To honor women during Women's History Month, WRC will be the benefactor for March

Quick update: I was trying my best to give a portion of sales to a new charity each month. Problem is, I blink, and six weeks have passed (at a minimum!); so every month is not realistic for me. Regardless, I’m all about giving all of the time… so that hasn’t changed. The only thing that has changed is that a new organization will be chosen every 6-8 weeks (as opposed to every 4). So here it is for the remainder of March and for April too:

20% of the net profits from sales of paintings over $1000 will be donated to a different NGO, with the latest being Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC), in honor of Women’s History Month. Please click on the link to read about the good work WRC does and the many countries they help.

*Please note: commissions, shipping costs, and taxes are excluded.

Make your private appointment now… either visit my studio in West Hollywood or we can meet over Facetime/Zoom.

WELCOMING IN 2024...

In a war-torn world, we all grow weary and become fatigued by the incessant heartbreak over innocent lives lost. I am one of the lucky ones who still lives in a free nano-world, far from all this mass violence and destruction. So what can I do? What little contribution can I make since I don’t have my boots on their grounds? Simply enough, I can donate money to important charities, while hopefully bringing more awareness to all sorts of tragedies out there, not just the ones we keep hearing about.

I know that not everyone is in a position to donate, but for my profession, I look at it like this: A gallery’s commission is 50% and an art advisor is typically 20%. I have actively chosen not to sign with a gallery these past several years because I got burned real bad last time (although interested art advisors, please reach out!), and selling from my studio has not only given me confidence, but has allowed for me to make a better living. Since I’m not having to part with my income as much as before, I’d rather give a portion of profits to a charitable organization who does have boots on the ground and systems in place to help people in desperate need get the most help as possible. So, just as I have done every year since the Pandemic in 2020, I will be doing the same in 2024.

Every month in 2024, 20% of profits from sales of paintings over $1000 will be donated to a different NGO, with January being Children in Conflict. * Please click on the link to read about the good work they do and the many countries they help.

It’s a win-win-win all the way around: You live with art you love, I continue to make a living doing what I was meant to do, and in this month, children in war-torn nations get help with life’s basic needs & necessities.

As always, proof of the donation is provided. If you yourself want to do the donating under your name, then donate 20% of the cost to this charity above, show me evidence that you have donated, and I will deduct 20% of the final cost* of your purchase, and then you have that amount to submit for your 2024 taxes. Same rules above & below apply.

I’ve written enough here. Let’s do our best to contribute to better our world and let Love shine whenever and wherever it can.

Peace + Love,

Randi

*please note: commissions, shipping costs, taxes are excluded.

Happy New Year! (should I say Happy Belated New Year when it hits the 12th?)

I’ve been meaning to post a blog since the New Year hit. Funny how it never seems like there are enough hours in a day, even during a pandemic, even when you are your own boss.

Just an update:

My Get And Give 2020 initiative raised hundreds of dollars for NAMI, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels, MusiCares, cerf+ The Artist Safety Net, Direct Relief, Feeding America and Frontline Foods! Feels good to help out! Not to mention, sell THIRTY works in 2020!

It’s an absolute heartwarming joy for me to help others and it has always been part of my mission to help others through my art and music. …Not only by what art & music does for our souls, but using any money raised to go to organizations that help people directly with aid to address their urgent needs.

Looking forward to a successful, healthy, peaceful 2021 for all!

With LOVE,

Randi

Looking for that special gift?

Art is not always as pricey as you think…

I created a new page simply called Extra! — maybe I could have left out the exclamation point but maybe that’s my nerd homage to Jeopardy!/Alex Trebek (and not to that celebrity show that says the word twice in that sing-songy way).

I wanted to put up some smaller pieces that are reasonably priced, as well as easy to find a space on your walls. These make perfect gifts — so unique and lovely! And through the year 2020 (one month left!), 20% of your purchase goes to charity (read more about Get and Give 2020 here.) The list of the charities is there but I will post again below.

On the Extra! page, be sure to click on the thumbnails to see the full image. If you hover over them, you will see the info which includes pricing (on mobile devices, there’s a dot in the RH lower corner that you click to see info). These pieces are from $75-150.

