five x seven

photo of 5x7 show, thanks to steve hopson

i love austin and miss its fun & funky arts scene. i've been lucky to participate in austin's arthouse at the jones center's annual 5x7 show a couple times now, and am so excited to hear how the anonymous art splurge went down last night in atx.

here's the gig: artists with texas ties from all over contribute works created to the dimensions of 5x7, some painted, printed, scuplted, and art-goers show up and tag the anonymous pieces in a frenzied raucous known as the "art splurge" - it's a lot of fun and benefits art education, and once the art is purchased, the artist is revealed. neat, huh! if pieces are leftover from the sale, they'll travel to dallas & houston this summer for additional 5x7 shows.

here are pics of my silly work this year:

winston
5" x 7"
acrylic on card stock


swirling senoritas
5" x 7"
acrylic on card stock


baby boom town
5" x 7"
acrylic on card stock


chirp.
5" x 7"
acrylic on card stock

and a more official description: "2009 marks the 10th Anniversary of Five x Seven (also known as 5 x 7), Arthouse’s annual fundraiser, art splurge and exhibition, and this year’s event promises to be bigger and better than ever. Five x Seven is an art sale and exhibition benefiting Arthouse exhibitions and educational programs. Hundreds of recognized contemporary artists with strong Texas ties create unique works of art on identical 5” x 7” boards. Each board is only $100. With hundreds of works to choose from, this is your chance to have first pick and build or add to your art collection. All pieces are displayed anonymously – only when you purchase a work of art will you discover who created it."

yeehaw!

my dear friend brooke asked me to participate in the cambridge school of dallas' auction again this year, and what a joy! i donated a woodcut i carved a few years back of a cowboy on a bull. i inked the wood in oil & ran it through a press (i miss printmaking). it's called yeehaw and roughly measures 30" x 42". the print is centered on cream paper. *thanks for allowing me to join in the auction, brooke, what a great school :)

on the move

troy & i are mid-move as we've been rehabbing an old house from the 1920's for the last couple of months... my paints got packed up a while ago, so i'll get back at it this spring :)

in the jungle

these jungle critters are painted in acrylic on canvas
each measures 12" x 24"

the first picture is before a varnish lacquer,
while the second picture shows the paintings after the lacquer

cora's ballerina

cora's ballerina
24"x36"
acrylic on canvas

my sweet friend lyndee is a ballerina and has danced & taught ballet for over 25 years. her little girl cora is turning 1 today! here's cora's ballerina, which of course is an abstracted portrait of lyndee :)

texas 4000 for cancer

icons of austin

36" x 36"
acrylic on canvas

texas 4000 for cancer is a really cool organization troy & i have been lucky to be involved with the last 4 years. it's the longest charity bike ride in the world, some 4000+ miles from austin, texas to anchorage, alaska. these UT students ride across the country spreading hope, knowledge and charity in the fight against cancer. you've maybe heard the stats: 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women in america will have cancer in their lifetime, and like us, you might have parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, friends, or perhaps you yourself have struggled with this terrible disease. we're excited to welcome the texas 4000 riders back to austin this weekend at the texas 4000 tribute. we have a spot left at our table if you want to join... i feel blessed to be a small part of the cause by painting for the tribute's auction. my painting this year is called icons of austin and it reminds me of all the wonderful things we love about austin.

*24" x 24" giclées on canvas are now available for $475. giclées on watercolor paper are also available in several dimensions. please email carolyn@carolynjoe.com for more information.

ocean in the morning

ocean in the morning
48" x 48"

oil on canvas

i sold this piece to a friend who surfs in costa rica - he said it reminds him of the ocean in the morning.

polka polka

circles & a banana

40" x 30"


circular conversation
36" x 36"

i find i love repetition & pattern and often go overboard in my paintings with details & flourishes... maybe i learned from richard scarry... i loved his busytown illustrations and lowly worm as a kid and see his influence in my illustrative works especially.

cinque terre

cinque terre
40" x 30"

on the cape!

on the cape!

22" x 18"

here's a silly painting i did this week - memories of trips to new england with mom & dad inspired this cape cod beach scene. children play in the waves, sail sunfish, ride bikes to the lighthouse, fly kites, build sandcastles and enjoy cold ice cream by the seaside. swans, lobsters, crabs & star fish join in the fun. to me, it's most fun to create silly scenes & paint whimsical art, it's so nice to have some time to paint these days!

