I ask my students to be curioius and kind

Four or five times a day I hear students call out, “Ms. Strauss, How do I make skin color?” 

I have to patiently ask them to look again, look harder, and be more descriptive… What color they are looking for? Then, I must convince them that they will need at least 4 or 5 variations of the pigment to do the form justice…. Flesh tones are the hardest to match and they vary under different artificial and natural lighting options. My students should cultivate a curious attitude when studying skin.

It is hard for them to believe that I don’t have the hues pre-packaged like everything else in their lives. It seems like only yesterday, during the civil rights movement, that Crayola changed their “flesh” colored crayon’s name to “peach”. When did they remove their “Indian red” crayon from the market? No. Now we have to work more and look harder.

We can be afraid of what we do not know and that goes for mixing skin tones as well as for welcoming peoples from different regions of the world with varying pigments in their skin tone.

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Still Time for a Holiday Pet Portrait!

I started 2018,"The year of the Dog", painting peoples pets. It is a lot of fun and I am always game to do more. I am pretty fast and charge about $2 per square inch- working small. Let me know what you want and send me a couple pictures to work from.
Here is one just finished. Between the time the commission was proposed and the time I delivered, the big black cat had passed away and a new kitten had arrived in his place. I thought this caught them both.

see the brush for scale

Put inspiration on your shopping list

If you are out on a BLACK Friday shopping spree, think of this awesome gift idea.

When I was young, like 5 or 6,  my mother filled a gift box full of office supplies and that gift kept my sister and occupied for months. Then she went to Filene's basement and filled a box with hats. We played with those hats until they tore apart. My sister went on to perform on the stage and I created small galleries in the neighborhood. We were able to play and express ourselves with quality materials. The boxes still stand out, decades later, as the best gifts I ever got. They implied imagination and provoked a creative investigation that continues to fill my days with wonder today! Get art supplies, office supplies, hats and shoes from goodwill, hardware from the hardware store, or anything that serves as an ingredient and not the whole kit. Too many gifts are closed end projects. Give the gift of inspiration! It is perfect for almost anyone.

A Gratitude Attitude

I am very grateful for the things and people I have in my life right now. When I take the time to list them, I shift my naturally pessimistic mind to a more grateful outlook.

letterpress

Having gratitude in your heart makes you feel better about life. It is an amazing practice. I have used it through divorce, raising teenagers, moving to a new city and more challenging times I can think of. It really works. If today everyone practices gratitude, we will shift the planet towards peace. I believe it. What are you thankful for?

A Hostess for Heartbreak

The season comes with a lot of expectations, and that is how we get snapped. In my experience, any good hostess should have tissues, wine, band-aids and sweets on hand.

I am enjoying the caramel salted chocolates from Trader Joe's. That store can really make the season feel potent with festivities. I also like a good Pinot Noir. It soothes the tongue and fills the soul. Tangerines are an easy gift, each coming individually wrapped for the outstretched hand. In fact I carry some in the car for the homeless kids on the corner. I hope your holidays are not filled with tears and disappointment. If you are so lucky though, keep an ear for the weary angel that might show up unexpected at your door.

Florida recount

A crazy thing about Florida has to be the way we run elections and seem to lose track of ballots. This year I took my absentee ballot with me to the polls, turned it in blank for cancellation, and then voted  fresh in the machine. I told the attendee at the end that it feels as though our votes are being shredded. There is a hum to the machine as you insert individual pages (there were four of them front and back this time!). He laughed, but I walked away with out any proof I'd voted besides a sticker.

So we have a recount going on because our Senate and Governor's races were too close to call (within 1%). And it turns out, like I always suspected, that they don't count the mail-in, absentee, ballots UNLESS there is a recount. Is this Politics or Democracy?

My 2018 Parking Meter

back side (facing the street)

front, and right side

front and left side

Located at the corner of N 29th Street and N. Miami Avenue, I used acrylic paint in brushes and in paint pens to render a dreamy image of our highways 826/836 intersection just west of the city by the airport.
Here below, in the photo, is where I was at 3pm, about 8 hours after arriving on the scene. Melting, I almost drank the pink paint water in my distraction!

A good day's painting, if I can say so myself! Thank you to the MPA community , Parkyourartwynwood.com and BeeFree Media for this opportunity. I love being an artist and sharing my vision of the best of this city. #miamiartist  #parkyourartwynwood #publicartcommission

Wynwood mural painters 2018

Right before Miami Art week and Basel (December 4-9) comes to town, the streets of Miami's arts district get a whole new coat of paint. I was proud to be a part of all that last Saturday. Across the North Miami Avenue from me was Denise Charles. She was manifesting the green theme. Down the block was Gabriela Mino. She has a business making cute bags for kids.

Other artists at work last Saturday for the Parkyourartwynwood2018 included SiegelINK, Erick Morell, Elena Montijo and Marlet Lopez.

Meanwhile by noon, when the sunlight was skipping across the street towards me, I was only this far!
See the cute little cooler Miami Parking Authority gave us? It was filled with ice cold water bottles and snacks. A life saver!

The Blank Canvas

Some towns have artists paint fiberglass cows, some paint peacocks or guitars. Miami has artists paint the parking meters. We are very much attached to our cars here! (There's very little in public transportation)
So Saturday morning, before the light even cracked the pavement, I found myself staring down the slick primed surfaces of this Miami parking Authority machine. My vine charcoal was useless in sketching out my designs... I took my inspiration from one of the newly completed, and one of my favorite, swooping highways near the airport, the intersections of 836 and 826.

