A New Piece in Progress

This is a new piece that I just worked on this morning. It is similar to one I did recently and was bought (I believe) at our show in October. I have to say it is refreshing to sit down and make some new art. I have been so busy lately. I am trying to produce new work because we have a lot of goals for art this next year. If anyone has feedback on this while I am in process, let me know. I am not sure of what the title will be, if I title it at all. If anyone has interesting ideas, leave me a comment.

Be sure to stay tuned to my blog. We will be sharing and announcing many exciting new pieces, events, and ideas. We have a new show and opening in Oakland. That announcements follows soon.

Only Four Days Left to Sign Up for the FREE RAFFLE!!

You can sign up by:

1. Send an email to brownartworks@gmail.com saying you want to subscribe to our email newsletter
2.When you do this you are automatically entered into the FREE RAFFLE
3. The results will be announced on Saturday, August 17, at the end of the meet and greet. The drawing will be filmed and posted on this blog.

So email us at brownartworks@gmail.com !! Sign up now before Saturday!

Works being raffled:

1.

2. 

The print of this photo will be slightly cropped and without the watermark (my name)

Mendocino, CA and Fort Bragg, CA - Art Communities to Behold

This week we were able to spend time in Mendocino and Fort Bragg. Both of them are wonderful art communities, with Mendocino have more galleries than Fort Bragg, but both are equally wonderful and inspiring. I found the artists and gallery owners to be most friendly and knowledgeable about everything they are doing. 

Not is the art scene great, but the landscape and scenery is most inspiring as well. It just feels like it can help you produce more art by allowing you think better and expose you to scenery like the photo above. That is from the Mendocino Headlands. A wonderful place with trails to explore and sea caves creating a beautiful backdrop for the very clear water. 

There are some great artists and galleries that I will continue to follow-up on and talk about in the subsequent entries here on my blog, in addition to the show that we have coming up. If you have any thoughts about visiting this part of California, let me say that you will enjoy your trip, especially if great art and scenery are high on your agenda!

A Matter of Perspective and Point of View: Forming a Connection

 

 



As we approach our show that is going up on August 13, at James and the Giant Cupcake in Oakland, CA, I am motivated to start thinking about more ideas that can transform our group and our art. I was speaking with my wife yesterday about this idea that I had, and it led me to think about what is it about art that makes every artist unique, as well as their work. My solution came back to a matter of perspective. Art is really about perspective and point of view, no matter which way you break it up, look at it, divide it, or anything else you do.

 

Take this image of mine that I put up here. It is multi-colored and fragmented, something like that of a Cubist, with a Surrealist line of thinking, at least from my perspective. This is how I see things when I make my art. It was the way I saw things as I was drawing this image out. This is one of my favorites because it speaks to me strongly. Isn't that what each artist is really trying to do, speak to an audience? Coincidentally, it has a good home now where someone else besides me can appreciate it. This image found its audience, and that is the goal that I have for my art work. I want it to connect with people. I believe that is what we all want as artists. I also believe that is the essence of the human condition, to connect with others. We all form groups, work in certain areas, socialize in certain areas, all because we are wanting to connect.

 

What makes this connection difficult is when artists are trying to think up the next new thing or interesting idea. My advice, if someone is to take it, would be to just be yourself. Don't copy someone else. Find yourself and your audience will find you. However, finding your audience means you have to look for people who might like your art. That  is another subject for another entry.

 

Every artist has a way of looking at the world and the world is becoming smaller because of the internet. Just do what you feel represents your view of the world and do it well. People will stop to look and listen if you develop a way of working and representing yourself in a coherent way. I think that is the strength of our family. We all do what we do well and we remain true to ourselves, and we support each other as we work. We are our own collaborators and audience. We have individual and collective perspective that is valuable to us.

 

Bring people into your perspective so they can understand you and they will be your audience. Art, like so many other aspects of life, is about communication. It is perhaps the most basic of communication because it is communication through images (text-based art not withstanding). Images are a universal language, except perhaps those you cannot see and rely on hearing, where music would be a more universal experience for them.

 

Something that happens as we move forward through art history is that the visual language becomes more complex. Yet, what I notice, is that people prefer simplicity in their art experience, however you may define that. But, simplicity it something that people truly move towards. It is a challenge for us as artists to take a more complex visual complex language and simplify it for that true visceral and/or emotional response that a wonderful piece of art can inspire. It all comes back to perspective and point of view.

