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Portrait Society of America's Annual Portrait Conference

May 2, 2009, 5:18 am
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I just got back from a great trip to Washington DC for the Portrait Society of America's annual portrait conference. I had a great time meeting so many wonderful artists and watching demonstrations and lectures by many of my favorite artists in the world. Also, my paintings "Craig" and "Ella" were reproduced in The Art of the Portrait, the Portrait Society of America’s quarterly publication.

To read a really great blog that wrote about the conference and competition visit Matthew Innis' blog Underpaintings
Daniel Greene's demonstration

Paul Newton, Rachel Constantine, Jeremy Lipking,
Gretchen Schmid, Kristy Gordon

Gretchen Schmid, Kristy Gordon, David Kassan, Rachel Constantine

Burton Silverman, Rachel Constantine, Jeremy Lipking, Kristy Gordon


Tony Pro, Kristy Gordon, Rachel Constantine
















Casey Baugh, Mia Bergeron, Kristy Gordon, Lea Colie Wight, Scott Burdick, Jeremy Lipking, Rachel Constantine

After my trip to Washington DC, I spent a few days in New York City, where I visited my favorite paintings at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, wandered Central Park and enjoyed my first tiki party (which was gloriously taking place at the place where I was staying - an artist who I met at the conference, Nicole Desmond rescued me from having to stay in the dodgy hostel I'd booked;)

The King


Thomas Eakins






















John Singer Sargent


Central Park






















Nicole Desmond (my savior) in the Rhum Rhum Room
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The Portrait Society of America's Portrait Conference Notes

May 5, 2009, 5:12 am
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Here are just a few random notes I took at different parts of the PSOA conference.

Calvin Goodman - a leading expert on the business of art
When he was discussing developing your style as an artist, Calvin said to copy your favorite artist, and when you you get to the point that you see something that they've done that you can do better, move onto someone else.

Also, he said that the two or so sentences of an artists statement should be designed to make us think more about the nature of the work/story then we would have without the write-up.

Mary Whyte
She says if you don't feel strongly about what you're painting, neither will the viewer. Get to know yourself and what you want to paint. Nurture the little artist within you.

She said to make a list of the five senses (touch, sound, smell, sight, taste) of things that really wow you. (so touch might be the wind blowing in your face...that sorta thing) Many of these things will harken back to your childhood.

Also, for artist block sit down and write three pages (this is from The Artist's Way) about anything at all. Detox your mind by sitting near the ocean, or in the forest - different souls need different things, and then going home after and write down anything that comes to you.
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Poets and Artists

May 5, 2009, 5:19 pm
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Exploring the Figure at the Loch Gallery Toronto

May 26, 2009, 1:16 pm
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I am excited to announce that I am now represented by the
Loch Gallery, which is located at 16 Hazelton Avenue in the prestigious Yorkville gallery district of Toronto. It was formally known as the Nancy Poole Studio (1969-2003), and with over forty years of experience, it has established itself as one of Toronto's leading galleries. Three of my paintings are currently on display in their exhibition, "Exploring the Figure." The show runs May 23rd through June 10th, 2009.

Loch Gallery Toronto
416-964-9050 phone
toronto@lochgallery.com
Hours: Tues. to Sat. 10:00am-5:00pm

"Silenced," oil on canvas, 40 x 30 inches, 2009:






















"Fortress," oil on panel, 48 x 24 inches, 2009:






















"Woman in Dress," oil on canvas, 28 x 22 inches:
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Exploring the Figure at the Loch Gallery Toronto

May 31, 2009, 6:26 am
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Yesterday my sister and I dropped by the "Exploring the Figure" show at the Loch Gallery here in Toronto. Here are a few pics from the show, which runs until June 10, 2009.

