I made a short video of Old Washington’s recent: Arts of all sorts. The video was LIVE, so it’s a little bit shaky and I did do any editing, but it takes you into the moment of visiting our little village during an art activity. I’m so lucky to be a part of such a creative community. Thanks everyone for making it possible!
If you don’t have the time to watch the whole video, here are a few photos of the video’s highlights.
One of my big projects last year was a series of paintings for Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. I never got a chance to see the paintings framed and in their new home. I was excited to see one of my friends share photos of the paintings on facebook. (and gave me permission to share the photos here – thanks Emily!). The paintings are oil on canvas, and bigger than you might think (3ft x 4ft each). She had to take 2 photos, because all 3 were too wide to fit in one photo. Thanks again for sharing!
I’m watching the eclipse from my studio. The view looks like this:
Yes, it’s finished (even framed), Oil on Canvas – 20×24″ –I wasn’t going to show it off until this Final Friday at the Pendleton Art Center, BUT in honor of the eclipse, i’m showing it off today.
As of this moment, the original is available, prints too. Click the image below for more details. Enjoy the eclipse, everyone!
The hotel website, Oyster.com, recently published an article titled, “The Best Small Towns in America“, and guess who was number 4? Maysville, KY!!!
I’m really not that surprised. It is beautiful out here. We are on the Ohio river and there are a lot of our downtown’s old time architecture is still in place. The neighborhood where I live, Old Washington, is one of Kentucky’s first settlements.
The community is VERY supportive of the arts. Our local government, groups and private individuals have all created and supported programs, organizations and incentives to make our area a vibrant place to live for everyone.
I don’t have family connections (like many of the residents) in Maysville, but I chose to live in this small town for the above reasons.
A small town fits my personality, and is a great place to work. There is inspiration direction I look. To celebrate our recent acknowledgement, for a limited time, I created a gallery on my website featuring some of the paintings I created with Maysville as the subject. So until you can make a trip out to visit Maysville in person, click the image above for a virtual visit through paintings.
I finished a new oil painting this week. It’s called, “Watching the clouds”, and is a reminder for me to take time to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.
You can click the picture to see it in my online gallery, or see it in person tomorrow, Friday 26 May at the Pendleton Art center in downtown Cincinnati.
I don’t participate in a lot of outdoor art shows, but whenever I can, I go to Covington’s sculpture park along the Ohio river for the Duveneck Art Show. It’s usually the day before Mother’s Day. The people who organize the show are community minded, and love artists. They even treat the artists to a garden party after the show! How can I resist?
This year, I tried something different: I used Facebook’s ‘Live Video’, to let my friends see what was going on at the show. Because it was live, the video is completely unedited, and un scripted. I had stage fright at first, but it was fun, and it has given me some ideas for future live projects that I can do in my studio. A copy of the video is still on my facebook profile, so you can click the link below to see how it went.
I won the Duveneck Award! I was really excited about that because the art becomes a part of the Kenton County Public Library’s collection, and is exhibited in one of their libraries. This show and award is in it’s 48th year. The Duveneck show art collection has never been displayed as a group…until June 4th. The Behringer-Crawford museum is going to have an exhibit of all 48 Duveneck Art Award winners. I’m thrilled to be a part of it!
The winning piece was an ipad drawing of the view from my studio at the Pendleton Art Center. I think it’s interesting because it contrasts downtown Cincinnati’s old historic architecture, with it’s newer towers in the background.
I also won ‘Best in Show’ for my overall body of work. I was embarassed, because it isn’t common for the same artist to win two big awards at the same show. My work isn’t easy to catagorize, and that can be an advantage or penalty, depending on how traditional the judge is. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for the recognition (and prize/rent money!)
It was the ‘day of Ken’, because in addition to the two awards, I also won the ‘People’s Choice’ award. Guests at the show were invited to vote for their favorite artist…and it was me and my work! I am thrilled to know that my work is reaching and inspiring others.
Outdoor shows are a lot of work, but it feels more like a day of hanging out with friends-in contrast to a ‘day in the office’…especially when it’s the Duveneck Art Show. Thanks again to everyone who worked hard to make it happen!
I am only doing one more outdoor show this season… it’s Art In The Garden, in Augusta, KY on June 3rd. Don’t miss the fun, I hope to see you then!
Earlier this year, I was invited to exhibit some of my work at the Children’s Theater Of Cincinnati. Most of my experience with theater has been from the audience. While visiting their facility, I discovered just how many different creative disciplines work as a team to make the theater happen. Rather than just exhibit work that I have already created, I was inspired to start a new series of oil paintings which celebrate the different people ‘behind the scenes’ in theater. This weekend, they unveiled the first two paintings of the project during their spring fundraising gala. These depict the cosutme designers and the set designers.
I’m interested in celebrating all forms of creative expression, and theater is unique because it combines so many into one work. I’m grateful to the Children’s Theater Of Cincinnati for the opportunity, and also the Maysville Players – Mike Thomas and Mark Funk, in particular…who are an encyclopedia of knowledge about theater, and have been a great resource for my research. They manage Maysville’s Theater -an AMAZING program, especially considering the size of our rural community.
I’m thrilled with how the series of paintings are developing – (choreography, music and makeup are next), but I’m even more excited how the project gave me a chance to learn about the local theater in my community. I love what they are doing, and want to encourage you all to support your local theater the next time they have a performance…not only is it entertaining, but it’s supporting a wide range of arts.
I’m working on a project, and can’t show it off yet, but I love the color palette I am using. greens and yellows! (there are oranges and browns too)
trabajando sobre un proyecto, no puedo mostrarte ya, pero me encanta la palette de colores. (hay naranjo y café también)
I love art-based community projects, and ‘Empty Bowls‘ is one of my favorite!
I don’t make pottery or soup, so my contribution to fight hunger is this small oil painting; which will be raffled off tomorrow at Maysville’s Empty Bowls dinner.
One of my biggest challenges as a creative person is focus. In a world filled with infinite wonders, I easliy get overwhelmed trying to explore every possibile direction i can go with my creativity. In some ways, my desire to learn and explore EVERYTHING has been a strength. I have developed a unique set of skills, which help me stand out as an artist. The downside is the choas that ‘chasing squirrels’ has caused in my creative, professional and personal life. It had gotten so bad at times in my life; I considered talking to a doctor about taking medicine to help me focus. I like to avoid medicine whenever possible, so many years ago, I bought this book with good intentions:
I finally got around to reading it, and one of its big ideas that I want to share with you all is this:
Before starting another new project, ask yourself if there is an old project you can finish instead.
This idea was revolutionary for me, which leads me to my latest painting. Do you all remember WAY back in June: when I started painting the Cincinnati skyline from the Ohio River?
well, I FINALLY finished it, and the book was right. instead of feeling bad and ashamed because of so many incomplete projects, I feel a lot better having finished something…and I am thrilled with the new painting.
This is the first time I have shown it, so if you are interested in adding it to your art collection: it is a 16×20″ oil on canvas. It’s for sale at the EAT Gallery in Maysville, KY., where you can see it in person.
You could also support my work by buying a print. They come indifferent sizes and, if you live in the USA, I will ship for free. Click the painting, or follow this link for more details:
I am trying to read a little bit more of my book every day. I’m also trying to apply the book’s ideas to my studio. lists, calenders, planning, etc. Hopefully, I’ll have lots of FINISHED projects to show off soon!
Ken is a self-taught artist from rural Kentucky, whose work includes painting, printmaking, and pottery. He considers himself to be a 'lifetime learner' and uses art to explore and learn more about the world around him. Much of his work reflect his optimistic views on rural folk culture, river life and simple pleasures.
