Artnotes: Move over Mona

 

Welcome to our House   Laurie Fox Pessemier  acrylic/canvas   12 x 12"    30 x 30 cm   395.00 I was in a total funk this week, with mundane earthly tasks.  The detritus we carry around is ever so heavy and boring.  So, on Friday afternoon, despite high winds and threatening weather, we went for a dip in the Ganges.   We were the only ones – the current was enough to pull a “floater” like myself over the falls.  Luckily, Blair, the “sinker”, guided me to a safer perch.   I notice that Blair’s swimming has become stronger, and mine, while I have little danger of drowning (I can float for hours) has become weaker.  I could never beat my nephews, like I once did, in a race around the buoys today.

Flies    Laurie Fox Pessemier   Acrylic/canvas (not stretched, but frameable) range in size from 8 x 14" (20 x 35cm) to 8 x 9.5" (24 x 20cm)  100 each or best offer What really catapulted me into happiness on Friday was the story about how the order for 18,000 waters at Taco Bell flummoxed AI.   I can picture the fizzle and smoke coming out of the drive thru order box.    I think we should all think of something we can do to thwart AI.   It could be like when Mao had everyone catch at least 10 flies a day to eliminate China’s fly problem (this was part of his less humorous 4 pest elimination program:  flies, mosquitoes, rats and sparrows In fact, the elimination of sparrows created the world’s deadliest environmental disaster (famine) because there was nothing to eat the insects who were chomping on the grain) Later the sparrows were replaced with killing cockroaches). Cesare enjoying Lunch    Blair Pessemier  acrylic/canvas  3 x 5"   7.6  x 10cm   75.00     But back to this week:  neither of us painted much, so this is a short note.  I do have giant ideas for the future: for one, I am thinking of offering a $25.00 painting evaluation service – you send me and Blair a photo of your painting (with any text input – what were you trying to do?) and we’ll send you back our best advice on what might improve it (or just say move over, Mona Lisa, this one is the winner!) Mona B Lisa   Blair Pessemier  acrylic/canvas   12 x 12"    30 x 30 cm   395.00 HOUSEKEEPING:  We make art to order, including portraits by Blair Pessemier.    Follow us on Instagram @lauriepessemier See all of our painting at https://paintfox.com Most of our work is available as reproductions, custom sized and framed.   sign up for Artnotes, our weekly art missive, by contacting me at lfpessemier@gmail.com or https://mailchi.mp/341f508cecf8/artnotes INVITING All Artists to present their Work:   Paint, Literature, Crafts, Food.... Pessemier's Sunday Salon Weekly on Sunday  No Reservation Necessary   How it works: Bring a piece of your ART: that could be visual, like painting or printmaking; or literary, as in poetry or prose; or crafts, like metalwork or knitting; or food, or music.  Something you made, or feel particularly inspired by.  You have about 5 minutes to present, and we'll ooh, ahh, or answer questions you have.  You can also come and see how we work before diving in.  Just show up on Zoom at a minute or two before the hour.    No selling, no networking until after everyone has presented.  No politics, no sales pitches, please. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88093708954?pwd=M04zNHB4dFZkREp3bThweUd1YnVDZz09 Meeting ID: 880 9370 8954 Passcode: 886402 Rome 8PM; NY 2 PM; LosAngeles 11AM

Artnotes: Jam

 

Last Swim  Laurie Fox Pessemier  acrylic/canvas   12 x 12"    30 x 30 cm   395.00

