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Art Stroll – Unstored, Assembly

This October we spent some time in the Catskills and one of the fun discoveries was the Assembly in Monticello, NY. The space originally a Buick dealership has been transformed to an art gallery by artist Bosco Sodi.

For the first exhibition Bosco asked a group of artists from mostly Mexico to “give us your retired, your stashed-away masses yearning to be seen”

Paula Cortazar work on different stone was fascinating! Inviting to stay a bit longer and follow the intricate designs.

Eduardo Sarabia – loved his work which reminded in it’s usage of political statements on ceramics of Grayson Perry‘s work.

The little statue is by Gonzalo Lebrija – basically showing how I feel every day :)

This is also by him:

Bosco Sodi‘s art

The textures on the different materials he uses in his work are amazing
This canvas- made with sand and spraypainted over- I believe!

Tania Candiani created this sound installation:

inviting you to try the bellows out to make those birds sing.

Ugo Rondinone showed a couple of those stone faces – the instagram page makes me want to see even more of the work!

Downstairs was another room with some work by Izumi Kato as well as by Boso. I loved the Izumi Kato chairns- sometimes hidden in the niches.
I enjoyed this exhibition that will be still at the Assembly until May 1, 2023. If you are in the area of Monticello in NY definitely put this gallery on your list!
Nat

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Artist Almanac 2023 Calendars are HERE

The page a day 2023 Artist Almanac calendars are here in my shop and ready to ship to you! Supplies are limited, so grab yours as fast as you can :)

The 2023 Artist Almanac, if you haven’t already heard, is a page a day style calendar and each page has different artwork by one of the 19 participating artists:

Nat Kalbach, Birgit Koopsen, DeeDee Catron, Tina Walker, Shawn Petite, Megan Whisner Quinlan, Leaca Young, Tiffany Goff-Smith, Kristin Petersen, Amanda Spence, Lisa Goddard, Arlyna Blanchard, Anna Karena, Seth Apter, LaQuisha Hall, Roxanne Padgett, Denise Lush, Renee Mueller, Ann Barnes

As you tear pages off, they become collage papers, so that means 365 different collage papers for all your mixed media creations. It’s a pretty awesome idea and I was stoked to be one of the artists chosen to participate.

Last year I sold out of those puppies in about 24 hours, so hurry up if you want to grab yours.

Nat

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Online Workshops – Holiday Sale Ends Dec 4

All Online Workshops are 30% right now for my big annual Holiday Sale. Just use the coupon code holiday30 to save. Sale ends at 11:59pm ET tomorrow, December 4, 2022. Sign up, save, and start a new artistic learning adventure!!! Shop my Online Workshops here.

All my Artful Adventure workshops are included:

Also available are some collaborative workshops that I created with Birgit Koopsen and Marsha Valk:

For super value I recommend the Best of CJS mini bundles:

Learn some bookbinding techniques or image transfer techniques:

Bottom line is there are a lot of different ways that you can feed your artistic soul with the learning and inspiration that an online workshop can provide. Sign up for one today and enjoy a very special art experience.

Don’t forget, the Holiday Sale ends tomorrow, December 4 at 11:59pm ET. Save 30% on almost everything in the online shop! Coupon Code is holiday30 and cannot be used on gift certificates.

Nat

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Maximum Impact with Mini Fans

Looking to make an impact in your art journal or current creative project? Think bold pattern! I love a strong pattern element as a background when I really want to grab attention. I like pattern so much in fact that a lot of my stamps are designed with that in mind. My Mini Fan foam stamp set is one example and a pretty fun set to play with.

The four different stamps in the set each have a different design inspired by historical architecture and interior motifs that have caught my eye through the years. (My Stroll Through the Hood series is where I get a lot of my inspiration for these types of things.) The set gives you choices and the chance to mix things up too. But first, let’s talk about pattern.

The overall shape of the Mini Fan stamps is designed to fit snugly together and make a continuous field of pattern. You can get wild with color and using all the stamps in the set.

You can also use just one for a bit of intricate pattern in a page. The above stamp is a sinuous, Art Nouveau style that it is just the thing when you want something lovely in there.

