Scenes from MPA Artfest

Sunday was a successful (and fun) day at MPA Artfest. Tiring, though. I wonder if people visiting outdoor art shows have any idea what goes on behind the scenes. Hard, manual labor is involved.

On Sunday, I sold "Sunday Morning" -- my comics, croissant and coffee painting that had been juried into Salon International and appeared in American Art Collector magazine in April 2009. Now I know someone else loves it just as much as I do. I also sold two new, framed drawings.

I was excited about the sales, but also loved the comments received all day. My favorite might be "Wow. Wow!".  All of my pieces were somebody's favorite... which is good news, and interesting.

Many visitors said that they appreciated that if they kept looking at my paintings, they saw something more. Something they hadn't noticed at first glance. Since new meanings, ideas and connections come to me while I'm painting each piece, those layered nuances naturally result. It's an evolutionary process, a slow unfolding.

If I had one real showstopper, it would be "Nigerian Beauty", a painting that's won Honorable Mention at the Art League and been juried into a National Biennial Exhibit in Punta Gorda, FL.  The painting, and its subject, Uchenna, possess a beautiful, emotional aura. This is also one of the few paintings that is just as intriguing up close as far away. "Nigerian Beauty" wasn't one of my sales -- but an awful lot of people wanted to take it home.

Now, the next event I'll be participating in is the Great Falls Annual Studio Tour on Saturday, October 17 and Sunday, October 18, from 10am-5pm. I'll be one of 45 artists participating in the tour. You can find me at the Artists' Atelier, 1144 Walker Road, Suites D&G, Great Falls, VA. Download a map and more info at the Great Falls Studios web site: www.GreatFallsStudios.com. Come see me and my fellow studiomates. We'll have our paintbrushes in hand.

Also, read up about Art Bucks on the Great Falls Studios site. Enter to win one of 40 $50 Art Buck certificates -- to spend on the Tour. (I accept Art Bucks... hint.)

"Nigerian Beauty", 24"h x 18"w, oil on linen-lined panel, copyright Jill Banks 2007.

Web: www.jillbanks.com
Blog: jillbanks.blogspot.com
Email: jillbanks1@aol.com
Phone: 703.403.7435