Merry Christmas from the Studio!

Well the web site had been fully revised and launched! 

My website has been in need of updating for longer than I care to admit, so nearly this entire Fall has been devoted singularly to that. The address is the same - www.morrisons-studio.com

The web site will now automatically format properly for desk top, lap top, tablet and mobile device viewing, and be enabled for SSL - making it a secure site from here on out; all big steps I needed to take. It will also be much easier for me to update in the future - no longer doing html the old way will be a joy after doing it "manually" the past 25 years!

Surprisingly the studio sales have been fairly robust during all my chaos this year - the "originals" (paintings and drawings) have sold so well I have a lot of work ahead of me to fill empty spots on the gallery walls this winter!!! A lot to be grateful for! Thank you "Everyone" for your interest and support!

 

Merry Christmas!

I would like to sign off here in thanking everyone that has visited the studio this and in past years.

I hope each one of you and your families were able to celebrate your Christmas in a special and cherished way.

ALL my Best Wishes to you in the New Year!

 

 

The Real Fun of It!

 "September Morning on the Waterman"

photograph © Bruce A. Morrison

I'm going to do something I haven't done before now - post the same blog 3 times!  I do 2 blogs for the Artisans Road Trip and I think I want to say the same thing for my own studio blog as well.

Thank you to everyone who took in the 2011 Artisans Road Trip weekend on 9/30/11 through 10/2/11! It was a win-win for everyone out there! The "road trippers" had a very nice weekend of things to do and see, and the artists received some support for their efforts, got to meet new people and had fun showing off their wares and works!

And I'm no exception - I really enjoy showing off the studio here along the Waterman Creek valley south of B40.  Its a beautiful scenic location and so many new visitors are very surprised its here and they never knew about it!  That's the real fun of A.R.T.!

That's the case with all facets and artists of A.R.T. - there's a pleasant surprise around every corner!  Unique studios and galleries, one of a kind works and memorable travels around our beautiful corner of the state!

Thank you for supporting the Arts in NW Iowa!

Winter Work at the Studio

"Tallgrass Songster"

8X18" color pencil rendering

© Bruce A. Morrison

(click on image for a larger view) 

I'm still here plugging away in the studio!  I finally finished a piece that is about the third attempt to an idea I first got 6-7 years ago.  The "star" of the show is a male Dickcissel belting out it's name, in song form, among the Tallgrass Prairie in bloom.  The bird is taken from a study I did, which is now in the permanent "drawing collection" of the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin.  I have been trying to find a "home" for my study and this is my first "finished" attempt to see if I have!  The foreground is a mix of forbs in a prairie remnant near us that Georgie and I often explore.  The Echinacea (purple coneflowers) are of our county's true native population - Echinacea angustifolia, or "Narrow-leaved Purple Coneflower".  The male Dickcissel is proudly belting out it's name, the call from which the bird was named (virtually sounds like Dick, Dick, cissel).  This is a larger piece for me with color pencil...I find the medium can be exasperating at times and generally stick with small studies instead...but I persevered and finished it this week.  

"The Ritter Elevator"

11X19" oil painting

© Bruce A. Morrison

(click on image for a larger view)

Another work finished earlier, was an oil painting that was "kind of" different for me; it was a commissioned work done for a client commemorating (if-you-will) her trips to the grain elevator with her father, back when she was a child.  The elevator is one I'm very familiar with, have driven past and around it for 30+ years.  What I didn't know were some of the history and stories behind the "Ritter Elevator" - was fun to research and depict the elevator during the early 1950's!  The red IH box truck was my client's father's truck.  I took the rest of the vehicles from the area and other sources...the red tractor is my neighbor's father's Farmall "M" and their flarebox wagon (did repaint that a different color though).  I do like doing work depicting the agricultural environment/landscape and felt this was actually a good fit.  I've said it before and will likely again - the Tallgrass Prairie made this state what it is today and without that natural heritage, we would not have that "black gold" the prairie gave us - the soil.  After handing the painting over to it's new owner, I asked her if I could have permission to share it with you here - she was very happy to!

My first "Morrison's Studio Newsletter" (Vol.1, No.1) went out today!  If you'd like to sign up for it, there's a link to the form right along the sidebar to this blog...if you get this blog via e-mail you can go directly to the form by way of this link -

http://www.morrisons-studio.com/Newsletter%20page.htm

Hope your work has been going well this winter!  Stay safe!

In the Middle

Sun Dogs here at Prairie Hill Farm

(click on image for a larger view)

We're in the middle of many things here at the studio and Prairie Hill Farm - winter for one!  A couple days ago our digital thermometer went offline...it stops at 19 below zero fahrenheit.  It popped back on again at 19 below a little after 8 a.m.  I'd been out in the yard filling feeders for the birds and squirrels...it can get a little oppressive for them, out in the open in this weather.

I stopped before going into the studio and took just a quick shot of the sun dogs across the valley...nothing elaborate, just using my small camera.  I've often wished I could find the perfect landscape "nearby" to photograph sun dogs!  

We've also been in the middle of a lot of snow removal lately...that happens at this time of year!  I remember a neighbor speaking to me about the winter snow issues in the valley here a few years back.  He eluded to the fact that since we moved here, we hadn't had a bad winter...I took all the credit with a grin!  :)  Well, that ended last year and we've since gotten pretty good at moving snow on our own.

