The majority of my gouache paintings were painted on thick watercolor paper. They were taped down to a Masonite panel when I paint them, but when the painting is finished and I remove the tape, the paper still curls. The paper itself does not sit flat. I had two boxes filled with stacks of these curled gouache paintings. And some of them had not been varnished yet. I use cold wax medium to varnish them (to protect them from any kind of moisture) and then I glued them to rigid canvas panels, to make the paintings flat. Gluing the paintings to rigid panels also served the purpose of making the finished painting a more conventional size: 9 inches x 12 inches. See, I would split 11 x 14 sheets of watercolor paper into two sheets, but that would make each painting an odd size of 7.5 x 11. Adhering them to a 9 x 12 panel allows them to fit in a standard size picture frame. For a more finished look I painted a border around each panel with a neutral color and then centered the painting on the panel. I spent weeks gluing gouache paintings to panels.

At the time of this blog post, I am still varnishing and adhering gouache paintings to rigid panels. I have quite a few more to go. I am a one man show here, so it’s a lot of work and very time-consuming. It takes away from creating new things, but this is a necessary task in order to find new homes for these works. So, I am not complaining.

After I prepared a good number of my original artworks for market, I decided to list them on eBay. So, I opened up an eBay store. I listed 40 paintings in my eBay store, so far, and more will be added in the coming weeks and beyond. Each painting comes with a Certificate of Authenticity, hand-signed and dated by me (see photos in my eBay listings). Paintings will be protected for shipping by packaging them securely and mailing them via insured USPS Priority Mail.

Of course, high-quality reproduction prints are always available in my website store, printed in high resolution with waterproof archival pigment inks on 19 mil, 260 g/m2, archival textured matte velvet fine art paper, 100% cotton fiber and acid free. I sign those too.

I currently have another larger painting on my easel, that I would like to get back to (and a time-lapse video of its creation), and I have more originals to list. I’d like to get back into some drawing also, pencil or ink.

I hope 2026 will be a productive and fruitful year for my art and that it connects with people in a positive way. Thanks for stopping by and reading this. I hope you’ll check out my stores and that you’ll see something there that you like.

Another highlight of our visit was a lone male mallard duck that was hanging around outside by the entrance, greeting people. He didn’t appear to be injured, only muddy. He was hanging out there and wasn’t afraid of anyone. He walked right up to us. He didn’t behave aggressively, as if he was protecting a nest nearby. He just stood there calmy among our group as if he was participating in the conversation. After a few minutes of us talking to him, he walked away back to the flower beds. The museum is right on the lakefront, by the way. He didn’t appear like he was in distress or needed help. Maybe he was used to being fed and was expecting something to eat? It was nice meeting him, anyway.

I have finished at least three pieces of art since that show. I posted a blog entry a couple of days ago called “There’s A Place…” That post is about one of those pieces. And I have created two graphite drawings which I will write about shortly. I’ve also added several new prints to my web store. One is a limited-edition print of 10. You can check it out here.

Thanks for stopping by and taking time to read this! I hope you enjoy the photos. I enjoyed this show very much. I enjoyed the previous one and I’m sure I’m going to enjoy the next one as well.

I’ve named the painting (simply) “Dryad’s Saddle”. For anyone not in the know, “Dryad’s Saddle” is an edible shelf mushroom that grows on dead decaying trees. You will easily find them in wooded areas (obviously). They’re also known as “Pheasant Back”, because the pattern on them resembles the feathers on a pheasant’s back.

The small young Dryad’s Saddle are tender and the most edible. My wife and I harvest Dryad’s Saddle from a decaying tree stump in our own back yard, every Spring and Summer, and she cooks them up in a frying pan. The larger they are, the tougher and woodier they are, so you want the small young ones which are softer. Freshly picked, they smell like cucumber or watermelon rind, and when chopped up and cooked in a skillet with some butter, garlic, and a dash of salt they fry up much like any mushroom does. Its texture reminds me very much of cooked chicken (the tender dark meat) and it has an earthy flavor. I’ve read that they are high in vitamins, protein, and anti-oxidents and are very healthy to eat. There is a lot of information on the internet about Dryad’s Saddle and how to prepare them.

Also in my painting are hosta plants. Did you know that hostas are also edible? You can eat the shoots, the leaves, and the flowers. There’s lots of info about that online as well. Perhaps I should have named the painting “Forager’s Delight”.

This painting has gotten my creativity going again and reminds me that Spring is just around the corner. We’ll be seeing lots of “Dryad’s Saddle” soon, and I have already started working on another painting! I hope we’ll be seeing more of those on a regular basis too!

