Wednesday, February 28, 2007

William Mortensen, Photographer


Interesting photographs by William Mortensen at
Thanks go to Femme Femme Femme for turning me onto him.
That's a new French blog that loves to post about me as well. They may have read about him at Bibi's Box or Art Nudes. Everyone loves the 1920's and surrealist-inspired things.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

I received my Ryo Yoshida book, "Astral Doll", in the mail the other day. It does not disappoint. Mostly all photographs (B&W and color) with little text, Ryo Yoshida really knows how to bring out "soul" in the faces of his dolls and to convey emotion with the eyes. With roots in Hans Bellmer and an affinity for people like Morton Bartlett, Yoshida's work is strikingly beautiful. Some call these dolls beautifully creepy. Creepy is a popular term on the internet - Teenar (Girl Guitar) was also called creepy. These art dolls and mannequins are a little too "real" for some people, but they are fascinating. I love them. More books on this site:

John William Waterhouse 1849-1917

"Flora" 1890 by John William Waterhouse
I love the paintings of John William Waterhouse. This painting called "Flora" is so natural, relaxed, modern and heart-felt that it feels like he could have painted it yesterday. You can read about him here:
Art Renewal
I saw "Ulysses and the Sirens" when it travelled to the Portland Art Museum and I'll never forget it. It was quite large, very surreal and masterful. He handled his mythical subjects with the same grace as his portraits of young girls.
Thanks go to mardecortesbaja for the link to the wonderful Art Renewal site.
While you are looking at art, you might want to check out Lloyd's article about

Saturday, February 24, 2007

Seth and "read yourself RAW"

"Clyde Fans" by SETH
Page from "Clyde Fans" copyright SETH, artist
"It's a Good Life, if You Don't Weaken" by SETH

I was looking up comic artist Seth because I love his books and wanted to recommend him. Well, I found this site called "read yourself RAW" featuring Seth plus many more comic artists that I also love, such as Lynda Barry, R. Crumb, Peter Bagge, Charles Burns, Dan Clowes, Debbie Dreschler, Adrian Tomine, etc.
"Seth (1962- )is the pseudonym of Gregory Gallant, a Canadian obsessed with the past, not only his own childhood memories but also the early 20th century."

I love Seth's dry humor and drawing style and his attention to detail.
Also, check out: Drawn & Quarterly Books.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Friday, February 23, 2007

About Art Collecting

"I'm Losin' My Cones Over You" Copyright 2007 Amy Crehore, Blues Gals Series
There's an interesting essay today about art and art collecting at The Huffington Post by Raymond J. Learsy:

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Ukulele Love

I am recommending this revised and expanded edition of "The Ukulele, A Visual History" by Jim Beloff (Backbeat Books, S.F., CA 2003). It has the history of the uke, the players, the manufacturers and the story. There are tons of photos of cool and crazy-looking ukes to please the collector, plus many vintage graphics in a beautifully layed-out book.
Back Beat books has some interesting books on other musical subjects as well. And here's a great uke site: Ukulelia
The Art of Amy Crehore

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Wurzeltod,etc.

I want to say Happy Belated Birthday to quirky and charming
Suzanne at Wurzeltod . If you haven't checked out her blog, do so now. She is very artsy and fun and keeps everyone up-to-date with art shows and happenings around the world. And she features Ray Caesar's art in her layout which is always a bonus.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

My Boingboing Page on Google

"Pussycat Rag" by Amy Crehore copyright 2005
Click here for all of my Amy Crehore boingboing posts.
All on one page of google! That's pretty cool.
I have extended my FREE SHIPPING offer on all
"Little Pierrot" and "Monkey Love" prints until Feb 28, 2007.
Free postcards come with orders.
("Blues Gals" were just featured on boingboing, too!)
The Art of Amy Crehore

Sunday, February 18, 2007

NEW:"Green Snake Stumble" by Amy Crehore

"Green Snake Stumble" copyright 2007 Amy Crehore (Blues Gals Series, oil on linen panel)
Click on image to enlarge.

Here is my newly re-worked Blues Gal painting called "Green Snake Stumble". I added a blue jay who is squawking at the cat who is playing with the snake who is making the girl stumble. I also added more layers of paint to the girl to give her more weight and I changed her face somewhat. Her hair is softer than it was. I just spent a few more days of work on this one because I wasn't satisfied.
The scenery reminds me of Yellowstone Park. I made the sky and water even bluer. I added more leaves to the trees. And now I am pretty satisfied.
The Art of Amy Crehore

Crehore Playing Cards 1802

Collection of Tom and Judy Dawson
My ancestor, Thomas Crehore of Boston, manufactured and designed some of the first American Playing Cards between 1802 and the mid-1840's. I think he had a unique illustration/graphic arts style. More here:

Saturday, February 17, 2007

Folk Art Portrait of Little A.E. Crehore

Photo courtesy of Maine Antique Digest, from the article
(I wonder if this little girl is a relative of mine? I know some early Crehores lived in Milton, MA. If this portrait of little A.E. Crehore could talk, it would say,"I am worth $216,000".)
"This watercolor and ink on paper by John Ritto Penniman (1782-1841) of a young girl is labeled by the artist “A.E. Crehore AEt. 1 year & 6 mo.” She is wearing a yellow dress and standing in a landscape with her dog and the Charles River, the Boston State House, and the Park Street Church in the background. Penniman signed and dated it “J.R.P. Pinxit 1836.” The sitter lived in Milton, Massachusetts." read more article here
at Maine Antique Digest

Friday, February 16, 2007

More Paint-by-Numbers Fun!