Contact me if interested in purchasing one by going to my contact page and describing or sending a screenshot of the one(s) you like.

It’s been a success so far! In a few days, six sold! For an artist, that’s pretty damn good!

And so here’s the list of charities to choose from (in no particular order of importance):

1. CDC Foundation Corona Virus Response Fund

2. Global Empowerment Mission

3. International Rescue Committee

4. Habitat for Humanity

5. Doctors without Borders

6. United Way Worldwide 

7. cerf+ The Artist Safety Net 

8. NAMI – National Alliance on Mental Illness

9. American Foundation for Suicide Prevention 

10. Feeding America

11. Direct Relief

12. Meals on Wheels

13. Frontline Foods  - 100% of your money goes directly to restaurants serving hospital workers.

14. Elmhurst Hospital 

15. Cedars Sinai Hospital 

16. Mount Sinai

17. UCLA Health

18. New York Presbyterian

19. Modest Needs

20. MusiCares

Art Show for Angelenos during Quarantine!

I am so proud to be invited to exhibit one of my paintings via a series of video projection installations by TZ Projects. It’s called, Going Home: a picture show, running from MAY 15-20th, 8pm-12AM (note start new time!).

The exhibition marks the official launch of TZ Projects. The show “consists of projected video window installations to provide a destination activity for Angelenos during quarantine.” (TZProjects.org)

My painting “Industrial Pastures of the Present” will be projected on a large screen up in the windows of TZ Projects’ space right on the corner of Beverly Blvd & Crescent Heights Blvd. 8070 Beverly Blvd to be exact… right in the center of Los Angeles!

Five nights of coolness and beauty! Read more about the show’s mission here, as well as see the list of many amazing artists who are part of it! Plus, there are ways to benefit charities associated with TZ Projects (please see their website).

So wonderful to hear that art is alive and well in LA! (of course it would be!!)

Oh, and in line with LA’s adherence to the rules during the pandemic, here is how you experience the show: You can view the show from your car or walk up to the window display while adhering to social distancing guidelines. It’s as easy as that!

For those of you not in Los Angeles, I will take video (of the videos!) and post to my social media pages. Do you follow me on Instagram and Facebook? Not yet? Why not?! I provided you links to make it easy…

AND, I have a music show coming up! But one blog post at a time ;)

View fullsize

Industrial Pastures of the Present-mixed media on canvas-58x78”

Get & Give 2020 - Extended until the end of the year! Also, new charities on the list to reflect these urgent times

I started a campaign called March Gladness 2020 on March 1st (you can read that entry to get the details). For obvious reasons, the name of the campaign was changed to “Get & Give 2020” to reflect the current atmosphere of the times (there’s another blog post and press release on that; just look to the right to click on and read). I also extended it until April 15th (originally, this was just supposed to be a March campaign).

I am proud to announce that I am still doing Get & Give 2020, but I will be doing it throughout 2020. Yes, that’s right — for every online purchase of art from now until December 31, 2020, I will be donating 20% of your purchase price (gross, not profit… so more money goes to the organization!) to a charity of your choice from a list of 20 charities chosen by me.

In light of how dark these times are, I revamped the list of 20 charities. While all of the charities I’ve listed under March Gladness are still very worthy and in need, we are at war here. We do need to address this emergency situation. Some of the charities are the same as the previous list (CDC Foundation, Doctors Without Borders, IRC), but I added a whole host of new ones that are helping hospital staff, restaurants (who are helping hospital staff!), artists, low-income unemployed families, direct relief all over the world, and the elderly. I also have kept some mental health organizations, as the suicide call rate is up.

As stated before, I have works large and small. Most of the works featured here on the website are medium and large-scale. I know that not everyone can afford that now (and if you can, please consider buying if you’re looking to beautify your space and wanting to help people in need at the same time). I do have works on paper on sale for as low as $65. I have some works on panel for $150. They go all the way up to $10K (those are for works the size of a queen-size bed!). Anyway, there is something for almost everyone.

