A Bittersweet Week 05/14/2012
Last week was bittersweet. I lost my beloved Daphne suddenly to kidney failure.  Tuesday evening the vet told me that her kidneys were failing. Thursday, Daphne died. She was an extraordinary companion to me. Only 2 weeks ago, I posted 12 Important Things I’ve learned from my dog Daphne. And although it feels like my heart is breaking, I am extremely grateful that she went peacefully.  Sole Survivor Art Gallery On a brighter note, last week Sole Survivor Art Gallery reviewed my artwork and invited me to be one of 18 artists represented there! Saturday, I returned to the gallery with 8 more map paintings (for a total of 12 paintings) – to be displayed in time for Art on the Square May 18-20!!  The weather was so lovely Saturday that I decided to walk along Main Street after dropping off my art. Just a few doors down from Sole Survivor Art Gallery, I was pleasantly surprised to see a display of luggage and maps in the windows of My Vintage Addiction! Inside were even more maps and globes! It was such an unexpected and delightful visual treat.  Though I miss Daphne immensely, I’m remaining positive, embracing my fond memories of her. And I’ll continue looking for and finding inspiration along the way...just as I did Saturday. Mary^ 24 Comments Friday Favorite: Rebecca Garcia 05/11/2012
This Friday’s Feature artist is Rebecca Garcia! I’ll take one of each from her Etsy shop, too, please! 
Happy Friday! Mary^ Friday Favorite: Amy Rice 05/04/2012
This Friday’s Feature artist is Amy Rice! I’ll take one of each from her Etsy Shop please! 
Needless to say, I love the way she uses maps and the positive messages her artworks convey. After reading more about her, I was also deeply touched by how her dog Ella was her greatest muse and continues to inspire her art. TGIF! Mary^ New Work Wednesday: Green Sand Beach 05/02/2012
My new painting this week is entitled Green Sand Beach. 
©2012 Mary C. Nasser, Green Sand Beach, mixed-media/acrylic on canvas, 5 x 6 inches
This painting layers Hawaiian maps, decorative paper, typed text, olivine, metallic tape, metal ephemera and acrylic paint and media on a small stretched canvas. I adhered a tiny piece of olivine at Green Sand Beach's location on the center map. The metal compass needle points to the location, too. Green Sand Beach (Papakōlea Beach) is one of only two green sand beaches in the world. (The other is at the Galapagos Islands.) Green Sand Beach gets its distinctive coloring from olivine found in the enclosing cinder cone. Olivine is a common mineral component of Hawaiian lavas and one of the first crystals to form as magma cools. Green Sand Beach is located near South Point, the southernmost point on the Big Island of Hawaii and of the 50 United States. Because I didn’t have a 4 Wheel Drive, it was a 2 ¼ mile hike one-way to the Green Sand Beach…but worth every step! 
olivine
Thanks so much for visiting my blog! Hope you're having a wonderful week! Mary^ Friday Favorite: Robbi Lindeman of saltlabs! 04/27/2012
This Friday’s Feature artist is Robbi Lindeman of saltlabs! Her map pillows bring back wonderful memories for me of my travels. I love the look of the vintage maps! 
And you know I could just daydream the day away on her lovely geology pillows! 
New Work Wednesday: Solitude 04/25/2012
My new painting this week is entitled Solitude.  ©2012 Mary C. Nasser, Solitude, mixed-media/acrylic on canvas, 2 x 3 inches This painting layers Hawaiian maps, typed text, mica, olivine, metal ephemera and acrylic paint on a teeny-tiny stretched canvas. As an artist and an art educator, I frequently balance both solitude and community. Although I enjoy working closely with others – encouraging and guiding their creativity, I also love my solitude to paint! Thanks so much for visiting my blog! Hope you're having a wonderful week! Mary^ Friday Favorite: Luis Dourado 04/20/2012
This Friday's Feature artist is Luis Dourado! "I’ve always liked the idea of mind traveling and moving. When I look into maps, I start floating a little bit, remembering the places I’ve been." ~ Luis Dourado  New Work Wednesday: Exploration 04/18/2012
 My new painting this week is entitled Exploration. This painting layers a Hawaiian map, micron pen, typed text and acrylic paint on a small stretched canvas. Still love juxtaposing metallic and blue colors and drawing directly onto the canvas! Thanks so much for visiting my blog! Hope you're having a wonderful week! Mary^ Friday Favorite: Flora Kao 04/13/2012
This Friday's Feature artist is Flora Kao! I’m especially drawn to her City Studies painting series – their layers of blue lines and overlapping patterns of city maps. These paintings and rich blues resemble antique blueprints. Flora Kao writes: I am fascinated by the psychological potential of urban and constructed spaces. Yielding moments of perceptual clarity, my work isolates and brings into focus inconspicuous yet omnipresent aspects of everyday existence. In excavating details like the hum of electricity, the relentless city grid, or the sterility of institutional space, I seek to inspire a heightened awareness of our relationship to the built environment.  City Studies I, Acrylic on Rives BFK, 44 x 30 inches  City Studies I (detail), Acrylic on Rives BFK, 44 x 30 inches  City Studies III, Acrylic on Rives BFK, 44 x 30 inches  City Studies III (detail), Acrylic on Rives BFK, 44 x 30 inches  City Studies IV, Acrylic on Rives BFK, 44 x 30 inches  City Studies IV (detail), Acrylic on Rives BFK, 44 x 30 inches Butterfly Journey 04/11/2012
  Monday, I visited Journey, my Wings in the City butterfly, in its permanent home on the campus of Visitation Academy. It was my first time seeing my sculpture at Viz, and I am so very honored that it is dedicated to their Class of 2011 in memory of Roshney Simon, a senior at Visitation who passed away February 23, 2011. My butterfly, along with 55 others, was auctioned off, raising $1.3 million dollars for the Expressive Therapy program of Wings, BJC's (Barnes Jewish Hospital’s) pediatric hospice program. Wings' Expressive Art Therapy program includes all forms of artistic expression: paintings, drawings, stories, etc. These forms of self-expression lead to greater self-understanding and the release of painful feelings. It allows children to express through art what they can’t in words. The Friends of Wings are the volunteer fundraising group supporting the Wings program. Please visit http://www.friendsofwings.com/ for more information about the Friends of Wings. Wishing you all the best, Mary^ | About Me
I am a painter and art educator living in the Greater St. Louis Area. I love creating mixed-media paintings layered with maps and geologic drawings. This blog is a place for me to share my work and what inspires me. Read more here.  Follow me? Interested in buying my art?
You will always see my most recent paintings here on my blog, so you are in the right place. If you are ever interested in a piece, feel free to contact me. You can also find my work at Wood Icing, The Little Gallery at Art Saint Louis, Artlandish Gallery, and Etsy!     Grab my button  
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