New York based artist Trey Speegle is having a sale! He’s got an online shop set up called The RePOP Shop, and it looks GOOD! For example, you could scoop one of these prints for $50…

What?! Yes! $50!!! Or how about some paint-by-number plates? Yep, he’s got those too…

Gorgeous! And if that’s not fabulous enough, you can buy one of these original “paint cans” from his most recent solo show…

Love! And if you want something in which the paint is actually out of the can, how about one of these original paint-by-number collages…

So good, right?! And there’s plenty more where that came from. Go and have a look… and then let me know what you got so that I can be jealous of you too!

ps. THIS JUST IN!!! Trey just emailed me and said that he’d like to offer you guys 20% OFF on the site, until May 20th! Yay! Thanks Trey! Use this code at checkout: Friends520

Yep. I turn 40 today (when the hell did that happen?), and when a girl turns 40 she really wants some cake. In my case, however, I’ve had my heart set on some cake from one of my favorite artists, Martha Rich, for years! Well, today my birthday wish came true…

Look what I got! An original Martha Rich vanilla cake with gooey chocolate icing. Yum! Only a slice though … I am 40 now … I can’t get away with having a whole cake like back in the good old days {Thanks Martha – I absolutely love it! And thank you so much to my parents who commissioned it! xo}

And with that, I’m off to play hooky for the day – see you tomorrow!

What is the deal with me and tattooed pets? I wrote about some a few weeks ago, and now here I am again! I think it was that smoking sailor seagull that got me… it was physically impossible for me NOT to show him to you! These are watercolor linocuts, from a series called “hoons” by Australian artist Rona Green. I love them all so much… but don’t worry, I won’t give my dog a “mother” tattoo. Unless, of course, she wants to get it as a permanent reminder of our special bond. Her call.

{Thanks to Jess for sending me a link to Rona’s work}

I wrote about San Francisco based artist Chelsea James, and her sinks, a couple of years ago… and now, those chairs! Oh, those chairs! Simple, rich, beautifully lit interiors created with some of the loveliest brush strokes I’ve seen in quite some time. And those chairs! Sigh ♥

Beaver pelts, sequins, deer antlers, old axes, neon rope? Yep, these are the art supplies of Milwaukee based artist Cassandra Smith. All of the objects that she works with are found, and then manipulated in her own special, brightly colored, beautifully patterned way! Everything included here is part of Cassandra’s current show, titled ”Out of the Wild” that is hanging, until June 1 2013, at Sky High Gallery {curated by the uber-creative Faythe Levine}. Here is Cassandra’s description of this work:

“My work  is about manipulations and transformation. It is about exploring the ways that I can enhance and change found objects to give them something they did not have in their former life. I find a certain beauty in imposing my aesthetic, specifically color and pattern, onto natural or worn objects. I am fascinated by the dichotomy between organic and geometric shapes, the contrast between natural and synthetic. I strive to enhance these objects while respecting the inherent qualities that drew me to them in the first place.”

PAINTINGS.

Yes. They’re paintings! Large-scale oil paintings that look a whole lot like some of my favorite childhood sweaters {that I would totally wear today if they still fit me}. Seriously, I could not be happier right now… I love all of these pieces oh so very much! São Paulo based artist Rogério Degaki sent me his work yesterday, and about 26 minutes later this post was ready to go. So good… they’re PAINTINGS.

Yep. More portraits on vibrant backdrops. Here’s the thing –  I could not contain myself when I found the work of American artist Jennifer Burton {even though I wrote about similar work in yesterday’s post}. It was that bear that got me… Or those giant dandelions… Or that bird on that lady’s head… Or the detail in the vinage-ish looking people on those flat, graphic backgrounds… Or maybe it was just all of it rolled up and put together… yep, that must have been it. LOVE!!!

{via Plywerk… Jennifer is their artist of the month for May}

Oh, the stunning portraits of Baltimore based artist Amy Sherald… beautiful, strange, and insanely vibrant. To understand where this work comes from, I’ve got a chunk of Amy’s artist statement for you to read:

“The scope of my experiences involving race materialized from my upbringing in the south. While attending private schools and being one of two or three black children, I was raised to be conscious of how I acted, spoke and dressed. This performing aspect of my identity was cultivated from the beginning of my schooling. I learned this was the key to my social acceptance and assimilation. Drawing from these experiences, I am engaging from a personal perspective with the desire to extrapolate meaning on how identity is both constructed and performed within political, social, economic and cultural spheres.”

{Thanks to my friend Jen for reminding me about Amy’s work – so good.}

So, on Friday morning I wrote about American painter Clare Elsaesser. Well, I cannot even imagine how amazingly creative their home must be, as this is the work of her husband, Kai Samuels Davis. Sigh… so much talent under one roof.

I am a sucker for portraits of women, add to that Kai’s color choices and his simple/confident brush strokes, and I’m completely done for. Love.

Flower covered portraits… YES! This is the lovely work of American artist Clare Elsaesser. You might recognize her work, because her Etsy shop, tastes orangey, is very popular! Well no wonder, with flowered covered portraits like this, you just can’t go wrong. However… I also crazy love this portrait, and there’s not a flower  in sight:

♥