I discover twitter

Well, here are the stats on twitter, for what that's worth.

My intention has been to follow people/institutions etc. that have something to do with art, either artists that do landscapes, galleries, curators, art critics, museums, and places I like.

Seeking information and contacts with others, I have a distinct negative reaction to those whose ratio of following is lower than their followers. I reject some out of hand.

Perhaps I'll change my mind when I'm popular. I doubt it. I see it as a disinterest in self education.

So, this is twitter...

2012 Art Challenge

2012 should be a terrific year with a tremendous amount to be done.

Over the past month I've started to learn how to use Twitter and Facebook. It's taken some time, and I don't have a very good handle on how to use them quickly and painlessly.

Whether or not either turns out to be the wonder the world claims, we'll see.

I'm going to document the process, and other organizational processes I'm working on, so I can both follow my own progress, so you can, and, if applicable, you might find it useful.

I am attempting to use social media to both increase my own awareness of what is going on in parts of the art world that can help me gain viewers and information.

This year I plan to start painting more, some pictures from the ground up in acrylic and pastels. I have joined the California Art Club, and found a few artists, so far, whose work appeals to me, and who I plan to contact to see if I can acquire some lessons with them.

I have also purchased a computer based art management program that should help me manage where my art is, art shows and contact management. This is called GYST. http://www.gyst-ink.com/

In the process of organizing my art work, I will also be accumulating works I can write more about with the intention of creating some brochures and handouts to help promote my work. This, perhaps, in the mistaken belief that the more people know about what they are looking at, the more it might be appreciated.

I will keyword my future posts as follows: social media, gyst, painting
so it may be easier to isolate each of these threads.

I currently have 16 works in 3 art venues in California and I don't know how many locally at The Satellite, an office space rental for part-time use here in Felton. I had applied to a show in Pasadena for which I would have had to prep more pictures if I had been accepted, but, happily, in a way, I have not been, so I now have time to focus on the organizational stuff I need to do.

Santa Cruz County Bank Chooses 12 Larry Darnell Images for Show

October 11th, 2011 - Felton, CA

Santa Cruz County Bank for its "Into the Woods" show has chosen 12 of Larry Darnell's tree images for this 9 artist joint show. The show runs October 18 - January 18, 2012 at 5 bank locations.

In witness to the natural beauty, strength and mythical character of trees, nine artists share their personal and universal perspectives on the earth's most cherished living resource. Spanning from below the earth up to the sky, trees provide sustenance, shelter and bounty for our planet. On a local note, trees hold significant value in Santa Cruz County's history through logging and tourism.

"Trees are one of the living subjects I find most appealing. While they are rooted they are still very dynamic, and their sense of time is very much not in sync with our own," Darnell said. "They make choices over very long periods of time, and, of course, are largely responsible for us having the privilege of being here."

More information about the show.
http://www.sccountybank.com/art_current.cfm

See the images here:
http://larry-darnell.artistwebsites.com/art/all/work+chosen+for+into+the+woods+show+at+county+bank/all

Foundation For Photo Art In Hospitals Chooses Larry Darnell Sierra Nevada Image

The Foundation for Photo/Art in Hospitals recently choose a photograph "Mosquito Lake" by Larry Darnell for their collection. The Foundation for Photo/Art in Hospitals is a non-profit publicly supported organization dedicated to placing colorful, soothing photographs of nature in hospitals to give comfort and hope to patients and their families, visitors, and caregivers.

"Mosquito Lake" is was shot at the High Sierra lake of the same name, near Ebbett's Pass on highway 4. One of many mountain subjects, Darnell stated, "I have a love for mountain solitude and beauty both enjoy being there and then sharing it with others through my work."

The unique mission of the Foundation is to place large, framed photographs of nature and beautiful places from around the world in hospitals to give comfort and hope to patients and their families, visitors, and caregivers. Studies show that nature art has a beneficial effect on relieving a patient’s stress and anxiety. The photographs are intended to provide color and an atmosphere of compassion where healing is encouraged.

Guiding Principles

We believe that beautiful nature images can help heal the soul, which in turn helps heal the body.
We support the researchers and practitioners who recognize the strong link between soothing hospital environments and patients’ improvement in health, both mental and physical.
We maintain that providing photos of nature and places from around the world to medical facilities will bring appreciation of the earth’s immense beauty.
We value the full range of human diversity and seek to cross cultures by speaking to different personalities through nature art – almost everyone enters a hospital sometime in their life, either as a patient or as a visitor, regardless of race, sex, religious affiliation, culture, and economic level.
http://www.healingphotoart.com/mission.php

"Snowy Night" Chosen for "After Dark" Show

"Snowy Night" a 30 second exposure taken during a Sierra snow storm was chosen by juror and photographer Tom Paiva for the national juried show After Dark at the Vermont Photospace Gallery Essex Junction, Vermont. Tom has been a commercial photographer for over 20 years, specializing in industrial and architectural subjects.

Night photography has been a passion for him for over 25 years and always tries to incorporate it in his commercial work. His statement for this show: When I review a night photograph, one of the most important criteria is the balance of light from the extreme highlights to the deepest shadows, regardless of whether it is b+w or color. This tonality is important to keep the viewers interest. A night shot should have a sense of mystery and the composition should make your eye move around the image. Of course, it must be technically perfect to make the grade.

I was a little surprised this image made the cut, not have a bowlful of experience with night shooting and having been shot with a point and shoot camera, but it made the grade.

Water - Blog Action Day

Today’s Blog Action Day, an annual event that calls on the world’s bloggers to post about the same issue on the same day. This year’s theme is water, including conservation and accessibility.

Water has been one of my major image themes for my images.

Some of my water images can be found here. http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/larry-darnell.html?tab=artworkgalleries&artworkgalleryid=2292

2 Works Chosen for San Joaquin Show

2 photographs, ALEXANDRIA RHYTHMS AFTER DEMUTH and ATGET IN THE GOLD COUNTRY, were chosen by Carol McCusker, an independent curator, writer and educator, for the show ALTERED LANDSCAPES at the LH Horton Gallery in Stockton, CA 11/18 - 12/16/2010. Both photographs are homage, one to Charles Demuth, painter and Eugene Atget, photographer.

Both photographs are unusual in that photography is the underlying foundation of my work the majority of which consists of paintings and prints digitally processed from photographs. I seldom present photographs as a final product.

Both of these photographs also are of historical architectural subjects, which is kind of a sub-genre for me, my most predominant work being landscapes.

I have written a more detailed description of both of these images to be presented in a later blog and on my website.

LH Horton Gallery
San Joaquin Delta College
5151 Pacific Ave
Stockton, CA

http://www.deltacollege.edu/div/finearts/dept/dca/gallery/visit.htm