Divi from Elegant Themes is my go to theme

I use the Divi from Elegant Themes for my Wordpress website. I’ve used it for several years and have even recommended it to several of my friends. As a visual artist, I find it easy to set up and edit pages. If you’re looking for a dependable theme, try Divi. Click here to check it out! 

They’re having a Black Friday Sale and giving away lots of goodies. So check out the sale at https://www.elegantthemes.com/black-friday-2018/. I actually bought a lifetime license. That’s how impressed I am with their theme.

Call for Art! Deadline April 30.

Opportunity! Georgia artists are invited to submit 2D and 3D work to Kudzu Art Zone's Open Juried Exhibition. First prize $1,000. April 30th deadline. I am currently the chair for this exhibition.
Please share!

http://www.kudzuartzone.org/call-for-art-open-juried-exhib…/

Dancing Jennies just completed

Dancing Jennies by Karen Phillips, 2014

I started with a plan...I was going to do an abstract painting of some rock formations I saw  on a trip to the Hoover Dam. I had it all sketched out. I created a textured surface using gesso and a couple of pastes. Then using inks and acrylic paint, I created additional textures with all kinds of things including bubble wrap. Once that dried, my plan went out the window.

The way that layer of texture interacted with the bottom layer demanded I do something different. So I grabbed a little of this and a little of that and danced this painting into being. What a great time I had playing with color and building lots of layers.

I've named it "Dancing Jennies" and it is now at Kudzu Art Zone, in Norcross, Georgia, as a part of their 12x12 fundraiser. Starting bid is $60!

UPDATE: Sold!

Call for Art: Kudzu Art Zone's Open Juried Exhibition 2014

Call for Art

Kudzu Art Zone invites all Georgia artists working in two- and three-dimensional media to participate in our Second Annual Open Juried Exhibition.

Deadline to receive entries

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Click here to download the prospectus.

The exhibition will open from Friday, June 6 and close Saturday, July 19 at Kudzu Art Zone gallery in Norcross, GA. More than $2500 in cash and merchandise will be awarded. The juror is Craig Dongoski, a professor of Art at Georgia State University, an acclaimed artist of international recognition and reputation. 

For eligibility requirements, submission information and to access the online prospectus and entry form, please visit kudzuartzone.org.   

Exhibition Calendar

April 30, 2014	Deadline to receive entries
May 17, 2014	Artists notifications
May 30 & 31, 2014	Hand deliver work
June 6, 2014	Show Opens--Reception and Awards Presentation
July 19, 2014	Show Closes
July 19, 2014	Pick-up artwork

C4ward March Blogathon Day 5: Dynamics & Ecstasy in the Studio

Oh what a joy it is to be in front of my easel or sit at my work table with a brush full of paint in hand, or a pencil, crayon, charcoal or whatever suits my fancy in that moment. And there is music too! All sorts from jazz to world, from soul to rock, yes! It's playing and I'm dancing my images into being. Oh what fun!

As my brush, pen, mark-maker dances across the page, canvas, board, time disappears, hunger fades, doubts drop away and there I am doing the work I was meant to do.

Ideas and dreams posted in my studio

I am always looking to improve my skills, so I read books, attend workshops and experiment with new shapes and textures. The goals I have set for myself this year include bringing more value changes into my work and allowing the ideas to breathe in the space they inhabit.

Tools and doodads

I love my light-filled studio the only thing I would change would be...more space!

C4ward March Blogathon: Taking on My Dreams

Taking on My Dreams, acrylic on paper study, by Karen Phillips

One of my favorite quotes is from Goethe (it's true, I have a bumper sticker to prove it):

“Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.”

Day 4 prompts us to dream big and list some goals we would like to achieve within the next 30 years. At first I thought this would be soooo easy. But, right now I'm in a weird space where I'm comfortable with what I'm doing creatively and personally.

Aha! Perhaps I'm too comfortable because it took some real thinking to get to a place where I could start thinking about what I would like to have accomplished in the next 30 years. Boy, 30 years from now...hmm...that would make me #@!! years old! I'd better get started!

In having dug deep to do this exercise, I found that became more focussed on the direction I'm headed and I feel excited by it. Where will you be in 30 years? Try on a dream or two. Go on, I dare ya!

My goals:

1) List FIVE GOALS you would like to achieve in the NEXT 30 YEARS (or 10, or 20 years… think long term)

1. Live in another country with my husband for 1 year to experience a new culture and make new friends
2. Travel to Africa
3. Show my work in major galleries in New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Shanghai and South Africa
4. Paint a series of portraits
5. Know the history of my mother's side of the family, especially my great-grandmother

2) Now, thinking of the above far-reaching goals, list FIVE GOALS you need to accomplish in the NEXT FIVE YEARS to move towards achieving them. (Some of these might be the same as your goals above.  That’s okay!).

1. Visit three countries to if we would want to live there
2. Save $10k for trip to Africa
3. Create 10 series of 10 works, get shows in local galleries
4. Do 1,000 studies of drawing and painting
5. Meditate, help people learn to read

3) Finally, list FIVE GOALS to be accomplished in the NEXT 12 MONTHS… as if it were the last year of your life! What will you have accomplished by March 4th , 2015?

1. Visit one country with my husband
2. Save $2k towards trip to Africa
3. Create 5 series  of at least 10 works, find a local gallery to show my work
4. Study Barnstone Method and draw everyday
5. Meditate 20 minutes per day and volunteer for reading program

C4ward March Blogathon Day 3: My favorite work - Red Flight

Red Flight, gouache on board, by Karen Phillips

I am most proud of this piece of art. I started experimenting with gouache on paper and was having a lot of fun. I wanted to take the experiment further by adding texture to see what would happen. I like to ask myself "what if" questions a lot.

