Makeup and Hot Glue Guns

Anyone like lichens?  This is what I've been drawing in the sketchbook lately.

Sketchbook, lichens, Krystal Booth, 2013

After years of drawing pads, sketchbooks, and journals, I have found my favorite one - Crescent RendR No Show Thru Paper Sketchbooks.  The one I'm working out of now is the hardcover 8.5x11" version.  In terms of my excitement about this sketchbook, it can be summed up by the audience member (Amy Poehler) at 2:39 of this Oprah's Favorite Things skit on SNL.

I watched a couple of Ryan Trecartin's videos online this morning and I was certainly entertained, horrified, and completely disoriented at times.  It was as if I was watching my brain's understanding of what went on in my early twenties or what a condensed bad acid trip would be like if there were endless amounts of makeup and hot glue guns.  Trecartin made my morning coffee time seem like an experiment of the mind.  Would my brain explode if I actually made it to the thirty minute mark?  Will I go insane and never come back?

In the end, it just made me want to go play with him and his friends with costumes and wigs overflowing.

If you want to be confused, overwhelmed, annoyed, and entertained, watch these:
http://vimeo.com/trecartin/roamie-view-history-enhancement
http://youtu.be/Z5nclmEYkqk

Like a Ninja

Washington Park is for Ninja Drawing Sessions...

The Disadvantage of Low Rise, 2013

Krystal Booth

 

 

I felt that the second sketch needed such a title.  Low Rise jeans were invented for standing people who never want to sit down.  haha  But yes, Mom jeans are equally bad for opposite reasons.  Perhaps we are about to enter the Golden Age of Jeans, as Goldie Locks has tried both and is ready for the pair that is just right.

 

Ninja drawings sessions have been fun at Washington Park.  I try to stay undetected so they don't get self-conscious.  It's about getting them down on my paper as fast as possible.  It is an authentic real-life, real-time session of Figure Drawing on crack.  Hurry!  Hurry!  Get it down!  He's about to move - Fast - get down the angle of his arm!

Paint a Portrait

 

 

 

 

Commissioned Portrait (Awaiting title from Patron), 2013

Oil on canvas, 12x9"

Krystal Booth

 

 

 

It's obvious where I've been today - finally in the studio!  Hallaluiah!  It was good to get this portrait done and now I'm awaiting feedback from the patron.  It felt great to be painting this evening.  I highly recommend it!  Do what you love this weekend!

 

Love to all!

New Painting

A new drawing that served as a foundation for a new oil painting on paper today along with the finished piece.

Under Drawing of a Torso, 2013, Krystal Booth

Graphite on Paper, 18x24"

 

 

 

Condense and Disintegrate, 2013

Oil and graphite on paper, 18x24" 

Krystal Booth

 

100 Works: Measuring the Progress

Where am I in the 100 works goal?

Detail of a Painting in progress

Oil on paper 24x18", 2013

Krystal Booth

 

 

Right now I am to start on number 26.  A quarter of the goal has been reached.  This is good since a quarter of the year is over as well, though that doesn't even seem possible.  It was not to my advantage to think of this idea later than the new year on January 20th, but that's okay.  It won't be too much of a hindrance.

 

What has changed?  So far paint handling has loosened up a bit.  I don't feel as though I'm strangling my subject as much.  It will be interesting to compare and contrast the works from the beginning of this year to the end of the year.  It's difficult to predict, but it's an exciting prospect.

 

Have I felt rushed?  I really haven't.  I thought that I would feel a bit stressed out and frantic at times with balancing this goal with work and daily life stuff.  So far this feeling has not been felt, and I'm hoping that I don't feel that upon the finish in December.  That's the last way I would want to end this project.

 

What about materials?  The stash of 18x24" canvases has run dry, but I've solved that for the time being by working on paper.  The paper, being more fragile by its flexibility, seems to run along better with the concept behind the works anyway, so it's not such a loss.  I've had to change from Turpenoid to Turpenoid Natural due to painting more.  It's non-toxic, which is better for the workspace that is not always ventilated that great.  The dizzy spell that occurred one night was the wake up call to change products.  (oops! foolish mistake)

 

The Flake White Replacement is a sticky mess and I hate it.  I'm still using it, as the tube is practically full and I don't want to waste money or material.  It's just not as smooth or solid as the Flake White I had been using.  Maybe I'll get more used to it and change my mind, but for now, it's a disappointment and a source of mental cursing upon the palette.  Any suggestions?

