Kimberly English: December 2017

Thursday, December 28, 2017

Looking Back on 2017

Sometimes it's hard to remember all the events that have happened within a year but I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the happenings and creations of 2017. I am very fortunate to be able to stay home to raise my children and pursue a career as an artist. I am so grateful for all of the support that I have received this past year from customers, the community, and people who follow me on social media.

Below is a list of my accomplishments from this year and the paintings that I made.

Awards

Voted Best Art Business in Salem County
Second Place in Gallery 50's "Petite Moments" an International Juried Miniature Art Competition with "Daretown Lake"

Collaborations

Raised $700 for the Woodstown FFA Program with the Salem County Farmlands Calendar

Exhibitions

Pitman Gallery & Art Center Member Show - December 2017
Holiday Open House - December 2017
Woodstown Fall Festival - September 2017
Pitman Art Stroll, Pitman Gallery and Art Center - September 2017
Woodstown's Inaugural Fourth Friday Pop Up Art Show - July and August 2017
Petite Moments: an International Juried Exhibition, Gallery 50 - July 2017
Salem County Arts in Bloom Studio Tour, Exhibiting Artist - May 2017

Publications

Printed in Courier Post's "Show Us Your South Jersey" section December 3, 17 & 24
"On The Edge" and landscape photography featured in Salem County Welcome's Amazon HQ2 Campaign
Salem County L.O.V.E. Campaign

Leather Bomber Jacket Addition

Thursday, December 21, 2017

Donation to the Woodstown FFA Program

Taking photographs of the Salem County farmlands is another creative outlet for myself and a way to gather references for my acrylic paintings. I look for beautiful landscapes or close up details that most people wouldn't notice. I love starting my day by enjoying the amazing views we are so fortunate to be surrounded by every day.

When I first thought of composing a calendar with my photographs I did not think that many people would be interested. For that reason, I decided to make the calendars available through preordering. I knew that however many calendars I did sell, I wanted to have some of the proceeds donated to a local cause. I chose to donate $5 of each calendar to the Woodstown Future Farmer's of America Program because I wanted to help local students who are learning to become active members of our agricultural community.

This week I presented the Woodstown Future Farmer's of America Program teacher, Deanna Miller, with a check donation for the calendar sales. In total, 125 calendars were sold and a donation of $700 was made! This included extra money customers donated towards the cause as well as an extra donation from myself.

I am absolutely blown away by the support that the community has shown me! I cannot thank each and every person enough for purchasing my calendar. Whether it was for yourself or as a gift this holiday season. It truly means the world to me that my photography will be hanging in homes across southern New Jersey as well as Texas and Virginia.

It is my hope, through both my paintings and photography, to ignite a sense of pride in where we live and the spectacular landscapes that we live upon. I also want to highlight the hard working farmers that inspire me so much.

Next year I have BIG plans for the calendar to make it even more unique! If you are a farmer in Salem County that would like to be a part of next year's calendar, please contact me at kimberlydenglish@gmail.com

Presenting the check to Woodstown FFA teacher, Deanna Miller

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Give The Gift of Art

Do you have Christmas shopping left to do? Did you know that you can shop my collection of original artwork and prints via my website? All of the items that I offer at my Holiday Open House and during Arts in Bloom can be viewed and purchased from the comfort of your home. Below are brief descriptions of items available.

Archival prints come packaged in protective, sealed, cello bags with foam board backing and the descriptive story about the work of art. Most prints come in standard sizes and can easily be popped into a frame for gift giving.

Framed archival and canvas prints are also available and ready to be wrapped for your gift giving needs. The descriptive story about the work of art is attached to the back of the frame.

14" x 14" pillows featuring my paintings make a unique gift for someone who doesn't have a lot of wall space.

Greeting cards with my original paintings can be used to send well wishes to friends and family during the holiday season, they can be given as a set for recipients to use, or place them in a collage frame to use as a work of art. The possibilities are endless!

A new item available this holiday season are pendant necklaces. They are 1" square pendants on a genuine leather 18" necklace with a lobster clasp closure. They come in an adorable burlap cinch gift bag. Choose from four different collections: paintings, landscapes, farming and vintage trucks.

If you're local, free pick up from my studio is available! If you are ordering and need it shipped to your home, please place your order by December 18th to ensure it will arrive in time for Christmas.

Click here to shop!

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

Painting Progression: Potato Harvest in Elmer

A local farmer and friend, Michael Brooks, commissioned me to create this painting. I saw online that he was having an auction of old farm equipment and I contacted him to see if I could go over before the sale to photograph some of the old trucks. He agreed and asked if I would be willing to paint one of the 1977 F600 trucks for his parents. They had bought them brand new and he wanted to preserve the memories they held on their farm.

I created the composition from many photographs of the truck at the auction and fields. Since the truck did not have a potato body on it, I used reference pictures from Ben Wilson's potato equipment, and old photos that Mike provided. I also edited the truck to make it look new again, as per Mike’s request.

This painting was a challenge because I wanted to ensure it was accurately represented to preserve their family’s farming heritage. I wanted the background to depict a typical summer day in South Jersey during a potato harvest with beautiful clear skies. The vines and ground were a lot of fun to paint including the small potatoes that didn't make it into the truck.

Below is the painting, click the image to enlarge, and the painting progression video

Painting Progression Video

Prints are available for purchase. Click here!

Special thanks to Michael Brooks for commissioning this painting, Ben Wilson for allowing me to photograph his farm equipment, Jen and Andy Williams for doing a beautiful job framing this work, and last but not least, my husband and mom for helping with the kids at various times while I worked on the painting.

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