I found out yesterday that this Bead Dog will be displayed in Coliseum Square Park in the Lower Garden District. It's a beautiful park in a fabulous location, and I know from personal visits and countless drive-bys that people are always out with their canine friends enjoying the huge oaks and the sprawling walkways. In the spirit of the beauty of the park's floral and faunal inhabitants, I'm working to imbue this dog with the serenity, complexity, and grace of the natural world. Oh, and also the party-hard vibe of New Orleans. It still needs work, but here's a sneak preview:
My "Night and Day in NOLA" Bead Dog got sponsored!! That means I got to pick one up to paint, and it will be on display at Trinity Episcopal School & Church in the Garden District. I'm very honored and excited, especially because the students apparently voted on designs and they chose mine! Nothing like being chosen by a discerning group on the merit of your art alone. I'm putting in my hours to make this the best Bead Dog I can make, as a thank you for their support and sponsorship.
The LSPCA is one of my favorite organizations. They never fail to impress, and this season they are hosting a city-wide Mardi Gras Bead Dog art installation!!! Artists from around the community are contributing, and I'm hoping to join in the ranks. I've submitted my designs, and now I need a sponsor!! Please see my three posted designs:  "Bead Tree Dog"  "Night & Day in NOLA Dog" Click on any of the dogs for information on sponsoring (or visit here). Check out the LSPCA Bead Dog Flickr stream for these designs and others by talented and clever New Orleans artists!! :D
We are proudly contributing to the WYES Art Collection 12 -- check out more information on the Auction here!!
It's nearly Mardi Gras time!!!!!! Here in the Big Easy, the King Cake contests are in full swing, and boas and beads are starting to surface in the streets. One of my favorite things about Carnival Season is the way the beads get stuck in the trees. Oftentimes, they spend all year among the leaves, either falling down or fading in color. They inevitably get dislodged and replaced with bright new shiny ones when Mardi Gras comes around again a year later. With these paintings (oil and acrylic on canvas, 8"x10"), I'm exploring the interplay between nature and man-made beauty. The image of beads in the trees has always seemed iconic to me, and I like the idea of the trees participating in Carnival and being welcome members of the Mardi Gras crowds. I think these little paintings are lucky, and signify the magic of keeping the Mardi Gras spirit in our hearts and minds year round.
Original, signed Bead Tree paintings are $410 each and can be ordered by emailing me at ally@galleryburguieres.com. Stay tuned for prints and other goodies based on the Bead Tree Paintings!
New Orleans knows how to party!! Not just at Mardi Gras, but around the traditional winter holidays, too. Elves, reindeer, wreaths, lights everywhere. In the spirit of the season, I have some fun and classy gifts!! There are lots in the gallery, but if you are not in New Orleans you can see some of them online. Art is always a good choice. In addition to the small gifts, I have also been working on some new original paintings. Most notably, "The Girl in the Library". This one is oil and acrylic on canvas, and has a story to go with that paisley dress and strappy shoes. In 2009 I lived in Manhattan with two of my best friends. They are the artsy inspiring type who encouraged my work, and I painted like a mad woman for about 5 months.
I also traveled a lot, so I spent a lot of time in the famous Penn Station, waiting on the Amtrak train. I love soft pretzels and oversized fountain sodas, so Penn Station is a sort of heaven.
No one could have predicted, however, that my love of 600-calorie bread knots and 7-lbs drinks would have got in the way of my career as an artist. But one evening, enchanted by the promise of salt on piping hot dough, I set down an original painting I was carrying with me and completely forgot to pick it back up. It did not occur to me until I arrived home in Harlem that I had left the painting in the middle of Penn Station.
The painting was an unfinished version of the one above. I had some details to finish, and when I realized it was gone I was devastated. I have not found it to this day!! I did, however, have a low-resolution picture of it, and from that I finally, two years later, decided to sit down and (re)paint it. Now I finally have the finished original, and it is hanging proudly in the gallery.
So that story has nothing much to do with Christmas or Chanukah or Kwanzaa or any family winter festivities, except for that sometimes I imagine my paintings as little children of mine, and in a way I feel as if this one has found her way home for the holidays!!!
Last night, legendary NYC artist Hunt Slonem visited the Martine Chaisson Gallery for an evening of stunning art, wine, specialty cocktails, and breathtaking gallery space. If you're not familiar with Hunt's work, visit his site to see his lively yet soothing colors and the way in which he captures the endearing and spontaneous nature of animals. And if you just can't get enough, The Wall Street Journal published a story on him yesterday, complete with pictures, history, and an incredible slideshow of the artist's renowned New York studio space!! As a "sometimes-New Orleanian", Hunt's incredible reputation and personal ties to the city brought out a star-studded showing of beautiful people. Writer John Berendt (of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil) was in attendance, in addition to many other creative and artistic masterminds.  While Hunt himself was the obvious guest of honor, it was impossible to pass up the gorgeous book he was signing. Full color and comprehensive of the artist's 30+ years of works.
Hunt and I standing in front of "The Guardians", one my favorite paintings.
My artist friend Matthew Peck and I are on the Artist's Panel for this year's New Orleans Art-o-Matic!! It will be at Cathedral Studios, 527 Julia Street, Saturday October 22nd at 6 p.m. The idea of Art-o-Matic is that the Artist's Panel get together to create fast, spontaneous works of art, and these works become available for ultra reasonable prices the moment they are finished. This Art-o-Matic, I will be making charcoal and oil paintings/drawings on mixed-media, acid free paper. They will probably look something like this, which is a practice one I did to make sure I could work with the materials quickly: Come this Saturday!!! Get a signed original!! Frame it and put it in your house!!! You can get each piece for only $20!!!
People say things get busy in New Orleans in late September/early October. After painting, reading, and overheating all summer, I'm finally starting to see why the locals say NOLA heats up in the fall. Charity events, conferences, parties, festivals — recovering from each late night in time for the next event is a delicate process that takes much more practice than I currently have. Yet, we have to say that yesterday and last night were totally worth it. The festivities kicked off at 2 p.m. with the 10th Annual Ezra Open, a charity bowling tournament held in Mid-City.  Pic from yesterday's bowling tournament! At about 7 p.m. the bowling teams and other patrons gathered at the Theatre at Harrah's Casino for a party of epic proportions. The Better Than Ezra guys, who had partied, bowled, and graciously hosted all day, played a killer set with Harrah's twinkling blue and white stars glowing behind them. Items were auctioned to generous donors, friendships were made, scenes were caused, and funds were raised for the City of New Orleans. Let's hope it's the first of many good times for good causes!!!
Imparting some necessary skills.
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