Grounded Sheep

[shadesofmauve]

Sometimes someone pays to to paint something.



acrylic on board, 12"x12"

I just spent an enjoyable half hour talking to the buyer in the parking lot at my work (because art deals, like drug deals, should go down in a parking lot. In cash). She said she was a patron of my art; I told her she was The Patron of my art, as far as I could tell -- other people have bought my work, but the only other people with more than one painting are my aunt'n'uncle (commissioned nursery art, again) and my parents (who're storing the stuff that's too big).

Really, I've been very lucky. Not only did a gallery downtown agree to show my Sheep in Space a few years ago, the one person who totally fell in love with them happened to visit the gallery at the right time and happened to be married to an orthodontist (orthodontists make bank). She bought about half the work I had up, then commissioned me to do a painting for her then-on-the-way first kid's room (a black sheep, white sheep, and little gray -- well, violet -- baby, to match their family). This is the second commission, for kid number 2, in which she stretched my artistic limits by asking me to paint them on the ground.

They don't even have helmets. It is not the natural order of things.

Comments

[baxaronn.livejournal.com]

Oh, that is darling. Both the painting and the story of how it came to be. <3

I love the plants in this. All plants should form pretty spirals.

[shadesofmauve]

Thanks! :)

I have four different species of ferns in my yard right now. Lots of spirals!

[t-c-da.livejournal.com]

I suspect your ferns may different to those gracing the "yard" around our house...

Here is a photo of some of them covered in snow from the dumping we had last August...



$wife is planning to turn the whole space into native bush of one sort or another so we don't have to worry about mowing or watering lawns, and to that end has commissioned a label for the house - FERNHEAVEN - which has been crafted on driftwood, but not yet erected...

I put "yard" in quotes as our property has 12 levels across an area of about 500 square metres, including the house!

[shadesofmauve]

500 square meters I understand, but what is levels? Elevation change?

I'd love to see your giant ferns when they're not covered in snow. Pretty cool! We have a few varieties that can get big (sword fern, especially) but they seem to average out around 3 or 4 feet tall.

AWESOME that you're making a native yard! So much cooler than looking after that darn monoculture grass, for you and for the other critters.

[evilsherbear.livejournal.com]

Those sheep are really cute! The story is also really cool! It's nice when the universe just works out like that.

[shadesofmauve]

Thanks!

It is pretty cute -- and luckily her husband doesn't mind being portrayed as a sheep! It's kind of funny for me, because I didn't exactly set out to be a Fuzzy Sheep Painter -- I was just being goofy -- but hey, commissioner! With money! Who really likes sheep!

Really, I think the common thread of my paintings, especially the acrylics, is ZOMG COLOURS YAY. D'you think that could be my next artist's statement?

[westrider.livejournal.com]

I think in Oly, you'd get a better response if you phrased it something like "The colours, dude! Are you seeing what I'm seeing?" ;)

[shadesofmauve]

Not quite -- we're not California. I'd need to take the "Dude, the colours!" stoner speak and through in random socio-political commentary that has no apparent grounding on reality. "Dude, the orange is so, like, breaking the dominant bourgeoisie paradigm, y'know? Like, like, DUDE!"

[westrider.livejournal.com]

An excellent point.

[tersa.livejournal.com]

I think it is really nifty! I love the shading/color ribbons within the discrete items. #notanartist

[shadesofmauve]

Thank you!

[oddlittleturtle.livejournal.com]

What a wonderful piece! This is too cute. The spiral-y plants and the wavy green in the background make it look like under-the-water sheep. <3

[stasia]

SHEEEEEEPS, OMG!!

Those are adorable. What cute little lambies!

I'm so glad you've finished and that she likes it.

*glee*

Stasia

[shadesofmauve]

*dances* Having it DONE is soooo nice. Now I can tackle all the OTHER things!

[sinvraal.livejournal.com]

Pretty! I love digital artwork, but at the same time, there's something wonderful about the tactilty of a physical painting. I'm the kind of person who always wants to touch the bumpy paintings, haha (even if I don't, for obvious reasons). I love the colors!

[shadesofmauve]

Thanks! It's funny -- I've really been getting a charge off of figuring out digital stuff, and I love that I can dork around with art without thinking "Is this worth making into something physical I have to store/have around?" But for sheer joy in color, nothing beats real paint. I've never done digital work where it's just "Damn, I really LOVE that color of red. I'm making room for it in this painting." It's so visceral.

I'm especially prone to the exuberant color use in acrylics. Tend to be more subdued with oils. The Sheep in Space paintings all include interference colors that vary depending on viewing angle, too.

I varnish the heck out of anything that uses texture and anything that goes in kids' rooms (like this painting) so you could touch away. :P