Celebrating International Women's Day at TraillWorks

My mom has been the most influential #artist in my success. Though she gave up her own passion for motherhood, she nurtured my artistic interests, supported art lessons, and mostly asserted that I should always pursue my own path. And, I did. Now, thirty years later, she is following her dreams, designing, making, and selling jewelry at TraillWorks, with much success might I add! Not only does she find the time to produce her jewelry, but she is a fantastic grandma (Marmee) to my son, Joel, a supportive wife to my father, and the best mom. Thanks for encouraging me mom, and happy International Women's Day! 

Silver Ginko Pendant with Pearls and Glass
Pearl and Glass Earrings
by Martha Traill Schaeffer, available at TraillWorks

Who is the most influential or inspirational female artist to you? Please share on our Facebook wall!

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Back in the Studio

Mini Perker, Oil on Matt Board, 5.25" x 5.25" ©2011 Jennie Traill Schaeffer

$95

I wax poetic to my students all the time about the importance of working outside of class, continuity of production, sketching, etc. But, do I always take my own advice? Unfortunately no. I'm no dummy. I know the importance of prioritizing my artwork, but running a business and being a mom make it challenging at best. Stuff comes up - people walk into the gallery, my son gets sick, I get sick, I'm busy teaching or marketing the business.

Each year since I've run a gallery I've produced somewhere around 25 pieces of original work. And, that's including commissions. Not complaining - commissions are great income and have historically been subjects that interest me or are very much related to my own area of focus: vintage appliances, aprons, and wedding cakes. But, it is truly hard to juggle work/life balance - sleeping, eating, getting my son to and from daycare, spending enough time at the studio. Something's always got to give, so unfortunately when I look at the finances, sometimes it's my artwork.

Ugggh. Enough! Starting this week, I've been in the studio for the first time since early January. I've had great enjoyment and growth in the past when I was disciplined to create a work a day, or at the very least set a clear goal for myself. Maybe by the sheer fact that I'm blogging about this, I will have someone other than myself to own up to. Here's mine for the rest of 2011 - create a minimum of two works a week (no restriction on size, medium, or time), giving me a total of 68 works (34 weeks left of 2011, x 2)! It's a lofty goal, but I think it is reasonable. I'm going to post a weekly blog post of each week's finished pieces. So check back at the end of next week and see what I've done - I need your support! In the interim, you can follow me daily on Facebook or Twitter.

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TraillWorks Student Saturday

Graphite drawing by June Nezamis

It's time for another Student Saturday post! A lot of artwork is getting completed and framed at TraillWorks in preparation for the annual student show, opening on March 12th. From 4 - 7pm the gallery will be bustling with students, parents, grandparents, and friends to take a peak at the works of these growing artists in a very professional gallery setting. Quite an honor for these students - children, teens and adults. Here's a link to an album of pictures from the 1st Annual Student Show held in June of 2009 at my former location on Spring Street.

There will be about fifteen students exhibiting, with each student including at the least one work, with many contributing two or more, depending on what they've finished and how long they've been taking lessons. Each student has been asked to write a reflective statement for each piece they are showing which will be on display explaining each work.

All of the exhibiting artists are asked to bring an edible sweet or savory that they've made for the reception. As part of the event, students and guests will have an opportunity to vote for what they think is the most artistically presented sweet or savory. All of the exhibiting artists are asked to bring an edible appetizer or dessert that they've made for the reception. Four prizes will be given to the winners: first, second, third, and an honorable mention. The winners of the contest will receive a gift certificate with the option of choosing either a lesson credit equivalent to a group lesson for one person, a gift certificate to Dick Blick Art Store, a gift certificate to a Spring Street business of your choice, or a custom cookie package from A Cake Dream in Randolph that features your artwork.

Please join us for an artistic evening to celebrate the accomplishments of these talented students. A recognition ceremony will be held at 6pm that evening.

In the meantime, here are some pics of recent student work, some of which will be on display for the exhibit.

Recycled Collage by Maddie Chymiy

Self-Portrait, Graphite by Will Somma

Sea Turtle, Ceramic by Will Somma

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February Events at TraillWorks

Back when I was entering my last year of study at Syracuse University's College of Visual and Performing Arts, I took an advanced drawing class with then, visiting artist, Cara Tomlinson. Prior to that class I had been pretty entrenched in realism and traditional ways of seeing. It was in that class that Cara expanded my notions of process and outcome in drawing, and created some experimental pieces which I'm digging out for this show.

I can't recall all the details of the class, but what sticks out in my fuzzy memory of eleven years ago was a drawing assignment influenced by the I Ching and a daily drawing project. The I Ching, or Book of Changes, is an ancient Chinese text, which I recall Cara referencing quite frequently throughout the semester.  The balance of opposites, process of evolution of events, and acceptance of the certainty of change are at the core of the text's philosophical and cosmological systems. We had to develop a composition which was purely based on a system, and it was up to us to determine the system, but we had to stick to whatever structure we developed. I created a gridded charcoal drawing, broken down into two rows of rectangles, each rectangle assigned a number. It will be interesting to look at this piece again, because I can't recall exactly what I drew into each "cell". I have the notes from this course somewhere in my studio, and will try to find them for my gallery talk on the 12th.

