Painted pots and happy thoughts

The fourth quarter is my busiest time of the year in my handprinted small biz. I tried to carve out some time to just sit and play and that playtime resulted in these creations that I am offering for sale at The Ragged Edge Art Bar and Gallery located in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed creating these fun pieces.

Memorizing the Ordinary

Over the years I've painted many illustrations of winter scenes for publications and ad agency work. Here are a couple of tearsheets from a project for Milwaukee Magazine.

A bonus of creating art for a living is it makes you look for the beauty all around us. Every day is a chance to visually memorize the wonder in the "ordinary" slices of life. And then later these slices appear in your work.

While posting this I just glanced out my studio window to my neighbor's beautiful dark blue siding. It looks nice in the spring, summer and fall--- but YOWSA, does it ever shine when snow is glazing all the trees around it. That's one of the "slices of ordinary" I am visually memorizing today.

Happy Tuesday, friend.

Citrus Garden

"Citrus Garden"

11 x 14

{Mixed Media Screenprint, gouache, markers on paper}

Full of Vitamin C on a blustery cold day!

Our Rights

Hello! Long time no post. Here’s a college I made one recent Sunday morning.

“Our Rights”

Mixed media collage with screenprints, gouache painting and markers

Make Me Laugh

Updated: SOLD!

Of course they do.

My contribution to the show

"Make Me Laugh" at @leftbankshopandgallery in McGregor, Iowa.

Sep through Oct

Framed and available to bring home for a daily dose of good humor.

Where would you place this sassy feline? Office? Bathroom?

Happy #caturday, friend.

#katebrennanhall #illustration #illustrator #screenprinted #printmaker #handprinted #handlettering #funnycats #themeoftheyear #originalart #iowaartists #shopsmall #11x14 #worksonpaper #gouache #pink

May 2022 Floral

Have I mentioned how much I love using my scraps from screenprinting and color mixing with gouache? So satisfying.

You're Invited

Hey friends!

The Ragged Edge Art Bar and Gallery is featuring my work in their beautiful gallery space next month.

More details to come but I just wanted to give a quick shout out to save-the-date.

The Edge serves delicious artisanal beverages with or without alcohol and they also have a lovely patio space to sit and sip on beautiful summer days in Iowa.

Invitation

“Invitation” by Mary Oliver

Oh do you have time

to linger

for just a little while

out of your busy

and very important day

for the goldfinches

that have gathered

in a field of thistles

for a musical battle,

to see who can sing

the highest note,

or the lowest,

or the most expressive of mirth,

or the most tender?

Their strong, blunt beaks

drink the air

as they strive

melodiously

not for your sake

and not for mine

and not for the sake of winning

but for sheer delight and gratitude –

believe us, they say,

it is a serious thing

just to be alive

on this fresh morning

in the broken world.

I beg of you,

do not walk by

without pausing

to attend to this

rather ridiculous performance.

It could mean something.

It could mean everything.

It could be what Rilke meant, when he wrote:

You must change your life.

###

Peace be with everyone on this day when we think of all who have loved and nurtured us through the years. Such a blessing.


Midwestern Spring

It’s been a blustery cold spring but our daffodils are loving it.

Collage using scraps and color palette testing strips along with markers.

National Hang Out Day

In honor of this day when we highlight the beauty of hanging laundry out to dry I submit one of my favorite paintings I’ve ever made.

Essentials

“What Should I Pack?”

Sunday sketching: collage and handlettering.

Raccoon Heart

One of the benefits of my studio space is that it overlooks our backyard.

The other day I watched a VERY large raccoon saunter across our backyard. I stepped outside to see where she was headed and I got to watch her climb our neighbor's HUGE oak tree and tuck herself into the heart shaped hole.

Nature is so cool!

Spring Refresh

I use commercial grade products in my screenprinting studio: special inks from Japan and super high quality towels. Yes, they cost me more on my end--- but my intention is for my towels to hold up to many years of use.

From time to time I also refresh my screens---especially designs like my "Iowa Farm" because even commercial grade photo emulsion starts to wear down after many hours of squeegees pushing the ink through them.


Thank you for purchasing so many of these towels along with my other designs. I truly appreciate it!