ART SHOW IN AUGUST AND FREE ART RAFFLE!! SIGN UP NOW!

Brown Family Artworks, featuring work by Esther Brown, Gisella Williams, Jesse Brown, and Liliana Navarro, will be showing at James and the Giant Cupcake in Oakland, CA. This is our second show with them. We are excited to be showing our work there. Like last year, we are having a raffle. In order to be entered in this year's raffle, here is what you have to do:

 

1. Send an email to brownartworks@gmail.com

2. In the email, tell us that you want to subscribe to the email newsletter we are starting to put out next month.

3. After you do the first two things, you are automatically entered into the raffle. There is no need to buy a ticket, you just have to email and subscribe to the email newsletter.

 

All the information is in the flyer posted here, but let me go over a little bit of it. We will be having a meet and greet on Saturday, August 17, from 12-2 pm. Some of us will be there to meet people and talk about our work. Of course, James and the Giant Cupcake will be serving food as they usually do at that time - and it is quite outstanding food they have there, so that is even more reason to come! Lastly, we will be doing the raffle at that time.

 

Something to note about the raffle, we are encouraging people to enter, no matter where they live. The work will be delivered to the location, even if they live out of town or out of state or out of the country. So, please enter the raffle! We are excited to share this event with you. An online version of the show will go up after we install the show in Oakland. So, please stay tuned if you will not be in town. You can still see everything when you are not in town!

 

So, come by, support the show, and sign up for the raffle! Once again, email us at brownartworks@gmail.com - your name gets entered after you email us and sign up for the email newsletter. Thanks for reading and supporting us!!

 

Jesse Brown

August 13, 2013 Art Exhibition for Brown Family Artworks

 

So, we are doing our second show at James and the Giant Cupcake in Oakland, CA. We would like to thank them for inviting us back to show there. We are excited to be showing some new work for this year. Liliana Navarro, Gina's sister, will be exhibiting her work for the first time in the US, so this will be her debut! I will be displaying my series of photos from Panama. I am very excited about this because Panama is an exciting country with so much to share with the world. I am also excited to incorporate images from there into my artistic perspective. Please stay tuned for a preview here on my blog.

 

In addition to this, we will be having a Meet and Greet on Saturday, August 17, from 12-2. The address is posted on the image of the flyer. If you have any questions, please feel free to email or call me about what to expect. Also, I am excited to announce there will be a raffle! Last year we had a raffle and drew the name at the opening. We will draw the name at the Meet and Greet on August 17. Details about the raffle with be forthcoming very shortly. The prize for the raffle will be one of our framed works of art! So, if you are interested to get some new art for your home, be sure to participate!

 

You could say that this show is the kick-off for an exciting second half of our year for art. We have many big plans between now and Christmas, this show just being the first of many exhibitions and events for selling our work. Our format for this show will feature no less than four of our family members and their creative directions, with artist biographies and artist statements. In addition to selling our work, we like to talk about what the meaning of our work is for us and how it reflects the world around us.

 

I have to add this in about this show. Eurydice and Caleigh, the owners of James and the Giant Cupcake, they really have a first rate business that is fun and friendly and they have the best cupcakes I have ever tasted. If you want to try some good cupcakes and have a fun place to have a coffee and hang out, in addition to seeing some spectacular art, be sure to go by and try their cupcakes and see our new work!!

 

Stay tuned, because there is a lot more blogging coming up. We have a lot of work going on and we are excited to share it with everyone. Once again, thanks for reading!!

 

Jesse



A New Work in the Trading Card Series

 

 

So, this is a new piece that I completed recently. This summer has been very busy. We are preparing many different things at Brown Family Artworks. Right now, we have a show that goes up August 13, 2013 in Oakland, CA. I will post the flyer soon. (Gina is working on it as I write this blog!) I am excited to show some new work. The gallery in Coos Bay continues to do well. We are selling a lot of exciting work there, but we are trying to constantly produce and keep up with the demands of having multiple events. It looks like this fall will have us ramping up for our first Christmas push for art work. My hope is that we will attend at least one or two holiday art festivals, along with having our work up in Coos Bay.

