Mark Kelso Art - Amhakia Studio

Moving Forward, Figuratively and Literally…

markadmin — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 19:25:10 +0000

Sharing My Journey:

Thought I might try something different here. I’m always mentally toying with various notions regarding my work, and art in general. After seeing first hand other collectors’ and artists’ enthusiasm for “shop talk,” I’m going to try a few blogs that include some very personal notes. These will be topics that are on my mind at the time of the blog entry, and will usually involve thoughts that pertain to my own artistic journey, including puzzles, struggles, moments of enlightenment, etc. Collectors sometimes think a professional artist has it “all worked out.” But I can tell you from experience, that the career of an artist is a constant journey of learning and discovery. We’re all at different stages, too, artist and collector alike. So, what I say here may be new to you, or it may be old news. But, anyway, for what it’s worth, we’ll give this a shot…

“Greater than the sum”

“Orange Appeel” – 8 x 10 Oil on Panel – $750.00

I recently did a small still life painting for Germanton Gallery at my booth space during the Waterfowl Festival in Easton, MD. While explaining various aspects of the painting – the subject being nothing more than a couple of oranges – I mentioned something to the crowd that actually gave me pause. I said “my goal is to make the painting about more than just simply oranges.” I suddenly became aware that, with every painting I do these days, the subject - although interesting in and of itself – is really a means to tackle some greater aesthetic and conceptual challenge. It’s not that this hasn’t crossed my mind before, but I’d never expressed the notion so clearly, or understood this idea to such an extent as I did with this little piece.

Within the painting, I was making all sorts of adjustments to what was actually before me. Though I still wanted the piece to be highly realistic, I was also softening edges, altering the values and color contrasts, and changing textures here and there as I saw fit. In explaining this, I realized that the painting was less about the subjects and more about these personal interpretations. So when the work was finished, it was about the beauty of the orange and blue hues, about the textural contrasts between the wood surface and the orange peels, about the glow of light amidst darkened surroundings, about the brush strokes themselves. It was these elements, these personal interpretations, that really gave the painting (which I feel was successful) it’s “uummph.”

So, at this stage, I’m trying to take that awareness with me into the next pieces that I do. It’s obvious to me now that I’m not simply trying to render well – although that’s certainly part of it – but, I’m trying to find something more, something personal, to say about whatever the subject is that I’m interpreting. A while back, a friend of mine Greg Beecham said “you need to find the poetry.” I now have a much better idea of what he meant.

Recent Events:

This fall was yet again a very busy (and fortunately, successful) time for me. I was once again invited to participate in the Carmel International Art Festival, held annually in the end of September in Carmel, IN. For the second year in a row, I was honored to have received the Mayor’s Choice award for my painting, “Quin – In Loving Memory.”

“Painti” – 18 x 24 Oil on Panel – Private Collection

A long-time collector and dear friend commissioned me for two new paintings. The first one (seen above) was completed a couple of months ago. I stayed very simple with the surrounding elements on this one to allow focus to remain on the Wild Dog, and it’s beautifully patterned coat. We were both very pleased with the final outcome of this piece; hopefully you’ll like it as well. I’m considering making canvas giclees of this image available soon. If you have any interest in purchasing one, please let me know.

This is probably the biggest tidbit of news, but it’s now official. Amhakia Studio has moved! My wife and I put our home up for sale late last spring, and despite the current downward trends in house sales, sold our home in the late summer. The new house includes a wonderful lower level for my studio, with a walk-out basement, fireplace, and wooded lot that I’m fortunate enough to enjoy each day.

New Release:

“The Steward of Malilangwe” - Limited Editon Paper Giclee – 16 x 20,
200 Signed and Numbered Prints: View Details

Newest Creations:

“The Prophet and the Planets” – 16 x 20 Oil on Panel
Available through the Evan Lurie Gallery

“New Kid in Town” – 18 x 24 Oil on Panel
Available through the Evan Lurie Gallery

“Fire and Ice” – Oil on Panel – $575.00

“Through the Leaf Litter” – 4 x 6 Oil on Panel – $575.00

Upcoming Events:

Germanton Gallery – 19th Annual Southwest Invitational Miniature ShowFriday, December 2 – Sunday, December 4th, 2011
www.germantongallery.com

Decoys and Wildlife Gallery – 2012 Annual Open House
Sunday, February 26, 2012, 1:00pm – 5:00pm
www.decoyswildlife.com

Southeastern
Wildlife Expo – Charleston, SC
February 17^th, 18^th, and 19^th
www.sewe.com

From Mountain Lions to Mountain Trails…

markadmin — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 17:36:39 +0000

View of The Grand Tetons
This spring and summer has been another busy period for me, but one of immense satisfaction in regards to my painting. While commission work has been constant, I’ve also taken a good bit of time to continue honing my wildlife subjects and the new looser approach I take in portraying them. The images below reflect some of my personal favorite images from the last few month’s work.

