The Canvas Project - Finished!

4 of the 5 Canvases

I finally finished my 5 canvases for the Art House Co-op Canvas Project. You may remember that I received thees canvases in April. They are due June 30th. I am a true procrastinator. To create some kind of theme and inspiration I decided to associate a body part with each word I was assigned. This project took em back to my favorite form of printing making - body prints.

Bellow are the 5 canvases in no particular order. Let me know what you think of the associations. Which body part would you have picked to represent these words?

Trusting –adj. inclined to trust; confiding; trustful: a trusting child.

Thelemic - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thelemic_mysticism - I reduced this word to "spiritual" for the sake of avoiding a headache

Prosper - To be successful; to succeed; to be fortunate or prosperous; to thrive; to make gain.

Nelipot - Someone who is walking without shoes

Deceit - an act or device intended to deceive; trick; stratagem.

Some of my interpretations were slightly jaded but I like them and I think that they are very appropriate in many circumstances.

Bellow are some process pictures. Sharing process photos is one of my favorite parts of having a blog.

Partially done canvases and a loaded brush not sitting in water! Bad, Kate!


Process picture for nelipot. Acrylic and glue.


Process picture for trusting. Acrylic and glue.



Some of my tests. I tried mixing different media - ink, acrylic, flour, glue, tempera, water, etc. When I am stuck in a world with out string gel I am stuck trying to create alternative. Man, I miss that stuff. We saw some while we were in Japan but it was way to expensive, not to mention the liquids issue in the airport.


Part of deceit. I almost save this paper but I would just throw it away later.

If you would like more information on the Art House Co-op and the Canvas project visit http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/canvasproject.

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A little note: I have actually been drawing a little bit more lately. Chad and I have decided to design and print our wedding stationary. We are in the midst of finalizing our STD's (save the dates;). We are hoping to print them via gocco. Originally I was thinking silk screen but I think gocco is the way to go!

I hope you are well! Happy summer!

New Blog - Zoo Parts

You may not have noticed that for some reason living in Korea has left me completely unmotivated to paint. I think I just run out of creative fuel after using it up on teaching and living in such a different culture. I still want to put something out into the art field so I have started a new blog - www.zooparts.blogspot.com. The name is slightly based on You Name It No. 1., my favorite piece from 2008.

Zoo Parts will focus more on art theory and criticism - hopefully I will also tackle some of the bigger ideas in regard to contemporary art & artists that have been wandering around in my head.

I will still be posting here. Hopefully I will get working again soon but as I am wading through this strange stunt in artistic growth I will leave you with my more academic analysis of other artists' work.

If you are interested in a slightly less "Kate-centric" blog I think you will really enjoy this one. Thank for all of your constant support!

Kate

Most recent post on Zoo Parts - New Age Mondrian - Klas Ernflo's "Color Pad"

Canvas Project - Ready, GO!

My canvases for the Canvas Project

About a month ago I signed up to participate in the Canvas Project Volume 2 which is hosted by Art House Coop, an incredibly inspiring art entity. From my crude scanning of their website I have learned that they have a gallery in Georgia where they have exhibits and host art residencies. They also create projects like the one in which I am participating. The projects are basically a way to bring art to everyone and a way to enable any artist, the curious doodler to DaVinci, to exhibit and be published.

Man, I wish I had thought of that first!



Art House Coop Links:

main website: http://www.arthousecoop.com/
canvas project vol. 2: http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/canvasproject
blog: http://arthousecoop.blogspot.com/
twitter: http://twitter.com/arthouse

The project involves 5 small canvases and 5 randomly selected words from a user generated collection. Each canvas must be about one of the 5 words. When the project is finished they select at least one canvas from each artist's complete collection to be displayed in a final exhibit in the Atlanta International Airport. There will also be a book published of the show. Each artist that sends back all five canvases will be published and exhibited for only $18. Let me tell you, that is WAY less than buying all of the supplies yourself.

It is basically a worldwide community art project.

To participate by adding words (free) or by painting 5 canvases click HERE!

So, here are my words. I didn't know the meaning of one so that was fun!

I haven't done any sketches yet, it has bee a busy week (school dinners and Korean classes).

This is what was in the package I received at school.

Here are my little canvases. They are each 3 x 3 inches.


Let me know if you have any gut reactions to the words. I haven't thought of anything yet but I will start sketching soon. If the small canvases go well I may create bigger versions. We'll see.

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One another note, I am thinking about broadening the posts on my blog to a more general art site and not just my work. I really enjoy spreading information and I am not really painting very much. I basically just have to decide if I want to start a whole new blog or shoot off of this one. A large part of me wants ot start a new blog that is slightly more anonymous and not connected to my art. Let me know if you have an opinion! Thanks!