The weather finally “broke” this week:  one day swimming, the next day making jam over the hot stove.   We managed to glean a bunch of figs from our tree, stole rosemary from the neighbor’s yard and made a delicious concoction.  We also bought peaches for just one Euro a kilo (2.2 pounds), and turned them into jam as well. The Fish Bowl with Salvador Dali  Blair Pessemier   Acrylic/canvas  8 x 20" 20 x 50cm 390.00 We had to call in intervention this week for the unicorn traipsing around in our attic.   I felt lucky to get the figs before, like the sloes and apples, were completely gone.   Giorgio was able to get into the attic and block off two really large entry holes.  Animal identification is still a question. Matisse's Goldfish    Blair Pessemier   Acrylic/canvas  8 x 20" 20 x 50cm 390.00 It continued to be a homely week, with trips to doctors and such.  Berlino had another leg injury which we have managed, so far, to treat ourselves.  Blair visited our new doctor, in Vignola.   The doctor was outside the office, using the leaf blower, when we arrived (alas, the chestnut trees are casting off leaves).   This seemed somehow endearing, that he wasn’t just sitting at his desk, playing with his stethoscope and turning his headlight on and off. Part of his appeal is he doesn’t wear a white coat.   We went in (we were early) and the waiting room, shared by the other doctors, was nearly full of patients who seemed stiff and unmoving, like a setup to look busy (no one was summoned while we were there). One fellow resembled a ticket taker on a train, with a sharp, brimmed hat, double breasted jacket and gnarly fingers.  We both wanted to take a picture, but thought it impolite. Rococo   large image on top/colored background  24 x 17"  (60 x 43cm)   275.00 smaller images  8.5 x 11"  (21 x 29cm)  90 each Laurie Fox Pessemier   the trio 425.00  On one of our doctors trips, we went on to visit an art show.  I am a firm believer, that while doing the mundane, one needs a treat.   The exhibit was called Paradise Lost, by artists David Allen Burns and Austin Young, who have an organization known as “Fallen Fruit".  They started out in California, USA, encouraging the harvesting of fruit from public trees and abandoned lots:  along with the community, they made jam with the spoils.  This exhibition is “A paradise of lost biodiversity, a lush environment with images of flowers, plants, butterflies, birds, and animals of all kinds and species.”  It was a feast for the eyes.   Check out:   https://www.instagram.com/reel/DIv55X4IROK/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link 15(100%)       We bought the accompanying Tarot cards, which seemed a better souvenir than postcards.  Blair and I both like playing cards.   A friend posted beautiful photographs of mushrooms this week onto Instagram, that inspired me to paint them myself.  sign up for Artnotes, our weekly art missive, by contacting me at lfpessemier@gmail.com or  https://mailchi.mp/341f508cecf8/artnotes 0(0%) INVITING All Artists to present their Work:   Paint, Literature, Crafts, Food.... Pessemier's Sunday Salon Weekly on Sunday  No Reservation Necessary   How it works: Bring a piece of your ART: that could be visual, like painting or printmaking; or literary, as in poetry or prose; or crafts, like metalwork or knitting; or food, or music.  Something you made, or feel particularly inspired by.  You have about 5 minutes to present, and we'll ooh, ahh, or answer questions you have.  You can also come and see how we work before diving in.  Just show up on Zoom at a minute or two before the hour.    No selling, no networking until after everyone has presented.  No politics, no sales pitches, please. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88093708954?pwd=M04zNHB4dFZkREp3bThweUd1YnVDZz09 0(0%) Meeting ID: 880 9370 8954 Passcode: 886402 Rome 8PM; NY 2 PM; LosAngeles 11AM

Artnotes: The Backstroke

At the Panaro   Blair Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  12 x 20"  30 x 50cm  490.00 Maybe the ONLY good thing about sweltering hot weather is SWIMMING.    Almost every afternoon this past week Blair and I have gone swimming in the Panaro River  (aka the Ganges) with all the people of the world.  On Sunday, there were Sikhs (yes, the turban), Pakistani  women in saris (fully dressed, carrying dress shoes through the water), Egyptian divers, big Russian ladies, two  robust women of uncertain heritage wearing bras (clearly not bikini tops) over shorts, an  Arab mother, in a burkini, trying to teach her son to dive…There were young black men with skinny legs and sinewy bodies that could carry them 100 miles across the desert (and did); girls with perfect brown bottoms in cutaway teensy bright bikinis.  Maybe, just maybe, THIS is heaven.  Oh, yeah, I was the blue-hair in the polka dot one piece bathing suit. At the Beach  Laurie Pessemier   Acrylic/vintage paper 12 x 8.5  30 x  21cm   95.00 A friend used to tell me, “Laurie, I think when we die we go to a big hot tub of energy and it’s beautiful.”  I think this is the hot tub.   The water is the perfect temperature for me, I would say about 75 degrees Fahrenheit (24c).    We also go to the Fountain of Youth, which is less desirable than it used to be (shallower) at about 65 (18c) degrees, my submersion rarely exceeds 5 minutes.   The Fountain of Youth, is in fact, prettier, in the woods, but there are rarely any other swimmers.  Yesterday it was 107 (41c) at the river, and if that continues, we’ll be at the  Fountain of Youth more often.   Berlino will not go in the water at either location, because he’s a field dog. Field Dog (Berlino)  Laurie Pessemier  acrylic/vintage paper   12 x 8.5"    30 x 21cm   95.00

There are swimming pools in the area, but unless they are cooled, I can’t imagine swimming there.   Once we had an interior design job in Palm Springs California and the water in that pool was 92 degrees (33c) – it was disgusting.    The best water I ever swam in was the ocean off the island of Malta – it was 76 degrees (25c) and kind of “effervescent”.   I’ve never liked pools as much as “wild” swimming, a term that casts fear in the heart of any Italian.    The Panaro and the Fountain are full of “shiners” – little tiny fish:  a sign of healthy water.  Both are moving bodies of water -- there is a big waterfall just beyond where we swim in the Panaro.   It gives the impressing of an infinity pool.  I always mean to paint, but am so taken by the scene I can’t stop to put it all on paper. Toulouse Lautrec Blair Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  14 x 10.5 "    .35 x 27cm    425.00 Honestly, the heat is beyond the pale right now, with little relief in sight.  This has gotten to be a usual summer phenomenon, and the only thing that will save us is shorter days ( September).  As it is, Berlino and I are walking right after sunrise, just after 6:30.  There are animals galore out there:  I saw a martin this week, and roe deer are a daily occurrence.  I saw a dormouse in the tree outside my bedroom window, which made me consider closing it.  No, too hot. Apples out the Window   Laurie Fox Pessemier  Acrylic/canvas  12 x 16 "    .30 x 40 cm    425.00 We’ll be complaining about winter before you know it, but for now, we’ll do the backstroke. Housekeeping:    All works on Paper also available as prints. Although I have taken down my Pessemier Workshops website, we are still painting with others, all supplies included, throughout Europe. sign up for Artnotes, our weekly art missive, by contacting me at lfpessemier@gmail.com or https://mailchi.mp/341f508cecf8/artnotes INVITING All Artists to present their Work:   Paint, Literature, Crafts, Food.... Pessemier's Sunday Salon Weekly on Sunday  No Reservation Necessary   How it works: Bring a piece of your ART: that could be visual, like painting or printmaking; or literary, as in poetry or prose; or crafts, like metalwork or knitting; or food, or music.  Something you made, or feel particularly inspired by.  You have about 5 minutes to present, and we'll ooh, ahh, or answer questions you have.  You can also come and see how we work before diving in.  Just show up on Zoom at a minute or two before the hour.    No selling, no networking until after everyone has presented.  No politics, no sales pitches, please. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88093708954?pwd=M04zNHB4dFZkREp3bThweUd1YnVDZz09 Meeting ID: 880 9370 8954 Passcode: 886402 Rome 8PM; NY 2 PM; LosAngeles 11AM

