Hello from California!

Posting from not-so-sunny Southern California this morning! I'm here visiting my daughter for the first time since she moved here to become an actress. I'm very relieved to see she is living in a beautiful neighborhood and she is safe! She works in Beverly Hills and is checking in on auditions daily. She is going after her dream!

My first adventure here in LA was the Getty Museum. After a couple of interesting mishaps from the TOM-TOM (technology sometimes does not differentiate the back entrances from the front ones and hopefully there were no cameras recording my actions), I finally found the parking area for the tram and off I went, up the hill to the top of the world. The architecture of the building and the landscape and gardens were amazing. I dissected the map and immediately headed for the West Pavillion with the paintings from the 1800's on, the Impressionist paintings and anything modern from there. I am an instant gratification kind of girl and I am known to plunge into desert before dinner - you never know how much time it will take to see what I came here to see! It's been awhile since I've actually set my eyes on a Degas, Monet, Van Gogh - my memories had forgotten how truly transformational they are, how complex and yet simple, the paint quality and color subtleties - the vast division of the truly genius painters from everybody that wants to be. In person, one clearly knows on all levels why the masters are the masters!

And so the process begins - awe and inspiration lead to defeat and dejection (I swear I will sell my paints) which then lead to an atta-girl, you can give it your best shot, try harder and I'm ready to paint again. Spent the next few hours back at the apartment looking through images to start a new series. All in a day!

Newest Piece on the Easel

This piece is called Yellowstone Mineral Pools. It is a 9x12k destined for the Jackson Wildlife Museum Western Visions show in August.

Hello Summer!!!

It's been awhile since I spent any time blogging! A couple of announcements - My workshop in Creede, CO has been postponed until September due to "increment" - meaning HORRIBLE - weather. Snow, rain, winds - sound familiar? We here in Utah have had the same thing and now we are preparing ourselves for snow melt flooding, probably the worst in years. I heard that in the last 35 days, we had rain for 28 days. We've had moments of sunshine and I've taken advantage of those days! Second time out with the gang painting. We have an unbelievable group of painters from this area that get together once a week to paint, have lunch and talk art. Today was a beautiful day and we had the pleasure of entertaining a horse, a burro, two goats, three sheep and a black lab. Who can say that everyday? The landscape was a bit busy and we all had to do a little "embellishing"! Here is a little pic of our friends...

I am SERIOUSLY going to do more field study painting. The act of simplifying information and building compositions from life is invaluable to a studio painter. I think it is the element that I need most in my work. I feel like there are so many different styles of painting - plein air, tonal, traditional, stylistic, contemporary - and they are all beautiful. I would not necessarily call myself a plein air painter, I work from thumbnails, plein air studies, my own photography, and memory, but every time I get out, I learn something invaluable to carry over into my larger work. Color notes, values, relationships - you just can't get that from a photo. And being out in nature reminds me what it's all about! Back to the land, back to the trees, the water, the mountains, the changing skies. And I live in an amazing landscape - our valleys and meadows are the Best!

Another announcement - I will be doing a small works show at the Crowley Gallery and Cafe here in my hometown of Ogden, Ut. This week June 3rd, I will do a demo for the gallery's art stroll from 6-9 pm. I will work in oil for the demo. Then on June 18th, they will hold a private reception for my watercolors and oils, along with appetizers and wine. It should be a great time and I will post the invite when I have it! If you are anywhere near me for the demo, come on down and visit me.

I'm also gearing up for the PleinAir Show with the Kneeland Gallery in August, a new body of work for Mtn. Trails Gallery in Jackson, WY as well as the Western Visions Show at the Jackson Museum of Wildlife Art. Other shows are in the making and I will announce them as they come. I've kind of taken some time off from the traveling I did last year. Marco has a job that requires many hours and won't be able to travel with me as much - what a bummer :( Sure glad we took advantage of it last year. I think this is my year to really get out in the field and concentrate on quality over quantity more than ever. It's really scary to take away options from the sales arena, but I know I am making the right decision. I guess this is where a little faith goes a long way! And I always seem to make it...... so far. :)

Happy painting all - get out and paint! Play with some field studies and breathe a little mother nature!