Layering the Mini Fan stamps in a more complex way is another approach. The “more is more” technique is a lot of fun to create and is very impactful with different patterns and colors peeking through. When to stop? LOL that’s the hard question ;)

When you do keep things simple though, these Mini Fan foam stamps are very effective. It’s not an instant pattern like a stencil, but it’s a methodical, zen-like building process that can be a refreshing creative break. And for a project like these Koinobori wind socks, you can’t deny the Mini Fans resemblance to fish scales!

I hope you give some of these ideas a try. Here are some supplies used in these projects:

Nat

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Videos from the Creative Squad – Part 3

My Creative Squad has made some really cool videos for their projects through the years (what a talented bunch indeed) so I’ve been doing a little 4 part series sharing some with you. Also I encourage you to check out the Creative Squad archive of projects as an excellent resource for serious artistic inspiration.

Let’s get started!

Today we have one of the sweetest project ideas from Riikka Kovasin using one of those mini billboard kits (50% off now while supplies last – use the code nowsave50 ) and my Fan-tastic Small stamps. The theme was In the City – let’s reminisce about a time we traveled to another town or city. Think about the flavor of the place and let that guide your color and design choices.

Here is the link to her original post and here is the video she shared of her process:

I love how she created a distressed look to the whole thing and that flower pot fits perfectly to scale. Such a cool way to use the billboard!

Here is a lovely little mixed media piece from alum Marsha Valk using rubber stamps from my My Home Is My Castle, Embroidery, and Cardboard stamp sets. She was working from our theme: This Must Be the Place –We’re all on a journey to somewhere or something. Sometimes we’re just making preparations for simple things like dinner or weekend plans. Other times we’re aiming for bigger goals, bigger places. Whether it’s a location or a state of mind, you’ll know when you get there. Where are you headed?

Here is the link to her original post and here is the video she shared of her process:

I love the little textural details Marsha adds by using the stamps in her piece.

If you had fun watching these videos, be sure to tune in next time for a couple more from the archive.

Here are some of the supplies used in these projects:

Nat

Comments (1)

  • Sue Clarke

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    Riikka, I LOVE that mini-billboard!!!

    Reply

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Artwork is on Sale!

As part of my BIG Holiday Sale in the Online Shop, all Artwork is 30% off too! Artwork is one of those very special and personal gifts and maybe you were thinking about someone on you list or maybe just yourself ;)

I have stuff at each price point including Giclee Prints of some of my paintings like:

2016

…a winter scene that I call 1.25.2016 because it was the day of a big blizzard, and also This Too Shall Pass, a local scene with one of my favorite murals of a wave in it.

I have original paintings like Hamburg Harbor and Tacheles, both scenes from my native Germany.

2018
Acrylic paint, spray paint, marker 24×18″ – Available for Purchase

Highline and Swapped are both scenes from NYC and both original paintings on canvas.

As you can see, buildings, the cityscape, and my neighborhood are huge sources of inspiration for my paintings. In the layers I create I am both playing with media but also suggesting a lot of history and change that these places have seen. Painting them is so important for me and I am planning on exploring all of this with a much greater focus in the months to come. Stay tuned :)

In the meantime though, shop the sale! It is a great time to get something to hang on your walls for a nice price indeed.

Nat

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Medieval Minds – Art Journal

“We are living in modern times and yet we are dominated by medieval minds.”

Isn’t this the truth.

For this background I played with my Buenos Aires Stencil and Star Struck Stencil using Acrylic Spraypaint. I outlined some of the areas with acrylic marker to add some colors that were used in the painting in the collage calendar page.

I remember when I created the original painting that the colors were unusual to use for me and yet I still love the painting- which is for sale here: Highline Original Painting also available as prints.

Nat

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Holiday Sale – Cyber Monday

It’s that time of year and this year we’re going BIG: 30% off everything in the shop including:

Rubber Stamps

Foam Stamps

Stencils

Online Workshops

Artwork

…and lots lots more too. Basically everything except gift certificates are eligible. Just use the coupon code holiday30 when you check out. The sale is while supplies last, cannot be combined with other coupons, and officially ends at 11:59pm ET on December 4, 2022.

Come look around the Online Shop and pick up some gifts for all the creatives on your list.

Here are some that I always love:

My nice chunky LOVE foam stamp, or how bout the Love rubber stamp? And everyone will have a blast making patterns with the Triple Play foam stamp set.

Just a few ideas ;) Come on in the Online Shop to see what’s left! Hurry hurry!

Nat

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