The Angel with the Violin goes full circle

This is one of the very first encaustic pieces of artwork created bay back in the beginning of my artistic adventures circa 2006. A friend Dawn Diaz had just opened a gallery, Rikki/Massage space called Choose Love Studios in Wasilla, Alaska. Dawn had a grand opening where she showed her artwork and invited me to show mine. People from the community showed up including Sarah Palin before she was infamous.  A woman whom I had not met before stopped in and she fell in love with this angel piece.  How much? she asked, I told her some very high over zealous number, she didn't buy it, but vowed she would someday. In the meantime she purchased two of my other icon paintings; Mary Mother of Jesus and Gabriel.  Yoby and I became friends, encouragers and admirers of each others work, she is a masterful writer, bonified genius and wildly mad, I love her so much. 

As seems to happen to everyone I love in Alaska they eventually leave you either by moving away or moving on. My friend Yoby moved back to Texas,  These days our relationship is mostly on Facebook and the phone.

After Christmas Yobs said she still wanted the piece, I took the attitude "show me the money" she did!

Peter repaired the tiny violin and I gave it a polishing, she is ready to go to her new home in Amarillo, Texas,  she will become part of the triptych of icons I created part of Yoby's altar along with Yoby's other spiritual  relics.  Because of Covid it's been an extra tough year for many of us, but for Yoby battling depression, pneumonia, cancer and losing her dear brown lab Caddie. The angel is her gift to herself for coming through it all and being spit out the other side, happier and alive.

People like Yoby don't come along every day I am so grateful for our friendship, our elevated conversations,  the quality time we spent together and so many other things she taught me without even knowing. Life is funny sometimes how things come around full circle this angel closes the circle she has moved on and found her next home. 

Poppies, Bear Skull and Red Butterfly

 

Poppies, Bear Skull and Red Butterfly

Acrylic Painting

16 x 20 x 2

300.00

I turned up the wattage with black outline and fluorescent paint, and added a red butterfly! Is it conceited to say I love it!

The Stairway to Heaven or Knocking on Heavens Door

 Stairway to Heaven

Oil/Silver Leaf

36 x 48

Gallery Wrapped Canvas

$1500

Knock, Knock, Knocking on Heavens Door

Photoshop Manipulated Image

8 x 10 Prints

$25

A Wildflower Among the Wallflowers

A Wildflower Among the Wallflowers

Original Oil Painting

48 x 24

Judy Vars

A Wildflower Among the Wallflowers - This is a life size painting of my little neighbor Myla a smart, precocious, adorable little girl. When she laughs it sounds like fairy bells or a babbling brook. She stood still for this painting about two minutes! I got some great great reference photographs which I worked from. She brought me her new shoes and asked that I put diamonds and glitter on the shoes in her painting just like her shoes, I was only to happy to add glitter and bling to the painting, plus there is a floating effect where her feet don't touch the ground which only lends itself to the ethereal and whimsical quality of my Myla painting. 

Resurrection or The Cycle of Life

Redurrection

Oil

16x20

It's spring time the birth of the new, the cycle of life. We are here for a infinitely short time so love with all your heart, strive to be happy joyous and free and believe in miracles. I love you all madly.

Vanity of Vanities or Inspi-RED

Vanity of Vanities or Inspi-RED! 

Oil

Vanitas is a genre of art which comes from the 1600,Dutch painters used objects rich in morbid symbolism to remind the viewer of the transience of life. A skull is usually featured along with dying flowers, candles, and a mirror which is a symbol of vanity. The vanitias is usually a complicated painting, but I wanted to modernize an old idea, this one is simple and straight forward; a bear skull, a timepiece and a blue morph butterfly, done in a tromp ole” style.