*and, fun news - i'm now showing whimsical scenes like this one in the gift shop of preston road pharmacy in highland park - email carolyn@carolynjoe.com if you're interested :)

daydreamer

daydreamer
40" x 30"

x's & o's

X's & O's
36" x 24"

in the hub-bub of our recent move, our sweet neighbor reena inquired about a painting i did a few years ago called X's & O's. reena's 3yr old neice has incorporated X's & O's into her bedroom theme because they remind her of her grandmother's frequent use of the hugs & kisses phrase before her recent passing. i'm so happy this painting has a new & meaningful home!

welcome to carolynjoe.com!

welcome to the new www.carolynjoe.com! in the next couple of days, i plan to move my artwork from my previous site to this one in the hopes of cataloging my work in a more user-friendly fashion... *thanks for visiting, stay tuned!

a little whimsey

i find i enjoy painting the most when a little whimsy is involved. here are a few children's murals - wouldn't it be fun if life was this colorful?

ava's tea party
28" x 22"

paris in the afternoon
40" x 30"


ballerina girl
36" x 48"
(oil on canvas; part of a 5 panel series)


kenon's field trip
16" x 20"


we're going to the zoo!
40" x 30"


paris in blue
26" x 20"
watercolor on paper


an afternoon outside
30" x 22"
oil pastels & watercolor on paper


luce gialla
20" x 16"

feuding couple

feuding couple
12" x 12" each

every once & a while, i know how these folks feel :)

canvas for a cause

it's been a delight & honor to get to donate work for charity auctions - the lance armstrong foundation, the american cancer society, texas' annual 5x7 show, and the cambridge school of dallas, are fighting cancer and raising money for art education respectively. here are a few pieces that found good homes while helping great causes.

untitled
36" x 36"

troy & i enjoyed volunteering with the lance armstrong foundation in austin - what a fantastic group! we auctioned this piece in austin at a lance armstrong foundation peleton project pool party.

untitled
30" x 40"

another great passion of ours gets pounded out over the course of 4000+ miles in the annual texas 4000 for cancer bike ride from austin to anchorage, alaska. we've been blessed to be a part of this group and look forward to welcoming the riders home in august after their 4th annual ride! texas 4000 for cancer used this artwork for stationery & auctioned the actual painting at the benefit.

lifeline
40" x 30"
also for texas 4000 for cancer.


rain
30" x 40"

our dear friend stephanie asked me to join her in an art show & auction in houston for the american cancer society.

victorian rococo
5" x 7"

every year texas has a traveling 5x7 show in which artists contribute anonymous works to raise money for art education. anything goes as long as the works are created on a 5" x 7" card. i made the following 3 pieces for austin's portion of the traveling 5x7 show... very much fun :)

queens of art
5" x 7"

this was a silly play on words, a playing card called the queens of art created from snipits of famous females' works of art.

untitled
5" x 7"

the 5x7 auction happens during a frenzied cocktail party - each piece is priced at $100 and the buyers don't know who created the works until after they purchase them... kinda fun, the man who bought violetto in my villagio group happened to choose this similar work (above) at the 5x7 show!

untitled
24" x 30"

my sweet friend brooke encouraged me to share this piece with the cambridge school in dallas - a wonderful place.

charlie parker #2

charlie parker #2
36" x 36"

i love building texture with palette knives and lots of thick paint. i call this painting charlie parker #2 in honor of a man who bought one of my earlier works in austin- he renamed that one charlie parker for it's jagged & jumpy streaks like the rhythmic, yet unpredictable, soul-soothing notes in charlie parker's jazz. i have to say i loved that comparison. here's my take on building rhythm with repetition - in paint.

villagio collection

this grouping of paintings came together after reflecting on time spent in coastal italy, southern france & australia. i love colorful seaside villages & fishing boats... these are oil on canvas.

village by the sea
48" x 64"


di blu turchese
40" x 30"


rosa salmone
22" x 28"


perspectiva
36" x 24"


arancione
36" x 36"


blu
12" x 12"


violetto
40" x 30"


house of poppies
20" x 16"


blu pallido
48" x 24"


verde scuro
18" x 24"


colori
20" x 16"


for rachel
36" x 36"


montanas
48" x 48"

torsos

i think the body is beautiful... here are my abstracted versions of 2 pretty ladies.

nude in pink
22" x 28"


even pinker
22" x 28"

skyscrapers

my kind of town
40" x 30"

i love architecture and marvel at towering skyscrapers... here's a collection of some very abstract skylines... oil on canvas & mixed media (b&w photos on canvas, watercolor & decoupage). *a quick explanation on the construction site #'s: ever since i was a little girl, i've seen numbers in color, meaning i've assigned digits 0-9 their own specific shade. it's silly, but that's how i remember addresses & phone numbers, i see them in a sequence of colors. so, the site #'s here are an extension of my color system :)

site # 531
22" x 48"


site # 273
24" x 36"


site # 663
36" x 36"


site # 31
36" x 12"


site # 101
36" x 24"


site # 511
24" x 36"


site # 3891
24" x 36"


sillytown
40" x 30"