Good Bye 2017!!You were a wonderful amazing year of taking risks, reaching goals, and finding new horizons that surprised even me - it was a good year! This newsletter will be short and sweet to salute 2017 and express gratitude for everyone that helped make this year so special. I am ever more determined to make a difference in 2018, explore new creative ideas, become more involved in the community, and find ways to promote kindness and compassion.
 "Hype" 48x48" mixed media with collage on canvas Sold Out!! |
| 10 West Gallery - Group Show , Jan 2018 on view through Jan 28, 2018 Reception: 1st Thursday - Jan 4 from 5-8pm 10 West Anapamu St, Santa Barbara, CA 10 West Gallery - Group Show, Apr 2018 Reception: 1st Thursday - Apr 5 from 5-8pm 10 West Anapamu St, Santa Barbara, CA GraySpace Gallery - May 18 - July 15, 2018 Duo show with Salvatore Matteo Reception: May 18 from 5-8pm 219 Gray Ave, Santa Barbara, CA 10 West Gallery - Group Show, Jul 2018 Reception: 1st Thursday - Jul 5 from 5-8pm 10 West Anapamu St, Santa Barbara, CA 10 West Gallery - Group Show, Oct 2018 Reception: 1st Thursday - Oct 4 from 5-8pm 10 West Anapamu St, Santa Barbara, CA 10 West Gallery - Group Show, Dec 2018 Reception: 1st Thurs - Dec 6 from 5-8pm 10 West Anapamu St, Santa Barbara, CA |  |
Cheers to the New Year!
Madeline
Madeline
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a little poem I wrote, based on true events during the holidays:
The Night After Christmas
'Twas the night after Christmas
And all through the house
Not a creature was stirring
Except for Maddy in the studio
Trying to finish some supercool paintings
For delivery in the morning.
It was 3am and she thought they were done.
She tumbled into bed, too excited to sleep.
Visions of paintings danced in her head,
So she arose with a clatter to make one more splatter
And away to the studio she flew.
She turned on the lights and got into the paint,
In the twinkle of an eye, what do you know..
A whole new painting – just in time for the show.
With the truck full of work, all ready to hang
She ran to the gallery with great cheer.
Mission accomplished, she exclaimed with a sigh,
Happy New Year to all, and to all a good night!
And Santa went "ho ho ho" all the way home 😂😂😂
And all through the house
Not a creature was stirring
Except for Maddy in the studio
Trying to finish some supercool paintings
For delivery in the morning.
It was 3am and she thought they were done.
She tumbled into bed, too excited to sleep.
Visions of paintings danced in her head,
So she arose with a clatter to make one more splatter
And away to the studio she flew.
She turned on the lights and got into the paint,
In the twinkle of an eye, what do you know..
A whole new painting – just in time for the show.
With the truck full of work, all ready to hang
She ran to the gallery with great cheer.
Mission accomplished, she exclaimed with a sigh,
Happy New Year to all, and to all a good night!
And Santa went "ho ho ho" all the way home 😂😂😂
Studio shot on the night before delivery - the painting on the left did not make it, but I finished the larger one on the right AND a whole new piece that's a must-see at 10 West Gallery!
Studio Gone Urban
| Well, I achieved my goal these past few months: create enough artwork for the group show in September at the 10 West Gallery and my solo show in October - Industrial Strength - at the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara. The October show was a completely new challenge since I was switching gears to even more urban-concentrated collage and I did not realize how much time it would take to work on the collage.. hours upon hours of taping the potential composition and moving everything around until either it feels settled or I drive myself so crazy that I finally tell myself to just glue it down and react to the next layer. Gotta love the non-permanent non-commital aspect of collage, until you start gluing. I would start with coffee in the morning and go straight to the studio, for 12-hr days, in pure insanity mode but also a total joy. Go figure. While working on the collage and digging through boxes of old pictures, I found my b&w negatives from stomping around Greenwich Village back in the '80s. They were scanned to digital, printed, torn and added to the collage. I also selected four of the key images to be mounted on panel for illustrative purposes. With all the painting/writing/tagging/ gluing going on, it was an amazing experience!! Be sure to visit my website portfolio to view the new artwork. I also wrote an Industrial Strength Artist Statement to go with the show at the Architectural Foundation. Check it out if you get a chance, the show is up through November 16. Gallery hours are Saturdays 1-4pm and by appointment (please contact AFSB at 805.965.6307). | Slideshow (above): my Industrial Strength solo show at the Architectural Foundation  Chinatown Bakery 12x12" mixed media collage on panel  Cutaway (I) 12x12 mixed media collage on panel |
"Greenwich Village: Graffiti Dumpster" photographed in the 1980's, the beginning of my obsession with chaotic urban photography.
