Showing posts with label competition. Show all posts
Showing posts with label competition. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 3, 2024

Art Show - AAC - Open Art Competition

I squeezed in preparing 3 pieces for the Open Art Show while my transition strips on the floor were drying.

This piece is a close up of a Salsify Seed Head taken against the light. It looks like a giant dandelion.

To me this looks like paintbrushes on my desk.

Title: Brushes

Size: 11.00 x 14.00 inches

Medium: Photography

Mat: 11x14 Black Double 

Print: 8x10 inches

Frame: 11x14 Metal Black Satin






I was working on the idea of glazing where one applies layers of watercolor as you go down the painting and the color get darker at the bottom. Many layers of color then outlined in black marker.


Title: Moonrise

Size: 12.50 x 11.75 inches

Medium: Watercolor

Mat: 11x14 Warm White Double with Blue back layer

Art: 5.5 x 6 inches

Frame: 12 x 11.75 Metal Blue Satin


Captured the morning dew on a spider web on on my walk.  Beautiful and delicate structure.


Title: Morning Lace

Size: 12.00 x 14.25 inches

Medium: Photography

Mat: 11x14 White Single 

Print: 8.5x11 inches

Frame: 12x14 Metal Silver Satin


These are my entries into the show.

Reception: Friday, Sept 06/24 at
7 pm

Some wonderful art to behold.

Thursday, September 9, 2021

AAC 2021 Open Art Competition - Submissions

This competition is open to all kinds of art.  I submitted three pieces in the photography category.

Title: Entreaty
Size: 16.25 x 16.25 inches
Signed Photography Print
Mats: Black Double Archival
Frame: Black Wood medium profile
Print: 8x8 inches

This is a Hosta bloom and when I posted it to Instagram someone suggested it looked like praying hands.  That comment inspired the title for this piece.





Just a reminder to cut everyone a bit of slack in this 4th wave of the pandemic. On second thought, its a good idea all the time. 

We have no idea what others are going through.

Title: Be Kind
Size: 10 x 10 inches
Signed Photography Print
Mats: White Single Archival
Frame: Beech Wood medium profile
Print: 5x5 inches

This was a still life I created for one my challenges on Flickr - my photostream is SMDPics.



Another shot take for a Flickr Challenge in the last year.  This is my White Regency dinnerware by Johnson Brothers.


Title: White China
Size: 14 x 14 inches
Signed Photography Print
Mats: White Double Archival
Frame: Black Wood medium profile
Print: 8x8 inches


I am working on black and white for one of my 2022 calendars and I was reminded that I had taken this a while back.


You can check out the entries in the show by following this link -  AAC 2021 Open Art Competition.

Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Allied Arts Council - 2021 On Line Seniors Show


Our Seniors Show is going ahead on-line as we are still under COVID restrictions.

These are the 3 pieces I submitted for this show.

Title: Distant Hills
Size: 8.00 x 8.00 inches
Signed Photography Print
Mats: n/a
Frame: n/a
Print: 8x8 inches

 

This was created using the technique of in-camera motion.  I took some of my background fabrics and hung them in my small studio.  Set up my lights to capture the reflective surfaces and them moved the camera by hand.  It means taking a lot of shots, hoping a few will be good ones.  

 

 

 

They all received some level of post processing to bring out the texture and pattern in the photograph.

 

Title: Darkness to Light
Size: 11.00 x 14.00 inches
Signed Photography Print
Mats: n/a
Frame: n/a
Print: 11x14 inches

 

This is another in-camera motion image with a filter applied to increase the contrast in the image.

 

 

 

 


 

Title: Leaves
Size: 8.00 x 8.00 inches
Signed Photography Print
Mats: n/a
Frame: n/a
Print: 08x08 inches 


I set out to capture an abstract image from Hosta leaves on my morning walk.  There were several plants and I tool a lot of shots.

This one worked quite well.

The awards and reception will be announced on Friday, May 28th, so I will update this post should I be win an award.


I am happy with getting an Honorable Mention in this art show!

It's always nice to know that my art has connected with the viewers.

You can check out the full show here!

