How can you resist this face?

   Loki is such a beautiful dog and the reason I love painting pet portraits.  I met his owner on a plane and like any good "father", he was carrying pictures of his "hairy son" on his phone.  As we began swapping pictures of our dogs, I knew I would be painting Loki's sweet face.  This portrait almost painted itself.  It's done in watercolor on 1/2 sheet of Arches  140 lb. paper.  It was important to capture the light coming through his eyes  and the softness of his fur.

This is Coal.  He is a Pekinese that belongs to a close friend of mine.  Though he is little he is fierce and he reminds me of a little lion.  I exaggerated his fur and let it drip down so it looks like mane.  He doesn't roar but he looks quite regal with his long flowing locks! 

Remember to get ready for Valentines day by ordering a pet portrait .   Call me at 541-206-2677 and we can get something started  using pictures off your iPhone,   

Neon Daydreams - ruminations on painting the Lou and Ev's Chicken sign

  Even posting this photo of one of my most recent neon paintings for the Jacobs Gallery show floods me with childhood memories.  My dad worked hard at several manual labor jobs to keep a roof over our heads and food in the fridge.  When he wanted to treat us to dinner out, one of his favorite restaurants was Lou and Ev's.  They served the best fried chicken dinner in town.  Looking at this sign I can almost see the checkered tablecloths and smell the aroma of fresh baked chicken!  This was a sign that turned heads too.  The colorful neon, the giant chicken holding its platter high in the sky-  always made me turn to stare at it as we went down the road.  When starting this neon series I longed to find a picture of it and to my delight, found it fully restored and hanging inside a local restaurant as decor!  What a thrill to paint this.  I'm hoping it will be as much fun for people to see in my show as it was to paint.  It's a full sheet watercolor (22x30) painted on Arches 140lb. Paper.

  

   Still working on this one- almost time to switch gears from painting to framing.  Phew, this series is more work than I thought it would be.  This sign is on Oahu and is a subtle tangle of tubing, reflections and highlights.  I'm hoping to make the glass light bulbs a point of interest when it's all said and done.  There may be a late nite painting session in my near future. 

    I've been reading art biz blogs lately in my quest to become a full time artist and they all say the same thing-  making a living selling art is hard work.  My dad used to tell me anything worthwhile is worth working for.  He certainly lived those words and even though he's gone, I still hear his words in my head when I think I'm too tired to try anymore.  All the successful artists I know worked for years to develop their skills and their influence over many years.  Our best days are ahead of us.  We can write our own story by painting what we love and not forgetting that it's not called "artwork" for nothing.  Do you smell fried chicken?

New Website- joneileemery.com

  May is rushing up to meet me.  That's the month my show opens at the Jacob's Gallery in Eugene, Oregon.  As you could guess, I'm beginning to feel the pressure of matting, framing and completing all those paintings.  It's all about the vintage neon signs I've been so fascinated with.  I've been pursuing this theme for over a year and even though they are so technical in nature, I have not become too tired of them-  I still get excited when I find a new prospect to paint.  I'm currently painting some signs found right here in Eugene.  I'm hoping that will generate some hometown excitement for the show.

   Part of being ready for this is having good contact info and that means I needed to create a website that shows my work in easy to browse categories.   I built this site with a company called Fine Art Studios Online or FASO.com.  Check out all my work by clicking on the link , joneileemery.com 

   I'm doing two demos in January, both on Thursday!  One will be for an art group in Junction City, and the other will be for the art guild I belong to- Pacific Rim Art Guild in Eugene.  I'm looking forward to celebrating the unique things watercolor can do with both groups of artists.  That's the best part of collaborating together.  We get to share what we feel passionate about and encourage others to pursue theirs!  Everyone has something they know how to do.  What's your passion?  Find someone you can encourage.  How refreshing to have somebody say to you, "You could do this.  I want to see what you will do."  Be the one to blow wind into someone else's sails and watch them succeed!