I am exhibiting the whole body of dessert paintings in my collection from Riviera Bakehouse, formerly in Ardsley, (now known as The Bakehouse at Tarrytown) this coming weekend:
To help you plan your action packed Artists’ Studio Tour weekend, click here to see a printable map of the 70 participating artists located in the 6 river towns on the Tour – Hastings-on-Hudson, Dobbs Ferry, Ardsley, Irvington, Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow.
An interactive map is also available here on the RiverArts Studio Tour site. You can search by village.
Personally, I find the paper map much more useful at this point for planning purposes. You can see the visuals for each artist at one glance. Then you choose the studios you want to visit based on your personal taste. The interactive map might be more useful on the day of the tour as you drive between locations.
Finally, I will have some printed maps available this weekend. And I’m happy to help you plan your tour. Please feel free to email me at beverlyshipko@mac.com if I can help in any way.
For those of you who were unable to join us in May at the Scarsdale Library or on zoom, I invite you to watch the video below of my talk, A Bite-Size View Of Food in Art.
As you will see, the talk covers many highlights of the long standing, irresistible tradition of incorporating food in art, going back thousands of years to the present, including my own work. This bite-size view provides the context of how I see my own paintings, with a brief nod to Ikebana.
A Bite-Size View of Food in Art with Beverly Shipko
This video marks the inauguration of my very own YouTube channel. It was surprisingly easy to set up with Bonnie’s help. Thank you for leading me into the 21st century!
So come take a byte out of my YouTube Channel! You’ll have good time salivating over numerous food images and won’t put on any weight by watching. And as I promised a gentleman in the audience, it won’t raise your insulin levels.
Calling all foodies! You will love this show of over 60 delectable paintings and prints – 90 if you count all the little mounted 5 x 7 and 6 x 6 panel paintings. In a way, it feels like a retrospective. You’ll see everything your heart desires – from cakes, pies, tarts, cookies, candy, vending snacks, fruit, vegetables – except meat (I’m working on that…)
Here I am at the Scarsdale Public Library, enjoying the fruits of my labor.
Thank you to Webmaster Laura for taking this lovely photo when you visited the Scarsdale Public Library last week! When Laura walked in and looked around the big room, she was visibly surprised, almost stunned (which surprised me!). She exclaimed, Wow, Mom! This is great…. This is a giant room and you filled it! …It’s like seeing old friends.
Laura was happy that she came up from the city (she was virtual for the May 7th talk). And you can’t help but be happy at this show. Everyone walks away smiling! 🙂 Especially little kids.
Webmaster Laura with one of her favorite paintings, Patisserie (oil, 36 x 48 inches).
This is a family friendly exhibit. Bring your kids and grandkids, who will be captivated. What smiles they had! Wish I had taken photos. However, permission would have been needed to post them.
Logistics
Additionally, the flyer below has all the details. The library is open 7 days a week, and until 9pm on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
Finally, parking is plentiful. Just in case you want more information, click here for the Scarsdale Library website.
So please stop by to take a bite! The good news is that you have 6 more days to visit. If you would like, I can meet you at the library. Just let me know when.
P.S. This has been a wonderful few weeks. My only regret is that the show has to come down… as all shows do…
I hope you can join us for my Bitesize View of Food in Art Talk and Solo Art Exhibit at the Scarsdale Public Library on May 7th from 4:30-6pm (54 Olmsted Road, Scarsdale, NY 10583).
This is a chef’s tour of food in art history from prehistoric and ancient times, the Golden Age of Dutch Still Life, to contemporary art. All in 45 minutes. So are you up for the challenge? I promise it will be entertaining. Only I’ll put on my artist’s beret instead of a chef’s cap. Plus I’ll tap into my aspirations to be an art history professor.
Along the way you’ll see how I view my own work in this context.
A reception will follow the talk. While the official event ends at 6pm, I’ll hang out at the library until 6:30pm.
The exhibit will run from Wednesday, May 1 through Wednesday, May 22.
Registration
Click here to register and scroll down to the bottom. Select your preferred option. Note you can come back and change this if needed, or re-register.
