Thursday, March 20, 2008

Where is Tickler Uke #2?

Well, it ain't done yet. The weather just simply isn't cooperating. Tickler Uke #2 is at the final stages, but things don't dry very well in these damp, cold conditions. So, it's taking longer than expected. This one has a special inlay on the front, a unique headstock design, a crazy-beautiful fingerboard, and a different shape than the first Tickler. There is a lot of binding on it as well. One has to wait around sometimes for the right conditions to finish things (especially wood). And my paints aren't cooperating lately either, so I have been drawing instead. Got plenty to do. Shows lined up, etc.
But, you can still get a t-shirt while you wait to see Tickler Uke #2. :)

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Female Form - Angles and Curves

Painting by Paul Cuvelier
"Composition" by Paul Cuvelier


Magritte's "The Dangerous Liason"
(Thanks to Art Deco blog )

I've been painting today, but the weather is acting up, so my oil paint is not going on very smoothly. It's frustrating. Had to wipe it down again. I decided that I had better quit for the day so as not to ruin what I've already got down. I thought we were well into spring, but the weather is not cooperating. It almost snowed earlier.

Anyhow, I thought I'd post these titillating images that I found. The top two are by Paul Cuvelier who was a comics artist (he created a series called Corentin, commissioned by Tin Tin's Herge). He was also an incredible painter. It looks like he had that "two women" composition thing down. More of his art to be found here. He did not live very long, unfortunately, and Corentin was not that successful and it ultimately wore him down and he quit comics. He spent the last 5 years of his life painting. The bottom painting is by Magritte, who did some very unusual things with the female form.

The Art of Amy Crehore


Monday, March 17, 2008

B & W Photos - So Beautiful

Be-Bop en cave, Saint-Germain-des-Près 1951 - photo by Robert Doisneau (1912-1994)

I love this photo by Robert Doisneau. Femme Femme Femme is blogging some classic B&W photos. They also just blogged my Memphis Minnie painting along with some photos of her.
I basically majored in photography and film in college and I really love the drama of black and white images! Perhaps I will upload a Memphis Minnie song (by the Hokum Scorchers) to my website music player next Sunday. Meanwhile, it looks like my music page has recently gotten "stumbled upon" which is always a nice bonus.

The Art of Amy Crehore

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Dance Me to the End of Love

Still from music video, "Dance Me to the End of Love" song by Leonard Cohen
There are some beautiful black and white music videos of Leonard Cohen songs on YouTube. My favorite is this one,
Check it out. It's gorgeous and surreal.
The B& W videos for "Closing Time" and "First We Take Mahattan" are nice as well. I have mentioned this before, but I'll say it again - I listened to Leonard Cohen albums non-stop when I painted my "Little Pierrot" series paintings. So, thanks for helping me along, Mr. Cohen. He was just inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (about time) and he recently got a mention on American Idol when Jason Castro did a heart-felt version of his incredible song "Hallelujah". Leonard Cohen will set out on a world tour in June, 2008.

Friday, March 14, 2008

Vintage Easter Cards from Germany



These three embossed lithograph postcards with gold highlights were made by John Finkenrath of Berlin (P.F.B.) 1908. (Green Castle Museum Easter Exhibit - collection of Bonnie A. Shockey).
I like how they show surrealistic scenes of lambs pulling big eggs instead of the usual cliche (children with bunnies).
PLease click "vote for me" if you like this blog! Gracias!

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Bad links, what can ya do?

Blab Show paintings 2006 by Amy Crehore

I noticed that a heck of a lot of old links going to pages on my website are not working. That's because my website host made us change to a new template program a few months ago. I have tried to go back into my blog archive and correct some of these links, but I know that a lot of external links from other blogs and such are dead now. Hopefully people will google my name and find my new website if they are interested enough. Maybe some of these blogs will correct their links.


Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Gazette Du Bon Ton










La Gazette du Bon Ton was a leading French fashion magazine that was published from November 1912 to 1925 and founded by Lucien Vogel. There is an amazing digital archive of the pages from this magazine on a Japanese library website and it is guaranteed to fascinate illustrators and painters alike - featuring the artwork of :