I live so close to NYC, but historically I seldom take advantage of its proximity, shy of attending family celebrations. Now that I'm a short train ride away and I've made a commitment this year to start seeing work by other artists and attending shows other than my own, I finally planned a weekday art day in NYC. As a working teaching artist, this is something I need to prioritize more and with my kids in school for longer stretches, it's actually doable, or so I thought. 

I've been lucky to spend time getting to know another creative mom from South Orange (next door to West Orange), who happens to be a published poet. Our meeting is a long story, and I'm not good at short stories. So as brief as I can, it involves meeting her husband, Lee Seidenberg, while figure drawing during a South Orange creative festival, mutually admiring our works, having a conversation, discovering his wife, Marcia Le Beau, worked with my sister-in-law in the advertising industry, told my sister-in-law about the chance meeting, she said Marcia was great, we tried to link up to socialize, hasn't happened because of our crazy schedules, and then Lee gives Marcia watercolor lessons as a gift, taught by, none other than, me. It also happens that my husband's name is also Lee and Marcia and I are both SU alums, oh and we're both Pennsylvania gals. Marcia has been taking my class at Work and Play since January, and I've had the opportunity to get to know her, help her develop her visual art, and discover her amazing creativity as a poet. 

While I opened my field trip to all of my students, only Marcia was free to join me. The intended plan was to head to The Met Breuer to see the Unfinished exhibit. However, the NJTransit delays had other plans for us, and we decided to stay closer to Penn Station, walk the Highline and check out some galleries in Chelsea. We headed down the Highline, stopped in for a water at a sweet cafe near 10th and something, where I saw my first eye candy of the day: a Synesso espresso maker, an appliance after my own heart. Beyond the art today, I ended up shooting some reference shots of two beautiful coffee makers and a coffee grinder. As it turns out, Marcia has an acquaintance, Debra Marcoux, who is the director of Markel Fine Arts, and as it turns out, lives in my neighborhood. 

Markel Fine Arts has a show featuring two artists, Sarah Irvin and Josette Urso, both abstractionists, but entirely different focuses. Sarah is a mom, using writing, ink, and Yupo paper to convey the temporality of memory and language, inspired by her experiences during pregnancy and early motherhood. I didn't get a chance to photograph her work, but you can explore it more through Markel Fine Arts. Josette Urso is a Brooklyn-based artist who uses landscape as her schema. Not only does she work in oil, but also renders incredibly complex ink drawings from her studio window. We bounced around a few other galleries, finally ending up at George Billis Gallery where I discovered the abstract, patterned works of John Belingheri. My photos don't do the work any justice. You need to see them in person. And, John Belingheri's show, alongside with David Febland and Chuck Aydlett, opens tonight from 6 - 8pm if you're in Chelsea. 

We ended our trip with a visit to Underline Coffee which is owned by partners and husband and wife, Brandon and Debra, the same Debra who directs Kathryn Markel. They opened up about two years ago and everything, including much of the interior design, is hand cut, hand brewed, and hand built. We had delicious toast, and amazing coffee and tea, plus got a chance to meet and chat with Brandon. 

Our time was short, our plans changed, but we rolled with it and booked it home in the nick of time for Marcia to pick up her kids from school. We're hoping to make another trip in to actually get to the Met Breuer. Keep your fingers crossed that we can make it happen; in the meantime, I highly suggest you read some of Marcia's poetry at www.marcialebeau.com. They are quick, witty, in some cases funny, and a pleasure to read.

Looking forward to my next post? Here's what's in the works: the background to my newly finished painting, a rare opportunity to purchase work by artist Tony Lordi, and a chance to own a one of a kind original work that will soon get a lot of viewing. Want to get these in your inbox? Follow me on Bloglovin or subscribe on the right. 

An email came through my inbox recently from a local charity, Oasis, asking for donations to support their moms. With mothers on our mind I thought now is the perfect time to launch a month-long mission to raise awareness about Oasis and donate 15% of profits from my art sales. 

Oasis is based in nearby Paterson, NJ, a city that exhibits a child poverty rate of 42%, compared to a 16% statewide rate. I've supported them in the past due to their excellent programs and their rating on Charity Navigator, plus 83% of their donations go directly to the women and children they aim to help. I've worked with and donated to other organizations in the past that help moms due to the direct link in helping future generations. By helping moms become self-sufficient, their children benefit directly by a higher quality of life. Moms are important.  

A special thanks to my mom, my husband, and my kids as we approach mother's day. I'm grateful for my mom's unconditional love and lessons in becoming a mother, and for my husband in helping me through the ups and downs of motherhood, and to my kids who have taught me a new kind of love and become creative in ways I never thought possible. Happy Mothers Day to my mom, my sister on her first Mother's Day, and to all of the moms out there who work so hard every day to feed, clothe, and love your kids. 

