Monday, February 17, 2025

Newsletter, February, 2025

February News:
 
John Lennon said: “Everything will be okay in the end. If it’s not okay, it’s not the end.”

I got a kick out of seeing Lennon's quote since I had just started the large commission pictured below.  It is going to be ok in the end? It definitely will. 

I am fortunate to have two current commissions in progress as well as this 22' x 6 1/2' commission for a prominent, East coast hospital that is well underway. It is an ambitious effort just to get it started!  At the moment, the canvas is in its foundational stage but it is coming together nicely. More info
 
Join me for one of four, 3-Day Intensive Workshops May - July in Cincinnati and in the Boston and Denver Metros. Complete information here.

I also host day-long 'paint alongs' for $50 where we are both painting separately and we huddle for problem solving. Use of my paints are included. Send me an email if you are interested... It's very informative, casual and great fun. email Ken

Back into the always amusing studio,
Ken 

 
Grateful Notices

Autumn Coming Through
Oil on canvas, 50 x 40 inches
Exhibited: Sorelle Gallery, Westport, Connecticut


Blue Wish
Oil on oil on canvas, 36 x 36 inches
Exhibited: Sorelle Gallery, Westport, Connecticut
Private collection


Available Works:

Winter Light I
Oil on canvas, 30 x 40 inches
Exhibiting: Breckenridge Gallery, Breckenridge, Colorado
Framed $5600


Cool Moving Up
Oil on canvas,48 x 30 inches
Exhibiting:  Saks Galleries, Denver, CO
$6400 framed


Soft Forest Cool
Pastel on sanded paper, 12x 16 inches
Exhibiting: Dominique Boisjoli Fine Art, Santa Fe, NM
$1750 framed

Workshops and Mentoring Sessions:


Take your work to new heights. My Workshops and Mentoring Sessions will focus on strategies for making better paintings, colorist tools, going to new places in your work and making fine art. We will be going deeper into making better and more appealing artworks with a variety of strategies and in some sessions, there will be time for Photoshop insights made easy. all workshop info



Ken Elliott American Landscapes coffee table book:

This large coffee table book reprises over 25 years of my works in oil, pastel, monotype, etching and collage. Large, coffee table hardback version, 11 x 13 inches, 94 color pages with essays. Book and a signed giclee print of the cover image: $160 or just order the book for $129.

eBook versions available for Amazon Kindle Fire®, Apple iOS devices, and macOS computers for $14.99.You can preview the complete book and how to order your electronic or hardback versions from my website.

View my newest artworks


Sunset Impression
Oil on canvas, 36 x 36 inches, unframed
Exhibiting: Page + Waterman Gallery, Wellesley, MA


This monthly newsletter is the best way to stay up to date with my new works and events. You can also follow me on Facebook and go more in depth with my blog. To view the total of my works in all media and in all my galleries, go to www.kenelliott.com. Please pass this onto a friend and they can sign up for this newsletter here.

Thank you,
Ken

Saturday, February 8, 2025

Art at Scale: Inside a Current Hospital Commission

Thanks to artists Daryl Muncey and Jonathan Miller, we literally got this project off the ground.

When an art consultant approaches you for a 22 foot canvas, you know it's not going to be a typical project. This commission for a prestigious East Coast hospital represents a large-scale challenge.
To begin, this project requires a long, continuous canvas roll and next, a custom support system combining aluminum and wood, engineered to maintain structural integrity across this expansive surface. On the canvas, I have drawn in a grid to proportionately locate all of the elements in the composition.



Right now, the canvas is in its foundational stage. It looks rough and unfinished, but that's intentional. I'm focused on structural elements and spatial relationships, not aesthetic refinement. Now that the oil is blocked in, I can begin the artistic process, creating a finished work that is appealing across this 22 foot span.


Creating art this large isn't just about technique—it's physical work and I'm constantly repositioning myself and the canvas to access different sections. Each part requires a different perspective and approach.


I am fortunate to always have commissions going and this project is one of four currently, but it stands out for its complexity and sheer size. With the support from art consultant Mary Dreblow, who procured the project, what could be overwhelming becomes an exciting artistic challenge.


Sometimes, art is about more than just the final image—it's about the process of creation itself.

Work in progress, first blocking in