Moon Bunny Children's Book

Moon Bunny is the first of many independently created children's books created by yours truly.
I wrote, illustrated and designed a book of 12 months, then compiled a dream-team of editors, artists and writers to help me get the book ready for the world.  Its now ready to buy on amazon.com here

I have really enjoyed the continuing appreciation from my readers sending me their reviews in pictures!  Thanks all you awesome parents and kiddos!!  

Artists Who Live in the Woods; Lord Von Schmitt

Lord Von Schmitt, aka Schuyler, has an immense capability to create surreal and lusciously 60s retro art.  He is a clothing designer, collage artist, photographer, model, musician and dj extraordinare.
I quite enjoy hanging around him and his unapologetic and colorful sense of humor.

He creates these amazing clothes out of afghans, and he listens to the best retro dance music 

in existence.

I designed this graphic logo for him, that now appears on his lovely gold tags.  

His love for randomness can be seen by observing the scattered re-purposed art that decorates his barn studio.  He gives meaningless objects a new life and makes them into sculptures.  Frivolous art is a sign of enjoyment, and brilliance!  He is indeed seeking something vast and loves to go on quests, even if its just a trip walking through town.

 I love wearing his clothes, I often feel like myself in the style of hideous fashion, and can satisfy the bohemian weirdo in me.   Somehow nobody stops me and tells me I look like I am walking around wearing what resulted in an explosion from my grandmother's closet. And if they did, I would thank them for the high compliment.  Find his original designs here.

Home Portrait with Oils

Today I wore my favorite green furry sweater, and posed in a fort made of my paintings.  Its not every day you get to be hugged in a world of many magical beings.  *Feeling really good*

Golden Owl Speed Painting

I begin this by making a free hand sketch of an owl using a colored pencil on arches hot press paper. I use Daniel Smith watercolor paints, and do several washes, and add layers over dried washes. A lot of my work is detailed, and I draw colors and lines with my brush. Then I paint around the owl with Designa Size, a sticky glue used for applying gold leaf. The gold leaf goes on after 15 minutes of applying the size, then I gently tap the leaf and lift it off with a soft brush. The final layers are details using FW liquid acrylics, gouache, sennelier inks and tiny gemeralds. This painting took many days to complete, as I kept it propped up in my studio where I could decide what it needed and could take the time to add to it until it was complete. 

Art and Nature

  Nearly every night I awake to quench my thirst.  I step out of my bedroom and onto the deck where I blindly feel for the door handle to enter the dark yurt.  I immediately reach for the light switch and walk across the cold floor to the sink where I fill my glass in a somnabulant state.  After gulping down refreshing water, I walk back outside to my bed in the little dome.   I see the moon glowing silently on the horizon, and I frequently remember my dreams after greeting this eerie bright light rising from behind the trees.

     In the morning I heat water for tea.  My tiny furry kitty Falena, aka “dainty monkey” greets me as she prances swiftly from the cat door to her food dish.  I rush to put on my clothes, I have to hurry out the door to greet a new friend today.   I swiftly dart out the door and Falena follows me to the car as usual, curious as to where I disappear to in my travel pod.  Driving down the hill, I can see the revitalizing view of the mountains.   Colors are bright, the landscape presents a crisp and detailed panorama of slow creeping clouds and dancing yellow spears of pine and madrone trees.  My heart fills with joy as I behold the land the morning after a fresh rain.

     Driving fast on the windy road, I embrace the hypnotic pulse of light from the tree shadows hitting my windshield, chiming to the beat of my music.  As I pass through the country side admiring the glorious view, I come to a stop where I see a huge grandfather tree smashed and blocking the highway.  I gasp and wonder how powerful the winds must have been, and take in for a moment the weight of the huge beast lying across the road.  I turn the wheel, now warm from the sun, towards my destination where a new art patron awaits my arrival.

  We meet at a little restaurant in the country, and while sipping our coffees at the European style tables, share our love for the plant kingdom.  We have a very interesting conversation, one where you can understand where the other is coming from, on a very specific level.  Such a unique conversation, you feel like it is a story being written or a new idea being born.  He is anxious to be the new owner of my oil painting, "Two Bird Tribe".  It is still morning and my coffee is jolting through my system.  I don’t normally drink coffee, except when I’m socializing, which gets me really excited.  I go into the room and gaze upon my oil painting.  Its eyes meet mine again, and I look into their beings as if I am seeing them in a new light.  They almost seem to give me a high five, and I thank them for visiting my dreams.  I am filled with gratuity for having met a new friend and patron who adors my art and feels a similar affinity for the characters in the pictures that I paint.  I remember the moon on the horizon, and the delicate state of dreams and their significance.  Nature is always guiding me with beacons of light, and still moments of darkness, signaling my need to paint.  I can still smell the morning rain on the grass, and am filled with delight that my day is just beginning.