Loch Gallery Toronto
416-964-9050 phone
toronto@lochgallery.com
Hours: Tues. to Sat. 10:00am-5:00pm







































Me and Joan Martyn, the gallery director, in front of my painting "Silenced."
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THE BIG MOVE

July 26, 2009, 12:26 pm
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Welp, it's been nearly a month now, since I somehow, miraculously managed to wrap everything up in Toronto, pack up my wee apt there, and move into homelessness (but I'll only be homeless for a couple months, then I'll be living in Florence, Italy for most of next year;) But yeah, the move was a crazy hectic experience, coupled with exams, planning a workshop and a solo show and so many other things. At a certain point I didn't think I was going to be able to get everything done, and started to wonder what happens when you have all these things that absolutely must get done, but it's impossible to do it all.... what happens then? They get done. Yayy! And so they did! My friend Ciaran drove a crying me all the way up to Ottawa with a bunch my paintings and stuff, which needed to be there for a solo show I have opening Aug. 14th (runs through Sept. 9) at Artguise Gallery on Bank Street. The night before the move though, instead of finishing up with packing, or wallowing in my own self pity, I did a quick painting of Ciaran, who agreed to pose for me despite the fact that he was sooooo hungover. I've attached below the painting I did of him that night, along with some photos of the big, horrendous move. Actually, just before I left Toronto, I got on a bit of a painting role and painted a bunch of my friends who were kind enough to sit for me, so I've attached some of those paintings as well. Yup, so I moved to Ontario on July 1st, 1998, and moved away from it 11 years later, on July 1st as well. Now that I've spent nearly a month painting in BC, the craziness of the days leading up to the move seem like a distant memory:D

So here was a happy, chipper me, full of hopes and possibilities, all moved into my apt in Toronto last Sept






















And here's what it looked like when I was almost done the move... (those are my feet poking in the shot)

















It was totally raining that day...

















In between crying and feeling sorry for myself, Ciaran and I played the "Wiggly" game (It's pretty basic, you just scream "WIGGLY!" everytime you see one of those road turning signs, and keep track of your points (one point for each wiggly spotted first, deduct one everytime you say wiggly and it turns out it's not... I think Ciaran won (I was crying more the he was;)

















Here's the painting I did of Ciaran the night before the move:





















"The Hangover" 10 x 8 inches, oil on panel

And these are some of my other friends who posed for me near the end of my days in the big Tdot:)

















"Alison" 20 x 16 inches, oil on canvas























"Jessica in High Park," 12 x 9 inches, oil on panel



















"Nyoka," 20 x 16 inches, oil on canvas
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July Portrait Painting Workshop in Nelson

August 7, 2009, 3:54 pm
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Here are some photos of me doing a demonstration at a three day portrait painting workshop I taught in my hometown, Nelson, BC in July. We had a wonderful model, Genevieve, to paint from and everyone did great paintings.






































































And here are some photos of the stages for the painting that I demonstrated in the class.













































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MY SOLO SHOW OPENS NEXT FRIDAY!

August 7, 2009, 5:22 pm
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KRISTY GORDON: Recent Paintings


August 14th to September 9th 2009

VERNISSAGE : FRIDAY AUGUST 14TH : 7:30PM TO 10:30PM

ARTGUISE GALLERY 590 BANK ST. OTTAWA ONTARIO CANADA

Artguise Gallery is pleased to welcome back to the exhibition space, for her second show in the gallery,
painter Kristy Gordon.
Kristy's current collection arrives at Artguise just prior to her departure for Florence, Italy after being awarded
scholarship to study figurative painting.
Her keen eye and mastery of colour captures her subjects in a contemplative light while achieving
wonderfully sublime results.
There lies an inherent honesty and purity in Kristy's painting as she refrains from embellishment and overstatement.
Kristy's newest oil compositions are further evidence of her admiration for classical technique and discipline.
We are hopeful that you can join us opening night when the artist shall be in attendance.
All are welcome.