If you truly love something and are unemployed or a hospital staff member, we can work out a payment plan and I’d give you an additional 10% off. Honor system here. :)

And here’s the updated list of charities to choose from (in no particular order of importance):

1. CDC Foundation Corona Virus Response Fund

2. Global Empowerment Mission

3. International Rescue Committee

4. Habitat for Humanity

5. Doctors without Borders

6. United Way Worldwide 

7. cerf+ The Artist Safety Net 

8. NAMI – National Alliance on Mental Illness

9. American Foundation for Suicide Prevention 

10. Feeding America

11. Direct Relief

12. Meals on Wheels

13. Frontline Foods  - 100% of your money goes directly to restaurants serving hospital workers.

14. Elmhurst Hospital 

15. Cedars Sinai Hospital 

16. Mount Sinai

17. UCLA Health

18. New York Presbyterian

19. Modest Needs

20. MusiCares

I’d like to thank the people who already have taken a part of this and donated to three very worthy organizations… but let’s do more!!! I promise to post more videos of smaller works… that seems to be more helpful than pictures with the lighting and I can get many in at once. I’ll keep you posted on that!

*Also, there is the fine print: Buyer pays for shipping and handling (including crating for larger pieces) for any purchase. Paypal, Zelle, Venmo accepted. If paying by credit card, a 3% fee will be added to your purchase. All sales final. All rights reserved by the artist. No reproduction of the work can be made without artist’s permission.

Press Release: An Artist’s Push to Help Charities: Get & Give 2020

LOS ANGELES, CA, March 15, 2020 – LA-based artist Randi Russo is doing something special for those in need. She is currently running a unique kind of fundraising campaign. Formerly called “March Gladness 2020” – which has now been renamed “Get & Give 2020” – Russo will be donating 20% of sales from any of her paintings purchased from now until April 15th to a charity of the buyer’s choice from a list of 20 non-profit organizations chosen by Russo herself. The organizations range from causes dedicated to human rights (including some specifically engaged in women’s causes) to animal rights to climate-crisis causes to cancer research and to other health-related organizations, most importantly including one run by the CDC Foundation in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

 Russo said, “I have combined selling my art with raising money for charities in the past but usually it’s in conjunction with an event such as an art opening or studio open house.” She added that, “however, this is an online campaign.”

On the artist’s blog and on her social media accounts, Russo introduced her March Gladness 2020 campaign back on March 2nd, and it became apparent within several days that it had become the right name at the wrong time, but as she then emphasized, “its mission is [still] important.” Her solution: rename it as the Get & Give 2020 Project and move forward. She stated, “I feel so much more comfortable with this name… and it gives me a chance to do something else: extend the campaign until April 15th.”

The purpose of this campaign is two-fold. It not only helps the selected non-profit organizations, but it also reinforces Russo’s belief that artists and their art deserve respect from buyers. On her Facebook page, she addressed the value of a work of art beyond its price tag. In order to help her followers understand why she uses donations instead of putting paintings “on sale,” she explains that it is to keep the integrity of the art intact. “Not only [do] I care about these 20 important organizations which do good in the world, but I also care about valuing artwork and valuing artists who create the work.” Russo said, “It is [also] important to protect the collector who supports artists directly (financially) and indirectly (emotionally). It’s imperative that I protect their investment in my work by protecting the value of my work.” Finally, she asks her readers to “Help lift artists up! Don’t bring them down,” and added, “I hope the donation to charity is an incentive... maybe I’m not receiving as much income but the integrity of the work is maintained.”

To date, Habitat for Humanity, the Hirshberg Foundation of Pancreatic Cancer Research, and NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Health) have all benefited from this project. 

For more information and a list of the selected charities, go to www.randirusso.com, or contact the artist directly at rr@randirusso.com

Update on the charitable giving campaign for March: New Name

What’s in a name? Maybe not much, but words do matter. This is not a typical COVID-19 announcement, as in the grand scheme of things, what I call my latest project (formerly called “March Gladness”) is not so important. However, its mission is important.

