Work in Process

Join us for an evening of art, music, light bites and beverages at our first Fall Open House Artist Reception “Rise Above,” featuring Kristen Fagan.

Kristen works primarily with acrylics, but is a talented multi media artist. Leading others in creative pursuit, Kristen helps the aspiring artist access her own unique inspiration. Her own work is joyful, soul nourishing, colorful, and playful. Come and meet Kristen and be the first to see our newest art installation featuring a selection of Kristen’s work. Have your photo taken with her newest work; a magical pair of wings; multi layered acrylic on canvas.

We are also excited to have the talented vocalist Nikki Shue performing live.

Alis Living’s inaugural Open House Artist Reception September 28th at 6:30 pm.
▫️Original art and jewelry for sale
▫️A free soul art activity
▫️Music by local musician Nikki Shue
▫️Refreshments and hor’dorvs
▫️New “Rise Above” wing painting will be on display for a special photo op

If you are local I hope to see you there! Please RSVP on Facebook, here.

My wings in process + watch video below to see this from the start, I’ll debut the final wing art at the Open House Artist Reception on Sept 28th!

P.S. it’s also the Scottsdale Art Walk this evening so, it’s a great night to stop by and then wander through the other galleries and restaurants in old town Scottsdale!

#artistreception #riseabove #creativelyfit #supersoulflow #creativecoach #trusttheprocess #enjoythejourney #scottsdaleartwalk #oldtownscottsdale #scottsdaleartopening

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This abstract painting was created for the teachers lounge at my sons school for Teacher Appreciation Week. Thank you for all that you do for your students. Teachers are amazing!

The teachers lounge got a serene beach vibe makeover by another awesome parent at our school and she contacted me to create artwork. The creative brief was something abstract, soothing and beach themed.

I started out with some brown in the piece but, felt the contrast was a bit dramatic. I switched to gray for a more soothing color palette. This was an awesome project. I started out with some geometric shapes and with layer upon layer morphed the hard lines into flowing organic shapes you see in the finished piece.

I watched a nature show about oceans halfway through working on this piece and I that inspired the transition from geometric to more organic shapes. This beauty is titled “view from above” and was made with the ocean in mind. When I look at it, I see an ocean view from the air looking down on water, beaches, rocks, moss and land.

View from Above, 3’x4′, Acrylic on Canvas, 2016

I can’t believe I never shared the final planter piece on my blog. I shared on Instagram and Facebook and then forgot all about my very important blog, so silly of me. To see the inspiration pictures and planning for my planter, click here.

Here’s a little background on the project – Downtown Mesa has teamed with local artists and businesses to build “Main Street Art Love,” a series of unique planters along Main Street. The up-cycled planters, which will bring additional desert foliage to the main drag. (New Times Culture blog wrote about the project and I am very excited to have my name mentioned! Click to read this article.)

Pictures of the work in process.

I took the cart apart, sanded it and spray painted it with a fresh color. I decided to give the second tier some artwork with an abstract desert scene. I painted the bottom wicker compartment with a matte silver spray paint and then let loose and had fun with the small suitcase. I loved adding the quote on the inside to give it a little extra whimsy. I fastened the suitcase with some hardware to keep it upright and used gorilla glue to keep both the wicker compartment and suitcase affixed to the cart.

This is my finished upcycled planter for Desert Blossom Salon & Boutique in Downtown Mesa!

Just needs desert plants added to bring it to life. The planters will be out until forever, so you can stop by Desert Blossom Salon & Boutique in Downtown Mesa anytime to take a peek at my planter as well as the other artists work on Main Street.

I’m very excited to be involved in a great community art project – The Mesa Planter Project! This project pairs local artists with businesses on Main Street to design artsy, unique, upcycled planters in which to plant heat tolerant plants. I was paired with Desert Blossom, an awesome salon & boutique. Here are some snapshots from their instagram feed to see the eclectic, colorful vibe of the items items they sell.

(P.S. Desert Blossom is having a 50% off Labor Day Weekend SALE and are located 146 W. Main St Mesa, AZ 85201).

