Arty4ever Blog

I am a big believer in the power of the arts to do good.  The following is a story I was asked to share on my blog by someone who has struggled with drug addiction but has been able to turn around her life with the help of art therapy...  When Everything Is Not Enough My own experience with drug addiction deeply affected my family, and it is something I regret to this day. My children were very young – two daughters aged 6 and 8 – and I cannot pretend that they were not damaged by the events of two years ago. It is only with the passage of time that I am able to begin to come to terms with what I did to them, and how I can live with myself for the upset I caused. My Story My addiction was to heroin. You may wonder how a mother to two children, with a middle-class upbringing, ended up with a heroin habit. I have often wondered myself. I had always been a ‘wild child’ and even though motherhood calmed me down a great deal I felt I needed to express ...

My painting "Bo the Bulldog" is currently on display at Gallery Underground in Crystal City (Arlington, VA) along with the juried animal-themed artwork of a number of other extraordinary artists. Please join me at the opening reception - and fundraiser benefitting The Animal Welfare League of Arlington - THIS FRIDAY, April 12th, from 5 to 8 pm . Gallery Underground 2100 Crystal Drive Arlington, Virginia 22202 Free parking is available in the 20th Street garage (located between Jefferson Davis Highway and Crystal Drive); when you pull in, the gate will be up and in front of you, you will see a ramp with double glass doors. Enter through those doors and make a right after you go through the doors; the gallery is on the right just after Au Bon Pain. (If you are unable to make the reception the exhibit will be on display through May 4th.) but that's not all... THIS SATURDAY is Yuri's Night - A celebration of Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin's histori...

It's the end of another busy week and I'd like to take a moment to write about another amazing artist I know: Sean Hennessey This is an example of the unusual artwork Sean creates: See my last post for a photo of Sean being awarded the Bowling Pin of Excellence Award. Many things make me think of Sean... lightbulbs, plugs, doors, locks, lost coffee and good cognac to name a few.   I forget the first time I met Sean but it was probably at Artomatic or an artdc.org event.  However, shortly after I became a full-time freelance artist in the summer of 2006 I had the opportunity to work with Sean on a large faux finishing project he needed an extra hand with. He showed me how to create faux stone and how to apply gold leaf in a classic damask pattern. Using these techniques we transformed the bare walls of a newly built mansion in Potomac, MD into a truly elegant home. It was not only a great opportunity to learn new artistic techniques but also ...