2008 is the fifth season of Independent Shakespeare Co.’s “Free Shakespeare in Barnsdall Park”
The company, headed by Melissa Chalsma and David Melville is presenting 3 different productions this season:
Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night — or What You Will
Shakespeare’s Henry IV, parts one and two (in one night)
Christopher …

“Almond Branches in Bloom” by Vincent Van Gogh has become one of my favorite botanical paintings because of the serenity that washes over me every time I look at it. Blue is my absolute favorite color and I like how Gogh uses a cool blue in the background. The …

This beautiful art museum is the crown jewel in Youngstown, Ohio, and it’s unfortunate more people don’t take advantage of this wonderful place. If you live in the area, or you’ll be visiting nearby, this museum is definitely worth a visit if you’re interested in art.
The Butler Institute of …

I bought this cleaner primarily because I’ve started taking a painting class at my college, so I use oil paints quite frequently. Oil, like charcoal, is a very difficult material to wash off of anything - especially brushes. Normal soap just doesn’t work at all, and other brands (like …

When I gaze at this painting entitled “The Magic Spinning Top” by Josephine Wall, I instantly am reminded of times of my childhood where I have spent many hours on rainy days playing with old toys in a basement with my cousins and siblings. That this painting can remind …

My daughter loves poster painting and I always look out for the most economical paint available in the market. The Rich Art Fresco Powder Tempera Paint is just the right product to use for my daughter’s painting. It is non-toxic, mixes well with water instantly to make brilliant liquid …

When I was a child I was terrified of the Sandman. I figured he would be a scary man who forced children to sleep with magic dust. Needless to say, I didn’t find him to be a something positive to aiding children to sleep. However, after seeing Josephine Wall’s …

“The Potato Eaters” by Vincent Van Gogh is one of his darker paintings with a great back story. While I was researching the painting, I found out that Van Gogh wanted to capture the essence of what peasant life was like. Apparently the painting took place in the Netherlands, …

I purchased my Yamaha acoustic guitar while I was in college and still play the same guitar now several years later. This is a great guitar and has been perfect for me. I dont play shows, its more for personal use..it has been a splendid guitar for that …

My grandson recently had a birthday party, and I purchased Snazaroo Face Painting Kit to paint all of the children’s faces in attendance. I did some running around and found Snazaroo at Michael’s Craft Store for less than fourteen dollars including tax. This product is …

I first saw some of Mary Cassatt’s paintings at the Art Institute in Chicago a few years ago and marveled at her work. Before that I don’t think I had heard of this talented American and female Impressionist. I managed to see a few more of her paintings a …

“Wheatfield and Mountains” painted by Vincent Van Gogh is one of your basic scenic paintings from him. If you’re someone (like me) who has never been to the mountain regions, you would think this is one of the most spectacular views of what you hope to one day experience.
I …

Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers
Although a still life, this oil has a life of its own and I feel it possesses the uncanny ability to come alive and observe the observer. It forced me to open my heart and feel. At first glance this appeared as simple sunflowers in various …

No trip to Paris can or should be contemplated without a visit to Musée du Louvre, and it had been a dream of mine since I was a small child. I did discover, though, that if you are on a limited time frame for seeing the city, as I …

The amazing works of June Dudley have astounded me yet again in a painting of hers entitled “The Rose Garden”. Not only has this painting captured the very essence of what I am sure many people feel a flower garden should look like, but it captures yet another moment …

When I was younger, I would think that there were tiny worlds that floated on top of snowflakes each winter. It was a magical feeling because I would imagine what would be going on in those world’s, and what would they look like. Josephine Wall’s painting entitled “Bubble World” …

I have bought many artist brushes over the years but none as good as Artiste multi-pack paint brushes in sizes 1-12 from a local area business. These paint brushes ar designed for oil and acrylic paintings and I have long realized the value of using horse hair bristle brushes …

