| | | | Spring 2024 News + Updates:New work, new murals, Art Supply Free Fair (and more!)
| | | | Dear friends, family, colleagues and art-lovers:
It's officially spring in the Northern Hemisphere, thank goodness! If you know me personally, you may know that Daylight Savings Time has always been one of my favorite holidays: I need the long, light days for maximum productivity, and "productive" is my preferred state-of-being! My career as a working artist often has me pulled in many directions at once and- if you're reading my newsletter for the first time- there's a good chance you know me from one specific aspect of my practice and may be unaware about all the different facets to what I do! Please enjoy this little behind-the-scenes update on some of my current and more recent projects and feel free to reach out with questions or comments! This newsletter is a several days overdue (I recently suffered a studio flood which set me back SEVERAL days) and I’m getting ready to start on a project that will take me out of my studio for much of the next few weeks so please excuse my brevity as I scramble! Thank you for taking the time to read and click, and as always for your continued support. Erica If you're interested in more behind-the-scenes images and insights into my practice, please follow me on Instagram (@erica_harney_artist) or Facebook (Erica Harney, Artist). You can also follow my cat @rufus_theodore_barleysheath (yes, for real! ;) )
Featured image: DayDream Garden Mural: 39 E. Lancaster Ave., Ardmore PA. See below for more information!
| | | | | | | | 1. Custom Paintings: gifts for weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, graduations, retirements, Mothers and Fathers Days!
I love the variety of commission requests I get this time of year, with all of the different kinds of celebrations that tend to happen in the spring and summer months! If you're considering a custom painting as a wedding gift, engagement/anniversary gift, birthday gift, graduation or retirement gift, Mother or Father's Day gift, or any other event please order soon to ensure on-time completion and delivery!
I offer custom watercolors and oil paintings of homes, businesses, churches/temples/mosques, schools/universities, landscapes, interiors, pets and vehicles (just about anything EXCEPT human figures! I don't enjoy painting people so I don't do it anymore :P ).
You can either order directly from my website (recommended if you're local to Greater Philadelphia and want to pick up your painting from my studio) or from my Etsy shop (recommended if you require shipping).
Click any image for more examples of past work!
| | | | | | 2. Custom Paintings: Yes, I do pet portraits too!
While I don’t necessarily market myself as a pet portrait artist, I love animals and I would be delighted to paint your pet (or your favorite animal friend at the zoo, for that matter!). This is a portrait of my own cat, Rufus Theodore, which I had professionally framed by Madam Miter Custom Framing in Springfield, PA. You can order from my Etsy shop (recommended if you require shipping) or directly from my website (recommended if you would like to take advantage of local pickup from area code 19050).
You can either order directly from my website (recommended if you're local to Greater Philadelphia and want to pick up your painting from my studio) or from my Etsy shop (recommended if you require shipping).
| | | | | | 3. Original Work: new Spain-inspired watercolors:
I've been on a bit of a watercolor kick for the last few years since starting my custom painting business- that medium has dominated both my commissioned and personal work since just before the start of the Pandemic. Lately though, I’ve actually been more focused on some new oil paintings and revisiting my Paint Skin collage series (more information about both of those bodies of work below) so I haven't created many new "for fun" watercolors this year. As usual, I have lots of things that I want to make but there’s just never enough days in the week!!
Meanwhile, here are a few watercolors that were inspired by my trip to Spain last December. You can see more like these on my shop.
For a more comprehensive view of the kinds of personal watercolors I've been working on for the last few years, visit my website! I spent a lot of time back over the winter re-organizing and editing my site for your viewing pleasure and convenience ;)
| | | | | | 4. Original Work: revisiting my "Paint Skin" collages.....
Right before and during the early days of Lockdown, I began a series of collages comprised mainly of the pieces of dried paint that I peel out of my 5-gallon mixing buckets when I’m working on a mural or scenic project. In 2020, I made over 350 8 x 8” “Paint Skin” collages but have always had it in mind that I wasn’t quite done with them. A few weeks ago, I began going back into some of the remaining collages in the series and adding new cut-paper collage elements, imposing a sense of order over an otherwise abstract scene. Here are three of my new favorites! A few more like this can be seen on my website and shop, with MANY more to come! Keep reading for more information about the types of mural and scenic projects that create these paint skins! | | | | | | 5. Murals: "DayDream Garden" mural dedication in Ardmore, PA
In early March, I took advantage of some beautiful sunny days and was able to complete my first outdoor mural of the year before the weather took a cold, wet turn for much of the rest of the month. This project, designed and spearheaded by DayDream Kreative Studios, is located at 39 E. Lancaster Ave in Ardmore, PA, in the shared parking lot of Best Auto Tags and The Story Coffeehouse.
There will be an official dedication ceremony on Tuesday, April 9th at 3:00: please stop by to say hi and ask any questions you may have about the mural process! Please also be sure to support my sponsors and patronize the local businesses- tell them you came to see the mural!
EGH Construction Bernie's Hair Studio Main Line Optical Narberth Ambulance Bella Italia Aces Global Entertainment Freedman Team Pivot Ballroom
Keep reading to learn more about my mural work, or visit my website! | | | | | | 6. Murals: Yes, I can also paint a mural for your home, business or office! You don’t need to own a business or have a huge budget in order to commission a mural! I would be happy to paint something small and intimate on a bare wall or drab corner of your home or office. This particular mural, completed in late March in about 15 hours on-site, was for a 6 year-old’s bedroom in Maryland. I still have a few openings for indoor projects between mid-May and mid-August. Contact me to learn more or to schedule a free one-hour-site visit (serious inquiries only please). I will travel within 3 hours of Philadelphia, depending on the scale/magnitude of your project!