Monday, May 10, 2021

Sylvia's Simple Shots

I captured this shot of the summer hare this morning.   I came loping across the grass into the shrubbery and I caught the movement in the corner of my eye.

It was on high alert but stood still for a bit and I managed several shots.

Love this one because the eye is great, the tree on the right is out of focus but frames it well.  

The photo has a cohesive color scheme in the warm grays and browns.


I finished this book - Cat's Eye by Margaret Atwood on the weekend. I found it interesting though disturbing in some ways.  It chronicles the life of a painter artist Elaine Risley who is in Toronto for a retrospective of her work.  

Her early childhood was spent in northern Ontario traveling from place for her father's work as an entomologist.  They settle in Toronto when he gets a more stable job.  Her memories are not good.  Being the odd teen in a group of girls was hard. Clothes, hair, school politics, friendships and boys were all avenues she had to negotiate with rough patches at times.

It was a different kind of read filled with insecurity, lots of questions, angst, and disconnection.  I suppose it is part of adolescence and young womanhood which shapes the woman she became. 

I have been investigating the Asian food aisle at the grocery store for a while.   

I was searching for what I call glass noodles.  I was introduced to these at a potluck in high school where a dish contained them. The contributor was a school teacher of Asian heritage who came to teach at our school for a couple of years.   Loved the food. 

After, several purchases that were disappointments, I found them on my last grocery shopping trip.

I thought they were rice noodles but no so.  They are made with bean starch.

I cooked up a wonderful shrimp stir fry and these were the perfect accompaniment!

 These will be on my regular shopping list.

 

I have been doing some artistic photography work.  I was getting some pieces to enter an art competition.  I will blog the entries in a couple of weeks.

This piece was created with a process called Bottled Light.  I have blogged about it in this post

I loved the thread of green going across the composition and some of the complementary colors.

I love the jewel tone colors in this composition. The object I had the light go through was a blown glass ball.

I used another technique called In Camera Motion where you move the camera with a long shutter speed to allow the capture of the patterns of movement.

The lights and darks are captured during the movement. 

This is a piece of dark fabric with bling on the surface in spiral patterns.  By shining the light onto it, the bling reflects the light and produces light areas.  You can see hint of the spirals in the bottom third of the art.

I called this piece The Waves. I really like the patterns I created with my movement.

 It was great fun to be inside as it rained most of Saturday but the earth is grateful and putting out all kinds of green.

The challenge for Flickr Macro Monday is object with Zed in it's name.  I think this challenge will produce a lot of variety of subject matter today.  You can check out my Flickr Photostream (SMDPics) to see the shot I submitted.  On the left is the bezel on my cell phone.

I am sharing with Angie who hosts Mosaic Monday #130 and Mersad who hosts Through My Lens #288 .

I hope you have a great week and Be Safe Be Kind.

Saturday, March 23, 2019

AAC Juried Members Show submissions

I brought 3 photos to be juried today.  I dropped them off this morning and I returned to the gallery after 3pm anxious to see which one(s) were selected.  We were guaranteed at least one would be entered into the competiton.

I had 2 photo accepted into the show!  Not what I was expecting at all. I have posted the one one here.

I will reveal those selected on reception day, March 30th! Check back then.


Here's the one left on the table and not destined for the wall at the gallery.

Juxtaposition
13.5 x 17.5 inch frame
8 x 12 Color photo

This photo was taken down town last summer for a challenge on Flickr.

The front building is the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce which was built in 1919 in the late Renaissance Revival style. The building behind is one of the Scotia Place towers built in 1983 which has a glass facade.

I found the contrast of these two buildings interesting in several ways.
  • The building styles 
  • Material stone vs glass
  • Eras 1919 vs 1983

Friday, September 7, 2018

2018 Open Art Competition & Show

I submitted three photos to the Open Art Competition and today is the reception and award presentations.

Pink Cupcake
11x14 inch frame
8x10 Color Photo


This is a cosmos which I took at the Legislative Grounds. I had not seen these before.

It is a light pink Cupcake Cosmos which features petals that curve up and inward, creating a bowl or chalice look! And as if that weren't enough, most are double or semi-double, with a pinwheel pattern of smaller petals around the frilly yellow center of each bloom.

