Illustration Friday: clumsy

At first glance this might appear to be a very silly and clumsy painting but it is actually very sweet and tender. My sbmission for Illustration Friday's " clumsy" theme is " a celestial life."

I painted this in August of 1992 for friend Tracy Walsh because she was about to marry her longtime love Shep Lonsdale. Tracy loved my art and has been quite a wonderful and supportive collector of my work. When she came to me and asked me to do her invitations I was happy and tickled because this was my first wedding card. I have done quite a few now but this was my very first one and she wanted a child like image using all the things she loves! This is my favourite kind of client, someone that tells me what they enjoy and I get to do whatever I want :D Tracy wanted the sea, the stars, the moon, and the feeling of infinity, love and the universe. Not your traditional invite to be sure, oh and the best part she wanted all valgal colours featuring their dog Jade. In order to make multiples I had the image offset printed and then I made cotton rag paper in my studio, dyed to compliment the painting and I added this beautiful old glitter to the batches to make it sparkle. We printed the typeface on a see through vellum and it was a limited edition art card for all the guests. I framed up some for her bridesmaids gifts and the gift that went to the person that married them. The funny thing about the man that performed the wedding Cliff Potts, he is Johns best friend for 40 years but I did not know him then and had not yet met John. I live on a street with 3 houses now and he lives in one of these houses and has been my neighbor for 13 years! Tracy is a travel agent, her mom was a very well known British travel agent who's clients were Elton John etc. and Shep is a musician and was in the band Gaelic Storm which you might have seen in the movie Titanic. When Leonardo Dicaprio takes Kate Winslet downstairs to where the real people are hanging out, this is the band that is playing. Shep is a very cool dude and Tracy is a very cool lady. I am happy to say they are enjoying their marriage to this day :)

btw: The wedding was at the Hotel Bel Air and it was the best wedding I have ever been too. They have swans floating in ponds there!
valerie walsh 1992

Illustration Friday: impatience

Instead of complaining about "impatience" the word that is chosen for Illustration Friday's theme today, I have decided to take the plunge. I know it sounds rather drastic but for some reason "impatience" pushed me over the edge. Farewell my friends, it has been grand.


3"x3" canvas for ArtHouse Canvas Project

Valerie Walsh 2009

Illustration Friday: Tango

Have you heard of the TownHouse Tango? It could become the latest dance craze... Have I gone over the edge, probably but life is a complicated dance, no? My submission for Illustration Friday's "Tango" theme.

copyright 2009 Valerie Walsh

Illustration Friday: hollow

My submission for Illustration Friday's "hollow" is not an illustration but rather a clay pot that is comprised of 4 clay slabs that make 4 separate buildings and a hollow interior. It really isn't hollow but filled with the sky and stars. This vase is owned by a longtime collector of my art and I only made a few of them as they are large and can break and indeed one broke during an earthquake and one got broken that was in transit. Considering all the time and work it left me with a hollow feeling :(

copyright 1995 Valerie Walsh

Illustration Friday: shaky

Sometimes it can feel like you are living on shaky ground, especially in California. Here is my silly little submission for Illustration Friday's "shaky" theme. I have another pressing deadline right now so that's why this is minimal at best. It reminds me of the many earthquakes I have experienced in my life, falling debris, shaky buildings and usually your utilities get shut off for a few days while they restore power and water. As long as no one gets hurt they are a unique experience but every once in a while people talk about the Big one coming...

A bit of SHAKY trivia regarding music icon Neil Young, Neil has directed 5 movies, including 2008 critically acclaimed feature length documentary CSNY/Deja Vu. His nom de cine as a filmmaker is Bernard Shakey, the mythical founder of Shakey pictures.

copyright 2009 Valerie Walsh

Illustration Friday: Drifting

My submission for Illustration Friday's "Drifting" is one of my Marisol Hidden Treasure greeting cards. It has a gift certificate inviting the recipient to dinner. So after you drift, you have dinner, how perfect.

copyright 1994 Valerie Walsh/Marisol

Illustration Friday: unfold

My submission for Illustration Friday's "unfold" theme is a diecut valgal card that celebrates love. The message is clear but the card is a little unique in the design. I love making cuts and folds, it makes the card a bit more special. I have included a few views here: 1.the original illustration and a copy of the card 2. closeups of the image 3. card folds and unfold.

copyright 2004 Valerie Walsh

Illustration Friday: craving

My submission for Illustration Friday's "craving" is "Soda Shoppe" an illustration that is an interior , yes, but it is a room for a building in my ValerieGallerie site that is used to house my greeting card section. This is a slightly different version that shows what Babs the cat is craving. A wonderful guy named Brian Coughlin helped me make my site and I will never forget his patience, kindness and generosity. He is a member of the band "Kinch" and a very multi-talented young man.

I was in Washington for 7 days and I hung with my pal Louie and we took many beautiful walks together.

copyright 2004 Valerie Walsh

SDCO

One of the reasons I love being an artist is, that it is never just about the art. What I mean by this is that each new job teaches you something that you might never have learned. Years ago I received a phone call from a man that saw my work in a gallery and wanted to know if I would like to do some artwork for the San Diego Chamber Orchestra. I was ecstatic because I was born and raised in San Diego! The man did not know this but he said they chose me over quite a few artists. It was an amazing opportunity and really fun, in fact that is what the project was named "Serious Fun" and I created the lettering too. They asked me to do a painting that would highlight the orchestra, instruments and my signature colour. I painted all the real people that were in the orchestra and the conductor too. I learned about all the different instruments and the way they are held. It was a wonderful job and really a lovely experience working with this man who was a fan and super supportive of my work .They auctioned off the painting and raised funds for supporting the SDCO.

The orchestra play Prokofiev,Kabelevsky,Tchaikovsky and others.
My artwork was the program for the SDCO 1994-1995 season. I have done all kinds of art for music for all different styles of music and I think that the music that we love becomes the soundtracks for our lives.

"Gypsy Wagon"

Today the greeting cards arrived from Modern Postcard for the lady that lives in the Gypsy wagon! Once a year I participate in a show called Topanga Art Studio Tours. About 45-50 artists that live here open up there studios and let the public come view, talk and have refreshments. It starts at the local gallery , each artist hangs a painting and for $25.00 you buy a book that has the artists name and blurb about their work , bio, written directions and a map of Topanga. It is a 2 day event so if you choose to view all the studios, you have a couple days to squeeze them in. It is the perfect venue for me, I am a bit reclusive and all the people come to me! So this wonderful woman came to my studio, admired the "Houscapes" and asked me to paint her home. Rat and I drove to her place (Paradise, i'm not kidding it really seemed to be what heaven must be like) and there was her home. A 150 year old gypsywagon from England. It was shipped here years ago to be used in the original Dr. Doolittle movie starring Rex Harrison! When the movie studio wanted to be rid of the wagon it was sold and moved to the beach and gypsylady moved in. I did this painting of it and it hangs in her office. She is an amazing person, an activist against nuclear armaments (she has been arrested over 100 times) she lives very simply, she has a very nice tent as well and her 2 dogs. She assists a very well known movie and television actor that is an activist also. I would love to tell you all the particulars because all of the people that are in her orbit are majorly interesting but I want to protect her privacy. She has lived in the wagon for 25 years! This greeting card is to comemorate the 25th anniversary of her life in this wagon. It was a highlight for me to paint and Rat loved being there and walking on the beach and around her neighborhood. The greeting card came out great, I'm pleased with it and I hope she loves it as much as she loves the painting.

copyright 2004 may not be reproduced