NYC Pretzel Vendor

Pretzel Vendor on 5th  6x9"  Acrylic SOLD

An Affirmation for the Perfectionist

"Brooklyn Biker" 12x18" Acrylic

Being born under the Virgo sign often feels like a curse. We are known planners and perfectionists. It can feel very awkward to dive into a painting, headfirst, with zero prep work or plan. But thats when unpredictable things can happen because there is no adherence to any preconceived vision of how the piece is going to turn out. Scary, but freeing. About midway throughout this piece I pulled out some gels, stencils, some high flow paints, a toothbrush for spattering and dripping. It was fun. The flip side of freewheeling experimentation is being OK with the outcome - regardless of the outcome. Thats when i have to remember that great saying, "its about the journey, not the destination." ... a tough one for virgos :-)

Old news...New news

Lemons  8x8"  Acrylic (SOLD)

In this day and age of so many social outlets, blogging seems to have taken a back seat. Plus I have been travel/teaching a lot lately. Somewhere along the line Facebook edged to the front, and I now post new paintings on my FB art page because its faster and easier.  If you want to stay in touch, please friend me (FB) - Patti Mollica Art.   I created a new website with much better organization. http://www.pattimollica.com

Interested in upcoming events including a 9 day workshop in Venice Italy in June 2017? Here are the details.

Door County, WI is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. Its a lovely peninsula that juts out into Lake Superior. I had the pleasure of teaching a 4 day workshop there in July, and enjoyed every minute of it. The homes and gardens and marinas - to die for! The paintings were some of my demos during that time.

"Rye Corner"  12x12"  Acrylic (SOLD)

Door County - there are so many beautiful barns and pastures!

Route 42, WI  12x16"  Acrylic

Perseverance

"Times Square Messenger"  24x24" Acrylic

The all-time worst piece of advice I ever got from a teacher was that at all stages of the painting it must look good. That crazy idea stuck with me for years and so many paintings were trashed before they ever had a chance to develop.  There are ugly stages - especially the start (see below). I'm glad I eventually learned to persevere thru "the uglies" or I'd have given up on art years ago. That being said there are those paintings that never quite graduate out of the ugly stage. But everytime I wrestle with one of those stubborn pieces I learn something new. And if theres one thing in life I'm completely sure of, theres always more to learn!

This morning I saw a facebook video by a writer who described the struggles of growing into the artist you aspire to be. I shared it on my facebook page, Patti MollicaArt.  It's for real.

Here's the video.   Every artist struggles, it's how we grow. 

Abstracting City Shapes

"Looking South on Tenth Ave."  12x12", Acrylic  Click for info

Sometimes I like to paint the same image more than once, and push it in different ways. This is the same intersection as "Gallery District NYC", posted a few days ago, but much more abstracted. Again, I had to create people to give interest to the focal point, but this time I left in the van and delivery truck.  I think they work in this version because they help lead your eye to the focal point. Plus I think they add some needed diagonal direction to balance out the strong vertical and horozontal shapes.

Chelsea Watertowers

Chelsea Watertower  13.5x13.5  Acrylic  (SOLD)

I'm a pretty bad photographer, which sometimes I think is a blessing in disguise. It forces me to use my imagination a lot, and design my paintings, rather than rely on what is actually there, since often I can't see what's there.  I guess it is the "make lemonade from lemons" approach.
I worked on this piece at the same time as it's sister piece (below) - I wanted them to work together, as a series. Maybe I will paint another one so that there are 3 in the series - or 4... I have a lot of bad photos to choose from!

Gallery District, NYC

"Gallery District, NYC"  Acrylic  20x20"  More Info

This is an intersection at 25th and Tenth Ave. From where I was standing when I took the photo, there was a delivery truck blocking the corner. I took the photo because I liked the light cascading across the street. But by the time I got halfway into the painting, I realized I didn't have a very strong focal point so I decided to remove the truck and put people in its place.  I had no reference for people in the scene, so I had to make them up. I really don't like doing figures without reference, altho it is a great exercise... but not my idea of fun. I think they turned out well considering I had to imagine their movement and the light /shadow effect. Lesson learned (again) - think before you paint, Pat!

On another note, a friend of mine - Francesco Fontana, a very talented artist from Italy, is teaching a workshop in June - July 2016 in Giverny - by Monet's Lily Pond! I hear there are only a couple of spots left.  If you are interested in more details... click here.

Cupcakes and Candies

"Sweet Stuff"  12x12" Acrylic

Practicing some quick techniques on sweet delectables for my upcoming workshop this weekend in Long Island, NY, called "How to Paint Fast, Loose and Bold." Just in time for Valentines Day! Come join us if you can...

http://theartguild.org/fast-loose-bold-painting-workshop-wpatti-mollica-feb-13-14-2016 

East Side NYC View

East Side View of Manhattan, 60x60"  Acrylic  SOLD

 This is a commission project I was hired for recently, from a city couple who saw one of my paintings on a magazine cover, and wanted their Manhattan East side view painted for display in their Florida apartment. They gave me the exact size to paint  it 60x60", a square, altho the entire view was completely horozontal (see below)The first thing I had  to do was figure out how to squish and stretch and cut and do whatever, to turn the format into a square. Closeups are attached too. It is signed, sealed and headed for sunny florida!

