New Art for Esther Brown

I am excited to say that there is a lot of new work being generated by the members of my family. My mother, Esther Brown, is leading the way with volumes of new work. This is one of the new pieces. I will be posting new images to her gallery soon, but while we wait for all the images to be processed, I wanted to post this one and talk a little bit about what we are doing. We have a show in May coming up where we will be debuting our new work. Dozens of new pieces will be on display and, with some planning, we will be able to to continue to show this new work over the summer. 

For her part, Esther is working in many new mediums and trying some new styles. These new pieces are very exciting and really showcase some great color and movement within the pieces. Stay tuned here to see what is coming. Also, we will be doing reproductions of certain pieces, so if something gets sold, there will still be some reproductions of people find something they like, but it has been sold. 

For Gina and myself, we are digging deeper into photography. We have some great images and I will continue to blog about those, as well as my paintings and drawings. I recently blogged a photo that we were working on, one of a wave. If you happened to catch that, that is one of our upcoming themes. It is always exciting to dig into new mediums because it brings new ideas. 

Please stay tuned for the expansion of our galleries, as well as additional artist interviews! There are lots of exciting things coming to the blog here! Thanks for reading!!

-Jesse

Upcoming Series from Gina and Myself

Gina and I have been working together on photography for awhile, but we did not really combine our skills until now. The above picture is a small sample of what is to come from us in May, when we have the chance to present our work again. Photography is a new medium for me. Of course, in today's world, with so many camera phones boasting high quality image capability, an argument could be made that anyone has the ability to be a photographer. There are so things to photography, however, that set some photographers apart from others. There is the ability to line up shots, the ability to edit after the photo, knowing your camera and all of what it can do, and the list goes on. However, there are a lot of just general art skills that are useful as well. Knowledge of light and dark patterns in a picture, as well as knowledge of composition and elements of design in two dimensional images, helps in understanding what makes a good photo. I would say that there are two categories that you look for when taking photos. How well do you know your artistic elements and how well do you know your technical elements. 

For us, we want to create images that are going to be pleasing to us, pleasing to people who view them, and images that have some sort of a story as they are viewed individually and in series. I am quite excited because we have about 4-5 series of photos that, when viewed together, will be very powerful and draw people in, I hope. 

We often go to the Fort Bragg and Mendocino area of California to take short vacations. It is here that we often get good wave pictures. We try to scout out good areas that have good views of the surf and incoming waves. Trying to track waves takes some time and practice. It also helps calm the nerves, too, which is a nice bonus in creating art like this. It is quite peaceful out there. However, when looking at the waves, it may not always be peaceful, but more powerful. Breaking waves have this forceful motion about them, depending on how they are captured in a photo. 

We will be setting up galleries soon here to showcase all of our new work. Please stay tuned and share with others if you get the chance. Thanks for stopping by!!

-Jesse

Water and Stone: A Continuing Series

It is always kind of a challenge to think critically on your art work when you work full time an entirely different job. I came up with this series, "Water an Stone," a few years ago. I have slowly been adding to it. This spring I will be adding to it and displaying some of it, which I am quite excited about. I have added to the series since I last posted this photo. 

What drew me to this series was the idea of working with opposites. As an undergraduate, I explored the idea of the simultaneous coexistence of opposites. I first came across this idea when I had the chance to work with one of my mentors, Marion Epting. I also drew up some of my experience in martial arts. The idea of opposites in present in many forms in eastern thought and philosophy, but it can be found in the motion of American Kenpo Karate as well. 

The material of water and stone are opposites alone, but the myriad of ways to consider their uses and properties just adds to the exploration of how two simple materials can influence our world. Water is soft and flowing. It can allow things that are buoyant to float within it. Stone is hard and brittle, and things rest on it, not within it. They often go together, creating amazing combinations in nature and human made structures. There are so many ways to look at water and stone that it is possible to have series within this series. 

The photo above shows the nature of water flowing and how it appears in conjunction with a human made structure. The stone sits beneath it, abstracted by the bending of rays of light. Water and stone is often used as an attraction to draw people near, as is the case in the abstract representation of a fountain. Water and stone combine to make a soothing sound that moves people to sit in contemplation and/or frolic in happiness. 

Many of the images that will be coming soon are close ups of how water and/or stone combine to move a person in their various emotions. I look forward to sharing more of this series soon and I hope you, the viewer, will enjoy them also. Please stay tuned to my blog for upcoming pieces and they should be added to my gallery soon. Right now, there are a few pieces that sit in the gallery here that represent the beginning of the "Water and Stone" series. 

