Spectrum Fantastic Art Live! Day 2

Posted on by artistjen

Wow! Today was chocked full of so much information, I thought my head would explode. T & I had to tag team it today. I took some & she took others so that we didn’t miss too much. We started the day off together in Room H in the Grand Hall to hear the panel on “Getting Started in Science Fiction and Fantasy”.

It was a very informative panel with artists Aaron Miller, Drew Baker, Eric Deschamps, John Stanko and Mark Winters.

Each artist emphasized quality over quantity. 6 great portfolio pieces are better than 20 good ones. Each artist talked about how important it is to know the publisher or company you are going to submit to. Don’t send them crap that doesn’t look anything like what they produce. They taught us how to set up an online portfolio. That we need to look at Illustration or art in this field, as branches of a tree, not a latter. There are no latters here.

One of the most important things I learned is NOT to include your resume or CV or work history. Art Directors don’t give a crap if you have a degree or where you’ve worked or how many gallery shows you’ve had or how many contests you’ve won. They don’t care if you learned to draw yourself or had the greatest illustrator in the world teach you. They only care about your work. Does it meet their needs?

Once again I’m shown how pointless college is/was. Take some life drawing classes. It’s all you need. You don’t need any of that other bullshit.

What you should be doing is painting. Everyday. Improving. Find a company that produces the things you love. If you love Start Wars, find a company that produces artwork for Star Wars products & paint Star Wars. Gear it to that specific company. If that isn’t your thing or doesn’t make you happy, do what does. Find your niche & specialize.

Sounds pretty simple, huh. Everyone at Spectrum said the same. All of them. They didn’t believe it was that easy at first. That’s the secret though. That’s the thing. It is. Paint what you love. Sculpt what you love. Do it every day & do it well. The best you can. Then, submit, submit, submit.

The painting above is by an Artist named Donato He does some fabulous work & was on the panel “Artist as Brand”. It’s his version of Red Sonja. I bought a print & he signed it. Pretty sweet.

If I break down each panel & give you the details, this blog post would be a mini-book, so I’m going to try & just sum up today in main points.

Build a small but strong Portfolio.
Emotion, Narrative & Mood are essential in your work.
Specialize.
Do what makes you happy & what you love.
Know the body of the work of the company.
Use the internet to build a fanbase.
Have a clean online portfolio that has regular updates.
Submit to the company that does the stuff you love.
Contact them every 3 months with new stuff.
Don’t give up.
Paint, sculpt, create, everyday.
How you do your work isn’t important. What it looks like in the end is.
Quality over quantity.
Be your best & show your best. You are selling yourself as well as your work.

That doesn’t even begin to skim the surface of all the information I received today. My head is swimming with art & I feel so hopeful. I am so glad I came & so very glad that Spectrum decided to come way out here to the Midwest to give me the opportunity to hear & learn & meet & mingle with so many great artists who have been so wonderful & sharing.

I have a goal again, and that’s incredibly important. Now, to gear up for day 3. I can’t imagine what wonders await me!

Spectrum Fantastic Art Live! Day 1

Posted on by artistjen

I made it! I can’t believe it! So far, I am so glad I did. I’ve already gotten some great art tips & I feel really relaxed with the crowd here. So many of the artists are very friendly & ready to share with you & answer questions! It really is Fantastic!

As soon as the doors opened at 3 PM, I darted right for one of my favorite artists booths. BROM has painted many things that I adore. I have a book, postcard set he did, as well as a Conan book he was commissioned to do a cover for. When he posted on his FB page that he was bringing 20 limited edition giclees of that very piece of work, I had to make sure I snagged one! It’s my very favorite piece by him & possible my favorite Conan image ever. It’s called “Snake Heart”.

He seemed very excited I was so eager to get my hands on one. He was very friendly & I was happy to get to talk art with him. I might have come off just a wee bit fangirl. Adoring fangirl. So what? I love his work. I hope one day I can be as good.

Another really great artist I met was Alex Ruiz. He’s a concept artist out of Burbank, CA. He was really great to talk to & also gave me some great advice. Amazing stuff.