My most recent works, the Red Carpet Icons, have been on exhibit at Hat City Kitchen in the Valley Arts District of Orange, NJ, for two months already! A couple of weeks ago, the restaurant hired a new executive chef and repainted the dining room. After the transformation, Jeremy Moss, local artist and operator of the gallery for Valley Arts, my son, and I spent an afternoon rehanging the show. The photo below speaks for itself.

I'm both sad to see the exhibit close in a month, but happy to explore new venues for these pieces. If you haven't gotten to the restaurant to see the exhibit, the work will be hanging through March 9th, and Valley Arts, the host of the Orbital Gallery at Hat City Kitchen, is hosting one last Artists' Salon Monday, February 8th, from 6 - 8pm. I hope you'll either come out and join me, or explore the exhibit online from the comfort of your device. There's also something special on Monday for attendees and email subscribers. So hop on over and join my list and make it an #Artful2016!

Happy 2016! I've taken a break over the holidays to shut down my production and focus on my family after a very intense end of year celebrating birthdays, holidays, anniversaries, hanging a solo show, last-minute holiday commissions, and online sales. I feel as if I'm starting to emerge on multiple levels. While I haven't yet gotten back to art making, I've spent the past week bookkeeping, reviewing and reflecting on 2015. While many artists I follow on social media are actively creating already, I have needed to take a step back and meditate on my successes and failures and BREATHE before moving ahead. Something people keep telling me I need to do, both literally and figuratively. So I'm heeding the advice. 

Through that pause for reflection I discovered​ 2015 was a year of growth for me. I increased my overall student enrollment, began teaching adult watercolor classes at Work & Play in South Orange, offered a part-time summer drawing camp, created over 30 new pieces of art, exhibited at multiple venues including the Maplewood Art Walk, SOMA Studio Tour, and currently at Hat City Kitchen, participated in two public art events in South Orange, reintroduced my annual calendar, began making watercolor calendars for a free monthly desktop download, helped a student set up a private studio, and participated in an art challenge to create every day during the month of November.

Whew! I am proud of my own accomplishments. But, I couldn't have done it without the following in place. As a working mom with young kids and a husband who spent a good portion of the year traveling for his job, I got help with my kids. My youngest is in part-time daycare and I added on a day where he goes to a neighbor's house. My oldest is in school, but I've reached out to friends when I need extra support after school. For keeping myself on task and organized, last year I invested in an awesome planner: the Passion Planner. It's a neat book that encourages me to goal-set and write things down, as well as offers space to work out ideas visually. I've noticed that days without my planner I feel lost, adrift, even more so than being without my technology. Both the act of writing out my goals and paying for time to create my work keeps me on target. I know that when the kids are in school, I am in my studio either creating, marketing or teaching. 

Yesterday, I had a phone call with an artist I knew from my former gallery in Newton, NJ, and he wanted advice from me on goal-setting and moving forward with his art. He was questioning where to sell his work and how to price it. Though I've been in business for ten years, my relocation and taking time off after having my 2nd child, has put me back in the same boat. I told him that I was in the exact same quandary: wondering about pricing my work, where to sell it, and what to make. Ultimately, my advice to him was to follow his interest in subject matter, keep making the work, do lots of research and networking on the best venues, and continue to create and test the waters. After all, that's what artists do. I'll be taking my own advice, and my goal this year is to attend one art-related event per month that is not my own so I can begin to network and see beyond my own studio. 

Whether you are an artist, student or hobbyist, what are you doing to move into 2016 artistically? How have you found success in your work and what does that mean to you? Share with me on my blog or on twitter with #artful2016.

While I may not have actually painted or drawn an original artwork every day, and may not have even made it into the studio, when I look back at what I've actually accomplished, I'm astounded! I chose to voluntarily participate in artist Leah Piken Kolidas' Art Every Day Month 2015 challenge. Looking back over the month and seeing my paintings in one place, I'm amazed by the number of works I've created in a short period.

Caring for two young kids, a husband who is traveling out of state three days a week, and my teaching schedule has not been easy. Some days are harder then others and I wonder why I do this to myself. But, at the end of the day, or in this case, the month, the fruits of my labor (as well as the growth in my kids and special time we've spent celebrating 7th and 40th birthdays, Thanksgiving, and more) has been worth it. I know when I've been painting, drawing, or creating in my studio, I'm a happier mom, artist, wife, and all around person. And, even if I'm not creating my own work in the studio, every day I am creating for my kids and my students. But this was a month dedicated to my own growth in my artwork.

I still have more work to do for my upcoming solo show at Hat City Kitchen, slated to open on December 14th. But I feel more confident than ever in my ability to meet my goals in the studio. Thank you to Leah and the community that she has developed that helped keep me accountable, and to my husband and kids for understanding the late nights and weekend work time. If you're in the NJ area on December 14th, please consider joining me for my opening of my first solo show in several years, over a delicious Cajun-style meal at Orange's Hat City Kitchen, in the Valley Arts District.