 

All in all, there have been some blunders of some instantly failed works, but there have also been works that have made me even more curious in technique and concept.  This challenge has been a good one that has made me realize that I'm much happier if I've been in the studio.

 

Thank you for supporting me by reading and commenting!  It helps fuel the process, and thank you so much.  Love to all!

 

 



New Original Painting on Canvas

Here is last weekend's oil painting.

 

Ubiquity in Limbo, 2013, Krystal Booth

Oil on canvas, 24x18"

 

 

 

Ubiquity in Limbo (Detail of)

2013, Krystal Booth

 

My cold seems to have become worse over night which gave a good opportunity for taking portrait photos first thing in the morning.  It was a car crash of the face - sinus drainage...my face itself seemed draining.  I will using these as references for today's work on paper.

 

Hope you're having a good week, and thank you for visiting!  Love to all!

 

 

 

 

Sleeping Man and Cat

Charcoal drawing - a new work from this past weekend.

Sleeping Man and Cat, 2013, Krystal Booth

Charcoal on Paper, 24x18"

For purchase on Etsy:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/128854057/original-charcoal-drawing-18x24-sleeping

 

(Detail)

 

Another painting was finished as well.  It was a good weekend in the studio.  The painting is so wet still that there is sheen that seems to be unavoidable when photographing it for now.  I'll try to post it later this week.

 

I hope your Monday is going well, and that you all have a very good beginning to your week!  Love to all, and thanks for looking!



 

Rothko Over Rembrandt Hair and Estes All Around

I made a new work while planning a new work!

Rothko Over Rembrandt Hair and Estes All Around, 2013

Photographic Print Series, Ink on Ivory Cotton Paper, 11x8.5" 

Krystal Booth

 
 

I printed out a photograph as a reference to hang on the easel for a painting.  My printer is running out of ink, and this is what came out.  Instant love.  I had to print out a series of five of them on good cotton paper while I could, as I couldn't do this again if I tried.  Happy little accident!

 

Due to this print out, I saw visual references to Mark Rothko, Rembrandt (his hair in a particular self portrait), and Richard Estes.  It turned out to be a good reminder of some artists that I have been fascinated with off and on through the years.

 

 

The Temporary and the Eternal - A New Work

For now it's untitled...

 

Movement of flesh, metal, the temporary and the eternal...

 

Oil on paper, 24x18"

Krystal Booth, 2013

 

The first of the big idea...hoping it maintains my attention and I can dig deeper to what it is I'm getting at -

 

This was definitely influenced by the music I've been listening to lately - old Smashing Pumpkins, Fiona Apple, and Radiohead (as always).  My hope is that it speaks to you in a way that I haven't yet communicated.  Attempting to find my visual language for the messages...

 

Sneak Peek

I refilled my coffee cup and am looking at the painting in process.  Here's the sneek peek of what's on the easel today.

Painting in Progress, Krystal Booth

Oil on paper, 24x18"

 

So this is what I have to work with so far - it's not a bad start, but yes, there's work to be done.  It's very crude right now, but there are some areas of poetry to work with if I look close enough...straining my eyes and mind, but it's there. haha

 

I think I've stumbled onto an idea.  A big idea.  One of those good ones that I've been dying to get for years now.  I've been circling around it for ten years now when I look back at previous works.  I'm getting closer to what it is I am wanting and needing to paint - at least it feels that way.  That feeling is progress in my book, since I've been grasping at other ideas that don't seem to hold my attention for much longer than a few works.  I am hoping that this is indeed different, and if my intuition is right, it is.

 

Cheers to big ideas - it's time to work, work, and work.  RESEARCH. Do some digging.  Tackle it down before it sweeps up into the universe again - I don't want to wait for it to cycle around again.  So today, I'll be in the studio with music playing and probably a cat on my lap as I try to get it down.

 

Love to all!

Damn it, it Happened Again. Spring Cleaning.

Time for organizing the studio again...good grief it's a mess.

 

There is something delightful about looking at a mess - it's more interesting to look at than just a minimal white surface.  It offers more color, shapes, and shadows.  Too bad this doesn't quite convince me that I shouldn't clean today.

