Tulips for Valentine's Day?

Every February, across the country, candy, flowers, and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine. But who is this mysterious saint and why do we celebrate this holiday? The history of Valentine's Day - and its patron saint - is shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. So, who was Saint Valentine and how did he become associated with this ancient rite?

According to one legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl - who may have been his jailor's daughter - who visited him during his confinement. Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic, and, most importantly, romantic figure. It's no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages (written Valentine's didn't begin to appear until after 1400), and the oldest known Valentine card is on display at the British Museum. The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap".

According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.)

Casey Shannon Studio has elegant contemporary sumi-e fine art reproductions, cards, and gifts for the discriminating collector to give or keep. These beautiful items are stunning and they are individual works of art. Each one is a lovely gem and an expression of the artist's heart and soul. Do yourself a favor and take the time to browse the gallery. Read More.........


My original Sumi-e is available here.

 
Artist in the spotlight this month is Julie Marionette Tabonair. She is a talented painter living on the island of Kauai. Marionette paints paradise for all of us to enjoy. I recently interviewed her for my newsletter and here are Marionette's responses. Enjoy!

Q. What is art in your opinion?

Art is definitely food for the soul. Without music, dance, the visual arts, and poetry our lives would be empty. I often compare the colors, values, and shapes in a painting to the notes and harmonies in music. If the colors 'sing' with each other and the composition is pleasing to the eye, then the painting will be enjoyed just like a good musical performance.

Art is also memories. I live in one of the most beautiful islands on the
planet, the Garden Island of Kauai, and am often asked to paint a
landscape or cottage that reminds someone of the wonderful honeymoon or vacation they had on Kauai. My art helps them make a connection with the wonderful experiences they had, and the painting helps solidify those memories every time they view it.

Q. What is your favorite medium? Why?

My favorite medium is the one that I am currently painting with. I teach
a variety of art classes at my studio, Painting Paradise, in Waimea town
so I must practice working in several mediums in order to make the classes
interesting. I love trying new mediums and techniques and often force
myself to try something new or 'think outside the box'. It's very
fulfilling to me to be able to teach a student something new and exciting
about art.




Q. What media and tools do you normally use to create art?

I work in watercolors, acrylics, silk painting, pastels, sumi-e,
scratchboard, and mixed media. I highly recommend using the best quality art supplies that you can afford. For watercolors I recommend Arches paper and Winsor and Newton paints. I use Liquetex paints exclusively for my acrylic paintings. They were the original developers of acrylic paint for fine artists and continue to improve their product over time. For canvas, I use Fredrix ultrasmooth premium portrait grade. The smoothness of the surface makes it easy to paint on. For silk painting I use Dye-na-Flow silk paints instead of dyes since the paints are set with an iron instead of steaming. I also love using Ampersand's Scratchbord because of its smooth clay surface coated with India ink

Q. What inspires you to create?

The tremendous beauty surrounding me on this lush, tropical island of
Kauai is what inspires me. Being out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean,
the air is exceptionally clean, which means the colors here are extremely
vibrant. I've never seen such blue sky or turquoise ocean before. Even
the flowers radiate color spectacularly.

I have also fallen in love with the quaint plantation cottages found on
this island. They are fast becoming relics from the old sugar cane era
and as more plantations are closing, more of the old houses will be
disappearing. I enjoy documenting this piece of history in my art.

Q. What method do you follow when creating?

Whether it's painting in watercolors, pastels, or acrylics, I try to block
in the main colors and shapes of my painting first without any attention
to detail. Then, as the painting progresses, I start to slowly develop
the painting. I often squint at my subject matter and then at my
painting. Doing this helps me work on the values which are important to
make the painting look realistic. The squinting shows me where the
darkest values are and also the lightest values. Try it. It really
works!

Q. How do you feel when you create art?

I feel alive and relaxed when I paint. I really believe that creating art
is a form of meditation. When I am focused on my subject, I forget about
my daily problems, the news, my aches and pains, et cetera. For a few
moments I am totally one with my art and at peace.

          It's easy to lose track of time too. It's my 'happy' place!



Contact Marionette:

TO PURCHASE ORIGINAL ART: http://www.kauaiartist.etsy.com
WEBSITE: http://www.kauai-artist.net
BLOG: http://www.kauai-artist.blogspot.com
CAFEPRESS: http://www.cafepress.com/kauaiart
FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER: http://twitter.com/kauaiartist
FACEBOOK: http://artist.to/Marionette

This framed Sumi-e reproduction is called Leaves of Life. This image was inspired by the joy of life and living and how life enfolds each of us in leaves of energy. This Fine Art Reproduction is available from my Sumi Spirit Gallery on ImageKind

This is an 'Art for Cancer' painting. 100% of the proceeds from the sale of this work I will donate to Breast Cancer Research. This makes a lovely gift for yourself or to give and also helps fight the dreadful disease of Cancer. Together we can beat this horrific killer! There are several other images available as Art for Cancer.

Please browse my Galleries.

In addition, The Art for Cancer group has just launched our new video on YouTube in honor of breast cancer awareness called 'Pink Energy'. Please take a moment to view our video.

Our group offers stunning artworks by established global artists.

Our Art for Cancer Squidoo lens has been featured for World Cancer Day on February 4th at The Squid Calendar