Van Gogh and Pirate Cat Strike Again!

Currently available in my etsy shop Jamie's Cats
"Van Gogh and Pirate Cat avec Joie de Vivre!"

Now's your chance to own these little guys and enjoy their lust for life! (as the movie biography of Van Gogh is so aptly named...)
~I've listed it under 'Art Card' as it can be used as a card or stand on it's own, (I have a hard time labeling my work as just a card when they're really all works of art and can be framed!)

ok this re-posting of Van Gogh and Pirate Cat has inspired me to create some new works! Check out a few below...

Van Gogh and Pirate Cat steal tomatoes from the farmers field to make salad nicoise!

Van Gogh and Pirate Cat get tossed on Absinthe

Stay tuned for more adventures!

Nutella Day Feb 5th 2009! aka eat your way out of winter one glorious tablespoon full at a time!

Day 347: Sweet Tempation, originally uploaded by Diamond Lips -DL-.
I love nutella!! Thanks Giulia for pointing me towards the blog Bleeding Espresso where I found out about Nutella Day. Send a photo, upload a video or share a blog entry on Feb 5th to share your love of that "chocolaty hazelnut spread." To find out more click the pic below...



and if you happen to be in NYC I know the perfect place to get a multi-gallon size jug of the stuff- stop by the Chelsea Market, there's an Italian deli type place that sells tons of it in the largest quantities I've ever seen!
oh I think I just found the name of the store- Buon Italia- and you can order their products online- here's the nutella link!

Maira Kalman- The Inauguration. At Last.

I love the artwork of Maira Kalman and was thrilled to find her work via the NY Times Opinion section entitled "And the pursuit of Happiness" The Inauguration. At Last. Check it out online! An illustrated version of the inauguration and events surrounding it.

Cheep Cheep!

, originally uploaded by Flora Douville.
Photo by Flora Douville

I love European robins, they're so much cuter than American ones!

And for comparison, here's an American robin...

Photo by leftantler

The first English settlers called these birds Robins
because of their similar rusty red breasts,
they're actually a member of the Thrush family!

ok while I'm on the topic of birds I have to give a shout out
to the bluebird, even though it's been an unusually cold
winter here, with more than normal snow fall, there are
still flocks of pairs of bluebirds! I've seen them outside
my house and on walks, their cerulean colored backs are
like arcs of electricity against the grey-brown background
of the Vineyard winter.

Photo by cbgrfx123

and if you're feeling a little birdy yourself check
out these cool head pieces at Charm School Design

Paris Couture- Ahhh Chanel

I love these paper headpieces by Katsuyo Kamo for Chanel Couture 2009, beautiful!

Cathy Horyn of the NY Times writes in todays paper, "Lagerfeld was like a fly that dropped onto a leaf and then surveyed all. But the leaf told him everything."
read more here


images found via the new york times and whitelightning

Time To Dance!

Hello all, I've been having a blast making these little accordion style books. Here's a sneak peak at one, more images to follow... do you think there's a market for handmade books? What with all the magazines folding and publishers being laid off I wonder if now's a good time to be writing a children's book (or making art period)! thoughts?

I Love Cabbage!

by Jamie

Goodbye Galleries, Hello Snow

by William Powhida


Manhattan Bridge at Night by Jonathan Smith

Here's to another snow day! "Now is the winter of our discontent." - W. Shakespeare
Check out more images from Jonathan's The Bridge Project- beautiful!
and William Powhida's artistic rantings about the art world on his website here.

Goodbye John Updike

'Pigeon feathers and other stories - John Updike, originally uploaded by letslookupandsmile.

I've never read anything by John Updike, but there was something comfortable in knowing he existed. Very few writers or artists can equal or create the same feeling as those who have recently passed ie Updike, Wyeth, Newman, Rauschenburg... who will be their replacement, I haven't seen them yet, perhaps they're still in their infancy?

Miss Honey

by Thomas D. Meyer

aka Frau Miele as I like to call her!

Simon's Cat

silly cat video...

Thank you!

Thanks to Sharon for her lovely notepad (and Joanna of Cup of Jo for the win!) and Patricia of PVE Design for the great artwork! I love your stationary and little cats! Such a thrill to get gifts in the mail! Much love to all!

Van Gogh and Pirate Cat avec Joie de Vivre!

Happy Monday!
Much love to Anne for posting me on her wonderful blog Annechovie!

Your Bunny, My Bunny

by Tom


by Jamie

if you don't want this book you must want to be dead!

The Polaroid Camera is back!

Read more here

How cool is that?!

Aretha's Hat

Great Art Exhibitions in NYC

I was so excited to read the NY Times today and find such great exhibitions on display in the city!! The International Center of Photography will be hosting 4 exhibitions throughout the year all regarding fashion portraiture in photography...

Roberta Smith writes:
The day comes when you realize you’re subscribing to all the wrong fashion magazines. A little bit of your world crumbles, or maybe a lot.

A visit to the International Center of Photography may cause such a day. The center is inaugurating a year of fashion photography exhibitions called “2009 Year of Fashion” — with four synergistic exhibitions.

Read Roberta Smith's review in the NY Times here-----> "Fashion Forward (Not for the Fainthearted)


Tim Walker

Then there is a great exhibition on at The Metropolitan Museum of Art entitled "Raphael to Renoir: Drawings From the Collection of Jeann Bonna" with over 120 drawings on display! Read Holland Cotters review in the NY Times here---> "Where Lines Become a Kind of Language"


Federico Barocci


Parmigianino

And finally "The Thaw Collection of Master Drawings" at The Morgan Library. With 2 stunning Ingres portraits on display which haven't been seen in over 100 years! AS well a number of modern drawings from Claude Monet to Ellsworth Kelly.


Mr. Morgan's library

ah I'm in heaven! If you're in the city I hope you get a chance to see all this wonderful art! I can't wait to get down there!

My favorite Wyeth

Andrew Wyeth, On the Edge, 2001, tempera on panel, 48 3/4 x 49 1/8 inches

The Simplicity of Line

by Jamie Shelman, buy the print here


photo found a la mavieenrose3
Hugo Guinness

Ellsworth Kelly Lithographs, buy the book on Amazon


'Oak Leaf' by Jamie Shelman


Matisse cover illustration for Baudelaire


Matisse Line Drawings and Prints, buy the book on Amazon


Matisse


I absolutely love simple line drawings. The elegance and simplicity created using just shape and form is divine. The ability to eliminate everything but the absolute essence of a shape or figure and the ability to translate this feeling or movement with such simplicity is the mark of true genius (and is something I constantly strive to achieve in my own work!) I've gathered some images of my art as well as from artists I love and admire who all use line brilliantly. The Ellsworth Kelly book, Drawn From Nature: The Plant Lithographs of Ellsworth Kelly is a must have! I especially love Matisse's line portraits (as well as his oak leaf collages). And of course the simplicity of Hugo Guinness's plant silhouettes which have stemmed from a long line of artists using nature as a reference and inspiration. I especially love his salon style arrangement of artwork, this is how I envision my little cats being hung together! The elegance and beauty of the simple brought together to create something truly remarkable!

Silly cat photo

photo found on flickr taken by Feng38

Bringing Up Baby

I love this movie! Starring Cary Grant and Kathrine Hepburn it's so refreshing to watch intelligent skilled actors ham it up and go at each other with such wit and humor. (check out the hat, love!)

Happy day!

Woohoo!