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AM Landry Art

That didn't take long at all...

7/11/2015

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The latest finished piece to grace my studio is now in my home page slide show.  I started it nearly two years ago, but as is my way, I took my time to get all its elements the way I wanted them.  Typically, there are three, four, sometimes five unfinished pieces at a time in my studio, and they don't get attention on the same days.  I may have to leave a piece alone for weeks or even months before my light bulb goes on and I'm able to work on it again.  In the case of "Butterfly in the Garden," even though its original vision came from a vivid dream, the bottom right corner was a mystery to me for months before I finally decided what to put there.

At the moment, I have three partially done paintings and one blank canvas with a planned design being worked on.  I just returned to one of my mermaid ("Undersea Adventures") paintings that I've been staring at for months because a tail just wasn't right.  Last night, after a grueling week and a very long Friday complete with broken car air conditioner in 90+ degree weather, I watched a few episodes of Discovery's Shark Week, and my light was on.  Now I'm back in the studio working on it and feeling as if my hands are suddenly untied. It's an incredibly liberating feeling, like coming up out of water to breathe air.

Since the butterfly painting is finished, I can now share some of the time progression it went through.  Thanks for reading.
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Helping others while I help myself

7/1/2015

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I recently had a casual chat with a younger artist who had a problem with potential "clients" who said they wanted a painting but never followed through.  She may have actually gone through the trouble of creating something for them, and they were either unwilling to pay or just casually unconcerned about the whole affair.  For a hungry artist, this is a big deal.  We are all trying our hardest to get our work out there and make a living.

I shared with her something I did some time ago that has helped tremendously, and I have forgotten to put it on my website here (but will do so right after this posting).

What I created was a contract form, which gives the buyers a space to describe detailed needs and desires for a commissioned piece.  It helps clients figure out what they really want in design, subject matter, color scheme, size, and price point.  These are important considerations.  Instead of just saying, "Can you make me something really big with a New Orleans theme?" they can be sure what they're asking for is something they'll love to have in their home.

What it also does is let clients know that this is my business and I am serious about the painting requested, that I want to create the best match for their space as well as their budget.  (I price my art by size) The contract ensures that they get the painting they want on time, and in return, they stick to my payment schedule.

I think the form takes a lot of pressure off both parties because there is no obligation on either part until the contract is complete.  It leaves me free to paint other things and them free to spend their money on whatever they consider a priority.  But once everyone involved agrees to the deal, there should be a smooth, seamless transaction that makes everyone happy.   Of course, you can always buy "off the rack," as it were, from my gallery of already-painted paintings.

Although I'm not fond of other artists copying my artwork, I don't mind sharing this form with them.   Cheers!
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Slow progress is still progress

6/28/2015

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This week has been pretty momentous for our young country with two big supreme court rulings causing a stir.  I have very good friends and family members for whom they are monumental. 

My week, personally, has been slow.  I developed a neck cramp that brought my productivity to a dead halt.  You never realize how important those muscles that hold up the most important organ in your body are until they stop working or cause you so much pain you just can't function.  I've done the very minimum possible this whole workweek with agony.  Even after two trips to the massage therapist, lots of anti-inflammatories, and heat and ice packs, the spasms continue.

I managed to make progress on only one painting.   So I will share it with you from its inception (which was more than a year ago) to its current incarnation.  This painting, which will become a set and possibly another series, follows the musical theme paintings I've done before.  I usually do them with treble and bass clefs covered in vines and berries and flowers.  This time, I thought I'd add a little more sinister but beautiful nature to the design.  The snake design came first.  I sketched this some time ago.  It was sort of a snake/serpent/dragon concept.

Here is what the first sketch looked like:

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I'm a big fan of snakes.  I do prefer the nonlethal kind in person.  However, the innumerable variety of snakes around the world, in fact, just in Louisiana, is mind-boggling.  One of the most dangerous and also one of the most beautiful snakes here is the copperhead.  I decided that would be my first one.  This is what it started out looking like, wrapped around the treble clef.  Obviously, I had a long way to go at this point.
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My tiny bit of progress this week is shown below.  I still have a lot of work to do, and I may or may not get done with it today, but here it is.
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My sketch books are full of future ideas.  I hope you enjoy seeing these progressions as much as I enjoy sharing them.

