Enter my Holiday Giveaway

I'm holding a raffle for 1 of 5 fantasy and fairy art prizes!The contest is open from now until midnight on Dec 8th. I will announce the winners on Facebook and here. Winners will need to get me their shipping address before the 10th for international shipping in time for Christmas.

To enter please fill out the form below and see how you can qualify for multiple entries. Facebook fans automatically get one free entry. Please be honest and only check off the entries that apply to you.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Prizes:

1 Alice - pencil pouch, bookmarks, postcard, sticker, keychain, cel phone charm and ACEO


2 Celestial - "Illura" 8x10, matted "Purple Moon", angel sticker, keychain and mini button


3 Christmas - A 5x7 matted print of "Christmas Light", "Ring of Seasons" and "Illura" ACEO


4 Forest - Matted "Wood Fairy" print, two bookmarks, sticker and "Leave of Green" print.


5 Steampunk - Two steampunk postcards, a bookmark and buttons

Alphonse Mucha in person

At the end of July I visited the National Czech and Slovak museum in Cedar Rapids Iowa. I drove by it every year on the way to Anime Iowa and always wondered about it. So when I heard they were holding a major Alphonse Mucha exhibit for their grand reopening just when I would be in town I was excited. We usually don't get exhibits of my idols anywhere in the midwest.

Just before the exhibit opened, the entire building had been moved to higher ground after suffering damage during the 2008 flood. The museum is located in the Czech Village Area which is right next to the river. The museum has worked hard on restoring many of the textiles that were damaged during the flood and those are also on display right now.



The Alphonse Mucha: Inspirations of Art Nouveau exhibit is the largest exhibit in the United States since 1999 and includes original lithographs, oil paintings, photographs, sketches, and jewelry.



If you are an artist or art lover in the Midwest I highly recommend taking a trip to see it. Even though we see reproductions in books and posters all the time, it doesn't compare to seeing the real thing.

I almost cried when I looked into the eyes of the small self portrait painting near the entrance. I had no idea the original Sarah Bernhardt posters were life size. They towered over my head and when I looked closer I was amazed to see all the different colored metallic inks that were used in the printing process. Besides the commercial posters, there were many personal photographs, studies and oil paintings of family members. A set of elaborately embroidered Slovak costumes used for models were on display. I strained my eyes at the tiny studies with even tinier ink lines. My personal favorites were many of the oil paintings. There is just something about the colors and lighting used.



If you have time afterwards, check out (czech out?) the Czech bakery located a block away for Kolaches and fruit filled cookies. I was surprised to see the cookies we make every Christmas. They're good if you've never had them, but I'm pretty sure my mom's recipe is better :)

Alphonse Mucha: Inspirations of Art Nouveau
National Czech and Slovak Museum
Cedar Rapids Iowa
July 14 - Dec 31

Upcoming Shows - Dragon Con, Anime Fest, FaerieCon 2012

Dragon Con is Labor Day weekend in Atlanta, Georgia - Aug 31-Sept 3. My art will be for sale in the Art Show. Here is a handy map to help you find it. The Art Show is located in the Hyatt Regency Atlanta Grand Hall WEST on the Exhibition level.



Limited Edition prints will be for silent auction on my Gallery Panels right past the cashier. PRINT SHOP is located behind the cashier and is where multiples of some of my prints are available. You may purchase Print Shop items right away and don't need to bid.

Also the same weekend my art will be available in the Art Show at Anime Fest in Dallas Texas.

Next up will be FaerieCon East Nov 9-11 in Hunt Valley Maryland.

Garden Log 1 - March 29

As of March:

In January we moved into a house and I am now able to have my own garden. The back yard is good sized, and I have plans to make much more of it into garden space. For months I'd been planning and planting seeds in anticipation.

At the end of March we came back from a trip. The snow had not melted much earlier and plants were just starting to come up. I wasn't sure what was in the garden since I had only seen it in fall. A few crocus came up, which I didn't see before the rabbits made snacks of them. Two weeks later the day lilies were a foot high, and it looked like a different world.

The irises are coming up in the bare backyard. I had earlier discovered that one of the shrubs was a lilac and one a forsythia, by putting some branches in water in winter. I learned what looks like overgrown grass, was actually extremely overgrown garlic chives. Yum! It makes a nice stir fry, but then I discovered that it has spread everywhere and is going to be a lot of work to remove.



The side garden by the fence is overgrown with grass, Chives and Creeping Charlie. I started pulling out weeds and found the grass had grown over many of the rocks that were bordering, and the area should actually be larger.



The front looks bare, but little Siberian Squill are popping up all over. They easily blend in with the grass, and I spotted a few in the back as well.





One of the first flowers to bloom are Virginia Blue Bells.



More to come!