New Art in the New Studio

Hi there. How are you?

Matt and I both made good use of the new studio this weekend.

Matt has started a small oil painting. 

I've been working on some new birds. 

 Both the House Finch and Varied Thrush are available for purchase! 

($150 each plus shipping.) Give me a holler if you're interested.

See you next Tuesday. Ta-Ta.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighbohood.

Well Hi! It's been a while....

I just can't get over the weather we've had in Southern Illinois this week. It was bright, sunny and 70 degrees yesterday! I have to keep reminding myself that it's February.

Matt and I decided to make use of the spring like conditions to explore the tiny, old cemetery that sits just across the street from our house.

This is a really old cemetery......Many of the stones marked 19th century graves, with only a handful from beyond 1970.

This was one of two stones labeled "infant".

All of these were taken with my trusty iPhone 4s. I am continually amazed by the quality of the camera on that phone. I have to admit that my digital SLR barely gets any action these days as it's just too convenient to use my iPhone.

Have a happy weekend friends. Expect some new art up on the blog soon!

Ta-Ta.

My Etsy Wedding Registry

Mid-Century Modern Inspired ... FlotsamFurnitu... $450.00	Silverware Stripes - set of ... kathymellor $64.00
Bowl Geometric Decorative Bl... sewZinski $38.00	Magnetic Spice Rack Tins Con... saltcityspice $32.00
Urban Throw Pillow - Style n... NestaHome $35.00	8x8 barrie quote clock. mbartstudios $45.00
Crochet Cotton Dishcloths - ... Sweetbriers $10.50	Custom round monogram, scree... vital $96.00
Mid Century Vintage Footed S... jenscloset $18.50	Vintage Enameled Gas Station... BarkingSandsVi... $90.00
letter J GlamDecay $2.00	Moka Express cotton tea towe... mengseldesign $13.00
iRetrofone Classic - Deluxe ... freelandstudio... $250.00	Nostalgia - set of 9 photo b... SusannahTucker $140.00
Vintage Mid Century Eames DC... rhan $225.00	Recycled Chenille Sea Urchin... Hepstyles $70.00

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com A/B image testing.

As lovers of vintage and handmade, Matt and I would love to register for our upcoming wedding on Etsy. There are so many incredible things here that you just can't buy in a store!  

Though I created this collection all by my lonesome, I know that Matt would agree with my choices. He is a huge fan of the "Mad Men" style.... He's drawn to Midcentury Modern, all things Scandinavian, clean lines and simple silhouettes. As you can see, his tastes have rubbed off on me! 

I was able to import this Etsy Treasury, links and all, with a hack I came across on Whale Shark Websites by way of Twitter.  What an easy way to import a ton of links in a hurry! 


I hope to have some new artwork to show you in the near future, but don't hold your breath. There just doesn't seem to be time for that at the moment. 


Ta-Ta!

Matt's at Artscene!

This weekend, Matt (my husband-to-be) has his very first solo art show!  Featuring 9 new pieces,  "Suburban Still-Life" opens Friday, October 1st at JR Kortman Gallery.

This weekend Matt and I took all the work over to Kortman's and helped gallery director Doc Slafkosky hang the show.  Matt's hard work over the last few months has paid off, as the art looks fabulous in the space.

Now, this is not your grandmother's art show. Some of the pieces are provocative and in your face but not vulgar or graphic. If you can handle "Victor", whom Matt is posing next to, you can handle the rest of the show.

The opening of this show corresponds with the city wide Fall Artscene event. There will be art on display and for purchase at 41 venues around town.  This is a totally free event!

As many of you know, Matt and I met at Artscene last year, when we were both exhibiting art at WallBlank Gallery. We're hoping to have as much fun this year as we did last!

All of the Artscene venues will be open on Friday, October 1st from 5-9 pm and on Saturday, October 2nd from 3-9 pm. If you can't make it out this weekend, "Suburban Still Life" will be on display during regular Kortman's store hours (M-Sat 10-6) until November 15th.

Kortman's is located in downtown Rockford at 107 N Main St, just across the street from Octane.

Hope to see you there!

New Art from the New Studio

Happy Labor Day weekend friends. Doesn't Sunday feel so much more relaxing when you know you don't have to work on Monday?

