GALLERY BURGUIERES

Y'all know what this is.

Well, the Bead Tree collection continues to grow (they even have their own online gallery now!)! And on this fateful Saturday morning it looks like there will be several more before the day is through. Without further ado, let me introduce the newest members. Thanks for checking them out!!

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!

The Notebook Series features original doodles on canvas-turned-giant-looseleaf paper, and now that series has a new spin-off!! The Scrapbook Series memorializes all the fun things you find in your pockets and bags at the end of a journey. The first in the series is a painted Charlie Card, in honor of the T public transport system in Boston. It is 20" x 16", oil and acrylic on stretch canvas. I hope you like it.... More painted travel mementos to come!!

Oh yeah... the original features people instead of giraffes. I just couldn't resist putting an original spin on such an already cute design ;). 

Today I have a couple of new Notebook Series originals.

The two above are both 3 feet by 4 feet, Oil and Acrylic paint on Canvas. The first (yellow paper) features a line from "Alice in Wonderland", and the second (white paper) is from "The Little Prince". More to come, and a wonderful January SALE featuring the series!!

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!!!

Today we sold our lovely Turquoise Chandelier (a reclaimed Katrina fixture) to a beautiful couple living in CHICAGO!! I am so happy to have it find a home with them. They claimed to be smitten by its color and glamorous yet sophisticated lines, and I knew they were the ones by the horrified looks on their faces when I told them it originally had lampshades. "We're so glad you got rid of those," they said, and we all agreed it was for the best.

Will this signal the beginning of a jaunt into the fabulous world of home decor? Who knows. Though I am planning a scouting trip for furniture treasures this weekend, and have recently taken up a new hobby: voraciously devouring the content of Decor Demon, a lifestyle and design blog written and produced by Brian Patrick Flynn. Grab a cup of tea and head over to the site!!!

There's no denying that deer busts are hot right now. Inspired by the influx of antler-oriented home decor, I've started my own Deer Series of stags on stretched canvas. I look at it as a way to explore the trend and also attempt to capture the timeless beauty of these majestic beings. Also, 'tis the season of Reindeer, and with magazines featuring busts and xmas cards full of Rudolphs, it's hard not to be horny for antlers.

Here's a little preview:

If the trend is news to you, here's a little recap, courtesy of one of my favorite blogs (hellolittlebirdie!, aka hlb):

The team behind hlb
is amazingly adept at delivering just the right balance of inspiration and information. This is the roundup blogger Katrina offers on the head trend. 




I have to say, I agree with her on the mounted-head creep factor. Personally, I think game trophies are morbid and callous. Animal art, on the other hand, is a great way to appreciate nature and animals while also celebrating their right to life. You know, just saying...

Anyway, while deer busts are trendy at the moment, there have clearly been those who liked them before home stores like Anthropologie and West Elm brought them to design-discerning masses. For example, the Czechs apparently loved them; who knew? They used them to decorate the facade of the fabulous Hluboka Castle (above), a stunning Neo-Gothic behemoth situated on an ancient deer park. History says the residents used to hunt the deer, but let's not think about that. Thankfully, the decor was done in animal- and age-friendlly materials, making the busts animal art that is still lovable today. 

What do you think of this trend? Love it? Hate it? Stay tuned for more stag art, because no matter how polarizing, I am committed to the Deer Series!

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.