Celebrate 2011 and a Grand Toast to the Giveaway Winner!

All thing beautiful
All things true
All creatures on earth

Sing peace to you

The cardinal call
From a tree’s bare limb
Peace, say the words
Of his evening hymn

Whales sing to each other
All nightlong
Peace, say the words
Of their deep blue song

The silence of deer
In a field of snow
Is their song of peace
For all we know

The wolf on the hill
The swan on the wing
Are loud to the ear
But listen, they sing….

Peace to you & All the Best in 2011!

A huge Congratulations to the winner

Four gorgeous crystal wine glasses and a set of zinc Bird Tags from the creative Christina of My Sparrow
.............

is Dominique Browning of Slow Love Life her blog is simply amazing !

I Won!!!

This set of four Kate Spade appetizer plates from Sara at Carpe Diem

Be sure to visit her site

Thank you so much!

I will have more shout outs as well as another Special Giveaway coming up!

Please contact me for Special Commissions of original Works of Art

Joyeaux Noel

Wishing you and yours a most Wondrous Holiday Season!

All The best in the New Year ahead!

You still have tine to Enter My Giveaway from My Sparrow!

Click Here!

Fifi Flowers Giveaway $200 Value

Fifi Flowers Giveaway

Fifi Flowers is offering an amazing Artful Giveaway! You will love her style and panache. Her art is wonderful for collecting as well as gift giving. Below is just a small sampling of her art and my interview with Fifi.

"Art is an experience that transcends all cultural boundaries.....it makes us feel!"

KA: Who or what first inspired you to start painting?

Fifi: I was first inspired to paint when I realized I could not afford a REAL Henri Matisse painting and began copying them. My first reproduction was A View out of Paris apartment window!

KA: How do stay motivated to create new art consistently?

Fifi: Seeing things that surround my daily life online is what motivates moi to paint… there are so many FABuLOUS photos online… visiting blogs, socializing via online media and photos scream to moi PAINT ME!!! Anddddd I am always snapping photos via my iphone of things in the REAL world and magazines aussi!

KA: What artists do you emulate or admire a great deal?

Fifi: My all time favorite artist is Henri Matisse… j’adore his BRIGHT colours and exciting pattern compositions!

KA: Tell me about when you first started your art/blog site……

Fifi: I started blogging in April of 2008. My maman told me about blogging… she read about in the Wall Street Journal and then I read about “paintings a day” in Domino magazine. I visited the Painting a Day website and read that you must have a blog for at least 4 months to be considered… sooooo I began blogging… then I started an Etsy account and here I am!

KA: What are your next projects or shows coming up….?

Fifi: Next project… Welllll I’m VERY EXCITED about this coming year as I will be getting back to my REAL passion… painting on canvas!!! Anddd I’m hoping to do more art trunk shows and some gallery showings… and of course I’m hoping to make a trip back to PARIS!!!

Eiffel Music Room

Note Card Sets

Eiffel Tower Theme

Red Umbrella Set

Fifi says life should be full of WHIMSY and FUN... beautiful things that surround her daily life are what inspire her to paint!

Pink Tulips

Pink Bicycle Image

Street Cafe and Red Wine Painting

Eiffel Tower Walk with Scottie



Parisian Rooftops Painting

Fifi has a bachelor's degree in Art and a minor in Art History from California Polytechnic University and attended UCLA Film School for Production Design.

She is so delightful and you can see her personality shine through in her works of art!

In this Giveaway Fifi is offering:

1) One 8 x 10 original acrylic work of art on archival paper of Winner's choice

2) One 2011 Calendar of Winner's choice

3) A set of 10, 4 x 6 Note Cards of Winner's choice

This Art Package has a value of $200.

Paris Style Christmas

1) To win this great package become a follower of mine on this site or mention that you are already following me

2) Go to Fifi Flowers or Fifi's Etsy Shop then come back and mention in your comment one or two of your favorite images.

3) For FIVE, yes Five additional chances to win....... Blog about this Giveaway on your site with an image and link to come and enter!

No Anonymous comments please

The Winner will be announced on December 15th!

All rights reserved by Fifi Flowers.com

Art by Karena

Call or email me for quotes on my original works of art or special art commissions

The Winner of an Artistic Pillow from Empress of the Eye

The Winner is.........

The Nutcracker Suite. One of my favorite holiday productions, be sure to attend, whatever city you are residing!

The winner of our giveaway from Empress of the Eye is Beth from both of the fabulous blogs Chinoiserie Chic and Style Redux II !!

Be sure to visit all of these blog sites if you have not already, and you will be fascinated by the brilliance of these creative women!

Another amazing Artistic Giveaway coming up later in the week! I hope you are having fun with the variety and quality of our way of giving back and paying it forward!

Karena

Art by Karena

Call or email for quotes on works of original art or special commissions.

kalbert1@kc.rr.com

The Winner From Metis Linens is.......!!!!!!