Love the soft background which is quite dark which highlights the bloom to show off!


This is a Dahlia I took at a park near my place.  It's name is Bishop of Auckland.

It was in a large planter with plants with long dark leaves.

Perfect Petals
14x14 inches
8x8 inch Color photo

This nearly perfectly centered composition may be too predictable.




This photo was taken as part of the 2018 Dogwood Photo Challenge.  I was challenged to imitate a photo of a photographer.

I chose Mike Moats' Leaf macros.  In some, he captures the sky in the water.

Leaf on Still Pond
16x14 inch frame
8x10 inch Color photo

I love how the sky and clouds have been captured in the water.  Love the tension of the water along the edge of the leaf.

Saturday, June 30, 2018

2018 Open Photography Competition & Show

Here are the photos I submitted to the 2018 Open Photography Competition of the Allied Arts Council hung at the Spruce Grove Art Gallery.

Spring on Rose Glow
17x17 inch frame
12x12 inch Color photo

This was taken in spring as the beautiful burgundy leaves were emerging from this very grey wooden branch.  The bush is the a variety of the Japanese Barberry called Rose Glow. 

The feedback I received on this photo was
  • nice use of depth of field
  • great composition - use of rule of thirds
  • the highlight on the leaf to the right of the center of the flower is a bit distracting
This was a composition and photo I had taken for Macro Mondays.  I just created a pleasing composition with the shapes of the objects. I had no idea how these chess pieces relate on the game board.  My grand nephew educated me a bit last summer.  The short one in the front is the Pawn, the next one is the Knight and the tallest is the Queen. It would have helped to have them sitting on chess board.  I know better now.

Small to Tall
14x14 in frame
8x8 inch B&W photo

The original was shot in color as the pieces are beautiful maple hard wood pieces.

I converted it to black and white for this show.

This is a Rose taken at the Muttart Conservatory for another Macro Monday challenge.

It was just so well lit when I shot this flower. 

Sunlight on Rose
14x14 inch frame
8x8 inch Color photo

I loved how the dark mats and the dark background in the photo really work to make the rose the centre of attention and focus.

This photo has been gifted to the Compassion House for an auction.  I thought the pink rose for cancer fundraising quite appropriate.


Friday, June 15, 2018

Recent Photos

I set tea out on the balcony this afternoon with the small round table and the white patio chair.

With the weather, it was iced tea instead of hot served in a crystal glass.  Goodwill offered 10 glasses for $2.00 this week.  I filled a few holes in my collection.  A couple cobalt blue glass, this crystal and a few wine glasses for photography.

This daisy arrangement has lasted so well.

The background is a wicker hat with a yellow organza ribbon and a coordinating Gerber daisy. 



I worked quite a few hours today framing the photos for the photography competition at the end of the month.  I prepared a how to on the basics.

The gallery had very specific requirements for the preparation of the frames for hanging.

* Must use pivot hangers placed one third from the top of the frame.
* A paper dust cover on the back.
* The wire must be attached as shown with no sharp edges to scratch the wall.
* Bumper pads on the bottom corners.

I still need labels.

I will drop off these pieces on Saturday June 23, the reception is held Saturday, June 30 at 1:00-3:00 pm, they will be on display till Friday, July 20th

Cash prizes and a ribbon are available for winning.

Spruce Grove Art Gallery, 35-5th Avenue [Located in the Melcor Cultural Centre on the east side of King Street Plaza].  Here's a sneak peak to the pieces I am submitting.


I have seen this bush several times at a few locations over the last couple of weeks.  I just love the cluster of small flowers.

When I take a photo then I am compelled to come home and find the name for it so that when I post it I have the right information.

This is Physocarpus opulifolius 'Summer Wine' commonly known as Ninebark.  My sister informs me that there a many varieties of this bush with different colored blooms and leaves.

Sharing with Share Your Cup #294 hosted by Jann at Daily Cup with Mrs. Olson.

With Tuesday Cuppa Tea hosted by Ruth at Antiques and TeaCups.

With Bernideen's Tea in the Garden.