Audrey Bechler's Paintings: September 2017

Friday, September 15, 2017

Paintings on Bigger's Paper

Friends

Mike Bigger gave me a life time supply of heavy strong paper. I primed it with gesso and painted on it with acrylic paint. I also used it when I started painting abstracts. Many of my best paintings are on this paper. Below are some of the paintings using Bigger's paper.

Paper Pile A

Red Triangles

Spaced Lines

Winter Night

Summer House

Resting

Pot in the window

Foot Prints

Gallery Space

Portrait Class

Charlie at Work

Tower Illusion

Breakfast Table

Barn Roof

Stars and Stripes

Back Stairs

Doug Carving

Built for Comfort

Thursday, September 14, 2017

Sculpture

In my last blog I had a photo of the sculpture by Mike Bigger. In the Newburyport days when all the creative people moved to Newburyport Mike rented space in one of the factories on Water St. In that building he found left behind large rolls of heavy paper. I was one of the artists that was given a supply of this paper and have many works painted on it. I still have some of this paper and I always called it Bigger’s paper. I also have a sculpture that is now with Doug and Christina at my old home on Back cove. I recently Googled his name to find out what happened to him and I came up with the following. Do any of you still in Newburyport remember him?

Known internationally for his large, colorful metal compositions and outsized personality, sculptor Michael D. Bigger was also a charismatic teacher whose dynamic classroom style energized generations of students at Minneapolis College of Art and Design where he taught for more than 20 years.

n a 45 year exhibition career, he showed his work at galleries and museums in New York City, Chicago, Mexico City, and throughout Texas. His work is featured in corporate and museum collections around the country including the Oakland Museum of Art, Cincinnati Zoological Society, Vassar College and the San Antonio Museum of Art. In Minnesota he exhibited at Franconia Sculpture Park and the Western Sculpture Park in St. Paul among other sites.

I do have several sculptures that I brought to Eugene, by Joyce Audy Zarins, from Newburyport, one by Chris my son, Trudy Curtis, ( the rabbit) and John Lorence artists friends in Maine. When I lived in Maine I had one of Doug’s large wood sculptures, the one that looks like an abstract pod. While I was researching Mike I came across sculpture and architecture that is sculptural so I will put a few of those images in. All I can say is we live in amazing times in an amazing world and thanks for all the creative people that enrich our lives.

Mike Bigger

Mike bigger

my sculpture by Mike

Doug's Sculpture

Joyce Zarins

Rayal Villa, Miami FL

Rail Trails US

Architectural concepts by Roman Vlasov

Tower Dubai

Ribbin Chapel Hiroshima Japan

Monday, September 4, 2017

News from Eugene

painting for wet painting auction

News from Eugene

The trip to Maine was wonderful, and that I could stay in my home on Back Cove that Doug and Christina bough and live in. Doug has built a foundation under the house. No more animals living under the house, and no more movement caused from frost in the ground, a tight ship as the expression refers to. They said the fuel bill was cut in half. All the boulders that held up the house are piled in the yard and it will be interesting to see what creative way they will be used.

I saw most of my friends, and went to galleries and shows to see as much art as I could. I swam in the cove, and painted in my favorite places along the shore. I took part in the wet painting auction in Waldoboro and saw many of my painting friends. Chris came for a week for a rest and reprieve from working on the farm. Christina cooked all the meals which I appreciated and she also made most of the food for the party Aug 13th. I had my fill of lobster and sea food. Chris and I both went back to Eugene on the same day, Aug. 15th., Chris from Boston and me from Portland ME. We had the same flight from San Francisco to Eugene where Diane picked us up after midnight.

I watched the eclipse at Chris’s farm, 98%. It was a clear bright day. Doug came out on the 28th of Aug. to help with the construction of another building. It is hot and smoky. Working outside at the farm they are wearing masks which filter some of the smoke and help breathing. Forest fires are burning east and south and smoke settles in the valley. 300,000 acres have burned in OR. Many other western states also have fires, and then there are the places that are under water. As bad as storms are, people help each other putting aside racism,inequality, and prejudice. War multiples conflicts, storms unite and bring forth compassion. The radical weather patterns all over the globe will eventually teach us to live in places that will sustain us and we will learn to stop plundering and destroying the earth. The earth is alive and we need good air and water to live. Change is in the wind, even though it seems like two steps backward and one step forward, I believe we are moving toward a healthier planet, a healthier way of living together.

Doug goes back to Maine Sept 12th. I would like to hang out at the farm with them but not with all this smoke and heat. News Paper headline, "Eugene air quality reaches hazardous levels". The next couple of days around 100 and then cooler temperatures for the rest of the week.