Tamara Stephas

Yesterday was a good day; I put the finishing touches on two paintings.
This is a detail from “Sanctuary:”

Three of my small oil studies will be in the show “Art in Agriculture,” at the Columbia Center for the Arts in Hood River Oregon, May 7-30. The amazing variety and color in the farmers’ markets last fall inspired a variety of quick studies of fruit.  I tried to finish each painting in one or two sittings, so the models were still fresh enough to eat afterward.

I watched the movie “Aliens” last night, but really this has nothing to do with that.

I recently shipped a small, delicate sculpture called Predatory Lending to a purchaser in the next state.  Packing it was an adventure.

One small predator, one sturdy box.

Packing materials. A cradle is already built in the bottom of the box.

Predator snuggled all tight in its bed.

I really shouldn’t have watched Aliens last night, because “bed” rhymes with “dead.” Anyway, the packing material will hold it down.

Some final bracing to guard against crushing. The final box weighs less than 3 lbs.  Ship it!

Predatory Lending, balsa, graphite, coins. 8.25 x 5.5 x 11 inches, 2008. Private collection.

I’m still inspired by (and trying to process) everything I saw on a recent visit to New York City.

It was the classic whirlwind tour: museums, galleries, the city itself, seeing friends, an art school open house.

Highlights include the Metropolitan Museum (twice. My 5th visit and I’m still discovering entire new wings???), MOMA (Marina Abramović in performance, Tim Burton retrospective, all of modern art laid out for digestion), Whitney Biennial, Antony Gormley sculptures scattered like sentinals around Madison Park, a Susan Hauptman exhibit at the Forum, visiting the New York Academy of Art, discovering the Highline trail, buskers, jazz saxophone floating up the airshaft to our hotel window (total noir), piano & strings in the mezzanine bar at the Met, and street vendor hotdogs.

Finally finished my OCD painting!  Yes, I painted a brick wall.  On canvas.  Because.

Two of my paintings have been selected for the exhibition “Unclad, the fine art of the figure” at Gallery by the Bay in Stanwood WA.  The show opens Saturday, March 13 with an all-day party and live music.

On March 6th and 7th (noon to noon) the gallery is hosting a pre-show event: a 24-hour life drawing marathon to benefit the American Cancer Society.

March 13-28, 2010
Gallery by the Bay
Stanwood, WA

Despite the down economy, the Artist Trust 2010 Benefit Auction raised a record-breaking $315,000!  Thank you, local arts supporters and art community!  The proceeds will fund grants to artists, career training like the EDGE program and numerous workshops, and business resources for artists in Washington State.  This is a direct and significant benefit to regional artists.

Thanks to the purchaser of the painting I donated, Dry Farm (posted earlier).  I hope you enjoy living with it.  That’s my great-grandpa on the family farm in the Southwest.

Man, it takes a lot of work to redesign a website from scratch.  But www.stephas.com was looking a little dated, and I wanted to get my new series of paintings up.  Thanks to Michael Jochimsen for the programming.  Last week we tested and proofed, and I confirmed that I don’t like working on a computer all day anymore.  Please check it out: new design, new artworks.