Android Jones & Iain McCaig both spoke today. Much of what Android Jones talked about really resonated with me. Overcoming the fear & what you put into your work coming back around to you. I’d never really thought about it quite like that before. If all you paint is sad or distressed or dark work, then all that is just going to come back around to you. You can get caught in this circle of infinite sadness & fear. I always sort of thought of it the other way around. As purging that fear or sadness, but I really think Android was right. It made sense.

Iain McCaig is a concept artist. He basically made John Carter of Mars look the way it does. Him & his hand picked team. We got to see the process of how John Carter of Mars went from Paramount to Disney & what was kept & what was discarded & how the characters changed. He said that it usually takes him three drawings to get a basic idea of what a character will look like. The first one is always a crap drawing & he even joked that he often writes “Crap Drawing” at the top of the page. He was very animated & fun. I hope I get to talk to him more. Oh, btw, Iain came up with Darth Maul’s look. Him & Queen Amidala. Both favorites of mine from the prequels. Very cool.


(Photo of Iain McCaig by Hot Grill)

So there you have it. Day one. It was fantastic, it was art, & it was live. Thanks Spectrum for coming to KCMO this year! I can’t wait until tomorrow!

Graduation

Posted on by artistjen

Tomorrow, my beautiful bard, Turayis, graduates with her Masters in Professional Writing. I am so proud of her.

15 years ago, when I met her, she worked at Arby’s. You know, the roast beef sandwich fast food joint. She always smelled like roast beef when she came home. She had no direction really. She had fun at work, but I could see she was smarter than just fast food. Not to mention, I was getting really tired of the smell of roast beef. LOL.

She was always wanting to go to Barnes & Noble so she could research stuff. I never met anyone who liked to research random things as much as I did until I met her. In all honesty, I think she loved it more. So every weekend, we would hop in my sweet Buick LeSabre and burn rubber with the windows down, blasting metal tunes up to Norman & chill at the Barnes & Noble, sipping our Starbuck’s Mochas until they closed. T would bring note books and sit there for hours writing interesting facts she would find in an array of books she had piled on one of the small tables next to her chair.

We eventually moved to Norman in 2001. Sometimes I swear we did it just to be closer to the Barnes & Noble. I got a job right next door to it, at the Toys R Us to support my action figure/Star Wars addiction. T got a job at…Arby’s. Yep, she just transferred. I was a little surprised and disappointed. Everything was beginning to smell like roast beef. I knew she was smarter than Arby’s. I was hoping she’d give herself a fresh start. Arby’s in Norman wasn’t the same though. It wasn’t as fun. She quit not long after and ended up at an Eye Mart Express. That job turned into hell for her. It was also when she began to question what she really wanted to do. She realized she was unhappy.

She went from job to job for a little bit. Trying to find a niche. A starting point. She worked at the Movie theater, Blockbuster, and somewhere else I think. It’s hard to remember. It seems like a lifetime ago. Finally, she had a breakdown. There were tears & much gnashing of the teeth. I asked her, “Why don’t you go to college?” She didn’t think she was smart enough.

This person who was constantly researching, taking notes, and learning things on her own, didn’t think she was smart enough for college. LOL! Seriously?! This woman, who had learned how to make chain mail herself by reading a book?! This woman, who had a hunger and desire to learn as much as she could didn’t think she could make it at college? She didn’t though. She was petrified.

Then there was the cost issue. Two minimum wage jobs barely paid the rent and bills. She was certain we’d never be able to manage to afford college. Especially the one in our city, which happened to be the best in the state. I don’t know if I was just naive or if I knew it was just too important to let money get in the way, but I told her…I promised her, it would work out. We could pay for it. I’m still not exactly sure how we did. I think all of T’s hard work and scholarships helped a whole lot.

I was amazed when she finally decided that, yes, she wanted to go to college. She just went and did it. She walked right into the biggest University in the state.

Here we are, not many years later, and she is walking out with a Masters. Clearly, she was more than smart enough. I’m so proud of her. She set herself goals, and I’ll be damned if she didn’t hit the mark on every single one. She even managed to pull off the one that I wasn’t sure she’d make. Getting published. She got a real book deal with a real publisher and just yesterday, they sent her the final revisions with all the photos for her to go over and send back. As soon as it is sent back, the book goes into production. Amazing. She’s amazing.