AM
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Watercolors revisited

6/25/2015

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Since my last post, I managed to find some time to work in my first medium, watercolors.  It was good to get back to something that, some 30+ years since my first lesson, still felt so natural to me.  I have done a few watercolor paintings here and there over the years, but not seriously as an artist until now.  I enjoyed the fluidity of the paint, the freedom to pull my brush across the paper, the softness of the color--all things I don't feel with acrylic paint.

I felt as though Mr. Looney's spirit was guiding me, reminding me about method.  I could see in my mind his wrinkled, bent fingers selecting, opening, and squeezing the paint tubes into the pallet, telling me what colors would work best for the painting of a duck flying over a foggy bayou early in the morning.  I'm painting other things now, of course, but I will never forget that first session when he led me to believe I showed true talent and promise. 

It took me a long time to believe it, but better late than never.
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 When it rains, it pours. 

6/11/2015

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While I had every intention of doing the Lakeside show this weekend and had my spot reserved, I had to step back and take inventory of my time.  When I did so, I realized I had already far surpassed the limit of things one person is able to do at one time.  I have always had a problem with spreading my time too thin, saying yes a little too often, and it is time for me stop and reevaluate my priorities.  Time is money, as they say, and I'm just about broke. 
 
There are still many talented artists, some more talented and experienced than I, who will be selling at this show, so I still encourage readers to attend and browse. 
 
More to come...
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Painting in Nature

6/6/2015

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Today I had the great fortune of attending a paint-out, which is an outdoor painting field trip of sorts.  Artists get together in an outdoor setting, preferably in a pretty, natural location, and either paint what they see (plein air painting) or paint something planned but enjoy the inspiration of their surroundings.  Our setting today was at Woodlands Trail in Belle Chasse, Louisiana.  It's a typical South Louisiana wooded area next to a wide canal with migratory bird watching and a nature trail.  It's located at the end of a gravel road off Belle Chasse Highway.

Even with early morning temps of 80+ degrees, we were surprisingly comfortable under the permanent wooden gazebo there.  We enjoyed the sounds of chirping birds, buzzing bees, croaking bullfrogs, the occasional plop of a turtle or fish jumping in or out of the water, and a nice breeze that kept us cool.  It's a lovely place, despite the construction going on nearby, and I recommend visiting and walking the trails if you have the chance.

I enjoyed the company of two artists I already know and met two new people.  It was quite nice, and I was glad to get out of the house for a change.

Here's a picture of my unfinished painting.  I hope to complete it this weekend so I can add it to the upcoming show.  Happy trails. ;)
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New Works in Progress

6/6/2015

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In preparation for an upcoming multi-artist show at Lakeside Shopping Center in Metairie, Louisiana, I've been painting as much as I can.  I hoped to have a whole show's worth of brand new paintings that haven't even been on the site yet.  Of course, I usually work on several paintings at the same time and rotate working on them, so not every one I'm working on will be there next week.  I haven't made as many as I would have liked.

Sometimes I like to hide my work until it's really complete, but then, as the saying (paraphrased) goes, artists seldom finish works, but just abandon them.

Since some collectors or art enthusiasts enjoy seeing the works in progress, I'll share some I've been working on lately.

The first is a pet portrait I chose to do for nobody in particular.  I love painting animals, and pugs are so "cutegly," this was the perfect choice.  Pet portraits are some of my favorite paintings to do.
I am always working on the underwater series.  Two are already done and in my gallery, but there are 6 already sketched and planned out.  There is a little story to the series, but I'll wait until they're all done to share that.  Here is one I just recently started.  As you can see, I don't often stick with my original placement.  I paint, I step back and look, then I repaint to balance what doesn't look right.  The details will fill in later, but I like to get basic placement right before I move on to the special touches.   This one has a long way to go and has changed significantly since these pictures were taken.
My treble and bass clef paintings are possibly my most popular.  I customize them for commission clients, but these sketches show one I designed completely from my head.  I'm thinking the snake will be a copperhead.  Copperheads are such beautiful but dangerous snakes.  I guess my art sort of reflects the strong woman I strive to be:  Beautiful but strong and never to be underestimated.  That's why my mermaids are half shark.
So, there you have it, a little preview of works coming up.  Hope to see you at Lakeside Mall Sunday afternoon.
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Inspiration is weird.