While we are asking you to register, please don’t let this stop you from coming the last minute. Just come right over. The more, the merrier! If you don’t receive the zoom link by 3:30pm on May 7th, please call the Scarsdale Library Reference Desk at 914-722-1302. They will email the link directly to you.
Parking
It’s plentiful!
With Gratitude
Thank you to the Scarsdale Public Library for hosting this event. I’ll begin with a shoutout to a very special lady and friend, Claudette Gassler, Programing Librarian. A year ago, Claudette came up with the idea of a combination talk and solo show. And she waited patiently for my torn meniscus to heal. In addition, thanks to Roberta Ham-Stein, Support Services Administrator/Librarian who helped coordinate the logistics. Last but not least, kudos to David Sadoff, Programming Librarian, who creatively used his tech abilities to make this a hybrid event and bring me out from behind the podium, onto the stage, and into my comfort zone.
Now I would be remiss if I didn’t thank my daughter, Bonnie Sloofman. After a hard day’s work, she is providing refreshments following the talk at the reception.
As always, I appreciate hearing from you. So please let me know if you have any questions, comments or ideas about the topic.
I look forward to seeing you – one way or another – on Tuesday, May 7th at 4:30pm!
For those of you who have visited in the past, this is the same event that was traditionally held in April. Studio tour preparation involved planting spring flowers… While I’m still in Ardsley, it’s at a new location. See Directions and Parking below for details. The most important thing that never changes is my passion for painting desserts – and sharing them with you!
Consider this an official invitation.
You are invited to my Open Studio this Saturday & Sunday, November 5 & 6, from 11 am – 6pm
Beverly Shipko’s Home Studio at The Lofts
423 Saw Mill River Road, Third Floor Lounge, Ardsley, NY 10502
Please note: The Lofts management has graciously offered the beautiful, contemporary Lounge space on the 3rd floor in my building (Building A) for this event. So I will be able to show you more than in my own apartment. While technically this isn’t my working studio, there will be work-in-progress and materials to show you. Plus, I’ll just picked up my newly framed prints that I am proud of!
When you arrive at the building, you will have to be buzzed in. Scroll down to read more about that.
And, the bonus is that another talented realist painter, Linda Friedlander, is a short walk away in the 3rd Floor Lounge of Building C (1 Mill River Lane). So this stop is a twofer (two artists for the price of one!).
Please feel free to contact me with any questions though email at beverlyshipko@mac.com or by cell at 914-954-7779. You can also reach me on Facebook (Beverly Shipko, Artist) and Instagram (@beverlyshipko).
Tour Maps For the RiverArts Studio Tour Weekend
As you can see from the official Studio Tour poster below, 80 artists in the Rivertowns (Hastings, Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry and Tarrytown) will be participating in this event. You can download the map in advance and print it at home and plan your strategy. I’ll be happy to help you plan your route.
For your reference, I’m #24 on the Studio Tour map and Linda is #23. Another fellow Ardsley artist and friend, Carol Sommerfeld, is #25 on the map.
2022 Studio Tour Weekend is here!
This is really a major milestone year for RiverArts which is celebrating its 60th year anniversary. Congratulations, #RiverArts!!
RiverArts Studio Tour Registration
Please click here to register in advance to help secure future funding for this annual event. “Attendance” matters (sounds like we’re in school again…).
Directions and Parking
Please contact me at beverlyshipko@mac.com for information for directions and parking.
I look forward to seeing you this upcoming weekend – and restarting this annual tradition!
In case you missed the Food For Thought Exhibition Opening last week, please join us at One Martine Gallery for the White Plains#SeriousFunArtsFestGallery Hop thisThursday, October 13th from 6 to 9 pm.
Food For Thought is featuring 29 of my paintings and prints through Thanksgiving Weekend (Sunday, November 27th), along with the delectable artwork of Nancy Cohen and rich still life photography by Andre Baranowski. Three of my vending machine paintings are showcased in this window display – of which I am very proud! (I can’t help myself…).
