Make Art Work, Hartford, Connecticut

Make Art Work is a comprehensive professional practice program for visual artists in CT. The program, which will run through June of 2014, is designed to support artists who are in pursuit of a professional career as an artist. The Hartford cohort met for a potluck supper and discussion session. We each were given ten minutes to present two areas we would like help with and get feedback. So nice to learn other artists are struggling with the same problems. A recurring theme was how to use Social Media and time management.

We met at the home of woodcarver Steve Balkun and his wife, installation artist, Anita Gangi Balkun. It was a treat to see the studios of these artists. Their son, Steve Balkun, is a certified lutheir and creates custom guitars. His studio is also there in the house. Young Steve and his brother, Nick have a band called the Balkun Brothers. What a talented family. In addition, Steve (the elder) is a published author.

Make Art Work is now planning their next session which starts in the fall. An explanation of the workshops is here.

No post is complete without a sample of my latest work.

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Nancy Olivia Designs Photo Cards for Sale

My photo cards are selling quickly at the Willimantic Food Co-op.  I delivered my fourth order of cards to them since the middle of February. After the long, cold winter, I think everyone craved color and spring flowers. My cards are on colored card stock that compliment the flower photos.

Drop into the Willimantic Food Co-op and check out their selection of tasty foods that are good for you. Many of their products are from local sources. You may find me there as a "working member" volunteer.

A butterfly fly on Joe Pye Weed.

Tulips grown from bulbs purchased by me at the Garden Club of Windham's Fall Bulb sale. These have been an eye-stopper in my front yard.

Just this week I delivered cards to the expanded retail store at Logee's Greenhouse, 141 North Street, Killingly, CT. These cards feature Logee's flowers and the photos were taken in their greenhouses and shop. Gwen Glass-Carbone, the retail supervisor, took me on a tour where I had fun snapping sixty pictures of show-stopping-blooms!

Do go to Logee's and see the wonderful selection of exotic plants! My fellow Garden Club of Windham CT members are big fans of Logee's.

A pitcher plant in the greenhouse.

 Logee's has the largest selection of begonias that I have ever seen in one place!

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Nancy Olivia Designs photos in Joshua Trust Exhibit

I was honored to have some of my work in a exhibit of photographs taken of Joshua Trust properties. The event was a wine and craft beer tasting fund raiser to benefit Joshua Trust, a land trust in Northeast Connecticut.

A closeup of the stonework of the Gurleyville Grist Mill in Storrs, Connecticut. 

Photo by Nancy Hoffmann.

The fund raiser was held at Church Farm in Ashford, Connecticut, May 18, 2014.

The art show was in this barn. As well as photographs by Marcia Kilpatrick a trustee of the group and me (Nancy Hoffmann), there were  watercolors by Charles McCaughtry, visible in the open barn door.

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Tulip Petals

When you take a photo, look at it as more than just the entire picture. Consider zooming in on a portion of it. That is what I did here.

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Tulip and Bud

I'm having such fun photographing my tulips. While the yellow and red are pretty, it is the orange ones which impress me. The fact that they are not solid, but have subtle lines and colors ranging from pink to purple as well as orange makes them very interesting to photograph.

I like to take the photos with the golden setting sun hitting the flowers. Even when the direct sun's rays are gone, there is still good light to use.

 

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Tulip Glow

This photo was taken in my yard with the setting sun highlighting the tulip.

These tulip bulbs were sold as a fund raiser for by the Windham Garden Club to benefit  Willimantic public gardens. The garden club member plant and maintain twelve public gardens in Willimantic, including The Garden on the Bridge.

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Waiting for Spring

This sums up spring exactly. Waiting for Action or, Plant me First.

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Dinosaur Bird, a Flight of Fantasy

I'm exploring new ideas with my digital painting technique. This Dinosaur Bird was a happy accident. When I realized it looked like a fantasy creature, I added the eye.

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An Alpaca in the Neighborhood

This alpaca lives in my neighborhood. I took a number of pictures of the large group of alpacas. When I reviewed the pictures, this guy was looking right at me in every photo!

 

PURCHASE THIS PRINT from Fine Art America!

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Nancy Olivia Designs art for sale on Fine Art America

Check out my site on Fine Art America! Prints are available in a variety of sizes and styles, from canvas to metal.  More of my work will be added frequently. I hope you find something you like!

My art starts with one or more of my photographs, then I add digital painting. Some works are created entirely by digital painting, starting from a blank "canvas" meaning screen.

CLICK HERE to go to my Fine Art America page.

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Dreaming of Spring - Digital Painting of Sunflower and Butterfly

I love the colors in this digital painting. It is soft yet vibrant. I put two photos together on a background and then painted it in PhotoShop Elements.

PURCHASE THIS PRINT from Fine Art America.

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Red, Purple, Blue - Bright Colors

This time of year I crave bright colors. These colors cheer me up! This started out as three layers of photographs but you would never guess that from the results. 

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Moon Struck

This is a photo montage created in Photoshop Elements. I started by taking a photo of the full moon through the trees. That became the center. I added the photos of the white orchid, the bird and a scan of a vintage book page. This all went on a background I created. Lastly was the addition of the tiny white spots that look like Christmas lights. The border color was chosen by taking a brown from the picture.

The name "Moon Struck" seems to be appropriate. 

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Impressionist Vase of Flowers on Blue

More snow today. Six more inches on top of what is already out there. It was beautiful coming down and totally covered every limb and stick. After shoveling the front walk so the corn for the turkeys would not get buried in the snow, I decided to create another Nancy Olivia Designs original. This one is rather different for me. I suppose it good to not be in a rut!

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