OPENING NIGHT

18 images and an artist statement make my wall complete

 We arrived about 6:30 and just made it in to the second public parking garage to find a space before the crush of visitors to Crystal City on Friday night too them all away. Artomatic opened at 6:00 but we were in the rush hour crawling across the city so we didn't arrive on time. The line was long at the door but somehow we managed to pass it by going in the loading dock doors at the back of the building we used while installing the show.

Keith and I standing by his work taken by a beautiful cartoon artist from across the room.  Urvi Metha

The second floor was tidy and lots of artists were there standing near their work ready for guests to arrive. We did our last minute installation of our artist statements on the walls by our work. Then took some photos and chatted with some of the other artists while waiting on our friends to arrive and visit our shows. Keith spotted my buddy Douglas Kingsbury first and he was alone and not sure he was ready to take in the whole building full of art but asked if we knew others in the show he might know... Having not seen the whole show yet I just pointed out a few friends I knew were in the exhibition. We had a nice visit and he went on to tackle the next floor.

Other guests and visitors we didn't now began to pass through and stop to talk. Met a couple from Alabama who loved my prints and were excited to hear that I also quilt! We shared a few quilter's stories. I got a nice tip for a "jelly roll" quilt to try so I am off to search YouTube to see what it is later today. Over the course of the night we had a good flow of visitors friends and art acquaintances complementing our efforts and creativity. It was rewarding to hear the praise. One fellow told me that he had seen my wall of work featured on Huffington Post Washington DC edition and Keith found his work on the Washington Post Weekend section slide show. So we were lucky to be in the visual line up of media this time around. We saw Molly Ruppert and Christina her daughter for a few minutes and Dwayne Franklin my friend from Baltimore who stayed late after work to see the big show. He wandered in late looking overwhelmed and a little burnt out from all the rooms of art he had visited. He managed to find us and was "done" with thoughts to return and revisit to see more but he had seen enough for one day.

  Christian Tribastone the guy who makes Sketch-crawl Washington DC happen every two or three months and a very nice art teacher who draws on brown paper with black and white media stopped by to see us. Love his art and I am looking forward to my chance to get up to the 9th floor and see his work, check the link on his name to see his blog posts of drawings and fun art give aways he does in the streets of the city.

Keith talking with Tomás Tarr the glass lamp-work artist who helped us secure our spaces on the first day. 

Keith's piece is best seen up close! All those details of sawed off and painted red stick ends and the spindly yellow craspedia bobbing over them make a wonder when you get in close. I was so glad he joined me at Artomatic this year it would have been lonely without his support and company. By 9:15 we were spent and tired from a long day and packed it in to get out and leave some parking for the people still trying to get in. Missed poet Dan Vera and Peter Montgomery our neighbors by a few minutes. They found our work and as I suspected Narcissus Poeticus print was a favorite for the poet!

On 2nd floor one of our favorite sculptures Edmund van der Bijl 

He painted the soiled rug black covering up some cool designs he painted below the black. We figure he ran out of time waiting on the black to dry so he couldn't do the detail work over again before they threw us all out last weekend. 

Pretty artist watching her neighbor explain a glass and ceramic mosaic to a small redheaded boy

Xavier Malina's moving lights box was a favorite in a dark room 

hallways decorated with the fabulous spray paintings of street artists

Finally Artist Nicholas Zimbro seen here talking about his work. My favorite artist including the collage behind the paintings and drawings on the first floor. We saw him on our way home.  

Lots more of Artomatic is open and waiting to be explored. It is fun to see all the good and crazy art installed and well worth a few hours of your time if you are anywhere near by, make a point to drop in and find your favorites and post a few for us to see on your facebook or somewhere.

connecting the rose stars with white fabric in between has begun!  

Now it is time for me to get back to my quilting projects...

Ready Set Go ... Artomatic 2012

The walls are painted, the pictures framed and hung, the name is in place. All that remains is to go and enjoy the shows. Artomatic 2012 is billed as a thousand or more artists in one Crystal City retired office building running May 18th through June 23rd and this year's Artomatic is using about 8 floors of an 11 story building to display art of all sorts.