“Vase With Oleanders and Books” painted by Vincent Van Gogh is one of his purest paintings of flowers in my opinion. The colors are not bright and loud, and the toned down colors allows the beauty of the Oleanders to shine through.
First, I like how simplistic the colors of …

“The Wood Nymph”, a painting by Josephine Wall, captures the essence of what I (and I am sure others as well) would think of a wood nymph looking like. The subtle kindness and innocence of the forest and all of its inhabitants are shown with such precision and delicacy …

Stratford Shakespearian Festival
Stratford, Ontario
Western Ontario: Between Toronto and London
2 1/2 hours west of Toronto
Summer Festival
Ticket cost: $20 CDN +
If you love Shakespearian festivals, or you love good theater, then you might want to consider visiting the Stratford Shakespearian Festival. Do not be misled by the name, this festival …

Beauty in every picture, artwork that is now making its way onto everything from shotglasses to clothing. Fantasy fans will be delighted by the depictions of dragons, fairies, unicorns, and mermaids that Amy Brown creates. Each fairy has a unique attitude and jumps out at you with strong features …

“A Mermaid, 1900″ painted by John William Waterhouse is a fantasy painting of a mermaid on land combing her hair. This mermaid painting really captures the essence of beauty in human and in nature.
First, I like the darkness and shadows of the painting which shows no signs of sun …

Aris Prabowo’s “Playroom” presents the issue of how children nowadays are constantly buying military toys, and how it turns into a militaristic nightmare of chaos and anarchy. It was drawn in 1997, in response to the beginning of the Indonesian Revolution of 1998, where President Suharto resigned. This Revolution …

“Night Stroll” by Sung Kim is a painting of a city at night where people are taking strolls down the streets.
First, I love how clean this painting is overall, especially the colors. The painting looks more like a photograph than handpainted artwork. I love how the brick color of …

Did you know that the city of Detroit has the nation’s fifth largest fine art museum? The Detroit Institute of Arts is located on Woodward Avenue in the arts and cultural up-town area.
The DIA is a small, relaxing museum. It’s small enough that I don’t get tired walking around, …

The painting “Just Peachy” by June Dudley, is a wonderful painting that is a perfect depiction of a child on a sunny afternoon picking her way through a peach tree to find the best peaches. Life has slowed down in this moment, and by looking at the picture I …

The painting entitled “Night Sea” by Leonid Afremov is a touching piece of art that is captivatingly beautiful and bring things nostalgic sadness to my heart that is both filled of sorrow and joy. It is hard to truly describe the sort of feeling that this painting stirs up …

The painting entitled “Stairway of Dreams” by Josephine Wall is a detailed description of the power of not only stories that we read, but of dreams that we have as well. Josephine Wall has done something remarkable with this painting just as she has done with all of the …

While planning to host a birthday party for my grandson of seven years, I decided that face painting would be a fun activity for the children to share in. I went to Wal-mart and purchased Horizon’s Face Paint washable paint for less than four dollars. It is …

If you are interested in German and Dutch masters then this is the place for you. There is a wonderful collection of 13th to 18th Century European art. The collection also includes French and Italian art but I will focus on the German and Dutch in this review because …

Josephine Wall’s painting entitled “An Even Smaller World” is a rare piece of art that captures a world that is even smaller than the world shown by the fairy that is depicted in the painting. I find the colors of this painting to be Earthy and natural, and the …

The folk art of famed Nova Scotia Artist Maud Lewis has a permanent home at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. This tiny dwarf like lady, who lived almost all her life in Digby County, Nova Scotia, died some years ago, her primitive art work lives on.
The Maud Lewis …

One of the better pieces depicting existentialism that I’ve seen, The Scream is a painting that I find terribly disturbing even years after first seeing it.
It’s unfortunate that The Scream has become so often parodied in popular culture that some people perhaps view it as a joke, but it …

