Back to Nature Painting Collaboration

Dear Art Lover,

     It is not often that I have created a work of art with another artist.  But my friend and colleague Jean-Antoine Norbert, a man I know from art school in Florence, Italy, left for America back in 2014, and left some of his painting studies with me.  One portrait of a man had a splashy background of bright red; no doubt a sign of Jean-Antoine’s longing to break away from the school’s dreary dark green backgrounds for all figurative work. 

     I set this painting up in my studio so that I would pass it occasionally, keeping the image in the back of my mind, slowly developing an idea for him.  Even in the small Tuscan village I live in, the grown-ups complain that the young adults may sit together at a table in the local hangout, but they are not often interacting with one another.  Instead, they are each separately engrossed in their phones conversing with someone who knows where.  It is not a new idea to suggest that we not only have lost our manners, but are voluntarily giving up our social quality of life as human beings.

     Earlier this year, I began to paint on top of Jean-Antoine’s study.  The title of this painting says it all for the glazed and almost hypnotized expression in this man’s portrait. Where IS he mentally?  “(Must Get) Back to Nature” is an expressed desire to reconnect with our Earth and ourselves.  In the language of symbols, butterflies often are a sign of transition.  And who does not love a hummingbird? (They were Jean-Antoine’s suggestion that I readily embraced.)  Hummers also represent speedy movement, perhaps Nature’s counterpoint to today’s technology.  And artists may appreciate the number in the UPC code.

This work is available for $1800.

“(Must Get) Back to Nature”

21 x 16 inches

Mixed Media Painting by

Jean-Antoine Norbert and Kelly Borsheim

Copyright 2014 - 2017

Please contact me if you would like to add any of this or any other Borsheim artwork to your collection.  http://www.borsheimarts.com/contact.htm

If you would like to see more of Jean-Antoine’s art, please visit his site at:   http://www.jeanantoinenorbert.com/


     I will be leaving Texas in less than a week and traveling to Florida to help my baby sister celebrate her marriage.  After that, I will be traveling to see more family in North Carolina and Virginia before arriving at Don Elliott’s Franklin Barry Gallery on Monday, May 15.  I hope to see you there, or later in Austin, Texas, for a visit [see event information below].

Calendar:

Monday, May 15, 2017:  Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

The Franklin Barry Gallery aka The Frame Shop, Indianapolis [normal gallery hours 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.]; 617 Massachusetts Avenue, Indianapolis, Indiana  46204;  Tel.  317.822.8455

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Friday and Saturday, May 19-20, 2017:  Austin, Texas

Rue Artsier presents LiberArte event spettacolo!

Friday, May 19, 2017   from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Saturday, May 20  from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Where:  615 W. 7th St., 8th Floor, Austin, Texas 78701

R.S.V.P.  Brenda@rueartsier.com

Lists of artists:

Luis Rico- Mexico

Adrian Moraru- Moldova

Leandro Klapputh- Buenos Aires

Maria Fotaki- Greece

Denis Chernov- Moscow

Kelly Borsheim. Austin & Italia

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I hope to see you!

Peace,

Kelly

P.S.  Subscribe to the art newsletter here (it is FREE):  http://www.borsheimarts.com/contact.htm

Sargent Paintings at The Met III

Dear Art Lover,

     I will round out this series on the John Singer Sargent exhibition that recently closed at The Met in New York.  This first is a detail shot of The Fountain, Villa Torlonia, Frascati, Italy 1907.  It is an oil painting… brilliant.

     This next one is a watercolor painting with graphite, simply titled, Young Woman with a Black Skirt, created in the 1880s.  I like some of Sargent’s watercolors and I enjoy the paintings he has done of working women. 

     In fact, while I was in Croatia this past winter, I made a copy of a Sargent of a girl carrying onions.  My work is a pastel.  She is available, so please contact me if you may be interested.


After JS Sargent
Paper Size = 36 x 25 cm [Drawing is smaller]
pastels on paper
AVAILABLE:
$150 + $15 worldwide shipping

Thank you for reading and making it all possible.
Peace,
Kelly

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor, painter, writer, teacher

http://BorsheimArts.com

Sargent Paintings at The Met II

Mabel Batten by Sargent

Dear Art Lover,

     John Singer Sargent surely inspired the way that female figures were drawn on the fronts of sewing patterns… elongated figures, delicately slender feet and waists, for example.  Do you see it?

     This first painting is one Sargent created of a Mabel Batten, a popular amateur mezzo-soprano in her own time (1857-1916).  She played the piano and the guitar, composed her own songs, and was an arts and music patron.  Sargent captured her swept up in the emotion of singing her own song.  He cropped his painting to emphasize her posture, according to the sign next to the painting.