Miniature Watercolor Show

I've been working on these miniature watercolors the last few weeks! I will have an online purchasing opportunity before they go out to a show - a great bang for the buck! All original watercolor on Arches 140lb. paper, matted and framed and shipped for $200-$400 depending on size. Please contact me if you are interested and I will forward you all the information available!

My largest paintings to date!

These are two vertical pieces just finished tonight - 60x30's, a challenge for me! They are based on my pine series from last year with a few twists and certainly a major size and proportion difference. That took every last drop of discipline I had to stick with them every day :) Frame tonight, on the road tomorrow and delivered on Thursday!

Legacy Gallery Representation

I'm so pleased to announce my new representation with Legacy Gallery in Scottsdale, AZ!

For anyone that hasn't visited the gallery, it is on the corner of Scottsdale Rd. and Main Street and is a favorite of all the galleries in old town. The Scottsdale Salon of Fine Art was just held in the gallery - in fact, still hanging - amazing and inspiring artwork! There are two of my pieces in the gallery at the present moment, but more coming!

April Newsletter

My April newsletter just went out tonight. I've attached it in case you aren't on my email list and would like to see it! It only takes me two days to create, figure out how to change file extensions and download :) I sure wish I was a bit more computer savvy! If you can't read it, go to this page

Watercolor Show

I'll be having a Watercolors in Miniature show in June at Crowley Fine Art! Eight paintings to date with many more coming. They are a great value for a beginning collector, priced between $250 and $900, all original matted and framed. Please contact me if there are any you are interested in for pre-sale purchase - makes a great Mother's day present!

Shanna Kunz

shankunz@earthlink.net

801-389-2369

shannakunz.com

Wonderful Break with a tsp. of guilt!

Rainy days and SUNDAYS, perfect day for hanging out with my sweetie! Still recuperating from my Scottsdale stint of every day, three months straight. I have been filling my days with bits of painting, but still not able to completely immerse myself back into it again. This is not like a 9-5 job, well - not for me. Feast or famine! I go down to the studio in the mornings to muster as much discipline as I can and it is still just not quite there. The computer calls to me, my sister calls for coffee, my much-missed friends call to meet for lunch. I feel guilt, such guilt for not jumping back into my obligations the way I should. Distractions.....make them constructive ones.....drive four hours to a gallery to pick up work and come back....make portfolio CD's to send out.......get that website updated......does any of this sound familiar to anyone??? Maybe this is what they mean that an artist must fill ALL of their life in order to paint. Cooking - what sounds interesting tonight, what kind of playlist will help me get my mojo back? Maybe it's a full life experience that we fill ourselves with that makes us want to create. Maybe I'm making excuses. No maybe's about it. Could be that I'm missing the interaction with people every day. Could be the fear of jumping into a painting larger than I've ever done. Could be I just need more discipline to juggle the right brain and left brain. There is this idea knocking around in the back of my head...ooohhh, I am thinking of a great painting.....the muse is knocking at my door....I'll start again tomorrow!

Introspective thoughts on Art

I ran across some writings I did last summer, as I rode the wild ride of my art career through shows, good ones and bad ones, some unbelievable and much appreciated press coverage, some confidence hits and misses and a new life in the making. As I read the writings, they ring true to my heart today as much as ever. I will share, and please feel free to give feedback!!

Each voice is unique. It is only an artists' job to dig deeper, work harder, get more soulful. It is not your job to judge or compare - time and history will tell of excellence or mediocrity. It is just your job to show up and paint, give it ALL you have! Consider all the elements in that painting. Keep to your integrity in each piece, make it the best you can possibly do. The rest is not up to you - what will be will be.

