The Busy Season is Here!

Now that the winter is starting to loosen it's frosty grip on Portland, it's the start of my busy season!
First, we have the Erotic Ball and Art Show, at the Village Ballroom, 700 NE Dekum, Portland OR.
Then, on March 4th, back to the ballroom for another show.
Before that, the SE Art Walk, Feb. 28th and March 1st.
I'm looking forward to it all. I like the shows; meeting fellow artists and seeing what they're doing is part of the fun, for me.
I'm hoping to see lots of people this season!

Come one, come all!

It's time for a global dance! February 6th, 8:30 pm EST, we are all going to dance to Stand by Me, by John Lennon. Filming is totally encouraged! This is a project in conjunction with another artist, and we are hoping to get millions involved, what ever your time zone! Where ever you are, turn on and dance!! A global art project...

Finished New Work

Here it is, with a title change.
"We are all Slaves to the Biological Imperative"
The shellac is pigmented, making the trails.

Work in Progress

Here it is, a slushy day in Portland, so what is there to do? Well, create! Here's the latest work. I'm also going to be finishing Gaia's body, I have to get some more glass for her base.
Here's the latest project:
Encaustic, glass, copper, silver solder and soon, pigmented shellac.

Forum Review, Craig's List

Now this forum is not for the faint of heart! This forum is a mixture of information, art work, and troll activity.
I've seen what could have been some fascinating discussions derailed by troll activity. If a person is going to post there, here's some things that person should know:
1) Trolls happen, and they leave droppings all over the place. The best possible way to handle this is to not respond to any nastiness, no matter how vile!
That seques into the ratings system so here's piece of advice #2. The ratings are mostly used to express personal dislike of a poster. They are supposed to be about the post, but in reality, they are used like a blunt instrument.
The CL arts forum can be an addicting place, full of drama and art, villians and nice people. It's a global forum and as such, is full of all kinds of people.
I visit it alot, and I have met some wonderful people on there that I treasure as friends. So, if a person can ignore the nasties, enjoy the good, this can be an interesting place!
www.craigslist.com, the discussion forums.

More Forum Review

My next review is the R & F Handmade Paints forum, www.rfpaints.com.
Nice site! Full of information, and the only complaint I have is that I wish it had more traffic. Otherwise, this has info from the encaustic greats, like Joanne Mattera!!
I really recommend this particular forum. I figure that if more of us visit, then the more postings there will be. :)
I really like the R & F site and products to begin with, so it was a real plus to find the forum.

Reviewing Art Forums

I've decided, in light of a very recent experience on WetCanvas.com, to review a few forum sites.
Starting with WetCanvas.com.
WetCanvas has some great technical stuff, and they have some really talented artists, but the thing to remember in this forum, is they are conservative in both genres and in techniques.
There is beautiful work on there, and all of it is traditional.
Controversial work is not something to be posted in that particular forum.
If a person is looking for some great tips, they have them. If you are a traditional artist, this is the site for you.
They have a good critique area, with different levels of critique, you choose what you're looking for.
In my view, if an artist wants to post something that's controversial, then try http://www.deviantart.com
or
the http://www.brooklynartproject.com. I'll be reviewing those and more to come!
Happy holidays everyone!!