2009 Year In Review

I thought I'd do another pat on the back year in review this January, rather than a "to do" list of resolutions. So to start with here's what I sold in 2009 - thanks to my lovely purchasers for their support!

SOLD!
1. Copy Cat, 2. Hibou, 3. California Quail,
4. Kermode Bear, 5. Orca Whale, 6. Stretchy (second state)7. Pulleys II (a), 8. Industrial Perch, 9. Lounging, 10. Soueee!

I have my art available for sale at two new (to me!) locations: The Upstart Crow in Delta, BC, and Studio Todorovic in Calgary, Alberta.

Here are all the prints that I completed in 2009:

PRINTED!
1. Oyama, 2. Sitting, 3. Lounging,
4. Goofy, 5. Flow VII, 6. Flow VI,
7. Flow V, 8. Flow IV, 9. Flow III,
10. Flow II, 11. Flow I, 12. Exposed,
13. Soueee!, 14. Vantage Point, 15. "Queen Of..."

I also did a lot of field sketches and Murri sketches, as well as purchased and started to learn how to use my new graphics tablet & GIMP program.

I taught a wonderful printmaking workshop in Williams Lake:

I attended a windy and cold "summer" outdoor art show and got to demo printmaking while I was there:


I was also invited to participate in a wonderful artists' retreat in Bamfield on the west coast of Vancouver Island, check out what fun we had (day 1, day 2 and days 3 & 4) and some of the art I created.

I carved and printed the largest relief print I've yet done, donated one of the edition to a great cause, and was accepted into the Federation of Canadian Artists' 2009 Spilsbury Medal Show with another one of the edition.

I had many pieces accepted into various local exhibitions:

EXHIBITED!
1. Exposed, 2. Vantage Point, 3. Being Shod,
4. Soueee!, 5. Pays d'Hiver (Winter Country), 6. Kinsol

I participated in a couple of print exchanges:

EXCHANGED!

1. Oyama, 2. "Queen Of..."

I added heaps of links to my various Squidoo lenses on Printmaking, and spent a lot of time adding many fabulous interviews and "Who's Printsy" posts to our Printsy blog. If you're a printmaker on Etsy, check it out!

So, all in all, despite the fact that I didn't feel very productive this year, I actually accomplished more than I realized. And now on to more art in 2010 - wishing everyone a healthy, happy, creative & productive upcoming year; thanks for sharing my journey!

Congratulations!

Beverley Peden is the winner! I assigned a number to each entry, and picked Bev's number through Random.Org's random integer generator. Congratulations, Bev, you shall receive your Goose Gallery, hopefully by Christmas.

Out of 34 votes (there were a few people who voted for two!), Bare Branches II was the winner, but only by one vote over Goose Gallery. Kinsol was next, Flow IV had a few votes, and no one faved Sitting (poor Murri!): I guess it is too abstract. Funny, it's actually my favourite!

Interestingly, most people who commented are printmakers, so thanks fellow printmakers for your support and kind words! This was a lot of fun, I shall have to do it again.

Free Art Giveaway!!

Well, 'tis the season, after all, for generosity and thoughtfulness. Thanks to Jeanette's recent giveaway on her blog, which I just won (!), I have been inspired to give something back. I really appreciate all of the people who take time out of their day to read my blog and to visit my website and Etsy shop, and I'd like to demonstrate that appreciation in a concrete manner.

So, until December 15, 2009, please pick one of the following prints as a favourite, post a comment indicating your favourite and a link to your Etsy shop, website, blog, Twitter or Facebook page (or whatever!) so I can get a hold of you if you win, and I'll randomly select a winner from the list to receive their favourite. These are all original block prints, hand-pulled by myself.

Goose Gallery

Flow IV

Bare Branches II

Kinsol

Sitting

Thanks everyone, and good luck!

Jeanette Jobson - Illustrated Life

Jeanette Jobson is a talented and prolific artist living on the exact opposite coast from me, in Newfoundland. Earlier in November, Jeanette posted a request for input on her blog, Illustrated Life. She was wanting to create some cards reproduced from her beautiful original artwork, and was interested in her readership's response. In return, Jeanette offered a gift package of some of her cards to one of the readers who responded.

What is somewhat ironic is that I've fallen way behind in my reading of other artists' blogs lately, and had only that day caught up on a bunch of them after months of neglect, one of which was Jeanette's blog. I decided to throw my two cents worth in, and posted my vote for my favourites. The result? Jeanette just informed me that my comment was the randomly chosen winner! I will receive three beautiful cards from her choices, plus a card from her recent "Merry Christmas Hares". I'm very excited, and honoured at Jeanette's generosity. Thanks, Jeanette - and as a token of my appreciation, there's a little thank you on its way to Newfoundland!

Briony Goddard - Metis Beadwork Magic

Since I'm discussing crafty stuff lately, I thought I'd introduce you to my friend, Briony Goddard (aka "Mouse"), who creates the most exquisite beadwork using traditional and contemporary patterns drawn from historic Metis artifacts.

Check out Briony's video on her work:



And Briony's website is Mousetrap Clothiers. One of these days, I'll splurge and buy a vest or something from her (when she has the time! Not surprisingly, she's much in demand).