Elephants Graveyard

9×12 in. mixed media.

Well the Cookeville Comic Arts Festival at the Putnam Library had a pretty good turn out, especially for the first year. There was I believe 8 artist in attendance showing their talents in the fine art of comic illustration. Could have been more but a nice start to something I hope the library promotes again next year. Although I was manning my son’s table , he was too busy overseeing all the events, comic illustration is and always has been at my core…i really admire the works that were presented at this event…KUDOS Matt !

Ever wonder where those torn fishing nets end up, or what’s snagging them? In my dreams this is at least one answer… was thinking about another octopi piece and well, this happened, but i am sure there would be some lurking around…perfect place…and i am sure that a ship wreck is right behind this outcrop. Good story?…the thing about a ocean type setting is at least true…using the produce netting made the rest easy once they were installed. ..going to live with this for awhile and if it doesn’t feel totally finished…then i suspect i might see a octopi sneaking into the piece… 😉

Technically this is a very complex effort…besides too many layers too remember ( about 1/2″ thick in places) I used red and black netting and tissue paper over much of the piece, and in some areas, the netting, is so far down you have to look hard to see it…didn’t want to darken the caves as i am sure they would be…the surface is really nice and coral in feel, i believe…might be more of scene/seascape than an abstract, but that wasn’t the initial goal. If i do come back and add sea-life there will be more than one octopi.

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Will Work 4 Robots

8×11 in. marker and pen.

I will be working for my son this Saturday at the Putnam County Library and thought sharing this drawing would be appropriate. I will be manning his booth that will have his mini-comics and some prints he has done. The above drawing was something i did for him for helping me out one day. He does robots a lot more interesting than these , but for a quick on the moment thing…i like it. A little whimsy in the names and such, but you have to look hard.

Stop Number 9

 That was us, stop number 9 on your 2012 Artprowl Program and we couldn’t have asked for two better days of warm sunny weather to have it. We had the front lobby of the library and it worked great, they had also just installed a hanging system for pictures which was handy. It was nice to be sharing this type of experience with your family & friends let alone showing together…note the picture of two content artists photo-mugging. My son Matt has a style of his own and is really starting to produce larger works, note the tall non-plaided one standing next to him. Size 20 shoe and just under 8 foot tall, but friendly.  For myself the hardest part was figuring out which 18 pieces I was going to show in the lobby (nice problem, huh?) I settled on a cross section of my work vs. any series. Lucky for me I was also able to show 6 pieces on the far wall inside the library…first time my fall reflection series hung together, it looked great…really showed my abilities to stretch within a set subject matter and style, yet produce different outcomes.  It was very enjoyable 2 days sharing  and talking about our art, can’t wait until next time.

Taping Down The Views #2

10×14 in. mixed media. As I post this second in an exploring series I just finished removing my exhibit from the Putnam Library today. After being there for 2 months I was getting use to being on public display, type of thing I could get use to. Now I will have to wait until Cookeville’s Art Prowl in November, this is a two day tour of local artist’s works and studios through Cookeville, but mainly centered on their West Side businesses. They have a site check it out, Cookeville Art Prowl 2012, you might see another Knieling on display soon.

As to this piece… a variation on #1 continuing with my exploration with acrylic, marker, pencil and ink. I think these might look better on a much larger canvas but alast I can’t bring myself to work that large…yet!

It Is Too Cold To Skinney Dip

11×14 in mixed media. The 3rd and final wave is up and running at the Putnam County Library and this is one of the pieces. Not  sure how normal shows go but I was able to provide the public with 27 hand picked works over a 2 month period, 9 at a time. Feedback continues to be very favorable from visitors, which is greatly appreciated.  Thanks again to Stacie Johnson.

On to this current piece…nature and the elements, kind of played with a reflective type theme…water, deep and shallow and moonlight…are those snowflakes?…maybe…is that mountains?…possible .  The colors and texture have a brisk cool feel to them, and I really enjoyed changing the shades and hues as the trees came thru the piece. I might over-play the white outlining, but at this point I can’t see the work without it. I have used this style and technique on several pieces now, each one creates a different but pleasant mood for me while glazing at them…I hope it catches you in a similar fashion.

Putnam County Library Showing July-August

Well I finally got the works framed and the they are proudly hanging at the Putnam County Library. Isn’t a huge place but it does have a great location in the building, hard to miss seeing it.  This is a program that Stacie Johnson of the library management team fostered for local artists. I have the privilege to be hanging July thru August, since there is limited space I plan on rotating my works every 2 to 3 weeks. Also keeps my fan base from getting bored looking at the same pieces all of the time. I must say it does feel pretty good to have your work displayed in public and feedback from a lot of you bloggers gave me the confidence to do it…THANKS !

So if you happen to be rolling around Cookeville, Tennessee between now and the end of August…drop on by the library Mon-Sat and check me out.  Oh, sorry about the picture best I could get, this tall moody, but friendly guy kept mugging while my son took photos…you would think he was the artist or something… 😉

OH, there is also another  ART display as you come in from a Tenn. Tech professor of art , Sally Crain-Jager, pretty good stuff…so if my stuff doesn’t hold your interest make sure you give her’s a look.