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Daily Painting

4/28/2022

I may have contracted "writers' block"...or is it "writers' blog block"?? Either way, my monthly blog fell by the wayside. I'm going to attribute it to my husband's retirement... whatever. The good news is I am still painting regularly and have work to show for it. If you are on my Instagram or Facebook pages, you may have seen what I've been doing; lots of small quick paintings with a limited palette. This is one of the painting exercises we are taught to do daily, if possible. Most are pretty basic "studies" and nothing to write home about. Keep up the habit and skills will improve, with good drawing, composition, values, and colors. I'm learning to free myself from expectations and finding a new flow, with the aim of expressing my unique voice amidst the myriad of painters out there.

BIG NEWS!! I have second website (in addition to wendyervin.com) specifically for the small paintings that I love to do. I'll be adding paintings to that gallery page often and the prices will not be over $150, with most being under $100. The PayPal link will be right there for easy purchasing, safe and secure. I'm going to be bold here and say that you need original art in your home. It doesn't have to be big or expensive, and I'm doing my part to make it affordable. Here's the link to my DailyPaintworks Gallery:
https://www.dailypaintworks.com/Artists/wendy-ervin-14174

You don't need to join DailyPaintworks to make a purchase, but you must have a PayPal account. If you don't do PayPal, just contact me and we'll work it out. Here are a few of the paintings available:

As always, thank you for reading my blog! Your thoughts and words are so important to me!!

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Chilly January

1/28/2022

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Winter has taken over Middle Tennessee and between the snow, cold temps, and ongoing pandemic, we have pretty much been hibernating indoors. That's given me some very decent painting hours and cheery results:

Three little 5x7 paintings of our oldest grandson, age 7, enjoying his favorite summer sport and blowing us away at his skills! I'm giving these to him for his birthday this weekend. My favorite part about figurative paintings is capturing the cast shadows; a bright, sunny day and white uniform pants really helped me out.

Shifting to a less animated, but still adorable, figurative subject: this cheerful piece I painted from a photo reference I took in Mexico a couple of years ago. I worked on a smaller earlier version which helped me immensely to get better drawing skills so the VW wouldn't look wonky. This 12x16 did go through a couple of wonky stages, but I learned a little trick that helps me see problems as they arise. Taking a photo of the painting and flipping it horizontally allows me to see it in a fresh way, because the human eye and mind get so used to the painting that it just doesn't see the odd mistakes. Here is "Hot Little Cool Bug" 12x16 oil on panel:

Unfortunately, my painting hours have recently been curtailed by a gimpy arm :( The sore right shoulder that I've been nursing along the past few months turned out to be more messed up than expected and I had to have surgery on it last week. So this is my fate for a few weeks...and I don't think painting left-handed is a good idea🥴

Thank you for reading my blog and Happy New Year!

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Juggling all the things...

12/2/2021

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After our daughter's wedding I was ready to jump back into creating art and participating in a couple of seasonal shows. Much to my surprise, I have art in FOUR shows now and starting soon! It helps that many art shows have moved to an online presence, making this kind of situation possible. You can see what art shows I'm in HERE and HERE and HERE.

This is a small sample of art in the various shows. You can go through the links to purchase or contact me if you have any questions. Original art is an excellent gift for Christmas!

Current library display...runs through December.

As always, thanks for reading my blog! I wish you all blessed holidays!

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On-Line Art Show

11/7/2021

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Yes, another art show for your viewing and shopping pleasure! This fine arts show is the only fundraiser held by Peninsula, a mental health care provider for Eastern Tennessee. I have participated in person in past years, but because of the several hour distance from where I live, I am able happily joining the event digitally.

Here is the link to my live gallery: https://artsclamation.mybigcommerce.com/wendy-ervin/

The virtual artists are limited to 10 items; purchases will be shipped FedEx from the artist's location. Several of my paintings are framed, some are unframed panels or on 2" gallery wrap canvas, which do not require framing.

Thanks for viewing and stay tuned...more art show announcements coming up. Happy creating!

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Benefit Art Show this weekend!

11/1/2021

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We love our natural areas! Especially when they are in the middle of urban cities; mini oases of serenity and beauty. One great way to preserve and protect them is to support the mission of those serving to sustain these precious lands. You can join the effort through purchasing art created and inspired by the Nashville treasure that is Radnor Lake State Park. The Chestnut Group Plein Air Painters for the Land have partnered with Friends of Radnor Lake to hold a stunning benefit Art Show & Sale this weekend, November 5-7, 9:30-5:30, at Walter Criley Visitor Center at Radnor Lake (1160 Otter Creek Road, Nashville) A significant portion of all art sales go directly to the preservation projects for this natural area.

