Fun at the Maker Faire/Felt Club Event in Los Angeles

Mark Frauenfelder, Jenny Ryan, Ruth Waytz, Kate Flannery, Coop

Look at this happy bunch of people. A bunch of comedians really. (I also met Johnny Ryan and Mark's lovely wife, Carla Sinclair- not shown in photo.) I took this photo at the Maker Faire/Felt Club event at Los Angeles County College last month. I spent a day hanging out there during my trip to L.A. for the GREEN Show. It was a day well spent. Lots of activities going on and hand-crafted items to buy. And did I mention happy people? If Boingboing isn't enough, Mark and Carla are also the editors of Make and Craft magazines. Bubbly Jenny Ryan is founder of the L.A. Felt Club and she is also the wife of amazing cartoonist Johnny Ryan. Talented and sparkly Ruth Waytz is Coop's wife and muse, among other things. Kate Flannery plays Meredith Palmer on the NBC show, The Office. Some people just know how to have fun and encourage others while they are at it.

Felt Club

Maker Faire

The Art of Amy Crehore

Vintage New Year Postcards

Internet Weekly

always finds the best stuff!

This time it's an archive of wonderful vintage New Year's postcards.

New York Public Library Digital Archive.

Happy New Year!! (Thanks, Internet Weekly)

The Art of Amy Crehore

Cabinet of Natural Curiosities, Taschen Books

I'm back! This beautiful image is from a delightful book that I received for Xmas. (Thanks, Raliegh!) The book is called "Cabinet of Natural Curiosities" published by Taschen Books. It's a hefty book of 446 copperplates in color. The illustrations, originally published between 1764 and 1765, are of Albertus Seba's collection of natural specimens. Albertus was an apothecary living in Amsterdam. He was born in 1665 and died in 1736, but before he died he commissioned illustrators to document his collection and the results are nothing short of amazing. Each page of this book is a well-designed, surrealist's dream. Each combines scientific details of nature with the honesty of folk art. I love it. Here's a link to the book:

Taschen

The Art of Amy Crehore

P.S. I'm working on my regular website right now, so don't be alarmed if pages are missing. It's temporary.

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1967 Dug Up

Above is just a small detail from a cartoon published in The Realist in May 1967 called The Disney Memorial Orgy copyright Paul Krassner, Art by Wally Wood

Curious (mature and not easily offended) viewers should go here to read more:

Mardecortesbaja

and follow the link to the rest of the image. Oh my!

What is that piece of coal doing in your stocking?

Thanks, Lloyd

The Art of Amy Crehore

Art Show Photos - Los Angeles

Crehore exposed at a cafe in downtown L.A.
Crehore- incognito in downtown L.A.
Crehore and composer friend Erling Wold from S.F. at the GREEN Show, Robert Berman Gallery.

My "Deja Vu Waltz" painting is in the background.
Amy Crehore with a dear friend at the GREEN Show, Robert Berman Gallery

I'm finally getting around to posting a few photos from last month's GREEN show in Santa Monica, CA.
The Art of Amy Crehore

New Drawing by Crehore

Balancing Act (Blues Gal)- Drawing copyright 2007 Amy Crehore

I think this must be how I feel. An awkward, comical balancing act. Tomorrow I will be working on a new website for my art...it may take a few days. Hopefully, it will be an improvement over the one I have now. There is an imaginary mandolin in the new drawing. Maybe I need 8 tuners...to tune up 8 different things.

The Art of Amy Crehore

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Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project

"From the first recordings made on tinfoil in 1877 to the last produced on celluloid in 1929, cylinders spanned a half-century of technological development in sound recording. As documents of American cultural history and musical style, cylinders serve as an audible witness to the sounds and songs through which typical audiences first encountered the recorded human voice." Read about the beginnings of recorded sound and listen to it as well:

Cylinders Library

(University of California, Santa Barbara)

Thanks STWALLSKULL for the link!

The Art of Amy Crehore

Toys I want for Christmas

These look good to me. link

The Art of Amy Crehore

Scary Krampus

Click to Enlarge- Krampus

A poet/photographer friend was kind enough to send me this wonderful image of Krampus yesterday! I love it.