For more information please contact Brandon McVittie or Jason Vaughan at 613 238 3803 or info@artguise.ca
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Painting in BC

August 10, 2009, 4:03 pm
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I spent most of the month of July painting in different parts of BC. My trip started out in Nelson, where I grew up. While I was there I taught a three day portrait painting workshop as well as painting a few friends and my sister. One of the paintings I did there was for sure the most hardcore painting session I've ever done in my life. Me and my sister, Jessica Rae Gordon (also an artist and illustrator), decided to hike up Crystal Creek, where I used to wander as a teenager, and actually where I was inspired to do my first painting (not counting all the childhood paintings I did;) But when we tried to get in there we discovered it's all fenced off now and hard to get to.





















Me in front of the fence with my painting box.

We (obviously) decided to ignore the fence, and went to walk around it along the creek. We did succeed in the end, but each rock or tree that we stepped on was totally, deliberately, coated in big hunks of grease, and we got a little covered in it (especially me). But we went on. Jessica and I are determined when we get together to paint. The trail was a little (actually a lot) more trecherous then I remember it being, and seemed to have mostly eroded into the creek, so we found ourselves risking our lives, rock climbing up a creek with all my painting gear (actually, it was like rock climbing up a waterfall in parts). Then when we got to my old fav. spot I decided a pose of her IN THE CREEK), which required me to also stand painting in the creek was the best angle. So we froze there in the creek for a couple hours, with barely any breaks at all. We knew we were too cold to go for long, so we had to just paint and pose as hard and fast as we could. On the way down, as we were approaching the part where we would have to rock climb DOWN the waterfall, I found a four leaf clover. And we lived to tell the tale (and finish the painting).






















Creek Wanderer, 10 x 8 inches, oil on panel

After my week in Nelson I spent a week painting on Savary Island. Again my incredible sister posed patiently for me, in the burning hot sun for hours. She complained about it less then I did. After finishing one of the paintings of her, I pretty much crumbled into a ball on the beach and crawled into the ocean (not an exaggeration actually).






















Woman in Sunhat with Coffee, 7 x 5 inches, oil on canvas























Woman on Rock, 10 x 8 inches, oil on panel

All these paintings will be included in my upcoming solo exhibition at Artguise Gallery in Ottawa. For more information please contact Brandon McVittie or Jason Vaughan at 613 238 3803 or info@artguise.ca
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Video Preview of My Solo Show

August 13, 2009, 5:27 pm
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Here's a video preview of my solo show that opens tomorrow night (7:30-10:30pm) at Artguise Gallery (590 Bank Street, Ottawa) and runs August 14th through September 15th, 2009. For more information please contact Brandon McVittie or Jason Vaughan at 613.238.3803 or info@artguise.ca

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Opening Night of my Solo Show at Artguis

August 17, 2009, 10:54 am
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Last Friday was the vernissage for my solo exhibition at Artguise Gallery in Ottawa. It was a great success and there was a wonderful turnout. The show runs until Septemeber 15th, 2009.
























































































































































Graham in front of the painting of him:)







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Interview on CTV!

August 18, 2009, 6:11 pm
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Check out THIS INTERVIEW I did for CTV this morning at Artguise Gallery. Click the righthand side bar, where it says "Artist Kristy Gordon Shares Her Talents (2 parts)." (I can't seem to link directly to the video). Oh, and it plays after the ad.
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Southwest Art Magazine: 21 Under 31

August 27, 2009, 6:59 am
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My painting, Raven, won Honorable Mention in the 2009 Southwest Art Emerging Artist: 21 Under 31 Competition, a competition open to artists across the country who are under the age of 31. It is featured in the September 2009 issue of Southwest Art Magazine along with a short write up about me and my artwork. I just picked up my copy this week and was pleased to discover that two of my other young, female, artist friends are also among the "21 under 31," Toronto artist Katherine Stone and Katie Swatland, from Massachusetts, so that was cool too:D













































Raven, oil on panel, 10 x 8 inches
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A whole new world, a dazzling place I never knew....