Gallery hours are Tuesdays through Saturdays 10 to 6pm, Sundays 12-5pm, Closed Mondays.
I am very excited about this evening re-opening, which is easy to be now that I’ve seen the show.
Webmaster Laura says this is my best show yet (of course she’s a bit biased, but it’s fabulous to hear!). The spacious gallery has a contemporary Manhattan vibe. Plus the entire exhibit is beautifully designed by Walker Manzke, Director of One Martine Gallery. Thank you, Walker!
Invitation
Here’s is the official email invitation.
Plus Gallery Hop Night is FREE and includes a total of 3 gallery locations all within walking distance of each other, one of which is One Martine Gallery.
One Martine Gallery (located at 1 Martine Avenue), is a new gallery in downtown White Plains, New York, within walking distance of the White Plains train station. If you’re driving, see the parking directions at the bottom of this post.
In addition, the Gallery Hop is part of a much larger Serious Fun Arts Fest 5 Day event in White Plains running from October 12 to 16, sponsored by Arts Westchester and presented by Montefiore Einstein. Specifically, it includes everything from concerts to live mural painting, a public art walking tour to dancing in the streets. Click here for more information.
While the official Gallery Hop time is 6 to 9 pm, I will be there closer to 5:30pm to greet people coming directly from work.
Normal gallery hours are: Tuesdays through Saturdays 10 to 6pm, Sundays 12-5pm, Closed Mondays. Food For Thought runs through Thanksgiving weekend.
Parking and GPS Instructions
Since I got a lot of positive feedback from my previous parking instructions, I am repeating them again here.
One Martine Gallery (not to be confused with the apartment complex 1 Martine at City Square on your GPS device) is located on Martine Avenue, a one way street going south towards the White Plains train station.
The parking garage entrance is just past the gallery as Martine starts to curve to the right towards Bank Street. You can see Seward Johnson’s statue of an embracing couple right before the driveway. See below for a photo and parking instructions provided by the gallery.
Finally, if you pass the entrance, don’t panic! Simply keep going around the block and try again. I found the entrance easily the second time – and that was without this photo.
You are invited to the Opening Reception of a two woman show all about my favorite subject – food!
The exhibit features over 20 paintings and prints of my work, including my latest and largest vending paint, Food Choices.
Food for Thought opens on Thursday, October 6, 5:30-7:30pm, at One Martine Gallery (located at 1 Martine Avenue), a new gallery in White Plains, New York, within walking distance of the White Plains train station. If you’re driving, see the parking directions at the bottom of this post.
I like what is written in the official invitation below, “Food sustains our bodies as art sustains our soul.” So this is your big chance to get a lot of sustenance – not to mention a sugar fix! The show continues throughout October.
Nine 6 x 6 Challenge Panel Paintings, mounted on black board (24 x 24 inches) with velcro, by Beverly Shipko
I am exhibiting with Nancy Cohen, a talented painter who also shares my predilection for sweets. And if you want to see more of her work, go to Nancycohenstudio.com.
Candies, 20 x 20 inches, Oil on linen, by Nancy Cohen.
PARKING
One Martine Gallery (not to be confused with the apartment complex 1 Martine at City Square) is located on Martine Avenue, a one way street going south towards the White Plains train station.
The parking garage entrance is just past the gallery as Martine starts to curve to the right, with the Seward Johnson’s statue of an embracing couple right before the driveway. See below for parking instructions from the gallery.
Finally, if you pass the entrance, simply keep going around the block and try again. I found the entrance easily the second time – and that was without this photo.
Sometimes we have to take some time to catch our breath and celebrate our achievements – no matter how large or small. And today I’m doing just that.
I almost titled this blog Finished! because that’s what I’m celebrating today – the completion of this painting. These days we are often so preoccupied with our chaotic world that we can be unfocused and leave projects half done. I am proud to say I got “in the zone” and finally finished Food Choices (formerly called Choices)!
Food Choices, Oil and acrylic on canvas, 36 x 36 inches
It’s now hangs in the place of honor over my couch.
Temporarily, the painting of a Box of Dunkin Donuts that was here for 3 years is “on break” until I figure out where to put it.