Over the past few days, I have been thinking about the name “March Gladness 2020” for my charitable giving campaign. I am sure it is obvious that the name was a tongue-in-cheek reference to NCAA’s March Madness. But with the current atmosphere, being tongue-&-cheeky feels uncomfortable. It is a serious time and I feel like authentic living needs to match the times we’re in.

When I came up with this idea, it was March 2nd. In a matter of 10 days, the world took a deep, dark turn, and now it seems odd to me to use the phrase “March Gladness” — it feels awkward because there’s not much to feel “glad” about right now (and I’m not the kind of woman to get all pollyanna and try to glue a “happy” word that just doesn’t fit my experience). Grateful (for my health and much more), yes; but glad… hm. Also, now that March Madness is canceled, it feels strange and off-putting to me to keep it under this name.

I am now renaming the campaign “Get & Give 2020.” I feel so much more comfortable with this name. It simply is what it is: You get yourself (or a loved one) some art made by me, and by doing so, you also give to a worthy charity 20% of your purchase price (don’t worry— your donation comes out of your purchase; I give that 20% to a charity of your choice as opposed to keeping 100% of the profits). You have a list of 20 charities to choose from (see blog post below for a list with links to each one, plus a more complete explanation of the “rules”). That’s where the 2020 comes in — OK, so a little tongue-in-cheek is not too offensive, I hope!

Regarding the charities, I did update it to include one which is addressing the COVID-19 pandemic (the CDC Foundation has a response fund) and an organization which is helping those affected by the devastating tornadoes that plowed through Tennessee earlier this month. There are other organizations on the list that also have a covid-19 action plan, amongst other dire situations that need our help.

And with this new name, it gives me a chance to do something else: Extend the campaign. Instead of it just being for the month of March, I will extend it another two weeks. So from now until April 15th, the Get & Give 2020 project will be active.

So far, the Hirshberg Foundation, Habitat for Humanity, and NAMI (National Alliance of Mental Health) have benefited. I am so honored to have your support and so happy to hear that my collectors are happy with their art! No purchase is too small or too big (some works start as low as $65).

So please, visit me on Facebook and Instagram to follow the progress and to watch videos showing available smaller works that are not on the website. I will be updating this throughout the campaign since there’s LOTS of art to share! For medium to large-scale works, you’re already in the right place, as the bulk of them are up here on the website!

xoxo

Randi

MARCH GLADNESS 2020

**update 3/14/20: in light of these times, the name has been changed to Get & Give 2020: see new post on 3/13/20**

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————-

TWENTY percent (20%) of any painting purchased through me, Randi Russo, in March will be donated to a charity of your choice from this list of 20 charities (you can break up the donation any way).

The list (in no particular order of importance):

Organizations:

1. CDC Foundation Corona Virus Response Fund

2. Hirshberg Foundation for Pancreatic Research

3. International Rescue Committee

4. Habitat for Humanity

5. Doctors without Borders

6. WWF.org – Adopt a Koala

7. P.S. Arts – bringing art to children in schools in underserved communities

8. NAMI – National Alliance on Mental Illness

9. American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

10. St. Jude’s Hospital

11. Heart to Heart International Tornado Response

12. Ocean Conservancy

13. Sandy Hook Promise

14. Humane Animal Rescue

15. The Orangutan Project

16. Planned Parenthood

17. The Innocence Project

18.National Coalition Against Domestic Violence

19. Malala Fund

20. Free the Slaves 

Just a small selection of available paintings is below… Want to see more? Make an appointment or contact me and I will send you more information…

the fine print: as is customary, the buyer pays for shipping and handling (crating) for any purchase. Paypal, Zelle, Venmo accepted. If paying by credit card, a 3% fee will be added to your purchase. All sales final. All rights reserved by the artist. No reproduction of the work can be made without artist’s permission.

That Layered Look 2 - curated by Peter Frank

It has been a very exciting time and change is very much in the air! Good changes! (knock wood!) — thank you 2020! I cannot disclose some of the new developments just yet, but good things are a-brewing!!!

I have had three works of mine chosen for a FANTASTIC group show! I was honored to begin with just to have my paintings featured amongst works by such greatly talented artists. But then when I saw the actual show (the opening was a fantastic success, btw, with over 400 person turnout!), I was floored to see my work in such excellent company of other thought-provoking and/or feeling-provoking works of art.