I was so excited last weekend when Keith and I finished hanging, painting, lettering our displays that I began looking around to pack up and I began visiting with other artists in various stages of completion. So excited I forgot to take photos of our finished installations. I have a few to share from Keith who was trying to get pictures casually as I rambled on with my roommate Beth and neighbor Kathrine who were both finishing up.
The opening is tonight and some sources say there are only 500 visual artists this year and about that many again performers and other types of art events. It is always exciting to have a newly painted wall full of my artworks to share in the joy with so many other artists is worth any pain and cost of doing this event. Tonight marks my fourth time as an Artomatic artist in the past 12 years.

central part of my exhibition display

The grand opening is tonight 6:00 PM to 1:00AM at 1851 South Bell Street Arlington, Virginia about a block from Crystal City Metro-rail station. My work is on the 2nd floor in space 0121. It is in a room at the north west corner of the building. Keith Stanley is near by also on the 2nd floor in an open room spread out on the floor. Directions are listed here on the Artomatic.org website http://www.artomatic.org/visit/directions

Keith pulling off electrical waste to prepare his wall.

Beth hanging her papers on the dark blue wall

Soon as my work is done greeting guests I will be touring and photographing my favorites at Artomatic 2012 to share with you readers who are so far away that you can't come see for yourselves.

the next step

my wall on 2nd floor NW corner room. 

view of the front court yard and entrance to Artomatic 2012 from my room on the 2nd floor

Window walls of the room

This past week after the site selection at Artomatic 2012 we are working to prepare our gallery spaces. I am using a wall in a room that was a bland office white and I quickly decided I wanted a cooler neutral to back my display. Last weekend I went to the paint store and selected a number of grays then mid week I took the samples and a few of my framed sketches to the room and tried them out. I narrowed it down to a light and dark gray. Dolphin or pebble gray. In the end I decided to go with the lighter gray to keep from making the wall too dark and gloomy behind my flowers.

two samples against the carpet and moulding along the floor

samples and the some of the art against the wall 

Soon as I made up my mind I went right back to the paint shop and got a gallon of pebble gray flat paint, roller set and drop cloth and threw them in the trunk of the car. Mission accomplished. I also found I need to get more frames to fill that wall up with sketches. Friday I had a hard time getting motivated to get up and out of the house to go paint the wall. Eventually I made it over there about 3:45 PM and discovered that parking in the local garage was free after 4:00 PM so my slow start on the painting project went to my advantage. It was busy but not crowded in the building and loading dock. Much to my surprise my roommate was there painting her walls. I had some company for the first half of the job before she had to leave for a meeting on the other side of DC.

I taped all the edges and fixtures with blue tape, laid the drop cloth,  brushed the edges and began rolling the wall. 

It went quickly and the wall seemed to drink in the paint as if it was recently painted. We have been told this building was department of defense or maybe it was US Army who just moved out and the building owners plan to demolish the whole building after our show. Seems wasteful to me but maybe it needs remodeling for a new client or maybe they are going to build taller office or apartment buildings in this area.
Anyway it sure suits our needs this month as it is with a little tweaking.

first coat done and roommate had to go to a meeting before she got her blue wall finished

same view with the over head lights turned off

finished wall ready for installation of my sketches as soon as I get the art ready to hang 

Next step is to choose which of my sketch prints I am going to show and in what arrangement on the wall. I want to invite friends and fans to come to the evening opening May 18th. It should be a blast to visit even a few floors of this huge art museum of contemporary Washington area artists displays. All the artists will be there that night to kick off the beginning. Metro is just around the corner so no worries about parking and if you can't come the first night it will be open Wed. through Sunday day and night and is always FREE!  

Art in the Burg day

I was up before the sun and off to Middleburg, Virgnia by 7:25AM on my art sale day in Piedmont horse country. The sky clouded over on the hour and fifteen minute drive but I arrived ahead of schedule and got started quickly setting up my area. I had 12 vertical prints and 10 horizontal prints to hang in rows on wooden easels. I also had to lay out my table and get ready for visitors and meet the other artists. I got so wrapped up in the hanging and visiting I forgot to shoot my display when I finished setting it up later I snagged a few shots while I had a few minutes of quiet time. In the end it was over before I expected and easy to break down thanks to the great space and the great team hosting the show. We enjoyed conversation, art sharing, some sales, vegetable stew and cheese with crackers cookies and special thanks to my new art pal Gail Guirreri-Maslyk for a delicious  cup of coffee! She needed one and I wanted one, and so she went to the grocery store and bought the fixings then made us a pot! It was just perfectly brewed and enjoyed with some sugary treats I never eat anymore.

Chris, Peter, Tom and Gail 

 parish house Peter Wood staked out the front door to sell his rusty metal creations and fill the guest book with contacts 

My favorite of Peter's rusty metal sculptures. 