A Lot of Firsts
At 36 x 36 inches, this is one of my larger painting, similar in scope to my Bakery Display paintings. There are a lot of firsts here. Certainly it’s my largest vending machine painting to date. It also has the most food items (20) and most logos (15). So many logos! It’s the first time I attempted bananas, carrots asparagus and corn. Obviously it’s the first time I put them together in one image. When I began this painting, I didn’t realize how ambitious a project it was.
Nor did I realize all the intervening events that would keep me from finishing it. I started it when we were living in our spacious house where there was a dedicated room for my home studio. Unfortunately, I had to dismantle my home studio to stage the house for sale while going through a divorce. The unfinished painting was relegated to a display easel in the family room before going into a storage unit for more than a year.
Eventually I retrieved Food Choices and brought it into my much smaller apartment. In order to take up where I left off, I first had to figure out a whole new way of working creatively in a modest, compact space. No more sprawling trays of paint tubes for me! It has been a struggle to adjust. After commiserating and brainstorming with other artists about this common challenge, I eventually got into a flow and finished it.
A Blast From the Past
As I just proofed this post before publishing it, I realized that there’s a song running around in my head, Celebrate The Moments in Our Lives!, the tagline from a General Foods International Coffees (GFIC) campaign I worked on years ago. It’s funny how it stuck in my subconscious when I wrote the title to this blog – Celebrate the Moments.
In this particular GFIC commercial, a major lifecycle milestone was celebrated, the birth of a baby. But we don’t have to wait for these infrequent, monumental events to acknowledge our accomplishments. We can all benefit from stepping back and giving ourselves credit for more common and modest events that we are proud up – like the birth of a… painting!
For weeks I’ve had this odd feeling that there’s a special anniversary I have to remember in October. I looked it up both in my hardcopy birthday/anniversary book and digital contact file, and found… nothing.
It took a while, but last week it finally hit me. The date I was trying to remember was October 27th, and it is Debbie and Mike’s anniversary! A few years ago, Mike commissioned me to do this vending machine painting as a surprise gift to his wife on their 6th wedding anniversary – which was their candy anniversary! Who knew?
“Candy Anniversary”, Oil and acrylic on canvas, 10 x 20 inches, by Beverly Shipko
At the time, I kind of kicked myself for not knowing the 6th anniversary was the candy anniversary given my confection background in advertising (a marketing opportunity missed!) and my addiction to painting candy.
Looking at Candy Anniversary now, I am pleased with how this vending machine painting came out. Maybe it’s because I can feel all the love that went into it. There isn’t anything I would change, and I can’t say that about all my paintings. As my mother used to say, artists have high standards and are a tough bunch to please, especially when it comes to their own art.
The Process
Mike gave this painting a lot of thought.
Once we decided on the size, I ordered a specially stretched gallery wrap canvas (1 1/2 inches deep) from SoHo Art Materials in New York City since Ampersand no longer makes a 10 x 20 inch canvas. This was the first time I used a canvas stretched on aluminum stretchers (vs. the typical wood stretchers) so the panel would never warp, and framing is truly optional. A real advantage. I’ve had many a canvas warp in me through the year.
From an artist’s perspective, aluminum is much heavier than wood to carry and transport (4 of these were very heavy!), which will increase shipping costs. I don’t know what’s more expensive – the cost of a frame or the incremental cost of shipping. Fortunately Mike picked the finished work up.
His vision was to use bright, colorful candies like M&M Peanuts and Reese’s Peanut Buttercups that they both liked to eat. Then Mike focused on making it personal and meaningful by embedding their wedding date, 10/27/2012, into the vending machine visual. The prices are the same as in 2012 when they were married. Note that when I painted my first vending machine in 2015, candy bars already cost $1.25.
Sketching is a critical step in any commission since it’s easy to make changes in pencil that won’t be visible in the final painting. As you can see above, initially I put in the anniversary date in a prominent place where it was easily readable.
