The Cloudy Collection Letterpress Prints Go on Sale at 9am PST, 3/31/2009

My letterpress print (Amy Crehore)

Cloudy Collection, Volume 1, Edition 1 (limited to 100 sets). These beautiful images are pressed into ivory-colored bamboo paper using 100% vegetable-based inks. Printed by Boxcar Press in Syracuse, NY. "Cloudy Characters" art by Meg Hunt, Bill Fick, John Martz, Amy Crehore, Tom Kaczynski, Steven Weissman, and David Huyck. A percentage of the sales of the Cloudy Collection print sets will be donated to The Nature Conservancy. Only $35. with free shipping to the U.S. and Canada. These prints go on sale at 9am PST (noon, Eastern time) March 31, 2009. Brought to you by David Huyck.

THE CLOUDY COLLECTION

The Art of Amy Crehore

Louise Brooks and Ruth St. Denis on da beach

Photo of dancers on the beach includes Louise Brooks, second from right, as part of the Denishawn Dancers in Los Angeles, CA (Library of Congress). Click to Enlarge.

Top photo is of Ruth St. Denis herself in an unsual pose. (NY Public Library )
Read about Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn, what inspired their dance companies, and see more photos on bobster1985's flickr.

I love seeing photos of Louise Brooks that I had not seen before. Those were the days!

The Art of Amy Crehore

Mean Kitty

Okay...over 18 million views, but I hadn't seen this before.

This cat looks like my cat! I enjoyed this!

Art and Medicine

Thanks, boingboing, for making my job easy today. I plucked these images from the Science Museum website after reading about this interesting collection of old objects on boingboing. The Fortean Times has an article about the collection called Medicine Cabinet of Curiosities. Have a look. It's art and medicine combined. (For you, Raliegh).

If I have not been blogging as much lately, please forgive me. I am suffering from a sore back and sitting at the computer does not help me at all. I am currently painting Tickler Uke #2 and it is slow going. Maybe I need a little hike and some fresh air. I'm as pale as these figures. More later!

The Art of Amy Crehore

"Black Pop Surrealism" Exhibit at SICA Opens Friday, March 27th

If you live in NJ or near the Jersey Shore, you can see this exhibit at
SICA, The Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts
BLACK POP SURREALISM
March 27 – May 1, 2009

SICA, The Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts, (20 Third Ave., Long Branch, NJ 07740) is proud to announce an exhibition “Black Pop Surrealism”, curated Jenn Hampton, the director of the Parlor Gallery. A reception: Sun., March 29; 3-6pm.
Gallery is open 1-5pm Wed, Thurs, Sun and 11am-6pm on Friday and Saturday.

The artists Ms. Hampton selected for inclusion are Booga, Kevin Bourgeois, Jason Bruntton, Amy Crehore, John Detrich, Kristen Ferrell, Heather Gabel, Gris Grimly, John John Jesse, Charles Kraft, Jessica Lawson, Otis Link, Francesco Locastro, Angie Mason, Tim McCormick, Sergio Mora, Mark Mothersbaugh, Charlie Ownes, Chris Peters, Michael Peters, Kevin Peterson, Michele Piano, Porkchop, Robert Preston, Ragnar, Celeste Rapone, Jack the Ripper, KRK Ryden, Pet Silvia, Nicole Steen (of the Pop Tarts), Tammey Stubbs, Donald Topp, Brian Viveros, Adam Wallacavage, Jon Watshak, Chet Zar, and Richard Zimmerman.


