A Vision to Help the Healing for Newtown

Thinking about the tragedy in Newtown CT, USA, a vision came to me. While I didn't draw every child and adult, a loving crying angel has taken the innocent victims into her protection forever...

My Boxed Fine Art Cards

There's nothing like sending a boxed set of your fine art cards along with your sold art to a buyer.
You can find them on my art FB fan page.

Inspiration and Support from Fellow Artists

I have to say I've met some really wonderful artists online. Not only are they supportive of their fellow artists but also very talented. Artist and friend, Martice, has a wonderful new site, and linked artists that inspire her to one of the pages on her site. I'm honored to be one of them. Thank you Martice! Check out her art and beautiful new site-

Martice's link to her inspiring artists.

Wonderful Opening. Sold a Painting.

The gallery opening night was filled with wonderful family and friends as well as many gallery patrons who had wonderful feedback regarding my work. I even sold a painting on opening night- my beloved "For the Love of Pia" but I'm so happy to say it's going to a good home; to a home of a person who collects art. My painting will be among some famous artists. That certainly made my day!

Lemur Painting Number Three

I don't know what it is about these wonderful primates that I'm obsessed to paint, but I'm now on my third one. Untitled at the moment, I wanted this one to be a little more dramatic; the eyes more riveting. I think I accomplished a lot in three hours yesterday.

The Wind and the Lion

The wind circles around the Mountain Lion and settles languorously on a couch in a room of sunflowers. She's a breath of fresh air. No one knows for sure how long she'll stay.
Pastels on Canson's Mi-Teintes paper, 19.5" x 25." © Laura J. Holman 2012.

Gallery Show Coming Up!

This Saturday I will be bringing my framed art to the studio to be hung for the Group Show Opening ( Art Gust ) on August 31st at Gallery Godo in Glendale, California. If you live nearby or are in the area that evening, stop by and say hi. There will be a lot of other artwork to see also!

Framed Art

I think one of the most exciting things about getting ready for the exhibits is having the art framed. The difference is night and day. I had the "Cherry Tree" art hanging around for awhile, and to my surprise, the gallery owner chose it for the exhibit. Seeing it come to life framed was so rewarding. I want to keep it. But as the gallery owner said to me, "Laura, they ( the paintings ) are like children, they eventually have to leave the nest and bring happiness to someone else's life." While I inherently agree with that statement, I will still miss the originals and some of my walls in my home will be empty. But then, they will be in someone else's home making them happy, just like the gallery owner said.
I'm actually considering buying another easel so that I can jump immediately onto another painting when I'm just ending the one I'm painting. Klimt inspired me when I saw a shot of his studio with two easels. Two large canvases graced them. One day I would love to paint something large. I'm looking forward to it.

Two Exhibits in August

I'm thrilled to announce that eight of my paintings are going into a group show in August at a gallery in Glendale, CA. Then they will be on display at the LA Art Walk in September. I will post the flyer and more details soon. In the meantime, the gallery owner has put a fire under me to produce more work that I sorely need to do! So I will be super busy in the weeks to come. I will try and post works in progress and finished pieces! Thanks for all the lovely comments and your support. It's beyond appreciated!

Needless to say I have to photograph "For the Love of Pia," but you can get a glimpse of it behind my precious dog.

Schmincke Pastels

Having a great time working with my new Schmincke pastels. Expensive, but so worth it! I'm working on a wedding card right now for my Card Gnome store.

"For Love of Pia" Still Work in Progress

Sometimes letting a painting sit and stare at you unfinished gives you, the artist, the chance to decide how the painting should proceed. Many times I have other paintings in my head while working on the present one. It's a bit distracting, but I'm doing everything in my power not to be too ADD when it comes to creating. I'm hoping to be done with this one before the end of the week.

Father's Day

It's so easy to get Mom something for Mother's Day, but what about Dad for Father's Day? Another tie? A fishing rod? I choose to usually go the food route and fill my wonderful husband's tummy with a great meal of his favorite things. He can relax by the tv, feet up, as I drop grapes and other goodies into his mouth. Well, it's not exactly something out of the days of the Roman Empire, but you get the picture. Give Dad what he wants, and sometimes it's as simple as a day of rest and relaxation and the wife and kids at the grill for a change.

At Card Gnome where I have a card store, they have a great variety of cards. Hurry, though, because the deadline to send a card is just a day away! And speaking of fishing rods... I couldn't resist creating a fish card for those Dads who are truly gifted in the art of catching fish.

To all the great Dads out there... Happy Father's Day!

My Fishing card on Card Gnome.

