The Art Blog

Jadite - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 I was looking through my photos of the gems and discovered a few that I had not yet posted. The image above is one of the lost gems titled Jadeite. What I like is how quiet this painting is but when you examine it closely it has very complex layers. Some areas even appear to be floating and resemble fused glass. Below are a few more gallery images of the gems in groupings. It's been a great week in the studio and several more paintings from the show have sold. This means I'll have new work to share soon. Gem Grid I - Gallery Installation Gem Grid II - Gallery Installation

Show title wall featuring Soloist Pacini Lubel Gallery street view Me posing with Sapphire Cove Today I am feeling richly rewarded after several months of hard work. The opening of Second Nature was lovely and I want to say "T hank you!" to all the dear friends who came out on Thursday night to support me. I also want to extend a special thanks to those who traveled long distances to see the show and to those of you who have left me such kind comments here on my blog. Gallery southeast view Me posing with the gems. Many of the little gems have already sold and there is a possible commission in the works. The Seattle Times also ran a blurb about the exhibition and featured an image of my work in the Arts section of the paper. So here I am feeling grateful, content and inspired. The studio beckons and I need to start preparing for my 2010 exhibitions. I will be participating in several group shows starting next spring and I have a solo show slated for J...

River Trio- encaustic w/mixed media 2009 - 36" x 36" Tourmaline- encaustic w/mixed media 2009 - 24" x 72" Well… it's finally here – Opening Night! Please join me at the Pacini Lubel Gallery for the opening of Second Nature. Tonight, Thursday, November 5th from 6 to 8 as part of the Seattle 1st Thursday gallery walk . This solo show features my most recent encaustic work. I have not seen the final installation so I will be experiencing the show for the first time tonight. Here’s what friend and fellow artist, Barbara Dunshee , posted to her blog about my work: “I've recently been reintroduced to Alicia Tormey's work. I loved it before and her recent evolution is very exciting. Her new show, opening at Pacini Lubel Gallery November 5th, is called "Second Nature". A great title as her encaustics on wood are nature enhanced to a higher power. Her abstractions are landscape reminiscent but on varying planes of existence, simultaneously ma...

Opal - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 Malachite Field -  20" x 30" encaustic w/mixed media 2009 I have enjoyed posting a daily gem these last few weeks leading up to the opening of my show. Thank you for following and to those who have left such generous and encouraging comments. For today’s post I am also including a few more of the larger works. There are several of these large paintings that will be featured in the Second Nature show but so much is lost when reducing them down to a post-it size preview. I am including some detail images so you can get a better feel for the work. The show opens tomorrow and runs until November 28th at the Pacini Lubel Gallery in Seattle. Please come by and introduce yourself if you are in the area. I will post more work from the show tomorrow Water's Edge - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 36" x 48" Water's Edge Detail 1 Water's Edge Detail 2

Labradorite - encaustic w/mixed media 2009   Corundum - encaustic/w mixed media 2009 I am featuring two gems today: Corundum & Labradorite. Both stones reflect multiple colors. I think these two are good companion pieces as well. I am feeling the desire to paint today but it's not likely going to happen. I have too much going on with the opening on Thursday and guests arriving from out of town. I really feel it when I am away from the studio. Time spent creating helps keep me centered and I look forward to firing things up again after this crazy busy week. Tomorrow’s gem: Opal

Andalusite - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 This gem series piece is titled Andalusite, after the mineral known for its variations of green. I wanted to create a sense of intimacy in this by framing the view with delicate wisps of grass that I scratched into the surface. There are only a few days remaining now until the show opens this Thursday. It will be the first time all the work is displayed together instead of piled around my studio in various stages of completion. I will post two more gems tomorrow: Corundum and Labradorite

Serpentine - encausticx w/ mixed media 2009 This gem is titled Serpentine. The colors in this piece are reminiscent of the stone but I thought the plant form also suited this title. Yesterday I delivered the rest of the artwork to the gallery and the show will be installed on Tuesday. I am eager to see how it will all come together in the space. I will post lots of photos of the final installation in the coming weeks. Tomorrows gem: Andalusite

Amber - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 I chose to feature Amber as today’s gem. Below is a detail so you can see the under currents of this painting. There are many subtle layers to this piece that are not coming through in the photo. This painting easily jumps back and forth between the abstract and representational imagery. I will post new work from the botanical series tomorrow. Detail from Amber

Jasper - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 Today’s gem piece is titled Jasper and in doing my gem research I learned that jasper and agate are the same stone. This has the tones and translucency of an agate and someone told me they see a figure skating or running in it. I was hoping for an abstracted tree form and I love the playfulness of this piece. I’ll keep tomorrow’s posting a surprise – not sure if it will be a gem or a botanical or perhaps both.

