BlueFrogArts

Drawing Children

Deb Skinner's latest commissioned portrait is a drawing of a couple's grandchildren - a gift for their daughter.  The image is 11x14, and was done in pencil on an acid-free rag paper.  Below are her thoughts on the work:

"I chose to draw the faces life-size, and make them look as if they were sitting very close together.  Their eyes were intentionally placed at the intersection of the 1/3 axis lines to make the focal points off-center and more interesting to the eye of the viewer.  I also made sure to draw enough of the neck and clothing to anchor the portrait and avoid a "floating head" appearance."

"The photographs my client chose were excellent, because the children have very natural expressions on their faces.  It will most likely be very different from their mother's other framed images of them, which many times are posed professional photographs."

"While I worked on this drawing I kept thinking about what a blessing and a privilege it is to be a parent - and a grand parent.  This was a very uplifting and fulfilling project to work on."

Deb Skinner can be contacted through the Blue Frog Arts Gallery in Lamoni, IA.

A One-of-a-kind Porcelain Teapot

Chuck Manuel has created a beautiful wheel thrown porcelain teapot with a red glaze that would be the envy of all potters.  When the firing was complete, Chuck knew just who to go to to put the perfect finishing touch on this jewel of a teapot.

Rebecca Abarr worked her magic with a smooth piece of Oregon driftwood, twisted copper wire and a small piece of turquoise.

Available at Blue Frog Arts in Lamoni, Iowa.  Call for details.

Mural for Lydia - a bright young lady!

Working on a child's room is perhaps the most fun work of all!  Children have excellent ideas and it is not only important, but I feel IMPERATIVE for them to have input on a mural for their room.

This recent mural was done for a dear friend's daughter.  It was designed around several key elements she requested:  yellow hills, grass, flowers, butterflies, and a vine around her alcove.  Lydia's parents worked with her and selected the paint chips for the sky and base for the land.  They even applied the two background paint colors themselves.  It was a great starting point from which to work.

Because of their hard work ahead of time, my sister Ruth and I were able to complete the artistic portion of the mural in half a day. I think the creamy pallet and the room's existing furnishings work well together.

Another wall in the room features a cherry blossom tree, a country road, and some greenery.  You'll notice we wanted the dominant color in our scheme to be yellow, so we used that as the earth color.  The sky comes down the wall somewhat.  I believe it makes for a far more interesting horizon line, than if we had dissected the wall in half height-wise.

Several times, we brought Lydia in to ask her if she liked the work we had done and she said she did.  She's a very thoughtful girl, with a definite vision, and we all wanted to make sure she approved!

Maya and Sammy couldn't resist playing with Lydia's toys once Lydia had settled into her room.

This flower detail was placed just above the height of a dresser.  This was possible because the yellow hillside was composed of several layers of hills.  This would be lost if it were down near the baseboard.  Several similar simple flower details were added around the room, even behind where current furniture items were placed.  This ensures future arrangements won't leave blank gaps in the landscape.

I think this mural breaks the mold in two key ways:  it is primarily landscape based rather than the more common trend and often age-based themes like a popular tv show for preschoolers, or mid elementary school.  Though very feminine, there is minimal use of pink. Should Lydia decide to change her bedspread and accessories, she'll have everything from buttery yellow, earthy greens, sky blues, and even purples to choose from.  Let's hope it lasts her at least into her "tween" years!

Details of a mural done by Deb Skinner, Ruth Seagraves and Lydia's father, Russ.

John Knotts exhibits at top shows in New Mexico

Native American art and artifacts are more than a passion of Blue Frog artist John Knotts - it's a way of life.

At the Blue Frog, John is known for his sterling silver cuff links, tuxedo studs, brooches, and  pendants.  Inspired by Victorian pieces and other collectibles such as Crackerjack prizes, John's designs combine the artful with the whimsical.  Check out his website www.dot925.com to peruse his complete line.

John, and his able partner Suzanne, worked together this August in two of the Nation's top antique shows.  August 3-6, 2007, (pictured above) John showed at Albuquerque's Great Southwestern Antique Show. Although John does not sell jewelry of his own designs at these shows, he admits his over 20 years of experience collecting and selling Native American art helped him develop his own unique style.

I dropped in on John in Santa Fe one week later at another Nationally recognized show, the 24th Annual Antique Ethnographic Art Show  August 9-12, 2007.  The event features the sale of Ethnographic and tribal art from around the world.  One of John's pieces that really impressed me was a quilt made by African-American slaves in the 1800s.  It created quite a stir in Albuquerque where it held a prominent place in his booth (see right wall in the above photograph - click on image to enlarge.)

Whether old or new, the works of artisans  around the world were treasured at these two shows.  I left the Ethnographic Show in Santa Fe truly inspired.

Art for children!

Blue Frog's resident printmaker, Beth Knotts, has done it again with another excellent printmaking class for children.  Three young ladies ages 7-9 participated in a two Saturday workshop at the Blue Frog and produced amazing prints. 

Beth first gave a lesson in drawing and worked with each student to produce several drawings done from reptile models.  She then helped them select their best composition and they transferred the image to a plate.

Students learned about ink consistency, how to use a brayer, and keeping your work surface clean - very important when printing!  They also learned how to number and sign their series of prints. 

You can see from the photos, they were a focused group and produced outstanding framable works of art!

Beth will do another printmaking class for children in June - stop by and pick up a summer schedule.  Or send us an e-mail at debbiskinner@hotmail.com and we'll add you to our class schedule distribution list!