Superfresh - The Farmer's Market

On Saturday mornings, I've started a new ritual- getting up early, grabbing a coffee to go, and heading over to my local farmer's market at the park near my apartment. The produce is all fresh from upstate New York, and the abundance and color is simply incredible and inspiring. The difference in the freshness cannot be understated.

After getting home, I cooked up some of the eggs with the mushrooms, and experienced a total freshness conversion. Look at these rich colors! I just can't walk by and not buy something at outdoor food markets. A little advice though, as "they" always say, "never go grocery shopping on an empty stomach"!

Some of the bounty I brought home above: bee pollen, strawberries, oyster mushrooms, coral mushrooms, and eggs - all picked or collected earlier that morning.

And above is some of my artwork that my new adventures have inspired. Over these past few warm months, I have done a small series of vegetal pieces. It was good going outside of my old artistic routine, and creating some new works (away from the usual abstractions) invigorated and enlivened by my new routine.

Smitten in the City - A Venetian Affair in Brooklyn

There's a conversation that's going on in the streets of Brooklyn. I pass this certain wall on my way home and have noticed that it changes every few days. Earlier this summer, it was painted solid black and begging for some enhancement. You may recall this cute little lady piglet from an earlier post, but she now appears to be taking part in a playful public communication and visual love letter between artists. The gesture of this elaborate accumulation reminds me of a book I read many years ago entitled, A Venetian Affair, about a clandestine love affair in 18th century Venice during its Golden Age of nobles and the splendor of the Grand Canal. The forbidden lovers exchanged secret letters back and forth through people who knowingly and unknowingly helped them. They also communicated publicly "through an elaborate code of nods and gestures".  

(from the synopsis on Amazon)

A prancing fleet of foxes surrounds the piglet, signed with a little note "♥ The Fox".

She replies with a Venetian lion, "Who is this fabulous Mr. Fox? ♥ Elle".

He replies, "Dirty paws and unwashed hair, just a little pup in the big city." 

The "letter" in its entirety.

Blog Feature - Etsy's {NewNew} Team

I recently became a member of Etsy's {NewNew} Team, a group of Etsy participants who live and work in New York City. Its purpose is to provide a support network of other local artists and designers who wish to promote their work and have fun together socially. As a recent member, I'm happy to have my work featured in a recent blog post for the Team.

The post cleverly draws similarities between items that can be found at farmer's markets (one of my favorite Saturday morning rituals) and art work by team members. My piece below paralells the citrus/orange/yellow/fruit category. Have a look at the rest of the items here.

Fingerprint Close-Ups

Colorful swirls resembling fingerprints like these two will soon be available again in my shop.

Have a vibrant summer weekend - it's one of the last, so make it a good one!