Sapphire - encaustic w/ mixed media 2009 Today’s gem is Sapphire and the colors in this piece are very intense. The blue veining that runs through it has the appearance of colored glass. I find the vibrancy of this color pallet very energizing. Tomorrow’s gem: Jasper

Black Coral - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 Today’s gem series painting is titled Black Coral. Only nine days and nine gems until the show opens next week. Tomorrow’s gem: Sapphire

Fire Opal – encaustic w/mixed media 2009 Fire opal is the featured painting today and the warm colors are speaking to me on this blustery Monday. This piece has a simple composition and much less going on in it than most of the other gems in the series. The simplicity creates a nice visual balance when paired with the other paintings. This week I deliver the remaining works to the gallery and the show will be hung early next week. Tomorrow’s gem: Black Coral

Emerald Pond – right panel detail from triptych - 24 x 72 - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 This is a detail from Emerald Pond, one of the four large triptychs that I created for my Second Nature show. See the full image below . Creating this piece was a unique challenge for me as I struggled to find the border between abstract and representational imagery. The chaos of it all is what brings this painting closer to nature rather than the subject matter. Looking at the painting as a thumbnail it seems quite literal but as you move in you can see the flow of the materials, the lines scratched in wax and the wild paint splatters. This is one of those paintings that inspire me to drop everything and walk into the scene. I am looking forward to experimenting with more work like this in the coming months. Tomorrows gem: Fire Opal. Emerald Pond – triptych - 24" x 72" - encaustic w/mixed media 2009

Diopside - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 The gem stone diopside is known for its bottle green color. The organic forms on the left of this painting look like green glass so diopside seemed like the perfect title for this piece. The show images are now posted to the Pacini Lubel Gallery website so you can view the entire show online. I am thrilled to report that several pieces have already sold. Tomorrow I will post some images from one of the larger works in the show.

Lapis - encaustic w/mixed media 2009 Today’s gem is Lapis. This color pallet is more intense than I typically use. The original is quite vibrant and this whole series has sparked several new directions and techniques for me. If I were not so preoccupied with all the preshow prep I would race back into the studio right now to keep pushing these and see where they take me. I have another solo exhibition in Sun Valley slated for July 2010 so I will be starting new work next month in preparation. For now it’s time for me to step back and examine this new series and take in the visual dialogue. Tomorrows gem: Jade Tree

Onyx - encaustic w/mixed media - 2009 The countdown continues with this piece titled, Onyx. As I was working on this gem series I was seeing each smaller painting as part of a larger whole. The same way you might examine an individual bead of precious stone before combining it with others to create something new. Once the work is hung for the show I will post some installation photos so you can see how they work together. Still framing up the artwork all this week and will post a new image tomorrow!

Tiger's- Eye - Encaustic w/mixed media 2009 This is one of my favorite paintings from the gem series. I’ll try to post a new one every day now as I countdown to my opening on November 5th. There will be a total of 38 new encaustic works on display next month at the Pacini Lubel Gallery so please come by and say hello. Gallery openings are such a stark contrast to the months of solitary studio time leading up to them. More thoughts tomorrow...

Geode 2009 - Alicia Tormey - Encaustic w/mixed media . 8" x 8" This is one of the small gem series paintings titled Geode . These little “gems” are evolving into some really unique work. So far I have created twenty of these small panels for my November show and I want to keep expanding on this series in the future. The larger panels for the show are starting to fall into place now and all the work together as a group takes on a whole new life of its own. This show will be somewhat of a departure for me with works ranging in size from 8" up to 6ft and a wide range of hard candy colors. I still have some final push days to put in at the studio before this body of work is complete. For the first time in a long while I feel a sense of evolution in the work itself and it makes me feel very inspired and filled with anticipation of discoveries yet to unfold. More to share so stay tuned...

Painting detail from the Gem Series As part of my upcoming solo show I created this grouping I call the Gem Series . They are small, only 8” x 8”, but there will be about 20 of them and each one will be finished in a deep profile black frame. I am hoping they will have a big visual impact as a group. These photos show them in various stages of completion and I plan to add some wispy botanical elements to each one. I am wrapping up some large 72” x 24” landscapes today and navigating around the studio has been a challenge for me with all these large paintings in the works. I love working large so I may have to get a larger studio space. The final art for my November show will be selected next week and then I will frame and photograph everything and post more sneak peeks in the coming weeks. Studio shot of encaustic " Gems" in progress. Studio shot of two large encaustic triptych landscapes in progress.