"For the Love of Pia" WIP 2

There's something about painting to music that makes a painting seem so poetic. And painting alone with the music in a rarely empty house is a treat. Of course, there's the ringing phone and text messages that I need to answer. Heaven would be an art island in the middle of a sparkling, clear, blue ocean.

The owl... low res shot, but it will give you the idea of where I'm going.

"For the Love of Pia" WIP

I saw a photo of an Eastern Screech Owl recently and became immediately taken with its haunting, human type eyes. I knew I had to incorporate one into my next painting... hence the birth of "For the Love of Pia,"- an owl in love. We always think of our feelings about animals, but what about our impact on their feelings. While owls are not typically pets, I'm sure in their world, they have some sort of perception of us. What if an owl fell in love with a human? One that is as beautiful as Pia ( a name that popped into my head for the title for no particular reason. I don't even know a Pia )?
This is a work in progress. I'm not even sure how it will end up. Many times I can visualize the completed painting, and sometimes I let the painting dictate its end story to me, albeit it may take some time to finish.

It's Auction Time!

It's auction time for the art for the "We Imagine Peace" art collaborative. My piece, "Tolerance in Hopeful Yellow" is online right now and open for bids. Please click the link to see it, as well as the other wonderful pieces of art that are available. The proceeds go to a wonderful charity for children.

Click Auction to go to the site! Enjoy!

We Imagine Peace Art Festival June 16th

If you happen to live in the Los Angeles area or will be visiting in June, come by the WIP Festival and enjoy the incredible exhibit of art that has been created for this wonderful art collaboration. The themes of Tolerance, Humility, and Love among others will be represented in this exhibit of artists from all over the world that have come together to promote the conceptual elements of peace through art. I have two pieces in the exhibit and I'm looking forward to attending. The art will be auctioned off and the proceeds will benefit a charity. Hope to see you there! And make sure you meet Kira Rose and April Brosemann. They're the ones responsible for pulling this whole event together.

Creative Typography

Designing with typefaces can really enhance your work, whether you're designing an ad, logo, or placing a beautiful font in a painting. It's all about treating type as you would a painting. Looking at type as art and not just as boring letters can really open your mind to expressing yourself in a different way. This link will inspire you to see the fun in typography. Notice that the one thing that makes all of these work is excellent kerning and line spacing. The type hangs together as a design unit because of the attention to these crucial basic elements that can either break or make your design with fonts. So be inspired and take a look at some Creative typography.

The Field of Dreams. The Dream of Tolerance.

My second finished painting for the concept of Tolerance for the "We Imagine Peace" art collaborative on June 16th in Covina, CA. Both pieces of art are at the location now and I'm looking forward to the festival. This piece is 8" x 10" acrylic on canvas board.

Mother Universe and Daughter Earth with the Lemurs

Sometimes, certain animals come into my head and I'm just compelled to draw them. They usually are the unusual and have something unique about them. I love the look of Lemurs and their name refers to "ghost spirits" in a tribal language. They are actually owned as pets here in the U.S and their original habitat is Madagascar. This is my second Lemur painting I've created. The first one has sold. This 19" x 24" pastel painting is a complete vision in my mind. The only reference I used was a picture of a Lemur, and a plant indigenous to Madagascar to authenticate where the painting was set. From my RedBubble site I offer this description: A surreal pastel painting of Lemurs, a beautiful woman, and a child; one represents the Universe, the other, the Earth. They flow and balance together to create harmony, and to stress the dependency we have to one another and our environment. Original art by © Laura J. Holman.


This painting took me almost a year to complete. It sat staring at me from the easel, half finished, for months. Many times, I haven't a clue where a painting should go until I step back from it. Some take little time, while others seem to take forever. As with any creative endeavor, we can liken it to the process of giving birth.

Tolerance in Hopeful Yellow Part Two

I'm so inspired by this project that I've chosen to paint another tolerance piece. This time it will be of children because the hope and teaching for tolerance is with the little ones and each generation to come. The yellow tulips feel like hope to me and there's an abundance of them in this painting because one can never have too much hope. This is a work in progress. It's very detailed and small, so it may take a bit for me to finish. I need better eyesight ( lol ) and better brushes. One of the two is a quick remedy!

Tolerance in Hopeful Yellow

We Imagine Peace Art Collaborative

I've joined onto the art collaborative "We Imagine Peace."

The artists chose a topic and we were given a limited palette color to

paint with. I chose "tolerance" and the color yellow as that color represents

 optimism and hope to me. The event will take place in June in Southern California.