I picked up this metal cart beauty for the base of the shop planter! One of the requirements was to have the planter on wheels. My friend Amanda is an amazing treasure hunter and found this sweet cart and I snatched it right up.h Tank you Amanda! You can check out more of Amanda’s finds at A Flippin’ Disaster on Facebook.

I’m excited to get down to work on the base. The colors I am thinking of incorporating are yellow, white, turquoise and green. Those seem like they work well with the style and colors of their boutique. Here are some idea sketches I’ve been working on to help me figure out how I want to develop the planter.

Save the date September 19th for the reveal in Downtown Mesa during Flash Park Friday! I’m really excited to see all the amazing, creative planters the other artists in the project make. Check out the details below.

Bert, the boys and I traveled to New York this month to visit our families and celebrate my sister Kelly’s baby shower. She decided on a white and gray color scheme for her baby boy, Joseph Liam’s nursery. A sweet little elephant bedding set from Pottery Barn was chosen and that was my starting point for creating the artwork for my nephew’s nursery.

Below are my pencil sketches and the first layers of paint through the final artwork.

I glued patterned scrapbook paper for the elephants ears and the balloons. The colors and outlines of the elephants were pretty heavy handed at first.

I knew I needed to go lighter so, I painted the elephants white and lightened the outlines as well as began lightening up the blue background. For Joseph Liam’s name banner I picked up wooden letters at the hobby store, glued them to the canvas and painted everything white. I have to thank Pinterest for this beauty of an idea. I pinned a similar letter piece a couple years ago and that was the perfect inspiration for this project! I first painted with acrylic paint but, after a few coats of white it wasn’t feeling bright white enough for me. I decided to try white spray paint instead. The paint covered the surface much quicker, easier and brighter with the spray paint.

Final three pieces of artwork. The colors and outlines are much softer overall. The little stitching detail on the ears and balloons adds the right amount of handmade sweetness to these little guys. I worked to match the Pottery Barn pattern as best I could with a little of me thrown in (mostly in the addition of a little color).

My sister opening her gift from me. It was one of the few surprises I was able to get by her as she was “in the know” about everything! The second shower picture is of me, my sisters Kelly and Katie and my Mom. Kelly definitely got my mother’s gift of creating beautiful spaces. She has done a fabulous job of turning the baby’s room into a beautiful nursery and I’m so happy to be able to create artwork for her little boy. I can’t wait to meet my nephew!

Desert Nectar
24″ x 36″

I worked on the background for this piece a few months ago.  Unsure of what to paint I let it sit in studio for awhile. I wanted to add to another desert plant painting to my collection so, when I thought about what to create, a picture I took of my neighbors plants popped in my head. The hummingbird appeared while I painted. I adore hummingbirds and always get excited when I see one so when he appeared in my artwork I was tickled! After a little research today, I found that this plant is called “Blue Elf Aloe” which doesn’t feel like a fitting name so, it’s all the more fitting to me that the hummingbird turned out to be blue.

Work in Process posts share the visual journey of one of my paintings from the first drips of color to the finished piece. I hope you enjoy this peek into my process! Click here to see all the posts in this ongoing series.

Desert Nectar is for sale. Email me if interested in purchasing.

Water Lilies
12″ x 24″

The water lily, also known as lotus, is seen as a symbol for rebirth. Water lilies close and fall below the water at night and at daybreak rise from muck. While its roots are in the mud, the flower blooms beautifully above the water.

Work in Process posts share the visual journey of one of my paintings from the first drips of color to the finished piece. I hope you enjoy this peek into my process! Click here to see all the posts in this ongoing series.

Water Lilies is for sale at Yoga Styles in Phoenix, Arizona. Email yogastylesinfo@gmail.com or me if interested in purchasing.

Trust Your Magic
14″x11″

Your mind is everything. What you think, you become.

Work in Process posts share the visual journey of one of my paintings from the first drips of color to the finished piece. I hope you enjoy this peek into my process! Click here to see all the posts in this ongoing series

Buddha artwork is for sale at Yoga Styles in Phoenix, Arizona. Email yogastylesinfo@gmail.com or me if interested in purchasing.