Yesterday I delivered the work to the gallery for my upcoming solo show, Skin/Deep.  It's always exciting to arrive at this part of the process.  I'm eager to see the show hung in the gallery and I am anticipating what it will look like when it's hung in the main gallery space at Exhibit A.  I'm also excited to see how people will respond to the work that has been my artistic focus for the past six or seven months.  

The show is comprised of 19 brand new works.  Thematically the works are tied together in several ways.  Each work has a base subject of either a fruit or vegetable that is in one way or another shrouded in a (Skin) or peeling away a skin.  This work contains meanings that run far (Deep)er than what you see on the immediate surface.  The works are rich in symbolism that is rooted in the Renaissance and I've created a bit of my own visual vocabulary as well.  

Typical of the way I work, all 19 works are digital images.  Most are presented as limited edition prints on aluminum.  One image, providing things work out, should grab your attention in a new and exciting way.  I'm trying something a little different, taking a risk, and hoping that you'll feel an immediate impact.  So, please mark your calendars and plan to join me for the opening reception.

Oh, the tension of a deadline.  I wish I could say that it was a tension I enjoyed. It isn't.  And yet, as my November show approaches I am filled with creative tension.  I know that I must complete the work for that show and it must be complete soon.  Really soon.  Like, tomorrow soon.

In order to have time to send my images to my production team they need to be in transit by Monday morning.  I'm close and I know I'll make it but I'm really ready for this body of work to be done.  It takes a couple of weeks to turn electronic images into metal prints and get them shipped from California to New York, unpacked, signed, repacked and delivered to the gallery.  I like to leave a few extra days in case there is a glitch.  I've learned it's always best to expect a glitch then just be pleasantly surprised if there isn't one.

However, there is an upside to this kind of tension.  That upside is what tension does to the thought process.  Take for example this image.  Just a few hours ago it was in its raw state, uncorrected and only the top half was actually there.  There was no torn paper falling away.  But, as I was working on it I felt it lacked an element of drama.  It seemed too static.  I suddenly wanted more TENSION in the image, more ACTION.  And then, just like that I knew exactly what it needed.  Paper falling away.

That's how it works sometimes.  I don't really understand how this tension-aided, intuitive thought process works.  I just know that tension in the art making process often yields good art.  The image isn't titled yet and it isn't proofed yet.  It may get a bit of adjustment here and there but essentially this piece has come together for me.  This morning all it had was raw potential.  Tonight it fits squarely inside the body of work it is a part of.

I have been busy in my studio preparing for my coming solo show at Exhibit A in Corning.  It's always a challenge to create a body of work that will be seen as a solo show.  I've set a goal of 15-20 new works that will be visually cohesive and perhaps somewhat tied together in subject matter as well.  

This is my third large solo show.  Last year I was at Mansfield University with Sticks and Stones and Bits of Bones and in 2010 I was at Exhibit's A's former space for Between Gratitude and Regret.  This show isn't titled yet but I need to be thinking about one soon. The images so far are featuring fruit laden subjects with Renaissance symbolism references.  Many of the images center around the idea of unwrapping or revealing.  Five of the metal prints have been made and ten more are in that part of the process.  I think there will likely be about five more  finished in time for the show.  I'm looking forward to seeing this new body of work hanging together in a completed state where I can reflect on it as a whole and share it with the public.  It's an exciting time filled with creative energy and tension.  Artists often produce some of their best work when they have been working toward a larger goal like this.  I call it "hitting the sweet spot" when the work just rolls out intuitively.  There is just a creative flow that kicks in and takes over.  I wouldn't call it effortless but the effort seems to get an assist from a place in my thought process that requires this tension to surface.  Whatever that is, I always welcome it when it comes.

The piece above was inspired during the holidays last December.  My Mom was using a mechanical apple peeler to peel apples for pie making.  As the peels lay on her kitchen counter I was inspired by their inherent linear qualities and I took several photographs.  At the time I really never thought they would become the inspiration for a series of work but they worked their way into my subconscious and resurfaced in late summer as image dialogue.  Here's to that process and how a fleeting moment drifts into the artists psyche and emerges as a new work at a later time.

I've been underground all weekend.  That's right, I spent almost an entire weekend in my studio.  My studio is in my basement (underground).  This weekend I finished 5 of the images for my upcoming solo show at Exhibit A in November.  The images were well along in the process already.  But they needed to go through one of the most important steps in the process before being sent for professional production:  proofing and correcting.  

Proofing and correcting is a painstaking process.  It comes at the end of making a work.  First I must check and recheck each images to be certain that it is properly sized.  Next I must view it at 150% of the actual print size to check for imperfections with a fine tooth comb.  Dust, scratches and white marks must be carefully removed and retouched.  No one wants a print with a big white spot in one corner.  This part of the process takes place in my dark studio using two monitors side by side.  On the right is my Mac Book Pro and to the left is an Apple Cinema Display.  Frankly I can see better looking at the large display.  So I connect my laptop to it to increase the area I can visualize.