 

It's spring again, and spring cleaning is due.  I found a great cleaning list that's particularly fast and easy on Real Simple:  Daily Quick Cleaning Checklist .  It's helpful and should take someone about a half an hour to complete and is just a daily routine to keep things under control.  It's maybe not as fast as what they claim on some of the tasks...the first time I did it, it took me about two hours.  haha!

 

I find that on this blog I write and talk a lot about cleaning and organizing.  Maybe it's because I blog most often on my days off and the regular household chores that go neglected are ready for my attention.  Another contributing factor could be that I make a lot of messes.  When I'm in the act of creating I just zone out and make a mess, or contribute to an existing mess.  I suddenly wonder who has made the mess, and what forces left scraps of paper about, how did they get on the floor, why is there charcoal ground into the carpet, and why is my cat covered in paint?  Then I move my fist about in the air waving it forcefully at the gods, and refill my coffee cup.

 

I then find myself in the corner facing a computer screen, writing about the cleaning I intend to do and inevitably get sidetracked with interesting news and fun to be had online, all the while ignoring it the mess.

 

Success.

...

...

...

This isn't quite working either...you know where I'll be for the hour or so.
 

An American Woman

The finished work -

An American Woman, 2013, Krystal Booth

Oil on paper, 18x24"

Etsy Listing:



http://www.etsy.com/listing/127026313/original-oil-painting-18x24-woman-at

(Detail)

 

 



(Detail)

For this piece, I wanted to bring back some narrative and share what I've been feeling and thinking lately.  I've tried to ignore my feelings of isolation in public places, and alienation in our culture in terms of my gender, but decided that it is worth sharing in this form.  I feel very revealed, but at the same time, I don't want it to be a concrete "this is the way you should read it" type of narrative.  I hope that it allows for the viewer's individual experiences to influence it's content.

Today I will be applying gesso on some more paper to get ready for oil painting.  I should have done this yesterday, but after waking up so early and working, I couldn't do much but sleep when I arrived back home.

As for the 100 works goal, I'm not too far behind.  I'm about to begin on #15 for the year.  I slipped a little over the past couple of weeks.  I have 286 more days to create 85 more works.  Looking at it in terms of days makes me realize that it is completely possible.

This is the first day of Spring - a rejuvenation after a long winter.  I'm ready for it, aren't you? 

Love to all, and thank you so very much for reading and allowing me to share my work with you.


 

The Seven Year Itch

I just completed this portrait of my sweetheart of almost seven years -

Portrait of Matthew, 2013

Oil on canvas, 9x12"

Krystal Booth

 

 

I can't believe we've been together that long - time has gone by so quickly!  He's the most kind-hearted and patient man I've ever met (besides my father), and I'm a lucky gal.  (Hopefully a Marilyn Monroe type will not move into the apartment building soon- no thank you to the Seven Year Itch phenomenon, though it was a lovely movie).  He's great looking (my friend Sarah and I nicknamed him "Hot Matt" when we first met him), so I'm sure she would fall in love with him.  Thank goodness he thinks so much of me - I try to show him how ridiculous I am, but he loves me despite my lack of patience when I'm tired at night, and my seeing humor in anything and everything that could be inappropriate or boring to others.  Luckily, he's just as bad as I am.  Humor is the tie that binds as we laugh like bastards at lame jokes and at the bad dancing/singing we do in our living room. :)

 

On a different note, over the course of this next week, there will be a new listing in my Etsy shop for custom portraits.  I look forward to creating these small paintings for others and their loved ones.  I'm truly excited to create for others in this way, and will keep you posted about when it is up and running.

 

Cheers to love and creating!  Love to all -

 

 







Ode to Friendship

A new portrait of my best friend, Samm.

Portrait of Samm, 2013

Oil on canvas, 9x12"

Krystal Booth

 

 

I'm very excited about sending this to him.  Until then, I'm still waiting for the paint to dry a bit more.  I also would like to try to get a better photograph of it before sending it off. 

 

Samm and I love to tell people that we were born together.  Our mutual friends are all probably very sick and tired of how special we think it is, but darn it, it is special.  We were born in the blizzard of '78 in January.  Our mothers knew eachother, but were surprised to see eachother in the hospital - "Pat!  What are you doing here?"  "About to have a baby!  What are you doing here, Karol?"  "About to have a baby too!"  They were probably the only two mothers laughing while in labor during a blizzard.

