28 Mar

Posted at 19:12h in acrylic, acrylic painting, art, botanical, etsy, etsy seller, flowers, mary gaspar art, marygaspar painting, new painting, still life by

Here is my newest painting, titled, Spring Ranunculus. I have several large scale floral commissions right now, so I thought I’d do a few smaller pieces in between. It is 20 x 20 inches, square. I loooove a square shaped canvas! This piece is for sale at my Etsy shop.

Spring Ranunculus, 20 x 20, acrylic on canvas

20 Mar

Posted at 17:22h in abstract, acrylic, acrylic painting, art, artist, mary gaspar art, marygaspar painting, Modern Art, new painting, painting by

This is my latest painting, French Pop, 18 x 24 acrylic on canvas. It is for my 87 year old grandmother who wanted “an abstract with a juxtaposition of various shapes” in a color palette of turquoise, red, cream, black and white. She has an amazing collection of antique furniture (my great grandmother was an antiques dealer!) as well as a killer sense of style. She loves the tension of a modern geometric piece in bold colors with traditional furniture pieces. How cool is she?! I named the piece because the color palette has a retro feel to me…all that aqua and red! And I couldn’t stop thinking of France, when looking at it…in fact I added the black and white and red and white stripes while thinking of the French Riviera. I put on some 1960’s French Pop music and voila…I had my name!

13 Mar

Posted at 17:09h in 365 project, art, artist, drawing, flowers, instagram, journaling, mary gaspar art, Modern Art, pen and ink, sketch, sketch a day by

71 days into sketching and I can definitely attest to the power of Routine. My sketching habitually takes place at night, after the kids are asleep. The telly may or may not be on. I may be drinking a glass of wine or having some tea. Sometimes I sketch in bed right before I fall asleep. After, of course, capturing a picture of it and instagramming! That is as much a part of the process as the actual drawing. I’ve been playing around with frames and filters on my phone quite a bit. It’s like a speed version of digital mixed with hand drawn art. I really enjoy the editing process. You’ll see some of that here. The first 13 sketches of March 2014…

07 Mar

Posted at 02:25h in acrylic, acrylic painting, art, etsy, etsy seller, mary gaspar art, marygaspar painting, Modern Art, painting by

My newest painting is called, Capture The Moon. It is an abstract in a palette of neon orange, blues, grays, white and yellow. Inspired by well, the moon in its phases…and specifically the moon in Spring. Not gonna lie, this Chicago winter is making me dream/sleep/paint Spring in all her glory! Wanted a fresh color palette that was invigorating.

Capture The Moon, 24 x 30, acrylic on canvas

03 Mar

Posted at 16:31h in 365 project, art, artist, drawing, February, flowers, hearts, instagram, mary gaspar art, Modern Art, motivation, pen and ink, sketch, sketch a day, valentine's by

February is finished and in Chicago, unfortunately, the snow continues to fall. While it is so pretty, these winters get tiresome and draining on one’s creative spirit. So I try to focus on the positive things I am grateful for in my little art business. So what am I thankful for?

  1. My growing creative community…bloggers, creatives, and artists whom I have met through social media and namely, instagram…which I love! A feast for the eyes! You can follow me under @marygasparart 🙂
  2. My creative friends whom I have known for years and years. I rely on their insight and support and love watching them grow their own creative businesses. They are truly inspiring.
  3. Commissions! Yay for commissions! While it doesn’t always sound ideal to have to put aside what you’re working on to create someone else’s vision, let’s face it…it’s money. Plus, it is often the constraints of a client’s color palette, subject matter or time limit that foster real growth and creativity in my work.
  4. This 365 sketch a day project for getting me through these days when I feel less than inspired to put pen to paper or spark a new idea.

My sketches are really all over the place in terms of both content and style. I have been thinking about this a lot and while I’d like to have some signature that “says” what  I do, I don’t want to force anything. I never plan out these sketches, and simply let what comes to my mind happen. It is a grand exploration of subconscious ideas as well as an exercise in commitment, practice and technique. Here they are in no particular order rounding out February. And with that Happy March everyone!

 

24 Feb

Posted at 00:35h in acrylic, acrylic painting, art, flowers, interior design, mary gaspar art, marygaspar painting, Modern Art, painting by

My latest painting was commissioned by a collector for her dining room in the Andersonville neighborhood in Chicago. She loves peonies and wanted something large and dramatic to fill the space above her buffet. Initially she wanted a mural but decided a canvas would be more practical and portable if she ever moved.We decided on a square, 36 x 36 inch canvas. I have been loving painting flowers on blacks and navies, so we decided on peaches and pink peonies on a rich navy color. I really love this color palette and hope to use it again soon…SO fresh! She gave me a photograph of two flowers snapped on her iphone. I used this for reference.

Spacially mapping out my canvas…you’ll see I end up with WAY less flowers.

Adding highlights and cleaning up the background.

I added a few budding flowers to balance the bouquet.

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

My client was completely elated upon seeing the finished piece. We installed it on Monday and now her dining room is dramatic and dinner party worthy.

11 Feb

Posted at 17:39h in 365 project, art, artist, Artsy Forager, etsy, February, flowers, instagram, journaling, mary gaspar art, Modern Art, pen and ink, Philip Seymour Hoffman, sketch, sketch a day, special needs classes, the center for contemporary dance, twitter art exhibit by

This month began on a very somber note as the great actor, Philip Seymour Hoffman, passed away on February 2nd. Through all of my acting years in school and beyond, he was always my favorite. An incredibly versatile and grounded actor, who was a force in both the film and theatre world. And although I never knew him personally, I was incredibly saddened by his death. May his creative spirit live on in the roles he played and in the beautiful family he leaves behind.

February has pressed on to be quite a busy month for me artistically and I am finding myself incredibly inspired right now. This inspiration has led to work being created and sold…to new commissions and a whole plethora of ideas! I also mailed off my post card to Florida for this year’s Twitter Art Exhibit. This is my second year participating. Each year this international exhibit’s sales benefits a different charitable cause, this year’s being the Special Needs Classes at The Center for Contemporary Dance in Orlando. It has been great connecting with other artists and raising money for good causes. My postcard sized art this year is “Pollinate”, a geometric inspired piece done in ink and marker.

You can follow me on instagram to see my 365 Sketch A Day Project daily. Also check out The Artsy Forager’s instagram project, “Artsy Defined” and follow along to meet other creatives and get inspired!

Here are the first 10 days of February sketching…

02 Feb

Posted at 04:27h in 365 project, art, artist, mary gaspar art, Modern Art, pen and ink, sketch, sketch a day by

So January…was a month to remember! Or forget. No just kidding. It WAS marked by lots and LOTS of snow in Chicago, flu ridden children and husband, and many a day stuck indoors. Good thing I love being at home stuck in a snowstorm with candles, food cooking and music playing….

I got some new pens and markers this week so there is some color in this next bunch of sketches. Here is the last of January 2014. What. A. Month.