 

This image you see posted here is a new piece in my trading card series. I really love this format for many reasons. It is small and invites the viewer in to have a personal dialogue with the piece. I can go into deep detail on a small scale and show texture, line, and stroke marks of my tools. I mat and frame my work in a comparatively big format so the image is isolated and does not compete with anything in its immediate surroundings. This one, however, is not yet framed. However, I have to say, I become a little frustrated with the slowness of my production because of two reasons. I have this insane attention to detail that takes time to complete, along with multiple tasks in production that take away time from my actual painting and drawing. Having said that, they all go together. I cannot separate these tasks out like that. They all go together if one is to be successful in getting their art out there.

 

So, enjoy this piece and keep looking for the following posts coming soon. I have several more posts that should be going out in the next day or so. Thanks for reading and be sure to come see our show!!

 

Jesse



New Work in Progress

I know it has been awhile since I last posted, but it has been a busy year. This piece is once of many that I am working on at the moment. It is only half complete. I will fill it in more soon. I am preparing for a show coming up on August 13, 2013. It will be in Oakland. Keep reading for details that are coming soon about when we will hang, where, and how long it will go for. I am very excited about my new work and I hope people enjoy it as well. This particular piece is 6" x 6." It is not very big, but I like the small format because it forces a viewer to get close to the work and have a personal relationship with it instead of being overwhelmed, like on a 10' wide painting. Please leave a comment if you find it interesting.  I will try to post the finished piece soon. Thanks for reading!

Jesse

Art Inspired by Panama!

Copyrights belong to Jesse Brown, the author of this blog. If interested in this or any other images, please write Jesse Brown at brownartworks@gmail.com

 

 

We are currently finishing our trip to Panama, where I have focused on photography for my art medium at the moment. This medium affords me the ability to be fast and efficient with recording my ideas as I visit places and see new things. I do not have the time to sit and draw and paint with the schedule that we have been keeping. One of the things that artists have to learn is how to adapt and work within their range and experience so that they can convey their ideas. I will elaborate on my ideas from here that I have initially recorded through the use of photography, but a flow of ideas does not stop with simply one type of expression. It is merely the beginning of a process that takes as long as it needs to express itself.

 

 

 

Panama has allowed me to explore a variety of ideas. The image above is one of many taken from Panama Viejo. I have seen this place before, but not with the eye of trying to record it with an artistic point of view. With this particular experience, I was able to record many perspectives. I have not done a great deal of journal writing yet, but I will be focusing on that as I work with this experience. Cezanne did a lot of work with respect to his experience in Fiji. Hemingway let his experience in Spain influence him. Every artist is influenced by their environment. So it goes with me and my travels.

 

 

 

One of the first things that I do is try to line up my composition in such a way that it becomes visually interesting for the viewer. I also choose subjects that usually draw a viewer in. I focused a great deal on windows, doors, openings, and light and dark in this particular area in Panama Viejo. The  ruins lend themselves to that type of subject. Why so? Well, let's just look at windows and doors for a moment. Windows and doors represent points of view, opportunities, and reminders of the past, present, and future. Combine that with composition and lighting, as well as the context of 500 year old ruins, and you have some images that truly bring the viewer to contemplate a variety of ideas.

 

 

 

Please take a moment to reflect and enjoy the image above. More will follow soon. Thanks for reading!!

 

Jesse 

Interview with Don Carter, Gallery Owner Coos Bay, OR: Art for the People

 

 

Don Carter is a gallery owner and artist who operates out of Coos Bay, OR. I recently have had the pleasure of meeting Don and working with him in setting up art work in his gallery. Immediately, I am able to confirm what I felt through all of our phone conversations; he (and his family) are there for the people. Whether they are customers or artists, he works to help them find what they are looking for in his gallery.

 

As we were setting up our display in his new store, Don was keenly aware of each individual in the store and trying to help all of them in turn as we were setting up. He is a people person and takes great pride in what he is creating in Coos Bay with The Fellowship. Following is an interview with him to help give background to this unique creation that features a Grand Opening on Saturday, March 23rd.

 

 

 



Jesse Brown: What got you started in the gallery business originally?

 

Don Carter: We have wanted an art gallery in our store for years, Recently we've had several miraculous events that have brought this about


 

 Jesse Brown: You have a unique format with a gallery, bookstore, and a coffee shop. What is your final vision for your place? Where did it come from?

 

Don Carter: The business just naturally grew out of what we like. Who wouldn't want to read a good book while drinking your favorite coffee surrounded by beautiful art?


 

 

Jesse Brown: I understand you are an artist as well. How is it working with a group of artists in comparison to just trying to produce art yourself? How does it compare with owning your own business?