 

Samm and I ended up being the only two babies in the nursery.  His cone head, and my scratched up face with new mittons covering my hands, we enjoyed spending our first few hours on earth side by side.  Well, maybe not exactly enjoyed, but there has never been many minutes that pass when we are together that have not been spent laughing and genuinely enjoying each other's company. 

 

What's also funny is that when we look back, we don't remember anyone ever telling us that we were born together when we were little.  We always just knew as we went through elementary school together.  Maybe we're romantic in thinking that way, but I really think that we are some sort of partners for life.  Maybe we had it all planned out before we even arrived.

 

Currently we live across the country from one another, but modern technology is the greatest of things.

 

Thank you for allowing me to share this with you, and I hope that you are blessed with friendships and love that no amount of distance or time can erode.

 

Goodnight, and love to all -

 

 

 

 



New Painting: Self Portrait

A new oil painting that I finished last night - a self-portrait.

Self-portrait, 2013, Krystal Booth

Oil on canvas, 12x9"

 



More Crack Please

It's been a busy, yet relaxing, last couple of days.  Much work has been done in the form of painting, bike riding, grocery shopping, and art store adventuring.  Matthew and I have also taken on the form of human beds and chairs for our two cats, despite what we are doing.  Olive in particular has been running to my lap the minute she hears me move a paint brush off the easel.  She seems to think I paint my best with her on my lap.

The title refers to the works completed this week (not to drugs - crack is whack):

Looking Up, 2013

Oil on canvas, 12x16".

Krystal Booth

https://www.etsy.com/listing/123867462/original-oil-painting-of-trees-12x16

 

 

The above was inspired by a venture to the Hoyt Arboretum.  When establishing the surface of the main tree, it seemed to be a struggle to gain texture in the beginning.  Luckily with the successive layers and a bit of the impasto technique (heavy application of paint), some texture was achieved with the cracks of the tree.  I enjoyed using the bright colors - I could've painted this forever, though it would have then ended up as something to cover up and begin again.  It's tricky business knowing when to stop.

 

 

 

 

 

Wyoming Landscape, 2013

Oil on canvas, 8x10"

Krystal Booth

https://www.etsy.com/listing/123868950/original-oil-painting-of-the-wyoming

 

 

This small painting was also finished this week and the crevices along the distant stacked rocks provided a nice challenge that only my smallest brush could achieve.  I based this off of a photo taken when we were traveling through Wyoming.  The rocks were absolutely amazing.  I had never seen anything like it!  The formations were organized chaos and definitely made it a highlight of our journey.

 

After our cross country relocation here to Portland, I vowed that I would never drive that again.  It was nerve wrecking at times due to my fear of heights.  Looking back now, and seeing the images from our adventure, I now am only remembering the good (except for one awful section of coming out of the mountains that will always remain - forever scarred into my brain).  Yup, I think given the opportunity to travel that route again, I would do it. 

 

I wish you a good start to your week, and the adventures that come your way!

 

 

 

Look! You're Surrounded!

This morning I finished out the work week and have made it home in time for afternoon coffee.  I am cheers-ing you by showing you a couple of work themed daily sketches.  Just in case any management sees these, no need to worry, as I used my ten minute breaks to make these.  :)

A Delivery Truck...

 

 

and the scribbling down of the inside the store looking at the entrance.

 

 

Are these the most entertaining subjects?  Not really, but they were fun to get down on paper.  The thing that is fun about daily sketches is that they are kind of a collection of places where I have been - a visual diary of my everyday.  Some days are less than inspiring - it can be the same old, same old, and I think once we get into that frame of mind, we miss out on opportunities.

 

I've actually been pretty hum-bum about daily sketches lately.  I've been uninspired by the same surroundings everyday.  The truth is is that I'm not paying attention enough.  I made myself draw that delivery truck the other day.  It wasn't inspiring at first, but then the different sharp angles caught my eye a bit when looking at the cab and under the truck itself.  Once it began appearing on the page, it was interesting, and I wanted to capture more and see how all of these shapes fit together.  If I had had my way, I would have sat out there for another ten minutes at least to try to record the shadows and tones, but break was over.  I'm learning that it's only boring if I'm not really looking. (This also goes along with what my Mom always told me when I was growing up, "Only boring people are bored.")