Thanks, Michael (DharmaRascal)

The Art of Amy Crehore

Dubway Recording Studio, NYC

Dubway Owner/engineer Al Houghton, Marc Farre, Dubway Co-Owner/engineer Mike Crehore
It looks like Dubway recording studio in NYC has a new website and it's really nice. I was just checking out the "news" page. There are mentions of Patty Smith, Nora Jones, Janet Reno, Kate Hudson, Whoopi Goldberg to name a few. Dubway Studio records and tweaks soundtracks for films, television, and animation. They also do a fine job recording singer-songwriters. Nickolodeon's Backyardigans, a children's animated feature, depends on Dubway for it's sound. He ain't heavy, he's my brother! Mike Crehore is co-owner of Dubway and he is also a great guitarist. Al Houghton is his partner in crime.
Have a look at their cool website:

DUBWAY Recording

The Art of Amy Crehore

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Glow in the Dark Cats

"South Korean scientists have cloned cats by manipulating a fluorescent protein gene, a procedure which could help develop treatments for human genetic diseases, officials said Wednesday." link

Pressure Printing - Perfection!

"Madonna and Karl" copyright Mark Ryden 2007, etching

Brad Keech at Pressure Printing does the most beautiful art prints around. I am honored to be working with him. In January 2008, I will be able tell you more about that, but meanwhile, have a look at his website:
Pressure Printing

Ryden's "Madonna and Karl" reminds me a tiny bit of a painting I did back in 1990 called "Icon".

His brand new print quickly sold out.
The Art of Amy Crehore

Crehore's "Deja Vu Waltz"at Robert Berman Gallery, Dec 18-22

"Deja Vu Waltz" painting copyright 2007 Amy Crehore, click to enlarge

Detail of Girl, "Deja Vu Waltz" Painting by Amy Crehore 2007
This is the final week to catch the GREEN Show at Robert Berman Gallery, Bergamot Station, 2525 Michigan Avenue C2, Santa Monica, CA, phone: 310-315-1937
Over 40 artists inspired by nature, curated by Mark Murphy.
Show runs Tues. through Saturday, Dec 22, 2007.
Go see my big new painting, "Deja Vu Waltz" if you live near L.A.
The Art of Amy Crehore

Glenn Barr's Peppermint Lounge

I like Glenn Barr's clever Peppermint Lounge Hint Mint design.

I saw it at Stuff-o-Rama .

Fit for stuffing in someone's stocking. Well done!

The Art of Amy Crehore

The Paintings of Claude Verlinde

Aphrodite
La déchirure
Le Mariage

What a find! Claude Verlinde, a contemporary painter born in 1927. Some call it "imaginary realism" - which is exactly the way I used to describe my own paintings. How lovely and surreal these are. They are painted with such attention to detail, with humor and feeling. More here:

Galerie Michelle Boulet

Thanks to Internet Weekly
The Art of Amy Crehore

Hugo Boettinger 1880-1934, Painter

Hugo Boettinger in his studio with the large painting "Zwei Blumenmädchen" (1911)-see the guitar in the background?

"Jugend", oil painting by Hugo Boettinger, 1918

"Three Girls Bathing on Bach" 1910 painting by Hugo Boettinger

Who was Hugo Boettinger (or Bottinger)? He was Czech painter who was born in 1880 and died in 1934. He was also a graphic artist and studied at the Prague Academy. He was a friend of T. F. Simon, another amazing painter.
You can find a whole page devoted to Boettinger on
tfsimon.com .
Follow the link and scroll down the page to see lots of photos, paintings and graphic works. He apparently loved music as there are photos of him holding an accordian, a violin, and a guitar. The painting above is entitled "Three Girls Bathing on Bach". The other painting, "Jugend", pre-dates Balthus, yet it has much in common with him. One wonders if Balthus saw these works and was influenced by Boettinger.
Here is another site with images: Michis-Seiten .
Boettinger's paintings of nudes bathing are fascinating compositions. You can see how he loved to overlap the poses of his figures- legs, arms, angles -to suggest interesting relationships. I like to do that, too. I am glad I stumbled upon this great artist!
The Art of Amy Crehore

Teenar, Girl Guitar - Fashion Preview

Teenar photo copyright 2007 Lou Reimuller

Lou Reimuller, luthier and creator of Teenar, Girl Guitar, is allowing me to post a little preview of Teenar in her new "updated" outfit. She never ages and is just as beautiful as ever. Out of the 1980's and into the 21st century! Teenar, Girl Guitar is having a resurgence of hits on my blog from Japan - mostly coming from www.hiroburo.com- one year after I inititally posted about her (perhaps because J-walk blog recently picked up my old post).