BoingBoing: "Pop Surrealist Luminaries"

I was thrilled by Mark Frauenfelder's recent boingboing post mentioning me:
"There are two days left to bid on paintings from the Charity-By-Numbers art show curated by Gary Baseman. Biskup, Ryden, Baseman, Schorr, Crehore, and many other pop surrealist luminaries are featured in the show. The money goes to a good cause, The Alliance for Children's Rights. Link "
The Ebay art auction for my Monkey Love piece ends Sat. February 17!!! See more Monkey Love paintings on my website:

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Amy Crehore's "Charity By Numbers" Monkey Love Painting

In the glare of bright lights at Corey Helford Show w/ frame
courtesy of TACO blog.
Original 1955 paint-by-numbers painting

Detail of Girl's Face from Amy Crehore's newly transformed painting
Amy Crehore's "Charity by Numbers" painting. (for even Larger version)

Detail of monkey from Amy Crehore's painting for "Charity by Numbers" ebay auction

The "Charity by Numbers" art show went up on ebay after a gala event at the Corey Helford Gallery in Culver City, CA on Saturday night, Feb 10, 2007. The ebay auction, which is happening right now, will benefit the Alliance for Children's Rights 100%. Over 100 top alternative artists transformed vintage paint-by-number paintings into wacky, beautiful and surreal works of art. More and more paintings are being added to the auction with more and more well-known names. Here are some details of my painting that the ebay auction site does not show (it is the size of a large FED EX box, plus frame).It is really quite exciting to watch this auction with so many cool artists.Come on and try your luck!

Ebay auction for AMY CREHORE will continue only until Sat., Feb 17, 2007 at 4:07 PM PST! Don't miss your chance to win a very rare Monkey Love Painting for Charity. "Charity by Numbers" Or here's a better link: Ebay Seller

My painting is featured on Internet Weekly. And "Notables" on Ozoux (via NotCot), Table of Malcontents (WIRED.com) and artNYC. See my other Monkey Love art here: The Art of Amy Crehore or Blab! Show or boingboing.net.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Old Books filled with Treasures

Moleskin notebook designed by Mark Frauenfelder
Hollowed out books by Mark Lowrie on Flickr
Mark Lowrie says these books are: "Part of an ongoing project to combine hollowed out books with interesting contents similar to the fluxus movement or Joseph Cornell. The Vice Control book, filled with vices; or the vintage pulp book filled with journals and writing supplies for my daughter.(Notebook in the book on the right was designed by Mark Frauenfelder) "
My friend, Mark Lowrie, crafted these cool art objects out of old books using funny, unique and useful contents and gave them as gifts to his family members.
The top photo is a blue gremlin moleskin notebook that I received yesterday in the mail from Mark Frauenfelder. Here's the link to the notebooks on boingboing

Saturday, February 10, 2007

"Feed the Bear Blues" Painting

"Feed the Bear Blues" copyright 2007 Amy Crehore

Here is one of my brand new "Blues Gals" paintings. This one has a bear holding a vintage Gibson mando-bass and it is called "Feed the Bear Blues". My other new painting is called, "Losin' My Cones Over You" (just featured on boingboing). I had a third painting up on my website ("Green Snake Stumble"), but I decided that it needed more work. So, I am back in the studio making some additions and finishing it up.

My oil paintings all have many layers of paint to intensify the colors and to make the figures fully-realized. Sometimes I will paint all day on a face and not like it, so I wipe it off and start again the next day. I even sand it down if I have to. I painted the face on the "cones" painting probably 100 times until I felt it was right. That's how it goes. Nothing comes easy!

See my other Blues Gals Paintings in the series at:

The Art of Amy Crehore


Tonight! "Charity by Numbers"

1955 paint-by-number transformed into Monkey/Girl Surreal Fantasy by Amy Crehore
(Click on image for larger view)

Here is today's L.A. Times article by August Brown about the big
Charity By Numbers Art Event followed by a week-long ebay auction to benefit The Alliance for Children's Rights 100%.
Happy Bidding!

Friday, February 09, 2007

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Table of Malcontents

Close up of face w/hair, from Amy Crehore's paint-by-number
Check out John Brownlee's post about the
Corey Helford Gallery's Charity-by-Numbers ebay auction over at:
Table of Malcontents.
He's very funny!

"Blues Gals" today on Boing Boing

Detail from "Losin' My Cones Over You" by Amy Crehore
NEWS: I finally finished three more paintings in my Blues Gals Series! Read about it on boingboing and then follow their link to my website.
Boingboing also posted about the upcoming Charity by Numbers Show on Feb 10, 2007 that I am participating in with lots of amazing artists.
The Corey Helford Gallery will host the event. I can't make it down to the show, but I will still be able to look at it online and bid on the pieces on ebay until Feb 17, 2007 at midnight. See more examples of artist-transformed vintage paint-by-number paintings on Supertouch. Here is the link to mine.
Happy Bidding!

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Chinese Advertising Art 1930s

Okay, so the Art Werx is a really cool site with a nice collection of art images. I especially love these Chinese Advertising images of girls from the 1930s (Xie Xing Long #18). Wowowow!
See a whole page of them by clicking the link above.

Jules-Joseph Lefebvre 1836-1911

Sepia-tone print of painting called, "Une Fille Eve" 1892 by Lefebvre
Engraving based on a painting called, "The Dream" 1889 by Lefebvre
Painting called, "Pandora" 1882 by Lefebvre
I was so intrigued by the "Mary in the Grotto" painting by Jules-Joseph Lefebvre (see previous post) that I had to look him up. Here are a few more of his classical nudes and a photo of the mysterious man himself.
And a link to more images:
Lefebvre at The Art Werx

Friday, February 02, 2007

Mary, Mary

I came across a whole page of Mary Magdalene images. I found these two striking nudes, plus Titian's 1533 masterpiece and six Giottos.
Click here for many different moods of Mary by many different painters: