b sperty art & stuff

I love creating my winged faces. I love the way each one develops it’s own personality as I work on them. And I love applying the colors, textures and decorations. For me, they are a joy to create.

Each piece is hand built by me using pottery clay. After the first fire, I begin the color process using glazes, then a second firing. Next I will add more color with acrylics, metallic foils and often some sparkle. When I feel they are finished, I seal them with a clear acrylic. Then they are named.

Some people feel my winged faces are odd and creepy. Some feel they are fun and whimsical. Whatever it is you feel, I hope you enjoy them.

All have flat backs with holes ready for hanging. ( Except for the one free standing piece - Keeper of Dreams.)

I find myself painting lots of bees. I paint them on canvas, on wood, on walls. Many are on metallic leaf backgrounds- copper, gold or silver. Some are small - 4”x4”. Some are larger - 48”x48”. And then several are anywhere in between. I usually use acrylic paint. Almost always I add some sort of color changing aspect to the wings, thus giving the viewer a variety of sheer colors depending on the light on the piece and the angle of the viewer.

Guinea hens, bird nests, baby chicks, dogs, sheep………….it’s like my own little farm in art.

On occasion I am asked to do custom pieces. Custom work is a mix of emotions for me, as I feel it is with many artists. I’m always tremendously grateful and flattered that someone would ask me to do a special piece for them, but I also fret about the end result - are they going to like it, will I capture what they are looking for, etc. Then…..I finally dig in and get started. So far, so good! Everyone has been pleased with the end result. And I have thoroughly enjoyed watching each piece develop and come to life.

The wooden name plaques came about when a realtor friend asked me to do two as house warming gifts for her client. Later, that same client asked me to make one for her friend. The friend later had a second child and ordered another. And so it goes. Each one is geared toward the child’s age and interests. Even though they are labor intensive with all of the detail, they are also fun to create.

Below the plaques you’ll see the St. Clement’s Lighthouse, which I painted on a coffee table. The coffee table was headed to the dumpster when a friend saved it. We got to talking about how nice it would look with a fresh coat of paint. Well, the conversation continued and eventually it was decided that I would paint the St. Clement’s Lighthouse in the center of the table since it was a place he enjoyed visiting often, and he’s a dear friend. I had never painted anything like this before and was up for the challenge.

That small painting “in the center of the table” didn’t happen. I decided to do the entire table top! It ended up being one of my favorite pieces I’ve ever done. A labor of love, you might say. And our friend has enjoyed it in his living room ever since.

“June’s Sweet Pea” seed packet was painted for a baby’s 7 month photo shoot. It’s painted on a 36”x24” canvas. It was used as the photo prop and now hangs in the child’s bedroom.

The mouse on the spinning wheel came about when someone ordered a spinning wheel and it arrived in a box with a hole in the corner. Once the box was opened it was discovered that a mouse had chewed into the box and made itself a nice little nest. Luckily the mouse had moved out by the time the box arrived at it’s destination. The recipient always named her spinning wheels and felt this one would, very appropriatly, be named “Mouse”! I was honored to paint her a nice little mouse-in-sheeps-clothing on her wheel.