This show is made possible in part by funds from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation; the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, our members, and by the contributions of individuals like yourself. SICA is a non-profit corporation whose purpose is to establish a uniquely stimulating and creative environment in which to experience the contemporary arts. The primary goal of the center is to increase the general public’s accessibility, awareness and appreciation of the contemporary arts in central New Jersey. For more information on SICA, visit www.sica.org
SLIDESHOW of SOME WORKS in this Exhibit
I'll be showing my "Story of Lolita, Part Two" and "Snake Tamer's Ditty".
The Art of Amy Crehore

Femme Femme Femme

Patrizio Di Renzo

Jesus Molina
Femme Femme Femme blog is back - they are on wordpress now (due to a recent blogger.com "content warning" label). This is a french blog chock full of images of women in art history from photographers to painters (as shown above). It is all about "woman as muse" in ART throughout the centuries. I have never known them to select images that degrade women in any way. They always kept the images flowing - honoring women with humor and grace. A full range of styles. As someone who loves to paint women, I always enjoyed this blog. Here's the new link:
Femme Femme Femme

Looking Back on L.A. Last Month

Click to ENLARGE

The night after my solo show opening in L.A., I drove over to Chinatown to attend another opening on Valentine's night. This was the "Movers and Shakers" show at POVevolving Gallery.

What a great show it was, curated by Gino Joukar. I was honored to be in it. You can see my "French Bubble Gum Encore" painting on the left side of this photo. More photos of this show can be found here (dailydujour). Chinatown was so much fun, however, I was not feeling that well and had to go back to my hotel early. Getting soaked the day before in a downpour, walking to the La Brea tarpits, and then playing hokum music at my own show really wore me out, I guess!

The Art of Amy Crehore

More photos of Tickleroos

I love this photo by Thinkspace gallery of my painted, restored vintage ukes (my "Tickleroos") all lined up and set up with strings...before they were actually hung on the gallery walls.

CLICK images to enlarge for better view.

Also, here is the complete postcard that they designed (Anthony Clarkson did the graphics) for the show (front and back). I am really proud of the way it all came together. To see these uke babies hung between my paintings in a wonderful gallery in L.A. was truly a thrill that I will never forget.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Vintage St. Patrick card
Originally uploaded by riptheskull

For collection of vintage cards
follow the link.
Thanks, riptheskull.

New Prints, Tickler Uke Number Two, SICA Exhibit

These things will all be happening by the end of March. New letterpress prints and limited edition giclee prints. My Number Two Tickler Ukulele (finally! Ha ha!). A pop surrealism exhibit in New Jersey at SICA. Check back here for news. I may be gone for a bit next week, but I'll be back...so don't go away.

The Art of Amy Crehore

2 Days Left to See "Dreamgirls and Ukes" at Thinkspace

This video was actually taken of The Hokum Scorchers on Feb 13, 2009 at Thinkspace on the opening night of my art show. I believe there are a couple more videos on YouTUBE of the rest of the performance. My solo art show will only be up for two more days, March 5 & 6th. Be sure to catch it if you are in Los Angeles. Hours: 1-6pm. 4210 Santa Monica Boulevard.

Thanks to Dinosaurs and Robots and King David Ukulele Station for recently blogging about the art in this show.

Here's a link to my Complete Art Show on FLICKR . I think I managed to pull off a really different type of art show with the help of Mr. Reimuller and the good folks at Thinkspace. I owe them all a ton of gratitude.

Teenar- Most Outrageous Guitar?!

Can it be? Teenar is still making news - even a couple of years after we brought her out of the mothballs. This old mannequin is Number One "Outrageous Guitar" on the internet according to Music Radar .

(Thanks, Mark Lowrie for heads up.)

This guitar was made by my luthier, Lou Reimuller, back in 1986 from a vintage mannequin. Exactly what is so "wrong" about her, I'll never know! She's just art made out of a found object -a "sculpture". But, she also happens to play. The outrageousness must have to do with people projecting their own thoughts onto her and the whole idea of someone playing her. But, she really doesn't mind. She's not human!

Self Decapitation

Do you ever feel like doing this? Releasing your own head from your shoulders? I do. Promotional poster for Magician Kellar by the Strobridge Lithograph Co., Cincinnati, New York, 1897. "Trials and errors" has collected a nice set of performing arts posters on

flickr (from the Library of Congress). This is one of them.
LINK