The Perfect ballerina from French Artist Degas, to announce the winner of the Fabulous Giveaway from Metis Linens! A basket full of wonderful French specialties valued at over $300.

Thank you to Andrea from the French Basketeer and Laura of Decor to Adore for sponsoring this Giveaway from Metis Linens. May their business venture, Metis Linens be the huge success that I know it will be!

The winner which was generated by Random.Org is # 137 ,

Elizabeth from Precious and Pink! Congratulations to Elizabeth and please contact me with your information

I have so much appreciation for all of the support and encouragement from my blog friends, followers and sponsors

Look for another very special Giveaway to be announced soon; as well as Shout Outs for some wonderful gifts I have won!

Call me for quotes on Custom Original works of art or on any of my available paintings. 913*638*5171

Karena

Into the Light & A Surprise Giveaway Coming Up This Week

Into the Light

Look for a superb surprise Giveaway this week, I am so excited and I know you will all love it.

Become a follower and you will be ready to comment!

I am featuring a painting that is in mid stage. There is still some glazing and depth to add. It is created on a Signature Canvas which is Linen & 3 inches deep, 48 H x 24 W. It will hang on a Peacock Blue wall until sold, or shown in an upcoming exhibit. The cropping is skewed a bit, I am not an expert photographer yet!!

The Inspiration for my next painting comes from this fabulous portrait , recently discovered, done by Boldini, a student of John Singer Sargent. Breathtaking!! Auctioned for nearly 3 million.

The woman in the masterpiece proved to be Marthe de Florian, an actress whom the genre painter had a relationship with. The owner was the granddaughter of de Florian.

The authenticity of the canvas was confirmed by Marc Ottavi, an art expert although he also adds that the portrait was never exhibited or listed in any reference books.

For 70 years, the apartment of the granddaughter of Marthe de Florian, a beautiful actress of the early screen, lay untouched. The rent was paid, the doors were locked, but no one went inside. Until the 91-year-old passed away, and the rooms of treasure were discovered by experts sent to inventory her belongings.

The apartment held various items from before WWII; de Florian had left Paris before the war, and never went back. There were toys and a vanity, furniture and art. But the most shocking and cherished of items was this before-unknown painting by legendary painter Giovanni Boldini.

Posting Pink and the French Basketeer Winner is.......

Posting Pink

It is October 1st and I am supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Please urge all of your friends and family to have their annual mamograms.

This is one of my all time favorite paintings

Grandeur

Even the name celebrates the power and essence of women!

Now the exciting news is that we have a winner of my contest with The French Basketeer! It is Brooke Giannetti from Velvet and Linen.

Her fabulous site Velvet and Linen is one you simply must visit. As soon as you do you will see what I mean. You will find a wonderful mix of Old World as well as Chic Industrial pieces. Brooke's husband Steve paints amazing seascapes.

A huge Thank You to a most generous woman, Andrea proprietress of The French Basketeer!

Thank you so much to all of my loyal friends and supporters and look for more great giveaways to come!!

I will also be painting again after a hiatus this summer for several surgeries and healing!

Images courtesy of The French Basketeer and Velvet and Linen

Weekend Art Museum Excursions

The completion and opening of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art's Bloch Building is a huge milestone for the Kansas City Art scene. The Bloch Building, which has been under construction since 2005, casts a luminous glow on the east side of the Nelson, adding to it's wonder and mystique of what's being shown inside. Surprising to most is that much of the collection is underground.

The Bloch Building also promises to bring Kansas City some of the most talked about and most treasured collections and exhibitions that are not to be missed. The Bloch Building opened beginning on June 9th, 2007.

Inaugural Collections and Exhibitions::

The Bloch Building will feature two inaugural collections:
Developing Greatness: The Origins of American Photography, 1839-1885 June 9—December 30, 2007

Manet to Matisse: Impressionist Masters from the Marion and Henry Bloch Collection June 9—September 9, 2007

Bloch Building Architect

In 1999, six architects were selected as finalists for the Nelson-Atkins expansion project. They were encouraged to view the north side of the Museum as the best site for the expansion, and most presented preliminary designs that followed that suggestion, with large buildings that used the original Nelson-Atkins as a backdrop.
One architectural firm, however, broke all the rules. Steven Holl Architects presented a design that ran along the east side of the Museum, tumbling into the Kansas City Sculpture Park and incorporating landscape and light as key elements in his overall plan. Rather than block the grand north façade of the original building, Holl’s design found its own space along the gently sloping eastern edge of the Museum’s 22-acre campus.
His design was a daring and unexpected solution to the Museum’s needs, balancing innovation with respect for the beloved Nelson-Atkins neoclassical building. Steven Holl Architects was the clear choice of the Architectural Selection Committee and was selected as the Bloch Building architect in July 1999. Considered one of America’s most important architects, Steven Holl is recognized for his ability to blend space and light with great sensitivity. He specializes in seamlessly integrating new projects into contexts with particular cultural and historic importance.