Knowing When to Stop

I think that's the one thing all artists wrestle with... knowing when to stop and not overwork the art.
As I work on this latest colored pencil piece, I'm reminded of that. I have the hat details sketched in on the upper left ever so lightly, but when I look at the art, especially when viewed from afar, I'm loving the shape of the undefined, unfinished hat. I'll finish the ribbon around her neck, and finish out the braid along the trim of the hat, and then I'll be done. I think it's dramatic and strong this way.

My Love Affair Continues...

My love of beautiful faces and fashion has inspired this art. I'm enjoying the rich colors of my new Polychromos and learning new colored pencil techniques from the "Colored Pencil Painting Bible" by Alyona Nickelsen. You can find it on DickBlick.com.

Faber - Castell Polychromos

Ordering and then receiving art supplies from Blick.com is like reliving Christmas all throughout the year. My newest love is Faber - Castell's Polychromos. Color pencils that are oiled based instead of wax. Drawing / painting with them makes working with colored pencils exciting again. And the Stonehenge paper is the perfect surface for them. I'm having a ball. I created "Apple's Worm" with them purely from my imagination, even the apple. I've been meaning to do more teacher cards because the few that I've created on my card stores get an incredible amount of views. This one will be just in time to let your child's teacher know how much you've appreciated them this past school year that's quickly coming to a close.
I will scan this art tomorrow and size it to the card formats. In the meantime, here's a Droid shot to hold you over!

From Watercolor to Coloring Book Art

There was a customer request on one of my card stores to have a coloring book Easter card for a child. I wonder if kids really do color anymore. I'm sure many are coloring on iPads. Maybe one day, art supplies will go the way of books; completely on the computer, our hands never touching a paint brush, pastel, etc. ever again.

Here's to coloring books for however long they may exist!

I am the Egg Tree

Another addition to the Easter card line-up-  "The Easter Egg Tree." Already colored, all you have to do is pick the eggs or wait for them to fall off. I need to redo the eggs on the ground and photoshop them in. So grateful for PS... how did we ever live w/o it?

Easter Chick Painter

I'm a little behind the eight ball as far as Easter cards, but this one just came to mind, so I popped it out tonight. I have another one to do before I move onto something else. Scan and clean in PS tomorrow then onto my stores it goes-of course w/o the pencils and gouache tube!

The One that almost made it!

Too large for the Twitter Exhibit, this watercolor stays home with me. Still small, though, by my usual standards but I'm sure I can put it to good use! Watercolor with a hint of pastel on the cheeks.

Twitter Art Exhibit in Norway

I think the 29 Faces Challenge was the perfect exercise for me to loosen up in time for a Twitter Art Exhibit in Norway. My first painting was too large because I happen to size off a larger postcard rather than a normal sized one that was determined for the exhibit. I'll post that one after this post. So I quickly got back to the drawing board and painted another one. I think this one is more suited for the event. A little more fine artsy... at least for me. I'll use the other one for a party invite on my card stores. This is done in watercolor, gouache, and watercolor pencils on Arches watercolor paper.

29 Faces Day 29 The End

It's over, and what a month it was! A challenge that proved to be quite a commitment. I drew the last 6 drawings over the past two days sandwiched between so many other things. It's late, but I'm done. Just an hour and a half late! I hope you enjoyed following Ms. Face through the exciting month of our special 2012 Leap Year February. Please be sure to click on the 29 Faces link on the top right hand corner and visit all the other participating artists! Thanks again for following!

29 Faces Day 28 Billie

Time to unwind after "kitty hugs" and pop in a Billie Holiday CD. A last minute tribute to Black History month and to a talented woman who made the music world that much better. Super quick black pastel sketch on smooth white drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 27 Kitty Love

Home at last and the first thing Ms. Face does is hug her precious kitty.

29 Faces Day 26 The Big Chill

Arriving home to winds and cold weather. Chalk pastels are my choice to a quick illustration.

29 Faces Day 25 Flying Home

Finally Ms. Face gets the chance to go home after jet setting all over. Nothing like a little uninterrupted R & R on a long flight back to the States. Again with the chalk pastels. Home stretch.

29 Faces Day 24 Eating in Brazil

One can't leave Brazil without a little bite to eat. What is Ms. Face eating? That's anyone's guess. Chalk pastels on smooth white drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 23 Make-Up Remover

Finally, Ms. Face's skin can breathe! Brilliant chalk pastels on ultra smooth white drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 22 Rio Carnival

Swinging through Rio for Carnival after partying at the Madis Gras in Sydney and New Orleans. Ms. Face certainly gets around! Chalk pastels on ultra smooth white drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 21 Mardi Gras New Orleans

Ms. Face continues the Mardi Gras partying. Now she's in New Orleans with a whole different look without any jet lag. Traveling by the net is a sure way to go! Watercolor, acrylics and gold paint on Arches watercolor paper.