I survived my first week of school pretty much unscathed.  It's nice to just teach Juniors and Seniors who are interested in what we are doing. I know I'm spoiled teaching at a Catholic school. The problems I deal with are minuscule in comparison to my public school counterparts. I even had a student bake me a cake in the shape of a paint palette and two others bake cupcakes for my birthday this week! 

I managed to get some artwork done this week.  Meet "Let it Be." This is the first piece I've created in my new studio space. Matt has turned his basement into a great art studio and we both have room to spread out without getting in each others way. We both spent the afternoon yesterday working away. Its nice to have someone to talk to while I work.

"Let it Be" measures 7.5" x 9.5" and was created on an eggplant cardstock. This is a new color for me. I like the way the white ink pops on this deep color. This piece was designed to fit in a  11 3/4" x 15 3/4" Ikea Ribba frame. "Let it Be" is available for sale unframed in my Etsy shop, or find it framed September 18th and 19th at the Greenwich Village Art Fair.

Italian Adventure Part Four: Roma

As I sit and write this post, I am listening to my "Italia Soundtrack". This eclectic collection of songs brings me right back to our room at Hotel Elide in Rome.

July in Rome is hot - desert hot. There was only so much walking and sightseeing I could do during the day without needing an air conditioned nap in our hotel room. (Matt, on the other hand could usually walk forever.) Our routine was to get up and go in the morning by 9 or 10 and then stay out until lunch time. Then, like all good Italians do, we'd head back to our room.

Our Italia soundtrack was formed during our daily afternoon siesta, watching the only station with some English broadcasting. Unlike the American version, MTV Italia broadcasts music videos 90 percent of the time. It was refreshing, for a time, until we noticed that their playlist was limited to the same 20 videos or so. Matt and I know know every word to "California Gurls" by Katy Perry and "Waka-Waka" by Shakira. ( I don't know if that's something I should be bragging about!) Besides the usual sugar pop, we were introduced to some new favorites like Stromae from France, the Baseballs from Germany, and the Drums from Brooklyn. (So strange that I had to go to Europe to hear the Drums!)

We spent seven days in Rome. This post would be a mile long if I wrote about all of the food, sights and art we took in, so I'll just hit some of the highlights.

• Hotel Elide: I would recommend this place to anyone. Its right in the heart of things, on via Firenze between Via Nationale and via del Quirnale, with a metro stop just 3 minutes away. The rooms are updated and clean, the staff is fun and helpful. The only thing that was less than stellar was the breakfast. You're better off heading right across the street to the Snack Bar (also a Rick Steve's pick) for an espresso and brioche.

• Baroque art in churches: The Catholic churches that seem to be on every corner, are truly best place to see Baroque art, and its free! Bernini's Ecstasy of St. Teresa (above), Caravaggio's Conversion of St. Paul, The Calling of St. Matthew, and several other of his works line the walls of these churches. It seems ridiculous, but the lighting on these works is better than in Rome's showplace museum, The Borghese Gallery. In the Caravaggio room at the Borghese, you can't stand in one place and view the whole Madonna dei Palafrenieri at once. That's just bad! The churches are also great places to duck out of the heat for a bit too.

• Borghese Park: Just 2 metro stops away, we spent quite a bit of time walking around this park, once the private property and home of the Borghese family. It's lush and shady, with miles of paved paths for walking or biking. When you get hot or tired, there are plenty of little carts and even a full blown cafe to grab a Pepsi or a Peroni. (You can buy alcohol anywhere in Italy, even from the street vendor.) Matt and I liked to go to the park to escape the hustle and bustle of the city.

• Fifa Fan Fest: While walking around Borghese park, we came across the Fifa Fan Fest cite. Rome was one of 6 international cities to host the event. Every World Cup match was shown on a huge screen and was free and open to the public. We decided to head down one afternoon to watch a match. As we walked through the park towards the cite, we worried that we may have gotten the time wrong. The park was dead silent! We approached the fan fest grounds and found thousands of people sitting silently, enthralled in the game. It was so different than any other sporting event I've watched in my life. The spectators were so into the game that there was little time for talking or drinking. We sat down on the ground at the top of the hill with hundreds of others and watched. It was sweltering hot, but a great experience.

