Calcifer, mixed media on panel, 10 x 10 inches ©2009
I really have been up to things, while ignoring my beloved blog. Painting, jewelry making, painting, shows, painting, sales, painting and painting.
So, as proof of the “painting” part — I present these three little gems; Calcifer, Glowlightly and Razz.
These brand-spanking-new paintings are available as prints in my Etsy shop, just in time to warm up your holidays!
Glowlightly, mixed media on panel, 12 x 12 inches ©2009
Razz, mixed media on panel, 12 x 12 inches ©2009
Tags: Calcifer, Etsy, Glowlightly, Holidays, painting, Razz
Posted by Nancy Tobin on Sep 4, 2009 in
Daily Babble,
In the Studio 
Fun with layers: 1.painting, 2.many cut out branches, 3.the tracing paper drawing of the branches
The very monotonous process of cutting these suckers out
Don't even get me started with Photoshop filters!
More fun with Photoshop
It never fails. Just when you’re busy with all sorts of stuff that you should be posting on daily, you don’t because you’re too busy doing cool stuff!
My family and I just got back from a vacation at Walt Disney World, the kids just started school, I’m trying to finish a studio full of paintings for myriad show coming up this fall and now I’m headed off to Boston for the long weekend.
So, I thought I’d leave you with a few shots that I took in my studio recently. I’ve been doing a lot with branch forms, and I thought they made such lovely designs when they were all stacked on top of each other.
Have a wonderful weekend, and I promise — next week many posts!
xo
Tags: Boston, branches, studio
Posted by Nancy Tobin on Mar 26, 2009 in
In the Studio I’ll probably be posting a lot of “In the Studio” pieces in the near future; as I am frantically trying to get work finished for a few upcoming shows (More on those soon!)
So here’s another peek at what I’ve got going on!
After my wonderful Fellowship at the Brodsky Center; I was left with more than a head-full of exciting ideas, new friends and wet clothes. I also received 10 of the 30 editioned pieces of Hush my glorious collaboration with papermakers Lisa Switalski and Anne McKeown.
Hush Redux - in progress
Hush - Paper pulp
I was also given all the proofs that didn’t quite make the grade. Of course, as a collage artist I’m not going to get rid of any of those delicious bits! So I thought I’d share with you the beginning of this new painting I’m doing, using the scraps from Hush as a base. I’m not sure where I’ll be taking it from here, but I’ll keep you updated as it progresses!
Also, I’ve included a shot of the very start of the piece I’m doing with the shadows that I mentioned in the previous post.
Layers to go before I sleep, layers to go before I sleep!
The first layer of shadows
Tags: art, Hush, New painting, painting, Print and Papermaking Fellowship, shadows, The Brodsky Center
Posted by Nancy Tobin on Mar 16, 2009 in
In the Studio 
One of my latest obsessions in the studio is trying to capture the effects of shadows.
I had this painting of a tree trunk and it’s roots (another obsession.) After cutting the whole thing out, to use in a painting, I decided take some snap-shots of the cool shadows that the twining branches created on the wall.
I was at my new studio, which is still not fully equipped yet, so I had no way of hanging the roots, and only the lousy camera on my iphone. So I held the roots in one hand and the camera (with no flash) in the other. Not perfect, but interesting.
We’ll see how they enter into my future painting!
Tags: iphone, new studio, painting, shadows, studio, tree roots
Posted by Nancy Tobin on Nov 19, 2008 in
In the Studio 
Lest I forget, the big stuff.
And the medium stuff, and all the paintings that I toil over daily that are not “small.”
I’ve kind of been in a “Santa’s workshop” mode lately, trying to get all these smalls finished for the holidays. So, as I finish the little buggers off and clear some space in my studio and in my head, my attention turns to my old familiar friends.
Right now I have about 20 paintings that are in various sizes and various stages of completeness. If you know me, you know that’s how I work: lots of stuff going at once. I like to let things simmer and settle while working on something else. Twenty is a lot, though. I better get back to the studio!
Tonight I’m posting a new small painting on my Etsy shop. This one goes out to all you guys out there, it’s a rock and roll kind of painting, it’s call Little Bone Machine. Check it out!
Tags: Etsy, rock and roll, Santa's workshop
Posted by Nancy Tobin on Nov 10, 2008 in
In the Studio,
Shop Talk 
Stardance I ©Tobin
I’ve been disciplining myself lately to work faster, on small studies that experiment with new techniques. Normally, my work is so labor-intensive and takes so long to complete that I thought these “smalls” would let me grow as an artist.
Well, the really cool surprise for me has been how much fun I’ve been having with these little guys! I find they’re great to to try out stuff that would normally take too long on a much bigger piece, and I can work so fast! So they really have been helpful in my larger work, too. Yeah!
And they also give me a chance to sell some work at a lower price. I can take year on a big piece, so I have to charge accordingly … But I figured these little studies could sell much more cheaply.
My Little Ones incubating
When I set out on this project, the idea was to keep the cost for each little cutie under a hundred bucks. Now, I must say I ended up doing my usual obsessing over them (which I wasn’t supposed to do), so I spent way more time on them than originally planned. But, I’m going to stick with the price plan (for the holidays at least.) If you follow my work, you know THIS IS A DANG GOOD DEAL!!! Not to mention, free shipping for the holidays in the continental US. (Lordy, lordy, what will that girl do next?)
So hop, skip, or just click the link over there on the right to my Etsy shop to start gettin’ those deals!