So congratulations to the most amazing woman I know. I knew you could do it. You have so much magic inside you. Thank you to all of our wonderful friends that have supported her and us in any of our endeavors. It would be a much darker & difficult path without your love to light the way.

May the 4th Be With You! Avengers Assemble! Let’s Party!

Posted on by artistjen

(Picture Copyright Jen Tucker)

Friday was my Religious Holiday! May 4th! Star Wars Day! This year it was little more special because the wonderful bard I share my life with was defending for her Masters. She became a Master Jedi Bard. How cool is that? It’s no easy accomplishment, but she sure made it look easy. I am very proud of all her hard work.

She has a book coming out in August or September that I will be sure to post about as soon as I get permissions.

It is also opening weekend for the Avengers. I’m excited about that! However, I am disappointed that IMAX has made it to where I have to wait to get to see my movies in the Warren Theater Balcony. I don’t care for all the 3D halabaloo & I’m not sure I would be able to handle IMAX. Unfortunately, the Warren is only showing it in Director’s Suites & IMAX. I guess we shall see what pans out. So far it’s made over $200 million dollars in the box office. The best weekend opening for a film ever!

It was also free comic book day on Saturday. We totally forgot. I don’t know how that is possible, but we did. I of course blame the bard. We had her Graduation/defense party on the same day. Our wonderful friends Nick & Sara came out as well as our wonderful friends Holli & David, who just had a beautiful baby boy three weeks ago. It was their first night out since the baby.

I got one Roma tomato off my tomato plant this weekend as well! Hooray! All in all a pretty good weekend. Now, the bard is fixing dinner, baseball is on the TV (The Mets already won today!), and the weekend is drawing to a close. I hope everyone has a fantastic week this week. I hope I get some serious artwork started!

Luke Skywalker Propaganda Style Poster in progress

Posted on by artistjen

I’ve been working on this one today. I really need to invest in a Wacom tablet, but I really don’t have any money right now. I’ve been wearing my glasses for over a month because I can’t afford to go to the eye doctor & get contacts. I’ve done all of the coloring on this with a rollerball mouse. I can’t imagine how much quicker it would be with a tablet. I like the way it’s turning out though. I want a 1940′s Propaganda Poster look. I might even rough it up a little after i get all the base colors on. Make it look a little worn.

Threadless Design Challenges

Posted on by artistjen

If you want to break into commercial design & start making a name, contests are sometimes a great way to do this. People start associating your style with your name & your name becomes familiar. The more contests you enter, the more people see your name & art & the more likely you are to get hired for other design jobs.

Threadless has a contest. Well, several contests you can do some designs for.  Some of the prizes are a little lame, like an email gift voucher, redeemable for one 12-inch by 12-inch canvas ($40 value).  Yeah, kinda lame, but like I said above, it isn’t about the $40 canvas, it’s about your name & your design & people seeing it.  Exposure.

Others, like the Sesame Street Challenge, give you a whole lot more.  2 grand more.  As well as bragging rights to a Sesame Street shirt.  How cool is that?

You might want to check it out.  There’s even a Neil Gaiman prize with one of the challenges.  They are all pretty good causes.

Spectrum Fantastic Art Live!

Posted on by artistjen

I am going to attempt this.  What is it?  Well, it’s lots of different things.  It’s sort of an Artist Convention.  It’s sort of an Art workshop weekend.  It’s sort of an illustration & graphic art expo.  It’s kind of a gathering of weirdos with drawing skills.  I’m pretty excited.  I have hopes.  That’s sort of a big deal for me.  Having hopes.  As the Wonder Woman painting post below proves, many times things just don’t work out right for me.  It’s cool.  I’ve come to expect that.  I’m pretty hard to disappoint.  I just hope I find some answers.  Get some leads.  Gather a better understanding.

There are workshops with titles like: Getting Started in Science Fiction and Fantasy, Artist as Brand, & Women & the Fantastic Arts.  There are one on one talks with artists like Mike Mignola & Brom.  There is even a life drawing session late at night atop the Aladdin sponsored by TAD.  Oh, and portfolio reviews.  I don’t even have a portfolio right now.  How sad is that?

