Art That Makes an Impact

There are pieces of art that just get stuck in your mind. The artwork is just so beautiful, so unusual, and makes such a statement that you cannot forget it, nor do you want to. When I first saw the work of Northwest artist Mary Carlton, I almost crumbled in admiration.




She was primarily a collage artist who is best known for her figures and landscapes. When I first began to use Pinterest, I put quite a bit of her work on one of my boards. Of all the art I have on my various Pinterest boards, this figure to the right is the image that is most often loved and saved to someone else's board. I see this as a tribute to the power of this artist and her work. Unfortunately, she died in 2013, so there are no more pieces to come from this wonderful artist.




















I do not mean to compare my work to hers, but I am including my own piece, Caribbean Cornrows I which is also primarily a collaged piece with handmade patterns as well. I had attempted to paint this scene from a photo I took in Roatan, Honduras several times. I was unsuccessful until I started ripping paper from less successful paintings to create the painting below.

I had so much fun creating the collaged piece, I gave myself the challenge of painting a second version in transparent watercolor (image below). Playing with patterns using both collage and hand made patterns has long interested me as an artist. And I find a pattern often gives a painting a bit of that unique and interesting element I so admire in Mary Carlton's work.

If you are also interested in patterns, I will be teaching a workshop in Newport, Oregon, March 3, 4, and 5, 2018.

Workshop is Just Around the Corner

Born to teach--you know the kid lining up dolls and stuffed animals and teaching them the ABC's. Yep, that was me! If I know how to do something, say how to make patterns and incorporate those patterns into paintings, then I want to share. I find painting and making stuff joyful and that is definitely worth sharing.  I am now seeking a group of other artists to join me March 3, 4, and 5, 2018 at the Newport Oregon Visual Arts Center.

As my workshop is filling up, I am getting excited to teach and explore art techniques in this beautiful venue.

This is the room with the view!

The workspace.

I will be teaching several ways to make patterns and put them into your work. If you like to collage, that is certainly one way to do it, but you can also just create by hand a pattern directly on to your artwork.

Although "Sound Bites" is a painting with collage, all the squares of various sizes were created by hand, directly onto the watercolor paper.

Newport Bay 

Please contact me for more information about Playing with Patterns, March 3, 4, and 5, 2018. $295 for 3 full days of creating art!

  msgodfreyart@msn.com or 541-912-3400