#1KFridas AKA The Night of 1000 Fridas

The Night of a Thousand Fridas

#1KFridas

acrylic 

16 x 20

NFS

Frida Kalho! Tonight all over the Country in fact all over the world artists participated in celebrating FRIDA by offering their Frida inspired art to be shown in public places all over America. What an incredible array of Fridas by artists as young as 2 years old. Go to Instragram and use the #1KFrida and you will be see so many different Fridas you won't believe it; croched Fridas, sculptured Frida, performance art Fridas, assemblage Fridas, every Frida imaginable . 

This event was the brainchild of Washington D.C. artist Theodore Carter www.theodorecarter.com the idea was spread over social media with the following criteria; we show our work of art in a public place on March 25th and we show the hash tag #1KFridas.  Four artists participated in our little corner of Alaska; Judy Vars, Barbara Hunt, Mimi DeGange and Luke Nicholson. We all met up at the Palmer, Deli a well known salon for artists and art lovers, to offer our creations to join the Fridas all over the country, we discussed Frida over good food and coffee we talked about her life, her work, her accident and naturally her sex life. Frida was a fascinating and fierce artist who painted her own sorrows and her joys she continues to inspire others through her art. 

For more Fridas you will have to go find her by using the hash tag #1KFrida. Use Instagram. 

We LOVE YOU FRIDA KALHO!!! 

Dia De La Muertos Vanitas or the Enchanted Victorian Doll

It’s the Winter Solstice time of the year when the days get shorter and the nights get longer. This is the time when we love to celebrate Halloween and Dia de la Muertos. Things this time of year get a little hazy between the land of the living and the land of the dead. This brings me to my story. Early in October I went out to get my Halloween decorations and in the box was a Victorian Doll that I had never seen before. I put my uneasiness aside and just figured that I don’t remember getting this doll because my memory isn’t the best these days. Well as a wicked Halloween joke on my beloved Peter I moved her around the house a time or two but he didn’t seem to notice my prank so I stopped. Then the doll started to move about the house without my assistance, peeking around the corners, standing in my closet, hiding in the laundry and then one morning she appeared in my art studio! On my art table; I had a violin, a beautiful skull, some other odds and ends, and some lights I strung. That’s weird I thought, look what a lovely vanitas painting this could become. So I arranged the scene and began my painting. Oddly she did not move again until the painting was finished, I hope you love this enchanted vanitas painting that this little Victorian Doll Abagail inspired with her Halloween antics.

Dia De La Muertos Vanitas 

by

Judy Vars

Original Oil

 

A Modern Fayum Mummy Portrait by Judy Vars Wins Best of Show with Valley Fine Arts Association Juried Art Show

I will be showing some of my favorite artworks at the 

Bear Paw River Brewing Company
Artists Reception
4605 E. Palmer Wasilla Hwy
First Friday! July 6th 4-6 PM
The art will be there all month.
I will be sharing some of my favorite encaustic paintings (pigmented beeswax painted with fire). Bear Paw is a cool microbrewery with a friendly community vibe it's a great place to schmooze, have a cold brew and see art!

A MODERN FAYUM MUMMY PORTRAIT
by
Judy Vars

Angels, Skulls and Ravens OH MY!

Cross Road There is No Planet B

WE would love to see you at the opening reception where there will be a huge ice sculpture of a glacier which will be melting before your eyes, Lynda Enfante-Lyons and her partner Graham Dane super talented artists will be a part of this art installation with post cards to Alaska. Please try and come on one of these dates and see a very special art installation take part in poetry and a Q&A with Fran Ulmer about global warming.  Sandy Hill conceived this art installation to bring community attention to global warming and especially how it affects Alaska.

  Bless her heart she had been collecting hundreds of newspaper articles about climate change; scientific articles, political articles, actions to take, art and more. I was asked to create some artwork from these raw materials so I took the box home labeled Scientific Evidence, honestly I did not have any inspiration until last week then it came to me, this triptych is made from the newspaper articles and beeswax which the art is literally  melting. 

