Encaustic monotypes on paper… PLUS a whole bunch of layers of mixed media goodness on top of that! This is the work of American artist Kaylee Dalton, and this is her description of why she does what she does:

“My work is a whimsical interpretation of the garden landscape. A focus on the fascinating consistency of new plant growth and the expressive characteristics natural forms exude. Abstracting the intricacies of leaves, blooms and the unseen world beneath the soil of roots and earthly formations. Building up layers of encaustic, while embedding watermedia painted papers and textiles, I strive for strong textural differences reflective of the various surfaces found in nature.”

Nailed it. Happy Monday.

So, today’s episode is kind of insane. Unless you’ve been living under a rock, I’m sure you’ve seen the recently revealed official portrait of Michelle Obama. I honestly can’t believe she made time to talk to me, but yes, Baltimore based painter Amy Sherald is my guest today. We definitely talked about the piece of American history she just finished painting {no pressure}, but I also wanted to know everything that led up to this exciting moment in her life. Amy and I are talking about her original plan to become a doctor, the years she worked as a bouncer at a bar, and how she found the path to her own very unique style. Listen right up there under “LIGHT IS EASY TO LOVE”, or you can subscribe on iTunes.

First, a few of the costumes we were talking about. Let’s start off with the unicorn equestrian that I obviously had to bring up:

The queen is fantastic! And, I think that last one is a costume. I hope.

Next, just people being people… in a stunning, engaging, brightly colored, Amy Sherald kind of way:

Seriously, she is so good. That final piece above is the ten-year-old we mentioned, Amy’s youngest subject so far.

Oooh, and this is “Miss.Everything”… and she really is:

This is the painting that made Amy the first woman to be awarded the Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition grand prize. That close-up! Her skin is gorgeous. It’s so soft-looking, I can hardly believe it’s paint.

Speaking of soft skin {according to Amy’s sister}, here is the official portrait of FLOTUS, Michelle Obama:

Sigh. Ok, I already loved this painting so much, but hearing the behind-the-scenes story directly from Amy made me love it even more. The reference to quilts {Gee’s Bend}, Michelle’s elegant pose, and again, that lovely grey-scale skin… beautiful. All of that work – the selection process, choosing wardrobe, taking photographs, going back for more photographs, and then, oh yes, painting a portrait to be hung in the National Portrait Gallery at the Smithsonian as part of American history – definitely worth some celebrating:

And, clearly, I’m not the only one who’s in awe of Amy’s work. A two-year-old named Parker is mesmerized as well. She thinks this is a painting of a queen. Rightly so.

Finally, I can’t finish the post without this:

Awwww! I’d warm up his food too. Thanks so much to Amy for taking time out of her insanely busy life to talk to me {enjoy those margaritas, Amy!}; thanks to Saatchi Art and Create Magazine for supporting the episode; and thank you for listening. There will be more art for your ear next weekend.

Other links:

1. Amy on Instagram
2. Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis {Amy’s show in May}
3. Hauser & Wirth, New York {2019 show}
4. The soon to be historic photo of Parker & the Portrait, snapped by Ben Hines

Ah, the wonderful world of Boston based artist Amy Ross. I wrote about her years ago {2011 to be exact}, but just stumbled onto a few of her latest nature-inspired collages. Oh I love those mushroom people… but wait, ocean creature people? How is a girl supposed to decide!? Too close to call. Happy Friday.

{via Walker Contemporary}

Doesn’t this immediately transport you to your favorite gallery… well, a gallery for those of us with a penchant for people watching, that is! This is just one series in the lovely portfolio of UK based artist Julia Hall. Ahhh yes, there’s nothing quite like sitting on a quiet gallery bench watching people from all walks of life wander by … add a little eavesdropping and I’m totally in. Here’s to women artists painting women looking at paintings… Happy International Women’s Day!

ps. I also want to mention Julia’s latest, and very powerful, series titled “If Not Now When”. Julia has been painting snippets from “the media conveyor belt, and the slow, rigorous layering of oil paint solidifies the moment, giving longevity to an otherwise fleeting event.” I was going to write a whole post featuring everything in this series, but to be totally honest, I’m having a really hard time with the constant stream of news, fake or otherwise, that we are constantly bombarded with. I find it absolutely overwhelming … I’d much rather be people-watching in a beautiful gallery. That said, I love this piece… in an “Oh no, please make it stop” kind of way. Also, it shows off Julia’s insane painting skills. Keep an eye on this very powerful ongoing series via Julia’s Instagram feed.

“Pink Blots” … these are just a few of the dreamy, female-inspired collages from this ongoing series by Brooklyn based artist Lauren Munns. What do you see in these Rorschach-esque pieces… you know, besides pelvic bones and gold glitter. BOSS, indeed ♥

Gasp! Just when I thought I couldn’t love the work of American artist Lorna Simpson anymore than I already do… “Unanswerable”. This is just a tiny peek at her latest work, all of which is currently hanging at Hauser & Wirth in London. I have loved Lorna’s collages for years, but these large scale, deep blue, smokey mixed media paintings are new, AND AMAZING. Here is a little bit of the show description from the Hauser & Wirth site that starts to explain the colors, ice, smoke etc…

“… In the last few years Simpson has taken up the medium painting for the first time in two decades, creating works using hazy washes of ink and acrylic over gesso. In works, such as ‘Ice 4’ (2018), Simpson layers the appropriated imagery and Associated Press photographs of ice, glaciers and smoke with nebulous washes of saturated ink which partially obscure the source material. The smoke plumes signal upheaval and discord in nature and society in reference, perhaps, to images of riots following police brutality past and present that Simpson has more explicitly illustrated in other related works. Barely discernable strips of newsprint typography allude to wider issues in society. Here, as elsewhere, the artist is sparing with colour; her disciplined palette consists of inky blacks, greys, and a startling acid blue that has only recently appeared in her oeuvre, contributing to its atmosphere of bristling movement. Deftly navigating the territory between figuration and abstraction, these paintings cut through the calculated glamour of magazine imagery with the brute force of the natural world. As the artist explains, ‘Conceptually, this is in tandem with what I’m experiencing emotionally but also what I feel is going on politically: the idea of being relentlessly consumed.’”