Once all of the retouching is done and I like the colors I'm seeing, the real fun begins.  I have to make a series of proof prints that I can use to guide me to getting a print that is actually the way I want it to look.  Once in a while it comes out right the first try but usually it takes between 4 and 10 print adjustments to be satisfied that the color is going to come out right.  

Right now you many be wondering why all of this is so difficult.  In a perfect world, what I see on my screen would match from screen to screen, but it doesn't.  Even with Spyder Calibration my laptop never quite matches my Cinema Display.  Then there are all kinds of printing issues.  I live in a world filled with ICC profiles, variable substrates (papers) and pigment inks.  My brand new printer is an Epson 3880.   It makes beautiful, archival pigment prints.  It also requires an education to run it properly.  So far I've discovered it's much more cooperative if I also use Epson paper.  Every paper has color tones.  The color tones in the paper or surface effect the way the print will look.

Above is a print coming out of the Epson 3880.  It's the 5th and final proof for a new work titled Dance of Life © 2013.  This work should remind you a little bit of Renaissance painting with its rich and vibrant symbolic fruit subject matter.  There is a peeled orange intertwined with a ripe and juicy peeled pomegranate.  In the proofs below you can see that the initial image was far to dark.  Each proof represents a series of changes as I work my way through getting a print that looks like what I had planned.  This print took 5 proofs to get there.  The reason this can be so tricky is that screen color is backlit and prints are not backlit.  This changes how we see the color quite dramatically.  Just because an image looks great on the screen doesn't necessarily make it great on paper.  It takes a lot of work and analyzing to get it just right.  This weekend I did this with 5 images.  Because my end images actually are infused into aluminum, I proof print on glossy paper to simulate the color brilliance.  This seems to be a decent predictor of what the actual print will look like.

Down at the bottom you can see the end result.  This image, Dance of Life © 2013 resulted from about 40 hours of work from starting scan to finished retouching and proofing.  It's now on it's way to be infused into a aluminum panel that will hang, float mounted on the wall.  This one is 24 x 24 inches.  I love its bright, rich colors and active composition.  It's just dripping with life.

Buffalo's Echo Art Fair has come and gone for another year.  I always enjoy participating as an artist with Exhibit A in Corning, NY.  This year I was fortunate to be able to show a total of seven works on aluminum alongside the work of artists Gerald Mead (Buffalo-Assemblage Relief), Ronald Gonzalez (Binghamton-Assemblage Sculpture) and Anne Novado Capucilli (Syracuse- Graphite Drawings on Vellum).  Exhibit A Director, Ann Welles, did a wonderful job creating a very professional looking booth and her hard work is appreciated.  Many people expressed satisfaction with the high quality of Exhibit A's booth and the quality of the artists at Exhibit A.  Quite a few folks said Corning, NY and Exhibit A will be a destination for their travel plans this coming year.

I spent all day Saturday in the booth talking with people who stopped by. There were collectors, art lovers big and small and many people who came to educate themselves about art.  I happily explained what scanography is a few hundred times.   I really enjoyed this opportunity to talk with people, answer their questions about my work and the gallery in Corning.  I met many new and interesting people. Buffalo's art community is a very friendly one.   There were several people who specifically came to the fair to see my insect works.  It was really great to hear that word of these pieces has been traveling.  One insect collector thanked me profusely for elevating insects to a place where people who are afraid of the real thing can still look closely and appreciate their beauty.  That was a really nice thing to hear as I related the story of my own journey in growing to be able to bring myself to touch insects, so that I could actually work with them.  Children at the fair also seemed to love my insects.  I got a few tips for insect handling which may come in very handy if I do more work with insects in the future.  The exchange of information was remarkable and I came away feeling recharged and excited to get back into my studio.

I'm not certain of the total count of visitors to Echo Art Fair this year, but as of this afternoon my friend and fellow artist, Diane Janowski told me that she had counted around 7680 visitors by 5:00 PM today.  That's a lot of art lovers.  I also was featured today in the photo galleries of Buffalo's newspaper, The Buffalo News.  That's pretty fun.  I was interviewed yesterday for a video feature about Echo Art Fair in Buffalo Spree which should be out sometime this week.  That was also a very nice experience.

All in all I enjoyed my experience and look forward to doing it again in the future.  Thanks Buffalo, Exhibit A and Echo Art Fair for a great weekend of art!

I'm excited and busy getting ready for an upcoming, art-filled weekend.   I will have work at Echo Art Fair,  a juried fine art exposition that connects experienced collectors and first-time buyers with established and emerging local, regional and international artists in a centralized and creative environment.   Located at Central Library in downtown Buffalo, NY, Echo Art Fair showcases a broad scope of fine art disciplines.   I will be exhibiting in the Exhibit A gallery booth along with Gerald Mead, Novado Cappuccilli, and Ronald Gonzalez.  Also exhibiting at Echo Art Fair  is Elmira artist  Allen C. Smith.