 Winter Goldfinch at the studio

(click on image for a larger view)

I'm hoping that this is the break in our winter weather for the duration ahead, a nice weekend appears to be a reality!  Any day in the 20's or 30's (faherenheit) is great winter weather!  (I know the birds would appreciate it too!)

I've been in the middle of painting and drawing projects as well.  Some have been extremely taxing...I hate to move onto something else when a piece is unfinished but that is a reality at times.  Sometimes a fresh "face" can help recover from painters block.  Oh ya...it happens.  :P

I've also been in the middle of marketing and business planning.  This is not something I relish but a necessity for any artist that is working out there as a freelancer - a full-time studio.  I am planning on beginning a newsletter in the near future...this is for my collectors and other clients that have purchased work here at the studio or other galleries I sell through.  If you are someone that would be interested in being included as a studio newsletter subscriber, watch for future news about this.

"In the Middle" is a time of transition or just a place you find yourself often as you move through life.  Here's hoping you're in the middle of something very good!

Digging Back In

"After the Storm Passed - Study"

2 1/2 X 3 1/2" (6.4 cm X 8.9 cm) color pencil (sold) © Bruce A. Morrison

(Click on image for larger than life size image)

It's been a time of digging back in here at the studio; the hours being spent printing up jobs and framing for clients is winding down from the aftermath of the Artisans Road Trip in early October.  Now it's November!  (How does that happen so quickly - someone please explain it to me!!!)

Now I am mustering up the mental stage to get back into creating new work.  This is the time (that comes along almost any time all year long) for me to go through my jointed and disjointed thoughts and begin new pieces.  How this comes about varies wildly here!  It either hits me like a 2x4, or I go back through recent and past "studies", like the small color pencil image under this blog's title...or I spend hours perusing through image files on the hard drives or the film file drawers until something talks back to me.

I'll be frank...this can be a frustrating process!

In the meantime we're at no loss for work around Prairie Hill Farm; we just finished patching cedar shingles in the barn roof, picking seed on the farm's native pasture, trimming down broken trees from the year's storms, and putting gardens to bed for the coming winter.  Never a dull moment!
  

Bald Eagle along the valley here below the Prairie Hill Farm Studio

© Bruce A. Morrison
(Click on image for larger view) 
 

The wildlife around the farm has been changing from summer to winter residents also...this makes things more interesting.  Certain yard birds become more numerous and our winter residents return; like the Bald Eagles in the valley here.  We've now had eagles for the past couple weeks.  It's pretty cool when a bird flies over your head when you're out and about the place, or when one passes by the living room window when your going about business in the house!

It can be pretty inspiring stuff!  Guess I should get busy!

 

Dry Spell?

August mornings are full of dew covered webs
(click on images for a larger view)

We haven't had rain for almost 2 weeks now!  I'm voicing this as a positive thing, mind you; it is so nice to have a reprieve from constant rain this summer.  One thing it has brought to the region is lush landscapes and record crops though - an amazing change from our normal dry and browning late summer settings.

I'm experiencing a short dry spell in the studio too, was planning on getting some more painting time in but have had several personal and business issues get in the way.  I came to the realization just a couple days ago that I only have 6 weeks to prepare for the Artisans Road Trip on October 1-3! Holy smokes where did the summer go!??! 

The Stiff Goldenrods(Solidago rigida) are bowing over with blossoms 

and the weight of pollinators (Monarchs in this case)!

Well, it (summer) hasn't disappeared yet but it is rocketing toward fall now...what we're seeing on the prairie remnant pasture here is now in the late liatris, prairie onion, goldenrod and sunflower stage.  I had to spend a couple hours in the pasture yesterday clearing the fire break/paths.  The rain has grown monster goldenrods and sunflowers and they've all toppled over each other and onto the paths making mowing impossible.  I had to cut stalks and volunteer trees (we get a lot of mulberry, elm and locust volunteers in the pasture), and wade through a gazillion butterflies, flies, bees and wasps in a feeding frenzy on the blossoms...and mosquitoes on me!

I'm settling in to the studio as best I can to pick up the momentum here now.  But I'm going to have a tough time tearing myself away from the prairie outside the door ...maybe I'll get a chance or two to sneak in a painting yet this summer?!

Finally Got It Done...

Well I finally got it done. My web site was nearly 7 years old and in bad need of revision and redesign. It was cluttered and neglected; I knew it but was too busy with other business to do anything about it. I kind of liken this to the plumber who's home has leaky faucets, or the electrician who has an exposed box in a wall - waiting for a finish!

I've cleaned up the old design and simplified it; it's now much simpler yet efficient (I hope). I've added more paintings from the past year. And I've also added nearly all the note card sets I offer.

To view artwork or cards just go through the "Our Artwork" link, this page will give you linked cues of the "Photography Gallery", the "Originals Gallery", the "Limited Editions Gallery" and the "Studio Gift Shop". Each is self explanatory except perhaps the Studio Gift Shop - it has the Note Cards and some of the less expensive and smaller Open Edition Prints. The Note Cards are accessed by clicking on the Note Card image, the others are more obvious.

Give the site a quick run through if you like, and any feedback is appreciated! I am trying to make it out here in the "wilderness" and any help is always appreciated! Thank you!