The science of global warming  and newspaper headlines does not offer much good news the scientific data is bleak and confusing.  I decided the best approach was to make an emotional appeal, temperatures are rising, weather is getting more unpredictable, sea levels are rising, out planet is getting hotter! 

First we need to stop being in denial and we need to stop now! Then we can address the issues we are at a Cross Road There is No Planet B!

 The Glaciers are Melting

 Tales of a Warmer Planet

 The Bad News! We're On Fire!

The Angel and the Skull

The Angel and the Skull

Original Oil

by

Judy Vars

24 X 30

VANITAS painting which translated means vanity and reminds us that this earthly life is temporal but there is another aspect to our existence. This painting holds a psychological meaning, the flowers represent that life is short and transient, the angel gives us hope, the skull says we will all become dust one day and the three wise monkeys remind us to be of good mind, speech and action.

From Caravaggio to a White Bird in a Golden Cage

This painting has a long story, I am going to repeat it here as I remember it. This painting is huge Greg had started a few years back and was intended to be of a desperate tragic woman in an iron cage symbolized as his mother, the eight iron bars represent her children of which Greg was the oldest. His mother died under tragic circumstances when he was just a boy. 

Greg’s vision was to have a Caravaggio type dramatic painting that expressed the bleak sadness he had as a child and his mother's circumstances as a trained classical pianist (symbolized by the ballet slippers) stuck in a ghetto with 8 kids and an abusive husband.

I always thought this painting a little coarse so one day last summer while visiting him I said; hey Greg I can finish that painting for you. He called me a week later and told me to come and get it. I brought home this huge heavy canvas about 5 'x 4'  looked at it and asked myself are you crazy? Well we all know that is a rhetorical question, yes I am crazy.

  In the process of trying to complete his painting and his vision (which I now know is impossible) I found thoughts wandering to the lyrics of the song, White Bird in a Gilded white bird must fly or she will die. I wanted to change her iron cage into a gilded cage, and make her younger and prettier; I just couldn't help myself my ego got in the way. I changed the iron bars to gold, I changed her face from a desperate woman to the saddest girl in the world, I added cycles of the moon, I painted fire flies for little points of light, gave her a boob lift, and even added a moth for good measure the only part of the painting that I didn’t touch was the golden ballet slippers.

I wanted to rewrite Greg’s childhood to a happier one with some hope. When Greg saw it for the first time he was taken off guard!  I know he expected it to resemble his original idea and I felt like an asshole for stepping on his painting and his Caravaggio theme. 

It is unclear to me if he really liked the painting after I got a hold of her and changed everything, but he was very gracious his comment was; I can say this, it went from a painting that would be not liked by most people to a painting that would appeal to a broader audience. He comically commented as to how now his mother's boob is pointing at his face after some discussion he sent me home to add a key to symbolize that there was a key to his mother's cage.

I delivered the finished product to him on Thursday.  

This is a heartfelt gift for my friend Greg . . My association with him has enriched my life more than I can express. He was one of my greatest art supporters, biggest critic and great friend besides. Every time I saw him I asked, how are you? He always said "better now that you are here" and it magically made me feel better. I know he has many, many devoted friends but he always made me feel most important and loved.

As I write this Greg's journey in this life is coming to an end, if the amount of people on this planet that truly love you is any indication of a successful life then you my dear friend are a superstar. Thank you for being in my life.

