When I was living in Honduras in my 20’s I saw orchids growing in the wild, hanging off tree trunks and seemingly living on air. What an amazing creation they are. These pristine white orchid blooms had just a blush of pink. I love the fact that orchids bless us with their blossoms for such a long […]
Author: Jean Wilkey
Mounting linen on panel
A SMART person would mount linen on the panel before doing the painting. Well, evidently I’m not that person. I planned to send paintings to Australia that I painted on un-stretched linen so they could be rolled for shipping, but the customs requirements changed my mind and I sent smaller works instead. That left me with two completed […]
Nopal on Plate
Nopal on Plate is the second piece I sent to Australia and they’ve both arrived safely. (Many thanks to our US postal service!). In this painting I continued the idea I was exploring in Centerpiece I and Centerpiece II; that we appropriate elements from nature for our own uses. But if the other paintings were short story, these […]
Dissolve – Desert Willow blooms
One hot summer day I was delighted to find a native Desert Willow tree had popped up just outside my studio door. A volunteer! Of course the tree was unaware of how thrilled I was that it grew in the perfect spot to eventually provide shade for the studio. A Canale (rain gutter) coming off the roof provides moisture […]
Centerpiece II: Cholla and Desert Bird of Paradise
This is the second of the works I’ll show at Unsettled Gallery. Another table-scape in the desert, this time with Cholla cactus blooms and the tropical looking Desert Bird of Paradise. This spring we had 3 times our normal rainfall and the plants were loving it. For the first time since we moved to this house […]
Centerpiece I: Prickly Pear and Desert Willow
So if you follow my work, you know that for a while now I’ve been painting still life objects with landscape behind them. Sometimes patterned cloth emphasizes the division of space. In my latest effort the table stretches out ahead of the viewer like an infinity swimming pool. The cactus centerpiece gives way to a desert […]
Portrait of Louise
This is a portrait of my good friend, Louise, who visited us last February from Prince Edward Island, Canada (Home of Anne of Green Gables). She caught a break in the weather since it was sunny and warm while she was here even though it looked like this two weeks before she came. I made her […]
Time to get going on Wide Bay High Desert II
Wide Bay – High Desert II, is a joint exhibition between Bundaberg Regional Art Gallery in Queensland, Australia and Unsettled Gallery in New Mexico. I’m very excited I was invited to participate. And as usual, I’m already behind! There are 12 artists in all, 6 from each country, who will show two pieces at each venue, that relate to […]
Wall Flower in AWA Spring online show
I’m happy to share with you that my painting Wall Flower won a finalist award from among the 650 entries in the American Women Artist’s Spring Online exhibition. You can view all the work on their AWA Spring Online show feed. (They are alphabetical so mine is at the end).
My work featured in “exploring TOSCA”
I’m pleased to announce that my work is included in the Spring 2015 issue of the Minneapolis area arts magazine, “exploring TOSCA”. This is their fourth annual American Artists Series and this year I was chosen as the New Mexico artist of the year. How cool is that?! In each issue they feature several artists from […]
Blogging for Artists – the why and how
I want to share a lovely invitation from the Dona Ana Arts Council for a panel on blogging for artists that I’m honored to be a part of. Please join us if you’re in the area. Also, check out the classes and events at the end of the post. How important is blogging to an […]
My work in Southwest Art magazine
The January issue of Southwest Art magazine just arrived, and I’m so happy to see the article on my work. The magazine features some of the finalists from the 31st annual Artist’s Magazine competition. I’m so happy to be included and I feel so honored my work is shown among such wonderful artists.