Lou Reimuller is also building my new Tickler Ukuleles. The #2 Tickler Uke will be revealed sometime in January. He's the other half of the Hokum Scorchers (photo link).

The Art of Amy Crehore

Kitchen Animals

These kitchen items make cooking more fun in Japan. The panda skillet and the pink pig potholder can be ordered from Fred Flare
I guess I'm in the holiday spirit because my blog is beginning to look like a gift guide! I'm sure I'll snap out of it soon.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Nice Ukulele Case

GUARDIAN VINTAGE UKULELE CASE SOPRANO - Classic styling with heavy-duty 5-ply shaped shell, arched lid, brass latches, very comfortable padded handle, durable black pebble-grain exterior, padded interior with crushed velour lining, accessory box, sized to fit most shaped soprano ukuleles with a maximum width of ~6.75" and total length of ~21.75." Very nice case. Imported from Asia. Only $60.00 at

Elderly

I ordered this hard shell case for the #1 Tickler Ukulele. I was pleasantly surprised when it arrived in record time and I saw that the interior is actually a beautiful emerald green crushed velveteen. This case perfectly compliments the Tickler ukulele and it will make it extra easy to ship without damage. It's got a nice vintage feeling about it and it's hard as a rock. The person who bought the # 1 uke will be as thrilled as I am with it. Stay tuned for the # 2 Tickler Ukulele due out sometime in January.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Rare Old Books

Here are some examples of interesting old illustrated children's books

from the 19th century that I found for sale on a site

called Rare Maps and Books

Shown above is "The Book of Laughter" from 1850 and "Happy Little People" from 1898 - both make use of animals and humor.

Also, "Jimmy Sliderlegs" by Heinrich Hoffmann, 1890, which is actually the same book as "Slovenly Peter" (my fav) with a different cover. Nice drawings and typefaces.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Mitch O'Connell - Glitter Graphics

Check out Glitter Graphics at artist Mitch O'Connell's site to see the kitty kat image above animated in all of it's glory. Colleen Fry did the glitter animation work for him: http://www.myspace.com/colleenshutterbug

(thanks, boingboing)

The Art of Amy Crehore

Jeff Soto Reports on Miami Basel

Kirsten Anderson (Roq la Rue) and Mark Murphy (Murphy Design), photo by Jeff Soto

Jeff Soto is currently blogging about his visit to Miami Basel this year. He was part of the Scion project. Here is a photo he took of the lovely Kirsten Anderson and the dashing Mark Murphy at a party. There are other photos of the works in The Know Exhibition (Murphy's booth at the Art Now Fair). It looks nice! That's the show that I was part of. It looks like everyone had a lot of fun. Check it out:

Jeff Soto's Blog

P.S. Jeff also has photos of the GREEN Show in Santa Monica, CA at Robert Berman Gallery on his blog. The GREEN show is up until December 22, for anyone in the L.A. area who missed it. That's the exhibit with my "Deja Vu Waltz" painting in it. Thanks, Jeff, for blogging about the two shows. Murphy offers a 2008 calendar of Jeff's art here: Murphy Design .

The Art of Amy Crehore

"Blue Skies and Monsters" by Jad Fair

Passengers by Jad Fair
Skeleton Giant by Jad Fair
You're Next by Jad Fair

They are amazingly clever, bold, funny and unique. They are paper cuts by Jad Fair. He offers them up on his website for sale. I posted 3 from his "monster section". They are all sold, however, but there are more. Have a look:

Jad Fair

I have blogged about Jad before, but I have not blogged about his book, "Blue Skies and Monsters" published in Japan in 2006 by Map. Jad was kind enough to send me this book last May. Inside of it's beautiful sky-blue cover, one finds zillions of these folk art cut outs. The book also has drawings, a discography (starting with the musical group Half-Japanese) and a dvd slipped into the back cover that has even more surprises. You can buy a copy here. It's a high quality art book and I recommend it if you are lucky enough to snag yourself a copy. John Zorn says, "Jad Fair is the real deal. In a world of crumbling values his artistic vision remains consistently honest, authentic and original."

