Art Star

Tag: Illustration

  • Meet New Art Star Craft Bazaar Vendor Marcella Kriebel

    photos and text by Marcella Kriebel 

    Marcella 1
    I am a watercolor artist and illustrator from Portland, OR, living in Washington DC for the last 5 years. I’m excited to be a part of the Art Star Craft Bazaar for the first time this year. Because my work covers food themes and cooking, I can be found at select Farmers’ Markets as well as Art and Craft fairs in the Mid-Atlantic and on the West Coast.

    Marcella 2

    I’ve always really enjoyed cooking and traveling. I’ve made a point to cook with people during my trips throughout Latin America, and it is through these experiences that I created my cookbook, Mi Comida Latina. The book is entirely hand lettered and includes my watercolor illustrations on every page. The style reflects my sketchbook journal that I keep  during experiences abroad- small step by step drawings and lots of color throughout.

    Marcella 3

    I published the book thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign in November 2012. This self-published edition of the book is sold out, but I’m excited to share that the Art Star Craft Bazaar will be my first Craft Fair showcasing the published edition of the new book. This new edition will be a bigger and better version with an additional 40 pages!

    Marcella 4

    After the Kickstarter edition of the book came out, I got a number of commissions for food-related artwork and custom illustrated recipes (a service I still offer) and my food-related collection began to flourish.

    marcella 5

    I like to work in a series and have explored various fruit and vegetable “families”, complete with Latin names. I have designs which celebrate the different types of cheeses, figs, olives and other delicacies.

    Marcella 6

    My Art Every Day project from 2014 expanded my collection immensely and I’ll be offering many of these designs as prints for the first time at the bazaar. Hope to see you all at my booth, #118, Mother’s Day weekend!

  • Jen Corace Opening + Our 10 Year Anniversary Party THIS SATURDAY!

    We will be celebrating our 10 Year Anniversary and the opening of Jen Corace’s solo exhibition, Within, with a party at Art Star this Saturday from 6-9pm + you are all invited!

    There will be beer, booze and food aplenty – including snacks donated by Soy Cafe + Honeygrow!

    Nick + Danielle of All Boy / All Girl will be playing an acoustic set throughout the evening.

    Cut and Paste Photobooth will be here with her fun props and backdrops. Cram in with all your friends and take some fun pics!

    Jen Corace will be exhibiting new, original paintings all done in gouache, ink and pencil on Rives BFK.  Corace states, “Within explores the practice of bringing the outside indoors.  I’m interested in representation of nature through home decor, the restraint, patterning and control that occurs within a space, what it means to internalize the external and the private world of quiet reflection and imagination.”  This will be Jen’s 3rd solo exhibition at Art Star.

    Please contact us  if you are interested in being on our collector’s preview list for the show. We will be sending out a email preview of the work on Thursday before the opening.

    ABOUT JEN CORACE
    Jen Corace was born and raised in the not so wild wilds of suburban South Jersey.  She attended RISD from 1992-1996, graduating with a BFA in Illustration.  For the past few years Jen has been focused on children’s book illustration. She’s worked with Amy Krause Rosenthal on the Little series, with Cynthia Rylant for Hansel and Gretal and The Steadfast Tin Soldier and most recently Mac Barnett for Telephone.

    Jen currently resides in Providence, RI.  When she’s not children’s-booking-it-up she’s doing something else in her studio … like drawing for fun or working on projects with her brother.  Or she’s gardening … or wrangling a dog named Leonard … or eating too much toast … or laying on the floor and staring at the ceiling.

    Thank you to our Partners:

     

  • Necklace Giveaway with Julianna Swaney

    We are working on adding some new designs to our collection of necklaces by Julianna Swaney.  We sent her along 4 new prototypes and she thought it would be fun to do a little giveaway with them on her blog.  All you need to do is comment on her blog post between now and Sunday (August 25th) and she will pick 4 lucky winners.  Good luck!

  • Meet New Craft Bazaar Vendor Meera Lee Patel


    Art Star: Did you go to art school?  If so, where did you study?
    Meera Lee Patel:     I did not go to art school; I graduated from Rutgers University with degrees in English & Journalism.

    Pillow by Meera Lee Patel

    AS: What types of items will you be selling at the bazaar?
    MLP: I’ll be selling original paintings (watercolor & gouache), along with hand-sewn tea towels, pillows, and a slew of illustrated paper goods.

    AS: What materials do you work with?
    MLP: I work primarily in watercolor & gouache and the tiniest of brushes.

    Superfood Tea Towel by Meera Lee Patel

    AS: How are your items made? Describe your process.
    MLP: Every item starts with a loose pencil sketch, followed by a tighter sketch in color. Then I begin blocking large areas of color in, adding light layers until the painting is finished. My favorite part of the process is the last one, where I use tiny brushes to add little flecks of paint that become the detail & life of each piece.

    the artist’s studio

    AS: Who are some of your favorite artists?
    MLP: I love the work of Carson Ellis, Diana Sudyka, and Teagan White, to name a few, but the list is pretty long and ever-growing!