I guess what I’m really looking for is direction.

I sure hope I find it here.  Or at least an arrow pointing to a path that might lead me to a direction.  I’ve never felt more lost in my life than I have these last few years.  I was always absolutely certain I was an artist & that I would make my living doing art.  Lately, though, I’ve wondered if I didn’t make some horrible mistake.  I have moments where the universe seems to be reassuring me, but sometimes I wonder.  I have to find a direction soon.  A path.  A goal.  I have to.

So, yes, I guess I have a few hopes going into this.  I hope they aren’t too unrealistic.  I hope I click.  I hope I find my peeps.  I hope I find my path.  Nothing too big.

 

 

Unethical & Insulting

Posted on by artistjen

I heard there was a staff art show at work. I work for a University. I was considering entering, but T wasn’t so I wasn’t sure I wanted to. I printed the form off though, JIC. It was sitting on my desk when my co-worker noticed it. She decided to enter. So, I did too.  I need competition.

I decided to enter my giant 42″ x 36″ Wonder Woman painting that I had already sold. I figured if it was good enough for someone to want to buy, it might have a chance in the show.   Wonder Woman

I took it over on Friday & the reaction from the ladies running the check-in process was pretty amazing. They gasped & oh’ed & ah’ed. I felt a little embarrassed & caught off guard. I also felt good. Really good. These ladies worked at the Art & Art History Department. They must know good art, right?

I left it over the weekend & fretted about it sitting up in the Art Department all alone & unprotected.  I was an Art student once.  I know how some Art students view what they consider “non-artist” art.

So, Monday, one of the ladies calls me & I got a little panicked that she was.  Why?!  Did something happen?   She tells me that the Director is a huge Wonder Woman fan & that her birthday is Friday & that they want to buy my painting.

WHAT? (Strange buzzing noise here) Time stops. A weird swirly feeling comes over me. I must have passed out or hit my head or something. I look at the telephone in my hand. WHAT?! I have no idea what to say. I don’t say anything for about 5 secs., which actually felt like 5 years, and then it really sinks in.

The Director of the Art & Art History Department wants to buy my painting. OMG.

I still have no idea what to say. So I say, “Uhhhhhh…well….ummmm……I’m sorry, I’ve actually already sold it. The lady is very quiet for a moment. She says, “Oh, it’s sold already?” I say, “Yeeeeahhhh. I was just entering it into this contest before I take it to the buyer. So, yeah. Sorry.” The lady then says, “Oh. She really loved it. Well, okay, if it’s already sold…” I was able to clear my head enough to say, “I am going to have prints made though. If you’re interested in those.”

She seemed really disappointed. I was completely flustered.  She asked me to call her if I got the prints by Friday.

I didn’t know what to do, so I posted something about it on FB.  The original buyer told me to sell it to them.  It was too good an opportunity.  More exposure.  I was torn.  I really wanted her to have it.  The exposure would be nice though.  Especially in the Art Dept.  So I decided to give it a whirl.

I couldn’t believe it.  Someone who knew art wanted my work.  Someone surrounded by it all the time wanted my work!  I immediately started making calls & sending e-mails to get advice on my pricing.  I did NOT want to undersell myself.  Not to a Pro.  Someone who KNOWS art.  I got great advice & learned I wasn’t bad at figuring art prices.  Good to know.  The general rule of thumb is about $50 to $100 for supplies, depending on the size & cost of your supplies, and $15 to $25 an hour depending on your resume & sales.

I figured I would let them know I could entertain their offer at the actual Art Reception.  So, the reception is slated to happen 3:30 to 5 pm the next day, with the awards ceremony listed from 5pm to 5:45pm.  I’m excited.  I can’t believe they want to buy my painting.  I’m sure to place!

I get there at around 4:20 pm.  All the awards have already been given out & most of the door prizes.  I didn’t win & I can’t find the ladies to talk to.  I don’t remember who it was that called me.  I have lost my confidence.  I can’t believe the winners they picked.  Again, I wonder if this show isn’t rigged.  Which it sort of is.  My Department didn’t show up to vote for me for People’s choice.  I was sure I was going to win something.  Not even an Honorable Mention.

