Blab Show Sell-out

"Mini-Monkey #1" copyright 2006 Amy Crehore (for Blab Show)

I'm back from the Blab Show and it was fun! I handed out cards to everyone and met tons of new people and renewed old friendships, too. I chatted with Monte Beauchamp, Mark Frauenfelder, Greg Clarke and Thomas Han. I will post some pictures as soon as my "photographer" sends them to me.

Halfway into the show, Gary Pressman (the director of CoproNason Gallery) came up to my wall of paintings and dramatically put a red sticker on every single one of my pieces. Apparently, someone came in and bought them all. I heard it was an older mystery man in a suit. The goal was to have lots of people buy the work. Instead, however, one person snatched them up in a shark attack.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Blab Show

Amy_Crehore

Destination: Santa Monica, California

Today, I leave for California, so I will not be posting again until Monday. I should have some photos and news about the Blab! Show opening when I get back. If you can make it to the show on Saturday, Sept. 23 from 8-11:30pm at CoproNason Gallery, Santa Monica, CA, please come up and say hello and get a signed Monkey Love Postcard from me. If you can't come to the show, check it out online (8 new paintings by me). Contact information is on the

Blab!Show website.

Also, check out the "Women with Issues" Show at M Modern Gallery online, opening Sept. 23rd as well! I have one new painting in that show.

Thanks for your support and interest in my art!

The Art of Amy Crehore

Mysterious Balthus Painting

Mysterious painter, mysterious painting! The above painting by Balthus called "Sleeping Nude" or "Nu Assoupi" 1980, 79" x 59", as seen in the book written by his son, Stanislas Klossowski de Rola (Abrams 1996), happens to be in a collection in a skyscraper lobby in NYC but no one is allowed to get close to it. Read Marshall Sponder's story about this painting on artNYC .

Anyone who has read about Balthus has come across this telegram which Balthus wrote to the art critic John Russell right before his Tate Gallery retrospective in London in 1968.
"No biographical details. Bathus is a painter of whom nothing is known. Now let us look at the pictures. Regards. B"

Bathus was reclusive and silent for years. In the years before his death, however, Balthus opened up to the press and we know a lot more about him. Biographys were written and art books were published.

It is some consolation that we get to see this painting reproduced in a book even if we cannot get close to it in real life. What a tease! It's one of my very favorites.

Monkey Love For Sale

"The Strummer" copyright 2006 Amy Crehore (Blab Show)

This new Monkey Love painting, which is currently showing in the Blab Show, is called "The Strummer". It is only 8 3/4" square and painted on a linen panel (unlike my others in the series which are 12" square, oils on stretched linen).

Ever since I created the "Creature" painting for Mark Frauenfelder of boingboing, I have been trying to insert a bit of music into my images. This seems to add something to the ambience.
In my new Blues Gals series, I have added a banjo and a guitar and the titles are either real or made up blues song titles. Having a vintage instrument collection (guitar family) at home certainly helps inspire me as does the fact that I played music myself for many years.

The Blab Show (see all 8 of my new paintings here)
BoingBoing ("Roaming Tomcat Rag" painting)
The Art of Amy Crehore (my website gallery and store)
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Amy_Crehore

California Fun

Sketch for Mini-Monkey#3 by Amy Crehore 2006

Here's another sketch I did for one of my 8 new Blab Show paintings.

I will head down to Santa Monica later this week for the show next Saturday, Sept. 23, 2006 at Bergamot Station, CoproNason Gallery. I am looking forward to it.

Fred Stonehouse and Ryan Heshka are both artists that I admire and they have many paintings in the show as well. Monte Beauchamp has a good eye for choosing great artists to be in "Blab!" .

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Morton Bartlett's Boys

More great images from the book, "Family Found- The Lifetime Obsession of Morton Bartlett" by Marion Harris.

He only created a few boys and they are thought to be "self-portraits". Each figure is about about 26 or 27 inches.

I love their toothless expressions of pure glee.

Early Review of Blab! Art

"Black Snake Wiggle Blues" copyright 2006 Amy Crehore (for Blab Show)

Marshall Sponder over at artNYC has already started to review the online Blab! Show.
You can read up on what he has to say about my art and also read the entire press release for the show.