TeaScapes grew out of an experiment and a need to do something with a collection of empty tea packages I had saved. One night during an adult watercolor class I was teaching, while the students were working, I played around with transferring a tea bag onto a stretched piece of Arches watercolor paper that I had stained with tea several years ago. It had been sitting in my studio untouched. It wasn't precious to me, which gave me the freedom to play with the tea bag. 

It happened almost too easily - using a gel medium coated on the surface of the paper and the package, I laid it down with the print facing the page, dried it, and then rubbed off with paper with a damp sponge. What was left was intriguing texturally. At the same time, I had cut out some mid-century styled chairs from a furniture catalog, and thought to transfer that as well. In doing so, it dawned on me the connection between the tea packaging design and contents and the landscape out West. Each collaged paper is then paired with a watercolored landscape that suits the transfer - the papers tell me what they want to be. You can watch a video of my process here. 

I got giddy over the juxtaposition - the way an artist does when she hits an "aha" moment. The meaningfulness behind the work how these pieces mirror my own personal growth through a traumatic period as a mother. The past two years took a toll on my spiritual, mental and physical self. The prior work I was doing with appliances no longer felt important, or relevant. With this, I was able to detach from my environment and go back to places where I felt whole, lightened and free. The works currently are focused on images that tie landscapes from Utah and Wyoming to the tea I'm drinking now (after my coffee - my first love).  

The small size, 5" x 7", lends itself to having a sense of completion since my studio time has been historically choppy and short. Each one is painted on Strathmore 500 Series watercolor paper and then mounted onto archival cradled wood panels by Ampersand, coated with UV spray and varnish, and wired and ready for hanging. Since beginning these in February, I'm now verging on 16 #TeaScapes with hopes of creating more.  

Six of them are already listed on my site, while any others not sold at this weekend's Maplewood Art & Music Walk, will be added next week. So, here's a peak at the pieces available online now, as well as new works getting ready for Sunday.  If you purchase anything, they will be hung on Sunday and marked as sold, shipping next week. Stop by my booth on Sunday from 11 - 5pm - #42 on Highland Place, use 9 Highland Place, Maplewood, NJ on your navigation. 

Saturday and Sunday, June 2 - 3rd, I'll be exhibiting new works alongside two other West Orange artists, Samar Hussaini and Peggy Pardon, at the studio where I teach my classes, Oh! Canary. We all happen to have kids around the same age within the town and are each striving to work as professional artists. You'll have an opportunity to meet us all, see and purchase our work, watch us work when we're not chatting with visitors, and see a sampling of student work from the students of Oh! Canary. Plus, you'll be entered to win one of my limited edition prints, "June's Pearls," a nod to the ever so wonderful Jersey Blueberry. The SOMA Studio Tour encompasses both South Orange and Maplewood, along with some artists from surrounding areas (like us). View the map of all the studio locations which include 75 artists! 

ENTER TO WIN DURING THE TOUR:
​June's Pearls, Limited Edition Giclée,
12" x 6", printed on 100% textured rag,
© Jennie Traill Schaeffer

ABOUT SAMAR HUSSAINI: Samar Hussaini is an Arab-American, Fine  Artist and Graphic Designer working,   creating, and living outside of NYC in West Orange, NJ, and also a friend of mine. Designed with multiple layers showing the enriching distinctions of being an Arab-American her work  creates thought-provoking ideas of dialogue and hope. Hussaini tells the story of Arab identity in a positive way transforming the prevalent misconceptions portrayed in the media and revealing the story of Arab people in a humanizing way. Hussaini earned her Bachelor of Arts from University of Maryland, with a double major in Studio Art and Art History and her Masters at Pratt Institute in Communication Design.

ABOUT PEGGY PARDON: For several years Sasha Huetz owned and operated a well known high-end vintage boutique in New York City's lower east side called Peggy Pardon. After the shop closed, Huetz started a family and continues to work as fashion stylist for editorial shoots and celebrities alike. Peggy Pardon (2.0) is a pet project of hers - setting out to create something with her hands and in doing so taught herself the art of porcelain clay, resin and metalsmithing. In the process Huetz came up with a collection of hand-crafted jewelry that she herself would wear. 

ABOUT JENNIE TRAILL SCHAEFFER: If you're new to TraillWorks or you've been following for awhile but don't know a lot about me, I'm a teaching artist living in West Orange, NJ, just west of NYC. I earned my Bachelors of Fine Arts in both painting and art education from Syracuse University, and had the opportunity to study in Florence, Italy. I've spent more than a decade painting oils that juxtapose kitchen appliances and food with religious symbology, along with  landscapes of importance. Over the past two years, my work has started to shift and I believe I'm finally discovering a new body of work, returning to the landscape in a new way. Some of these works will be exhibited for the first time this weekend.

Please join me Saturday and Sunday at Oh Canary, located at 513A Valley Street, Maplewood, NJ. And, if you can't be there, join us on social media (Instagram & Facebook - @traillworks) over the weekend, or subscribe to my newsletter for the official release of these works in my online shop. 

I've started my first Instagram contest, and due to many local shows in the next few weeks, I decided, why not make the contest hyperlocal. I've started a new ARTament (one of my handpainted ornaments), featuring local scenery in Essex County, NJ. I'm hoping it will be finished in time for Sunday's ARTFULL HOLIDAY: a small art boutique located at the Firehouse Gallery, in Orange, NJ. It's hosted by Valley Arts and will feature jewelry, fiber art, paintings, vintage holiday decorations and more by more than 20 artists and organizations. 

If you're in the Valley Arts District of Orange / West Orange, or in neighboring towns, or are out of the area and know someone in the Essex County, NJ area, please visit my INSTAGRAM page to enter. 

Wanna know the rules? 

Tonight marks the first of five art exhibits and opportunities to see and purchase my work this month. This show features nine works that focus on food gelato, aprons, appliances, and vintage cars. You can preview the work and purchase from out of the area, here. Any shipping charges will be determined after purchase. 

Additionally, it's an opportunity for me to help Save the Children, an organization that is actively supporting children in 120 countries including the U.S. have a healthy start to life and have the opportunity to learn and have care when disaster strikes. Given the many recent disasters here and around the world, as well as the growing refugee crisis, I wanted to give back through my work. Throughout the month of September, I'm donating 20% of my profits of art sales from The Maplewood Grille, the Maplewood Art Walk and any direct art sales through my studio / web site. 

If you're in the New Jersey area, please join me from 6 - 9pm at The Maplewood Grille, 144 Maplewood Ave., Maplewood. If you can't make it tonight, check out my other upcoming shows on my exhibit page.