Artist Blog by Sheep Incognito Artist Conni Togel

Blog

A Laugh and a Cry

Saying Good-Bye To One Of My Favorites

they say paintings come from the artist’s heart, and there will always be strings attached, when you sell the original painting.

In this particular case, I tend to agree – one of my most popular and recognizable paintings, “Thinking Outside The Box” has meandered on to a new home a few weeks ago.

Picture 25

Granted, it was a trade for some completely awesome work by Mauro Pozzobonelli (his work is phenomenal – reminiscent of old pieces of Venice and Florence architecture) that will be hanging in my livingroom and inspiring me for years to come – but nonetheless, there is always a tug at my heart when I see someone walk out of my booth with one of my originals.

Then again, this just makes space for new work – new ideas – new processes – new attachments…it’s a never ending circle; and, it is what keeps artists creating to put a new face on space in the world. There are definitely worse jobs to have…

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Finally Back In the Groove

Conni Togel original landscape

Back To work – new landscape painting

Finally Back At Work!

we finally have made some space in my new studio to allow me to access my easel again – first thing I wanted to do in the new space, is paint a new landscape. While I love my Sheep Incognito, my traveling self needed to create a vista to get started again. This one incorporates lavender fields, clouds, and most likely will have some yellow fields of wheat somewhere – I love that color combination, so that is where this is headed. I am still working out which direction the fields of lavender will be going – I want the lavender to lead the viewer deeper into the landscape, rather than just being a snapshot of a field of flowers. By making it a lavender path type thing, that will guide the eye into the distance for a walk through Provence….now, if only I could add a scratch and sniff element…

music element in the studio today: Earth Wind & Fire on Pandora,,,for the groove…

Back To Work In The Sheep Incognito Studio

Conni Togel original landscape

Back To work – new landscape painting

Finally Back At Work

There are still bits and pieces of things laying around, but those were pushed aside so I can get back to painting – I’ve been anxious to get back to doing a few landscapes to add to the Sheep Incognito online store…I had been focussing exclusively on my Sheep Incognito series of paintings for the past years – fun things indeed! But to feed my artist soul, every now and then I have to break with traditions – therefore, a new landscape painting involving lavender, clouds, blue sky and possibly a tree or three…

This one is oils on canvas – size is 24 inches x 48 inches.

Updates will follow…

If you want to place a hold on this one, just drop me a line…

A River Runs Through It…

…the Sheep Incognito booth, that is…

We’ve finally reached the mid-summer break in the busy art show tour schedule – and none too soon, it seems. Last weekend’s Orchard Lake Fine Art Show in West Bloomfield Michigan decided to line up with ever other art show we’ve attended this year: forecast for beautiful weather – reality was a mad scramble to get prints inside the tent, and batten down the hatches for storms.
If nothing else, at least we had our gym membership for free on that one…lots of ladder climbing, box lifting, panel adjusting, rain activity.

But, even with that, there were moments of gorgeous weather for patrons to stroll around – they did a lot of that. Since good moments in life are not made up by dollar signs, it was perfect that we had some good friends stop in for a visit and a chat, and we got to meet a new artist friend for dinner and breakfast, which turned an otherwise rather dull show into one of magic, laughs, good times, and great memories.

And those are things not purchased at any art fair, or any Walmart.

The Big Ann Arbor Art Fair

We finally made it into the famed Ann Arbor Art Fair – we’ve heard soooo many good things about it, we simply had to give it a try.

It is one of the top three art fairs in the nation, certainly ome of the biggest with over 1200 artists exhibiting their work.

Today is the first day – it is Wednesday – it is Very warm today. But apparently that is not a deterrent for the visitors, they are still meandering, even though it’s in the mid nineties.

Us? We are camped in front of the fan, which seems to only make hot air. Someone turn off the heater!

If you are looking for us in Ann Arbor- look on Liberty Street, in front of Jack’s, between 4th $ 5th Streets, Booth 274.

Back to the fan – it’S what is helping us survive

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A Day in the Woods

Today we set up the Sheep Incognito booth at the Indian Fort Theater in Berea, Kentucky.

In the middle of the woods – a very serene setting…

Last year it rained. And rained. And rained. But – it still was a decent show for us…this weekend is supposed to be much drier, so hopefully people will take the opportunity to come hang out with all the artisans here and not have to surf the mud.