29 Faces Day 20 Sydney Mardi Gras

With a click of the mouse, Ms. Face has been transported to Sydney where she's partaking in Mardi Gras festivities there with her bright orange boa and gold, purple and black face paint. A row of glue on beads completes the look. A short stay as she must get back to the States for the next party but she couldn't resist partying with her Aussie friends. Gold paint and pastels on white drawing paper. The paper buckled a bit because I used paint at the last minute... not planning to. The paper was not thick enough to hold the paint. I guess that's what happens when you work fast and spontaneously!

29 Faces Day 19 Face Mask

Time for a face mask before make-up for Madi Gras. Super quick chalk pastels on smooth white drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 18 Clownfish

As strange as the Anglerfish is, the Clownfish is its antithesis. Chalk pastels on smooth white drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 17 Anglerfish

And thinking deeper into the depths of the ocean where the light never enters, lives a not so beautiful fish- the Anglerfish. A face only a mother could love, and maybe even a mermaid! Graphite pencils with chalk pastels on plain white, smooth, drawing paper with a little color manipulation in Photoshop. Our thoughts can take us on amazing journeys.

29 Faces Day 16 Mermaid

Soaking in the tub, Ms. Face's thoughts turned to the ocean. How amazing would it be to swim with sea creatures as a mermaid? Indeed, it would be a whole different world. Pastels on smooth drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 15 My Time

After preparing a Valentine meal for all the men in the house, Ms. Face takes some time for herself for a long, leisurely soak in the tub. A big "Ahhhh..." Chalk pastels and graphite pencils on smooth white drawing paper.

29 Faces Day 14 Valentine

Ms. Face is her stylized self for Valentine's Day. Marker, watercolor, acrylic, and pastels on Arches watercolor paper. I love mixed media and doing different styles. And yes, I made her eyes different blues on purpose.

29 Faces Day 13 Smooches The Dog

I was finishing up the painted elephant when in walked Smooches ( not her real name but it works well with my 29 Faces story ) the family Lab / Ibezan Hound. A combination of two great breeds ( that part is true ). The perfect diversion to get back to Ms. Face and see what she's up to. I can only imagine being that it's Valentine's Day. Be prepared. Super quick pastel because this is one dog that never sits still.

29 Faces Day 12 Painted Elephant

And then there's the Thai painted elephant. I'm so taken with these majestic creatures painted in the most wonderful designs and colors. Watercolor, watercolor pencils, gold and white gouache 5" x 8" on Arches watercolor paper.

29 Faces Day 11 Painted Face

Painting faces... painted faces... Tribal faces. I love how one thought can open up the way for others.
Chalk pastels on inexpensive smooth white drawing paper. I love the way the colors glide on this paper as opposed to typical pastel paper. I'm loving the look and it allows for greater line detail. Too bad my scanner doesn't capture the finer details. The eyes have more depth than what is depicted here. If anyone is using an amazing scanner, please let me know.

29 Faces Day 10 Face Paint

A memory of a face popped into Ms. Face's head. One of a little girl she face painted sometime ago. She looked hesitant yet was very excited about the prospect of sporting a flower on her face. She insisted the petals match her shirt and hair ribbon. Chalk pastels on white drawing paper. Around 5" x 7"

29 Faces Day 9 Thinking

After all the hair & make-up fuss, it's time to get to work. Brushes in hand, it's time to think about what to paint or draw. Hmmm... thoughts of 29 faces race through Ms. Face's head. What will it be? Black marker on white paper for the thinking process.

29 Faces Day 8 Haircut

Who doesn't love getting their hair cut?  I'm way overdue for one. Just too darn busy drawing faces to break away, but I'm glad Ms. Face had the chance. I don't think she looks really happy about it, though.
Chalk pastels on Stonehenge paper.

29 Faces Day 7 Make-Up

A face can feel like black, white and gray tones without a little color. In my older age I wear less, but it's certainly fun to play with color whether it's on a face canvas or a cotton canvas. Face # 7 comes alive with a little color. Graphic soft pencils with colored pencils.

29 Faces Day 6 Bagel

Now we're talking some real food! Bagel and cream cheese after the shower from day 5. Ms. Face is only eating half. Good girl! Super quick chalk pastels on Canson's pastel paper. Roughly 6" x 8"