SAVE THE BEES - BEEHIVE DRAWER

SAVE THE BEES - BEEHIVE DRAWER

Encaustic wax - Mixed Media

21 X 21

450.00

16 OUNCES OF

HONEY

REQUIRES

1,152 BEES TO TRAVEL

112,000 MILES

AND VISIT

4.5 MILLION

FLOWERS

The Magic Hours Between Night and Day on Solstice Eve

Still Life on My Deck

24 x 48

Oil

850.00

What is your favorite time of the day? Do you love sunrise surprises? Do you enjoy the noon hours white light? Or the early evening hours with their glorious sunsets? June 21st holds the honor of being the longest day of the year. In my neck of the woods  (Wasilla, Alaska), that day provides us with twenty hours of daylight. This extravagant length of hours  seems to slow time and confuses our understanding of morning, noon, and night.  It’s been my tradition is to stay up all night on this Summer Solstice. I’ve heard it said that Alaska  is an insomniac’s paradise. Suffering from a bit of insomnia myself,  I can attest to the difficulty of trying to put oneself to bed when the sun is still shining.  On the solstice, I don’t even try. My personal favorite time of the day this time of the year has always been the window of  magic hours from 10:30 p.m. to midnight. The sun goes down slowly during this period,  displaying a long and glorious sunset. The light remains in a suspended state somewhere between day and night.  Old Sol hovers just behind the horizon, casting a filtered light of lavender as a  Prussian-blue sky and crimson shadows give the scene an otherworldly glow.  I often sit quietly in my secret garden next to my lake carefully observing the various elements of my surroundings. Because I am an artist, I mentally translate the colors I see into pigments  and am inspired to attempt to capture the essence of what I am experiencing. At these moments  I think of something Vincent Van Gough wrote to his brother, Theo:  "One of the most beautiful things by the painters of this century has been the painting  of darkness that is still color.” I feel like one of those artists as I sit and contemplate how to capture  the magic of the midnight sun onto canvas—how to paint the darkness that still has color. For now, I’m content to enjoy the midnight sun, as soon enough it will be night most of the day.  But the long winter’s night is magical, as well. Oh, the sights you can see: the Milky Way, the aurora,  nighttime so clear and clean you can see planets and galaxies with the naked eye! Sunrises, sunsets,  and bliss, “oh my.” At the Winter Solstice (the shortest day of the year), it’s my tradition to remain snuggled in my  new flannel pajamas all day long, no matter what. Tradition is a cozy thing. Blessed Solstice to Everyone

Tornado on the Plains

Tornado

Original Oil

16x20

Judy Vars

200.00

Dr Freud, Dr Freud calling, I'm not just sure why I painted a tornado, I have never experienced a real one. But holy shit a huge tornado must be a terrifying experience! The fury of powerful winds swirling around leaving indiscriminate destruction in it's wake.  We all know people like that, some of them came to mind while I was painting this tornado. Beautifully scary and it's for sale at a low post tornado price.

Bee and Flowers in the Window with Red Drapes

Bee in the Window with Red Drapes

Oil/Beeswax

20 x 24

Judy Vars

350.00

Come and take a sentimental journey with me do you remember as a child staring out your grandmothers window? Fresh flowers placed in the open window sill bringing a touch of nature inside her small but cozy home. What is about doors and windows that is so endlessly delightful? If the eyes are the window to the soul then and the home and hearth represents our soul then it stands to reason why these kinds of paintings are so heart warming. 

This was painted with oil and to make the window trim look even more rustic and dimensional I used encaustic beeswax, to put the whipped cream and cherry on the top I found this old shabby chick frame. I hope this window painting warms your heart and brings you joy.

Encaustic Wax Art

Encaustic is a Greek word translated means “to burn in” natural pigments are made from pure organic beeswax, mixed with dammar resin and fixed with heat. The exact formula was lost until a modern chemist reinvented it in the 1940’s.

The earliest surviving examples are the Fayum mummy portraits (300 B.C. to 100 A.D.), discovered near Alexandria, Egypt where embalming was big business and lengthy process taking 70 days, the head and shoulder portraits of the individual was painted onto wood panels for the mummy casing - an early Greek version of the funeral makeup artist. 

On a recent trip to Southern California we visited the J. Paul Getty Museum; this marvelous museum contained a room devoted to Fayum portraits and other fascinating funerary from Roman and Egyptian culture. Alone in this room I felt a visceral connection to the long dead people and the artists who faithfully tried to create a likeness of the person, it was a rare glimpse into the faces and eyes of an ancient civilization

The earliest icons were painted with encaustic wax.

