"Blue on Blue"

This painting is acrylic on birch panel. It measures 30" X 30" unframed. I am currently house sitting in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in South Carolina in an area know as the "Golden Corner". We are situated in that far western corner of the state that sticks up between north Georgia and western North Carolina. Deb and I visit here a couple of times a year on average and have fallen in love with the area. Sadly the home owners have put the place up for sale and have accepted an offer. This may be our last visit, at least to this particular spot. I had been wanting to break out into a different color palette and this seemed like the time. Maybe it's the "Blue Ridge" or the possibility that this may be our last visit here the brought on the "Blues". Anyway my latest effort, "BLue on Blue". The heavy impasto does not translate effectively in the photograph. This painting will be available at Gallery on First, in Sanford, Florida upon our return. $1,200.00

"A Long Way From Antigonish II" SOLD

This piece was done as a commission to be a companion piece for 'A Long Way From Antigonish". CFE Credit Union acquired the first painting as part of a large purchase of paintings for their home office in Lake Mary, Florida. Like the first painting this is encaustic on rag board. The first one was done in 2008 and won several awards in regional group shows in New York. The painting measures 21.5" X 21.5".

"Got Art"

Our annual group show at Gallery on First opens Friday, October 25 with a reception from 6:00 - 9:00pm and runs through November 17 in the Rozzie Marks Gallery. Music by the Angels of Mercy and lots of food and beverages. The exhibition is a representative sampling of recent work by the twelve resident artists at Gallery on First in Sanford, Florida. Pictured above is our part of the show. The large painting "Canyon Impressions" is Deb's and the rest of the work by yours truly. The public is invited, so if you are in the Central Florida area please drop in and check out the show.

"Return To Black Mountain" SOLD

This painting was originally executed in 2007. It is acrylic on paper and has a real mid century quality to it. The piece received several awards in juried shows and garnered a lot of interest. On several occasions I thought it was sold, but for whatever reason it hung around. That is until yesterday. It was one of seven paintings purchased by CFE Credit Union for their home office in Lake Mary, Fl. . They also commissioned Deb and I to do a number of other paintings for them. This was a large purchase and will be 16 paintings in total. Very grateful and honored that they appreciate the work.

"Tonight, Tomorrow and Yesterday" SOLD

"Tonight, Tomorrow and Yesterday". Encaustic on birch panel, 16" X 24". Available at Gallery on First, Sanford, Florida. This is one of several recent encaustic paintings and sculptures that will debut at the "Got Art" show at Gallery on First, 211 E. First St., Sanford, Fl. . Opening reception October 25, 6- 9pm and is in conjunction with the Sanford "Art Walk" which is held the fourth Friday of each month. "Got Art" is a group exhibition of recent works by the twelve resident artists of Gallery on First.

Back in Florida

Deb and I arrived back in Sanford last week after another summer at our cabin in the woods. We left Florida around the middle of June and headed to South Carolina where we

always stop and spend a couple days visiting family. Deb's sister has a beautiful home in the Blue Ridge Mts. on the North Carolina, South Carolina border. We enjoy visiting and have become quite familiar with the area over the last several years. The landscape is stunning and there is a lot of good art in the area. Asheville, NC has become a favorite place to gallery hop or take in the River Arts District when we are lucky enough to be in town during one of their "Studio Strolls". After a few days we were back on the highway, making our way to the Tug Hill region of New York. Tug Hill is a plateau that slowly rises from the eastern shore of Lake Ontario to the Adirondack Mountains. We have a six acre piece of land with a pond and a cabin that I built from recycled materials. When we lived in New York, it was a weekend getaway. Now it serves as our summer place. In addition to the cabin, we have two sheds and plans to build a barn that will serve as a studio building. We had a lot of rain when we first arrived. think it rained 15 out of the first 16 days we were there. This made it tough to get much done as we have to work outside. I ended up picking up some work helping a friend cut down and rebuild a bunch of church pews. By mid July we had a nice stretch of sunny, warm and dry days. I began work on a 90 foot, dry stacked, stone retaining wall. THe wall had been originally "layed up" by the home owners in the mid 1960's and had seen better days. I had to take the wall down section by section and put it back up. No small task. About half way into the first day I wondered if I had tackled to big a project and felt a bit over whelmed, but I kept plugging away and after about six weeks it was finished. I did manage to do some welding and added another sculpture to my growing sculpture garden. It is a real "hippie in the woods" existence, but we love it and have plans for additions to the cabin and expansion of our gardens. We enjoy giving people who visit tours of the grounds. By the middle of September the days were getting shorter and temperatures a lot cooler. It was time to "roll up the tent" as they say and point the pickup truck south. Gave our son and grand baby hugs and kisses and we were off. A few days in the Carolina's. Took in the Sculpture Invitational in Highlands, NC. Really enjoyed that. Then on to Sanford and back at it. Deb and I are busy getting new work together for our "Got Art" show at Gallery on First. Happy to be back in Florida.

