GET READY FOR BUNDLES OF TRUNDLES!

 

Greetings from your devoted Gallery One Patrons of the Arfs, Clancy and Shayna, and two of our friends known as Push and Pull.

Push and Pull

Because you are a client of Gallery One, we have decided to let you in on a little-known secret before it makes the national headlines.

Now ask yourself, have you ever found your family dog barking at something that you cannot detect? He will stare intently at something unseen and unheard by you and bark with wild abandon. (And, when this happens, have you admonished him to quiet down, thinking that there is nothing there?)

Fear not, we understand that you cannot perceive many of the things that we dogs are able to detect. It’s just that our eyes, ears and wet noses are far more keen than those of our humans. A human typically has 5 million scent glands. Depending on our breed, we dogs have more than 125 million! We recognize moving objects better, and we also have the ability to see in low light. And us dogs can generally hear four times the distance of a human.

Now mind, this is not bragging. We are telling you this in order to illustrate the point of this week’s blog. Many times when we bark, it’s to tell you that we have spotted a Trundle (unbeknownst to you).

What, you ask, is a Trundle? Probably the human most knowledgeable about Trundles and their customs is artist Dean Morrissey. He is, as evidenced by his highly detailed artwork, an incredibly perceptive artist, and he has been seeing Trundles ever since he was a youngster. And having earned their trust over the years, he has been able to convince a number of them to pose for portraits, a feat previously unheard of. That Dean is certainly a charmer.

Trundles, he tells us, are magical little creatures that hide in plain sight. He explains: “Trundles inhabit homes and barns and shops in the real world. Preferring to stay out of sight, they sleep up in the eaves or in cabinet drawers. They are virtually invisible in a cluttered room.

“A fully-grown Trundle can stand up under a bed without hitting his head. Their purpose is a good one. They quietly go about helping their host in many ways. They sweep up in the middle of the night, secretly finish up bookkeeping, haul firewood and repair broken windows and leaky pipes. They are very appreciative of their hosts and become indispensable after a while. Very few people have actually seen a Trundle although many people have them as boarders. They are native to The Great Kettles, a magical Chain of Islands across the Sea of Time.”

Snappy Argyle

Two such Trundles, Push and Pull, are shown above as rendered by Dean Morrissey. Shown here are Billy Blue Sky and His Magical Bow Tie and Snappy Argyle.

Billy Blue Sky and His Magical Bow Tie

 Dean will be making his annual Gallery One holiday appearance in early December, and he’ll be bringing a Bundle of Trundles with him! Be among the first to see them, and take home your very own Trundle.

Check this Blog for dates and times!

XOXO,

     

Clancy & Shayna
(Your Patrons of the Arfs)

Something artful to aMUSE you…

Greetings and salutations from Clancy, your humble Patron of the Arfs (and potential artist’s muse)!

As you undoubtedly know, dogs are considered man’s best friend, and rightfully so. Saint Bernards have traditionally warmed lost Alpine climbers with flasks of brandy. Dogs serve as seeing-eye dogs and provide assistance for a wide range of human conditions as emotional support animals. They search for bombs to keep people safe. And, it seems, dogs have often served as furry, four-legged muses to inspire artists; hence this week’s blog about famous artists who paint dogs. (Can you blame them?)

Take, for instance artist Pablo Picasso (1881 – 1973), who had many loves during his life. Aside from his multiple wives and assorted mistresses, Picasso loved dogs, one of whom was his Dalmatian “Perro” (Spanish for dog). Lump was Picasso’s cherished Dachshund. The artist is shown below with both dogs and an original drawing of Lump. He remarked: “It took me a whole lifetime to learn how to draw like a child again.” (Thanks, I’m sure, in no small part to Perro and Lump.)

                                

Artist George Rodrigue (1944 – 2013) of Louisiana painted his famous Blue Dog series based on a photo of his late dog, Tiffany. Loyal pooch that she was, she sat beside the Cajun artist’s easel to keep him company as he painted late into the night. When viewing the Blue Dog paintings, people would often stare at its eyes and begin to cry. Rodrigue noted: “The yellow eyes are really the soul of the dog. He has this piercing stare. People say the dog keeps talking to them with his eyes, always saying something different.” Among the many philanthropic causes Rodrigue established is Blue Dog Relief, raising millions for humanitarian aid after both 9-11 and Hurricane Katrina.

       

Bessie Pease Gutmann (1876 – 1960) was an American artist and illustrator. Her husband, Hellmuth Gutmann and his brother, Bernard, had founded the fine art publishing company, Gutmann and Gutmann in New York in 1902. Bessie and Hellmuth married in 1906 and settled in South Orange, NJ. Setting up a studio in their home, Bessie painted their three little ones and became one of the era’s leading artists to portray the innocence of children. Her famous painting, In Disgrace, depicts her tearful toddler, Lucille, nose to the wall in utter shame. Teddy, Lucille’s puppy, longs to console her and snuggles her to share the blame, looking back at the viewer with an irresistibly sad expression.