Thanks to Peter Frank (the curator) and Caroline Tufenkian (the gallerist) for putting together an exquisite show! Peter chose the works and Caroline did the placement. How lucky for one of my pieces to be the very first work to start off the show, right next to Alexandra Grant’s work, followed by the work of Robert Standish. Not to mention, a couple got engaged right in front of my painting! If that’s not good juju, then I don’t know what is! Below are pics of the paintings in the show. But before we get to that, let’s talk about who else is in the show…

This fabulous group show is filled with works by the following accomplished artists:
ALEXANDER | CHARLES ARNOLDI | FATEMEH BURNES | SIGRID BURTON | RHEA CARMI | ANDR´EE B. CARTER | GUY DILL | MOSHE ELIMELECH | MEGAN FRANCES | ANDREW FRANK | KAYE FREEMAN | GAGO | TANNER GOLDBECK | ALEXANDRA GRANT | DIANE HOLLAND | RAFFI KALENDERIAN | MELA M. | LAURIE RASKIN | ALAIN ROGIER | DAVID S. RUBIN | RANDI RUSSO | RAFAEL SERRANO | DANNY SHAIN |SUSAN SIRONI | SUSAN SOMMER | ROBERT STANDISH | LAURIE YEHIA | TORIE ZALBEN

The show goes until Wed, Feb 26th… BUT, there will be a curator-led walkthrough and closing reception on February 23rd, 3-6pm.

I think this Sunday afternoon will be better than the opening (which was on Jan 18th and I cannot stress enough how amazing the night was with lots of magic in the air). How can one not be excited to hear a curator’s words on his passion and work?! — I guess I can geek out on this kind of stuff regardless of whether I’m in the show or not. Haha!

I do hope I see you there! Info below:

TUFENKIAN FINE ARTS
MODERN + CONTEMPORARY ART
216 S. LOUISE ST.
GLENDALE, CA 91205
818.288.4635

Art Critic Peter Frank's Essay: RANDI RUSSO: LINE AND PLANE TO SPACE

The new studio is open for showings! See pics below to get a sense of the surroundings. …but the actual viewing room… well, you’ll just have to see that in person… there’s such a good classy yet artsy, vintage vibe here.

I’ve timed this announcement of the new studio with the release of famed art critic and curator Peter Frank’s essay of my work. Click HERE to read it. Thought-provoking and intellectually poetic, it’s quite a good deal to chew on. It’s as substantial as the work is.

I liked many lines in the essay but love these: “…while reliant on the image of nature, Russo’s art is not about nature per se so much as it is about our perception(s) of nature, and equally about the nature(s) of perception. …There is a self-expressive aspect to [the work], to be sure; the ambitious reach of her line and the rhythmicality of her composition bespeak the vitality of a human mind and body making something.”

Peter Frank is a Los Angeles-based art critic and curator. He writes for Fabrik Magazine (as well as is the associate editor there), Huffington Post, and Angeleno Magazine. He was a long time critic for LA Weekly, as well as wrote for the Village Voice and Soho Weekly News. He has curated shows at Riverside Art Museum and the Guggenheim Museum.

To see the work in person, please contact me here to schedule an appointment.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Happy 2019! ...and 2018 wrap-up

WISHING ALL A WONDERFULLY PEACEFUL, PRODUCTIVE, ABUNDANTLY GOOD NEW YEAR IN 2019!!!

As an artist, I believe honesty is the best policy. I’ve always felt comfortable being publicly vulnerable and giving a voice to those afraid to voice their ailments, illnesses, so-called shortcomings. People are still afraid to talk about mental illness. It’s getting better, a lot better, but still shockingly dismal progress in the obliteration of an unnecessary stigma.

