Keeping Art in the Family - The Work of Kim Caldwell

My daughter has always been creative. She loves improving things, fixing things, changing things, decorating things - trash-to-treasure stuff, and we share that same excitement every time we find some new piece at a yard sale or the thrift shop. Both our homes reflect our eclectic collections with a citified vibe which is just a touch Bohemian, but with a splash of Country for good measure. Nothing Spartan about our homes. Come in, put your feet up, let the kids run around.

But whether my daughter's interests are from nurture --I've involved myself in almost every kind of art form throughout my life, from music, to interior design, to sculpture, painting, and fiction writing, which she grew up with -- or from nature, I guess we'll never know. Perhaps she's simply inherited the same crazy genes that I did. (How frustrating not to know who else in our history had the same wild ride through life.)

And now she's painting, something she'd never tried before.

Today I present these with great pride. I've never been an abstractist, much as I admire so much of it , but the spontaneity of this art form seems to be so natural to her. These are very large canvases. If you are going to make a bold, modern statement, make it big!

Until next time, take care.

Unpredictable Painter. No Specific Style or Subject. Would Have It No Other Way!

So here's another offering for the past few days. I am not going to explain or apologize for the wide variations in my subjects. I've said it many times before; I have no idea what I will paint on any given day. The idea for a painting often comes to me as I'm falling asleep, and that means I can't wait to get up in the morning and get to work on it. Of course, I repeat the subjects from time to time, simply because I love doing them. Landscapes and Colonial Portraits are my favorites, but you can only produce just so many before you need a change of pace.

"Maple in Morning Mist"

12 x 16 inches

"Escape of the Cultured Pearls"

9.5 x 12 inches

"The Young Master"

12 x 16 inches

That Pesky Oil Painting is Finished.

That oil painting I was working on? It's done. I'm not sure if I will do it again. I didn't feel that surge of spontaneity I had hoped for, although the image is pretty, I think. It's tiny - just 10 inches by 6.5. Perhaps painting oils on a really large canvas is the key. And I would probably waste half the paints over me.

"Home from the Hills"

And, yes, I achieved some great texture, but I can do that with acrylics, too (molding paste, Gesso). I need someone to point out the advantages of oil over acrylic. I can't think of any.

Oh, and it finally dried.

Still Painting. When Will I Return to My Writing?

These are the paintings I've completed through June. I'm not prolific, but when I start, I can't stop. The varying subjects are an indication of where my thought processes are these days...unpredictable and inexplicable, but always spontaneous. I think Pinterest has a lot to do with it...

Click on the images to enlarge them.

"The Village House"

16 x 20

"Star Bright"

15 x 11

"Trifid"

16 x 20

(My first abstract ever. Will do more.)

"Buttercups"

15 x 11

"Sundown"

17 x 14

I've started a small oil painting. This is the first time in decades that I've messed with oils, and, believe me, I do get into a mess with oils. But I'm persevering. I admire the apparent freedom most oil artists seem to have, and would love to experience that. The image I've produced at present looks as controlled and contained as anything I do in acrylic...more so, in fact, because I'm trying so hard not to get messy! I guess my other complaint is that I have no patience with waiting for paint to dry, and I will not use turpentine to speed the process. Of course, I'll blog the result when and if I ever get the thing finished - and dried.

Until next time.

Two Gentlemen of Havana - Original Acrylic Painting on Canvas by Fran Caldwell

This painting was inspired by a photograph I came across on Pinterest. I am no portraitist, so their faces are only my artist's impression, but their clothes, and especially their attitudes, are as precise as I could manage.

They might have been celebrating the change of policy with the U.S., but the original photograph was taken some time before that news was announced. Judging by their attire and the bouquet, they were looking forward to a very enjoyable night. It seems they find life a celebration all the time.

While I was painting this, I found myself chatting to them. An odd thing to admit, but I just found them so interesting (and, just to reassure you that I'm not completely nuts, I received no response to my chit-chat). May they dance the night away forever.

This painting is not for sale. It's for my daughter, who shared my fascination for these gentlemen. 

"For No Reason, They Began to Dance" Small Naive Folk Painting

An odd shaped canvas 10.5 inches by 6.5. And I came up with this image.

I don't know where they came from, but the dancers make me smile. 

She probably has something cooking on the stove, too.

But it doesn't matter. Dancing comes first...

It Seems I've Got the Painting Bug Again

Once the urge hits, you can't stop it. I'm really painting again. Here are two of my latest, and there will be more. It's a funny old thing, the creativity virus.

16 x 20 inches

13.5 x 17 inches

(Squeakie is going to be so pleased with me.) 

Talk soon.

"Escape" Vintage Hot Air Balloon in the Night Sky Painting

So pleased to have another commission finished, that I quite forgot that I have a new painting in addition to the custom picture.

I haven't featured any wild skies for a long time, and had the urge. And night skies are wonderful. I'll probably do some more.

Until next time...