PineShoreStudio/Paintings by Helen Harris

On the left is the original painting "Sugar Pines" painted in 2005. It has gone through a few shows unsold. Never a favorite of mine. I frequently repainted it in my minds eye as I passed it each day in my home. This week I took the framing apart and revisited the piece. On the right is the revised version of "Sugar Pines" painted in 2007 and just placed at the Main Ave.Galleria,Ocean Grove,NJ. It immediately attracted interested buyers. It's always a risk to repaint a piece. Sometimes it is just destroyed and replaced . There are those pieces that you know have some value. The idea was good or the composition was just right but your eye new something was flawed, yet you hesitate.... Remember it's only a piece of paper. Take a chance...PAINT....and know that you've learned and come a long way.

I think I surprised a few people last night at the opening of the show "Interpretations". The work was well received but sales were quiet. We'll see how it goes in the coming weeks on display. However....I did have on hand this abstract that is a work in progress. A recent request and opportunity to work in that style has surfaced. It has been a long forgotten road that I traveled years ago. I enjoyed the experimentation of translating the surface using the collaged papers and papyrus that has been my signature in my mixed media work in recent years. Back to the future? Perhaps....

I've been on a tear painting to get ready for two shows, and a new gallery. I need some down time. So I've been outside doing some gardening to relax. This is also the time that I take to go back to basics.....I sketch. I do not paint what I draw ...and I do not draw what I paint. Each contributes to my overall knowledge that I must have at my finger tips at the moment the paint flows on to the page. Sketching is my summer school of observation. It sharpens my skills so I can improvise in paint later based on a foundation of solid drawing........back to the drawing board!

The subject of an old lighthouse is a favorite for many of my customers. This particular piece is 16" x 18" and is painted on a surface called yupo. Yupo is a biaxial-oriented substrate, a synthetic.Basically it is a plastic surface that is acid free and archival.It allows paint to sit upon rather than be absorbed into the surface. This allows for a very fluid affect to the brush stroke. The image can be "moved"and "removed" with just a touch of a damp brush.I have found this to be excellent for the subject matter of grasses, sand and water. As an artist , I find this to be a playful surface and and it is great for loosening up, and trying out ideas. " Ever Watchful" will be available at my next show July 14-27 @ Picture Perfect Gallery, Toms River, NJ Call 732-929-3636 for further information . SOLD