Steven Holl Architects has designed cultural, civic, academic and residential projects in both the United States and internationally. The Kiasma Museum of Contemporary is generally considered to be his masterpiece. Most recently, The School of Art & Art History at the University of Iowa received the AIA’s 2007 Institute Honor Award, their highest award for architecture.
Steven Holl Architects continues to work on a variety of projects such as the Linked Hybrid (Beijing, China); The Nanjing Museum of Art & Architecture (Nanjing, China); Herning Center of the Arts (Herning, Denmark), Cité du Surf et de l’Océan (Biarritz, France), Sail Hybrid (Knokke-Heist, Belgium), Vanke Center (Shenzhen, China); and the NYU Department of Philosophy in New York City.

The Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art opened October 2, 1994. At the core of the permanent collection is the Bebe and Crosby Kemper Collection, a gift by the Museum’s donors R. Crosby Kemper and his wife Bebe Kemper, and the Kemper Foundations. The collection includes works by such artists as Louise Bourgeois, Christian Boltanski, Manuel Neri, Jasper Johns, Helen Frankenthaler, Frank Stella, Joan Mitchell, Jackson Pollock, Robert Rauschenberg, Hung Liu, Robert Motherwell, Deborah Butterfield, Fairfield Porter, Wayne Thiebaud, Grace Hartigan, William Wegman, Red Grooms, Georgia O’Keeffe, Christopher Brown, Willem de Kooning, and Robert Mapplethorpe.

The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art is dedicated to the enjoyment and understanding of the visual arts and the varied cultures they represent. It is committed through its collections and programs to being a vital partner in the educational and cultural life of Kansas City and a preeminent institution both nationally and internationally. The Nelson-Atkins strives to achieve this goal by adherence to the highest professional standards in the collection, preservation, exhibition and interpretation of works of art.

Welcome Julián Zugazagoitia, a man whose passion for the arts has taken him around the globe, has been named the fifth director of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art and will assume his post September 1. The news was announced at a March 5 press conference. Born in Mexico and educated at the Sorbonne Paris IV in France, Julián speaks six languages and has worked in the Americas, Europe and Africa. On his visits to Kansas City, he has been struck by the vibrancy of the area, especially the synergy between the arts culture, the university, business and scientific communities, and the overall commitment to philanthropy.

For the past seven years, Julián has been the Director/CEO of El Museo del Barrio in New York, a leading institution in the field of Latin American and Latino art. He led the institution through a $44 million renovation project that resulted in new gallery spaces, a refurbished facility and a popular restaurant. Jim Luce with the Huffington Post wrote about the opening: “Last week on a cold, windy night, over 1,600 New Yorkers arrived to welcome the opening of the Museum. The place was so alive, so hot – so on fire.” Julián is known for his high-energy leadership and his collaborations with other institutions, including the Museum of Modern Art, the National Portrait Gallery and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Before leading El Museo, Julián worked at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York as Executive Assistant to the Director. As a consultant and curator, he also worked with UNESCO and the Getty Conservation Institute in Los Angeles, organizing exhibitions, events and conferences internationally. He also curated exhibitions for the international art fair ARCO 2005, the 25th Sao Paulo Biennale in Brazil in 2002 and as Director of Visual Arts with the Spoleto Festival in Italy.

2010 marks the 100th anniversary of Corinthian Hall, the residence of Robert A. Long and his family, and the historic home of the Kansas City Museum. The Corinthian Hall Centennial will be celebrated all year long with special events, programs and activities.

The Kansas City Museum will be celebrating the “century mark” each month with a dynamic series of lectures, workshops, books, films and seminars that highlight Corinthian Hall’s unique architecture and the Long family’s deep and abiding commitment to the civic well-being of Kansas City.

This is just a sampling of great things to do in Kansas City. Truly a surprising and enchanting city to visit

Images and information courtesy of the above Museums and Galleries

The Royal Winners

The Two Winners of a bottle of Roederer Anderson Valley Estate Brut are ....Sound the trumpets!

Denalee of Silver Strands and Julia of Hooked on Houses

Congratulations to both of you wonderful blog women who add so much to the world of blogging! Send me your mailing information and your bottles of bubbly from Royal Liquors will be on their way!!

Parkville Days Riverfest

When Aug 20 – 22 2010
Where English Landing Park
Description Parkville Days Riverfest Friday, August 20 – Sunday, August 22 English Landing Park
Free Admission Something for everyone - music, carnival rides, more than 100 craft and art booths, a Saturday parade, good eats, games and fun for the whole family!

Be sure to plan on attending !!

Beth Cosner will have a booth of her fabulous jewelry!

Much thanks to all who entered the Giveaway and are following my site. Watch for new Giveaways to come. It is my way of sharing and paying it forward!

Contact me for prices on my original works of art or if you would like to custom order a commissioned work of fabulous art. Kalbert1@kc.rr.com