  

California Drought, and My Way Out

     When we see our resources deplete before our very eyes, it reminds us of our delicate nature.  And as human beings, we are reminded of our impact.  We focus so much on the negative impact, yes and climate change is as obvious as the sun in the sky.  But what about the positive influence we can have and how can we contribute those energies back into the world?  I do see a copious amount of ideas circulating on the internet about ways to do this, and it inspires me.  I am uplifted by the thought of coming together with a new perspective on how we can respect the natural world.  Humans are afraid of nature, they know it can and will kill them.  And this should earn our respect, not our fear.
     Its sad to think about the beautiful forests and pristine waters being consumed too quickly to sustain a healthy planet, and we want to give back in the best way that we are able.  Is donating money the answer?  What is the price you would pay if you were offered just one last glass of water? Its value is equal to that of your life.  We must practice conservation.  Start thinking of how to keep the water around you sacred.  Thank the earth, stars, heavens, or whatever you like to shake your fist at for its gift of life, and start finding a way out.  So today, in celebration of earth day, I raise my glass, and am thankful to be an artist and a warrior of nature.

Moon Bunny children's book debut!

It is my great pleasure to write this update, as today marks a monumental moment in Kelly Patton Art history!   I am ever pleased to present; Moon Bunny!

Moon Bunny is my first fully illustrated 32 page picture book featuring adorable characters and magic starry designs. The paper back version and ebook is now available to purchase on amazon!

 To view the title on amazon and purchase Moon Bunny go here.



Whether whisking around on roller skates, or making whimsical discoveries camping in a fort under the stars, Moon Bunny is always coming up with delightful ideas. Kids will learn the 12 months as they follow sweet characters who remind them to play outside, and be creative indoors. Anyone who loves nature or loves to learn new ways to have fun, will keep this on their bookshelf.

Speed Drawing of Moon Bunny

I love capturing hours of work into one quick speed drawing video. It is very satisfying to watch and I hope you like it!

Juicy Apple Demo

Acrylic painting 24" x 18".  This piece was done for the Valentine Erotique Ball.  They are using it as a prop of some kind, and still it is a mystery to me what exactly that will involve, something juicy no doubt.  I guess I'll see on Friday! 

I used Liquitex Acrylics.  Cadmium Red Deep, Naples Yellow Hue, French Ultramarine and Titanium White and Matte Medium to extend the paint.  I mix only those colors to get shadows and highlights, and use no black paint. 

Dazeys

We will have local shows in February, and I'm so pleased to announce our facebook page, here

Star Walkin'
"Its been a long time comin' 
To begin my journey home
I will have new books to fill,
Those tattered pages write the stars."

No Way Sir
"You pick the game,
Shuffle the deck,
Deal the cards?
What the heck I sey.  
Na ah, no way sir!"

More music by Dazeys on SoundCloud

Album Cover concept and drawings by Kelly and Gracie;

Moon Castle Time Lapse

Stay tuned into my blog for these stop animation time lapses that I have lately been cracking out on.

Viola!  I have completed a painting in only 3 minutes...if only it were that quick!  But it was really not that long at all, only 3 hours to finish this one.  I am getting faster all the time.  A big reason why this was so swift is because I know I have an audience, and there is something about that giving me the extra drive.  Thank you everyone!!!

February Night Vision Art Show!

I am so pleased to announce that we can enjoy one more night at the North Columbia Schoolhouse to celebrate the final showing of Night Vision.  I will be there saying goodbye to some original oils and hoping you all can see them in person before they are whisked away to their new homes.
The event is Thursday, February 5th from 6-9pm.

I'll be there in my new blue dress, wading through this starry world.  You won't be alone.

Dream Painter

As a human, I had to endure adapting to a difficult transition in my personal life and was suffering from insomnia. I imagined hanging oil paintings around my bed featuring dreamy creatures and mysterious plants under starry skies to lull myself to sleep.   I went to bed with 3 of these paintings on my wall last week and felt that precious thing called completion.