Check out more examples of past murals of all sorts on my website!
Potentially interested in a mural for your home, yard or business? Here's what you need to know to get started! | | | | | | 7. Scenic Work: Photos of my work on the Icon of the Seas are now available!
My career as a scenic artist is always full of surprises- I never know what kind of crazy or strange project might be around the corner at any given time. Last December, I spent two weeks living and working with a group of friends aboard the Icon of the Seas- the world's largest cruise ship- which was temporarily dry-docked at the Navantia Shipyard in Cadiz, Spain. The ship was still undergoing construction and preparing for its first trans-Atlantic voyage later in the month. My team and I- an incredible group of seven artists and engineers hand-picked from around the country- worked to paint, assemble, and install a playground and surrounding scenic elements in the ship's Surfside neighborhood. While I never received copies of the official, finished photos, a colleague sent me this screen grab from the television which is the best I've seen so far!
Click here to see more of my past scenic, mural, and other large-scale projects!
| | | | | | 8. Scenic Work: My next gig starts in early April.....
I am often offered corporate gigs where I’m unable to share photos- especially not in-process photos- until the project has been completed and made available to the public. My work on the Icon of the Seas (see above) was one such project. My next such project will begin in early April when I team up with Aardvark Studios, a Philadelphia-area fabrication company that specializes in mobile experiences and touring displays. Looking forward to sharing more about this project later in the year! Past projects have included work with companies such as HBO, Royal Caribbean, The FRIENDS Experience, 3M Corporation, USA Fabrication, Ronzoni Pasta, the Bancroft School, Fulton-Montgomery Community College, Opera Philadelphia, Opera Delaware, Opera Baltimore, and many many more.
Click here to see more of my past scenic, mural, and other large-scale projects!
| | | | | | 9. Lansdowne Arts Committee Art Supply Free Fair (Yes, that literally means FREE ART SUPPLIES!!!).
Aside from my own work, I am also a member of the Lansdowne Arts Committee (FKA Lansdowne Arts Board)! In the past I have helped to curate and organize exhibitions in the 20*20 House Gallery and the UtilityWorks Kiosk Gallery, both in Lansdowne. Right now, we’re gearing up for a HUGHE Arts Supply Free Fair! Yes…..FREE.
Want to participate? Clean out your studio or workspace of unwanted but still usable arts and crafts supplies and bring them to the 20*20 House Gallery on Saturday, April 13th…….and come home with an armload or bag full of new treasures!! All materials and supplies are FREE FOR THE TAKING. Leftover supplies will be used to generate workshop opportunities: follow the Lansdowne Arts Committee for more info and updates. Hope to see you on the 13th!
| | | | | | 10. Recent exhibition at the Community Arts Center in Wallingford, PA
If you knew me before the Pandemic, you may remember that I used to exhibit my personal, creative work pretty constantly! I almost never went more than a week or two where I didn’t have SOMETHING on public display SOMEWHERE. Well, when the galleries shut down in 2020 so did my momentum- and to be honest, I haven’t gotten that part back yet (in large part because most of my work has been client-based and therefore unable to be exhibited!). BUT….one of my New Year’s Resolutions has been to force myself to start making public appearances again! Happily, two of my paintings were recently featured in the “Waterways” exhibition at the Wallingford Community Arts Center (curated by Euhri Jones), alongside several of my friends and colleagues!
These paintings, Magen's Tondo, and Valentine Tondo are oil on 18" circular wood panels: off-cuts from a CNC router on a job I worked on many years ago! Check out my entire series of Tondos!
| | | | 11. Original work: New Oil Paintings
Part of the motivation to begin exhibiting again has been the recommitment to my own work: as I mentioned earlier, I’ve been taking a little respite from my watercolors in order to focus on a body of oil paintings that I began in 2023 with the intention of exhibiting. I’ve been gradually making progress here, and hope to have a decent enough collection of paintings to begin exhibiting later this year or early in 2025. This painting, mostly painted last year, was recently finished with the last-minute addition of the pretzel to the crow’s beak. Learn more about my in-progress series here: The World Without Us.”
Featured painting: Urban Landscaping. 12 x 12" Oil on panel. | | | | | | Watercolor Workshop in Maryland on May 4th!
I am pleased to announce that I have been invited to teach a 3-hour watercolor workshop (10:00-1:00) during the Rowdy Rooster Festival at the Steppingstones Farm Museum in Havre de Grace, Maryland, on Saturday May 4th
In this three-hour introductory-level watercolor painting workshop, participants will learn and practice some basic "wet and dry" techniques before being guided through their own original landscape painting! All materials and reference photos will be supplied. No previous experience is necessary, and participants of all ages (13+) are welcome!
Click here for registration and more information (available after April 2nd!)
Above: an example of a small watercolor similar to what you may paint in class. This painting is available on my shop:
| | | | | | THANK YOU!!!
It took me a week to write this newsletter (I worked on it for a few hours every day in between other projects, while cleaning up a studio flood) so I appreciate you taking the time to read this!
| | | | | | | | | | Our mailing address is: Erica Harney Studios Lansdowne, PA 19050
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