Monday, October 31, 2011

City Laments

I was sort of feeling Surrealist when I painted this, just got motivated and started doing something unique and different from anything else I've ever done.  I really like the animation series, "Invader Zim" and to me this has a sort of feeling to the similar art styles where things are distorted.  Not only did I play around with some fantastic colors, but I also used a different sort of perspective with city life! :-)

Enjoy!
3 piece set - 14" x 14"
(Continuous on all sides)
$850 
(includes 3-14" x 14" paintings)

Catalog info:
Artwork: "City Laments"
Brief Description: Acrylic set of 3, 14" x 14"
Canvas sides: Continuous wrap on 1/2" sides
Type: Original Painting
Art Style: Expressionism/Surrealism
Medium: Acrylic Paint
Framed: Self Framing (Continuous painting on sides) 1/2" sides
Retail Price: $850
Final Coat/Protection: Kamar Varnish-1312
No: #041-043 (Signed/Autographed Edition)

(NOTE: Colors shown may vary slightly from actual painting due to computer display adapter and monitor manufacturer and/or configuration.)

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Win a Free Painting!!!



That's right, you read it correctly. I'm giving away a free painting when I get to 1,000 'likes' on my Facebook Fan Page, so if you visit that link and 'like' my page, you'll be entered in the drawing to win "Nebula"!!! The drawing ends when I hit 1,000 'likes' on my fan page, so be sure to get in on the chance to win a free painting, painted by the one and only Merissa Forde! :-) Thanks to everyone who's already became a fan and liked my page! I post updates on new paintings that I put in my blog and on my website so while you're 'liking' my page, feel free to subscribe so that you can see the new addition paintings. :-)

16" x  20"
Continuous
Price: $380 (Win it for free by 'liking' my Facebook page)

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Sheer Bliss

This next painting is a commission painting, requested from a woman named Kim.  She owns her own salon and her walls were looking very blank.  She didn't really know what she wanted, but she knew she wanted something that would express who she was and the feeling she wanted her clients to have. 


While I was there I noticed a color theme that she had going on in her Salon and little accents that she used to sort of express her self.  She didn't have too much going on yet, so I knew that whatever I decided to do I could be more flexible with in terms of 'matching' something that was already there, because there wasn't really anything there.  Kim left me with a lasting impression which I modeled most of the painting around. I also took a look around her salon, paid attention to all the little details, like the swirls in her sign(and business cards) the color schemes she used. She didn't know specifically what she wanted, she just knew that she liked my paintings and wanted something specifically designed for her.

So, I decided to go a little out of my comfort zone on what I usually paint and made her a special painting unique for her salon using parts of her business design logo incorporated into the painting. I picked upon some of the hints of colors used in the salon for accents (the pink flowers) and made the painting background white, in order to stand out from her painted walls.

I am happy to say that when I showed her the final piece she was speechless.  She loved the painting and said that she wasn't sure what I was going to do, but that what I had done was so amazing and she was so happy with the results- loving that I had used her logo and color schemes to work with as a driving force in the painting. She framed it and it's now featured at her place of business in Redmond named "Shear Bliss", hence where the name of the painting came from "Sheer Bliss".  She's not only a fantastic person but she's a wonderful hair dresser!!
I highly recommend going there and doing business with her, you will not regret it. :-)

Update: After I had given her the main painting she wanted 2 more paintings to go with it for her wall!!  I now have two more paintings to go, in order to complete her requests. If you're interested in visiting her salon, you can check her out at: http://www.shearblisskim.com/.

Enjoy!!

18 x 36
(white on sides)
$690 *SOLD*
Catalog info:
Artwork: "Sheer Bliss"
Brief Description: Acrylic 18" x  36"
Canvas Sides: white wrap 1/2" sides
Type: Painting
Art Style: Expressionism
Medium: Acrylic Paint
Framed: Self Framing (white wrap on sides) 1/2" sides
Reproduction: Original
Retail Price: $690
Final Coat/Protection: Ka
mar Varnish-1312
No: #25 (Signed/Autographed edition)

(NOTE: Colors shown may vary slightly from actual painting due to computer display adapter and monitor manufacturer and/or configuration.)

Monday, October 3, 2011

New Website Ready!!

Finally, I have my website ready.  It took quite some time to organize it and make sure that all the links worked properly.  I think I got all the kinks worked out.   (A special Thanks to Nick and my friend Melissa for all your help and support!!)

You can now purchase my art work using paypal or a credit card at:

Visit MerissaForde's Website

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Amnesiac

This painting, "Amnesiac", is what put me into overdrive with painting.  It was the first time I had painted a true abstract painting on a grand scale and the second abstract/expressionist painting I had ever done in my life.

I started painting when I was about 21, so about 8 years ago, but I took a break from painting in 2003 because my extremely tiny apartment in Seattle was running out of wall space and space in general.  I had no room to paint and no where to put my paintings, so I pretty much stopped.   When I moved from my apartment in downtown Seattle to Redmond, I was able to paint a few more paintings there but nothing too big because the apartment was only slightly bigger than the last one.  Then in 2010, with my boyfriend- Nick, we bought a house in Silverlake!!
This house had 3 bedrooms or 2 bedrooms and 1 office, or 2 bedrooms and 1 art room. :-)  Lucky for me, Nick noticed in our other apartments that my creativity was being stiffled---and also my art stuff (from both school and my hobbies) was everywhere and making the place look messy 24/7!!  So he gave me the extra room to use as my own personal art room/office.  I love it!  I can be messy and it's okay!  AND there's tons of wall space!!

In 2003, late August, we were looking for black, white, and red stuff to go in our guest bedroom.  We found lots of different cute black and white stuff, but because we wanted little red accents, nothing that we were too sold on.  As we were looking for art to put in the room and by art I mean photography, Nick suggested we get a canvas and have me paint something.  I was a little nervous at first, because I wanted this guest room to be perfect and I wasn't confident in my painting skills.  By this time, the only paintings I had done were on smaller 24 x 16 canvases and they were mostly scenic paintings of mountains.  That wasn't the general 'feel' we were really going for, I love mountains and all, but this painting had to be different.  I also wanted to re-connect with painting and paint something unique.  So, I put on some Radiohead and went to town.  I spent an entire day painting and the result was amazing.  I can't remember entirely how each part of the painting came to be or even why I painted the way I did, but the connection was made.
I always liked painting, but I can honestly say that when I was able to unleash my creative inner self, my 'like' turned into love.

The title of this artwork is a shout out to the album I listened to while creating this black, white, and red painting.  It's currently hanging on the wall of our guest bedroom and is definitely the shining point of the room. :)

Enjoy!!

30" x 40"
(Continuous wrap on sides)
Not for Sale

Catalog info:
Artwork: "Amnesiac"
Brief Description: Acrylic 30" x  40"
Canvas Sides: Continuous wrap 1/2" sides
Type: Painting
Art Style: Abstract/Expressionist
Medium: Acrylic Paint
Framed: Self Framing (Continuous wrap on sides) 1/2" sides
Reproduction: Original
Retail Price: Not for Sale
Final Coat/Protection: Ka
mar Varnish-1312
No: N/A

(
NOTE: Colors shown may vary slightly from actual painting due to computer display adapter and monitor manufacturer and/or configuration.)