Mr. Doug Jennings – 18 x 24 Oil on Panel – Commission
This is an oil portrait of Doug Jennings, who retired this year as Head of School with Park Tudor, a private school system in my home town of Indianapolis, IN. The painting was commissioned in early Spring of this year, and completed in time for Mr. Jennings’ retirement ceremony in June.

Greenacres Art Center
Me with my feature Oil Painting for the show, The Parting – Oil on Panel – $12,000
I was honored this year to have received an invitation to exhibit with the prestigious Greenacres Foundation, in Cincinnati, OH. Following an extraordinarily successful exhibition with the international Society of Animal Artists, Greenacres is now hosting solo exhibitions with regional artists of national and international repute. The facility and location turned out to be of the highest caliber with wonderful organizers, and overwhelming community support. I was delighted to have had the opportunity to exhibit there.

Me and my wife, Ruth, horseback riding in the Tetons
Swan Lake along the horse trail in Grand Teton National Park

I was also lucky enough to spend some time in Jackson, WY just recently. Jackson has become a Mecha for wildlife artists and collectors from abroad, with numerous fine art galleries representing some of the finest Wildlife Art, Landscape, and American Western art anywhere in world. And then, of course, there’s the Grand Tetons – doesn’t get much better for someone who paints imagery of nature. Like they say, it’s a dirty job, but…well, you know the rest.

And finally…a few of my recent Wildlife Oil Paintings:

Dappled – 12 x 16 Oil on Panel – $2,500

Dining In the Shallows – 18 x 24 Oil on Panel – $4,750

The Golden Boys – 16 x 20 Oil on Panel – $4,000

Experimentation…

markadmin — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 13:56:31 +0000

“The Space Invaders” – 8″ x 16″ – Oil on Panel
My frequent forays into new methods of painting and new subjects has continued this winter with fervor. The first example I’d like to share with you is the the painting above, The Space Invaders. After my first piece involving building toys (posted in the previous blog), the Evan Lurie Gallery asked me to complete a second painting for an exhibition in Palm Beach, FL. Though it will be a while before we know how the paintings will eventually be received, I’ve really enjoyed the creation process and the nostalgic subject matter, and there are more paintings in this style and subject planned for the spring and summer. For anyone interested in these works, they can contact the Even Laurie Gallery for more information.

Meanwhile, with the approach of my participation in the Southeastern Wildlife Expo in Charleston, SC, I’m continuing to experiment with a looser approach to my wildlife portraiture. I’m excited about this new combination of tight brush work in the focal areas, and looser, more energetic work around the perimeters of the paintings. My goal is to strike a balance between the textural information that I love so much with my photorealistic work, while maintaining a sense of energy within the image.

To emphasize the drama, I’m also pushing the value contrasts and allowing certain portions of the subject to blend with their surroundings. This adjustment to lighting and edges works with the more energetic brush strokes to create a sense of drama that fully-rendered, highly-detailed works just can’t achieve. I’m thinking at this point, it might also be fun to move from static portraiture of the animal subjects to action poses, or multiple subjects that are interacting with one another…time will tell on that one.

In the mean time, here are some of the recent paintings I’ve completed in preparation for my upcoming exhibition with the Southeastern Wildlife Expo…

“Efulgence” – 18″ x 24″ – Oil on Panel – $4,000

“Sequestered” – 8 x 10 – Oil on Panel – $975

“Out of The Shadows” – 18 x 24 – Oil on Panel – $4,000

Passions Collide!

markadmin — Mon, 29 Nov 2010 23:43:35 +0000

“In Days of Old” – 8″ x 16″ – Oil on Panel
Anyone who knows me, may also know that I have an absolute passion for building with…well, as a part of our agreementment, I promised the company that I wouldn’t use their name in discussing the painting…so I’ll just say “a certain kind of ABS plastic.” I was introduced to the hobby as a child, and returned to it a few years ago when I found countless adult enthusiasts out in cyberspace. (If you’re curious, several of my creations can be found HERE.)

Meanwhile, a gallery recently asked me to try my hand at a subject other than wildlife in the photorealistic style of painting. After some considerable searching for subjects, I finally realized that I’ve always tried to paint what I was passionate about. And so – with a little trepidation about such an unusual subject for a painting – I turned to my hobby for inspiration. Personally, I’m thrilled with the outcome. Time will tell if there’s a market for such imagery, but regardless, it was an absolute joy to combine my love for painting with the joy I find in building with…darn…can’t say the name!