Mike had a different concept in mind, more of a subtle “Easter egg” that you might not notice at first. (FYI. The term “Easter egg” in this context refers to a secret message, joke or screen buried in a software application; in this case a painting.) We moved the anniversary date under the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, where it is partially covered by the wrapper.
Once the sketch is approved, I start by painting the black acrylic background, as I have in previous vending paintings. I prefer acrylic to oil for the background since it has less texture and better simulates the smooth black metal of vending machines.
Notice that I take the painting off the easel to paint on a flat table. Usually it takes several thin layers of black acrylic paint to obliterate the texture of the canvas – and knock out those telltale little white spots that you would never find on a vending machine. This gives me more leverage to paint the details and avoids dripping onto the images.
I start with the logos in the center and move outward, defining the salient features of each bar, which also minimizes the chances of smearing the logos. The challenge is always to find a dry spot to brace my hand. That’s another advantage of using the acrylic background – it dries completely in an hour or two and offers a “safe haven” for bracing. Then I moved to the rest of the wrappers.
At this point, I’m refining the logos and doing little touchups. I like how the dimensionality of the bars comes through. Mr. Peanut M&Ms looks like he’s alive!
And here is Candy Anniversary in its new home.
Happy 9th Anniversary, Debbie and Mike! I certainly will remember the date next year. It’s forever printed on my psyche.
Hope the 9th anniversary is as sweet as the 6th. Next year your 10th anniversary is aluminum or tin. Maybe there’s a Warhol-type Campbell’s Soup Can painting in your future…
Wishing you love, laughter and happiness for many years to come.
Something new and exciting crept onto my dinner plate tonight. And it’s an exuberant yellow and orange.
Here’s the backstory. Maybe you won’t be so surprised if you have read More Joy.
There’s been a silver lining for me during this pandemic.
Over a year ago, my sister-in-law, Leslie, reached out and asked if I would be interested in taking an Ikebana class from her over zoom, which she was trying to teach with for the first time (as was everyone when the pandemic began). Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. I jumped at the chance to study Ikebana with her! And I asked my friend Carin if she wanted to join in the fun. There’s 5 of us on zoom every Monday morning, including Leslie.
For years, I’ve admired Leslie’s Ikebana arrangements from afar since we never lived on the same coast, let alone the same city. Leslie took her first Ikebana class after college, when she lived in Japan with her husband Leigh, who was stationed there for a few years.
I have been deeply touched by this class, which could perhaps be described as a mini-addiction – only rivaled by my obsession with painting food.
During class, Leslie has wondered out loud several times how Ikebana was going to affect my painting. So have I.
I have painted flowers before in my pre-food years. They tend to be focused, single images. One of my favorite flower paintings is hanging in my daughterBonnie‘s apartment. Purple is still her favorite color.
“Iris“, by Beverly Shipko, 1980s, Acrylic, 36 x 24 inches
During my small 30 Day Painting Challenges, I interspersed flowers among my subjects. I have always enjoyed flowers and admired Georgia O’Keefe’s bold images since I was a kid. You can read more about each of my flower paintings below – Sunflower, Peony, and Tiger Lily.
“Sunflower” by Beverly Shipko, Oil painting on panel, 6 x 6 inches“Peony” by Beverly Shipko, Oil painting on panel, 6 x 6 inches“Tiger Lily” by Beverly Shipko, Oil painting on panel, 6 x 6 inches
When I recently spotted a clamshell package of brightly colored edible flowers at a new local grocery store, Mom’s Organics Market, on an impulse I bought it.
Soon I discovered how much fun it is to liven up the plate with different colors and textures, and to cluster the flowers together as I do in my Ikebana arrangements. I laughed out loud when I realized I was playing with my food – something we discouraged the kids from doing when they were little. And I was having such a good time!
At the moment, I don’t know how Ikebana will affect my future paintings and body of work. However, I am excited to see the two worlds of Flowers and Food finally come together on this unconventional purple canvas that we call a plate.
Happy Valentine’s Day Weekend! There’s no better time to look at boxes of delectably rich chocolates, is there? As I went through the series of three paintings, I was somewhat surprised by what I found.