Who knows, I might even get some painting done – anxious to finish the pompous ass painting…

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When Sheep Leave the Fold

One of the more difficult things about being an artist selling your own work, is the letting go process when a painting sells.

Not only have you put your inner mind and thinking into a visual statement for everybody to see, but you also are srending that statement out into the world on its own, without hope of getting to revise it or even explain it.

Of course, this makes artist very vulnerable – but it also is the one thing that makes art so intriguing, and it is what lets art critics earn a living: they get to come up with what they think the artist was intending to say out loud in his/her artwork.
Which of course is, in very many cases, very largely guesswork and a big dose of speculation combined with imagination.

Unless the artist has put his intentions and the mind behind the work into words somewhere, all one can go by is the visual statements the artist has made.

This is why I find “the serious art worrld” so entertaining in many cases: who is to say, what was going through Piccasso’s mind when he decided to draw people out of proportion with really screwed up facial elements?
Who says Pollock wasn’t just flinging paint at a canvas, just because it was a fun thing to do on a Thursday night?

Hopefully someday there will be some art critics standing beside my “Haulin’ Ass” painting, trying to interpret it in some way other than it was intended – that is a tour in the museum I really would love to be on…

It will be the perfect opportunity to play BS Bingo – mark off the words as the art critics and tour guides mention them; feel free to laugh loudly, as none of these were part of the statement I was making with “Haulin’ Ass”:

“Social Influence”
“Metaphor”
“Subversive Political Commentary”
“Artist’s Intentions”
“Deeper Meaning”
“Metaphysical Impact”
Etc….

Add more art world bs words liberally, and see how many you can find in the review and critics’s speaches…

Don’t forget to yell BINGO! at the end….

Too bad I won’t be around for that…the main reason dead artists are more famous than live artists, is that they shut up about what is being said about their work….

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When Sheep Leave the Fold

One of the more difficult things about being an artist selling your own work, is the letting go process when a painting sells.

Not only have you put your inner mind and thinking into a visual statement for everybody to see, but you also are srending that statement out into the world on its own, without hope of getting to revise it or even explain it.

Of course, this makes artist very vulnerable – but it also is the one thing that makes art so intriguing, and it is what lets art critics earn a living: they get to come up with what they think the artist was intending to say out loud in his/her artwork.
Which of course is, in very many cases, very largely guesswork and a big dose of speculation combined with imagination.

Unless the artist has put his intentions and the mind behind the work into words somewhere, all one can go by is the visual statements the artist has made.

This is why I find “the serious art worrld” so entertaining in many cases: who is to say, what was going through Piccasso’s mind when he decided to draw people out of proportion with really screwed up facial elements?
Who says Pollock wasn’t just flinging paint at a canvas, just because it was a fun thing to do on a Thursday night?

Hopefully someday there will be some art critics standing beside my “Haulin’ Ass” painting, trying to interpret it in some way other than it was intended – that is a tour in the museum I really would love to be on…

It will be the perfect opportunity to play BS Bingo – mark off the words as the art critics and tour guides mention them; feel free to laugh loudly, as none of these were part of the statement I was making with “Haulin’ Ass”:

“Social Influence”
“Metaphor”
“Subversive Political Commentary”
“Artist’s Intentions”
“Deeper Meaning”
“Metaphysical Impact”
Etc….

Add more art world bs words liberally, and see how many you can find in the review and critics’s speaches…

Don’t forget to yell BINGO! at the end….

Too bad I won’t be around for that…the main reason dead artists are more famous than live artists, is that they shut up about what is being said about their work….

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Sheep Incognito celebrate Independence in Pennsylvania

To celebrate not only the birthday of our nation and the freedoms we enjoy in living in this awesome country, but also to celebrate my own personal freedom from oppression, we’ve traveled North to be a part if the Westmoreland Arts& Heritage Festival.

It takes place every 4th of July at the Twin Lakes Park in Greensbugr, PA.

A lovely piece of americana, combied with a lovely setting, good bbq, good music, and good people.

Can’t think of a better way to celebrate!

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New Studio In the Making

The studio is coming along nicely –

Sheep Incognito Studio floor

Sheep Incognito Studio floor

the floor is finished, and the easel is moved in.

Now, to add storage space for all my materials – it will give me a chance to eliminate extra ballast that I’ve been schlepping around for a few years.
First though, we are printing up a orders for the past few shows…

Coffee Oh yes, it will be a thing today…

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