Caution:Artist at Play-Artwork by Shana Rowe Jackson

Since August is here and there are no holidays to speak of this month I thought it would be fun to celebrate the holidays that are fast around the corner. I love the holidays, and each one has it's own special traditions. I also love doing holiday themed work!! Here are a few of my favorite paintings representing my favorite holidays. Hopefully this will help get you in the spirit to celebrate the upcoming holidays!! My favorite holidays to paint in order of where they fall in a calendar year- New Year's Eve/Day- Valentines Day- St. Patrick's Day- Easter- Independence Day- Halloween-  Thanksgiving-  Christmas-  

  I have been in the throws of inspiration this lately, and have created SIX new pictures since last week. One was a landscape strait from imagination, the next was inspired by a photo my husbands friend let me use,  then a heartwarming photo of my dog Max, a sketch of my cat Puff and the other two were additions to my "Revival Series" I think I pretty much covered every medium this week. :)   On Tuesday the 9th I had the opportunity to paint with a local painting group called the Tuesday group. It was nice to paint with others for once, and after we took sometime to critique, which was a really nice change for me and I learned a lot. I didn't really know what I wanted to paint, so the night before I did a quick landscape sketch from my head, and that's what I ended up doing. It's called "Daisy Lane" it's 11"x14" acrylic. I finished most of it there, then did a couple updates that were brought up during critique when I got home. I can'

  I recently entered a local art show at Harlow Gallery in Hallowell Maine. The show is a Kennebec Valley Art Association (KVAA) members only show, the theme was Vaughan Vignettes, in coalition with the Vaughan Homestead foundation. The Vaughan family has a long and important history in my area, and this show was to honor them, and their legacy. The Vaughan estates are beautiful, along with the Vaughan woods also known as "Hobbit Land". Hobbit Land is known as a natural treasure in our area, running over 166 acres. The Vaughan stream runs through next to the main path, you can see many waterfalls on this stream as well as a century old dam and stone bridges. It is a beautiful place to spend time with many trails and lots to see. The Vaughan Homestead foundation has been very generous in preserving this beautiful place and sharing it with the public.  Buy Prints     I have spent a lot of time in the woods, taking pictures, walking and just taking in the scenery. M

"Love and Be Loved"-Mixed Media © Shana L Rowe Jackson 2012    Sometimes, I get so enthralled in my artwork that it consumes my whole life. I can't sleep, I have hard time concentrating on other tasks and it makes it difficult to find time for day to day tasks. Often times this feeling comes along with a natural high, when I am crazy inspired and doing some of my best work ever, and whipping out paintings like there is no tomorrow. Other times, it comes with lows, where it seems that my hard work isn't paying off as fast as I would like, I'm not getting many sales, or I don't feel I am getting the recognition I deserve. These lows can be detrimental to creativity, so when I feel this way I know it is time for me to step back from art and let myself re-vamp before coming back to it.    I recently went through one of these lows, and realized that I was too consumed with my art and marketing it. I love my art, and most of the time painting is very therapeut

   I have posted a lot about my paintings and drawings, but the truth is there are many creative outlets that I enjoy. I like making crafts such as sculpting, wood burning, glass painting and hand made jewelry. I also love to write. Many artists have more than one artistic talent, and love to dabble in all things creative. I personally like to try any kind of craft I can get my hands on. Here are a few photos of some of my other fun creations!!   Hand made jewelry sets with beads that I made from clay Chandelier Earrings that I made Hand painted glass juice set Hand made Geckos on earrings Wood Burned Self Portrait Another pair of handmade earrings Hand painted and filled Christmas Bulbs Hand made pumpkin earrings with hand crafted and painted pumpkins!! For more information about my handmade crafts you can email me at shanarowejackson05@aol.com or shanaroweart@gmail.com See more on my Facebook page!!- Facebook Craft Album