Once I had it fairly well planned on my brown paper, I taped it up to check the scale. The challenging trick was getting the highways to match up after wrapping 360 degrees! You would have thought I had it all planned ahead of time, but Time ran away and I only got the notification of the privilege 7 days earlier.

Seventy two artists submitted designs for the contest. Seven were chosen. Beefree Media was running the show. I was thrilled to be a part of the live painting project once again. My whole life I have struggled with shyness, but give me a brush and some paint, and I can put on a show! It's what I love to do. And I have become pretty darn fast- one of the quickest draws in the market, maybe. (haha) I thought I'd be done by noon.

11/11 Veterans Day Anniversary

It was supposed to be the war that ended all wars.. and to be truthful, the US congress has not declared war since.
But every day our military service people make sacrifices in hot spots all around the world, from our southern border to the nether regions of Afghanistan and the Pacific islands. It's a good thing to take the time to honor the men and women who enlist to protect and serve our constitutional principles.

My dad and my grandpa (in the OSS) felt their service was for "the greater good". Let us hope that the current soldiers truly feel the same. God bless them.

Public art project in Miami Wynwoo

Getting ready to paint on the streets of the city. #parkyourartwynwood #miamiparking.com

My studio is in HyperAllergic!

Two years ago I submitted my studio at the ARTHOUSE, in the Falls warehouse district to be considered for the cool Hyperallergic "View from the easel" series! It happened last night!!!!

My studio got mentioned in Hyperallergic today! https://hyperallergic.com/469211/a-view-from-the-easel-104/
Check it out: A view from the easel!

I'm a Park Your Art Wynwood Winner!!!

So happy to be chosen to paint another (did it last year) Miami Parking Authority parking meter station in Wynwood, Miami's mural covered district, this weekend. Park your art is in it's 4th annual family canvas event. They have art supplies and projects for all ages to participate in a day of creativity and color.
Inspired by the intersection of highways 836 and 826 near the airport, I will be out at the curb with my paints pulling off a four sided mural of Miami highways at night. Wish me luck!

Once the ballot is cast

I hope everybody gets themselves to a voting booth. It takes effort and research to be a good citizen in a healthy democracy. I have let that go in the past, but this year I have kept on top of the issues and feel empowered by casting my vote for local officials and state amendments.

There is plenty to worry about. Personally I feel we could be moving ourselves backwards in terms of individual liberties, the health of the planet for human life, and a common welfare for all. I am exhausted by all the ridiculous money pouring into campaigns that could be serving to improve our infrastructure, our schools, and the homeless/hungry/poverty stricken. But look!...

What's on my porch!? A Bromeliad in bloom. Today I will enjoy the colors of foliage, Miami style.
Tomorrow we continue the work. I am an activist artist.

This is what a class demo can look like

This semester I have 74 students in classes. I teach Studio Art and Design and Composition One. Both courses at this point in the semester have the student artists working on making large heads using the grid-transfer method. We have practiced noses, eyes, mouths, hair, and scaling up in proportion. The Studio students are working in dry charcoal and the Design students are working in wet acrylic paint. I have one demo piece that I have been using to show measurements and grid transfer. I feel like I may be developing a split personality.

Yoga in the Park

One of my #100favFlorida things is the Sundays we spend in the park with friends meditating and doing our yoga practice. I have been going there for the past 7 years and have learned a lot from Peter, theyogawarrior.org 
To be among the trees is where I feel most comfortable in my skin. Miami is a city with a lot of trees- but not necessarily right outside your door. You have to be intentional about being with the trees. You have to search out sites that aren't under assault of construction. Miami is all about real estate and development so that, over the years, lots of my favorite trees in the neighborhood have been removed. When I practice the tree pose I gain inspiration from the energy of the park. I enjoy the rooted feeling of connecting to the earth and the lifted feeling from spreading my "branches" into the air overhead, visually merging my fingers with the leaves and birds.

I consider this to be my church time. While in the park, I meditate on non-violence, praying for compassion, focusing on my breath. I let go of my expectations and practice self-discipline, intention, concentrating on the gifts and movement of my healthy body. I also pay attention to the sounds of the animals, humans, and machines, feeling the breeze, sun, and grass against my skin... it always lifts my spirit and is the best way to start the day and week. It brings me light and gratitude for the love of God, the great Creator.

I had to do 3 paintings to get one that captures the love I have for Sunday Yoga in the Park.
#100favFloridathings

3D printing project

I am working on a gift idea that keeps coming back to me over the years. Last week I was lucky enough to work with MakerMia, a local maker space and machine shop.

They have tons of experts, like Paul Grata who shared a course introducing us to 3d printing.

And Andrea Gellatly one of the famed Witch Doctor Battlebot engineers. She showed me one of her tiny new robots- Hammerton, inspired by dueling Alexander Hamilton.

Here is a sneak peak at my project:

It's the gift giving season, so please consider art as your present. Look at my store on my website for originals or on my Fine Art America site for reproductions at great prices.

Laying in the Grass

Continuing my art series #100favFloridathings is the fact that we can, in the south here, safely lay in the grass and not worry about Lyme disease and ticks. It's been years since it has been safe to do so up north. Every Sunday Michael and I go to the park. We enjoy all the action it has to offer and especially the view we get looking up at the skies from our backs.
This is a kind of goofy painting... trying to capture the feeling of melting into the ground while also floating up to the clouds.

My paintings can be bought as prints on canvas or paper, as well as on phone cases and shower curtains through Fine Art America, (see the side bar). Think of the gift potentials!!!