 

Don Carter: Most artists understand the business of art and know that gallery's are necessary for the survival of the art community


 

Jesse Brown: How important are the views of the customers in the whole art equation? For example, do you feel the view/customer should influence the art? Can the market drive the content of an artist's subject?

 

Don Carter: Really good original art influences public opinion the customers respond to what is presented, For the most part artists create what they love and try to influence public opinion. The market follows closely behind this.


 

   

Jesse Brown: How hard is it to satisfy such a diverse group of artists? What's the key?

 

Don Carter: Sharing our store is the main thing, We're not just trying to make a living we are trying to help each artist with their business.


 

 

Jesse Brown: Are you able to pick a favorite piece in your gallery so far? If so, which one? If not, why so?

 

Don Carter: That would be impossible, We have way too much to have a favorite.


 

 

Jesse Brown: What are you looking forward to the most with this new gallery?

 

 

Don Carter: Having time to paint and teach art to kids


 

Jesse Brown: I read a recent piece on an art blog about how art is about life. How does your gallery reflect that? Do you think your artists represent that in any specific way?

 

Don Carter: Art is a momentary slice of your life, a small picture of a moment, Art can only reflect the images that reside in our hearts. Each artist strives to touch your heart with their work. We want to display the best art that we can find to accomplish this.


 

Jesse Brown: Do you have anything you want to add that you hope readers will take away from this interview?

 

Don Carter: Simply that we are just average people that love art and we want nothing more than to share it with you. If your an artist who needs more exposure please contact us, If you can't even draw a stick figure we need you too, please come in and help support the artists.

Thank you.


 

 

 

Please stay tuned for more on The Fellowship and the art that I (and my family) have set up there, along with many other events and artists that reside there! 

Art Work for the Ocean

This is another work by my mother, and I would have to say that this is my favorite piece that she has done in this style. One of the things that she has concentrated on is doing themes that would sell well along the ocean. One of our favorite vacation spots for our family is the ocean at Fort Bragg, CA. So, sea life is a common theme for her work. I love the colors of this image on the stark, black background. The finishing coat she used was a matte finish, but even then it is quite glossy. This particular rock is a sizable one and can easily be used as a paper weight on a desk, or a show-piece on a shelf. This does not fall into the category of Meditation Rock because it is too big to easily be held and is a little unwieldly. Meditation rocks are intimate and small and can be maneuvered easily with the fingers.

This rock is on sale for $40 at The Fellowship. It was part of that massive 192-piece shipment we took to Oregon last weekend. There will be a grand opening for the Gallery in about 3 weeks. If anyone is going to be in that area, please check it out!

Please stay tuned for more pieces that I will blog about. Give comments and feedback if you have time. I will be posting some photos of the gallery soon. I wanted to talk about some of the great new art first, before I got to the gallery. This weekend I will have an interview with the gallery owner and I will post that interview here. Thanks for all of your support!

Jesse

 

Esther Brown and Ada Lee team up to bring a new artistic series!!

ESTHER BROWN AND ADA LEE TEAM UP TO BRING A NEW ARTISTIC SERIES.

So, this is a sample of some of the new types of pieces that went to Coos Bay. Actually, if I remember correctly, this particular one got bought before it could even get shipped off to Coos Bay, Oregon. My mother, Esther, and Ada, Esther's soon-to-be daughter-in-law, teamed up to create a very unique series. This is a variation on their Meditation Rock Series. Some have one, others have two, per bag. Ada designed a small bag that is meant to carry the rock. Esther paints images on smoothly shaped and rounded rocks that are meant to inspire peaceful and tranquil thoughts. A person might hold it in their hand while they listen to soothing music, sit quietly on a beach or among trees in a park, and let it inspire them to think of peaceful thoughts.

Part of the inspiration for this comes from Baoding Balls used to help heal the hand and relieve stress. Baoding Balls are meant to be rotated in the palm of the hand. The variation on this comes in with the art work. My mother lays down a black gesso base to create a dark background on which the image and intense colors can jump forward to the viewer. She also uses images that will connect with different types of people. If anyone has ever been to a Koi pond and seen the water lilies floating in the water as the fish swim silently underneath in a tranquil garden setting, it is incredibly peaceful and energizing. In this particular example, there is only one rock, but many have two to allow the option of moving both around in the hand similar to Baoding Balls. For me, personally, I really love the images that my mother creates on these rocks. I would not risk moving them around and possibly chipping the paint. (They are heavily layered with a spray finish that should prevent this, and should be resistant to any type of chipping, but that is just me).

My mother and Ada have created many, many combinations for this series. Many of the items in this series will be posted soon. If you are interested in buying any of them, write us, or go by The Fellowship in Coos Bay, Oregon. The  Fellowship carries our work now and has an extensive inventory of these pieces as of this date.

Another use for these pieces is to simply sit on your desk or dresser or night stand and let the image transport you to a pleasant thought of memory. I think back through the history of art and how images have been used to inspire thoughts, feelings, emotions, and more throughout the ages. This variation is simply a more intimate source of inspiration. The idea of hold art in your hand makes you take more ownership of the piece. It brings you closer to it. If you want a message, it would be one of trying to get the viewer to identify with their emotions and subconscious because her work operates on an emotional level. Ada's bag that was created simply brings the utility and intimacy of the art object closer to home because the bag makes it more functional and personal. I really enjoy this series a lot and I look forward to sharing it more with everyone.

Stay tuned for more work to be posted!

Coos Bay, Oregon - the gallery that we show in!

COOS BAY, OREGON - GALLERY NOW CARRYING BROWN FAMILY ART WORK!

Well, we made our trip to Oregon to deliver our art work. It has been an extremely fast trip. The drive   from Chico was 7 hours each way. The gallery has 192 pieces of inventory for our art. The piece shown here is one of the pieces of inventory at The Fellowship (at 217 South Broadway, Coos Bay, OR). Don Carter has  a huge space for his new bookstore/gallery/cofffee shop. He is located on the main drag, which is  Broadway (and  also doubles as Highway 101). This gallery has a huge selection of books, art of all kinds, and a coffee shop soon to come. If anyone is familiar with Barnes and Noble and  the ambience they try to achieve with their set-up, then this would  be a good comparison. This is a gallery/shop that is trying to get its customers to come in, look around hangout, read, and stay awhile. I feel The  Fellowhip is well on its way to achieving enormous  potential. I may be slightly partial since my art and my family's art is set-up there, I believe I am selective enough that I am picking a qquality place that will give great customer service to the people. Our art is about reaching  the community. I believe that this place will reach the people because it is geared to reach the people. As with any place, we want to be able to reach the local community, as well as the tourists that visit there  as well.

As I type this blog I am in a moving  car going back to Chico, CA. What I can type here is  limited, but  I will give a full description and account of our experience once we reach  home. There are many   things to share and tell. Coos Bay has a strong resemblance to  another coastal artist community in California - Fort Bragg, CA. Fort Bragg, CA is a favorite vacation spot for my family and me. So,  we are even more pleased with  our opportunity to work with Don and his wife in opening this new gallery since it is like a place we love to visit and spend time.

With some perseverance, an art gallery and its artists can help resound as a voice in the community, as well as be part of that community. It is my personal goal to try to understand what the community and tourists would like to see and what ressonates  with them as we move forward at The Fellowship. Don tries hard to work with his artists, and I think artists should try to work wiith their gallery as long as they are able to stay within their own style.

Of course, this brings to mind the controversial conversation about the meaning and message of art. Honestly, is their such a thing as "high art" and "low art"? Do we really have to get into that rotating  discussion about what  the message is about? Look, I read the art critics in the art journals. I look to see what is being displayed in the major art centers around the US. I realize if you show  in NYC or LA at some major gallery, you can garner a lot of recognition. However, I do not need a high priced art afficionado's personal approval to validate my art. I would value their feedback the same as a customer who pays $10 to get one of the pictures in my Trading Card Series. Any good artist will combine general feedback with their method of  operation and creating work in order to move forward and improve. For  myself and  my family, we are a family of artists who have been doing this for generations. We learn from each other and shape our work  and  message based on how we work together and respond to our environment and opportunities. Art is about connecting with your audience. We all choose our own genre of influence and that is how it should be. This is a chance for us to connect with the people and tourists of the Coos Bay area of Oregon. It is a chance for us to share our point of view and art with them. To me, that is what makes art worthwhile, just sharing the vision and message of each artist.

Next Sunday, I will be interviewing Don Carter for my blog. He and I will have a discussion about his gallery, the community of Coos Bay, and and what it looks like to bring art to a community and make a business thrive. I hope to also capture his unique point of view on what he is trying to create for both community and artists.

Stay tuned.