"From Here To ...........?" SOLD

This is one of several new paintings done at my summer studio in upstate New York. Acrylic on canvas, 24" X 30". $900.00. This painting will be available at Gallery on First, Sanford, Florida in October.

Seeking commissions for summer 2013

As Deb and I prepare to head to New York for a couple of months I am hoping to line up a few projects to sustain us for the summer. We will be painting, sculpting and making hypertufa parts and garden art. I have a few small projects lined up and will be helping KII out at his carving studio. An ideal project would be a large scale steel, stone or concrete installation. Interested parties may contact me directly via e-mail at kabbott765@gmail.com

New Propaganda from the studio

This is the image from my new postcard that some of you may be seeing soon.

Boiler Plate Ball: Steampunk Steps Out OMA

The 1st Thursday event for the month of May at the Orlando Museum of Art is the Boiler Plate Ball: Steampunk Steps Out. The monthly event gives regional artists the opportunity to showcase their work in a fine contemporary art museum. The theme changes each month and I have been fortunate to once again be selected for inclusion with three of my recent sculptures. Victor/Victor (pictured in the previous post) is one of three welded steel pieces selected. I am pleased to be selected and am now six for six as I previously had three entries included in "Sculpture, The Ultimate Process" last year.

"Victor/Victor"

This piece melds both a very industrial and gritty look with organic forms and seems to feel a little "Steampunk" to me without gears. This is one of three pieces entered in the Orlando Museum of Art's 1st Thursday event for May, 2013. "The Boiler Plate Ball": Steampunk Steps Out. The piece stands 31" tall and is my latest welded steel table top sculpture. $600.00

"Nest" SOLD

A new steel table top sculpture. This piece measures 22" H X 15 W. I like the organic form which contrasts in an interesting way with the industrial feel of the steel. Most of it is painted royal blue except for a rusted element that I left natural with a clear sealer. This piece is currently available at Gallery on First in Sanford, Florida. $500.00

"To The Point" SOLD

"To The Point" welded steel table top sculpture. $300.00 This piece has a new home in Virginia. Once again this one sold before I took a proper photograph of it, but at least I have this snap shot. Someday I will have a permanent setup with back ground and lighting so I can photograph work before it goes before the public. Too often a piece will sell before I set up a shot and I am left with a poor record. Then again most of my work from the 1980's and 90's I only have slides or color photos. At least with digital I have something a little more manageable.

"Black, White and Red # 1, 2013" SOLD

This is the first of a series of small acrylic abstract paintings on paper. I have done several and intend to make more using only black and red on white paper. These paintings intrigue me by their simplicity yet powerful presence. Patrons seem drawn to my black and white paintings and I am curious to see the response to these with the addition of red.

"Ancient Future # 2" SOLD

"Ancient Future # 2" Mixed Media on Rag Board. 13.5" X 17.5" framed. $190.00 Currently available at Gallery on First, Sanford, Fl. or contact me directly via e-mail. kabbott765@netzero.com. During our move we unearthed a number of older pieces long forgotten. Some ended up n the dumpster while others went into a two stacks. One stack came with us to Florida and the other remained n New York. This mixed media painting is one that made it's way to Florida with us. I Am in the process of going through these works and this is the first that I decided to frame. The date on the back indicates that I made this in 1993. Deb and I have dozens and dozens of unframed paintings and we will gradually select some for presentation. This one strikes a chord with me, I hope others will enjoy it also.