The daily drawing project was literal. Our only criteria was that each day of the semester required some sort of drawing on a 9" x 12" piece of paper, Arches was recommended, and to this day I still love drawing on Arches hot press, 140lb. paper. And the drawing, dictated by our own definitions of the act, had to be on paper. So, a drawing a day for an entire semester; I should have about 80 drawings. Many of the works I did were preparatory or thinking drawings for larger paintings, others were pure abstractions exploring color and media, some attempts at drawing from memory, and then towards the end of the semester I started doodling on note-laden post it notes that were affixed to the Arches paper. Hmmm, certainly beyond my boundaries of the definition of drawing the time!

Please join me as I travel back in time, to where my ideas began to open up. You'll be seeing some of these works for the first time in a decade, as they've been boxed, rolled, and traveled all over NJ. RSVP your attendance through our event on Facebook.

The opening reception, more like an open house, will be held at TraillWorks on Saturday, February 12th from 1 - 8pm. At 4:30pm I'm going to give a gallery talk in the hopes of bringing clarity and possibly some background behind the drawings.

And, throughout the day on February, 12th, also a 2nd Saturday, Main Street Newton and many participating Spring Street merchants are hosting a Sweetheart Walk!  From 1 - 5pm, you can participate in a word jumble and enter to win one of two gift baskets filled with prizes and gift certificates from merchants. Stop in at TraillWorks to pick up a jumble form and get more information about the contest. Additionally, many shops are open late 'til 8pm, offering specials and events. Some of the highlights, An Open Book is hosting the Jumble, Mother Moon Baby Boutique is holding a Valentine Party from 2 - 3pm, and all three Spring Street-centric restaurants are offering special Valentine's Day dinners.

• Andre's Restaurant
• JC's Grillhouse
• Trinity Restaurant and Lounge

And, if you missed David Ohlerking's exhibit at TraillWorks, it's traveling . . . to Andre's! As of tomorrow, barring any major maladies, David's work will be hanging at Andre's Restaurant at 188 Spring Street through the middle of March.

Whew! I think that's just about all the events a teaching artist, gallery owner can handle. Well, maybe too much. I'll be getting into that studio soon, so keep an eye on a post soon about new artwork by yours truly. Until then, hopefully I'll see you on the 12th!


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TraillWorks Student Saturday

Harry the duck interpreted by four new students, a money tree leaf studied, a sea turtle rendered in color, and abstract tile designs are some of the many works created by just a few of TraillWorks' students in the fall of 2010. Read on to learn about the works, their intent and process.

Harry in the Attic, Marker and Pastel, ©2010 Katelyn, Age 10

Harry Inside / Outside, Marker and Pastel, ©2010 Cailey, Age 10

In Katelyn's Harry, check out all of the textures, the depth of the rooms, and the sense of foreground emphasized by the roof of the dollhouse. Way to go Katelyn on an inventive composition, theme, and creative use of texture and color.
Cailey's Harry also explores interiors and exteriors, a little more abstractly. In her piece Harry is looking beyond a window from the inside out, looking into an artist's studio. Check out her incredible use of markered contour lines, unity of colors and very interesting structure to her artwork.

Farmland, Marker and Pastel, ©2010 Maddie, Age 6

McDonald's Harry, Marker and Pastel, ©2010 Ava, Age 6

Can you find the ducks in Maddie's and Ava's works above? They're in there. But what emerged in both are two very different visions. Maddie turned her work into a rolling farm filled with vivid blues, purples, and pinks, while Ava was influenced by McDonald's, repeating large m's and other architectural forms, using an earthier palette of pinks, browns, and blacks, with a hint of pink.

Leaf Series, 8" x 24", Mixed Media, ©2010 Rachel, Age 7

Leaf Series, 24" x 8", Colored and Pastel Pencils, ©2010 Noa, Age 9

The next two pieces are two examples of serial leaf drawings many of my students did in the fall. All used leaves from the studio's money tree for reference, leaving my tree quite plucked and pruned in an odd shape! But, all for a good purpose. Students had the option of using a variety of colored surfaces, colored pencils, pastels, and other drawing materials. The emphasis of the piece was on drawing the leaf from observation and developing a transition of some sort. The finished works were all mounted on foam core and then either left white, as in Noa's case, or collaged, painted, or drew into the background to unify the three pieces and bind them together with sewn elements, simple bookmaking techniques, as in Rachel's.

