Kenneth Rougeau: Featured Artfire Artist

I'm pleased to feature the digital collages of artist Kenneth Rougeau today.  Kenneth Rougeau is a 34 year old digital artist who currently resides in Portland, Oregon. He has created numerous surrealistic fantasy images and has also created collages to illustrate Lewis Carroll's Alice In Wonderland  and Through The Looking Glass.

I find these collages satisfying on many levels, but particularly because each image mines a rich and often elegantly grotesque vein of visual reference and art history.

This is Metamorphosis, a beautifully-composed piece which manages to combine references to traditional iconography of St Bartholemew, a Victorian-era naturalist's notebook and, perhaps, The Silence of the Lambs into a very pleasing whole :)

Here's one of Rougeau's extraordinary series of illustrations for both Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass.  This is Wool and Water,  the scene in Looking Glass with Alice in the shop with the Sheep (the Sheep always used to bother me, well, all of Tenniel's illustrations are rather unsettling :)  While clearly influenced by Tenniel in terms of the composition, this illustration delights me with the richness of its colouring and references.  And I love how very specific the breed and markings of the Sheep is!

I love the terrifying chaos of this one, Pig and Pepper, showing the Duchess, her Cook, the Baby (who later turns into a pig) and the Cheshire Cat from Wonderland.   I particularly adore the backwards reference to Quinten Matsijs' famous 16th century grotesque of an ugly old woman, which was Tenniel's original inspiration for his own illustration of the Duchess and her pointy little chin :)  I don't know the reference used for the Cook -- she looks very Blakeian to me -- so would someone else let me know the source?  She's fabulous -- I love the fact that she's on fire, herself!

And here's the surreal Desert Passage.  The lighting in this one is just extraordinary.

Actually, I think I may love every single piece in Kenneth's studio --- so instead of going on and on about it, I'll just send you his way:

krougeau's studio on Artfire

Three Paper Pigs -- featured ArtFire artisan!

This is the work of ArtFire artist Three Paper Pigs -- an original 5" x 5" collage on watercolour paper entitled "Numbers".  I really like this -- I find it pleasingly balanced and layered.

Three Paper Pigs was founded in 2004 by California artist Jeanne.  She says of her work, "When I go to an exhibit, craft fair or gift show, I'm always thinking of ways to replicate or reinvent what I see. Like today I went to a quilting and textile museum, and I started jotting down notes on how to wrap silk fabric around a pipe with thread, saturate it with Japanese dye, and ... see what I mean? I can't shut off my creative switch".

 I'm already picturing a grouping of these beautiful works -- original the collage above is entitled "Blue Mood".

Please check out Jeanne's shop at ArtFire!  Three Paper Pigs

Joojy -- Featured ArtFire Artisan!

This miniature print of a Sulphur Crested Cockatoo really caught my eye when it was on the front page of ArtFire. The artist is Joojy (the store is also called Jofoland) of Melbourne, Australia, and the print is part of her original series of Australian birds, created with collage enhanced with pen and ink and watercolours.

The artist says of herself:

I am a self-employed animator and illustrator based in Melbourne, Australia. I am a chronic doodler and a wouldbe baker and love making things that make both you and me smile!

Here's her Hummingbird original collage (not a print) with pen and ink and watercolour :) These two pieces are both ACEO sized -- that stands for Art Cards, Editions and Originals, and each measures the ACEO standard of 3.5" x 2.5".

I like them, and hope you do, too!

joojy's ArtFire Studio
joojy's Etsy shop
jofoland's Blog

PaperStreet -- Featured ArtFire Artisan

PaperStreet is a well-known supplier of high quality collage sheets and supplies. It's a very-successful family-run cottage industry, and one that has helped supply many, many artists. Charlotte Self is one third of the family that runs PaperStreet, and she's also an extraordinarily talented artist. Browsing through her ArtFire store, I was particularly struck by this moving, delicate and detailed art card, Gypsy Soul. The artist says of it:

Gypsy Soul was created in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month as part of a series of pink themed ACEOs. This piece was inspired by the writings of Susan Griffin, an amazing writer who addresses the issues of feminism, the destruction of nature, and war, both internal and external. This Gypsy Soul's body is a map of her history.

(This art card is available in a limited edition print at PaperStreet's new ArtFire Studio.)

PaperStreet says of herself:

I am a mother, a poet, an artist, a clothing designer, and a chaser of shiny things. I "deconstruct" and "reconstruct" vintage clothing turning them into one of a kind art to wear pieces, paint acrylic on canvas, do collage both traditional and digital, and sell beautiful collage sheets.

The digital collage above (Siren) is a lovely, layered study in blues. It's available in PaperStreet's ArtFire Studio as a 4 x 6 print.

I encourage you to find out more about this talented artist and her family!

PaperStreet's ArtFire Studio
PaperStreet's Etsy shop
Sweet Acacia Art Etsy shop
PaperStreet's Website and Blog

EclecticOddities -- Featured ArtFire Artisan

I love these glossy, rectangular OpArt magnets. I can picture them in all kinds of settings, from strictly modern and streamlined to warmer and retro. Each one is built on a wooden domino and embellished with Swarovski crystals by ArtFire seller EclecticOddities. This Connecticut-based former art and theatre teacher says of herself:

Retired art and theatre teacher at the High School level. A crafter, quilter, designer and seamstress for over 30 years. Love all things 4 footed and furry, as well as our feathered friends. Live with 4 cats and feed all the neighborhood strays. Have a variety of interests, thus the eclectic nature of my shop and handmade items.

This original collage, Paper Man, really appeals to me, too. I love the combination of warm and cool colours, smooth and rough textured edges and the whole theme of "I'm coming apart!" Beautiful and amusing!

If you'd like to check out EclecticOddities' shops, please follow the links below! (She's sold for a long time on Etsy under the name NoDuplicates).

EclecticOddities ArtFire Studio
NoDuplicates' Etsy Shop

ImagineStudio -- Featured ArtFire Artisan

When I saw the work above (Madame Paris Pantheon) on the front page of ArtFire, I was riveted. Canadian artist, Lise Marion of ImagineStudios, describes her work as "digital photo fusion collages". Often beginning with the work of the great artists of the past, her pieces are layered, altered, and heightened through digital techniques, and then printed on archival papers with archival inks.

She says of herself:

My professional background is in visual and creative arts as well as in social work. I presently live in the Montreal region where I share my life with the loves of my life, my husband and my two daughters. I’ve been creative all my life…literally. It all started with feeling the mud between my toes on the farm in the Canadian prairies where I was born and spent my childhood. Creativity is definitely a passion with me. In that sense, my artwork is neither a job nor a hobby but a need. The ideas just keep coming and I continuously strive to bring them to life.

Through more than 30 years, my one constant expression in art has been Collage, and for the past five years I have been working on transferring this art form into the digital world. Layers upon layers of thoughts, emotions and research have been turned into transparencies, textures, colours, depth, emotions, portraitures, etc. This virtual digital world of seemingly endless possibilities has given me a new take on my artwork, allowing me to pursue even further my undying need to produce lyrical, evocative and sometimes provocative images.

The piece above is called "Waiting for Spring". I love the contrast between the two works I've selected for this feature (there are many, many more exquisite works in her ArtFire Studio): the first is quite vivid and saturated in a photographic way, the second softer and more painterly. They both share a great sense of repressed emotion bubbling to the surface, and they both contain many details that are not evident on first viewing.

I encourage you to explore Lise's work at ArtFire.

ImagineStudio's ArtFire Studio
ImagineStudio's Etsy Shop