Prints of my new painting “Dryad’s Saddle” are now available in my store. This open edition hand-signed giclee print is digitally printed in high resolution with waterproof archival pigment inks on 19 mil, 260 g/m2, archival textured matte velvet fine art paper, 100% cotton fiber and acid free.

Thanks for reading my blog post!

I painted the other piece, “Burger Friends”, in the weeks before the 4th of July (Independence Day, in the USA). I had to step away from the painting many times to work on projects around the house, so it took longer than it should have to complete it. ”Burger Friends” is evocative of summertime grilling and the toppings we put on a burger around here. I enjoy smoking and grilling food and I do a lot of it for my household in the summertime. Aside from brisket, ribs, kabobs, chicken, grilled hot dogs and hamburgers are a common staple food during the summer months. It’s easy and delicious. Who doesn’t love hand patted quarter pound “Dad burgers”? I particularly like lettuce, tomato, red onion, cheese, and mayo, on mine. I can’t help but admire the beauty of freshly sliced vegetables, brightly colored, crisp, and juicy, just before I destroy the presentation by piling up my cheeseburger.

I’ve already started a timelapse video of another new painting, in between painting my bathroom and garage (different kind of “painting”). The projects keep coming.

Prints of “Early-Autumn Zinnias” and “Burger Friends” can be purchased in my online store. Thank you for stopping by and reading my blog!

I’ve made several new paintings over the past few weeks. I began filming timelapse videos showing the creation of these paintings. My first painting was a garden gnome standing next to some black eyed susans. I painted it with gouache paints on paper and named the piece “The Gardener”.

The next one, also gouache on paper, was a grasshopper.

And the painting after that was some bleeding heart flowers, which I painted on a larger stretched canvas with acrylic paints.

The bleeding hearts was a painting that I had started about a year ago, but I lost interest in it as I instead got into a different painting. So I decided to break it out and finish it finally, and I made a timelapse video of it, and started a YouTube channel to collect the footage and more timelapse videos of my paintings, for people that like that sort of thing. I think it’s interesting to watch a piece develop and morph in fast motion. I try to put nice music to the videos or some pleasant ambient background noise. You can watch the full videos from beginning to end on my youtube channel at www.youtube.com/@marjasallproductions. Subscribe to my channel and you’ll receive notifications of when I post new videos.

These new paintings I just mentioned, “The Gardener”, “A Grasshopper”, and “Bleeding Hearts” are now available as archival prints in my store.

I put together a slide show several weeks ago of most of my current collection of artworks. I think it’s an entertaining way to view the collection quickly in one place. Enjoy!

I’m about to begin work on another yet-unfinished painting and time-lapse video. I want to keep the creative momentum going. It’s another painting that I started about a year ago and I’ll reveal what it is when I release the video.

April is the time when nature gets creative. It’s planting season and nature comes back to life. Summer will be here before we know it. The warm weather gets me outdoors more, which means more energy, and that I will be surrounded by inspiration and new things to paint.

That’s all the news I have for the month of April. Peace to you and have a blessed day! Thank you for reading my blog!

Over the summer I attended some really great art events in Racine, Wisconsin. The 16^th Street Studios held another open house event which was just as fun, interesting, and inspiring as the first time my wife and I went, back in April of 2023. I saw several new studio spaces which I did not see before. I even came home with a free book. One artist was making room for fresh books on her studio shelves by telling her visitors to take one. So I selected a hardcover biography about J.R.R. Tolkien and thanked her.

Not only are there artists’ studios and shops at the 16^th Street Studios, but there is a museum. In suite 2500 is the “Spirit of Racine Entrepreneurs” exhibit, which is a museum dedicated to “the innovative spirit and business acumen of those who contributed to Racine’s economic growth and development”. I saw many interesting items, like old world carriages manufactured in Racine, steamer trunks, a vintage Golden Books collection, and many other products and items that were manufactured in Racine. There were turn of the century maps displayed, showing the neighborhoods and street names in Racine in those times. Much has changed, and much has stayed the same. I learned something about my house. It was all very interesting stuff. Another open house event will take place on April 27, 2024.

My wife and I also attended the 58^th Racine Starving Artist Fair at the DeKoven Center, near the lakefront, in Racine. It was a really fun and inspiring event. The weather cooperated with overcast skies and pleasant temperatures. The grounds there are really beautiful.

The DeKoven Center website describes the grounds best: “Set along Lake Michigan’s bluffs in Racine, Wisconsin, The DeKoven Center’s 11-acre campus is a unique and versatile setting offering nationally-recognized architectural treasures, gorgeous gardens, serene wooded areas and distinctive spaces — ideal for everything from personal reflection to community celebration”.