Artnotes: A Beautiful Life

 

Cow in the Field   Blair Pessemier  acrylic/canvas   12 x 16"    30 x 40 cm   395.00

We went to the Rock-n-Beer festival in Rocca Malatina last weekend.   We were seated at a table with an “English” family who turned out were from Spain and didn’t speak a word of English or Italian.   Two young ladies joined us shortly afterward – they were from a neighboring town, so this was clearly the “foreigners” table (in fact there were a huge number of partiers – a crowd of 500+ in our town of just 500).  The two women were Italians maybe 25 years old from Savignano sul Panaro.  One was getting her masters degree in cinema marketing – she loved Hollywood movies and had the verve and blond hair of Marilyn Monroe.  Her friend was likewise charming, but it’s hard to hold a candle to Marilyn.   We have been trying to go out every day and talk to two people about our artwork, and that day was a slam dunk.  Other days are more challenging, but if we can just keep it up a little, we’ll be ok. Chairs and Green Table  Laurie Pessemier   Acrylic/canvas  12 x 12"  30 x 30 390.00 Blair has been working on a 90 second presentation of his project, Asea No Longer, hoping to receive a substantial grant to realize its construction.   I attached it to this email.  I am compiling all my materials about our trip to Germany – I am not certain anyone cares about the art, the ideas, the history, but I am looking for places to publish my findings.   Meanwhile, we are redecorating our gallery weekly to reflect our Artnotes – I am hoping we will be discovered, like the artist in “The Trouble with Harry”. See Blair's 90 second video of Asea No Longer As we left the beerfest, a carful of revelers noticed our choice parking place – a man burst from the passenger door, waving his arms and shouting.  He wanted our space – it was terrifically amusing after a month in an understated part of the world.  There are times I really love Italy.   Flowers (8.5 x 11)    Laurie Fox Pessemier   120 each 200 pair 4 for 325 A crazy man with a giant mower infiltrated our adjoining property this week.   It was a test of my Italian under duress, and I am not sure it qualified as talking to one of the two people a day.  He had a mower one sees at the roadside, chopping small trees with blades suspended at the end of a folding arm.    Berlino was performing his 6 foot high jumps directly beneath it, the terrible man with machine egging him on.  I ran out there screaming and yelling at the top of my lungs in Italian to stop it and get away from our property.  He retorted in kind, but only after he drove all the small burrowing animals into our yard, a darling small mouse nearly running over the top of my bare foot.   I try to give all the birds, animals and insects a small sanctuary on our acre – I love them all. Rose of Sharon   Laurie Fox Pessemier  Acrylic/newspaper  16 x 10.5 "    .40 x 27cm    390.00 Today I went into the back yard to rescue the plants which hadn’t been hacked by crazy Guido of the industrial mower.   I found a lovely, spindly clementis vitalba (old man’s beard), growing over my sloe tree (the badger ate every last sloe while we were away).   I put it in a vase, and made a permanent record of its short beautiful life. sign up for Artnotes, our weekly art missive, by contacting me at lfpessemier@gmail.com or https://mailchi.mp/341f508cecf8/artnotes INVITING All Artists to present their Work:   Paint, Literature, Crafts, Food.... Pessemier's Sunday Salon Weekly on Sunday  No Reservation Necessary   How it works: Bring a piece of your ART: that could be visual, like painting or printmaking; or literary, as in poetry or prose; or crafts, like metalwork or knitting; or food, or music.  Something you made, or feel particularly inspired by.  You have about 5 minutes to present, and we'll ooh, ahh, or answer questions you have.  You can also come and see how we work before diving in.  Just show up on Zoom at a minute or two before the hour.    No selling, no networking until after everyone has presented.  No politics, no sales pitches, please. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88093708954?pwd=M04zNHB4dFZkREp3bThweUd1YnVDZz09 Meeting ID: 880 9370 8954 Passcode: 886402 Rome 8PM; NY 2 PM; LosAngeles 11AM