I’m very excited to see the new Banksy film Exit Through the Gift Shop. I’ve heard that it’s getting good reviews, though I’m doing my best to avoid them so they don’t ruin the movie for me (which extended trailers and reviews often do).

If you’ve never heard of Banksy, he’s a mysterious UK graffiti artist that uses stencils to create beautiful, moving works of art in public spaces, both to the delight and the chagrin of the public. I’m so inspired by people who make art just for art’s sake – not for galleries or to hang on the wall in a state of preservation. His work will be (& often is) painted over, torn down or eventually just washed away with the rain. But what a gift to be able to catch a glimpse of one on your way to work every morning or while waiting at the bus stop. Love it.

Yay! I’m nominated for a Poppy award over at Poppytalk.com. It’s a fab site run by a fellow Vancouverite that showcases some of the most interesting and unique designers, artists and crafters. I’ve got a whack of pages bookmarked for their tutorials and images saved in my “dream house” folder.

In the Affordable Art category, I’m thrilled to discover that little ol’ me has been nominated. Head on over to vote for me & I’ll be your BFF! I think you’re allowed to vote more than once too. *hint hint* Voting closes on Wednesday, January 27th.

THANK YOU!!!

I love the charming papercut art of Jayme McGowan so hard. His shop, Roadside Projects, is filled with whimsical 3D creations that make the paper doll loving 9 year old in me squeal with joy. His blog is fab too with behind the scenes peeks at his process of creating.

While I’d really love to buy (OK…receive) one of his originals, the prints are also gorgeous and very affordable.

The Ring of Fire

The big Day of the Dead show kicked off last night at the Jem Gallery and I was amazed at what Carola, the curator, was able to do with such a small space. There were 65 total pieces in the show, hung salon style, right up to the roof.

It was great to see what the other artists came up with and though I’m probably done with painting teeny tiny dots for this year (did I mention how many teeny TINY dots there are in my painting?), I’m definitely feeling inspired to go with some darker themes.

Here’s a shot of my finished painting – Ana and her Cat:

Ana y su Gato
12″ x 16″
$350

Other pieces I really loved:

Taralee Guild – website

Megz Majewski – website

Christina Christie – website

You can see a bunch more photos in the Jem Gallery photo album on Facebook or if you’re a local, go see the show in person!

Thank you for all the well wishes on my Etsy anniversary! I’m absolutely tickled to see so many lovely comments & I’ll definitely be checking out the book & movie recommendations (I did see The Informant the other night & quite enjoyed a balding, dorky Matt Damon). I’m going to run the contest until the end of the week, so you still have plenty of time to leave a comment & enter. In the meantime, I have some recommendations of my own after touring some of the open studios during the big Drift open house last weekend.

After drooling over some of the bigger original pieces that were out of my budget, I snapped up this little guy from Rebecca Chaperon:

Her work is similar to mine in that she frequently paints girls who bear a strong resemblance to herself, but it was her little fellows who stole my heart. I haven’t decided where I’m going to put him yet. Living room where everyone will see it? Or keep it to myself in my studio space? Hrm…

I also bought a tiny original from Brandy Masch. Again, the big ones? To die for. So beautifully detailed & so totally unlike anything I do that I really really want one. But for now, a teeny 3″ x 4″ will do just fine.

My camera died just as I was swinging by my own location at the Drift, the Beehive Hair Lounge, so I didn’t get to snap many pics, but I did manage to get one of the Beehive Girl looking fab in front of their amazing black and white patterned wallpaper. Love it! If you’re a Vancouver local, my paintings will be up until October 15th, so hop on over!