I took a piece of lauan board and smeared it with gesso and light molding paste. I learned very quickly that it was quite different painting with gouache on a hard surface (after all I'm an acrylic gal), one has to use a delicate touch in order to obliterate what was done before.

I also learned that I could actually work slower and over a longer period of time. I worked on this painting off and on over two months in 2012. Guess what? Now that I'm looking at it again, I see some areas that could use some additional work. Well, it's back to my easel...

C4ward March Blogathon: The Big WHY

Grateful, Acrylic on paper, by Karen Phillips

Welcome to my blog! This is the first entry for the C4ward March Blogathon. We have been asked about the big "Why" behind the creative work that we do. My initial response was "I just have to." If I don't create, I get cranky and restless. Art is an integral part of my being.

After thinking about this question of Why for a bit longer, I wrote this poem to describe my process and how I move through this world.

Dancing with the big WHY 

Dearest
I hold you close and whisper in your ear
Be
Together we travel through this existence on the road to discover what is
Love
Beloved we open our arms wide welcoming all
Experience
Let us witness together that breath of life that flows through our veins and just
Be

I am grateful to be able to create art and to share it. What are you passionate about? and Why? 

Curve & Texture Show Opening December 15th

Curve & Texture

December 15, 2013 – January 15, 2014

Please join me for the Opening of Curve & Texture at the First Existentialist Congregation of Atlanta in Candler Park on Sunday, December 15 from 1:00 to 3:00 pm.

Included in the show will be works from my latest series Seeking Unity.

The First Existentialist Congregation of Atlanta
470 Candler Park Dr., NE 
Atlanta, GA 30307 
404-378-5570 

I look forward to sharing my art with you.

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 24 Contemplation

Universes among the River Birch by Karen Phillips

Contemplating the universe in this image. Do you ever think about what's beyond our universe? What other inhabitable worlds are there out there? Is there another me? Is there another you?

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 18 Gouache It!

Red Flight, gouache on board, by Karen Phillips

This is Red Flight, a painting I did earlier this year. I wanted to try gouache on a board with some texture. I used light molding paste and gesso to create some yummy texture underneath the gouache. I had a lot of fun working this painting and learning more about gouache.

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 15 Blast from the Past

This is an image I created towards the beginning of this year. I painted this using gouache and lots of water. Again, more circles.

What kind of symbols or shapes show up in your creative work?

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 14 Field Trip

Mr. Cason's Vegetable Garden
Callaway Gardens

I find it relaxing and inspiring to take day trips around the Atlanta area to discover new places. Recently, my husband and I visited Callaway Gardens and saw some beautiful vistas and gardens.

As we visited the various gardens, I caught glimpses of patterns and shapes that I found intriguing and took a few pictures.

The contrast of the light colored veins and dark green foliage in these plants caught my eye.

The size contrast in these green leaves was quite nice! The overlapping oval shapes and pattern of the smaller leaves makes me want to run to my paints.

I find it's important to take time away from my studio and experience new environments that may or may not lead to inspiration for new work. How about you? What do you do to relax and/or inspire yourself?

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 13 Circle Series - Exclusivity and Unity

This painting is the start of my Circle series that I started working on earlier this year. My inspiration for this work started with a question, "When is it ok to be exclusive?"

Seeking Unity, Acrylic on canvas by Karen Phillips

At the time, there was so much in the news about one group or another wanting to exclude another. I started thinking about why we form groups or cliques and recognized our need to feel a part of something, something that helps us feel whole. We seek to join with others, to perhaps become something more than we are as individuals.

Circle Series, Mixed Media on canvas by Karen Phillips

So I've been playing with these ideas and seeing what I can discover. This grouping of five circles has my attention for the moment. In the above painting there is some separation between the first circle and the rest of the group. Does it want to join or doesn't it? I'm not sure yet.

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 11 Looking Back

Stream of Consciousness painting, 18x24, gouache on paper by Karen Phillips 

I've been looking through some of the paintings I did on this paper from last year and found this colorful image. It's amazing how often the circle appears in my work. Recently, I've been working on a series of paintings in acrylic with the theme of circles. I am using this series to dig a little and find out what my attachment is to this symbol. I will post some of those tomorrow. What recurring symbols or images do you find in your work?

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 10 Gratitude

Feeling so grateful today.

I am so grateful for all the family and friends that are in my life, all that I'm able to do, and all that I am able to share along this wonderful road called life.

What are you grateful for?

Blogtoberfest 2013: Day 9 - Wordless Wednesday

Blogtoberfest 2013: Finding hope in a bottle

Well I've done it. I've located all the bottles that I will need for this class. I went to a convenience store at a gas station and our neighborhood market (where I found out that I can't buy just one bottle of beer). I ended up having to do a little dumpster diving (recycled dumpster, that is). Next step: spray paint them all a nice matte white.

Bottle #2

My hope for this course is that I learn new skills that help me create paintings closer to what I envision, to get better at composition, and find a shorthand for jotting down ideas before they slip away. How do you find ways to do things a little better or a different way?

Blogtoberfest 2013: Meet my first bottle

Here she is. My first bottle for the video course Barnstone Method I'm studying. She will go through a bit of a transformation and meet new friends soon as I progress through the program.

My first bottle for use with online drawing course, Barnstone Method

Right now I'm learning how to do quick sketches using circles, triangles and squares. Everything has a relationship!

Notes and initial sketches

I'm off to hunt down three more bottles to complete the set. Wish me luck.

Blogtoberfest 2013: Searching for new forms

There are times when I like to approach a blank sheet of paper with a paintbrush full of color and see what I can discover. A line here, a dab there and lots of drips lead to new possibilities for paintings.

What fun! Creating drippy shapes can lead to lovely discoveries. What do you do to find inspiration?