Artist Jim Daly’s Tough Love presents a contrite little boy standing in the shadow of his mother. Her posture is stern, his remorseful. The empty glove suggests the missing baseball may be the culprit. The boy’s loyal dog is his ally, shielding him while sharing the blame. Writes Daly:  “When I was a boy, I was in the doghouse more than once, and I believed that all of my troubles would be over when I grew up. Life's problems, however, are with us always, and when they seem to be overwhelming and impossible to overcome, there is no way of measuring the unconditional love of a friend.” (Especially a furry one with a cold, comforting nose!)

Canadian artist Michael Dumas painted Gypsy, inspired by a trip abroad: 

“The subject for this piece was observed in the French city of Arles, just inside the entrance of a narrow side street that accessed the busy central square. In this relative calm and quiet location, the man seemed lost in thought, trusting his four-footed companion to warn him of the approach of strangers. The contrast between the man's contemplative mood and the dog's alertness interested me greatly, and in the painting I pushed the thread of this idea as far as I could. Placing the dog between any observer and his master, and with his gaze directed straight at the viewer, there is little doubt of the dog's unwavering diligence. As a last touch, I added an arched shadow into the area at upper right, hoping to enhance the idea of a protective space. This shape was inspired by observing its real-life counterpart in the many access points to the old Roman Coliseum just a few streets away.”       

American pop artist Andy Warhol (1928 – 1987) took his dachshund, Archie, everywhere he went: out to dinner, to art show openings, and, of course, to his studio where he immortalized him for posterity in his own inimitable style.

American nostalgia artist Norman Rockwell (1894 – 1978) often painted dogs, making them central in his compositions because of the important role they play within families. His own dog, Pitter, hung out with him in the studio. Rockwell said, “If a picture wasn’t going very well, I’d put a puppy dog in it.” He recommended that other artists depict four-legged creatures “just as carefully and understandingly as you paint the people."

   

So if iconic artists such as those noted here derive so much inspiration from their furry companions, who am I to disagree? (And if any artists out there are reading this and would like to portray a certain handsome Lakeland Terrier and his sister, it can be easily arranged for a nominal fee of doggie treats and belly rubs. Just give my agent a call - kiss kiss!)

XOXO,

      

Clancy & Shayna

(Your Patrons of the Arfs)

Shayna here. This week it’s MY turn to be the Blog Dog, so I decided to write about posters and how they relate to the history of modern art. (That’s why I am sporting my très chic Toulouse-Lautrec hat.)

Although stone lithography had been around since the late 1700s, it was a slow and expensive printing process. But everything changed just a century later with the introduction of the 3-stone lithographic process, making it possible to print an array of colors with the careful registration of just three basic colors - yellow, red and blue.

In France, Toulouse-Lautrec created the poster Moulin Rouge (shown above) and the poster craze took off. Posters grew in popularity and were used to symbolize national interests – the circus in the U.S., cabarets in France, bullfights in Spain, opera in Italy and so on. The ease of printing posters together with the ability to combine information and images in an appealing and economical manner helped to create the age of modern advertising. Posters were also used to promote political ideologies, special events or advertise products or services such as travel, sports, entertainment and popular personalities.

And did you realize that in addition to original paintings and fine art prints, books and figurines, Gallery One houses an enormous selection of posters, hand-signed by the famous artists? People love posters because they provide an affordable entrée for art lovers to enjoy beautiful art on a budget. That’s why students choose them for their dorm rooms or first apartments. And talk about a perfect gift – you can select posters with prices starting as low as $25!

Why have bare walls when you can have a room with a view? Check these out:

Indulge in whimsical flights of fancy with the imaginative, hand-signed art of James Christensen and Dean Morrissey.

   

Let your spirits soar with a poster hand-signed by artist Robert Bateman…

…Go wild with the mind-blowing detail of Carl Brenders.

Know a transplanted Clevelander?
Send a hometown hug with famous landmarks by iconic photographer Jim Ptacek.

Love Harleys?

Get your motorrunning with Scott Jacobs.

Calling all Trekkies:  Go boldly where no man hasgone before with Commander Uhura’s hand-signed art poster!

(FYI, Nichelle Nichols pioneered the role of Uhura in the original Star Trek series during the 1960s. However, she wanted to pursue a Broadway career. That was until she met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at an NAACP fund-raiser. Dr. King encouraged her to stay on in the role saying, “You’re a part of history.” He told her she was a vital role model, and so Nichols continued playing Uhura in TV and films for another quarter century.)

No matter what a person’s interests, Gallery One has you covered. Stop in and see us and our HUGE selection of posters. They make gift-giving easy, affordable and fun. There’s a lot from which to choose, but no worries – Clancy and I are always here to help!

XOXO,

     

Shayna & Clancy

(Your Patrons of the Arfs)