    We Are Made of Stars Postcard by Meera Lee Patel

    AS: What are you reading/listening to right now?
    MLP: I am reading Crush by Richard Siken for the seventh or eighth time, and listening to Paul Simon perpetually and probably for the rest of my life.

    AS: Are there any bazaar participants that you are excited to check out this year?
    MLP:     I’m especially excited to see work by Andrew Cho, Betsy Olmsted, and Foxglove Factory.

    Thanks for sharing Meera!  Follow her work on Etsy, her website, & her blog.  Visit her at our craft bazaar next weekend in booth #65

  • An Interview with Andrea Courchene of Paper Sparrow

    Andrea Courchene, the artist behind Paper Sparrow

    Art Star: Tell us a bit about your work.  What inspires your imagery?
    Andrea Courchene:  As an artist and musician I am divided between two creative worlds. My process of creating art is intrinsically like refining a passage of music through practice, writing original pieces, or listening to my favorite recordings–it is quite involved. I have always found a special interest in the connections between the sound of music and visual art. Performing music inspires my art with an appreciation for the audience as well; people of all ages can find an instrument, an animal, or a scene which may capture their imagination.  I’m also inspired by vintage illustrations, nature and living in New York City.

    AS:  Are you formally trained? If so, where did you study?
    AC:  My formal education is in music.  I have a bachelors and master’s degree in music.  I’ve always loved creating art as a hobby as far back as elementary school.  I’ve taken a few art classes at both my undergraduate college as well as in graduate school.  I recently completed two courses at Columbia University: one in painting and the other, lithography.  I’m also starting an etching class there this Spring.

    Andrea working on a lithograph

    AS: Are you originally from New York?  What are some of your favorite places in NYC to go for inspiration?
    AC:  I was born in England and immigrated to Florida with my family when I was in high school.  Since then I’ve been lucky to travel around and have recently lived in Chicago, Portland, Oregon, and am now based in New York City.   New York City is a wonderfully cosmopolitan city but I find that I am most inspired by my neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan which is always bustling and has the added advantage of two great, enormous city parks on each side: Riverside and Central Park.

    poster by Paper Sparrow

    AS: Are you able to focus on your work full time?  Do you have a day job?  Any employees?
    AC:  Paper-Sparrow is currently my full-time work.  I am fortunate to be able to supplement my income with freelance performance and teaching music.  I do get a lot of support and an extra pair of hands for shipping packages from my partner, Paul, who is also a cellist.

    AS: What materials do you use for the original illustrations?
    AC: It varies from piece to piece.  I tend to gravitate towards paint: gouache, watercolors and acrylics with added textures and backgrounds.  Other times I simply draw in pen and ink and digitally manipulate the images in photoshop and illustrator.


    AS: Any new and exciting projects in the works?
    AC:  This year I’m focusing on expanding my line of greeting cards and taking on more freelance opportunities.

    AS: Aside from Etsy & Art Star, where else do you sell/show your work?
    AC:  I tend to sell at a few craft fairs every year in the summers and the holiday season.  I also wholesale my cards to a number of boutiques and stores across the US and to a few in Australia.

    “Smoky Mountain Gypsy Jazz” by Paper Sparrow

    AS:  Who are some of your favorite artists/illustrators?
    AC:  I have pretty eclectic taste but I particularly love art of the bauhaus movement and mid-century design.  I love scouring vintage children’s books for illustrations by Martin and Alice Provensen, M. Sasek, Sandy Hoffman, Aliki Brandenberg and Brian Wildsmith.

    AS: What music are you listening to these days?
    AC: We always have music playing in our apartment.  You can bet on lots of classical and chamber music, jazz, Django Reinhardt and some 60s pop.

    Check out our collection of work by Andrea’s line, Paper Sparrow, HERE

  • New Artist: Adam Smith

    "First American" silkscreen print by Adam Smith

    We would like to welcome Adam Smith to our growing list of artists – we are thrilled to be carrying his work!  Adam is a Philadelphia artist, designer, illustrator & silkscreen printer. We learned about his work after he applied to our summer craft bazaar. We now have a good selection of his Men’s T-shirts, prints, & original paintings in the shop.  All of his work is very affordable. It is hard to find an actual silkscreen printer these days – especially one as talented as Adam. What impresses me the most about him is that he designs & hand draws all of his own lettering.

    "The Floorboards Hide Secrets" Silkscreen by Adam Smith

    Aesthetically, we tend to be a bit on the more feminine side here at Art Star, so we are always trying really hard to look for an artist that will appeal to guys as well.  I think Adam fits that bill, as evidenced by the fact that almost every man in my life purchased an item from him at our last bazaar.   I hope you enjoy his work as much as we do.

    "Going Home" acrylic painting on found wood by Adam Smith

    Check out this really great interview that Gallery Up did w/ Adam
    View his entire collection on our site

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