Thinking 2012...

Have you heard the expression, "Time seems to go faster as you get older?" Yeah, me, too. I could scarcely imagine that 2012 was over and what had I accomplished? What did I learn? How did it go?

BLOG: My first art blog was in April, 2009. Since then, 172 pages have been posted and those pages have been viewed over 94,000 times. According to Google, the top 3 viewed were:
(1) "Magritte: Son of Man" (archive: March, 2012) with 5,450 views,
(2) "Do-Ho Suh: Part 2" (Oct., 2010), 3560 views - although I have a personal preference for "Do-Ho Suh: The Coat" (May, 2010)
 (3) "Monsieur Monet" (June, 2010) with 3151 views.

Interesting that Magritte gained so many viewers in less than one year. I wonder if he's required reading in art classes.

EXHIBITS: "Progressions" was exhibited twice during the year and various individual pieces were included in other shows.

ART: In the "Access: Greek Isles" 4 new pieces were added - there are now 16 in the series.One piece is almost finished and 4 more are in progress. (You can see the finished works at: http://www.r-atencio.com/gallery/landscapes/access_greece.html

For the "Walkers, Waders and Wondrous" (birds) series, I held a contest to name a piece made with ceramic tiles. The winning title chosen by a panel of interested friends was: "Wind Dancer."

A little Parula was completed for a commission. (All of the finished birds can be seen at: http://www.r-atencio.com/gallery/birds/waders.html

I took an art workshop from Rogene Manas on paper clay. From it, I made a delightful cat/bird birthday gift for a friend.

My confidence to work with paper clay on canvas increased with 9 small birds. The sculpting is finished and I'll paint them as soon as they're dry enough. (On the right is a large clay tile of another bird in progress).

ANNEX:  "Atencio Annex" was named to distinguish items made for reproductions of fine art designs. To the mix of glass cutting boards/trays, mugs, recipe markers, and note cards, there are 4 new coaster designs. You can view all on Etsy - http://www.etsy.com/shop/AtencioAnnex

This posting has been a fun exercise. Sometimes I think that I should work faster and create more, but this look back makes me feel that everything is happening just as it should. Try this exercise and you, too, might be happily surprised. Oh, and let me know what you discovered. Happy New Year! R. Atencio

The Artist and the New Year's Baby

Have you heard of J. C. Leyendecker?(1874-1951) What if I added that he was the illustrator who inspired Norman Rockwell?

You see, Leyendecker was the illustrator of the magazine covers at the very popular Saturday Evening Post. In that role, he preceded Rockwell.

I was searching for iconic images for 2011's first blog. There were many images of chubby, precocious New Year's babies which I had seen before. What I didn't know was that they were all illustrations by one artist - J. C. Leyendecker. As I researched his name, I found that he was responsible for the style and look of the magazine's covers. I needed to know more about him and share what I learned with you.

Born in Germany, Leyendecker emigrated as a child to the United States. He was only a a teenager when he received his first paid commission for illustrations. Formal training at the Chicago Art Institute would follow. After an additional year of art study in Paris, he returned to Chicago and begin receiving commissions.


In the course of 44 years, he illustrated at least 322 magazine covers for the Saturday Evening Post! Leyendecker's creative output would include not only the chubby New Year's baby, but also the rotund image of Santa Claus. (Perhaps based on the poem, "Twas the Night Before Christmas" by Moore.)

One more bit of interesting info: Leyendecker's illustration style not only influenced Rockwell's work, but also today's artists. It seems that computer game illustrators have used his techniques for various game graphics. Inspiring artist indeed!

Here are a few more of his New Year's baby covers... and Happy 2011 to you!

In the New Year...

There's been a true story circulating on the 'net about a famous and highly regarded violinist (Joshua Bell) who performed unrecognized in a Washington D.C. train station. Many people passed him by but few even paused to listen - except the very young who were fixated before being tugged along in the name of "time" and "schedules."

The entire event was a study organized by a writer at the Washington Post newspaper to find out if we are influenced by settings - "packaging." After all, it was still this amazing violinist playing very intricate pieces on a Stradivarius. Yet of the almost 1,100 people who passed, only 7 (seven!) stopped to listen.

Consider this: instead of resolutions to lose weight, exercise more, earn more money, and make better food choices, we could endow ourselves with the gift of time - time to listen, taste, see, and feel beauty. That would be my wish for all of us.

Here's to a beauty-savored 2010! R.