Judging yourself and punishing yourself does not make you better. It serves no purpose. Let go - let God. Pay attention along the way to detours, to people you meet with kindred spirit, and stay with your priorities at all times. A stable, peaceful mind lends itself to better work, a more artistic life well rounded. The ego emits short puffs of elation and long bouts of pain and comparison. Try your hardest to see it for what it is and push on.

Maybe this resonates with you and maybe it doesn't. I know that as individual as we are, as diverse as we are, that every voice matters and that it is your opportunity to find yourself and your voice and THAT will make the difference in this world of ours. Be unique, be honest, and know that somewhere, somehow, you will make a difference!

Online Portfolio

Here is my online portfolio through IWork. I have saved it as a PDF file too.

I can't seem to get a thumbnail for it though - looks a little primitive!

Art Contests

A couple of months ago, I entered Raymar Art Contest and was selected as a finalist with my high key winter piece called Essence. I was honored to be chosen from among SO many fabulous paintings and painters!

Another competition that I regular enter is FASO Boldbrush Art Competition. No winning entry as yet, but.......diligence may pay off down the road. Here is my entry if you are interested in seeing it - and if you like it, please click on the link and hit "like".

These kinds of art competitions, including Randy Higbee Gallery 6x6 shows (should have entered, but missed the deadline) are great ways for an artist to get their work seen. They might be seen by primarily other artists, but the newsletters also go out to galleries and collectors and they are relatively inexpensive ways to advertise one's work! There is the advantage of feedback too - the jurists are always very well-known and well-respected national artists and an award is certainly a feather in one's cap. The Facebook community has proven to be very helpful and encouraging of artists entry and often offer positive critiques.

So set aside that painting that makes your heart pitter-patter and give one of these contests a shot! You never know and you have nothing but a few bucks to lose! Come on, what are you waiting for???

Home Sweet Home!

The Celebration has been over for a week now - can't believe it! We tore down on Monday, packed up our personal belongings on Tuesday and headed out of town! First was a stop at the Legacy Gallery in Scottsdale to drop off the two pieces selected for the Salon. That show opens on April 22, 2011 and I am so excited to be juried into a show of such fine quality! Our next move was towards Sedona to drop off work to my NEW gallery Mtn. Trails Gallery in Sedona. If you've never been to Sedona before, it is such a beautiful place - situated in the red rock and cedar mountains! The gallery sits in Tlaquepaque, a village of shops, galleries and fine restaurants that is as quaint and inviting as they come. The gallery is up a flight of stairs and has a wonderful staff and beautiful space. I dropped off eleven pieces and we were back on the road. We stayed in Flagstaff for the night and headed out in the morning for home.
We made it all the way to Salt Lake when the transmission in the Tahoe died! My dad - Jack - to the rescue to come get us and bring our little trailer home. He arrived just as the tow truck arrived to bring our old girl back to Ogden. Poor Marco was heartbroken about the illness of our truck, but she will be back up and running in no time I'm sure.
Since arriving home, we have unpacked, cleaned, redecorated and continually reminded each other how good it feels to be home. Dorothy was right - there's no place like home. I've visited family, went to a birthday party from my girlfriends, puttered and cooked! I have for the most part boycotted makeup for at least another week, worn jammies and comfort clothes, slept in a few days and watched a movie or two! Tomorrow starts a new week and I will organize the studio and get busy on a few commissions and a slew of ideas for new paintings, but for tonight - a little more rest! It's SO good to be home!

Mountain Trails Gallery of Sedona

I am so pleased to announce my new representation with Mtn. Trails Gallery in Sedona, AZ!

I have given them 11 pieces of new work and a little bird has told me they are hanging as I write. The gallery is so beautiful and the staff and owner, Vic Payne, are wonderful. I hope to get back down there soon and do a little plein air painting of the beautiful red rock and cedar. If you happen to be in the area, do stop in and check out the work!

Good Morning!

Well, we are down to the last two weeks of the show! It really has gone by so fast and with a quick trip to Salt Lake for Art and Soup during the last week, I'll be home before I can blink. I'm still working on a few paintings down here and I'll be doing a little plein air Monday and Tuesday with friends. I sure thought I would do more of that while I was here, but seven days a week 8-10 hours a day is tough stuff!