Those close to me know that I suffer from crippling depression. I’m also considered a high-functioning depressive. I get a lot done and most don’t see the suffering I go through. …until this past year (so I presume)…

This is where my 2018 wrap-up comes in. While I’d love to say that I’ve completed another 15-20 pieces this year, it hasn’t happened (unless you count all the small pieces I’ve made). I’m still dealing with the grief of the loss of my mother, as well as the grief of so many other losses that I cannot begin to list here. But the loss of my mother is a big one. Whereas some people assumed that I’d be creating like crazy to unleash the feelings, I’ve crawled into a hole which made creativity very difficult to access. That being said,…

Somehow (mostly because of the help of a few wonderful individuals), I put together a solo show here in Los Angeles within only 14 months after moving here with all of the major family trauma going on and with the experience of a multitude of major losses. It was called Liminal Spaces (click link to get definition and read the short artist statement for the show). It was a success in a good number of ways.

That exposure lead to sales. As a businesswoman, this obviously was a great source of pride. To the outside, it looked like I was doing phenomenally well, while inside, I was in a lot of pain. I have been advised throughout my career to never speak of my suffering with depression, that people will not want to work with me because of it. My own gallery back in Chicago even doubted my ability to bring on a show when I showed them nothing but how amazingly I can get a lot done in a short period of time. They started to get to know me personally and saw how crippling the illness can be for me. But I delivered 15 great large paintings in time for my solo show with them in 2015. How could they doubt me after that performance? (Speaking of performance, I also co-wrote 10 songs during that time for that solo show; as well as worked on my own music and started recording 17 songs with my band). *Point Being — I Deliver.*

Which brings me to my next point, just because a person suffers from clinical depression or bipolar disorder, doesn’t mean they cannot get things done on time, do it better than those without a struggle, and actually soar. It’s just that we have to work extra hard when we do have short bursts of energy and motivation.

I know that my works done in 2017 and 2018 have yet to be posted here. I do need to find a professional photographer here who specializes in documenting artwork… I’m still learning the ropes in the massively sprawling, isolating town that is LA. I’m waiting for the bulk of paintings to come together before undertaking such a project, as it makes sense to do many paintings in one session, rather than constantly doing a few at a time. It’s good to leave this stuff to the professionals. As the saying goes, “If you want to be professional, you have to hire professionals.”

So here’s to a better 2019! I hope to be more creative, experience less grief and depression, and have an abundantly good year. 2018 wasn’t all bad… a good amount of sales came in and the value of the work has gone up. Let’s keep going in that direction, shall we?

JUNE SHOW! "Liminal Spaces" at Castelli Art Space in Culver City

            Industrial Pastures of the Present - mixed media on canvas, 58x78"

 Trouble Finds Her (And Not the Other Way Around) - mixed media on canvas, 60x67"

It's here! Finally! My first solo exhibition in LA, Liminal Spaces, will take place from June 8th to 11th at Castelli Art Space in Culver City. The Artist Reception will be on Saturday, June 9th from 5-9pm. I will be there all day and night to show my works and talk to you about them; from 12-9pm on Friday and Saturday and from 12-6pm on Sunday and Monday. Other days that week are available by appointment.

If you are press or a gallerist/art advisor/curator, please inquire about the special preview showing by contacting me through this site.

More details later!!! So excited!

Definition: The Liminal Space -- "If you feel that you are anxiously floating in the inbetween perhaps you are in TheLiminal Space. The word 'liminal' comes from the Latin word limens, which means, 'threshold.' “… It is when you have left the tried and true, but have not yet been able to replace it with anything else." -- Dr. Carrie Barron, Psychology Today

FEATURED ON INTERNATIONAL 1340 ART BLOG

Well, I suppose all blogs are international but this one also puts out a magazine of artists all over the world. Hm, ok... some others do that as well... Regardless, here's the lovely feature (click to read full article):

click above to see full featured article.

VIEWING of all paintings finally available!

It's been a rough transition in LA, especially with all the family stuff going on (read entries below; it's heavy heavy). That being said, I finally have a proper storage and showing solution in LA! It's a lovely space in Glendale. Please contact me through the contact page to set up an appointment for viewing any works.

There are small to medium works in those boxes (don't worry, everything is properly stored with glassine paper and plastic!) and there are works on paper. And of course, the medium to very large paintings.

