21 Aug

Posted at 23:56h in 365 project, abstract, art, drawing, illustration, journaling, mary gaspar art, summer by

Wow…while I have not posted here in a while, my sketch-a-day project has continued and perhaps will give you a little glance into our short but absolutely magical summer. It was full of roadtrips, day trips, beach and pool days, rainy movie nights, sleepovers with cousins and staying up late catching fireflies. The garden is wild and full and the house is a whirlwind of bathing suits, sand, toys and art, but in just 6 days we will be back to the routine of school. And with that my art business will be back into full swing. I give you a whole bunch of summer’s sketches…enjoy these August days friends.

FlowersinJar Girl Grace

GrapeAbstract

GreenEye

Independence

MaeveProfile

MamaDrama

NeonLotus

Nose OrangeLotus PaintbrushMasonPenlotus serenity Succulent SunburstPyramid TastyBeverage telephone Tricircle WaffleFries

15 Jul

Posted at 20:30h in Bedsidesign, creative, creative community, foliophoto, instagram, june, kids, mary gaspar art, photography, raincoast creative salon, summer, wes anderson by

I can not believe that July is half way over…the summer is racing by. I thought I’d share the pics I took in late June as part of the Wes Anderson Instagram Foliophoto project. Sandra Harris from Raincoast Creative Salon and Christie Jones from Bedsidesign regularly post these awesome challenges with daily prompts to gather a community of creatives together. The prompts are always challenging in the best way possible. I love me some Wes Anderson! His films ooze mood, color, humor and style. They are truly a feast for the eyes. I was inspired by the easy breeziness that comes with summer and my children’s thrill for adventure. My girls were awesome sports…really embracing their crazy artist mom’s ideas. And I think it shows. Another challenge will come along soon, no doubt. To follow along on instagram click on and hashtag your pictures with #foliophoto. Here you go…7 days of Wes Anderson inspired photos…

Day 1: Symmetry

Day 2: Nostalgia

Day 3: Boat

Day 4: Overhead Shot

Day 5: Family

Day 6: Saturation

Day 7: Futura Font

18 Jun

Posted at 14:34h in 365 project, abstract, art, artist, Bedsidesign, birdcage, botanical, drawing, faber castell marker, flowers, illustration, instagram, journaling, june, kids, mary gaspar art, may, maya angelou, orchids, pen and ink, pitt artist pen, raincoast creative salon, sketch, sketch a day, still life, succulents, summer, watermelon by

We are well into June and school is finally out for my children! I am trying to find creative ways to do my art this summer, while doing all the fun summery things I want to do with them. Luckily, I had wrapped up a series of commissions this past week and now I get to work on my own stuff for a bit (Hooray!)…when I can carve out the time! So far this week we’ve hit the pool, the beach, run through the sprinkler, eaten dairy queen and pancake breakfasts while in our p.j.’s (the breakfast, not the DQ;)) I LOVE summer and I find inspiration everywhere. From tending my own vegetable garden, to watching the perennials come up from last year, to planning a road trip for me and my girls to visit my bestie in Tennessee-she has a farm!

So my plan is this: to take all this summery goodness in, record moments in my art journal, take lots and lots of pictures and put paint to canvas in the spare moments. Having my sketch-a-day project keeps me drawing and documenting the every day as well. I’m thinking I may bind it in the end for my kids…like “this was our year in 2013/2014.” These days really do fly by and I want to savor them. Here are my recent sketches…end of May, into June. Oh and follow me and fellow creatives in the newest instagram foliophoto project inspired by Wes Anderson! Sandra Harris and Christie Jones have truly created a community of creatives that have become virtual friends, all while doing what we love to do-create! Read more about it here. And now the sketches…

20 May

Posted at 01:09h in 365 project, abstract, art, etsy, etsy seller, mary gaspar art, micron, Modern Art, pen and ink, sketch, sketch a day by

