3rd Ward Open Call

Hey everyone, please follow the link, http://azzano00.artistswanted.org/opencall2012w and vote for my work! This is the people's choice portion and the winner receives a Solo show in NYC! Woo Hoo, I could handle that.

Please pass along the word!

Dirty Fingernails Award

Well, turns out the judge awarded my woodcut, Horsepower $125 as a runner up in the Dirty Fingernails show! Thanks Tom Huck and Foundry Art Centre!!

New Year = New Post

Seems I have really dropped the ball here with no new posts. I do have an excuse though, several of them actually. First and foremost, being a dad keeps a man busy! I knew life was changing when Emily came along, but I had no idea the extend. I love every minute of fatherhood and feel I am starting to get my barrings. Second, I have begun to renovate my new studio space and it is AWESOME. It is approximately 500 sqft and will be completely furnished as a print studio. It will have my presses, drying rack, flat files as well as work space and a full dark room for exposing plates, screens or simply sitting in the dark. I will throw up some pictures when I get a little further along.

Now, news for 2012. I had two accepted into the Foundry Art Centres' annual juried exhibition, they are in Saint Charles MO and have wonderful factilities. Check them out here. Tom Huck was the Juror, I had the privilege of meeting Tom at Frogmans Print workshop a couple of years ago. He is a cool guy with sick style. See what he's up to at Evil Prints.

Here is the Post Card for the show.

Also,

This coming week, I will have work hanging in Seattle's Pioneer Square at Tiffany Colors, an art/creative studio catering to hair and makeup, music production, art and anything else beautiful. Read up on the opening here.

Stop in for the opening if you can, its gonna be fun!

Thanks to Ashley and Tiffany for getting me in and on the walls.

QR = Azzanos Art Work

Lost in time

I return to the blog after months and months of being absent. Guess life has a way of getting away from you when you aren't paying attention. Since my last post... close to a year ago, many things have been happening.

First of all, my website is up and running, giving a comprehensive look at my portfolio of work. You can find it at, www.azzanosartwork.com

Second and most important, my wife and I celebrated the birth of our first daughter on May 20th, 2011. As most parents will tell you, the birth of a child is like nothing else. Magical would be a good synonym. Here she is, Emily Jean Azzano.

Now, I knew going into parenthood that my life was going to drastically change, but I never really realized the total and complete change I was going to experience. Since Emily has come along I have gotten very little art completed. I mean look at her, how can I head off to my studio when that little face is smiling at me? I know as she gets older I will be able to sneak away to the studio more, right now I am just happy to be spending time with my daughter.

Okay, so I went out of order a little bit there. Before Emily was born, Megan, myself and my sister took part in an event in Omak called the Vintage Fair. Artists, business owners and pickers came together to sell antiques, vintage finds, art and junk to the public. I put together a ton of stuff, everything from; paintings, bulletin boards, found objects and home furnishings. It was a lot of work but in addition to the money I made, I also met some great contacts. I was introduced to a women who put me in contact with a small bed and breakfast in Chelan WA. I was able to coordinate a show in their cafe June of this year. The down side to the Vintage Fair is the only pictures I took of my work were on my cell phone that just went through the wash. Found a couple of pics, here are some examples of the work I did for the Fair.

Image on the left is a bulletin board with a barn wood frame, the image on the right is an antique piece of metal on which I painted the chickens. The wire and clothes pins allow objects to be hung and displayed from the piece.

A very special thanks to the ladies who coordinated the Vintage Fair as well as the owners of the River Walk Inn in Chelan. If your in the area, swing by and have a coffee.

So I have to say these two events, the Vintage Fair and Emily's birth have taken a lot of focus and been the main reason I haven't been making more artwork. I do have a couple of pieces to show off however. I had started a few woodcuts quite a while back and just recently finished and printed them. Here they are,

Go West, 2011

Woodcut, edition 25

Plate: 11” x 16”, Paper: 20” x 26”

Horse Power, 2011

Woodcut, edition 50

Plate: 18” x 23”, Paper: 22”x27”

Alright, guess these prints bring me to the end of my post. In addition to these two woodcuts I have a couple more I am in the process of finishing. Perhaps in the future I will get some time to finish them!

For now, keep printing.