I had a great time at the Kalamazoo Living History Show. What a wonderful event; very well organized, marvelous facilities, tremendous exposure, and lovely people all around … from staff and volunteers to friends, new and old. Read More…

There are a thousand things to do before I hit the road for the Kalamazoo Living History Show in Kalamazoo, Michigan this weekend. I know going in I will forget something. There isn’t really anything I can do about the general influence of Murphy’s law — all I can do is try and minimize the ill effects.
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The sun is shining, wind is blowing, and colors are bright and saturated. It’s a painterly kind of day.

Painting at Oshkosh 2012

Last weekend I was set up for the Oshkosh Trade Fair in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. My booth was in a good location on an exterior wall that provide me with excellent visibility and placement for traffic patterns. I painted off and on, roughing in a painting and getting a fair run on it while I talked about art to dozens of wonderful people; friends, patrons, historians, and strangers …although I try not to keep them strangers for long. And boy did I talk art– almost nonstop for two days — leaving at the end of the weekend wanting more.

Isn’t it great to have something you truly love to do and then share it with others?

Time to take the next step towards making this site a proper artist’s website by opening up images for viewing… don’t you agree? I have opened this next part EVEN THOUGH it is still evolving (slightly under construction) so you can see my work and watch the site grow. Take a browse and get to know me and my work better. Read More…

I was asked a thoughtful question this evening. The question, “How do I get in the mood to do my art? By the end of the day I am wiped out. I miss indulging my creative side though.” Read More…

. . . is to set an extremely vigorous schedule of making art so that I establish a much quicker pace and a much more robust discipline — my version of avoiding the common mistake “aim small, miss small”.

So to begin, I plan to paint one picture each week between now and the end of February. This should help me have some good new works for the Oshkosh show. If I completely succeed, GREAT! If I come anywhere close I will have built some inertia and that is not a bad thing either. The first week started slow but I finished the first painting on Sunday night. I might go back and tweak a couple rough bits but can call it done. Week two’s painting is roughed in and on track.  Happy New Year!

One of the paintings I was commissioned to do for Christmas was a portrait of a beloved pet who had passed. Painting any portrait is both a real joy and a challenge. More than merely capturing a likeness a good portrait should also capture the spirit of the subject. Perhaps it is that challenge that makes portraits of any subject such an enjoying endeavor for me.

From now on I should be able to post something here and have it push through to the FaceBook page for Kelly James Art. This is the test—Connect-the-dots.

Over the years I have periodically been remiss in how much time I have spent making art. Sometimes I just get lazy. Rarely an intentional choice, usually it is just a subtle easing up on the discipline that is vital for successful production.
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