Minted + West Elm Challenge

As part of the voting process for the Minted + West Elm art challenge, Minted asked designers to create inspiration boards incorporating decor and furniture from the West Elm website. Below you’ll find my submissions to the challenge along with the boards I created. Enjoy perusing these and if you’d care to take a few minutes to vote, simply click on the board, which will take you to the site.

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Teach Them Diligently: A updated interpretation

Teach Them Diligently, 7.5 x 9.5" acrylics on watercolor paper, by Laura Bolter

Teach Them Diligently III, 7.5 x 9.5″ acrylics on watercolor paper © Laura Bolter Design

Several years ago I was asked to paint a piece to honor a wonderful woman and incredible Kansas City Jewish educator, Hillary Lewis Z”L, on the occasion of her retirement. This was my interpretation of “veshinantam levanecha” or “teach them diligently to your children.” It’s become a popular image in my collection, but lately I’ve been wanting to paint an updated version with nicer typography. I added the white linework, but I’m not sure about it on the torah scrolls. I’m sharing it anyway and would love to hear your thoughts. At some point I’ll add prints to my shop. There’s probably another version coming in the future. I’m hoping practice makes perfect.

Shabbat shalom.

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Joyful Shabbat Shalom

Joyful Shabbat Shalom, 10 x 6.25" Acrylics on watercolor paper, Laura Bolter Design

10 x 6.25″ Acrylics on watercolor paper

Inspired by a meeting with a special friend and exceptional educator yesterday, I sat down with a palette of brilliant colors, some of my favorite tunes playing, and set out to create a new Shabbat Shalom illustration. Prints are available in my shop.

Wishing all a very joyful Shabbat Shalom.

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Pyrography Painting: Decorated Torah

8 x 8" Pyrography and Acrylics on Cradled Wood Panel by Laura Bolter

8 x 8″ Pyrography and Acrylics on Cradled Wood Panel

This pyrography painting was started several months ago, and it’s been sitting on my desk patiently awaiting the remaining painting. I finished it up yesterday and today and I love the wood grain peeking through the paint. It’ll be varnished and then listed in my shop, as a print for now. I need to hoard all originals now in hopes of participating in upcoming Jewish art festivals this year. Definitely wanting to do more pyrography! It brings me back to working with wood in a two-dimensional design class I had during the spring semester of my freshman year at Colorado State. Pyrography requires much smaller tools than the band saws and scrolls saws I used back then.

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New Mandala Painting

Flower Mandala Painting, acrylics on watercolor paper by Laura Bolter

Acrylics on Watercolor Paper

I’ve spent the last few days painting something pretty. It’s been very relaxing and meditative. I’ll list prints in my shop soon. Well, as soon as I decide on a title.

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Slingin’ Paint

IMG_1246

Detail of a large painting

 

Quite a while ago, over two years ago, in fact, I started a very large painting. I thought it would be nice to hang a new painting in our living room and have it ready before H&D’s wedding. So, we loaded up a huge canvas into the car and I began covering it with paint. Well the wedding plans took over life and I never got back to the painting. It’s been sitting in the dining room for awhile now and Dann has suggested that it’s done because the whole canvas is covered in paint. He’s a computer developer. ‘Nuf said. :-)

Today I felt the urge to paint, but didn’t have a subject in mind. I wanted to be loose and free and just sling paint around. So, I put blobs of paint on paper plates, got out the biggest brush I had and went at that painting. I think I can honestly say that in the several hours I worked on it today I recovered the entire thing—not really thinking or agonizing, just working fast and furious. I’m hoping it doesn’t take another two years to call it finished.

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Happy 2013!

Happy 2013 studio photo

 

I realized a few days ago that I haven’t blogged in quite some time. I’ve been busy filling Etsy orders and taking time off with the family over the holidays, and even getting back to painting, having been bouyed by my Urban Suburban experience. It’s been three years since the last Kansas City Jewish Arts Festival when I didn’t exhibit and decided just to volunteer instead. This year, with Hannah working at the JCC and on the Festival itself, and feeling like I need to be going back to the basics of painting, I am going to be applying to show. Which means that I need to have paintings, if I’m accepted of course. So, I’m dipping my toes back into the paint, only figuratively, and slowly getting started. It’s been quite some time since I’ve been in full-festival-prep-mode, so it will take time to build up steam, but I’ve taken the first step. If I can really get going, I might even try to do the Boulder Jewish Festival in June, but I’ll need to have quite a bit accomplished to make that happen.

In the meantime, here’s a peak at what I’ve been working on. I’ve tried to let go of the fear in painting something out when I’m not happy with a direction. And, both of these paintings have layers underneath that aren’t visible any more. No regrets either! I’m pleased with the direction both have taken in the detour, but I still consider them in progress.

 

Light Comes from Within, acrylic painting by Laura Bolter, 1-13

Tentative title: Light Comes from Within

This is a small one with lots of texture and VERY simple compared to what I’ve done before. I’m still trying to decide if it needs anything else… words, images…..?

In progress: Shalom Hamsa, 10 x 10, acrylic on cradled wood panel

In progress: Shalom Hamsa, 10 x 10, acrylic on cradled wood panel

Revisiting the popular Shalom Hamsa on this painting, I’ve worked on a cradled wood panel and tried a bit of letter-stamping, too. This, too, is a work-in-progress, so please comment here if you have thoughts about these paintings or other subjects you’d like to see.

Sending belated wishes to everyone for a Happy New Year filled with peace and creativity.

 

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Mini Prints are in the shop!

Mini Art 5 x 7" Print Reproductions in Frames

Just in time for holiday shopping, I’ve added mini art prints to my shop! These prints, on the same wonderful paper as the larger prints, are just the right size for giving. Each print is made on a 5″ x 7″ page and would slip right into a 5″ x 7″ frame. At $7.50 each and half the price of the 8.5″ x 11″ frames you can buy several to make a nice, inexpensive grouping as a gift to someone else or for yourself. I’ve just started listing prints in this size, so if you see an image you’d like to have printed somewhere else in the shop or on my site but not yet listed in this size, shoot me an Etsy convo or an email and I’ll set up a custom listing asap. And, if you didn’t see the Facebook post yesterday, I’ve got a holiday sale happening right now: 20% off your total purchase until December 9th with the coupon code: holidays2012.

*Frames are not included. But, you knew that, right?

And, while you’re shopping Etsy, don’t forget that DesignersCare is selling prints, note cards, gift tags and more, designed by distinguished designers from around the country and beyond. All profits are being donated to the American Red Cross Hurricane Sandy relief efforts. I just placed an order and can’t wait to get my art prints!

Happy holiday shopping!

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