• The Roman Forum: We got lucky and visited the Forum on an overcast day, so Matt and I could really enjoy and explore this fantastic cite. The Forum was the heart of ancient Rome, both politically and socially. We walked along original Roman streets paved with huge stones that had also been walked on by the likes of Julius Caesar and Augustus. Rick Steves, our travel guru, gave us a guided tour via his podcast, that Matt had downloaded onto is Iphone. I just don't know how to explain how amazing it was to walk amidst these beautiful and iconic architectural marvels, made almost 2000 years ago.

• In the foreground here you see an ancient Roman arch, and in the background a baroque era church. You find vignettes like this all over Rome, where old and new collides and even exists on top of one another. For instance, the ancient ruins of the Baths of Diocletian, dedicated in 306, were converted by Michelangelo into the Renaissance Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli. The bath's ancient walls are integrated into and are preserved by this church. I didn't take any pictures inside of the church, but did take the shot below of the exterior.

• Al Bric: Now, did you really think I could write an entire blog post about Rome and not mention the food? On our last night in Rome, we decided to splurge and headed to the Michelin rated Osteria Enoteca al Bric. (Yet again, Rick Steves did not disappoint.) To start, we drank wine from Montalcino (a stop on our Tuscan tour) and ate mussels baked in their shell with bread crumbs and Roquefort. Matt and I both had delectable fresh pastas with seafood, and we finished the meal with espresso and homemade vanilla ice cream flavored with acacia honey. Divine dining!
  

I leave you with a picture of me in front of my boss' house. (St. Peter's at the Vatican. Catholic school teacher humor Ha.) Our 2 weeks in Italy were truly magical and Matt and I can't wait to go back again.

Italian Adventure Part Two: Verona & Florence

After 2 days in Venice, we rented a cute little Fiat Cinquecento (500) and headed to Verona. Matt was in love with this car and relished maneuvering the tiny thing on the crazy streets of Italy.

With the help of the GPS program that Matt had loaded onto his Iphone, we made it to Verona. I would highly recommend a GPS to anyone planning on doing any driving in Italy. Streets are confusing and not all that well marked.


We spent just a few hours in the city center of Verona, hometown of Romeo and Juliet. The "downtown" is centered around the Roman era Arena di Verona. Large scale productions like Aida are still held in this smaller scaled version of the Colosseum in Rome.

After a hot night without air conditioning or even a fan, we made our way to Florence. What a fancy place it is. Capri Moon, our bed and breakfast shared a street with Gucci, Burberry, and the Versace store. I couldn't get over the fact that one minute you could be luxury shopping and the next you're standing in front of a renaissance era church.

Florence is the birthplace of the early Italian Renaissance, so there was lots of art historical goodness for me to soak up there. The one thing that you can't really ever grasp via pictures is scale. Florence's Duomo is just enormous! I wish there was a way for me to bring all of my art history students to all of the places we study for this reason.


I could go on and on about the art work we saw here - Donatello's Mary Magdalene, Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise, The Orsanmichele, the most extensive collection of the work of Botticelli in the world. It was an art lover's paradise!

The Caprimoon was one of our favorite accommodations on this trip. We were livin' it up with a TV, fan and an attached bath, all of which are not standard in Italian hotels. Every morning, we were treated to a great little breakfast in the dining room. I fell in love with "spready cheese" and salami on bread. Let me tell you, the cured meats in Italy were like nothing I had ever had before. You would be amazed at the vast array available.

After 2 days in the packed, tourist encrusted, and bustling city, it was time to head out to the country. Tuscany was our next stop....

More next time.

Working Away

Its been a productive week in the studio. The sunny days and positive feedback from the newspaper article have certainly given me an artistic "shot in the arm."

"Sedia" is my newest chair. It was created with vintage ledger paper, a page from an old Chinese book, a tag from the dry cleaner (top left), some rik-rak, gesso, and a good ole Bic pen. Matt gave me the idea to draw the chair instead of collage it as I usually do. Good thinking Matt! I'm loving this piece! As my regular blog followers and Flickr friends know, my I do a ton of sketching in my Moleskine with a black Bic pen. I have been looking for a way to integrate my ink work into my collage and by George, I think I've got it!