Encaustic painting fell into obscurity by the seventh century and was forgotten with the invention of more practical methods such as oil and tempura. Electricity and pre-made pigments have made encaustic more available to everyone. Now in the 21^st century encaustic is back in a big way!

The qualities of the artwork that can be achieved with encaustics are unique. The beeswax is pure and organic, perfect for artists concerned with the Green Revolution. The methods are more like alchemy and magic than painting. It can be layered with translucent pigments to mysteriously reveal what lies partially hidden, carved back to reveal what is beneath. The depth and luminosity that can be achieved is remarkable.  Modern artists have taken the wax to amazing places. It also appeals to artists who want to carve, sculpt or collage. 

As encaustic goes main-stream, art collectors and galleries are becoming more interested in the medium. Encaustic art is losing some of its novelty - which is good. Collectors will not shy away from this medium as more people hear about it and understand its unique qualities which include durability and permanence.

My mission is to spread the “cult of the wax” so, fired up with enthusiasm!  I will be teaching a 1 ½ day workshop Artist Technique, Experimentation and Enlightenment in Encaustic paints at the Machetanz Art Festival at Mat-Su College June 3^rd and 4^th … Bring your ephemera, sacred objects, photographs  and I’ll bring mine, together we’ll create some art, imagination and willingness are all that is required.

http://judyvars.com/

http://www.cabinfeverinalaska.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cabin-Fever-In-Alaska/113698755320513

Studio: (907) 355-2219

Marilyn Monroe RIP

Marilyn

Acrylic/Oil

16x20

400.00
Judy Vars

Marilyn Monroe

June 1st - August 5, 1962

The iconic Marilyn Monroe has fascinated my psyche since I was a little girl. As a budding teenager 

I watched her perform her song "Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend" on my parents black and white TV the excitement she created kept me awake! I imagined myself like her a beautiful blonde sex goddess. Fifty four years after her passing she is still alive in our hearts and imagination. 

Enduring fame is the definition of immortality!

Just like Vincent Van Gogh who painted prolifically for just a decade, she was an actress for only 10 years. On June 1st of this year she will have turned 90.  If only we could have watched her grow old beautifully.

I queried my friends of FaceBook to see what they would name this painting, here are some of their responses; Resurrection, Addiction, Beautiful, Marilyn Macabre, PhenoBarbie, I Am What I Am, Nearly Dawn Getting Ready For the day, Indulgent Woman, She Lives, True Identity, Fleeting Beauty, Beauty is Transient, Beauty is only Skin Deep, Eye See You, Sweet Reality, Life and Death, My Fair Lady, Equalizer, Pamela, Scary Date, Wife of Trump, Beauty Inside and Out and Skin Deep. Veeeeery interesting this proves that people are different and everyone sees art differently Marilyn cannot be labeled.

Happiness is not anything I ever took for granted.

If I am going to be a symbol of something I'd rather it be sex. 

Marilyn Monroe

My Fetish Doll

Look at my fetish doll - it's mine all mine - not everything is for sale . Driftwood gathered from the beach at Golovin, Alaska, Raven feathers, Seagull feathers, seabird beak, cracked seagull egg, old spoon and beeswax to hold it all together. 

“According to doll making legend, the original work for doll was “idol” We have just lopped off the “I.”
When we make dolls we are invoking God like powers. Doll making is a very powerful form of magic.
Because we are working directly with the human figure in a form that appeals to our child self, we are talking directly to our creative consciousness, which in turn speaks directly to our Higher Self.

“Doll making is a very potent form of magic. Therefore, dolls are extremely potent tools for manifestation. (It is no accident that dolls are used in Voodoo.)” But if dolls can be—and have been—used negatively, they can also be used positively, and that is what I did here.”

 

Why is it that dexterity, knowledge of art, and taste do not necessarily add up to what we seek in art?
Peter London