I thought the message of this story is quite disturbing and rather sad. There are so many tales of people experiencing all sorts of physical and emotional pains throughout their life yet they manage to break away from it. Everything in the real world is temporary and can be …

This has always been on of my favorite Pablo Picasso paintings. It is so interesting and captures your attention with its unique colors and excellent blend of textures. The painting shows a nude woman (back) in a fetal position holding on to her knees. It is simple, yet amazing.
The …

At one point I was very big into rubber stamps. I made my own Christmas cards, and used the rubber stamps to make ACEO and artist trading cards. Although I’ve given or sold most of my rubber stamping supplies away, I came across my Rubber Stampede Tropical Blue Dye …

“They only come out at night” painted by Jim Warren is a fantasy painting of the belief that when the sun sets on the human world, the world of magic and all that includes comes out.
First, I love the colors of the magical world: there is a beautiful shade …

When I first started learning One-Stroke painting, I began using Folk Art paint. I bought the recommended paint for the Donna Dewberry system of painting. But I soon realized how expensive the paint was. I quickly went through a small bottle of paint.
When I ran out, …

“Mulberry Tree” painted by Vincent Van Gogh is one of his emotional pieces to me. At first glance you immediately think of winter which is usually a gloomy and sad time of the year, but the more you study the painting you begin to realize how sad it …

I received the Big Book of Drawing as a Christmas present and I absolutely love it. I have always loved to draw and my mom was an artist so I would say I have some artistic ability but still need some help improving some of my drawing techniques. Rather …

This wonderful piece of art was created by the English artist Mike Stimpson and is a modern (and very fun!) take on the iconic Lunch Atop a Skyscraper image, the original depicting a line of 1930s construction workers eating their lunch on a beam suspended above the New York …

Josephine Wall is sure to get your inner imagination indulged in a world of pure fantasy in this painting entitled “Lady Unicorn”. Not only is this painting full of playfully combined colors, but generates a world that can only be found in your dreams, and brings about that sense …

“Thatched Cottages At Cordeville Auvers Sur Oise” painted by Vincent Van Gogh is a painting of a cottage in some sort of village or countryside. I actually tried researching Cordeville Auvers Sur Oise, but didn’t have much luck except for an address in France. Therefore, I concluded the place …

“Metamorphosis” painted by Sheila Wolk is a fantasy painting of a mermaid underwater. I am not familiar with Sheila Wolk’s work; however, this piece for me is captivating.
First, I love how the top of the painting has a little black to it, then it lightens up in the mid …

“Log Cabin Retreat” by Sung Kim is what I would consider a mixture of scenic and landscape painting of a cabin log somewhere in the mountains.
First, I love the richness and deepness of the colors of the retreat site. Again, I like the faint white in the background …

“If I were a mermaid and you were a unicorn” painted by Jim Warren is a fantasy painting of two worlds colliding: reality and fantasy.
First, I like the dissimilarity of color between the real world and the fantasy world. The top portion of the painting is dedicated to the …

Piero Della Francesca is another Renaissance period although it is in the later part of the Renaissance. This painting is located in Galleria Degi in Uffizi, Florance. This is a very classical Renaissance portrait that is painted of and commissioned by a wealthy Duke and Duchess who lived in …

Writing this review on Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, more commonly known as Michelangelo the famous Renaissance painter. His works in the Sistine Chapel’s Ceiling have immortalized his ability as an artist and he no doubt inspires numerous people who walk into that building with the sheer power, magnitude, …

Some years ago I had traveled some distance to visit the Ontario science center. It�s more like a museum than a center. Being a science center, it has all the sciences like natural sciences, physics, biology, chemistry�space sciences� you name it. I found it all really interesting because that …

“Arch Courtyard II” by Sung Kim is a beautiful painting what looks like a patio to someone’s home which opens up to their mouth-dropping courtyard.
First, I like how the colors of this painting gives off an autumn feel. I like the deep green on the leaves on the larger …