I go home & sulk a little.  I had told T if I didn’t win I was going to quit.  That it would be the universe telling me to go into a different field.  Like Zoology.  I mean, it was the lowest of the low in terms of art shows.  I’m a Professional artist.  I should be able to place, right?  Still, if I sell the painting it’s like winning, right?  We got online & figured out the person that most likely called me.  I, however, am absolutely petrified of the phone when I am uncertain who I am calling.  I love face to face.  Calling freaks me out & leads to me sounding like an idiot.  I stumble over my words.  I do NOT want to do that when negotiating.  So I avoid it.

Yep, I don’t call.  T asks me if I have & I say no.  I’m scared & I am not going to because I am a coward.  So she calls & pretends to be me.  I freaked out.  The lady was in a meeting & was going to call back.  OMG.  OMG!!!  T took the reigns.  She is now my art agent.  I promised her a percentage.  I did talk to her publisher on the phone & hook her up with her first book contract & all.  Honestly though, she did all the hard work on that & is much braver than me.  I just answered the phone at my job & happened to realize the opportunity. I am a coward when it comes to negotiating my art though.  I’m fine putting it out there.  I’m fine doing it.  It’s getting it sold where I end up bolting a different direction.  I’d almost rather give it away for free.  Or so I thought.

Come to find out, this lady who is surrounded by art & KNOWS art & should know better, thought because I was staff, I would indeed under value myself.  She thought that I wouldn’t know any better.  She thought she could pull a bit of a fast one & get 50 to 60 hours of work for 5 hours because I was just a stupid STAFF person, not a legit artist.  I probably wouldn’t even know better.  WTF?  Seriously?  The canvas alone cost me $70.00!  Even an idiot would know they need at least $70.00 for the damn painting to even come close to getting out what they put in.  I was pissed.  Angry. INSULTED.

Rightly so, many of my art contacts have told me.  In fact, one told me I should have told them to F8ck off.  One who teaches here.

The woman was trying to take advantage.  Plain & simple.  You can’t buy a print of a piece  for what this woman offered me.  Nice to know they have ethics over there.

So, now what?  Did I win?  No.  Did I realize I still care?  Dammit.  Yes.

I’m glad they didn’t buy it though.  I’m glad it’s going to the home it originally was headed for.  It belongs there.

 

 

 

Added a new gallery

Posted on by artistjen

If you look over at the top right hand corner of this here blog, you will see that i have added a gallery called Sketches & Misc. Art. This is stuff that has been hidden away in random sketch pads & has never seen the light of day. Some of it was drawn with the intent to turn it into something different, some to pass the time & some…well, who knows. I hope you enjoy. Who knows, maybe it will force me to do something with it.

Digital Greenman

Posted on by artistjen

This is a piece I did by taking an ink & pencil drawing, scanning it in, & then working to finish it in Photoshop. Turned out pretty nice.  The photo here has a few reflections in it due to it being under glass.  I just don’t have the lighting set-up to shoot it without getting some sort of flash glare or reflection.

Creating art on the computer is not nearly as fulfilling as putting paint to canvas for me, however, when time is an issue, it can be a life saver.  Programs can run you thousands of dollars though.  Which makes it tough for an artist that hasn’t really established themselves yet.  I own a copy of Photoshop CS3.  I think they are up to 5 now.  There are so many programs I would love to get my hands on in order to experiment more.  When those programs cost as much as your mortgage payment, it makes it tough to justify.

Even More Progress on the Xena Painting

Posted on by artistjen

Well, I finally got the eyes painted. I feel a sense of accomplishment there. Those eyes were scaring me. Xena’s eyes are after all one of the very most important aspects of capturing her character. I think I got them. I still have to bring more depth to the one on the right, but I’m far from done. Still not sure about that background either. I think it needs to be even more abstract. Guess we will see.

