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The Art of Coffee

February 25, 2015 by Nancy

Show is Still On — The Reception is over. File it | Forget it.

… and she lived happily ever after.

I thought I would write more about the reception because it was such a big deal for me to have it in the first place. It was actually a pretty daring request for me to push because the The Roasters had not had one for any of the previous artists. As the time drew near my boldness came back to bite me and I was a lot more anxious than I was excited. Feelings of regret, worst case scenarios and other uncertainties were allowed to have there way in my head most of the time. What was I thinking?

In hindsight it is now just another reminder for me to try to just let things be and to Trust the process. The reception was fun, well attended and really turned out the way I had hoped it would. The work will be up for another month and a half and I’m anxious to see what new developments arise. If I can just stay out of my own way.

Filed Under: coffee painting, Lingering Logs, San Anselmo, WordPress

Friday the 13th – April Fools Day

February 16, 2015 by Nancy

Show Announcement

Coffee Break – The business of slipping back into WordPress is now creatively interrupted by the Art Show in San Anselmo. Perhaps this will be the last call for Coffee Paintings. At least for awhile because this how will remain in “public” until April. Actual running time is Friday the 13th – April Fools Day It feels unexpectedly different from my debute ABRACADABRA show last December. Not necessarily better or easier. In ABRACADABRA I felt like I was a part of a group even though I was a 100% newbie. This time I feel quite alone and it feels odd because it’s in my town, my surroundings and sponsored by my past website client, SAN ANSELMO ARTS COMMISSION. I’m not sure where this feeling is coming from but I’ll be happy for the arrival of a new “take” on it.

Coffee Wash over pencil

Maybe it’s because I don’t feel like I have enough new work to show. I clearly made myself stay with the Coffee Painting style because this venue was too appropriate for a coffee painter to pass up. As I quietly drink my morning coffee I wonder if I’m just ready for a Coffee Painting Break.

Filed Under: Blog, coffee painting, Lingering Logs, San Anselmo, WordPress

Re-Purposing My Purpose

February 7, 2015 by Nancy

In the beginning I was just drawing pencils — with pencil.

Where did it all start? I’ve made a confession to myself that I am sort of a Geek. However, I need to have a fair amount of Geekness in me if I am ever going to pull of the technical side of designing websites. OK there it is — I said the geek-thing, and after doing a little more combing of my past I see it started in 1999 when I first registered www.nancynichols.com. I didn’t have a website right away but my first email address was pencil2b@slip.net — I still like the way it sounds. This was all around the time I got my first computer. Of course I had no idea how that “gift” was going to mess with the rest of my life. I’ve now self-confirmed that I can’t give it up but, luckily, I can’t give up the Pencil either. The Pencil has been a lifetime favorite tool and some friends even call me “Pencil”. It currently is symbolizing my connection to my creative side and my job is to continue merging the art and the business.

Filed Under: Lingering Logs, WordPress

Making Lemonade

January 26, 2015 by Nancy

Wondering what to do with all of these lemons I seem to be hanging on to. As a child I never had a lemonade stand. I wasn’t even given lemons. In my family there was no incentive for women to make money. I honored the image of The Starving Artist and had no reason to believe there was any connection between Business and Art. Now I have grown too comfortable being uncomfortable with just making due. I need a reality jolt—I need to set up shop. Can I move forward with my design experience for artists and use WordPress? Can the Artist out shine the basic WordPress templates and themes?

Trying to get out of the Box.

Generic is not a word that defines artists—artists need the opposite of generic. They are not generic it bothers me when I see their websites looking generic. If an artists goal is to be shown, found or collected there needs to be a way for their “extraordinary” to be available in the midst of the ordinary. They need to boldly stand out while still being assessable to a wide audience. The Internet offers this platform and I think there are a lot of artists that are not making the best use of it. It is clear to me that Custom Websites are “over” and I am ready to embrace the possibilities of WordPress themes and templates to show off one-of-a-kind personalities. Can I still make websites work for artists?

Filed Under: Lingering Logs, WordPress

How to draw with just one line

September 23, 2014 by Nancy

One Liners!

How to draw a bird. Click on this image to see an enlargement with further instruction.

In reality it would only be a circle or oval if kept to only one line. But, a simple line drawing can be a great introduction to How to Draw many things with ease that will be filled with artistic expression. See How to Draw a Snail to see how easy it can be.

I have used the One Liner Method a lot to get myself warmed up and to also get a feel for the volume of the item I am about to seriously draw.

A quick example is provided her with some “line” instructions to draw a bird. Yes, I realize it’s pretty armature but fun just the same. And, the most important part is that it’s a quick way to get you started. You can draw bird with just two basic lines. After the two main lines are drawn it will be easy to add the eyes, beak and feet.This is all done with five steps. Step by step.

Filed Under: WordPress

Is CAPTCHA in the English Language?

January 22, 2014 by Nancy

CAPTCHA

This is the Wikipedia definition of CAPTCHA It’s a good place to start researching the history and understand why we have to decipher and type in all of those “acid” letters and numbers.

The best CAPTCHA I have ever gotten!