I created this piece on a super fancy Ampersand 6" x 6" x 2" deep cradled hardboard. I am in love with this type of support. With some UVA/UVB spray, there is no need to frame. The 2" wooden box really pops it right off of the wall. Now I just need to sell some art so I can buy some more. At more than $11.00 these are quite expensive.

The title "Sedia" translates to "chair" in Italian. I'm attempting to learn some Italian for my trip to Italy this summer. I can't say that I've been as diligent about it as I've wanted to be. I just hope that when June comes along I can communicate enough to get myself out of the airport and into my hotel in Venice. I'm spending a good part of the first day alone, as Matt's flight from Bulgaria comes in later than mine.

Enough writing for now. I want to enjoy more of this beautiful almost spring day!

*Sedia is for sale in my Etsy shop for $75.00.

The Rockford Midwestern Biennial

This weekend the Rockford Midwestern Biennial show opens at the Rockford Art Museum. I'm pretty excited for this one.....Matt has a piece in the show, and its hung in the most prominent spot in the museum. "Golden Calf" is the first thing visible as you enter the main gallery. Matt and I got a sneak peak of the show the other day and he snapped this picture on his IPhone. "Golden Calf" was also featured in the Biennial promotional material. Its on the RAM website and promotional poster and even made an appearance in the Rockford Register Star Go section. Hopefully all of this publicity means that its an award winner. Fingers are crossed!

The Midwestern is a juried exhibition that features work from nine Midwestern states including Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. Besides Matt, there are several other artists I know that have work in the show. Megan Klazura, a 2004 graduate of Boylan and a student in my first ever Art 4 class created "Two Face" the red and brown piece on right of the photo collage above. The work to the left of Matt's cow, entitled "All That's Left" was created by Amy Sacksteder who was my brother's girlfriend at Boylan!!! Rockford is such a small little world.

Katie Bell, has 2 huge mixed media pieces in the show. "Sink", seen above, is also featured on the website and in RAM print material. Katie was also in my first ever Art 4 class. Its so neat to see mature work from former students.

I could go on....There are several other artists I know in this show. That's what happens when you grow up and live in Rockford. I really recommend check out this show while its up. The work is current, thoughtful and engaging. The show opens to the public on Saturday, January 23 and runs until April 25. Go! Now! And tell me what you think.

Back to my Artistic Roots

Aloha - Oil on Canvas, originally uploaded by Jennifer Mullin.

In college, I was introduced to oil paints and working with them felt so natural that I was instantly hooked. I'd been painting for years with acrylics and was successful, but once I touched oils, there was no going back. The way oils move on the canvas, their glow and transparency just could not be matched with acrylics. I found an abstract style that worked for me and painted like crazy through college and a couple of years beyond.

Oil paint does have its constraints and over time it became more impractical for me to work with them. First, there is the smell......Though a pleasant one, it permeates everything. When I lived in Arizona I used to paint out on my deck when it wasn't 100 degrees, but that got old really fast. There is also the issue of the solvents involved. Just how do you properly dispose of them? In college, we just had a big jug that it got poured into. What was I to do at home?

Long story short, I went back to painting with acrylics, then moved onto watercolors and eventually stopped painting altogether. It must be at least 5 years since I have painted with acrylics and maybe 2 years since I've worked with watercolor.

This week, I completed my first oil painting in almost 10 years! My boyfriend Matt is a painter and he encouraged me to try it out again. (Check out Matt's work here.) He's got a great space for painting in his house and even stretched the canvas, so how could I refuse? We worked together on "Aloha" which measures 4' x 7'. Because it was so large, we could easily paint at the same time. His style is more fast loose, mine more deliberate, but it works and we were successful!

There is already been some interest from others to buy it, but I don't think Matt would let that happen! Its currently displayed proudly in his living room, where I think it will stay for some time.

I am starting a tiny 8" x 10" canvas of my own today, and I foresee much more painting in my future. I truly had forgotten just how much I love it and how good I feel when I paint. Hopefully you will see some of my paintings up on Etsy soon.

Happy Sunday.

***ALOHA is available as a giclee print in Matt's shop. Click here.