A Publishing Deal & a sword

Posted on by artistjen

So, my beautiful companion Turayis just found out yesterday that her book proposal has been accepted. This is fantastic news! Her goal was to be published BEFORE she got her M.A. & with this deal she will have reached that goal. I am so proud of her. It’s not exactly what she thought she’d publish, although, ironically, it is something that I had joked around with her about publishing. It’s nothing that will make her rich & famous, but it is a foot in the door at a real legit publisher. It is real work for real money. The way it all happened was pretty magical as well. I can’t say much yet because T tends to be a little superstitious about these things & wants to make sure the contract is signed & official before she lets me spill all the beans.

In other news, I received my official Universal prop replica of Xena’s Sword & Scabbard today. I’m pretty sure having a sword on University property is probably breaking some sort of rule or code, but most everyone has the day off for the big football game today. Besides, I didn’t want it to sit on the front porch all day.  In even further news, it looks like we are aiming for L.A. in two years or less.  We went from Ohio, to Vermont, to Kansas City to L.A.  Seriously though, any of those places other than L.A. would be hard to pitch screenplays in.  It’s funny, T & I have been laughing & crying & just completely shocked about how ready we are.  It’s like we finally woke up.  This time together.  We’ve always wanted to create stories.  All I wanted to do when I was a kid was work in the movie business.  I wanted to work as a make-up artist mentoring under Rick Baker or be a Muppeteer working with Jim Henson or a model builder working for ILM or Stan Winston.  That’s what I planned on my whole young life.  Then CGI happened.  I understand now that I just want to be part of this amazing process.  Special effects artist, co-screenplay writer, producer, director…just part of it.  So does T.  Except she is absolutely focused on screen writing.  She’s good, too.  I’m not the only one telling her that.  We’re doing it.  Right now.  We are legitimately working toward it.  Both of us.  Together.  Focused.  We are going to make this happen.  We have lots of love & support from our little family that has stuck with us over the years.  We have wonderful friends.  They’ve kept us strong, even in the worst of times.

We used to be scared to even think of L.A.  Hell, honestly, 6 months ago we were scared of L.A.  Then we realized that we have lived in some of the most screwed up weird places in all of Oklahoma.  We’ve had a body bagged across the street from us, an escapee chase us into our apartment & try to break in for 30 minutes as we stood ready to take him down with swords, should he get through, someone chase us in a car after threatening us in traffic, lived in apartment next to a hoarder who lived with dead cats & had a flea infestation, next to pot dealers neighbors, next to big time super thug gang banging drug dealers dealing prescription drugs & who knows what else, Muslims, Hispanics, Native Americans, African Americans & Rednecks.  We’ve backpacked 12 miles across Ft. Worth, walked just as many miles in the dark back home from a broken down car at 3 in the morning & had thieves break into our car & steal a bicycle from us.  Honestly, how is L.A. going to be any worse?  At least in L.A. we aren’t going to be working toward endless nothingness.  At the end of the day, your work was to reach a goal.  Even if you’re working in a mail room.

So, we’re off,  The Warrior Princess & her Battling Bard,  heading to our next adventure.  We have no idea where the universe is taking us next.  Just check back here from time to time & find out.

Later,

Jen

 

 

 

Time, Time, Time….

Posted on by artistjen

Good grief! Did the planet’s rotation speed up or something?! I’m so busy, it’s hard to find a moment to spare. I haven’t even gotten to my paintings this last month. I have two more I am ready to start. The weekends are going by so fast that I don’t even believe they exist anymore. They are like a sweet little dream.

Still, somethings moving. The Universe is stirring. Can you feel it? Something good. Something amazing. Never believe that you can’t be that one-in-a-million. Somebody has to be it. Why not you? Let me tell you, kids…things happen in the most amazing ways. Sometimes you wonder why you are where you are & what it all means, but there’s a reason. Open your eyes & take every opportunity it hands you.

The Universe loves me, & I love it right back.

Posted on by artistjen

Cool things have happened since my last post.  So many cool things.  I’ve met new people, published an article on Xena for real honest to gods $$$, and just made a deal with a publisher.  Weird.  I don’t know if I’m just more confident about saying yes or if things just keep aligning right. One thing I do know, is that the Universe loves me.  I can feel it.  There’s something amazing about just existing at all & sometimes the weight of all the crap seems to make me forget that.  Not today.  Thank you Universe.  Go check out my Xena article over at Lesbilicious, if you haven’t yet.  I also have a fan page for the Warrior Princess over on FB.  It’s called the Xena Netforum in tribute to that place all us Xenites used to hang out & chat about each episode after it aired.  Go “Like” it & join in, if you enjoy or enjoyed the show.

