I tweaked and re-worked/finessed/finished twelve more angel paintings. It is such an incredible feeling to complete this project. It is Futura, the painting series I have been talking about making for many years. Now I must manifest the perfect venue to display all twenty-four of them. They are encaustic and mixed media on masonite mounted on chalkboard (the chalkboard was edited out in these pics). They are 8″ x 10″ mounted on 11″ x 14″ board. Priced at $111. <3
Here are the pictures of my first dozen horseshoe paintings. They are 8″ x 10″ encaustics on masonite. I mounted them onto 11″ x 14″ chalkboard painted masonite, but cropped that part out to concentrate on the detail.
They will be for sale at Syracuse Yoga next month. The horseshoe is a theme at the studio. It is part of Sophie Tashkovski’s logo for the business. Luck is sort of infused into the positive energy I felt while creating them. And if like attracts like, then I am certain the new owners of these paintings will have their shazaam moments with these gems. They will feel the power of the spirit in which the art was created.
I am soooo excited to share these with you. I had friends over while painting them, which is so unlike my former hermit-ey self who needed to create in secret in order to manifest a wow moment. I now love the feeling of camaraderie while in artist mode – the amazing vibe I got from my friends encouraging me to forge the path and complete the task of making art again. Art with a purpose this time and that felt supremely good.
Pictures really do not do them justice. You must experience encaustics in person. So much beauty in the texture. It has this quick momentum to it that justifies gesture. The drips, the rawness of the terrain from smooth to rough and back again. It speaks volumes. I remember the first time I experienced a Jasper Johns painting at the MOMA. It was love at first sight.
I did not learn how to do it until 2012 when I took a grad course at Syracuse University via hosting a student teacher at work. As I was learning, I struggled with the concept that I was/am a professional artist creating work for a class – did that make the work student grade, as I was learning or was I intuitively just good at encaustics?
I know the answer. We are always learning and growing as artists. I now have pure confidence in myself and in my ability to dismiss that silly query. I am in love with this body of work and that is not just good enough, it is everything. It is about my hand making choices that resonate with the energy of the moment; it is the look, feel/touch and the smell of it all. The fragrance of beeswax lingers in my house. I just love it all. It is, like, in a word, glorious. It just fits. <3
It’s almost time for my annual art exhibition at the Sullivan Library in Chittenango, NY. Actually, they said I could install any day now but the show is technically scheduled for the month of July. It is located at 101 Falls Blvd. My art will be in their Community Room. This room is available for parties and club meetings as well as local events. In November, it acts as a polling place for elections. The decor is all things Oz, complete with various cookie jars and 1st edition books as well as plywood statues of the main characters. The last time I was there, Dorothy and company were disguised with mustaches, which I deduced to be their Halloween costumes.
The library is the old State Bank of Chittenango. They converted the bank vault into a cool reading room for children. You have to go through a Munchkin door to get to it. It’s just really cute. I’m assuming that you know Chittenango is the birthplace of L. Frank Baum, author of The Wizard of Oz, but if you don’t, well, you’re welcome.
I still haven’t decided what I will exhibit. Hopefully I’ll get it together soon then post pictures. No reception or anything but if you want to buy the art, contact me through this website or on my Facebook like page. https://www.facebook.com/pages/Karen-Tashkovski-Visual-Artist/167509472886
What started out as a simple logo for my sister has become a mild obsession. I love when I get immersed in a project and this one has potential to lead to a series of paintings. Whether encaustic or oil and collage, or graphics for greeting cards (or all of the above!) I’m not sure, but I’m enjoying the process right now.
I began with motifs that represent Sophie but certainly, my own motifs crept through my subconscious and found themselves entwined. The thing about horseshoes though, they seem the right device for me as well, as a transition from the encaustic horse paintings. Horses have become a major concept at work, too. I spent two years teaching students how to draw them so I’ve been all about the horse. But in terms of most of my artwork, symbolism is the main attraction. The art is meant to be both personal and universal so that when it leaves the nest, it can become something else for someone else.
Horseshoes are lucky, which lends another positive element to my work. I created the template then added Sharpie marker and some metallic to colored pencil for these samples. The real logo will be different – a combination of parts and colors, and hopefully, exactly what she wants.