Large or small, I'm ready to show!

2017 zipping by...

As this year zips on by for me (filled with some heavy stuff on the home front), I am slowly getting myself settled in my new town, Los Angeles. Frequent travel to both New York and Miami due to family crises and traumatic events have upset any sort of rhythm for settling in, creating, and all around feeling comfortable in strange, new, sprawling surroundings. 

So this website doesn't have a little thumbnail yet for works created in 2017. I have been making art, but experimenting on smaller canvases due to my space limitations and time limitations. Life has a will of its own. The best creations come when we let things flow. We still work with the challenges within that flow when we're at work... but we have to let the river flow before we figure out how to direct its power. Because of "life getting in the way" (my mother in the last round of her fight with stage 4 pancreatic cancer and my recently dramatically paralyzed aunt -- my "2nd mom" -- post-stroke, leaving a formerly very active and spry woman completely incapacitated), I have found these challenges necessary to create a space for survival. Art and music are part of that, but so is rest, experiencing & processing grief, and helping with the many logistics that I believe are the duties of a conscientious, devoted daughter and niece.

So, as much as I was looking forward to taking this town by storm, once I got here, the storm got to me first. My aunt's massive stroke occurred one month into my move. That's when a difficult time in my life became extremely difficult. That's when my migraines took on an extremely foreign state that left me psychologically and neurologically paralyzed for weeks at a time, affecting my most basic life skills such as driving or holding a conversation. Being accidentally thrown off my own health insurance and fighting for my money back when my doctor repeatedly charged my credit card also set me back (and it was a brutal 3.5 month fight). Not to mention the minor car accident. There is a wave of upset in the Universe, of which I don't need to speak of all the awful things happening globally right now. 

Returning to small world stuff -- I was fortunate enough to be invited into two group shows during this turbulent time in my life: one in LA (Santa Monica) and one in NYC (Greenpoint, Brooklyn). At the latter, I performed a handful of songs at as well. Below are a couple of pics of these summer shows. The real joy comes from meeting or reconvening with friends, new and old. Sure, it's a chance to show my work and bolster the CV... but mostly, the supportive people are who and what drive me. In addition to that though, there are some good things possibly on the horizon due to the Santa Monica showing... will keep you posted.

That's the update. I guess it's for those who wonder "where is 2017 on this website?" One day, I learn how to not project the judgment of others or feel the need for explanation or disclaimers. There are no 2017 works posted here (although you can see some on my Instagram page -- please follow me). I'm crazy busy fielding life's curve balls (I don't know much about baseball so maybe my expression is wrong?). Any caring human could understand that, yes? Those obsessed with the spoils going to the "go-getters" -- go get a heart... and a true-blooded life.

duality show (Brooklyn, NY - August 10, 2017 - showcasing both art & music; art not pictured here)

Hangar Gallery group show (Santa Monica, July 8, 2017)

Triumphs Take Time, even tiny triumphs... (and they're always temporary)

So things are starting to settle in a bit and I will finally be able to show my art here in LA. I've been invited to be part of a group show at HANGAR GALLERY in Santa Monica. The gallery is connected to the Santa Monica Art Studios near the small airport there. The opening is on Saturday, July 8th, 6-9pm.

More details are on my show page with a map and all.

Below that map are more details about an upcoming group show in Brooklyn, NY, called duality, that I'm a part of. I'm excited to be part of such a cool evening... SATURDAY, AUGUST 12th, 7pm-12am. Many details on that night are also on my show page. I plan on being in NY for it.

Thirdly, I will be part of another LA-based group show... details on that later. It's one that calls for a month of daily working on a single project to be displayed at the group show. The statement I submitted for this show goes as follows:

Shortly after an extremely stressful double-move from Chicago to LA (home and large art studio), I was hit with some very heavy family health crises, as well as my own struggle with health issues of my own. I felt like I made the wrong move, literally. But when I go walking in my strange surrounds, I see beauty everywhere... whether in a plant, flower or tree, or on sidings of dilapidated homes, patterns in broken sidewalks, industrial barbed wire holding back adolescent pomegranates, or concrete walls against the mountaintop sunsets when standing by the LA River. To say it in fewer words, these small paintings, mixed with poems, are about my turbulent first few months here and how my new surroundings created both a concurrent fear and calm in me. 