Dream Painter

16" x 20"

Oil on Canvas

Earth Goddess

"Verdant Goddess" is now available to purchase!  You can order here or send me a personal message to order by mail.  It is a museum quality reproduction printed professionally on fine art watercolor paper.  Mind they are very limited as there are only 50 available!

Portraits

 

 

 

Lullaby to Sleep

 
Since these creatures appear first in my imagination, I often love to toy with the idea that I create them into existence.  Here is the story of Shapeshifter, and some tips to help with the painting process.  I am not offering a formula on how to do this exact thing, I am only documenting how it unfolded naturally.  Enjoy!

March 2014, I see a story and beautiful imagery.  There is no plot, or names really, its only a snapshot.

 

Let the process commence! Take further action by making a GIANT version of this idea.  I stretch the canvas using these tools: Cotton duck canvas, 36" x 52" stretcher bars, canvas pliers, staple gun,  white acrylic gesso.   

 

April 2014, new leaves unfurl giving my ideas fresh life.  

I knew I had until December to paint this thing, and appropriately anticipated Winter Solstice in my subject matter.  I applied many layers of Black and Phthalo Blue Acrylic, covering the entire painting.  Then drew directly on the canvas using white pencil.  

 

Soon it will be warm outside and I'll be under a dark sky with the moon glowing bright. 

This is now a thin layer of oil, and I really love my wide hog bristle brushes for this step in the painting. The landscape is roughly developed using contrasting colors to block out shapes and give depth.  I am starting to see what lives here...

 

Truly night provides the greatest fantastical lense.

This is always a bit spooky and exciting for me, as many of my creatures appear white before I color over them.  This is my experience with shaping its body using monochromatic schemes.

 

May 2014.  I flew through fluffy clouds in a single engine plane, and fell in love with them AGAIN.  

 Well, here they are slowly developing in the sky.  I develop the picture even more using blues, purples and greens to appear as they would in a night time situation.  The moon casts light in one direction,  and the other light source comes from the glowing seed.

 

  

June and July, more people are entering my world, and the river time is in prime.

I like to work very loosely as I develop layers.  This is a huge painting after all!  And although I know I am a detail freak, I still have to force myself to stand back and concentrate on using larger lines of color to define and create 3 dimension.

 

September 2014.  The praying mantis graces the surface of my canvas and beckons me to strike a the right moment.  

 It can be hard after 4 months of an intimate relationship with your painting to find fresh inspiration.  But with a little wonderment and perseverance, you always find exciting new life.

 

November

I have triple developed this painting by locking into a technique, or formula.  All the blues and dark and light values are congruent and the brightest detail layers give an extreme amount of depth and shimmer.  

 

November 2014. 

 I have a finished lovely new friend and other world to explore.  I am the little beetle observing the event as best as I can--being a mere bug.  

 

My art reception was a dream come true; that is after working myself nearly crazy to the very last detail.  Life is all about pushing the limits, and I am grateful to prove it to myself.  It has been such a painstaking and beautiful process.  And the work is ongoing, as I am to share these images in many other forms such as the new and exciting fine print. 

 

As a human, I had to endure adapting to a difficult transition in my personal life and was suffering from insomnia.  I imagined hanging original night-time oil paintings around my bed featuring dreamy creatures and mysterious plants to lull myself to sleep.

I have 8 other paintings that developed alongside Shapeshifter.  Keepin' it weird!  Thanks everyone!

Two Bird Tribe

Two-Bird Tribe
Oil Painting by Kelly Patton 22" x 30"

It can be viewed all next month at the North Columbia Schoolhouse, and at the closing reception Thursday February 5th 2015.

Shapeshifter

Hi everyone, I have been diligently working on 8 new oil paintings for my latest exhibition, "Night Vision" and am thrilled to post the featured work of this show. This painting is entitled, "Shapeshifter" and measures 36" x 54".
This original oil painting can be viewed in person for the month of January at the North Columbia Schoolhouse in Nevada City, California. And remember, if you missed the opening reception there will be a celebratory closing reception Thursday,  February 5th from 6pm-9pm.

I like your style...

On rainy days, Falena refuses to go outside. She is stuck in the boring yurt and I get to enjoy her human personality and see her ferocious tiger unleash full force due to cabin fever. Here she is, bored as hell, and smirking in her own way.

 

 

 

Kitty, you are so relaxed.  I like your style.