I'm so excited to get my garden going at home! I'm going to bring a few indoor plants home with me too from here in Arizona - JASMINE! Does anyone know if it can be grown indoors? Utah is much too cold to grow it outside, but that smell just mesmerizes me. I have to have some. Can't wait for the Lilly's to come out and maybe a few daffodil bulbs survived the barbs of the tiller last year. I'm going to build a small flower garden for painting a few still life's this summer.

Focus - Shanna - focus! Quit daydreaming about a month from now and get back to the present! Up and at it and back to the tent to get things done. This is the first day of a two week show and it's time to make opportunity happen :) Have a nice day everyone!

Winter Whispers

Winter Whispers

24x36 oil on canvas

Framing Conversations!

I've had quite a few discussions lately with clients about frames. The final presentation is so important - you can say to the world that you are proud of your work, that it has value or you can throw on a cheap frame to get the painting out the door. When putting together a show of a dozen pieces, it's a tough pill to swallow to fork out a few grand for a nice frame. Haven't we all been through this pain before! Consider it an investment in your business, not unlike good tires on a vehicle. Yes, you can buy retread or used, but if you want the best investment with sustainability - get the best that you can reasonably afford! Look for a frame that does not compete with the painting, lines or pattern that bring out the subtleties in a piece. I use a handmade, hand leafed finished corner frame from Rocky Mountain Frames out of Kaysville UT.

We chose to float the piece to give it more weight and pull the painting away from the edge just a bit. It is a metal leaf, rubbed to look like Karat Gold. We also went with a thinner moulder with clean lines to make it a transitional frame - one that would work in a contemporary or traditional setting! I think Tony does a marvelous job and he will design any style to fit an artists look and needs. Check him out when you get a few extra minutes Rocky Mountain Frames.

Newly Revised Autumn Shore

Sometimes, a painting that previously seemed finished, calls out for something more. Autumn Shore is just that piece! The more I lived with it, the more it called for more mood, more nuances. Here is the piece in it's final state. I am so happy with this version!

Workshop Paintings!

Well, here they are! Cacti :) Inside joke around here about me painting Cactus - Marco's been trying to get me to do them forever and the only way I knew I would like it was if I was plein-air painting. So the workshop with Matt Smith was the best option and I had a ball! Especially with my newfound friend, sister from another mother Liz. I am going to get out and do a few more while I'm here, especially when things really start getting green. Until then.......

Well, I'm back from Sun Valley, Utah and Tucson - a week away from the tent was good for my head! I loved painting in Tucson, even if it was cactus, lol. I have actually started to really appreciate the beauty of the desert, for a mountain girl that is. The skies here are tremendous, the sunsets trump anywhere else! I met some really great people, all working artists and substantial in their own right and I really found a kindred spirit in my new friendship with Liz Robbins. She is such an amazing artist and person and it was so nice to meet up with someone so in tune with life experience and how that influences artistic life.

Four weeks left at the Celebration show and probably the most intense. Four weeks to make the best art that I possibly can - nothing intimidating there! I've picked up a couple of galleries after the show and looking for one more. I need to get the portfolio ready again, the bio updated, contacts made and the website updated. All in a few days work!

NEW WORK

I've been painting up a storm the last few weeks and all with a nice and warm palette reflecting the beautiful weather here in Scottsdale! Now off to Sun Valley tomorrow and snow and maybe there will be snow paintings to follow :) The reception for the Kneeland Gallery show is Friday night 5-8. Please stop by if you are in the area!

Check out this link for my first online portfolio - please remember I'm a rookie!

Shanna Kunz Portfolio

Great News!

