Winter

Winter

We are entering the beautiful season of Winter. It can be lovely with it's starkness in colors of black and tones of gray.

This elegant sumi-e is called simply 'Winter'. Media: Sumi (ink) and Japanese watercolor. This image was inspired by the dying of nature in wintertime to make way for the new growth of Spring. Since I was a child, the season of Winter has fascinated me with it's beauty and also frightened me with it's power.

The original painting of 'Winter' was sold. However, you may still purchase Fine Art Reproductions in my Sumi Gallery at Imagekind and art prints from my Zazzle Gallery. You can also professionally finish your reproduction with your choice of frame and mat at both these locations. I would be honored if you would take a look at what is possible. Thank you!

Casey Shannon Studio

Elegant Winter Card

Snowy Mountain Retreat

This is an elegant and unusual winter card to send to family and friends this holiday season. The Sumi-e painting is called 'Snowy Mountain Retreat'. The glistening stillness of the snow filled image is captured by painting in variations of white ink. There is nothing more beautiful than the season of snow. Stillness and peace are depicted in this painting with a full moon shinning down on a secluded tree top mountain retreat.

This card may be purchased from my Zazzle Galley. It has a lovely greeting printed inside for you. Or, you may customize the card with your own greeting and style of font. Or, you may order the cards blank. It's completely your choice!

Greeting: May the Peace and Love of the Holiday Season remain with you throughout the New Year.

The original painting may be seen in Gallery White.

Art House Sketchbook Project

Art House Sketchbook Project 2009-2010

The Sketchbook Project Library sponsored by The Art House Gallery will house sketchbooks by artists from around the world. Visitors to the exhibit will receive library cards and be able to view the books at exhibitions around the country. The goal of the project is to create a giant collective of sketchbooks from around the globe and make it accessible to everyone. The Project was featured on CNN and the library will be touring across the country beginning on January 29, 2010 in Atlanta, GA. Please visit my Exhibition page to see the cities and dates of the tour. After the cities tour, the sketchbooks will go back to Brooklyn Art House Gallery for permanent library display in the gallery.

Rules: Each participating artist was given a moleskin sketchbook and a theme randomly chosen from 30 available themes. Artists were instructed to base their sketchbook around this theme. My theme was 'A Postcard'. Visit my Sketchbook Project page to see all 40 pages of my sketchbook interpretation. Page numbers and captions are below each image. I enjoyed this project beyond words. I used my imagination to create fantasy places, I drew my favorite places that I had visited over the years from memory, and I included beautiful areas from near my home in Carmel Valley. I loved doing this! Enjoy!

Returning to Watercolor--Briefly

Abstract Waterfall

What fun! A little playing with watercolor. I decided the other day to post a watercolor on this blog. Not my present medium but a medium I dearly love and have created with extensively in the past. It's fun to play with paints and colors and just let your mind go! Another way to enter 'a journey into art'.

Sumi-e (my current medium and breath of life) for me is serious business. A meditation and very spiritual experience. Having a little fun with watercolor was very refreshing for me. It was a return to art days past. I will dabble in watercolor from time to time. I enjoyed it. I wonder if the fairies might play and sing by my waterfall?

This image is called Abstract Waterfall and was inspired by the beauty of nature and the spirit of water. Water is ever changing. It is pure. And, it can speak to us words of wisdom, if we slow down long enough to listen and contemplate. A babbling brook is so peaceful. A waterfall is magic. The ocean is power. Rain is cleansing. Water--we can not live without it nor would we ever want to.

A ZEN POEM
A sudden shower-
I am riding naked
On a naked horse.
~ Issa Kobayashi

Napa Valley Art Museum Exhibit

Spirit Standing Sumi-e

This elegant Sumi-e is called Spirit Standing. This image was inspired by the spirit that resides in all of nature. A spirit that is ever present and all encompassing. When I painted this Sumi-e, I was experiencing a little turmoil in my life. We all experience bumpy roads along our life journey. As I was painting in my mind during my pre-meditation, I was thinking how we can choose to have our spirits stand tall in the face of uncertainty and upset. My brush than flowed into this creation of ‘Spirit Standing’.

The original Sumi-e painting is currently on exhibit at The Napa Valley Art Museum, which is located in Yountville, CA. The address is: 55 Presidents Circle. My artwork will be on display until January 10, 2009.

Artist’s Reception: November 28, 2009 at 7PM.

The original sumi-e painting 'Spirit Standing' is for sale at the Art Museum. The proceeds from the sale of this work will be donated to the museum for their enrichment.

You may purchase Fine Art Reproductions of this stunning piece in my Zazzle Gallery. You may finish your print with a beautiful frame of your choice right on the website before purchase. Enjoy!