September 13, 2009, 11:06 am
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Welp, woo, I'm livin' in Firenze now, for the next 8 months:D I've moved in with two really nice girls, and we have a sweet apt here about a 10 minute walk from the Duomo! So far we've discovered that my Italian is worse then I ever thought possible and that fig gelatos are the best thing ever. Other minor cultural differences include toilets that are designed to make poo-smears as long as possible and killer mosquitos that attack you in the night. But the light here is amazing and so are the people. There's a cool piazza where everyone hangs out and drinks outside every night (drinking outside is legal, while things like "creating dirt," washing yourself in public and swinging on children's swing sets are not). I've already gone out and done a couple plein air paintings with the homemade painting box that I constructed out of foam core the day I arrived (I'll post 'em soon;) and we're planning on taking a trip to the coast one weekend soon, so it'll be neat to see more of Italy:)






















my "bedroom" (yes, the walls are constructed out of sheets)























our kitchen






















our Ikea livingroom

















drinking in the piazza

















view of the Duomo at dusk

















pretty pretty pretty (Duomo)






















the doors that started the Renaissance (and random people that I don't know who actually are posed quite nicely for this pic;)
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Painting Painting 123, Paintingness is Good for You and Meeee

September 25, 2009, 9:55 am
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Meep, I'm too tired to think or write... I'm just not on, so everything I say or think sounds stupid and idiotic to me, BUT I thought I'd post these quick studies I've done so far in Florence. The first one is of the River Arno and the second is of my roommate, Ameara sketching at the cemetery near San Miniato Del Monte. Below them are pictures of me painting at the cemetery taken by the wonderful photographer and my good friend, Shane Fester. Enjoy (see, what did I tell you, I'm SO not on, everything I write sounds boring right now)


















River Arno at Dusk 8x10 inches, oil on panel






















Ameara Sketching at the Cemetary 10x8 inches, oil on panel



























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Star Portraits Aired Last Night

October 18, 2009, 9:20 am
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Star Portraits, the TV show that was produced by PTV Productions Inc. for Bravo! aired last night. I had the honour of painting Enrico Colantoni on it, with the other amazing artists, Sara Sniderhan and John Viljoen. The show can be viewed on the Bravo! website HERE. It was such a wonderful experience and it was nice to see the episode today since it reminded me of my incredible time with them.

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Hanging out in Firenze

October 19, 2009, 10:57 am
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I've been really enjoying Florence, going around to little towns outside of Florence and lotsa churches and things. Luckily my good friend, the amazing photographer Shane Fester, has been taking lotsa pics of me on our travels... and here are some of them ;)







Shane made this fancy triptych of me and put the words on it for my blog header. So no more boring blog headers for me:D THANKS SHANE!






















I know how to live (me in Ravenna)























In a church (under construction) in Ravenna






























Looking very studious in class
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New Self-Portraits

November 12, 2009, 3:29 am
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Here are a couple new self-portraits that I've done since I've been here in Florence. I guess this is kinda a self-discovery year for me, and maybe it's not been the easiest time so far, so I think that's coming through in these new self-portraits:P






















"Disconnect," oil on panel, 12"x 9," 2009























"By Myself," oil on panel, 8"x 6," 2009
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THE BEST DAY EVER!! (ELIZABETH GREENSHIELDS FOUNDATION GRANT!!)

December 14, 2009, 10:39 am
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I just found out that I have RECEIVED AN ELIZABETH GREENSHIELDS FOUNDATION GRANT!!!! I am so incredibly excited and grateful to have received this prestigious grant! I've actually been applying for it for the last ten years, so it totally blows my mind to have actually received one! Ya, they're totally the best foundation ever for their ongoing international support of realist artists and having them support me in my studies in Italy is so incredibly heart warming! (three cheers for persistence;) :D
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Lovin' Life

January 26, 2010, 10:50 am
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I am thoroughly LOVING my time in Italy! A little while ago now I actually moved into a new and improved apt, so I thought you my like to see some pics of my new digs!





















Chandelier in the bedroom! (and crazy nice wood beam ceiling!)






















Big ol' mirror - good for painting self-portaits!

















"the studio" (in my bedroom;)






















Sweetest kitchen ever






















View from my bedroom window - I can see the Duomo from my window!!!

Oh, and on a side note, Italian hip hop is da bomb!!!
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