me tenfold! This simply confirms my belief that the relationships I have developed on Twitter will continue to support and uplift me.

So, on to this week's featured artist....

Paulo J. Mendes

Paulo resides in Matosinhos Portugal, which from his daily sketches looks like a simply lovely place, close to the coast. (Portugal also happens to have a pretty good football team, FC Porto, who won the UEFA Champions League in 2004. They have gone through to the playoffs for this year.)

I began following Paulo after noticing that another "Twitter friend" @lameymacdonald artist Debbie Lamey-MacDonald, was following him. I clicked on the link and was just amazed at the wonderful sketches he completes each day. Each one invites you to walk in and enjoy the scene, they truly take you to another place. I often wish I could walk into the homes that are portrayed or talk to the people depicted in Paulo's wonderful drawings. His watercolors are beautiful as well. This is a medium I have never attempted, but looking at Paulo's mastery almost makes me want to give it a try!

With each post Paulo attempts to describe the scene and encourages us to ask questions concerning the image, what exactly is happening here? I find this one of the best parts of his posts, it causes you to develop a story in your mind, transporting you right to that time and place.

Paulo's welcome on his blog truly describes his goals:

“Postalguarelas” is a mix of two Portuguese words, “Postal” - postcard, and “aguarelas” - watercolors. This title was chosen because I like to work in a small scale.

I like to paint imaginary places inspired by my country's vanishing landscapes, traditional architectures and ways of life.

“Postalguarelas” é uma mistura das palavras “Postal” e “aguarelas”: Escolhi este título porque gosto de trabalhar em tamanhos pequenos.

Gosto de pintar lugares imaginários, inspirados pelas paisagens, arquitecturas e modos de vida tradicionais em vias de desaparecimento no meu País.

Paulo was nice enough to follow me back on Twitter, and has become one of the fellow artists I can depend on hearing from for his support and kindness. I look forward each morning to seeing his daily sketch, the time difference to Portugal works in my favor! Paulo has also inspired me to start sketching on a more regular basis. I am now participating in "The Sketchbook Project" with Art House Co-op, a great program I encourage everyone to visit.

Please stop by Paulo's blog http://www.postalguarelas.blogspot.com/ and follow him on Twitter @postalguarelas. I'm sure you will come to look forward to his daily sketch post and the support he provides for his fellow artists!

How Twitter Actually Changed my Artistic Goals

It began with an invitation from one of the artists on the PFAN LinkedIn network. “Let’s follow each other on Twitter.” I was very new to the concept of social media, but thought, why not. I established an account with Twitter and soon had a few followers from the LinkedIn group. @CamilleEngelArt @magzoxbrown @portraitgirl @danielsroka @NancyStandlee and @Kickthefaucet.

To understand the immediate impact of these connections I need to explain a tiny bit about my lifestyle. I live on thirteen acres about thirty miles inland off the coast of Florida. People live out here for a reason; they do not really want much social interaction! For eight to ten months out of the year, my husband is on the road. Therefore, it is just me, two dogs, two horses, and an occasional shark in the tank in the barn.

After joining Twitter, I am now connected to more than a bunch of animals and my husband on the phone. I did not know these people at all, but I felt like they were my friends! This is a little presumptuous, but many of my Twitter followers have become my friends in their own Twitter kind of way.

The impact of Twitter for me is immeasurable. Next I created this blog, and established a presence on Facebook, something I had avoided for a long time. Not only did I feel more connected to the outside world, I actually began getting some commissions! I had the courage then to enter work in local shows. The last show I was in, one of my paintings received an honorable mention. I finally called the author of a story on the Florida Boxer Rescue website and asked if she was interested in developing a children’s book. We are working on it and actually have a publisher lined up. I have two shows lined up for this winter. People are actually buying my work!

Twitter has not, and is not, going to sell my work. What Twitter has done for me is establish supportive relationships with fellow artists. This support gave me the confidence to finally promote my art. I have learned so much from many people but I wanted to take the time to highlight some of them here. My gratitude is enormous for these fellow artists!

I really didn't know who to pick first. So I put each person's name on a piece of paper and am actually drawing them out of a jar! So today's featured artist is......(pulling a name out of the jar...)
Aaron Caycedo-Kimura!
I began following Aaron not to long ago at the suggestion of D.E. West @dewestartist (another artist I'll be featuring in the coming days!). I liked his bio on Twitter immediately, "I'm an artist. I squeeze pigmented oil binder out of tubes and paint still lifes, portraits, figures, and landscapes. What a mess!!" Sounded promising to me! Visiting his website Aaron Cayced-Kimura I was thrilled, such incredibly beautiful work! And his artist statement was wonderful:


"Paint is my metaphor for life: both are really messy. At the same time, both can be beautiful. Making little excuse for what comes out of the tube, I build my images with exposed brush strokes, thick drags of paint, and occasional drips and spatters. I allow the medium to speak through the different kinds of marks it lends itself to. The "messes" I create (and bring to order) are meditations of light, atmosphere and harmony."


Aaron's incredible skill as an artist is evident in all of his art, but his figure work really stands out for me. I love to draw the figure and it was just recently that I began to do so successfully. The way Aaron takes the figure and then applies his own vision to it is just beautiful. After looking at this piece it inspired me to attend an open studio each Saturday morning to draw the figure.I hope to eventually develop a series of work intertwining my abstract water work with the figure. Please visit Aaron's website http://www.aaroncaycedokimura.com/
and explore the rest of his work, you will be glad you did!
Following Aaron on Twitter @AaronCK has been a terrific experience. He is encouraging and supportive to the fellow artists he follows, and I look forward to seeing what he's working on by way of his blog, http://aaroncaycedokimura.wordpress.com/ Aaron's work continues to inspire me through his style, subtle use of color, composition and subject matter. Thank you Aaron for following me and I wish you continued success in all your endeavours.
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