June 2012 -

If you are having problems reading this email version, a copy is posted online at http://www.deadraccoon.com/newsletter/1206.html
 

Welcome to a summer of events

Wow, it's been a while since I sent a newsletter out. Where do I begin? Scroll down for new works, new events, new shows, and new opportunities to attend art classes. One of the things that I have been involving myself with is the starting of the new school, Denver Entertainment Art and Design Academy. Take a look below to learn more. My biggest excitement this year is having my work accepted into the Society of Animal Artists' Art and the Animal exhibition.

I hope summer finds everyone well, active, and enthusiastic. On warm days, I can't help feeling the light and air sink into the core of my bones. My lungs and arms open and my shoulders roll back to take in the world. As I loosen, I feel myself expanding outwards, embracing possibilities.

'Relaxed' does not mean lazy. Summer is a time for hikes, barbeques, friends, gardening, plein air painting, and art festivals, and well deserved beer. Staying relaxed during this busy time means keeping the pressure off yourself, enjoying the moment, and knowing tomorrow brings as much potential as today does. Take the time to indulge in some of your favorite pursuits that have been put aside, or discover new ones.
 

New Works

 

Stream of Consciousness

3.5" x 4.5"
Framed to 8" x 10"
$550

Close up of some of the smaller of the 23 koi in the piece, before mounting.

Caught up in their own currents, the koi bump and jostle each other, more mindful of their own business than that of their neighbor. Yet as they weave in and out of each other, their combined movements connect in beautiful patterns. I feel that these fish are a metaphor for our own existence in society.

The title Stream of Consciousness, also the title of a work by artist Ray Troll, popped into my head in the early stages of creating this piece and wouldn't leave. I gave in and let the piece be called what it wanted to. I did some research on the symbolism of koi, wondering if they represented consciousness specifically. One of my favorite connections was the association of carp and scholars. Carp are hardy and swim upstream, much like a scholar persists many years through his studies. At the end of his upstream destination, the carp leaps through the Dragon Gate and is said to become a dragon.
 

 

Three Figures

Framed to 18" x 14"
$450

I am very satisfied with this piece- in more ways than one. I bloomed the orchids in this oil pastel painting myself after growing the plant for a year. In 2011 it was the subject of another painting, Burning Bright, which focused on looking down the length of the long tubular lip of a single flower. For this piece, I chose to concentrate on the form of the whole flower. I enjoy the nested rectangular shapes the petals make in the composition as they interact with one another, and the flowers remind me of dancers, or a model displaying the naked beauty of the human form during an artist's life drawing session.
 
   Upcoming Events 

 

Art Students League of Denver
Summer Art Market

June 9th and 10th, 10am - 5pm
200 Grant St
Denver
Booth #149
More information
"Now a Denver summer tradition, the Art Students League’s Summer Art Market has long been considered by art lovers and collectors as a fun and relaxing way to buy fine art directly from some of the area’s best local artists. Selected by 5280 magazine as one of 155 Things Every Denverite Must Do!"
 

 

Park Hill Garden Walk

June 16th, 10am-4pm
Greater Park Hill Neighborhood
2380 Fairfax St
Denver
More information

Admission:
Adult $13
Day of $15
Children under 12 free

 

"Park Hill neighborhood is called the Denver's Urban Forest, and features spectacular architecture and diversity. The tree lined streets, mixed use areas, diverse people, local businesses and resplendid homes make this not only a wonderful activity to do on a summer Saturday but will enrich your experience. Wine tasting, food and drink can be found also along the Walk."

I will be bringing my oil pastels for display and sale, and doing a demonstration painting in plein air.
 

 

Loveland Sculpture Invitational

 

August 11th, 9:30am-6pm
August 12th, 9:30am-4:30pm
Lake Loveland
More information

Premiere Party
August 10th
6pm-8pm

Admission:
Adult $7
14 and under free

"In a beautiful setting at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, art lovers and collectors from around the country come together to enjoy and purchase the work of premiere artists in the largest gathering of sculptors in the country.

Enjoy the diversity of our artists as over 250 foremost sculptors display thousands of works of art. From miniatures to monuments, artists work in bronze, stone, metal, glass, and mixed mediums to create sculpture in all its forms."
   Exhibitions

 

Society of Animal Artists
Art and the Animal

September 1st 2012- January 31st 2013
with tour artwork through December 31st, 2013

Hiram Blauvelt Art Museum
Oradell, NJ
More information

 

"The Society of Animal Artists is an organization comprised of members who produce the best animal art in the world. Artworks created by members of the Society of Animal Artists have established new standards of excellence in fine art, and the annual exhibition, Art and the Animal, has become the standard by which all others are measured."

 

Life at the Bottom

Framed to 19" x 30"
$4000

 

I am pleased to announce that my piece, Life at the Bottom, has been accepted into Art and the Animal.
 
   Upcoming Classes 
 

 

Denver Entertainment Art and Design Academy

Summer semester classes start June 17th. My classes begin mid-July.
More information

I love learning, both when I am learning something new, and also when I am developing my current knowledge more deeply. Classes and workshops can provide information, inspiration, motivation, reinforcement, collaboration, and growth. After a class is over, I feel myself becoming very conscious of certain elements in my work I may not have paid attention to before.

Recently I have been both teaching and attending classes at the new Denver Entertainment Art and Design Academy (DEAD Academy... no deliberate connection to Dead Raccoon,) and attending classes at the Art Students League of Denver.

  

 

"The Denver Entertainment Art & Design Academy was created to offer those who wish to pursue an education in the entertainment industry the chance to get a Los Angeles quality art education while living in Colorado. From movies to video games to comic books and more, it's our goal to bring in teachers who are professionals in their industries to show students exactly what employers in their fields are looking for."

  
 

 

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Tiffany Miller           www.deadraccoon.com


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