HELLO ALL! And welcome to ISSUE #100 of the REStevensArt fine art Newsletter!

I apologize for the delay in getting this newsletter out to folks. I know many of you thought you'd been dropped from the list, but indeed it has been a chaotic year and it has taken until now to finally get the newsletter machine geared up again. Thanks for your patience and read on!

Eight years ago, a veteran of the art show world observed this eager but fresh new artist with his photo-realistic paintings and suggested "You ought to have a guest sign up sheet at your booth." I'd no clue at the time what I was to do with that guest book, but I soon began sending out emails about the latest artwork, my show schedule, even our house-building adventures. Soon the monthly (well, mostly monthly) newsletter became a staple of "REStevensArt" and I am excited to now be celebrating the 100th installment with exciting new changes and opportunities for our community of fans and collectors! Discounts worth celebrating are shown below!

Order ANY original painting or limited edition canvas reproduction between now & December 15th and receive:

Check out the gallery at www.yesitsapainting.com and then toss me a note about the pieces that grab you. I don't have the pricing updated on the new website yet, but I've not raised them in four years, so it is still large canvasses for $995 and medium size for $595 (less 50% if you order by Dec 15th!)

You can also still peruse the old gallery at www.restevensart.com for information and pricing.

(left)"brown dress - white flower" - 32"x20" acrylic on canvas.

I've been quite excited about pursuing basic textures and color with recognizable shapes (the wrap series) and have long wanted to do a series of clothing, so this past summer I decided to combine the two and I finally get to share the results!

Once I find some dress patterns to my liking, I have them assembled out of different textiles including brown wrapping paper, newspaper, burlap etc. by a lovely and talented seamstress (my girlfriend) and then light them, photograph them and take to brush. These are the first three and because they are so new, they've only been displayed at two shows and all three originals are still available.

For this first one, we even folded up the bows for the shoulders and then I added a bit of a corsage for contrast. This original is $3,200, but if you purchase before December 15th, it's ONLY $1,600 (payment plan available) and reproductions run $995 and $595 - or $497.50 for the 30"x20" and $297.50 for the 24"x16" respectively during this bit-o-celebration.

(below left) "retro pattern" - 48"x16"" acrylic on canvas (plus mixed media).

Working with the same dress as the one above, once I completed this painting I decided I wanted some more texture, so I decoupaged some sheets from the actual dress pattern on top of the painted canvas! Truly a one-of-a-kind! This huge, 48"x16" original is $3,600 - or $1,800 if purchased by Dec 15th and reproductions are available in 42"x14" and 32"x12".

(below right) "burlap dress" - 32"x20" acrylic on canvas.

In my hunt for textiles and dress forms, I came across this great decorative steel dress form on Ebay and scooped it up to clothe with some of my ideas. Here, I draped it in burlap, accented with a few shiny safety pins and then took my reference photographs. Like the first "brown paper dress", this original is 32"x20" and runs $3,200 with reproductions available in 30"x20" and 24"x16".

I've already started on several more and throughout the winter I'll be working on several 'shoe' pieces as well.

If Large canvasses such as 20x30, 16x42, 28x28 run $995,

Medium canvii like 16x24, 12x32 and 20x20 run $595, so

The same medium sizes, on 3/4" stretcher frames are $395, so

Due to limited space in my booth (as well as in transport), I am transitioning out of the thicker, gallery wrapped stretcher bars for the medium size canvasses. I now stretch them on the 3/4" stretcher frames, suitable for framing (though it's not necessary) and have lowered the price for these to $395

A large canvas like above, but unstretched is $595, yet it's

I humbly thank you all for celebrating this milestone with me. Some of you have been part of this community for the duration and have seen lots of changes over the course of it. These have been, by far, the most rewarding years of my life, and I anticipate I'll continue saying that in the coming years as well. I remain incredibly grateful for the gifts of passion and creativity and the wherewithal to execute a goodly portion of that which springs from my busy noggin'.

Thanks for riding along, appreciating art and sharing in my joy. I hope to be back soon (certainly sooner than 5 months from now) with some more new art. In the meantime, I anxiously await your feedback and questions to roderick@yesitsapainting.com!

Roderick,
roderick@yesitsapainting.com
www.yesitsapainting.com

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