In times of turbulence and an uncertain future, my mind casts itself toward magical thinking and mythical creatures. A Djinn is an Arab mythological creature made from smokeless, scorching fire. You have probably heard of the famous Djinn who emerged from Aladdin’s lamp.
If you had only one wish, would you wish for more wishes?
5″ x 7″, oil on canvas board.
Available here.
Posted in 30 in 30, art, contemporary art, Denver, fine art, new art, painting
Tagged #30 paintings in 30 days, 30 in 30, Djinn, Les Djinns, Lili Fatale, wishes
Today’s painting is about my black cat, Diablo. His weight this morning, taken despite much indignity but no scratching (this time) is 18 pounds.
He is growing increasingly spherical in shape and has to squeeze tightly through the normal cat-sized door to enter the room where his food is kept. Perhaps this will limit his future weight gain, Winnie-the-Pooh style. We’ll see. (I suspect the neighbors of feeding him on the sly, but only God knows why they would.)
Posted in 30 in 30, art, contemporary art, Denver, new art, painting
Tagged #30 paintings in 30 days, 30 in 30, monsterpussy, the vaselines
I’ve been searching for a reason to keep painting. I found Leslie Saeta’s 30 in 30 challenge and it has given me some steam. Happy New Year to all.
Edit:Last year I learned a new word, “Ekphrastic.” My friend Valerie Savarie, an altered-book artist, put together an exhibit with that title in which poets responded to works of visual art with their literary works, then read their poems aloud at the opening reception.
Yesterday, I was thrilled to read poet Ken Smith’s “Clown College Failure,” sparked by his looking at this painting.
Clown College Failure
At the end he had that unconvincing smile, maybe half a tube
Of grease paint, one green shirt with matching pants, a box
Of small hats with massive wigs, and a keen sense of the shocks
That flesh is heir to. On the wide college lawn, after he begged
The dean of clowns for another chance to play the hapless rube,
The world said the role is yours and the world has not reneged.
Ken is a writer and English professor living in South Bend, Indiana.
Check out his Twitter feed here, and listen to him read his Michiana Chronicles essays here.
Thank you for the ekphrasis, Ken!
Posted in 30 in 30, art, contemporary art, Denver, new art, painting, poetry
Tagged #30 paintings in 30 days, clown college, ekphrasis, ekphrastic, Indiana, Ken Smith, Michiana Chronicles, poem, Poet, South Bend, tears of a clown, valerie savarie
oil on canvas, 60″ x 48″
I am happy to have finished the largest painting I’ve attempted thus far and grateful for the advice of my trusted friend Dave Wyzenbeek that helped me see this to completion.”Majnun” will be debuting at Core New Art Space on October 1, in a show titled “Ghosts” that I am sharing with the accomplished and gifted altered book artist Valerie Savarie.
I will be present all three Friday evenings of this three-week exhibit, on the 2nd, the 9th, and the 16th, from 6 to 9 PM. I hope you can come by, share a glass of wine, and let me know what you think of the new work.
If you’re interested in knowing more about the ancient story of the star-crossed lovers that inspired this painting, you can learn about Layla and Majnun here. And Eric Clapton once wrote some songs about them, too.
Posted in art, contemporary art, Denver, new art, painting
Tagged Art Denver, CORE New art space, Eric Clapton, Ghosts, Katie Hoffman, Layla, Layla and Majnun, Majnun, Qays, valerie savarie
Oil on canvas, 8″ x 8″ http://katiehoffman.com/available-paintings/available-oil-on-canvas/pilar.html
Posted in art, contemporary art, Inspiration, new art, painting
Tagged John Darnielle, Mountain Goats, People were mean to you, Pilar, You were cool
16 New Monotypes. These will be available at my 900 Santa Fe Drive studio. The studio will be open this evening, Friday July 10 from 5PM until 9PM, tomorrow, Saturday July 11 from 10AM until 3PM, and Friday July 17 from 5PM until 9PM.
If they’ll never even hear you?
Happy Father’s Day.
Some stuff I’ve made since the last blog post:
I just want to be near you.
Posted in art, contemporary art, Denver, fine art, new art, painting
Tagged Carrie & Lowell, Eugene, Father's Day, Sufjan Stevens
And an inexplicable melancholy on this sunny, soggy, drippy day in Denver.
Perhaps the coming snowstorm will brighten my mood.
“Cowardly Lion,” oil on canvas board, 5″ x 7″
I will have the studio open tomorrow from 5 until 9. I think.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pGPA9pjUYk
Paint Fumes 