This blog was triggered by this painting that I basically forgot about since I didn’t have it in hand. I never took a photo of it to put in my digital painting library. After an extended Michigan “art tour”, this Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates painting (oil, 11 x 14 inches) recently made its way back to me.
Mom had this painting hanging in her condo for more years than I can remember, and loved it! Isn’t that what Valentine’s Day is all about – love? It all fit together for her given that hearts are symbols of love. Out of all the paintings I had, she chose this one for her Valentine’s Day present.
It hung to the left of that patio door for more years than I want to remember.
When you get close, you can see the impasto technique that I was experimenting with. It was very loose and free and all about the paint texture.
Impasto Detail of Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates, 11 x 14 inch
While I always liked it, and am pleased to have it again, at the time maybe I felt it was a little rough around the edges compared to the vision I had in my head. I do love revelling in the luscious, thick paint of the impasto style, and return to it every so often.
That realistic vision came to fruition in this Large Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates (Oil, 16 x 20 inches) that preceded Mom’s impasto painting. This composition had so much detail with its 30 chocolates, and back then I had so little time when the kids were little. I confess that my patience was running thin during the execution phase.
Large Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates, Oil on canvas, 16 x 20 inches
I’m actually surprised that I chose such an ambitious, complex composition as my first painting on this subject. Usually I start more simply and work up to the more complex.
The end was worth it though. I can feel the love that went into it! Apparently the couple that bought it from my Freelance Cafe show in Piermont, NY thought so too. They bought it right away, along with a complimentary comfort food Carrot Cake of the same size to hang as a pair.
Later that year, I explored painting a square mini-sampler box of chocolates. I experimented with different shades of white, always a challenge as you fellow artists know. You can see one of my first crumbs next to the half eaten chocolate.
A few years later, I returned to a smaller version of the Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates (Oil, 9 x 12 inches), also in a mini-sampler. After playing with whites, I was attracted to the contrasting bright red box and its distinctive heart shape.
Since it only had a few pieces of chocolate, I took my time and painted in more detail. The crumbs are bigger and play a more prominent role in the composition. While the texture of the paint is still important, especially in the background, my technique is much more refined. I like the light and cast shadows, and the translucent wrapper. There’s something to be said for practice.
Small Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates, 9 x 12 inches, Oil on canvas,
This little gem was exhibited in the I Want Candy: The Sweet Stuff in American Art at the Hudson River Museum (HRM, 2007-2009), along with Bonnie’s Carrot Cake (in 4 panels). Being a traveling exhibit that lasted several years, this painting saw parts of the country I may never ever see.
Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates also had the honor of being placed next to one of Wayne Thiebaud’s pastels in the catalog.
Afterwards when Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates came home for one of my Open Studios, it found an admirer in my friend Sarah, who remembered it from the HRM show. For many more years, she raved about it and enjoyed it from afar. Finally, several years ago it spoke to her during my Open Studio and she bought it for her collection.
It’s funny because I recently saw this painting hanging in her house. Sarah and I were on zoom with some friends, and the next thing I knew she turned her computer around and showed us Heart Shaped Box of Chocolates. It was like seeing an old friend!
As I write this post, I realized how much pleasure I got out of working on this subject. Maybe it’s time to return to a image with so much HeART.
Finally, Happy Valentine’s Day, Mom! With your painting on display in my apartment, I can’t help thinking of you. You’re in my HeART, especially since you’ve always been such an ardent supporter of my art.
Last week I was doing errands when this photo unexpectedly popped up on my cell phone screen. My initial reaction was relief! Relief that Cranberry Cheesecake had arrived safely in Fayettesville, Arkansas.
With all the storms and post office delays, I was a bit concerned about shipping it halfway across the country and arriving in one piece – even though I had carefully packed it in several layers of bubble wrap. I had read too many recent shipping horror stories.
Then came the realization that my long time friend Carolyn (looking younger than ever!) and I will always be connected by this Cranberry Cheesecake painting!
I was also happy she sent the photo so I can see where it’s hanging in her home off the kitchen. It’s always fascinates me to see in situ photos of my work, and often gives me new ideas.