Sea Turtles, 16" x 12", Colored Pencil on Watercolor, ©2010 Will, Age 10

Will's artwork was influenced by a book he brought into class on sea turtles. He's a very creative kid who now has an ongoing sketchbook of drawings and ideas, so often his projects are developed by his interests. This piece is composed of actually several parts, one not seen. I introduced Will to the art of salt and watercolor to create a background tone which would mimic the sea. He then composed the picture, drawing the main sea turtle from reference photo, and then inventing the other fish! This was completed with colored pencils. The partner piece not shown is a clay sculpture of a sea turtle. 

Crayon Reflection, 20" x 16", Acrylic on Canvas, ©2010 Phoebe Nezamis, Age 15

Finally, the painting above was recently finished by Phoebe, a freshman in high school. Phoebe's been taking lessons with her mom and brother since last summer and is also a very creative thinker. The project intent was to develop a still life painting in acrylic, after learning to mix colors in gouache and draw an object from observation in charcoal. After several, maybe ten or more, thumbnail sketches Phoebe came up with this clever composition which utilized a mirror! Super challenging! She did an excellent job at replicating the colors of the crayons and then coming up with an engaging compositional structure. Her idea was somewhat influenced by Wayne Thiebaud, and probably a little of Richard Diebenkorn. The yellow background was my suggestion, as one of several options. What a stunning piece! 

My students currently are working on some exciting pieces and getting ready for our TraillWorks Student Show set for March, coinciding with Youth Art Month. So look for my Student Saturday post next month with info about the exhibit and more new student work. 

Jennie Traill Schaeffer on Social Media Mania - Sussex County Magazine

Yesterday my mail arrived and with it was a large envelope from the Sussex County Chamber of Commerce. I was very curious what was inside, and upon opening it found a copy of the 2010/2011 Sussex County Magazine, published annually by the chamber. My memory is a little fuzzy, because I thought I had gotten a copy last year and had it out at TraillWorks. So I paged through it and as the leaves were turning, a bright blue page with the Facebook logo got my attention. As I started scanning the article, I saw my name! I don't know if I missed this due to "mommy brain" or if it is a new publication from the one I had. 

Be that as it may, last year the chamber emailed its members for feedback on how they were using social media in their business. The chamber intended to use some of the responses in an article to be published in the next Sussex County Magazine, and low and behold, they used my comments! It pays to respond to those little requests organizations ask for. You never know what may get published. 

I've been using Facebook and Twitter for almost a year now, with varying results, but I see it as an integral piece of my marketing plan and am even now pursuing a new web design for traillworks.com that is more social media integrated. I mention in the article my use of contests to increase my fan base and I'm currently doing just that as part of David Ohlerking's exhibition at TraillWorks, which runs through January 29th. Every week I'm posting one of his photos to my Facebook page and asking fans to write on the wall their guess where David created the painting. At the end of each week through the 29th, I'm randomly drawing one winner who will receive a $25 gift certificate for use at TraillWorks. You can read more about the contest on my previous blog post.

In addition to my comments, Gene Ventimiglia of Ventimiglia Vineyards, Mountain Creek, The DavidHenry Agency, and Crystal Springs Resorts all give great examples of how they are capitalizing on social media.  Plus, Katrina Foster, principal of KKPR Marketing and Public Relations, a local young entrepreneur, lends some expert advice in using social media in small businesses. 

To read the article in its entirety, visit the sussexcountychamber.org, hover on the "media" tab to bring down a drop down menu and select "read Sussex County Magazine" to download a pdf file. Seems complicated, but this is where my technology wanes. If you know of an easier way to convert their pdf to a file that others can easily browse through like a magazine, please leave me a comment and I'll edit this blog post with a more user-friendly format.  And, thank you to the Sussex County Chamber of Commerce for seeing value in my experiences to publish it in your magazine!

David Ohlerking Contest

painting by David Ohlerking, 32" x 28", Oil on panel, ©2010 David Ohlerking

It's contest time at TraillWorks again! In honor of the New Year and another three weeks of David Ohlerking's exhibit, David Ohlerking Paints Newton at TraillWorks, I'm going to hold a series of contests on our Facebook page. 

Here's the scoop, visit our Facebook page, check out the latest David Ohlerking artwork posted on our wall. Take a guess at where the work was painted by posting your answer on our wall. Here's the best part, you don't even have to be right to win. Of all the guesses posted, right or wrong, I will select one winner randomly every week. You have an entire week to guess the answer. Posts must be up by midnight every Saturday. A winner will be selected and announced the following Tuesday. Each winner will be emailed a $25 gift certificate (good on artwork, jewelry, lessons, scarves, anything in the gallery)! Winners may not be selected more than one time. 


So, today's has been posted and you only have through tomorrow to enter. Click here to go directly to the post. I'll post a new one on Tuesday, you'll have until the 22nd to enter, and there will be one more posted on the 25th, having until the 29th to enter.

Your best bet is to become a fan of TraillWorks so you'll receive constant updates on your Facebook newsfeed.  


Best of luck and enjoy David's work. It's great digitally, but even better in person. Catch it through the 29th!