“The Orchid” (working title) – 24″ x 36″ – Acrylic on Panel

The month of November also saw the completion of a painting I’ve been working on for over a year. A wonderful client of mine asked for a very unique kind of painting featuring an Orchid. The painting also included other unusual elements including, of all things, another painting. The work turned out to be one of the most challenging pieces I’ve ever tackled. But it was also a true delight to work so closely with the client throughout the process and find our way together, and I’m very proud to add this piece to my portfolio.

Busy, busy, busy, busy, busy…

markadmin — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 16:54:24 +0000

While I admit the economy has certainly impacted my sales, it seems the schedule – at least for the time being – is still firing on all cylinders. For an artist, that’s a wonderful thing!

So, to begin with…For those of you hoping for my early demise so your art might go up in value, I regret to inform you that I made it through my excursion to Wyoming without getting shot by angry locals, or getting eaten by bears. Better luck next time! Meanwhile, my days in Wyoming were filled to the brim with beautiful scenery, and wonderful people (but not necessarily the other way around, as the picture of these three hooligans below would indicate!).
In addition to teaching for the SKB Foundation’s annual artist’s workshop in Dubois, I found time to paint on location around the Tetons with fellow artists (David Slonam, and Caleb Goggans above with yours truly). I also managed to get into Jackson during the town’s annual Art Festival, to harass some of my peers as they participated in the annual quick draw event on the town square (which, by the way, is FAR more dangerous than messing with the bears!). All in all it was a wonderful time, and I returned home having made several new friends, and having been inspired to hit the easel with gusto!

The following week I exhibited with the Carmel International Arts Festival, and was fortunate to once again receive an award. This year I received the Mayor’s Choice Award for my painting “Hover,” and an invitation to participate once again in next years juried event. They must be real gluttons for punishment!

The next week had me teaching a workshop with Artistic Designs Gallery, and then it was finally back to the easel for some long awaited studio painting time. Here’s the latest…

“Maggie and George” (dog portrait commission)

Lady In Red #2″ (for the Master’s Gallery, Waterfowl Festival, Easton, MD)

Thanks for checking in, and keep your eyes peeled for the next update – involving barn painting, figure painting, and a bit of inhumane torturing of new art students, MMMMWWHHAAA-HA-HA-HA-HA!!!!

Some Easel Action…

markadmin — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 13:31:23 +0000

September is always a busy month around here. Tomorrow, I hit the friendly skies for what’s become an annual pilgrimage to the Tetons region in Wyoming; one of wildlife art’s true “Meccas” for subject matter. There, I’ll travel to DuBois to teach an annual workshop with the SKB Foundation, working with both high school students and adults, and painting in the field. I know…It’s dirty job, but someone’s got to do it!

So look for updates on those events in the coming weeks. But meanwhile, this September is also seeing a lot of action at the easel, and I thought you might enjoy seeing what’s on the horizon for new paintings…

This is a 24 x 36 oil on canvas piece that I’ve started just in the last week, and I’m continuing my return to oils after several years of working in acrylics. With this painting, I’ll once again be striving to break away from complete detail throughout the image, and include de-emphasized areas, and visible brush work. My long-term goal with this new approach is to strike a balance between the extremely tight photo-realism that I’m recognized for, and the looser contemporary work I’ve been experimenting with for some time now. In the end, I hope to fuse the two styles so as to create work that not only captures areas of detail, texture, and realism, but simultaneously retains a slight painterly quality and an essence of the energy that goes into it’s creation.

I’m also coming close to completing this 24 x 36 acrylic piece. A commission for a wonderful cleint and friend of mine in Virginia, this painting has been a lengthy project, and some of the most challenging detailed commission work I’ve ever been faced with. I have to admit, though, that I’m particularly excited about this piece as it’s coming closer and closer to completion. Each element within the painting has a special meaning to my client, and the time and care I’ve taken to accurately portray each subject is really starting to pay off. Once completed, I’m looking forward to adding this to my portfolio of commission pieces to illustrate what I can offer not only in the way of portrait work, but still life subjects as well.

And finally, I’m also working on this painting of a client’s two dogs, Maggie (the Lab) and George (the Boston). This one, an 11 x 14, is also in acrylic and done in my photorealistic style. One of the things I enjoy so much about commissions is working with the clients. This one in particular brought about several LOL moments with the faces George was making while having to pose for reference pictures! We finally got what we needed, though, and hopefully when all is said and done the client will have a painting of their beloved canine family members that they can treasure for a lifetime…and George can finally relax!