Then my mind ricocheted to another cheesecake painting, Blueberry Cheesecake, which is hanging close by in the Connecticut home of my friends Carin and Steve.
This half eaten cheesecake originally came from a huge bakery case in Cafe Lalo in Manhattan. Cranberry Cheesecake (from Magnolia Bakery) and Blueberry Cheesecake, as well as Macarons (from DelRey Chocolatier in Antwerp), are from my January, 2017 Challenge, so each painting has its own blog post.
When I visited Carin and Steve, I was delighted to see these little paintings hanging in a beautiful setting off the marsh. I was lucky enough to be invited for lunch on this porch with its stunning panoramic view.
I wish I had this delicious salad that Carin made that day right now!
Just like I know I’ll always be connected to Carolyn, I know I’ll be connected to Carin by a cheesecake – and so much more. We met in business school and have been friends for over 40 years (yikes!).
It’s a good example of synchronicity since Carin, Carolyn and I all worked at Kraft General Foods at the same time. Carolyn and I met in the Maxwell House Division post-business school (a bit under 40 years ago) , and Carin worked in Post Cereals, where I was transferred after Maxwell House.
All three of us marketed food products for a big chunk of our careers. And apparently we are each drawn to cheesecake, which is not a total surprise since we’re foodies, each in our own way personally and professionally.
Now the three of us are re-connected to each other by cheesecake paintings. How fitting is that?
My New Years’ present to myself is to resume work on Choices, an ambitious vending machine painting that I began two years ago.While I was in the middle of it, I had to dismantle my home studio to sell the house and downsize. Then Choices went into storage for an extended period.
Vending Machine Series: Choices, by Beverly Shipko, Acrylic and Oil Painting, 30 x 30 inches, Work-in-Progress
From the outside looking in, this 3 x 3 foot painting looks finished, and my neighbors keep telling me it must be almost done. Even my youngest daughter, Bonnie, and artist friend, Linda, thought so.
But it’s not. I mistakenly bought into the party line that it was almost done. I was disappointed.
Here’s what happened.
I decided to paint the top row of chips. Often I find it’s best to work in oils from the top down so I don’t smear the paint below when I brace my hand on the canvas.
Signaling my serious commitment to painting, I put on one of my favorite CDs, Aaron Copland’s inspiring Celebration (yes, I confess I still have quite a CD collection, which is great when the power goes out.)
And I cranked my easel as low as it would go to bring the chips down to eye level. The beauty of a crankable easel is its ability to reach the tallest parts of large paintings without standing on a step stool – which resulted in several mishaps in the past, most recently January. It was the best art purchase I ever made! I would highly recommend making the investment in a easel with a crank by Mabef to all of you painters. (Tip: Find a big sale at an online art supply store.)
Alas, now that the top row of chips are at eye level, I see how rough and sketchy the chips are, especially the graphic Cheetos package. Previously, I had been looking at this painting but not seeing or processing its interim status.
Ok, I was prepared for the chips. But what I wasn’t expecting to find – under direct sunlight – was that the black acrylic background had lots of little white canvas spots peeking through everywhere at an unacceptable level. I shifted gears and spent two days repainting the black acrylic background.
After finishing the background, I had to face the unpleasant fact that the black vending rings are barely sketched in. My eye saw the rings the way I wanted them to be, rather than how they are. Painted very tentatively and barely there. Fragile. Hardly looking like strong metal vending rings.
Unfortunately, it had been so long that I didn’t remember if I used acrylic or oils. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, oil-based paint and water-based acrylic don’t mix – like oil and water. Oil paint can go over acrylic, but acrylic can not be painted over oil.
I thought I could tell the medium by feeling the surface since oil has more texture, at least the way I paint.
Since I couldn’t feel much texture, I tried acrylic on the rings. Alas, the paint pooled up and I knew I guessed wrong.
At this point, my assessment is that I’m 60-70% finished. Way lower than I thought before starting.