Sold! on opening night
A few pieces were sold on opening night which is always a nice surprise: "Greenwich: Sun Flare" (9x12" digital print mounted on panel), "Greenwich: Laundry" (9x12" digital print mounted on panel), and "Turtle Race" (12x12" mixed media on panel, see slideshow below.
Sold at Artful Sol in Vail, CO
 | These are two of my paintings that were sold at Artful Sol last month - Camino Cielo (I) & (II). They were actually painted while adventuring on E. Camino Cielo during one of my "outdoor hiking/painting afternoons". These are near and dear to my heart.   |
Workshop Dates for Jan-Mar 2018
I will be teaching Abstract Layering Workshops in 2018: Level 1, Level 2, and brand new.. Advanced - Working Large for those that have taken my previous workshops and wish to go bigger with abstract layering techniques!! Just announced yesterday, and already Level 1 is almost full! Please see flyers below, share with anyone you know that might be interested, or message me if you are interested in attending.
Industrial Strength - Review
Zach Rosen from the Sentinel reviewed my show at AFSB.. I had less than an hour's notice, but I'm always ready to talk art.. many thanks to Zach for the write up!
New: Find My Work on Artsy!
Lastly, I have a profile on artsy.net, through 10 West Gallery. Artsy gets a lot of exposure as an online directory for major artists, art galleries, and art collectors. Please take the time to browse and like/follow to increase the viability of my site and 10 West Gallery. Many thanks for your support!!
best,
Madeline
best,
Madeline
My newest collage and paintings are now hanging at the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara in my solo show Industrial Strength. It took a massive amount of Industrial Strength to complete the show while focusing on this concept of industrial strength and what it means to my studio practice and ultimately the work that was accomplished. So I wrote an Industrial Strength artist statement to reflect the work.
| Industrial Strength connotes "extremely powerful, intense, durable, more concentrated than the standard brand." My newest work has been intensified with protests and prayers woven into multiple layers of hand-painted papers, stenciling, reduction techniques, and torn images from my archive of street photography. Chaotic urban environments with demolished walls, raw graffiti, and gritty patterns all make their way into Industrial Strength. My idea for Industrial Strength has been brewing for over 30 years, absorbing city images until it started to flow out of my fingertips in an orchestration of color and energy. I am fascinated by the volume of graffiti covering almost any surface – walls, fences, railings, train cars, utility boxes, dumpsters. There is something about the rhythm, |  Live Your Dreams 12x12" mixed media collage on panel |
the color, and the energy that speak so strongly to me. I admire the boldness of street artists to create something bursting with color when the walls and fences are otherwise concrete ugliness, and the bravery to have the vision and find a place to make their imprint by hanging from billboards and rooftops. I am not glorifying vandalism of personal property or hate tags between gangs – that is not ok with me – but beautifying old neglected walls has an astounding worthiness that makes the world a little brighter, which I think is a brilliant and brave thing to do
Photography has become my method of examining this world zooming in closer and closer, not to understand or interpret, but to feel and embrace the beauty/chaos, the angst, the hint of meaning in the images. My tradition of searching for the mysterious and unknown has extended to the urban walls covered with street art that occurs mostly during late night hours, somewhat encrypted and unpredictable. The mystery is there and I love it..
Photography has become my method of examining this world zooming in closer and closer, not to understand or interpret, but to feel and embrace the beauty/chaos, the angst, the hint of meaning in the images. My tradition of searching for the mysterious and unknown has extended to the urban walls covered with street art that occurs mostly during late night hours, somewhat encrypted and unpredictable. The mystery is there and I love it..
Alley in Haight Ashbury, a fine example of graffiti on dumpsters, utility boxes, stairwells. Photograph by Madeline Garrett (2014)
The collage pieces contain many of my photographs from NYC, Haight Ashbury, Alcatraz, and Chinatown (San Francisco), in patterns of abstracted sections, torn and re-built into something that echoes in my soul. I've tagged my own paintings. I've written Industrial Strength protests and prayers with Industrial Strength attitude to make a difference in a broken world. We all need Industrial Strength to do what's right, kind and decent. Not just for one single religion, country, race or creed, but for all of us that share this planet earth.
