Happy New Year

A view of "Kammergalleriet" where my show opens on the 15th of January.

It is January 1st, and as always it makes me think of the old year, as well as the new. The past three new year eves, I have spent in very different places. Between 2008-09 we were in New Jersey. Last New Year we were living on Guam. And this year I am sitting in Denmark. Three very different spots, and three very different kinds of life. Last year we barbecued mahi mahi for dinner, and sat outside all night, between coconuts and geckos. Last night we made sure the heat was turned up high, and wore big solid winter coats, and had to be sure sure not to slip on the icy ground...

But whatever way the night is spent, it is basically all about looking back, and wondering what the new year will bring. I am currently getting ready for an art show in “Kammergalleriet” a small artist shared gallery in my hometown of Lemvig. The room is very nice, the space huge. I will be there to mind the show. I choose the opening times, the hanging and pretty much everything else. Very interesting. For two week the space will be mine, entirely.

I was planning (and hoping) to show some new work that is being brought back from Guam. I am expecting a small container, with (-among other things-) a lot of my art work. Paintings I made on Guam, and also work from before, in New Jersey. Pieces I always wanted to bring home. Now I finally got the chance. BUT, something happened, the shipment is delayed, and suddenly the box is not going to show up in time. Too bad, on so many levels. But, I do have some work from NJ I got home in an earlier shipment, and I am currently working on some new pieces. I think it will be all right. It will have to be!

More to follow, undoubtedly, as the show is coming together in my mind and improvised studio...

New Year On Guam

“I’d rather be in the Studio” excellent book by Alyson B. Standfield on art marketing

Happy New Year! I simply can’t believe it’s been a year since I sat in “Brewed Awakening” cafe in Metuchen, writing my new year blog entry from last year. I remember it very clearly for some reason, and it doesn’t seem long ago at all. Just about everything in my surroundings has changed since that cold winter day in the cafe, when a thin layer of snow covered the ground. Jersey was busy, crowded, multicultural and close to New York City... Guam is laid-back, with stunning Nature, H O T, with extremely high humidity, and is pretty much as removed from anything or anywhere else as can be. I am not going to lie: It does feel very remote out here at times!

Since moving here, I haven’t been as inspired to work as much as I probably expected. I have the most fantastic studio, but just haven’t quite felt it yet. Adjusting to these new surroundings has been a work in process. Not because it has been bad - just because Guam is so absolutely different from anywhere I’ve ever been. Not having Art Museums and galleries fairly close by is a new thing for me, and one of the things I miss the most from NJ. At some point I wrote a blog about the work going into searching the island for the right art materials. That was a new and unexpected obstacle right there in front of me.

Instead of painting, I have in fact spend a lot of time reading art books, magazines, and books on art marketing. I have used the Internet a lot for the ideas, inspiration and fresh air in art and culture that I used to get from a day in the city, going to MoMA, or dinner with friends.

But I am excited about 2010. I am excited about getting back into painting, I truly miss it. I think it is time, I miss having paint on my hands, and unfinished pieces hanging around the house...

New Year - New Thoughts

Happy New Year! It is January once again, and the beginning of a new year always inspires me to look over my work, and kind of sum up the year and consider new ideas & thought that have fallen into my mind the past few months (for me, it seems fall is time for thoughtfulness and reflection - much more so than the rest of the year)

I was recently looking through my art books, I have so many of them and I noticed how different the art and artists was. I look at different artists for very different things. Art that may not seem connected, somehow finds a connection for me. Some artists I look at for creativity or spontaneity, some for their use of color or patterns. Some are masters of the craft or amazing collage artists. Or they (literally) have their way with words, visually. So many amazing artists - my personal inspiration list is long and - quite possibly - endless and varies, depending on what I am working on. But, here’s just a few names that popped up, during my recent “curiosity check” in my library as well as some new names I have recently come across - in random order:

● Clayton Brothers

● Frida Kahlo

● Tony Fitzpatrick

● Elizabeth Clayton

● Paula Rego

● John Corrin

● Sabrina Ward Harrison

● Tine Helleshøj

● Kehinde Wiley

● Nicky Hoberman

● Bo Bartlett

● Hung Lui