It was my first time attending this art fair and I could not believe the size of this event. I had no idea it was so large. There were over 120 artists displaying and selling their work, live music (I saw an acoustic performer and a cellist), the aroma of different foods, and all kinds of colorful art – paintings, woodwork, metalwork, jewelry, clothing, sculpture, glass-work… you name it. All of this in the midst of the beautiful gardens of DeKoven Center. I bought a stained glass piece from an artist, and my wife purchased a blown glass piece. The event inspired me to paint Kings Way Gardens, at St. John’s Chapel, which is on the DeKoven grounds. You can view the painting in my gallery. The Fair was impressive and has made me consider trying to rent a space there, possibly next year. The 59th Racine Starving Artist Fair is August 4, 2024.

I’ve created a lot of new art over the past several months. I completed eight paintings and have three other new paintings started as I type this. I jump around between pieces, and work on whichever one excites me at the moment.

The eight paintings that I completed are called:

• “Moon Peeking Around A Chimney”
• “Looking At You”
• “Halloween Tree”
• “Autumn Trail”
• “Morning Light”
• “At The Easel”
• “Danny”
• “October Snow”

They are all displayed in my gallery.

I painted “Danny” after a childhood friend of mine passed away unexpectedly in November 2023. He was a year older than me and we used to play music together when we were teenagers. We started out together, you could say, me getting my first electric guitar and amplifier at the same time he acquired a set of drums. His Dad allowed us to make our noise in their garage, and we started learning songs together. We lost touch with each other in the early-1990s and reconnected only two or three years ago on social media. We never managed to hook up face-to-face though. And then one day he passed away. I painted “Danny” how I remember him – young, long ago in the 1980s, in that garage. We had many great times. I think my painting reflects the fuzziness of those increasingly distant memories.

I will discuss other paintings in future blog entries.

I’m starting to print in-house, rather than outsourcing. We bought a large printer, and it prints with water resistant archival pigment inks. I’ve also been researching and testing out new archival fine art papers. I worked professionally in the printing industry for 15 years, before I began taking my artwork more seriously, and the knowledge and experience I gained from those jobs has paid off. I am not intimidated by printing in-house. I like the control that it gives me over the quality of my prints.

That is all that I can think to report, for now. I’m working on new paintings and I will share them here soon. Thank you for reading this. I will seriously try to write more often.

~ Mark Allen

The previous two weekends were spent in downtown Racine, Wisconsin, checking out the art galleries and shops. Racine is an art hub. There is a huge artist community here. My wife and I visited some galleries, and I talked to someone at a co-op gallery about joining. I have their paperwork in hand and will follow through once the remodel is out of the way. Also, that same day, my wife and I visited a glass blowing shop downtown called “Hot Shop Glass”. I love colored glass, so I purchased a purple sandblasted ornament to hang in my studio window. They hold glass blowing classes there. I plan to pay them another visit soon.

The previous two weekends were spent in downtown Racine, Wisconsin, checking out the art galleries and shops. Racine is an art hub. There is a huge artist community here. We visited some galleries, and talked to someone, at one, about joining. I have their paperwork in hand, and will follow through once the remodel is out of the way. Also, that day, my wife and I visited a glass blowing shop downtown called “Hot Shop Glass”. I love colored glass, so I purchased a purple sandblasted ornament to hang in my studio window. They hold glass blowing classes there. I plan to pay them another visit soon.

On Saturday, April 29^th, my wife and I attended the 16^th Street Studios Open House, in Racine, which was inspiring and enjoyable. It’s an immense historical industrial building (built in 1865) converted into art spaces. Four sprawling floors of artists’ studios and art stores — pottery, paintings, sculptures, photography, sewing. There’s a lot there. You can roam the halls and into the personal studios of dozens of artists, ask questions, and purchase their works.

That’s all the news that I have for right now, but I’ll have more soon. I still plan to get some original paintings up in the store. Thanks for stopping by.

Here’s a sample of some of the prints. These are 8” x 10”. I am very grateful to fill orders. Get yours!

I’ve added 7 different sets of greeting cards, to the shop. The sets are 5 cards of the same print, folded 5×7, printed on 85 pound card stock. The interior of the card is blank so you can write your own message within and give them to your friends or family. They could make a nice gift for framing. Card envelopes are included. The card images were painted with acrylics, on small stretched canvases.

I have also added some prints of drawings made with charcoal (“Hog Pen”, and “Wilting Sunflower”), and one drawing in oil pastels (“Jars of Hot Peppers”).

I have many incomplete paintings to finish, so today I will work on one of them, which is a painting of a grist mill. I may post something about it shortly.

Wishing you all a happy day. Keep a good attitude in your heart.

~Mark

Above are camera closeups of some of the actual prints, showing their quality.