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ALSO, Chad started a new website - Brevity 5. He posts a different image/subject everyday and then writes only 5 words about the topic. I have really been enjoying it - great thing to add to your morning coffee.

Skewered - Sketch

Skewered - Sketch, Improv Video

I knew I needed to paint last weekend and I was not in the mood. Initially I attempted to make some new You Name It's but I wasn't getting inspired by them. Finally I decided to do what I love about making art - something spontaneous. Last spring the improv videos got my creative juices flowing and the same thing definitely happened over the weekend. I did not come out with a final piece but I brought some old imagery that I really care about back to life.

Here is the video bellow. You can also view it on viddler and youtube.

The music in the video is by Paleo - Woman Like Me - 20060508.

I think the reason why I love creating the improv videos is the accountability. That little blinking green light every 5 seconds doesn't let me wander over to my email or stop to think about another project I should be working on. It forces me to think on my feet and react quickly. I never love the images I get out of these paintings but the versatility of the materials comes out and the imagery seems to mature (if not on paper at least in my mind).

If you are a regular follower of this blog the image above may be familiar. Last winter I made a very quick sketch called Scrambled Egg Head and this reminds me of it which is very appropriate reference after I realized why this painting was coming out of me.

What am I talking about in this painting? What little frustrations oozed out of me? Living in South Korea has been one of the biggest challenges of my life and not for the reasons I expected. I knew I would get homesick, I knew I'd get sick of the food, I knew I wouldn't love teaching. These are all things that I expected to bother me - none of them do compared to what is shown in this sketch. South Korea is one of the last Confucius cultures that means that women are second class citizens. I think that my reaction to this has been more severe than some because I a here with my fiance - they always go to him first. One of the main things that has kept me going in this country is knowing that I am living not as an English teacher but a diplomat of Western values and social progress. By the way, did you know that they don't have gay people in Korea?!

All of that being said, yes, this sketch is definitely a rosy picture of something not so rosy but Korea has many other amazing points. I am very proud to be living in a county that has come so far in such a short time. Think about the 1950's. It has also made me appreciate even more my background and opportunities.

Back to the art.


The figure in this remind me of my favorite print I ever made - one of the very first prints, of course. It was a quick line drawing of a nude torso slightly twisted. I printed them on old text from Tom Sawyer written in Italian.

Mannequins have been in my artwork since I was about 16. Something about the fashion and aesthetic coupled with the critique on the female body and the world's perception of how a women should look has always fascinated me.


Some how I got stuck on this oil and water reaction as an affect last year when I first started making improv paintings. Similar flowers can be seen in Zoollpaper and Solo Duet.

Well, that will be it for a little while. We are going to Seoroksan this weekend to see the Cherry Blossoms. Happy April!

www.katekorroch.com

Just a head up that I finally gave my website a minor face lift. Using Weebly I was able to create a website without getting too much technical help. The big hole is the gallery section. I haven't found a gallery that I like. More to come but I feel good about having something fresh up.

Visit - www.katekorroch.com

Francine's Sister

Francine's Sister, 60 x 72 cm., mixed media on board

As promised, more fruit. May I present Francine the Asia Pear's companion, Francine's sister. I wanted to pump out some more fruit pieces in the hope that etsy will serve me as well as it did last spring. Bellow are a few nice close ups were you can see the text contour lines. I actually dyed all of the paper in tea and coffee on our stove.


Unlike most fruit paintings, this one too me quite a while to finish. After I put down the text layer I completed the majority of the painting in a few hours. Something wasn't quite right but I added a few subtle details with pastels that really made the contours stand out.



I am still not completely settled on the back ground. In the spirit of Francine the Asian Pear I left it the natural wood color but in all honesty I may change it. We'll see.


Here is a little glance into the process. I did a quick sketch with a sharpie and then began to lay down the text contour lines. I used a mixture of flour and water. As I typed that I realized that might be why I had to make an emergency trip to the grocery the other day for flour. . . . oops.



I think this book is the Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd. It was a wonderful book but I finished it and it was the only book available.

Francine's Niece, 24 x 33 cm., mixed media on canvas

Finally, I made a baby one. Both are now listed on etsy for purchase!

Stay tuned for a new improv video in the next few days! I finished one over the weekend and I am just finishing up the video editing now!

Happy April!

You Name It VII

You Name It VII, 14 x 21 cm., mixed media on cardboard

Here is a quick collage sketch I did the other day. I miss doing fast little collages, I gathered a lot of imagery from them when I did them in Chicago last year. Finding interesting old books is a challenge in Korea.

The color scheme and emptiness of this sketch remind me of You Name It III. Maybe I will combine the two compositions at some point.

Despite the fact that this doesn't count towards my 16 paintings I have been working and sketching is just as important as coming up with a final product. As vital as sketching is, I tend to be an expert at overlooking it.

Well, enjoy my doodle,

K