Upcoming entries to a benefit show

I am entering a show and wrote up a blurb about the oil pastels I will submit. I am still working on the hen, and probably a bit on the others but you can see what I have been doing anyway. The pieces are ten inches by ten inches, as per the theme of the show. Basically anything goes but it can't be more than 3/4 inch high. I pastels on matt board and created the images on other pieces of matt board, cut them out along the image and will glue them down. It's fast and fun. I will let you know if they sell.

About this 10 x 10 work

I have traveled extensively and as a result have developed a philosophy that the world is an interesting and ever changing place. I am always trying to see what is around me and am usually not without my camera. For this series I am influenced by my photographic images. I see compositions whenever I go out, whatever I do.  Light and texture are especially intriguing in their juxtapositions within my photos.

Lately these inspirations have been translating to oil pastels but I also work in ceramic and wood carvings. I particularly enjoy repetition and negative space in my work, how they influence the composition and are an integral force in any piece. I have introduced the low relief aspect to enhance the negative space and because I enjoy sculptural attributes.

Through teaching I learned the versatility of oil pastels and have translated them to a graphically oriented design of my photographs. The colors seem to suggest themselves as if the piece takes on a life of it’s own.

It is great fun to create these pieces and I hope you will enjoy them as well.