Sunday, April 20, 2008

A Memphis Jug Band Song by the Hokum Scorchers

Memphis Jug Band
National mandolin style one 1930
National plectrum style one 1928
"You May Go, but This Will Bring You Back", was originally done by the Memphis Jug Band in 1930. The Hokum Scorchers' version has Lou playing a vintage National mandolin. I am playing a National plectrum guitar. The actual instruments we used are shown in these photos. We recorded this song in 1995 for our Yanna's Donut tape.
Listen to "You May Go" here:

Also, my website has couple more tunes (scroll down):
MUSIC of The Hokum Scorchers Band
The Art of Amy Crehore

Friday, April 18, 2008

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Vintage Vogue Covers





There is an exquisite collection of vintage Vogue Magazine covers on flickr. It makes me yearn for the days when fashion magazines had illustrated covers and spreads. They were not afraid of a little bit of stylized female nudity in print, right on the cover. I guess I'm just an art deco girl at heart. I love the designs of that era. (Thanks, Thombeau59)

Vintage Vogue

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Sour Harvest Blog

There's a nice post about my upcoming solo show at Thinkspace Gallery on their blog:
You might want to subscribe to their newsletter. You can see a photo of the main gallery space in the lower righthand corner.
It's really nice- I stopped in there on my last trip to Los Angeles.
They are showing some wonderful artists, so be sure to check out their website, too.
I am really looking forward to my show which will take place Feb. 2009.
Thanks, Thinkspace!

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

Eric Gill, Master Printmaker (1882-1940)

Venus Modestly Holding Spray/Cupid Playing Football with the World, 1929, Wood Engraving by Eric Gill
Clothes as Workshops, 1930, wood engraving by Eric Gill

The Purchaser, 1929, wood engraving by Eric Gill

Eric Gill, a British illustrator, printmaker, typographer and sculptor, did some of the most beautiful woodcuts and engravings of the art deco period. I could look at these all day. His imagination and his design-sense were both simply amazing. "Gill never strayed far from the religious roots which inform his work. Eroticism also forms an important part of it. Gill was not afraid to combine these two elements. Among his many and varied achievements are the numerous books he designed, both type and illustration, The Canterbury Tales and The Four Gospels being among the greatest book productions between the Wars."

Many more of his prints are available to look at (and buy) on this website:
Eric Gill Prints


Sunday, April 13, 2008

Interviews with Artists


A couple of images from the "Beasts" book- Johnny Ryan(top) and Esther Pearl Watson

Johnny Ryan, Jaime Hernandez, Carol Lay, Esther Pearl Watson and Mark Todd are featured on the kcet website in video interviews about underground comics in Los Angeles. The last time I was in L.A., I met Johnny Ryan at the Felt Club/Maker Faire and I have been in art shows with Mark Todd and Esther Pearl Watson (the Blab! Show and the Green Show). Check out these interviews. They are very well-done. I dabbled in self-published comics myself in the early 80's. Anyway, here's the link to the interviews:
There is also an interview with Alex Gross on Juxtapoz, where you can see a photo of Alex with his wife standing in front of the Mandolin painting.
(Thanks to boingboing for the kcet link.)

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Recent Drawing by Amy Crehore

Drawing of girl holding banjo uke copyright Amy Crehore 2008

I've been working on an oil on stretched linen version of one of my pierrots, "Bubble Gum Encore". I changed some things and here is a new sketch. The painting itself is larger and I have revised it even more since I did the sketch. The format is vertical now, which I like. The girl is holding a banjo uke.
I'm excited about some upcoming shows- Palm Springs (in May), where I can show some monkey paintings in beautiful frames, NYC (in July/Aug) where I will be showing 6 paintings (along with with 4 talented women - hey, back to my east coast roots!), and early next year - a full solo show in L.A.- where will have some nice surprises including an installation (Feb 2009). More and more my life "story" will unfold, as I reveal the music behind the art.
The Art of Amy Crehore