Work in progress

 I just fished this painting out of a pile of old flops that I have been storing forever, knowing that there are problems I have to deal with someday - or just trash it. I had painted a largish figure on the left  walking towards me, and a smaller figure crossing the street. I didn't like either of them for a number of reasons. So... time to paint over them and wrestle with 'now what do i do'. 

The first obvious idea was to cut the panel down to 18x24 now that both focal points are gone.  But panels are so hard to cut and... jeez, what a cop out!  So I stared at it and thought - ah - a biker! I put one in and now the piece is feeling like it has some potential. The reference looks like it was from 19th street and 6th ave - where the old Bed Bath and Beyond was - or still is? Other than the biker, the city reference is long gone, so I will just keep staring at it, keep wondering 'what do i do now" , try out some ideas, and hope for the best!

Look for the peppers...in art stores near you!

"Pepper Party"  8x10, Acrylic  $295  Click for Info

My recently posted pepper painting was commissioned by Strathmore Paper Company, for the front cover of their new product, black canvas paper pads, which you can find in retail art stores. I could not reveal that information until they officially introduced the product on their website.  Nor could I offer the painting for sale because they needed the actual artwork to photograph. It arrived back today, and is available for any would-be collectors.

BTW If you've never worked on a black surface, try it, you'll like it. The colors really pop!
Click here to read more about Strathmore 300 Series Black Canvas Paper.

Chelsea Building, New York City

"Chelsea Fire Escapes"  Acrylic 14x14"  Click for Info

Lately I am working with old paintings that were started but never finished. In this case I barely got the painting going when apparently life got in the way and it got shuffled to some uncommon place, not to be seen for years. Who knows what reference I was using, a sketch? a photo? whatever, it's gone. It can be freeing to work out of my head when no reference is available, and give myself permission to make fresh decisions about how to make the piece work. I decided to work in a triad color scheme - tried and true red, yellow and blue.

Times Square Intersection

"Comings and Goings"  10x10"  Acrylic  SOLD

I've painted this image many times, it's from a photo I took at a Times Square intersection. I like to experiment and use the same reference to take paintings to a new place, try out new ideas. Here's a new place...

Crosswalk at Franklin Street, NYC

"Crosswalk" Acrylic  10x10"  Click for Info

"Crosswalk" Acrylic  10x10"  Click for Info

Way back in August of '2000, I sat at Franklin Street in Tribeca, sketching the view, thinking I might do a painting of it. I never did, but recently ran across the photo and sketches (below). I decided to give it a try, and to my surprise the painting took on a colorful life of its own.

 

23rd Street Watertowers, NYC

"23rd Street Watertowers" Mixed Media 15x15" SOLD

33rd Street Watertowers, NYC

"33rd Street Watertowers"  Acrylic  15x15"  SOLD

Union Square, NYC Sketch

"Union Square"  Mixed Media  16x20"  $350  Click to Buy

I have so many sketches - mostly figures, lots of cityscapes, layover at the airport sketches, etc.  It can be interesting use them as starting point for a painting.
This sketch/painting was from Union Square, NYC, just across from the subway station on Broadway, looking West. I sat on the sidewalk curb and sketched using vine charcoal on an 18x24 pad. The buildings are mostly red brick but the atmosphere was much more colorful, louder, and everything was so in my face -- busses, people, signage etc. I didn't want to work from a photo - that wouldn't have captured the excitement. The zany energy was the real subject here!

Playing with Color Notes

"Jazzy Nude" Acrylic on paper

In early December I went to Florida to attend a 5 day conference sponsored by Golden Paints. The event included presentations by my colleagues on topics such as internet marketing, how to plan travel workshops, intuitive painting techniques, mixed media and collage, and much more. I learned so much my head is exploding.

One of my favorite workshops had us start out in an abstract, spontaneous manner, using a variety of mark making dry and wet materials, and gradually rein in the painting. Here is one of my paintings using that technique. The reference I used was a traditional figure painting I did back in the '90s, painted very realistically. I started out with a quick sketch and explored from there. It's an interesting approach that lends itself to abstraction, intuition and imagination ... a very enjoyable process!

Pepper Fiesta

"Pepper Fiesta" Acrylic, 10x10"

I found the feather duster and have officially dusted off my poor, neglected blog in the hopes that I can start posting again. Life has been busy with traveling workshops, tradeshows and more. My latest adventure was Art Basel, where I showed at the Projects Gallery in Miami, while also attending a 5 day Golden Paints Conference where I learned exciting new painting processes and techniques. Upon return, I had several "past due" deadlines waiting for me, including an illustration for the front cover of a new art product that will be sold in stores soon. My client requested that this new product info stay confidential until it is formally announced. Till then, keep an eye out for this painting, in an art store near you!