This is a win-win-win for all: Radnor Lake area receives much needed support, artists delightfully sell original paintings, and YOU get a beautiful new painting for your enjoyment. What could be better?

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the one thing

10/31/2021

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In the last few weeks I have discovered the one thing that is able to eclipse my passion for painting (and, by default, my enjoyment of sharing thoughts in this blog) and that one thing is my only daughter's wedding! The Covid 19 pandemic compelled us, for the safety of our beloved family and friends, to postpone for an extra year, but thanks be to God, we were able to have a safe and happy wedding earlier this month! Here are some photos of our delightful day:

Post wedding was a lovely season of rest and time with dear friends, walking the beach and being still and quiet. Now refreshed, I'm painting once again and preparing for three upcoming art shows in the next few weeks. The first one begins in 5 days! Expect another blog very soon!

Thanks for sharing my beautiful wedding joy!

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Art to Aid: Tennessee Flood Relief Art Auction

8/30/2021

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Just over a week ago, communities in Humphreys County, 60 miles west of Nashville, experienced a devastating torrential rain that quickly became a nightmare of flooding and destruction. Heartbreaking stories of damage and loss of lives have left Waverly, Tennessee in desperate need of help.

Several friends immediately began putting together another Art To Aid art auction & sale, similar to a previous effort that raised thousands of dollars for areas damaged by Hurricane Michael in 2018. All the paintings have been 100% donated by artists from all parts of the U.S. and all funds raised will go to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, a leader in this area for responding quickly to urgent needs. Our hope and aim is to use our art to make a tangible difference in the lives of the flood survivors.

Visit 32auctions-Tennessee Flood Relief here The auction will only last for ONE WEEK so don't delay. Here is a shortcut to view all the paintings available, listed alphabetically by title. You can also make a monetary donation if you prefer. Together we truly will make a difference! #TNStrong #ArtMatters #GiveGenerously

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Tomato Season

7/30/2021

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It's that time of year once again: tomato painting season! It gives me a chance to experiment and have a little fun coming up with new ideas after all the previous tomato paintings I've done. This year my works are an eclectic batch and I am ok with that! I've been putting more figures in my paintings, so there is one of a child harvesting the ripening crop. The basketful of color was inspired by a visit to the farmers' market and also by a very teal-painted vintage frame I've been saving for something just like this. For the sliced tomato, I set up a still life of a tomato sliced and resting on a board. After a few days the still life was sagging and runny and basically inedible, so it did not make it into the salad. I do love the simplicity of the composition. I may do more still life paintings in this style in the future.

We're All In This Together 11x11 oil on panel in a matching teal vintage frame $300

Slice of Life 10x8 oil on panel in cream colored hand painted and wax hand rubbed vintage frame. $250

First Harvest 6x6 oil on panel in a custom oversized solid wood frame $175

These are all heading to East Nashville to be hung in the annual Tomato Festival Art Show August 13 & 14. As in previous years, they may continue the art show online. Here is all 3 paintings in their fun frames:

Happy Summer, y'all ☀️ Thanks for reading my blog!

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You Can Buy Art OnLine!

7/16/2021

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Last month's Painting to Preserve Art Show was a wonderful success! The venue at Montgomery Bell Academy was stellar and a beautiful backdrop to nearly 500 professional paintings. If you did not have a chance to visit and view that weekend, you are in luck: the art show and sale is now available online until the end of July.

The Chestnut Group Online event continues here through Saturday July 31, 2021
Painting to Preserve ART SHOW & SALE celebrates The Chestnut Group’s 20-year artistic journey across middle Tennessee’s natural landscapes and historical properties. Our Chestnut members have served as active fundraisers and proud partners to more than 25 local organizations and institutions dedicated to the common goals of Conservation, Education, and Community. Proceeds from the sale will benefit the artist, the mission of The Chestnut Group and the student financial aid fund of MBA, who welcomed us into their gallery space for our live event in June. Please enjoy these plein air paintings of middle Tennessee, including some of the MBA campus.

https://chestnutgroupshow.com

You can view the artwork by clicking on this link and selecting "Catalog" from the menu on the new page. You can also choose to see individual artist works from the "All products" dropdown menu on the Products page. Here are my offerings (wink wink)

At the art show opening with my artist buddies, Renee and Ellen

Thank you, as always, for reading my blog!

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Upcoming Art Show:: June 25-27

6/22/2021

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Painting to Preserve Art Show and Sale

The Chestnut Group Plein Air Painters are presenting a massive Art Show & Sale this weekend at Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville with 500 paintings of beautiful Tennessee by 70 different member artists. These are my 10 contributions to this show and their locations in Middle Tennessee: