AMak Color

Notre Dame University and South Bend

Something I really enjoy about doing out of town art festivals is that they give me opportunities to visit smaller towns that I would have probably never visited otherwise. One of such towns is South Bend, IN, where I just spent a weekend. Mere two hours away from Chicago, it is worlds away in looks and culture. Overall, it is not your typical college town. The downtown South Bend is old, industrial, and felt very empty and forgotten on a summer Saturday night. But the main draw of South Bend, is, of course the campus of Notre Dame University, which feels and looks like a massive park full of beautiful buildings.
I made a small painting of Notre Dame buildings prior to coming to the festival (yes, yes, I cheat sometimes and paint a location without actually visiting it first!), so the first thing I did after getting a break between the 2 days of a show is head to the campus for a quick exploration. It is summertime, and the campus was quite empty, which gave it more of a pristine and park-like feel.

For some strange reason I often forget to bring my camera when I travel for art shows (perhas because then I am more concerned about packing my art?), so I had to resort to using my cell phone to capture a couple of shots. But the results aren't so bad, as you can see! Needless to say, the Golden Dome and the Basilica are just gorgeous! Looking up at the majestic Basilica interior, I kept thinking: "THIS is in Indiana?!". It felt more like a European basilica (but at the same time was too crisp and clean to REALLY feel like Europe). One thing for certain: next time I come back to the "Notre Dame park", I am bringing my bike!

 

 

And here is that painting I created of the Golden Dome and Basilica view. It found home in South Bend with its new happy owners. Prints of the image are available right here. I am sure that more of my creations depicting Notre Dame views will be born in the future. 

New Painting: Eiffel Tower

Here is another new painting, of the Eiffel Tower. It is a 16x20 acrylic on canvas. I have been painting mostly in acrylics this year, and starting to really like that medium. I am getting used to them more and more, as in the beginning they drove me a little crazy because they dry so fast. They are definitely "cleaner" and less toxic medium than oils, and I am glad that I am finally enjoying using them.

I purposely painted very "loud", bright clouds on this piece, as I wanted the sky to not be calm or empty! I made the tower itself look 2-dimensional, almost like stained glass, and the background clouds look more 3-D. Prints of the piece are available right here.

 

New Painting: "Sox El Stop"

Summer is finally (almost) here, although in Chicago, we're off to a cool start. As I am exhibiting in my first few festivals, I always hear people make comments about my Wrigley Field piece. The Cubs fans love it, and the Sox fans get mad: "Not fair! Where's the Sox Field?" Truth be told, I am not picking sides, and would have painted the Sox stadium sooner, if - (and I don't want to offend anyone here) - if it wasn't so BORING! From a painter's perspective, the outside of the stadium is...just too plain, and less than interesting. And its new official name, US Cellular Field, is too commercial and not that appealing either. I like the sound of classic Comiskey Park so much better!

Finally, though, I found a perspective of the Sox park that I artistically like. It is a view from the El Train Stop, and my composition includes the "Sox-35th" stop sign at the foreground, and the stadium in the back. The new painting is a 12x16 acrylic on canvas, and the prints of this image are available right here.