Heading West

markadmin — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 12:16:39 +0000

For the past several years, I’ve been exhibiting and teaching in the Western United States. And like so many other artists within my circles that have been exposed to the beauty of the American West, I have taken a strong interest in painting it. Constant exposure to such artists as Thomas Moran, Wilson Hurley, Cylde Aspevig, Albert Bierstadt, Bill Anton, and many others has led me back to the easel to experiment with subject matter and technique.

My most recent show, with Artistic Designs Gallery in Brownsburg, IN, highlighted several new paintings of mine that featured a looser, more painterly approach, including several field studies, and subject matter emphasizing Western landscapes, where I’ve been spending so much of my time as of late. Here are some of the newest works from that exhibition.

“Trouble in Paradise” – Moraine Lake – 36 x 48 Oil on Canvas – $12,000.00

“Trouble in Paradise – Moraine Lake” (Detail)

“The Rising” – Tetons National Park – 18 x 24 Oil on Board – $3,500.00

“Cascade Canyon Study #1″ – 11 x 14 Oil on Board – $975.00

“The Baptism” – Glacier National Park – 24 x 36 Oil on Board – $8,000.00

And a few new paintings from the studio…

“Courthouse Falls” – North Carolina – 12 x 16 Oil on Board – $1,500.00

“Autumn on the Oxbow” – Tetons National Park – 12 x 16 Oil on Board – SOLD

“Size Matters” – Bull Moose – Acrylic on Board – SOLD

Painting From Life

markadmin — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 11:22:28 +0000

For the last several years, the onset of spring has also meant the onset of artists for a small town called Germanton, which lies just outside of Winston-Salem, NC. The Germanton Gallery once again hosted their annual spring Plein Air paint out this past April, and artists such as Luke Buck, Scott Burdick, Susan Lyon, Heiner Hertling, Andre Lucero, and many others, gathered to paint the peaceful landscapes, buildings, and people of the Stokes County community.

The weather proved to be some of the best we’ve ever had, and while I couldn’t resist hitting one of my favorite waterfalls for a couple days of absolute bliss (there’s no place I’d rather be than near waterfalls!), I also took some time to branch out with my subjects and compositions, and work outside of my usual comfort zone. Here are some examples of the work I produced for the week. If anyone is interested in purchasing one of these originals, simply contact me at (317) 862-0966, and I’ll be glad to make arrangements with the Gallery in Germanton.

“Into the Looking Glass” (Looking Glass Falls, North Carolina) – 12 x 16 Oil – $1,200

“Winds of Change” (Crabapple Tree, North Carolina) – 10 x 18 Oil – $1,200

“Turkish Memories” (Still Life, North Carolina) – 11 x 14 Oil – $975

Awards, Rewards, and Then Back to the Boards

bwhalen — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 11:37:02 +0000

As the summer of 2009 came to a close and progressed into Fall, the schedule here at Amhakia Studio was kicked into high gear! In mid-September I had the opportunity to spend a very rewarding week in Dubois, Wyoming teaching with the Susan K. Black Foundation and fellow artist, Wanda Mumm. Each year the SKB foundation holds a workshop for professional artists, as well as supporting a local high school art education program that runs during the week-long workshop. Wanda and I divided our time, working with the adults, and instructing in the high school class room teaching principles of composition, color, values, and painting techniques. The highlight of the week for me was the day when the professional artists from the SKB workshop were paired with the high school kids for a day of plein air painting. The level of enthusiasm from both the mentoring adults and the high school kids was astounding, and the work the kids produced was exceptional. And, while it was a very busy week working with the students and the adults, I was also able to take some time to paint in the field, and talk shop with other professional artists from around the U.S.

The following week I was back in my home town of Indianapolis, IN to participate in one of Indy’s premier art events, The Carmel International Arts Festival. The quality of the Festival has continued to grow through the years, and the work at the show this year was some of the best I’d ever seen there. That made it all the more surprising and gratifying when I was presented with an honorable mention from the jury, as well being the recipient of the Artist’s Choice Award. Not a bad way to cap off the summer!

And now as we head into the holidays, I’ve got the nose to the grindstone (fortunately my nose is pretty big, so it can take a little grinding down!) finishing commissions, and preparing for more exhibitions, including the annual Waterfowl Festival in Easton, MD, and Germanton Gallery’s annual miniature show. Here are a few new pieces that visitors will be seeing at these shows…

At The Lake’s Edge – 8 x 10 – $975.00

Amidst the Lillies – 8 x 10 – $975.00

And a few of my contemporary works…

Breaking the Silence – 18 x 24 – $1500.00

Taking Flight – 16 x 20 – $975.00

Tondi – 16 x 20 – $1200.00

Thanks for stopping by, and here’s hoping you have a very Happy 2009 holiday season! See ya in 2010!