Industrial Strength is on view through November 16th at the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara, 229 E. Victoria St, Santa Barbara, CA. Gallery hours are Saturdays from 1pm-4pm and by appointment (please call AFSB at 805-965-6307).
~Madeline
Industrial Strength is on view through November 16th at the Architectural Foundation of Santa Barbara, 229 E. Victoria St, Santa Barbara, CA. Gallery hours are Saturdays from 1pm-4pm and by appointment (please call AFSB at 805-965-6307).
~Madeline
| Hurricane Mama Cuts Loose That is the sign at the entrance to my studio, and that is my current theme for life. I am a flurry of activity - painting, writing, creating my own urban walls on panels/paper/canvas. And gluing.. papers flying everywhere as I work on a new phase of collage for upcoming shows. I have been on a tear (no pun intended) working on some rad new ideas to be revealed in the next month or so. New work was delivered for the June show at 10 West Gallery and the ArtSEE benefit for SEE International. Both paintings sold at the benefit, and a large 5 ft painting was sold at 10 West the very next day after it was hung! Round that off with a trip to the Bay area - visiting family and bouncing around the city - as well as teaching another 3-day Abstract Layering Workshop (Level 1), and a 4-week Workshop (Level 2), it has been a crazy few months!! San Francisco was incredibly inspiring as we roamed through Chinatown, Chestnut St and Haight-Ashbury. We even managed to score some tickets to the Art Market San Francisco at Fort Mason Center. Not as large as expected for an art fair, but plenty of eye popping gorgeous colors, art and inspiration. Lots of photographing around the city, and I discovered my newest obsession... | For the real story behind "Hurricane Mama", please read to the end of this newsletter!  Street art in Chinatown, San Francisco  Artwork by Justin Lyons, San Francisco Art Market  My 5 ft painting "Lost Canoe" was sold the day after it was hung at 10 West Gallery! |
Every city I've been to is rich in visual resources: the color, the energy, the tones of gray, the graffiti and the eroded walls. I cannot put the camera down when I am in the city. Some of the places I have photographed with total obsession are Haight Ashbury, Greenwich Village, and even Alcatrez. My artwork is highly influenced by this urban energy in my attempt to create the "perfect wall"
photo credit Madeline Garrett: "Lost in the Alley" Haight Ashbury
photo credit Madeline Garrett: "Lost in the Alley" Haight Ashbury
 | I love the color gray, in all shades & hues. I love pale gray, dark gray, sage gray, umber gray, and beige gray also known as greige. I have loved it for years, probably starting with black & white photography, because of the different variations of gray between the black and the white. Half of my wardrobe is gray. I rarely use gray right out of the tube and have to blend it with other earthy colors to achieve the perfect gray for my painting. Lately I have been attempting to get the the perfect cinder block cement gray and now I am rolling with many mixes in that shade. |
I am a cowgirl at heart.. blazing new trails, roaming the mountainside, head in the clouds, trying to round up the muse and lasso her in for a wild ride. Can be seen with cowboy coffee in the desert, talking to cactus, and forever carrying a camera with the need to photograph everything with my own unique view. I take all of these experiences, work them into the surfaces of my paintings, and brandish them with my distinctive style.
Little Cowgirl is literally "now and then" in the same moment. Fifty years separate the two images in this collage: a 3-year old on the draw in her cowgirl suit, and the famous COWGIRL sign in Santa Fe where I have frequented many times during my travels.. a symbol of the free spirited cowgirl that still exists after all these years and is part of me whether I am 3 or 53. Lots of changes occur over the years, but the interior remains the same. No matter where I go or what I do, that spirit is there.
Little Cowgirl is literally "now and then" in the same moment. Fifty years separate the two images in this collage: a 3-year old on the draw in her cowgirl suit, and the famous COWGIRL sign in Santa Fe where I have frequented many times during my travels.. a symbol of the free spirited cowgirl that still exists after all these years and is part of me whether I am 3 or 53. Lots of changes occur over the years, but the interior remains the same. No matter where I go or what I do, that spirit is there.
Madeline Garrett
Insider takes on the creative process - inspiration, musings, and "aha" moments in the studio and the world at large.
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