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, September 6, 7, and 8 are the dates for Echo Art Fair.  The fair is open to the public from 10:00 am - 6:00 pm Saturday, and Sunday at the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library, Downtown Central Library, 1 Lafayette Square. The two-day fine art fair brings together artists, collectors, businesses, entrepreneurs, vendors, sponsors, and the public.  See art, buy art, talk about art. Eat. Drink. Saturday $5, Sunday is free.  For a complete schedule of events, visit their website:   Echo Art Fair

So if you are in or around Buffalo next weekend, this is the place you should be.  It's a fun road trip if you're looking for something fun to do.   I'll be there all day Saturday.  Look for me in the Exhibit A booth.

I'm back in the studio, working hard to complete new work for my upcoming shows.  In September I'll be a part of Exhibit A's booth at Echo Art Fair in Buffalo.  I'm really excited about this opportunity.  Buffalo has a strong and vibrant art community and Echo Art Fair brings together a large and diverse audience of collectors from upstate New York and Canada.

In November I have a solo show at Exhibit A on Market Street in Corning.  My vision for this show is beginning to gel and the ideas and work are beginning to formulate.  Themes and subject matter are emerging.  It is an exciting time.  Forging a new path ahead always comes with mixed emotions.  I like to stay fresh in my approach and offer works that challenge my audience.

The work here is fresh from the studio.  I think it's complete except perhaps for a few minor tweaks.  I'm still pondering what the size is going to be.  It has the potential to be in the neighborhood of  4 feet square but I'm not certain about that just yet.  One thing is for sure, it will have some otherworldly dimensions.  

Past. Present. Future. Art Teachers as Artists will open on July 11, 2013 from 5-7 PM at Community Arts of Elmira.  The exhibition will run through July and August and will feature the work of past, present and future art educators including:  Carol Ayers, Ron Dixon, Shawn Farwell, David Higgins, Catherine Jacobs, Judy Kauppinen, Janna Keser, Vickie Mike, Allison Newkirk, Susan Pabody, Kathy Pilling-Whitney, Felicia Poes, Rita Rhodes, Jacqueline Satterlee, Jo Ann Smith, Connie Swarthout, Dave Tremaine, Ron Tucker, Debb VanDelinder, Lucretia West, Dale Witkowski and Connie Zehr.  The gallery is open Saturdays from 11 AM - 1 PM or by appointment.

Community Arts of Elmira
413 Lake Street, Elmira, NY 14901
Phone: 607-846-2418
facebook.com/communityartselmira

FORWARD 
Exhibit A opens FORWARD Saturday, March 2 with a reception from 5:00 - 7:00 PM.  FORWARD features Exhibit A's roster of artists including Debb VanDelinder's new series:  Common Valor.  The newly expanded stable of artists includes:

Novado Cappuccilli
Anne Gant
Ronald Gonzalez
Jeremy Holmes
Bethany Krull
Gerald Mead
Joanna Manousis
James Paulsen
Michael Rogers
Joshua Sperling
Debb VanDelinder
Tricia Wright


FORWARD is on View through April 13.  I hope to see you there!

I just received confirmation that Soul Mates has been chosen to be a part of the 24th annual Juried Photography Show at the State of the Art Gallery in Ithaca, NY. This show will be open from Wednesday, February 27 through Sunday, March 31, 2013 with an opening reception on Friday, March 1 from 5pm - 8pm.

Soul Mates (edition of 5) is a 24 x 24 inch archival aluminum print that features two mirror image Peruvian Grasshoppers (Lophacris cristata) and was created in 2012 as a part of the Entomos series. It is an image that reflects the idea of having a perfect bond with another being.  It is also a symbol of positive energy.

In China, the grasshopper is a symbol of luck and has long been a symbol associated with longevity, happiness, good health, good luck, wealth, abundance, fertility and virtue. In Ancient Greece the grasshopper is a status symbol. Athenians would adorn themselves with golden grasshopper hair combs and brooches as an indication of nobility. The grasshopper is also a symbol of immortality as we see in Greek myth when Zeus grants immortality to Tithonus, who was later transformed into a grasshopper (who of course, lived forever).  In Native American tribal lore (specifically the Iroquois nation) grasshopper symbolism deals with messages of glad tiding. In this context, the grasshopper is a harbinger of good news. Indeed, when this creature is seen on spirit walks, it is a sign that the seer will receive profoundly joyful news that will benefit the entire community.  As an animal totem, the grasshopper appeals to artists, musicians and dancers. 

I'm honored to be included in the juried SOAG show.  The annual photography show is always filled with high quality work from the best photographers in New York State.  If you are in Ithaca during the show, have a look.  You won't be disappointed.