I knew I had to paint all the rings before I could move onto color. As anyone who has tried to paint ovals and circles knows, capturing these shapes with flowing lines in the right perspective on a slight textured canvas is difficult. Even my hero, Wayne Thiebaud, slips up once in a while. Note the awkward angle of the spiral topped cake.
The rings require the most concentration.
They are such an integral part of the rhythm of composition. The rings have their own reflections, cast their own shadows on the packages, and reflect the colors. I used to paint them last, but I learned that painting them earlier in the process – in acrylic – results in a more integrated composition. Unfortunately, one slip of the hand often means a major repair job on the oil-based package. After conquering the rings, I’m confident the rest of the painting will come more easily.
Don’t get me wrong, I can handle the rings. But I would much prefer working on paintings with one big ring per canvas as in this ongoing vending series.
Now I don’t have to wonder what I’m going to do this holiday week.
My new goal for rest of New Year’s week is to finish all 20 rings using Ivory Black and Titanium White oil paint, which will be a major accomplishment!
Of course, the rings will need additional touchups once I start applying color. That’s part of the process.
For now, it’s somewhat fitting that painting them is how I’m ringing in the New Year.
We’re coming full circle, and I hope that means much peace, joy and health for you in 2021. Happy New Year!
I could never have a Studio Tour without Oreos. I just couldn’t.
Before the pandemic, I struggled with how to display my smallest Oreo Cookie paintings on 9 foot walls in an open apartment layout (not to mention how to host the Oreo Contest with limited space…).
My Oreos felt too intimate to be floating on huge walls – even the largest one, Cosmic Oreo, at 24 x 30 inches. They needed a more defined space, like the front stairs of my old house in 2018, where Oreo prints and paintings greeted you when you walked in.
Finally, one night the solution came to me after I fell sleep, and just relaxed. Give the Oreos their own gallery! Their own room. A room that was dry enough to hang prints, and where guests would see them.
My Oreo Cookie Gallery featuring Cosmic Oreo
I just needed to reframe the issue – and think outside the box. I had an extra room. Not a closet, but the guest powder room! (I bet the toilet paper roll above gave it away…)
When you walk in, this left view, showcases two of my favorite Oreo prints.
And here I am taking a photo in the mirror on the right, re-creating a childhood dream of endless Oreos with the reflections. Ok, it was a nice try…. Using the mirror is the only way to photograph this room without a wide angle lens.
My Oreo Gallery is a work in progress. As I inventory all my paintings in storage, I’m still finding little Oreo paintings that I can’t do without.
Last week I uncovered Stack of Oreos. I knew the perfect spot for this little gem (all 5 x 7 inches of it, oil on panel) was above My Oreo Cookie (6 x 6 inch drawing, unframed).
Stack of Oreos Oil Painting and My Oreo Cookie Drawing
I hope one day you’ll be able to see the Oreo Gallery in person, and its anticipated additions. With 9 foot ceilings, there is still room to grow upwards as I unwrap more paintings.
Until then, enjoy this virtual tour!
P.S. Did you notice that Cosmic Oreo is a blown up version of My Oreo Cookie?
When I was sitting on my patio today, I thought about the possibilities of decorating this outdoor space.
Now that open studio tours are on hold, I am displaying an oil painting in the corner window facing the front of my apartment building. This week I chose a painting from my double yolk egg series.
Double Yolk Egg on a Purple Plate (oil on linen, 16 x 20 in.) has 3 basic contrasting colors: purple, cadmium yellow, and white.
I never consciously put it together until today that the color scheme matches my purple pansies, with their yellow and white faces.
This insight was a bit of a wakeup call. This was the first time I considered the possibility of leveraging this cozy outdoor space as an extension of my home studio. Color coordinating paintings and flowers were a new thing for me. For the moment, I’m thinking more like an outdoor installation artist – on a much smaller scale, of course. I can’t wait until the nurseries open up!
On a larger scale, it’s time to think outside the box – to Think Differently (thank you Steve Jobs!). I need to expand my horizons beyond traditional galleries, and take advantage of our new Zoom reality, one small purple-and-yellow step at a time.
