Late this summer, a friend and I were taking the gravel walking path on Cty Rd 17, just outside of Delano. It was a beautiful, sunny day, fragrant wildflowers and grasses on either side of us. Along the path, little yellow butterflies gathered together. As we walked along they would rise up in clouds, enveloping us in yellow fluttery wings. It felt like we were walking in a Disney movie. Of course I had to do a painting, and you can see it at Room to Breathe yoga studio during Delano's Old Fashioned Christmas Art Crawl on Saturday, Dec. 4. You can also order it in greeting card form at zazzle.com/sharizimm*.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Greetings from Little Long
Off the gravel roads of Mound MN, you can find a clear, deep lake called "Little Long". There is no beach--only a boat dock and a small grassy area by the parking lot--but the lake has a small devoted following. Scuba divers, triathletes, dog owners and floating party barge attendees all congregate there. Young men and women on inner tubes dot the lake like the lily pads close to shore. Dragonflies dive bomb and occasionally a loon calls. It has become a summer custom of mine to swim across the lake and back, then sit on the dock and mindfully soak up the sun.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
The story behind Vida the Joyful Dog
Last week I had the closing shift at my coffee shop job. Tired, shopping for dinner at 7:30 pm, I called my daughter and asked her what she wanted for dinner. She surprised me by saying a friend had dropped off a pan of lasagna for us. What?! Great! Turn on the oven and pop it in for dinner tonight I tell her. Now I am happy and relieved and heading home after another twenty minutes of shopping. I walk in the back door, and announce I am home. Nobody hears me but my joyful dog. My daughter is two rooms away from the kitchen, doing homework on my computer. My son has earplugs in and can't hear a thing while he does his homework. The empty lasagna pan is upside down on the floor, with my satisfied dog dancing around it.
Instead of putting the lasagna in the oven, my daughter put it on the back of the stove while the oven preheated. She didn't know that Vida, our joyful dog, could jump as high as she can. Nobody but Vida tastes the homemade lasagna gift. Uncertain what to tell my friend, I decide to make an artful card out of the situation. My friend and her husband liked the card, and she brought me another pan of lasagna. You can now benefit from my ordeal by ordering one of these artful cards for yourself at zazzle.com/sharizimm.
Instead of putting the lasagna in the oven, my daughter put it on the back of the stove while the oven preheated. She didn't know that Vida, our joyful dog, could jump as high as she can. Nobody but Vida tastes the homemade lasagna gift. Uncertain what to tell my friend, I decide to make an artful card out of the situation. My friend and her husband liked the card, and she brought me another pan of lasagna. You can now benefit from my ordeal by ordering one of these artful cards for yourself at zazzle.com/sharizimm.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Tastee Treat Organic Cotton Infant Creeper from Zazzle.com
Tastee Treat Organic Cotton Infant Creeper from Zazzle.com
The idea behind my Smart Thinking Designs store at zazzle.com/sharizimm is to make my artwork affordable and accessible to more people. Those who can't budget for artwork may be able to afford my art as a baby gift, postcard art, something they can wear themselves, etc. So, as part of my plan to show some of my products along with my gallery art, I have started to order samples.
Yesterday the UPS guy brought me:
Offtrail and Blue Top postcards. I was very happy with the quality of paper and vivid color reproduction. Yes!
The organic cotton infant onesie with Tastee Treat art. It has an adorable vintage feel and more of a cream color to the cotton material than depicted in the online image.
A woman's tank top with Transforming Wigs art. The cotton is very soft with a substantial feel to it. The artwork is screenprinted and has a softer look to it than the vivid look and plastic feel of color transfer.
Have you ordered anything from Smart Thinking Designs? I'd love to hear what you think.
Shari
Monday, August 16, 2010
Transforming Wigs
My wig series of paintings started when I was driving through Georgia one summer and saw a series of billboards along the freeway. They were very simple and bold--red and black with "Wigs" in block letters. Each new billboard said something different: "Beautiful Wigs", "Elegant Wigs", "Sexy Wigs"....you get the picture. It inspired me to do my own series and delve into the image someone wearing a wig would like to portray. The more wig paintings I did, the more they became about what we choose to show or hide about ourselves. What is it that we consider attractive about ourselves? What do we think we need to cover up?
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Jumbo shrimp and birthday cake at the Blue Top
When I was a child, my parents would give each of us six kids a choice on how to celebrate our birthday. I could have a party with friends or I could go out to eat, just me, mom and dad, to a restaurant of my choice. It was very rare to get one-on-one time with mom and dad, and even more rare to eat out, so I always chose the restaurant option. The Blue Top restaurant was my choice one year. I remember the sparkly vinyl booths, the little birthday cake the waitress brought for me and feeling extremely grown up eating jumbo shrimp for the first time. Very special memory.
I gave this painting to my mom and dad, but the postcard version is available to all at zazzle.com/sharizimm.
I gave this painting to my mom and dad, but the postcard version is available to all at zazzle.com/sharizimm.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Offtrail postcard
One autumn day a couple years ago, I was hiking along a trail in Lake Rebecca Park Reserve, wondering at the gorgeous red sumac bushes. All around me were golden leaves, birch and maple trees and the smell of fall in the woods. Suddenly a whole flock of blue birds flew in front of me and my friend, landing in the trees around us and just as quickly flying off. The contrast of their blue wings against the yellow sunlight and blazing red and gold foliage is something I will never forget.
This painting is now hanging on another friend's wall, but the postcard version is available at zazzle.com/sharizimm*.
This painting is now hanging on another friend's wall, but the postcard version is available at zazzle.com/sharizimm*.
Friday, August 13, 2010
Tastee Treat
Night time at the Tastee Treat was inspired by late night family road trips back from Grandpa and Grandma's house in southern Wisconsin. If all had gone well in the station wagon my dad would ask mom, "Should we stop for ice cream?". My sleepy siblings and I would quietly wait to hear her answer. It was almost always yes, and we'd stop at the neon lit Tastee Treat for a soft serve cone and watch the ducks swim around in the water.
Although the painting is no longer for sale, it is now available in postcard form at my online store, zazzle.com/sharizimm*. Hope to see you there!
Although the painting is no longer for sale, it is now available in postcard form at my online store, zazzle.com/sharizimm*. Hope to see you there!
Monday, August 9, 2010
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