Our day was busy and visitors came and lingered and enjoyed looking and many buying some new art works. I was showing my new series of flower sketches and prints for the first time and also my hand bound books. I also took a few folding book prints from the old days in Artomat® that always attract gift buyers or people who need something small to delight. I was happy to see my pal Judith from West Virginia for the first time since 2007 and meet her buddies one of whom is also a graduate of Pratt Institute in Brooklyn NY were I studied so many years ago. I even had a visitor from my gang of sketch crawl friends drove out from Reston. It was a perfect day even if the sky was threatening rain on and off all day. We managed to stay dry most of the day in our lovely parish house great room meeting hall. The carpenter who built our easels did a fantastic job and they worked better than anything I have used to hang and display art in a room where you can not put nails in the walls. So I am very happy today if a little tired. Thanks to everyone who made yesterday possible and a handsome success for my new works. For a first time event it was very good and we all were excited at the prospect of a return next year. I now look forward to reorganizing my prints and sketches for the next installation in Crystal City Arlington, Virginia across the river from DC at Artomatic 2012.

Jim the painter with two visitors, Jason Alexander the potter and wife Maria who are talking to a third visitor (left to right)

My book/portfolio table and display easel, after 6 prints in frames sold. 

ARTOMATIC 2012 this is my wall on the second floor of 11 stories of office building, soon to be painted and filled with flowering sketches! 

getting ready

large and small Coptic bound books ready to fill

This past month I have been working on making a bundle of new Coptic bound blank books to offer at the Art in the Burg show Saturday April 28th in Middleburg, Virginia. It is always exciting to select the various materials that go into the covers and sewing of a new Coptic binding. There are fine cover cloths and handmade marble papers and a color bee's waxed linen thread that gets glass beads strung on them as they loop in and out of the signatures of each book spine. First step is to select the cover paper and cloth and prepare the boards they are glued over. Then cutting them and gluing them down and put in my heavy steel screw press from the 19th century to hold them with blotter paper very flat while that glue dries over 24 hours.

two sets of new book covers after pulling them out of the screw press 

Cover on the left a cherry blossom printed japan paper and on the right are woodblock printed red from Florence, Italy (wrapped in waxed paper) 

Then comes adding the folded, hole punched signatures of fine cotton writing paper is the next step. It begins with the paper signatures then a length of linen thread and a cup of glass beads at the ready I start and sew it all into a book small takes an hour larger takes a few hours to get them all laced up and in the stack of completed Coptic bound books.

brown cloth, aqua end pages and green linen thread and glass beads

all sewn together the finished book stands n the sun ready to use. 

4 new pocket sized books completed in blue, gold, brown, and purple

and recently added ORANGE! 

In addition to books I am working on adding scans of my new watercolor sketches to my portfolio web site which now has a new page devoted to my practice of a daily sketch. That is over at this web site: Frederick Nunley  Prints and originals will also be on display and available at the Art in the Burg show. Earlier this week Keith and I signed up to show at the 2012 ARTOMATIC in Crystal City, Virginia with 1200 of our dear artist friends and neighbors! This will be our 3rd Artomatic done together since 2000. He will be making a large ikebana installation and I will be showing my sketch prints the big opening May 18th is in a huge office building right next to the Crystal City metro station exit. It runs Wednesdays through Sundays all day and late into the night for after work visitors. Hope you can plan to stop by this spectacular exposition of all kinds of art works by local artists. It began in Washington DC as a non-judgmental art collective installation and rules as the biggest and most diverse exhibition opportunity.

4-14-2012 the twin pink parrot tulips that came from our garden were my sketch subject...

Walk in the bluebells

forest edge native white dogwood flowering 

 We went out to Manassas to visit and got a little time on Friday April the 6th to take a two hour walk across the Bull Run Battlefield and over to the Stone Bridge for a look at the magnificent wild Virginia Blue Bells carpeting the forest floor by the creek.

tall Virginia pines and white dogwood flowers along the trail

pasture land is beautiful edged in native trees. 

jack in the pulpit grew up on the side of a boardwalk over the swampy areas 

blue flowers carpet the forest floor all along bull run beside the old stone bridge

view from the river bank looking up the slope

typical blue bells 

one or two were pink! 

close up view of a wild dogwood flowering by a pine tree trunk 

panoramic view of the hill top battlefield with blue ridge mountains in the distance 

End of the walk where we began at the Stonewall Jackson monument