May has been busy busy and well, just wonderful. And my sketch a day project has definitely taken a hit as far as my nightly postings go on instagram (you can follow me at @marygasparart) 😉 So there have been a couple nights of extreme catch up. And these are usually on days where I am working on finishing up paintings and packing pieces to meet shipping deadlines. These days are jam packed with all things ART-the kind of days I always dreamed would happen! So you may notice a similar color scheme or subject matter repeated here and there. I’ve decided I’m just not gonna get too precious with it…rules and such. Just gonna let what happens…happen. My sketch a day this May…

 

 

 

19 May

Posted at 21:46h in abstract, acrylic, acrylic painting, art, artist, etsy, etsy seller, interior design, mary gaspar art, marygaspar painting, Modern Art, new painting, painting by

Here are two recent commissions I finished this past week…one for a client in New York City and the other, an interior designer in Los Angeles. Both pieces are an ode to summer…to the beach, the warm wind, lush landscapes and the promise that longer days are here to stay…for at least a while;)

My East Coast commission…the beautiful and iconic Sankaty Headlight in Nantucket. “Sankaty Head Light”, 18 x 24, acrylic on canvas

The West Coast commission, “Sea and Sky”, 36 x 36, acrylic on canvas

02 May

Posted at 18:01h in 365 project, abstract, art, artist, mary gaspar art, pen and ink, sketch, sketch a day, still life by

The end of April in Chicago we spent celebrating Easter and enjoying watching the garden come to life. Yes, the rain and perpetual indecisiveness of the Chicago weather can be a drag, but nothing beats seeing the first signs of Spring. The buds forming on the trees, the hosta plants popping up through the earth, my chives and parsley coming back from last year’s garden! I love the Spring and I love gardening. The large floral commissions I have been painting are a reflection of the flowers popping up. People want to put nature on their walls! I have a few new commissions which will be nature inspired as well. Lots of sea and sky. Sigh. How lovely! Here are the last few weeks of my Sketch-A-Day project. Ranging from whimsical jellybeans to sketchy still lifes to abstract.

25 Apr

Posted at 00:26h in acrylic, acrylic painting, art, artist, botanical, mary gaspar art, marygaspar painting, painting, still life by

My latest painting was commissioned to celebrate a couple’s 10 year anniversary. Their wedding flowers were pink and white peonies…and this piece will hang in their master bedroom. Gahhhh, how romantic, no?! I love the sentiment behind this painting and how the piece itself is a botanical feast for the eyes. I named it “Blushing Peonies” as an ode to the actual name of these lush soft pinky white flowers and also as a nod to the sheer romance they evoke.

Sketching out the placement of flowers…

Beginning the underpainting

I loved the roughness at this stage in the painting. So undone…and a little sexy.

Adding contrast…

Placing it next to my painting, Spring Ranunculus, to see the contrast of the black vs. the white background

The finished painting, Blushing Peonies, 24 x 36, acrylic on canvas

14 Apr

Posted at 17:56h in 365 project, abstract, art, drawing, mary gaspar art, sketch, sketch a day, still life, travel by

April started off with a glorious spring break vacation to Venice, Florida. The weather was truly perfect…75 to 80 and sunny. After the Chicago winter we’ve had, it was a welcome break. We are back and I have a lot of work to do! I have three commissions I am working on concurrently. A couple of them are large floral pieces. As I have gotten my gardening underway, I am surrounded by flowers both in and outside the art studio. Oh April, you lovely rainy month…you’re being good to me.

 

29 Mar

Posted at 14:56h in 365 project, art, drawing, journaling, mary gaspar art, pen and ink, sketch, sketch a day by

The last two weeks were filled with birthday tea party fun for my now 6 year old. You’ll see some elements of this in my sketch a day series. What has become clear, for a while now, is that whether I am working on a larger painting or a sketch, I go back and forth between styles. If I have been meticulously painting details on colorful flowers all day, my sketch is usually geometric in nature or an abstract black and white. If painting a boldly colored loose abstract, my sketch will be a tightly drawn person or object. This feels balanced to me, like I can’t let one practice overtake the other. The abstracts are balancing the figurative work, thus a duality in my art. This is good to note as I sometimes agonize over the idea of having recognizable work or a signature style. I may or may not have a fluid through line in my body of work yet, but I do see patterns.