5/4/2015

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Ideas come to me in the middle of the night, awaken me from a sound sleep, pop into my head while I saute onions, and especially attack me while I'm digging in my garden.  However, when I have a perfect block of time during which I can really concentrate and work on something I want to achieve....<crickets chirping>...nothing. 

I just had a weekend like that, and all I wanted to do was come up with a small collection of simple-to-teach paintings so that whoever you are out there could see something you'd like to paint and schedule a little painting session for yourself and your friends.  Was I able to come up with anything?  One.  I came up with ONE idea for a kids' party.  The whole weekend. It's a fun idea; don't get me wrong.  It's a children's birthday theme in which each child gets to design his or her own birthday cake painting.  Seriously, who ISN'T inspired by cake? 

<sigh>  Of course, now that I'm back at the computer and I'm supposed to be writing medical documents, the ideas are flooding in, and I don't have time to paint any of them.

I have happily started a new mermaid painting, which is coming along very nicely.  I'm glad my dad and several other art people have insisted that I go bigger on the canvases, because in this case, size does matter.  I can get a whole lot more mermaid on a canvas that hurts my shoulder to paint. ;)  Good thing I'm slightly ambidextrous.

I've also started a "pirate" painting that I've been thinking about for a very long time and am looking forward to seeing how it evolves. 

Paintings do evolve.  You can plan them all you want, but they have to come to life under the brush, and there's nothing anyone can do about that.

You'll see it all on my front page as soon as it's ready to go.
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Paint Your Pet II

4/8/2015

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I must express my gratitude.  Giving these classes is becoming such a joy for me that I'm really close to giving in and going for my teaching certification.  Honestly, both fundraisers were so much fun!  The people are sweet, inquisitive, and it was such fun to be with them in the same room.  But for me, what was most striking was seeing what just a few suggestions and instructions can get people with little or no art background to be able to do.  Even those who said, "I can draw stick figures," did some pretty amazing work.  Most were proud to take pictures of the step-by-step process, posting on social media, and taking their paintings home to their families. 

I feel so blessed that, first of all, my ability can help others, and second of all, I get to do something I love.   Painting is such a therapeutic art, I want to share it with the world.

Now I'm working on an extensive repertoire of paintings that anyone can learn to do, step by step, and will want to display proudly.  New ideas are popping up in my head every day, and a really special idea for a class is forming.  Once I have it ready to go and scheduled, I promise to share. 

I will get a bell to save my wimpy voice, because once people start having fun, they get loud. ;)
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Fundraiser

3/3/2015

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Wow!  The fundraiser for my favorite rescue group was great!  I've fostered before, and adopted, but I've never been able to contribute a significant amount of money, something desperately needed to pay veterinary bills.  I'm so pleased to have been able to do this.  And we're going to do it again soon, particularly late April.

The attendees seemed to enjoy painting their own pets' pictures, even though some had a tougher time than others.  They all came out great, and overall, I think they had fun. 

It was fun for me, too, so I've decided to keep doing it.  I'm going to start booking parties once or twice a week.  One of my next parties will be "paint your ABSTRACT pet," which will give perfectionists a break :) and give them more freedom with their creativity.  It should be a bunch of fun.  I'm open to more ideas and coming up with thoughts every day.

Meanwhile, I'm working on a commissioned design I absolutely love.  I'm shipping a couple of other jobs out this week, so I'm excited to get the reactions.  Because I relapsed from the flu last week, I'm just getting back on my feet after nearly two weeks, but the next few days and weeks are going to be super busy.  I'm excited about things to come.
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    Anne-Marie Landry

    I'm a Louisiana native artist, writer.

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