     This next portrait from 1892 really impressed me as well.  In London, Sargent painted Mary Frances Hammersley (1863-1911).  He really captured her personality in this painting and it led to his election into the Royal Academy.  As the exhibition sign read, “One critic enthused, ‘The head literally vibrates with life; never has the spirit of conversation been more actually and vividly embodied.’” 

     Again, look closely at the genius of this portrait, from the great diagonal of the colorful fabric coming up from the bottom left and leading the eye to the sitter’s face in the upper center of the canvas to the paint handling of lace and decoration on fabric to the plays of subtle purples cooling the vibrant fuchsia color.

Slender feet and beautifully handled paint in this Sargent

     Now this detail of the Sargent portrait of American actor Joseph Jefferson as Dr. Pangloss (1890) is just plain fun.  The energy and intensity of the gaze, and that HAIR!  Is this the origin of a scary Bozo the Clown?  I love the lavender swash stroke over the top of the bald head.  It does help the face launch towards us, does it not?



     Many of the signs in this art exhibition explained that John Singer Sargent bartered or outright gifted paintings to friends.  Like most artists, Sargent was friends with many other artists.  His friend, sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens created a portrait in relief of Sargent’s sister Violet while playing a guitar. In return Sargent painted this wonderful portrait of the sculptor’s son Homer and wife Augusta.  I think he perfectly captured the expression of a boy distracted while being read to.  

     I also love how the artist emphasizes the fidgety-ness of the boy by placing a dull red outline around the twisted foot.  The strong color [as well as the highlights on the shiny black shoes] pulls your eye down.  And yet the red is muted enough that is never takes away from the boy’s face [the area of highest contrast].  Along with the slouching shoulders, one can easily feel the informality of the pose.  

"Portrait of a Boy" by Sargent

     In the last image of this painting Portrait of a Boy the book on the mamma’s lap seems quite bright, but when you look again at the image of the entire painting, I hope you can see that the book is not actually nearly as bright as the subject:  the boy’s face.  I also enjoy how the cool tones in the book contrast with warmer hands.  Still, this area has an overall lower contrast and chroma as the main subject area.  All parts of the composition help to emphasize the boy and his interest in …. You!

     These Sargent artworks were on exhibition at The Met in New York City, but it is over now.  Or perhaps it has moved on to another city.

Peace,

Kelly

P.S.  Happy birthday to nieces Elyse and Erin.

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor, painter, writer, teacher

http://BorsheimArts.com

Eugenia and Pillows Life Modeling Paintings

Dear Art Lover,     

      Some artists’ models do not work for long or maybe in the same city.  They may be travelers looking for some extra cash [hopefully art lovers as well, for at least:  who THINKS of art modeling as a job opportunity when on the go?].  Eugenia was one model that I did not paint often, however, I would draw or paint her every few years at some life drawing session in Austin, Texas.  Something makes me think that she may still live in Austin, but also that her “real life” revolves around another form of art [jewelry making or theatre?] or perhaps she found a full-time job that found her in conflict with the hours of the life drawing sessions around town.   It can be done perhaps for a short period of time, but it is difficult to make a living as an art model.

     Here you see a portrait of Eugenia that I painted in one session.  On an odd side note, there exists a “Eugene.”  A client found “Eugenia” on my Web site and he wrote to me to ask, “I see you have this wonderful portrait of a boyish-looking woman.  Would you please create a similar painting for me, but of a feminine-looking male?”  Interesting exercise, it was! 

     So, to remind you of the deal:

   

     I would like to offer, for the month of August 2015 only, selected paintings and drawings for about half the price as my going rate these days.  These are older works, but ones that for one reason or several others, I cannot stand the idea of destroying.  You may preview images before I post them here on my Facebook page.  

 

Please contact me directly if you see something you love and would like to add to your art collection.  Here goes the first one… 

Eugenia
12" X 16" Oil on Canvas [framed]
copyright 2000 Kelly Borsheim
http://www.borsheimarts.com/painting/room03.htm

August 2015 Price:  $125  [plus any Texas sales tax and/or shipping]

About three years later, I painted this body crop of Eugenia.  It is basically a composition of pillows, a breast, and her arm draped across the frame.  I later glazed colors over parts of it.  Pillows is one of my quirky favorites.

Pillows
18 x 24 inches, oil painting

by Kelly Borsheim 2004

http://www.borsheimarts.com/painting/2004/pillows.htm 

I offer this original painting to you for only $325 US.  Texas state sales tax (6.75%) may apply.  There is also a $9.50 packaging and shipping fee.

Please contact me for more information.    http://www.borsheimarts.com/contact.htm

Thank you and as always…

Peace,

Kelly

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor and painter

http://BorsheimArts.com