Mollie April 5th, 2008 Show Comments(0)

“Beagle” made it on Channel 5 News on Friday afternoon! They were doing an interview with the director of Missouri Alliance for Animal Legislation regarding puppy mills and the art exhibit/benefit tonight; and they aired three pieces from the show.

Mollie April 4th, 2008 Business , OLAG , Show Comments(2)

I received word that all of my pieces for the Puppies are Biodegradable Show have been chosen to go and be shown at Humane Day in Jefferson City next week!

As promised below are some of the designs I’ve been working on for Oak Leaf Artist Guild website header. I wanted to go with bold colors in a Fall color scheme to reflect the colorfulness of the artwork while still keeping the namesake ‘oak leaf’ in mind.

Please keep in mind that these are working examples meant to show direction rather than finished product. The square symbol to the right of each design is the placeholder I mentioned in a previous post for a logo. I have been working on a real logo for the guild as well.

Mollie March 31st, 2008 Note , Show Comments(0)

Puppies are Biodegradable Artist Statement
I started working on pieces for this show to help raise awareness about the horrors that go on in Puppy Mills. In the beginning I knew bad things were happening, I’d heard rumors, but I wasn’t really prepared to see for myself. The research for this show was the most gruesome and difficult thing I’ve ever done for my art. There were many times when I had to force myself to keep going, and several of the images will haunt me forever. It has made such an impression on me that I feel it is important to share my newfound knowledge through my art.

I had several concepts for the pieces in this show, many of which didn’t make it to fruition. Below are some comments about each piece.

Many of the puppy mill puppy images that I found were emaciated and pathetic. With the “Puppy Skeletons” I wanted to take that a step further. The colors, looseness of the drawing, and background were intended to create an eerie atmosphere, almost like the subjects had just been excavated. It was important to me that people see the ultimate results of puppy mills.

“St. Bernard Rescue Dog” was originally created to promote hope, but the mood in the painting suggests otherwise. It was created with the idea in mind that there is already a lot being done to help the cause, but more help is needed. There is only so much that a St. Bernard with a keg full of medical supplies can do.

This last piece was the most challenging to pull off. “Scenic Puppy Mill” depicts this Utopian place where puppies are raised and loved before being adopted out. It’s only once you notice something isn’t quite right with the image, that you really see the full picture. This piece depicts the face that puppy mills put on to the public, when in reality only horrors lie within.

Mollie March 26th, 2008 Uncategorized Comments(2)

Here are the last two pieces for the Puppies are Biodegradable Show.

I need to do a final critique and possibly make some minor changes before I submit them. I’ve found that seeing photographs of a piece allows me to be more objective when it comes to adding the finishing touches.

“St. Bernard Rescue Dog”

I ended up tightening up on the style a little more than I wanted, but I’m happy with the overall feel. The atmosphere and tone of this piece was most important for me.

“Scenic Puppy Mill?”

Because of the nature of this piece it was difficult to get a good scan, but if you look closely you can see some of the puppies showing through. It was very important to me that the viewer see the Scenic Mill first, then (and only then) notice the underlying images. I worry that the puppies aren’t easily recognizable, but working with the translucency was a real challenge. In the end I built up paint and ink on both sides of the transparency and the illustration board to create this affect.

Note: There are two full dogs and one face in the sky, five different puppy faces in the main building, two in the addition, and one below the addition. Can you see them all?

Mollie March 18th, 2008 Note , Show Comments(1)

I finished “St. Bernard Rescue Dog” a few nights ago and I’m focusing my attention on “Scenic Puppy Mill” now. Once I finish both, I’ll post images.

Oak Leaf Artist Guild Update: I have the layout and overall design of the website figured out, in most part; I’m just waiting for the domain to be transfered to get started.

In the designs I showed the guild for the website I had a place holder for a logo or image to be used. They liked my place holder enough to ask me to finish it up and make into the new logo for the guild. I think that’s great because I really want to do what I can to help the guild; but I can’t say I’m not worried that some of the members of the guild might take this the wrong way or feel I’m overstepping my bounds. I’m really trying to keep as many people involved in the process as possible to prevent that from happening though. And of course, I’ll keep this blog updated to my progress.

Mollie March 13th, 2008 Mixed Media , Pen & Ink , Show Comments(0)

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts I’ve been working on an extra project for the “Puppies are Biodegradable Show,” and I finished the last one today! Each of the below pieces are 5″x7″ Pen & Color Pencil on paper.  I have to say that I’m really happy with how they turned out.  I kept the rendering loose and used unnatural colors to emphasis the eerie subject, hopefully the shock value will lend itself to the cause.

Mollie March 11th, 2008 Note , Show Comments(0)

“What I think is lacking is a sense of believable light. Everything feels too evenly rendered – and your perspective has to be perfect with this kind of realism. However, areas are exquisite especially the card – shadow, reflected light, lettering all perfect.” Eric Shultis – judge from Look of Love Show.

I really appreciated his comments; they were straight forward, to the point, and helpful. It’s been a long time since someone has taken the time and effort to be honest and open with me in regards to my work. Oh how I’ve missed it! A good critique is hard to find, and worth it’s weight in gold to an artist open to it.

Mollie March 10th, 2008 Painting , Show Comments(0)

The Locks of Love Event/Look of Love Art Show went really well! We had a great turnout, and lots of people came to donate their hair; including my husband! My piece won an honorable mention, and I won a raffle for a gift card to a local book store!

The judge, Eric Shultis, wasn’t able to attend the reception, but he did write up notes for each artist. It’s very rare to get feedback/criticism from a judge, so I’m doubly excited about it. I’ll post the note he left for me when I get a chance.

The Puppies are Biodegradable Show is in less than three weeks! Below is an update of where each piece for that show stands.

• New Surprise Project: (images coming soon!) should be done in a couple days.
• St. Bernard Rescue Dog: is pretty much where I left it when I last posted.
• Scenic Puppy Mill: I’ve been working on a layout for the under image. Not an easy task, since I want to maximize the impact of the images to show through.
• Nursing Mother: Still working on the painting surface, haven’t even begun painting. I might not have enough time for this one and that makes me very sad.

Mollie March 6th, 2008 Painting , Show Comments(0)

I finished and turned in “Look of Love” on time and you can see the finished piece below, and a larger version in the painting gallery. I wish I had a little more time on this one.

Mollie February 29th, 2008 Painting , Show Comments(0)

Here are the latest images from “Look of Love.”

I still have a quite a bit to do, hopefully sometime tomorrow I’ll be able to find time to do a working critique, then get around to the parts that I haven’t touched since the underpainting. If I keep a tight schedule I should be able to finish on time. Unfortunately, since I’m cutting the deadline so close I’m going to have to be extra vigilant in making sure the details are all taken care of, and that the piece is ready.