Thanks, Jad. This is my favorite book of the year.

The Art of Amy Crehore

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Coop's Line is So Fine

Here's the new boingboing t-shirt by Coop. It's nice! I was fortunate enough to meet Coop and Ruth at the Felt Club/Maker Faire in L.A. last month. I have always admired his superb drawing skills. Here's a link to the T-shirt. Order yours now for the holidays. While you are there, check out all of the other cool stuff that Coop has to offer. Yipes!

Coop's Boing Boing T-shirt

(Thanks, boingboing )

The Art of Amy Crehore

Saint Nicholas in all of his Glory

Gerard David, Three Legends of St Nicholas, 1500

National Gallery of Scotland

Read about the true story of Santa Claus at the St. Nicholas Center website and view a gallery of masterpieces starring St. Nicholas (like the one above by Gerard David).

Fra Angelico painted this saint many times, too. Nick was fond of saving children. He wore pink gloves, carried a fancy gold staff and, in some cases, I think he could fly, too. I like this image. It's medieval-ly strange and beautifully painted.

Saint Nicholas Center

Art Basel Miami Report from THE SMART SET

My Mom went to Drexel University. Today, I found an interesting online magazine, sponsored by Drexel U., as I was searching for articles about Art Basel Miami 2007. It's called "The Smart Set". It has a great-looking masthead which appears to be straight out of the 1920's (or even earlier). Morgan Meis is reporting from Miami and he seems to be a very funny man, so I will be checking back to see what he has to say as he makes his way through the fair day-by-day.

Here is his first installment: Art Basel Miami Beach Day 1 .

I wonder if he will make it to the KNOW exhibition at the Art Now Fair in the Claremont Hotel between now and Sunday evening. So much to see, so little time. I hope he does because that is where I am showing my two small paintings at Mark Murphy's booth number 215.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Deep Pop Art Show in NY, Jan. 2007

I know it's a bit early to blog this and I haven't decided what painting I am going to send yet, but I wanted to alert people in the NY area that this big group show curated by Andrew Michael Ford will be happening at the end of January, 2007 in New Rochelle at Iona College. Here is the link to names of 63 artists participating:

DEEP POP

More later about this!

The Art of Amy Crehore

The J-Walk Blog

HA HA HA!!! This made my day today!

Quick! Go have a look at the

J-Walk Blog

They blogged my complete"Banjo Gal" outfit! Sweet!

I knew she was a high fashion gal. This is what blogging is all about, eh? I didn't know there were actually places to buy B&W polka dot shoes or giant dice. I just made it all up when I painted "Banjo Gal" a few years ago.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Amy Crehore's Artist-Signed, Limited Edition Prints Make Nice Gifts

"Roaming Tomcat Rag" by Amy Crehore, signed, limited edition fine giclee, $90.(Blues Gal Series) Only 50 in edition! "Banjo Gal" by Amy Crehore, signed, limited edition fine giclee print, $79. (Little Pierrot Series) 250 in each edition/five different prints available "The Flower Muncher" by Amy Crehore, signed, limited edition giclee print, $200.(Monkey Love Series) only 100 in each edition/six prints available

My "Roaming Tomcat Rag" print has been selling very quickly and won't last long (only 50 in this edition). Order this print from my homepage , click here:

Blues Gal Print

Order by Dec. 17th, 2007 to get a print in time for Xmas. These prints are all high quality fine art giclee prints - printed on the finest paper with the finest printer. Each print is individually hand-signed by the artist and numbered.

Free shipping on all prints. Free postcards and certificate of authenticity also come with prints.

All prints have been featured on boingboing.net.

Order my other series prints here:

Monkey Love Store or Little Pierrot Store

The Art of Amy Crehore