-Jesse Brown

New Art for Esther Brown

Most of these works have been just recently created. Many of them were showing at Aonami in Chico, CA. Brown Art Works is showing this spring. There is a big show that we are planning. Details of it will be posted soon, so stay tuned. These works are the beginning efforts to prepare for that coming show. We are also in the process of preparing to launch a new website and Facebook page. If all goes as planned, we will launch a store on our new website where you can buy and order work without having to go to one of our shows or see us in person. Dimensions, materials, and prices will be posted here soon. Until then, enjoy the art and write me with any  questions you may have. Remember, art is for everyone!!

-Jesse

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 8, 2014

AT 12 PM

IS AN OPENING AT AONAMI

FOR 

ESTHER BROWN 

1008 West Sacramento Ave.,

Chico, CA

BE THERE IF YOU CAN!

All new original works!

Water and Stone: Additional Thoughts

Water and Stone is a continuing Series for me. I am going to be publishing more of these works into my gallery as we move forward. I have found that this blog is an ongoing and evolutionary work that seems to give me no rest! But, isn't the way of art to constantly create and engage both the artist and the audience? I find that with this blog I am constantly challenging myself to develop it more so there is more to share with people and have it create more of a dialogue for when viewers come to visit. I have been pleased with its progress this summer. 

One of the things that fascinates me with this series is the idea of the simultaneous coexistence of opposites. Marion Epting, my professor in college and a very accomplished printmaker, pointed me in this direction about 20 years ago and I do not tire of the possibilities of exploring art through this perspective. If you think about it, water and stone are opposites. Water is flowing and moving constantly. It can separate and reunite in form, or take its own course. Stone is an immovable object that takes centuries, if not more, to wear down. We look at stone monuments, both natural and human-made, and often stand in awe of what we see. We are dwarfed by the Grand Canyon and Mt. Rushmore, as well as the cliffs that rise above the ocean. Yet when we look at water, we often think more about how peaceful and inviting it is for us. 

The image above is one of water flowing over a fountain in Jack London Square in Oakland, CA. Notice how it separates into droplets and sprinkles over the surface of the water that pools at the bottom. The versatility of the form of water is fascinating. I particularly like the contrast it has, in form and color, with the fountain that it is flowing over. 

While these photos were not necessarily taken these year during the year of the drought, it seems to force us to contemplate not only the beauty of water, but its importance in light of its scarcity in the time of drought here in California. For more photos of my Water and Stone Series, go to my gallery listed at the top with the other pages of this blog.

If you want to get any art, email me at brownartworks@gmail.com or leave me a message here and I will get back to you. For August 2014, if someone buys art, they can inquire about the possibilities of free matting for any piece bought this month.

Thanks for visiting and reading!

Jesse

New Art for Esther Brown

This is an example of Esther's new work. It will be added to her gallery soon. I am excited about all the new work that is being produced by all of us in the family. Our shows will be exciting to share with all our friends and people who come to see them. Official invitations will be going out soon for the shows, so please be sure to watch here for that. Although, I will be contacting many people personally in some form to make sure they are aware. :-) 

This particular piece is 7"x10", in color pens, and there is no title. Obviously it was completed in 2014 since it is just a new work for her. 

One of the fascinating things I find with these particular pens my mother has been using is how they can look so much like paint sometimes. We often talked about this concept in school, how drawing and painting often crossed over into the other. You can have a painterly style in drawing and also have paintings look like drawings. I think these are more defined by the actions of the artist than the materials. If you think about it, you can draw with any type of tool that makes a line. At the same time, you can paint an image on a variety of surfaces with any number of drawing tools if you use the right motion and technique. Where do they stop and begin? I do not think there are such clear-cut barriers between the disciplines as we might think. 

If anyone is interested in this piece, just leave me a message or email me at brownartworks@gmail.com - I can arrange for it to be prepared and shipped. We just sold one of her other new ones that was just posted to her gallery. We really appreciate all the support we have been receiving and we will make sure to do whatever we can to answer any questions or get you what you are interested in. 

As an additional note, I will be making hand-made frames soon. If anyone is interested in that, let me know. I already do matting for all of the work that is on paper. One of the reasons I do this is because it costs so much as an artist to get these done by other people. In my opinion, the entire industry of framing and matting really over charges us. It is easy to do this for a fraction of the cost of what is normally a "standard price." If you do want anything from me, in terms of art, I always ask if you are interested in having me frame it. If you live internationally, I only do matting normally because of the problems with shipping something so fragile as a frame overseas. We do have work going overseas, though. So, if you do live in another country, do not be afraid to ask us to get something just because you live outside the US. Email me and we will talk. 

Have a great day!!
#artforeveryone
#brownartworks