The show will be up until April 28th, 2018. GO.

“Icy Blondes” is a series by Norwegian photographer Ole Marius Joergensen… yes, photographer. Did you think these were paintings? Me too. In this series, his bizarre, narrative, painterly photographs capture what appear to be some very intense cinematic moments inspired by Hitchcock’s femme fatales:

“The well-know US film critic Roger Ebert observed that Alfred Hitchcock’s leading ladies, ‘reflected the same qualities over and over again. They were blonde. They were icy and remote. They were imprisoned in costumes that subtly combined fashion and fetishism. They mesmerized the men, who often had physical or psychological handicaps.”

Well, beware the icy blonde, I guess. Happy Monday.

Oooh, look at that tiny snippet of goodness! Layers of paper, images, and whatever else this curious artist can get her hands on. Today I’m talking to Canadian artist Aimée Henny Brown. And the reason for the title of this episode, “Foxes ‘n’ Hedgehogs” is truly a perfect description of how Aimée’s brain works … curious like a fox, but she digs deep like a hedgehog! We started this episode with a personal help session that I’d requested. Aimée knows EVERYTHING about paper and, luckily, is happy to share her knowledge. I want to go bigger with my collages, so she told me how. Listen right up there under that insanely gorgeous peek at a #WIP from her Instagram feed, or you can subscribe on iTunes.

First, go big or go home.

Gah! Look at that amazing, gigantic collage! That’s the Tyvek she was talking about, and yes, I am so going to try that. Look out hardware store, here I come!

Next up, houses in the negative. This is what she’s experimenting with while in Montreal, and I absolutely love them:

There really is something so beautiful about the other side of the paper after you’ve made a few cuts – lots of happy surprises over there! So, as you can see, Aimée has a fascination with structures, architecture, shelters etc… case in point, a few pieces from a 2016 titled “Futur Infinitif” :

Oh my word. Stunning. Last year Aimée and I were in a group show together, along with Vancouver’s Janice Wu, at Back Gallery Project. These were some of Aimée’s pieces:

There they are on the right, and again, look how big they are! I included that close-up above as well so you could see that, yes, there are houses nestled into almost everything she does! LOVE.

Oooh, and these are the installation shots of the work Aimée did while on that YEAR LONG residency in Harrison:

Right? Seriously, she can make anything. Look at those cuts? I love that she isn’t afraid to experiment with materials… which of course is why I ask her for advice whenever I can!

Speaking of cuts, here are those perfectly perfect bangs we were talking about:

Gorgeous! The topmost shot is a recent photo, but given all of our talk about foxes, hedgehogs and possums, I thought it only fair to include this 2016 image of Aimée and her forest friend! Thanks to Aimée for taking a break in her precious studio time to hang out with me for an hour and a half; thanks to Saatchi Art and Thrive for supporting the episode, and thanks to you for listening! There will be more art for your ear next weekend.

ps. I just found out tonight that Thrive is currently accepting new members for their May intake. Their groups fill up, so if you’re interested make sure to pop over there soon.

Other links:

1. Thrive Mastermind
2. Tyvek
3. Terraskin
4. NASCAD, Halifax
5. University of Alberta, Edmonton
6. Condordia University, Montreal
7. Banff Centre Programs, Banff 
8. Amy on Instagram
9. Maudie {movie that will make you cry}
10. SOMA Gallery, Vancouver {June show}
11. ACT Gallery, Maple Ridge
12. Pendulum Gallery, Vancouver {Fall show}

These paintings {oil on board} are the most recent work of Scottish artist Norman Gilbert. Now, when I say ‘most recent’, I mean sometime between now and 2000. The work shown on his website actually begins in 1950, as Norman is now 91… and still creating his beautiful work. His color choices, his style {that almost looks like printmaking}, and the fact that his teachers at the Glasgow School of Art considered him to be “unteachable” because he wouldn’t do what they told him to do … yes, these are all of the factors that go into making me a fan of Norman!  Watch this video clip from the BBC, and I’m quite sure you’ll be right there with me:

Norman is represented by Tatha Gallery in Scotland.

I suddenly want to spend the day watching old Westerns … and I don’t even like old Westerns! This is the mysterious, rich, beautifully crafted work of Montana based artist Kaetlyn Able. Are you wondering how she does this? Graphite? Printmaking? I’ll let her tell you:

“I create dreamy portraits based on found historical photographs. Using tattoo needles and an x-acto blade, I etch into thin layers of black ink that I have painted onto white clay panels. Traditionally, this drawing technique is known as scratchboard, or scraperboard, but I don’t love those clinical-sounding names. They don’t do the process, which feels utterly, completely and perfectly magical, any justice at all! For me the practice is part meditation, part act of devotion. I slowly build delicate layers of marks, gradually adding more and more light and life to the image, until suddenly, a character and a story seem to emerge out of the black. It’s a surprise every time. I often layer these black and white drawings with pops of colorful elements that I paint in acrylic and acrylic gouache, creating further texture, dimension and emotional resonance.”

Tattoo needles?! What a fantastic way to get these characters to “emerge out of the black”. Love.