A friend recently posted on facebook that WalMart is opening to shoppers at 6pm on Thanksgiving Day. Black Friday is now Black Thursday. Sadly, it will soon no longer be a day of gratitude but simply another day of commerce. Thanksgiving is meant for being with those you love and to show gratitude for their […]
Author: Jean Wilkey
Understand art by knowing yourself
Becky Hendrick, who for years wrote art reviews and criticism for Art Lies and other regional and national art publications, is a wonderful educator with a talent for engaging students. Her inspired book on art appreciation, Getting It: A Guide to Understanding and Appreciating Art, is unique in the field and written to involve students in their own […]
Rescued – pomegranates on gold plate
I found an entire pomegranate tree discarded in the desert when I was out walking my dogs. It still had many pomegranates on the tree. I was struck by how the entire tree with its luscious fruits was discarded, treated as refuse. Maybe they couldn’t see the beauty in the fruit whose skin was scarred […]
A Tuscan style studio view
Homes in New Mexico have Canales instead of downspout gutters. These are basically just holes with a metal u-shaped lip where the water pours off the house in a torrent on the few days a year when we get rain – usually in the form of flash flooding. This all began in trying to address […]
Grecian urn with green apple
Ok, I confess, I borrowed this urn from the still life closet at school. I love the aged matte surface, the antique quality of the tones and texture. It was hanging around my studio for some time before I did anything with it. Months in fact. Often I find I have to look at an […]
Oil Painting and Professional Development classes
This fall I’ll once again be offering painting classes at my studio. You can see the details by clicking the classes tab in the left sidebar. OIL PAINTING beginning to advanced, will be on Wednesday evenings from 6:30-9:00pm. Space is limited so enroll soon. Beginners will paint from observation and more advanced students will paint according to their needs […]
Two mallards and three lemons
I recently finished this painting of two mallard duck planters with a bird nest on top. Much of my work revolves around looking at material representations of the natural world, one aspect of how we relate to and represent nature in our culture. Lately, I’ve been working with ceramic animal planters, mostly because it’s easy […]
My summer painting class
Last Friday, I finished teaching a beginning painting class during the summer session at NMSU. Fourteen students enrolled but 4 never showed and we lost two more due to unforseen health issues. Because it was a small and intimate class, the students became much friendlier and chatty with each other earlier on in the semester than […]
And the free print contest winner is…
The free print contest winner is Cody Jimenez, a fellow NM artist (which saves me the postage). So, congratulations Cody and thanks to all who participated in the print contest by signing up to my list. If you have ideas for other contests please give me your suggestions in the comments. I put the names […]
White rabbit with apricots
White Rabbit with Apricots, oil on panel, 14×11 in. Today is the last day to sign up for the free print contest. You can sign up using the form in the sidebar or click here. This is the painting featured in my monthly newsletter which you also get for signing-up. I’m featuring in-progress images of […]
Enter to win a print of my artwork
I’m running a contest to win a print of my artwork, Designer Des(s)ert bunnies, to build interest in my newly launched newsletter. To be eligible, you must sign-up by 31 July. I’ll announce the winner on this blog and in the August 15th newsletter. There are three ways to enter Subscribe to my email newsletter by […]
Join an exclusive group. Sign up for my newsletter
I delayed for the longest starting a studio news letter because of the associations I have with the word ‘newsletter’ which conjure up memories of my mother doing the church bulletin on a mimeograph machine and later a spirit duplicator or ditto machine (yes, I am old enough to remember them). It was not exciting looking. […]