A Fall Update

I'd like to share a couple of my recent paintings with you all. These portraits are of two retiring CPAs from the Bates Carter firm in Gainesville: Mr. John Nix and Mr. Duane Schlereth.  Again, it was an honor to paint these two successful Gainesville businessmen!

Mr. Nix, 16x20, oil

Mr. Schlereth, 16x20, oil

 






































In other life news, I am nearing the end of my first semester of nursing school at MCG (now called Georgia Regents University after merging with Augusta State).  It has been challenging but also really exciting.  I am also finishing up two huge murals; stay tuned for a detailed story of both of those projects! Here is a little preview of each one (still unfinished!)

 

 

 

Baby Jack continues to be the reason for everything and the biggest joy in my life; he just turned two and is doing wonderfully.  I can't even put into words what he means to me...but I will share a few pictures.

Happy Fall y'all!

XO-Beth

The Summer of Murals!

This summer, it has been me against the walls. 

These walls have been formidable and daunting at times, presenting various graphic obstacles for an artist.  I love a challenge, though.  And so it has been, one that I've met with a steady work ethic--as a mama sometimes I've only been able to grab an hour here, an hour there--and I've loved every minute of it! It's been a fun change of pace and space, and I couldn't have asked for better locations to do these murals.  The first one finished was at First Baptist Church's Family Life Center. The FLC is a multi-purpose fitness and activities center with facilities, equipment, and programs open to church members and the community. I grew up playing pickup basketball there and it is the backdrop to countless memories in my youth!

The director of the FLC, Liz Isandoro (an art enthusiast!), had a vision for the mural to convey some natural elements, not necessarily sports-related, but something that everyone of all ages could appreciate and enjoy.  She'd seen my "Blue Summer" painting

and we talked about using that (above) as the inspiration for an expansive panorama of mountainous imagery, traveling the length of the gymnasium in the middle of the FLC building. 

Here's what the gym looked like before (a beautiful, sunlit space that just needed some 'jazzing up' with color on the walls):

 

And here it is after I got my hands on it for a few months

 

 

   

 

I never measured the exact square footage for this project but it is longer than the length of the actual basketball court.  And the wall height was about 10 feet. It really looks so much better in person (so go to the wonderful FLC and check it out!!); it is so long that it was difficult to get a photo to really capture it. This project was something of a real team effort; the staff at the FLC was incredibly helpful, and I had several people who helped me paint, my two good friends Jessica and Brooke,  my art student Sarah, and my sister Meg.  I also had major 'babysitting time' from my cousins Maggie and Casey.  The best part about this job was that Jack loved being there too! They have tons of stuff for kids to play with, and he ran all around the place having a ball (special thanks to FLC staffer Corey who kept an eye on him many times!!).  His favorite thing to do was to watch the "big boys" who came in to play basketball every MWF at lunchtime. 

Here he is very comfortably watching the guys warm up:

 

 

I could write a much longer post about this project, about the challenges it presented and the lessons I learned from the mistakes and mishaps.

More than a few hours lost here.

Lesson: double check to see if the wall is oil-based BEFORE painting an outline

I could talk more about the personal inspiration behind these mountains and all the many times I've driven the Blue Ridge Parkway (the inspiration) with loved ones

 

 

I can even relate this immense project to other undertakings in my life currently, like how I start nursing school in Athens in a few weeks and I'm sortof freaking out. I am proud of myself for finishing this mural in only about 2.5 months while juggling everything else. It took a solid effort of prioritizing and planning to make it happen. I am so thankful for the help I had along the way and for the opportunity from Liz and the FLC to have the honor of doing something special and lasting like this. 

 

Stay tuned for the 'story' of the next mural.  I'll give you the bare bones with this photo and a brief synopsis: it covers both walls down the hallway and and attempts to depict the Seven Days of Creation.  Quite the simple task, no?  I'm tackling the challenge!!!

 

 

 (Hi Kate!)

 

 

-Beth

 

 

New portrait!

I just finished a painting I am excited about--- Mr. Jim Walters, one of the most successful and philanthropic businessmen Gainesville has ever seen.  You can read more about him below, in an excerpt from the Gainesville Times:

James A. "Jim" Walters has found many avenues of community service. He served on the board of the Medical Center foundation, the philanthropic arm of Northeast Georgia Health System, from 1999 to 2008. Walters has also served on the Georgia Board of Natural Resources, recently completing a one-year term as chairman. Walters made his fortune in the consumer loan business and has shared many financial gifts with the community. He has been a benefactor for the hospital, Brenau University and the Boys and Girls Club. One of his most recent legacies is the naming of the Hall County YMCA in his honor.

Jim Walters, oil on canvas, 18x24

 

 



Stay tuned for lots of new art I'm currently hard at work on....

Hope you all have a wonderful week!

XO-Beth

Recent Art Happenings!

Hey folks! I wanted to touch base and share some of my recent work over the last couple months (since I haven't posted since the Holidays!---life gets busy:).  One of the most exciting things was participating in the Quinlan Arts Center's annual Gala event, their biggest fundraiser of the year! This was  the first year I have participated, and had 3 pieces in the show (below)... 

"Spring Horizon", acrylic on wood triptych, 12x18 inches

"Blue Ridge Parkway #1", acrylic on canvas, 22x30

"Crazy Happy" 36x36, acrylic and pastel

I was so honored to have "Crazy Happy" featured in the Gala preview publication as well.  All three of my paintings sold, and I can't wait to participate next year!

 

The other "big thing" I had going on art-wise around this same time was a portrait of the retiring president of Lanier Tech, Mr. Russell Vandiver.  This was quite an honor, and the painting was even shown in the paper a few times. Exciting!!

Oil on canvas, 24x36

 

As a result of this recent exposure and a few lucky breaks and referrals, I am a busy gal with paintings for the summer.  I am so thankful! 

In other news, I was accepted to MCG's Athens campus to begin the nursing program in the fall.  I am very excited and nervous because it is going to be a tough couple years, but I know it will be worth it.  Since I will be in school full time, I won't be working my day jobs anymore, but I'll be painting as much as possible! Looking forward to showing in some new exhibitions in 2013-2014 and also finishing up my commissions.  Currently I'm working on 4 portraits, 2 murals, a pup painting, and some of my own personal creations.  On a roll!!

That's about it!

Oh, and one more thing, the main thing:

 

 

 

My sweet little guy is almost 19 months old; he is the joy of my life and such a blessing! He's talking, running, jumping, feeding himself; he loves to play basketball and golf and ride on T's "mo-mo"(riding lawnmower).  He's my reason for everything!

 

Happy New Year (a tad late)!

I am the worst 'blogger'. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and New Years! We sure did--despite being sick for most of it with the nastiest cold virus--and I managed to get several paintings done in the nick of time for Christmas! My favorite one was a painting of Sparky the golden retriever.  Sparky passed away a couple of months ago, and my friend Paula commissioned me to paint the piece for her son. 

I also did several others, but unfortunately did not get very good images of them. 

Birds nest watercolor for a friend

 

 



Portrait of a granddaddy and his grandsons

I also was very busy cutting silhouette portraits at a local art and framing store in Gainesville, Frames-You-Nique. This was great fun, and silhouettes make such special and affordable gifts!  Here are some examples of silhouettes I did over the Holidays (I took most of these with my iPhone, so I apologize for the poor quality!)

 

 

 

 

I can do dogs too!

 

 

I can do these very easily; simply from a phone or camera pic!

 

I thoroughly enjoyed this forray into the "cutting" arts! If anyone is interested in silhouettes of themselves, children or pets, email me at bhenson25@gmail.com.  They are $25, plus $10 for additional copies!

 

 

That's all I got for now. Stay tuned for lots more new paintings and drawings to be posted asap.

 

 

XO-

Beth