“Cook’s Essentials,” expressionistic still life daily painting

© Carolee Clark, “Cook’s Essentials,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Cook’s Essentials”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Not Your Ordinary Dog,” abstracted dog painting

© Carolee Clark, “Not Your Ordinary Dog,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Not Your Ordinary Dog”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

I took photos of this dog with my phone outside of a market.  I felt sneaky as the owner was not around (I would have asked permission if she/he had been).  This was a large, beautiful dog with soft floppy ears and a very thick coat who was very uninterested in the fame of having his picture taken.

Daily Painting, “A World of Their Own,” expressionistic sheep painting

© Carolee Clark, “A World of Their Own,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“A World of Their Own”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

© Carolee Clark

Daily Painting, “Rising Above,” bright, abstract, non-representational artwork

© Carolee Clark, “Rising Above,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Rising Above”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

I know that non representational abstract painting makes some people uncomfortable as they feel that they don’t understand it.  Perhaps the reason that I enjoy non objective art work is that I don’t try to understand it, but listen to my feelings about it.  How does it make me feel?  Do I like the colors, the textures, the shapes or the composition?  When I look at a painting, I know whether I like it or not immediately.  I can study the whys or I can just enjoy the work.

When I switched to acrylic from watercolor I decided to work completely with non objective subject matter.  If I was going to learn a new medium, I didn’t want to compare the paintings that I had been making to the new ones.

Believe me, it was very difficult to paint completely abstractly.   The compositional qualities that make a good abstract are the same for a painting with an identifiable subject matter.  I still wanted to create work that uplifted me and made me happy.  I still wanted to have others look at my work and feel the same way.

Every once in a while I yield to the urge to paint without an identifiable subject matter, but I still hope that it creates a positive response in the viewer.

Below is one of my early pieces of completely abstract work that I still enjoy and have hanging in my studio.

© Carolee Clark, “In No Time,” 24″ x 18″, acrylic

Daily Painting, “A Deep Bow,” expressionistic bird painting

© Carolee Clark, “A Deep Bow,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“A Deep Bow” 
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Double the Fun,” contemporary bird painting

© Carolee Clark, “Double the Fun,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Double the Fun”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Other News:
The Clothesline Sale of Art was very successful even though the temperature reached 100° which is rare here in the Willamette Valley.  I want to thank everyone who came to view my art, visit and purchase my paintings!  Below is a photo of the “clothesline” on which we display our work.  Not pictured is the large six painting easel where I display larger work.

Clothesline Sale of Art 2012

Daily Painting, “Serious Business,” expressionistic dog painting

© Carolee Clark, “Serious Business,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Serious Business”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

This is a sweet little pug that I took photos of several years ago.

Daily Painting, “Don’t Look Back,” contemporary cat painting

© Carolee Clark, “Don’t Look Back,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic on canvas

“Don’t Look Back”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Standouts,” contemporary aspen tree painting

© Carolee Clark, “Standouts,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Standouts”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

I belong to a group called Vistas & Vineyards which is a group of artists that meets weekly between mid-May through mid-October to enjoy painting “en plein aire” at local sites.  I started this painting at “Moonshadow Lavender” in Albany, Oregon and finished it in the studio.   I took many artistic liberties however there really was a field of lavender and aspen trees.

Daily Painting, “Uninhibited Expression,” contemporary tree painting

© Carolee Clark, “Uninhibited Expression,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Uninhibited Expression”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

This painting is a submission for the Virtual Paint Out blog. Their area of concentration this month is Thailand.

Exhibiting this month:
I forgot to mention, I am hanging a few paintings at the Hospital in Corvallis (main entrance, turn left … in front of the cafeteria entrance) … right now until July 29, 2012.

Daily Painting, “Confidently Colorful,” expressionistic dog painting

© Carolee Clark, “Confidently Colorful,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Confidently Colorful”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

I stopped a woman walking a dog in front of my house the other day to ask if I could take some photos of her dog.  Out of about 20 photos only one or two turned out … and then they were iffy.  I forgot to ask what kind of dog it was, but if you forced an uneducated guess out of me, perhaps it was an Alaskan Malamute.

Daily Painting, “Intensely Curious,” contemporary cat painting

© Carolee Clark, “Intensely Curious,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Intensely Curious”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Be Still My Heart,” contemporary figure painting

© Carolee Clark, “Be Still My Heart,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Be Still My Heart”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Play Ball,” expressionistic painting of an American Bulldog

© Carolee Clark, “Play Ball,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Play Ball”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Katie Johnson, a professional photographer, has taken a very sweet photograph of three puppy playmates.  Check Katie’s photo from which I worked by clicking here.

Happy father’s day Dad!

Daily Painting, “Identifiable Plumage,” expressionism painting of bird

© Carolee Clark, “Identifiable Plumage,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Identifiable Plumage”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Polka Dot Pears,” expressionistic painting of pears

© Carolee Clark, “Polka Dot Pears,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Polka Dot Pears”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Okay, I do love polka dots, so I decided to participate in this weeks DPW challenge.   Thanks to Carol Marine for facilitating this weeks challenge.

Daily Painting, “Bags, Bags, Bags,” contemporary painting of hand bags

© Carolee Clark, “Bags, Bags, Bags,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Bags, Bags, Bags”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Other News:   I have a painting in the May/June issue of Bethesda Magazine as an illustration for a short story.  So if you are in Bethesda, MD or D.C. area you can find a copy at these locations!  Look on page 310 for “Backyard Apple Tree.”

Daily Painting, “Like Mother, Like Daughter” expressionistic cow and calf painting

© Carolee Clark, “Like Mother, Like Daughter,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Like Mother, Like Daughter”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Symons Valley,” contemporary landscape painting

© Carolee Clark, “Symons Valley,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Symons Valley”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Daily Painting, “Tea on Guard,” abstracted teapot

© Carolee Clark, “Tea On Guard,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“Tea on Guard”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

In 2009 a group of acrylic painters here in the Corvallis, Oregon area got together to talk, exchange ideas, have shows together etc.  They decided to have a “response” challenge where everyone would submit one painting (decided by the group) and each painter would have a one month period in which to respond to the painting in any manner they wished.   Then the original 11 or 12 paintings would rotate.

The group chose my painting below with which to paint responses.  I didn’t continue with the group as my goals were different, but I wished them well and left my painting in their capable hands.  They are having a show starting May 11, 2012 at the Benton County Museum in Philomath which I am looking forward to seeing.

Since the painting below was done in 2008, I thought I would do my own “response painting” to it today.

© Carolee Clark, “Tea with the Wild Man,” 7″ x 7″, acrylic on paper

“Tea with the Wild Man” will be included in the show in Philomath.

Daily Painting, “It Wasn’t Me,” contemporary dog painting

© Carolee Clark, “It Wasn’t Me,” 10″ x 10″, acrylic

“It Wasn’t Me”    sold
by Carolee Clark
10″ x 10″
acrylic on wrapped canvas

Yesterday, there was an odd email in my box that said, paraphrasing, “seriously, expressionism, not abstract.”  It was only a few words and didn’t mention a particular painting.  I wasn’t sure what to make of it and I wish I could find it now because I know I didn’t delete it, but … it is one of those gems that make you think.  I know that my work is not abstract in the sense of non-objective abstract because there is a clear subject matter, but I have “expressed” it in a very personal way.  Pete @ whatever …… was right.  How does one pigeon hole their artistic expression?