How this project will come out, I have no idea. Today is day two. I'm working on digital collages from photos and hope to incorporate it into my paintings. I'll have to see how the poetry fits in all of this, as I am writing a good deal. I'm banking on this project leading me to bigger works of art based on my work here. The move to LA, California... with her desert plants with their exotic fruits and small Spanish-style homes surrounding me, making a deep new groove in my decades-old urban-developed brain. LA is such a strange place after NYC and Chicago. This strangeness is what this next project is all about. The landscape here, by the LA River in particular, will inspire my next series.

The inclusion in these shows has given me a spring in my step and hope for my new beginnings here. 

We're almost halfway through 2017 and...

...(sigh) and... well, I haven't posted any new art here. I can tell you that I've made some small pieces and should add them to the small works page on the site (will do... I'm way behind on adding things to that page). But I haven't finished any large works, though two were close to finished before I left for LA and one of them is quite a lovely new favorite of mine; the other, I should have left well enough alone. I posted a 'work in progress' pic on instagram of it several months back and it's gotten the most likes of anything -- but I've destroyed it by going in and in and in with the paint, and now have to work out the mess I've made. I do have some finished medium works (a bunch of 24x48's) but will hold off on creating a "2017" page until I have more to show. 

This year started out tough from the get-go: I was tied-up with the charity art events I planned and hosted, a Cornelia show, and then packing up my art (CRAZY amount of inventory), and then the actual colossal double move of home and studio, then working on finding a home in LA and getting settled... then upended by a tragic family setback (which took me out of LA for a total of 2 weeks soon after moving here), and trying to get settled some more as if none of the bad stuff happened (which is not something one can even begin to pretend).

I had trouble picking up the paintbrush and the guitar during these many months in 2017. There was either no time or no sense of self during moments of duress, which there have been way too many of lately. It's been more like months of duress as opposed to moments. Actually, take that quite literally. There were a few days in May here and there when I made good progress on a painting for my aunt, which I started after her massive stroke, but I lost momentum when the stress of the current state of affairs took over. Only last night, did I start to work on two small pieces after weeks of nothing.

And music... ahhhh, music! (sweet music)... I finally picked up the guitar tonight in real way (in other words, I'm not going to count the two or three times that I picked it up in vain for a tuning and a 5 minute session of forced play, followed by gut-wrenching sadness over "losing the gift" -- have I learned nothing from my 20s?). I played for real, as in realtime cathartic, focused playing. My heart was in it, and it hadn't been in it in months... many months. I'm almost ashamed to say how many but I remember the last time I played live and it was two songs at a friend's art show. The circumstances surrounding that night (associated with a spirit-breaking loss that I honestly don't think I'll ever fully recover from) kind of put a hex on my singing and playing... it's like when you read about those cases where people experience something traumatic and stop speaking. I had experienced something personally awful that killed something in me. I was able to use that event (and the power of my voice and song) as my blow back but it left me winded and pained... and then I just stopped singing, writing, playing my own songs for many months.

So tonight, I feel like I came back from the dead. No joke. The power of music and whimsy of the muse. Oh yeah, and I painted some today too. So my sense of self (after feeling robbed of it roughly a year ago) had a taste of the return.

There's no telling what tomorrow may bring... and that really means anything...

Each week through February, 10% of art & CD sales goes to a new charity: THIS WEEK: INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE

From Jan 30th to Feb 5th, 10% of all art and CD sales will go to the International Rescue Committee. Whether you buy art/music or not, I would love for you to donate to this wonderful organization!

Last week, $225 was raised for Free the Slaves. The week prior, $520 was raised for Gilda's Club of Chicago and $520 for Imerman Angels.

Do good in this world. Always do good.

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UPDATE! I would love to give as much as possible to the IRC because I've followed this organization for so long and I'm a huge fan of what they do, so I'm extending the 10% donation to go to them through the end of February. Stay tuned for March's charity...