I found out today that two of my paintings were accepted into the Scottsdale Salon of Fine Art hosted by the Legacy Gallery in April! Yes, doing cartwheels out in the parking lot of the celebration :) Here is the Link if you would like to see the list of amazing artists chosen along with their artwork : http://www.scottsdalesalonoffineart.com/category/artists-and-artwork. I'm very happy that some of my "coworkers" here at the celebration are included in that list : Richard Hall, Jennifer O'Cualain, Josh Claire - all AMAZING!

I'm staying home from the tent today to work on some watercolors, do some cooking, a few loads of laundry, and investigate a few future shows and galleries that I might apply for - in other words, be on the computer most of the day! So what else is new? I would really like to pick up a couple of galleries to my repertoire. There are a few irons in the fire and alot of new work! It is so hard on one's emotional head to sell your own work seven days a week for three months so this day off will truly help me do some AA - attitude adjustment! Now off to research recipes for creative cooking :) Have a great day!

"Pastures"

24x30 oil on canvas

available through the Kneeland Gallery

Celebration Work Time

One of the many advantages of doing the Celebration of Fine Art is the focused quality and quantity of time available for working! I am surrounded by approximately 100 creative, hard working artists all hard-at-it painting, sculpting, creating in their medium of choice! Though the weather this last week has brought out an early "Spring Fever" for me, I have been working and have actually finished a painting, with a good start on another. Eight to ten pieces brought down here will be taken up to the Kneeland Gallery next week for my show reception on Feb. 18, 2011 and I will be left with a few empty spots to fill, and I am feeling the pressure to get some good work up there - and it has to be substantial work for me to feel good about the show! This year the Celebration is even better than ever, adding a few new artists working in the representational arena that are fabulous!

Marco and I have also decided that the small watercolor drawing was a great way to get our email newsletter up and going, so we will be choosing from all the new sign-ups from Jan 1st to the drawing. If you are interested in a beautiful small watercolor, please sign up for our email newsletter off the website (shannakunz.com)! I send out the newsletter every other month, not too frequently as to bombard people with email junk, just enough to announce show schedules, juried exhibits and new work.

I will keep you updated with news and events from the show a little more regularly! The last few months have been pretty busy and not much time for blogging, but I will try and do better!

Hello from the first night of Celebration of Fine Art! I'll post a few pics so you can see what we have been up to this last week - plenty of construction work and hanging paintings! We made the journey down from Utah to the warm weather of Arizona and are loving the temps! Now it's time to go back to work!

Hello

Here is the final presentation on the watercolors for the show!

Handmade, leafed finished corners - perfect match for the paintings.

There will be 12 small watercolor pieces and a large one to go with them.

Opening day - Saturday January 16, 2011 - See you there!

Happy New Year to all my friends!

It's New Years Eve and I am so excited about the upcoming year! Celebration of Fine Art is just around the corner!!! I will be taking 12-14 new watercolors that I am so proud of. It was so good to get back to my first love of painting. They take me back to that first crush, knowing what I wanted to do with the rest of my life! The frames are handmade, finished leafed corners - just beautiful. There will be about 18 oils displayed on opening night, all my blood sweat and tears from this past year - I can't wait! There is nothing like putting all your work together to see where you have come from, where you are at and where you want to go. A body of work is so telling of all your secrets - your passion, your pain and your aspirations! We all need a good look at ourselves every year and evaluate these things. Life is such an adventure and one that need not be on auto-pilot. Grab hold with both hands, hold on and try new journeys! Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas!

A quick note to wish all my dear friends Merry Christmas and an even better New Year! May you all find success, small and large, in your life this year, find love in beautiful hidden places and have peace and adventure in even amounts! A life well-rounded is a life well-lived and great friends make it even better! Enjoy :)

Shanna

A very sincere Thank You!

Thank you to all who weathered the storm and visited my show in Park City last night! I am truly grateful for those friends that take the time out of their busy schedule to support me. I have been so blessed in my life to have so many dear friends, such a supportive family and an artist network of peers - you make my life beautiful! I was thinking of all the past shows over the years, my entourage of "girls" that would be there or be square, all my family that has supported this crazy life of mine with so much love and optimism. This is a crazy business, one that the people who love me have watched like a roller coaster ride and still loved me in the end. I truly have sincere gratitude for all that have hung in there with me :)

Time for shopping!