 

For the next three days, I'm off at my day job and planning to have a few more works finished.  One of which will hopefully be this one -

 

 

It's in a rough starting stage, but there's potential, if I'm willing to look!

 

My challenge for you is to find something mundane in your environment this week and really study it.  What was it and how did it change before your eyes? 

 

PS.  If you really struggle with this, just pile up a blanket, and you've got yourself your own miniature mountain to capture your imagination and Tonka Trucks.  Tah-Dah!  Challenge complete!

 





No, I'm Not Crazy: The Beginning Thoughts and Inspiration

Today, I wanted to share with you a little of what's inspiring the September Issue painting series.



Sources of Ideas and Inspiration in my studio

 

Maybe it stems from going with my Dad to The Newstand, a store in Angola, Indiana, as a kid.  It was filled with racks of magazines, newspapers, candy, and cigars.  The aroma of the sweetest cigar tabacco and fresh ink was a heavy perfume for this place, and if I could have I would have bottled it.  Anyway, I have always enjoyed magazines.  The colors, the images, the landscapes and the models unknowingly taught me a lot about two-dimensional composition while I was growing up.

 

There is something ridiculous about fashion magazines that I've only began to understand as an adult.  I will probably never dress like that.  Some of the attire is ridiculous, other ensembles are ugly, and some are absolutely beautiful but completely non-functional for everyday life.  For instance, a typical day of riding my bike to the train and working at my part-time job mixing paint, followed by a session of oil painting or drawing screams to me, "You simply MUST wear Valentino today!", doesn't it? haha

 

While I would love to wear outlandish clothes and feminine delicate fabrics everyday, it's simply not my life, nor is it my budget.  These are for the wealthy or at the very least, the very financially comfortable populations who do have the lifestyle suited for these clothes with formal dinner parties, events, and all that is luxurious and leisurely.  (I daydream about what all that might be, but all I can come up with something that looks like the television show, Revenge.  I clearly haven't a clue.) haha

 

These clothes do not make an appearance in my everyday surroundings, but what if they did?  This mixture of the models I see in the magazines with my neighborhood in Portland is entertaining.  What if I saw her waiting for the bus?  What if she was a gas station attendant?  What if I saw them at Subway?  Everyone gets hungry.  Why not? Hahaha! 
 

So I began taking photos around my neighborhood.

 

Bus stop at the corner of the Tualatin Valley Highway & 170th., Beaverton

 

 

The Shell Station at Orenco on Cornell Road, Hillsboro

 

My hope with this series is that it gives people a laugh with the awkward narrative, and inspires some thought about how our world differs with the world created within the pages of a glossy fashion magazine.  Who and what are they marketing when we look below the surface of things?  I get the impression that I'm probably not the only woman who looks at these and feels a bit inferior when the pages close and I realize that my hair looks drab, my face looks tired, and I'm wearing yoga pants with holes in them.  More questions and observations arise as I think more about some of these images, and as the series progresses, I'm hoping that still more come to the surface.

 

 

  

Work #2 for 2013: Arboretum

Hello!  Just thought that I'd share this with you before posting it on Etsy tonight.  It is a graphite drawing based on a photo taken during a venture to the Portland Arboretum.

Arboretum, 2013, Krystal Booth

Graphite on watercolor paper, 11x8.5"

 

 

If you live in the Portland, Oregon area, I hope that you have visited this place.  It's spectacular with great walking paths and a great way to spend a couple of hours.  Being midwesterners, the height of the redwoods and others blew our minds.  We felt extremely humbled in their presence.

 

Now I'm off to my part-time job and tonight will be another painting session...hopefully more fruitful than last night's struggle session. haha

Enjoy your day!

Here's the link for purchase:  https://www.etsy.com/listing/121992580/arboretum-original-drawing-2013



First of 100 Works

Finally, was given the opportunity to photograph the newest painting - the first of the New Year and the first of the one hundred works goal.

The Attendant, 2013, Krystal Booth

Oil and paper on canvas, 18x24"

 

 

 

 

Detail of The Attendant, 2013, Krystal Booth

Oil and paper on canvas, 18x24"