 

Updates in the Gallery & a new page of Works In Progress

Posted on by artistjen

Make sure to check out the Gallery for new additions & also prices & sizes. If you are interested in purchasing a piece, please e-mail me at jen@jentucker.com. To see what I am currently working on, check out the Works in Progress page. Once pieces are finished, they will be moved to the gallery & priced for sale. Thanks for looking!

Jen Tucker

Wanna Help Me Make Some Art?

Posted on by artistjen

Hello my beautiful people. Today I send out a request for help. I am going to attempt something different with my art. Now, to do this I need your help. If you are reading this, in one way or another, our lives have crossed or intersected.

I am going to start a piece called “The Tapestry of the Fates”. What I need from you is simple. I need each & everyone of you to send me a thread, or a ribbon (keep it at about 1/4 of an inch or smaller), or a piece of string, or some twine. Anything that you feel like is a material that the Fates would have used to weave the story of your life. Put it in an envelope & send it to me here:

Jen Tucker’s Tapestry
P.O. Box 1332
Norman, OK 73070-1332

The more I get, the bigger the piece will be.

Thanks for your help!

Wonder Woman Painting

Posted on by artistjen

I started working on this rather large tribute to Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman all the way back in February. I was trapped in my house due to a blizzard & had a serendipitous extended leave from work because of it. What better time to start a painting. Finding time since has been a little more difficult. I have a “pays the bills” full time job at a large University. Sometimes, well most of the time, I am wiped out by the time I get home. I’m trying to work out a better pattern to get more time in. It seems to be improving. I’ve had so many distractions this year. Drug dealer renters that moved in next door, storms that knocked my privacy fence & beloved plum tree down. There was a whole lot of yard clean-up from that. I’m still not quite done. There were tornadoes that came within 7 miles of here. I was given the honor of being part of a wedding & helping out with it. Now it’s 100 degrees (literally) outside. The weather itself has been a source of much stress this year. Stress & creativity do not necessarily work well together. Still, like I said earlier, I’m trying to change old patterns. If you want to see the whole progression of the painting from beginning up until the pic above, head over to my Flickr site: ArtistJenTucker My plan is to have her all finished by this time next month.

Hey! It’s Friday, Friday!

Posted on by artistjen

Nothing new yet.  I know, I know, you can’t wait. Patience, young Jedi.  New things are bound to pop up this weekend. Hey!  Get your minds out of the gutter.  Nothing new really going on here.  I’ve got to tackle finishing that Wonder Woman painting. I’m nervous.  I really don’t want to mess it up.  It is seriously one of the best things I think I’ve ever done.  I really want to finish it, so I can get on to the next painting.  I have a whole series that has started with this Wonder Woman painting. I’m going to paint as many of my female heroes as possible. Sarah Connor, Wilma Derring, Xena, Princess Leia, and more.  They will all be different approaches & styles.  Keep coming back to see what’s new!

 

Have a great weekend,

 

Jen Tucker

Hello again!

Posted on by artistjen

So far, so good.  The amazing T has helped me get this little site going!  It’s still under construction & I plan to add more to it, but so far I think it rocks!  I took a three day vacation from my “pays the bills” job just to get ‘er up.  It was a great three days.  There was a home cooked pot roast, fresh ground Guatemalan coffee, bagels, fresh strawberries & blueberries, a trip to the theater to see “Thor”, that went along with the work.  Not too shabby!  Hopefully in the coming weeks you will see more features or widgets or whatever they call them pop up.  Hope everyone has a great Thursday!

 

Cheers,

 

Jen Tucker

Welcome to my Art site!

Posted on by artistjen

Hello,

You have reached the website of Jen Tucker!  That’s me!  Here you will find my art, a little about me, my influences, and what I’m working on now.  The Portfolio Gallery has my past works & the About Me will tell you more about who I am.  Have a look around & please come back often to check on what new ideas I am working on!

 

Thanks,

 

Jen Tucker