My paintings for the Mtn. Trails Gallery are finally delivered and only now (as I say EVERY YEAR) can I get my Christmas shopping done! Oh how I wish I could be the person that has all the gifts bought in October! The person that has the paintings done and delivered a week ahead of schedule! Instead, every single year, I am in the stores on the week before Christmas playing catch-up. What would it be like to be an organized person? I might have everything ready for the Celebration of Fine Art show in Arizona. Instead I will be rushing like a madwoman on the fifth of January, making myself crazy with a list of things I forgot about. I will be painting right up until we leave. Is this all part of the right brain thing or just a Shanna thing? Well, at least one would think I would be used to it after all these years! Here's to a great shopping weekend :) !!

The Sun Came Out, Oil on Canvas, 30x40

Just ready for delivery to Mtn. Trails Gallery in Park City!

Mountain Trails Gallery in Park City - One person show!

Hello friends!

I'm working on the final piece for my One Person show in Park City at the Mountain Trails Gallery. I'm so excited about the show! The show was advertised in the Western Art Collector magazine in December's issue and the gallery has done a beautiful job of putting together a brochure of the new work. Please come up and see me if you are in town. The reception is Saturday, December 18th, from 6-9 pm.

I have many paintings home with me at the present, all getting ready to go out to new places, new shows! If you have a special someone in your life you would like to purchase a special something for - please call me for a list of paintings available for Christmas! Mention the blog and get a special purchase price.

I hope your holidays are beautiful!

Shanna

Fresh off the easel!

Here is the newest piece of hopefully quite a few to come! I guess I truly am ready for winter because the snow just keeps coming up for me. Let it snow!

I have my Christmas decorating finished! I did things a little easier this year and didn't use QUITE as many of my decorations and ornaments. I have 12 boxes of things that I have collected over the years and it was so hard deciding which things would go up. I think I am probably one of the most sentimental girls alive (not necessarily a great thing)! Some would call me a packrat. I have ornaments from my mom and dad's first christmas tree and even a couple from my grandma's tree. I have some that friends from high school gave me, and of course many that were given to my kids as they grew up. I only used the most special ones this year. I have about 32 nutcrackers that did not go up this year. The mantle and the dining room table and the tree, that's about it! We leave for Scottsdale the first of January and taking everything down is quite the chore!

My show for Mtn Trails in Park City is almost ready to deliver. A few more new pieces will be posted soon! I'm still working on the paintings for the Celebration and the Kneeland Gallery. Never a dull moment around this place!

Western Art Collector December 2010

Beginning to look alot like Christmas!

Boy is it coming down here - beautiful fluffy huge snowflakes! I love this kind of snow- a fresh blanket in the morning, no tracks just quite yet. I'm down in my studio with my stereo singing songs to me, my little space heater working overtime to warm up this room and lucy in her little dog bed next to my easel. I've been looking through the images I have taken this year and am visualizing what each piece will look like in a particular format. Maybe I'll try for three large pieces this week and I can't help it - WINTER pieces! That is never my galleries' favorite words, but it gets me so excited to paint these palettes, this texture, this SNOW! One more month to enjoy it and then down to Arizona for the best winter months of the year. I miss skiing, I miss driving in the snow (I know, must have lost my mind), watching the snow from my big picture window at home. Wow - someone gave me an extra dose of nostalgia in my coffee this morning! Here is a painting that was done from my favorite parts of two tiny little miniatures done with a tertiary palette, different value patterns, same subject matter. This large one, mainly because of the size difference, is much more subtle, very quiet and I am still living with it, deciding how much further to push it. It is of that beautiful lake North of Durango, CO that I have painted and worked through what seems to be a million times. Not sure I have said everything that needs to be said about it, even to this day. My color of choice these days has been a violet. Violets and blues! Hmmm. What will today bring?