A Loyal Fan

Let me introduce you to Blake “The Biter”, one of my greatest fans, who entered my Oreo Cookie Contest this year and in the past. You can see how much thought and care he has given to his bite, and how proud he is of his entry, which broke into 3 pieces and has plenty of crumbs (we like crumbs!)

DSCN2779

Blake and his father stopped by early Saturday, the first day my home studio was open, to take a bite. Then they came back late Sunday afternoon to check out the competition. I don’t think Blake was happy to see so many other entries, and he sure did analyze them carefully.  Good luck, Blake!

The Team

As in most successful endeavors, there is a support team who works behind the scenes. A special thank you goes to my family for their help on my Open Studio weekend. My husband, Jay, cheerfully ran a seemingly endless list of errands leading up to the event, and my youngest daughter, Bonnie, handled many of the numerous nitty gritty details and helped keep me organized (the teacher in her came out!).

Bonnie,Beverly,Jay

Given that I am a food painter, no occasion passes by without serving food. What do you think we offered besides Oreos? Desserts, of course! Bonnie was in charge of the edible food (how did that healthy looking fruit sneak onto the table?). She is an accomplished baker, as you can see from the Chocolate Cherry Trifle hanging on the wall that she whipped up for me to paint.

DSCN2760

Finally, I want to thank Maritza who helped with the setup and graciously manned the Oreo Cookie Contest table for two days.

Maritza Perez

You all made a great team and I couldn’t have done this without you!

Oreo Cookie Contest

To all of you who came to my Open Studio and enthusiastically “took a bite” to enter my Oreo Cookie Contest, I want to thank you for your participation and wish you good luck!

Now the process begins to select the top Oreo Cookies finalists. It will be particularly challenging this year since there were so many contestants with creative ideas on how to bite an Oreo. There are almost too many great choices – if such a thing is possible.

DSCN2990
The first step is to perfect the lighting across the Oreos. My favorite paintings usually have dramatic interplay of lights and darks along cracked surfaces – and lots of extra crumbs! Then I photograph each cookie for safe keeping.

After many years of painting Oreos, I have found that having a visual record of the initial concept is important. The light in my studio changes dramatically from morning to afternoon, shifting the highlights and shadows, which is not optimal. I have new empathy for the French Impressionists who started their outdoor paintings in a particular place at a specific time of day, and then went back daily at the same time to the same spot until they finished.

Open Studio

DSCN2733

Thank you everyone for coming to my Open Studio and making it such a successful event! The turnout was great, the questions insightful, and the feedback meaningful. I thoroughly enjoyed talking with all of you.

Having the opportunity to dialog with you always opens up the doors to new ideas, creative directions, and potential explorations. Certainly that was the case and it is much appreciated.

Hope you come back again soon!
 

Bev’s First Bite

Welcome to Bev’s Bites of Life!

I’m Beverly, a dessert painter and art historian who lives and works in Westchester County, NY. To me, art is more than paint strokes on a canvas. It’s about inspiration. Here I will share everything that piques my interest – from art shows in NYC galleries and museums, to bakeries and food, along with slices of my family life. I also want to hear about what drives you! I would love to open communication with my readers and build a community so we can exchange ideas and inspire each other.

Feel free to introduce yourself in the comments section. Looking forward to “meeting”  you!