The Spout

Ned Biscuit -Mug Shot

2012-01-24T12:44:00.001-08:00

Ned Biscuit -Mug Shot, a photo by cathie joy young on Flickr.

Here is my funny boy posing for me side ways :)

Why I Paint

2012-01-19T12:12:00.000-08:00

I paint to give me something to look at and ponder. It is the only place where I can set up a problem and solve it all by myself. The act of painting determines the direction I will take and I get to the imagery via a combination of addition and editing. I work for a rather long time to determine the visual logic of the piece and then the answers begin to arise.


The Unbuilders 24" by 24"

I don't come in with any ideas and I patiently wait for the painting to work with me to find the story. It is a mutual effort. It helps to have several pieces going on at once. If I get too hung up on a particular painting I will not progress so I must let go and I give my attention to the next one. This also prevents me form painting over an entire finished work which has happened before. After devoting a lot of time to one painting I can literally get sick of the sight of it. I have to detach from it in order to see it with fresh eyes at a later date.


Refugees 14" by 16"

It is important to me that nothing look overworked; the colors need to remain fresh. Working in this spontaneous and intuitive way I am always able to surprise myself. There is always something new happening and though there is a visual language that ties all my work together I never feel like I am repeating myself or traipsing over old ground.


Plez Va Ivan Generalic 48" by 36"

Once the imagery has arrived I am still primarily concentrating on all the formal aspects of the painting. It is not until very late in the process and sometimes long after a painting has been completed that I can actually read the content. Often times it is what a viewer tells me about what they see in a piece that gives me a better understanding. Painting is my problem solving without words. Sort of like a visual math.

Black Friday, 99%ers, Greed and Best Buy by Nate James

2011-11-26T13:08:00.000-08:00

Some thoughts from my friend Nate James who is not only bright, articulate, and introspective but also a very fine drummer in my brother's band New York Rifles :

I survived today. I looked in the face of the Devil and made it back in one piece. And the thing I realized working a 12 hour shift on Black Friday at Best Buy is the whole 99% thing is quantified all wrong. Yes, there is a measurable displacement of wealth, but really the root of all the problems is the greed behind it. I saw a lot of 99%ers with a ten mile stare, ready to feed on outsourced electronics, with no regard for the people around them and a downright nasty disposition. And Best Buy supplies the fuel for the greed. It's a dark synergy that puts us in this wealth struggle. But there is no way to discern the greedy(be it for a private jet or a cheap TV) from the people who are free of the burden to measure their lives in dollars. The real ratio is more like 99% people with no interest in community or quality of living to 1% of people who who are content, no matter the amount of money they possess. And let's face it humans are pretty much 100% assholes anyway. We're built to feed on what's lower in the food chain. I witnessed several people in my own tax bracket(which I think is the 2nd bracket you can even be in) act as shameful and vile as the "1%" richest people. And here's my fictional solution, and I say fictional, because this will NEVER happen. All it takes are a few organizations(business, political, protesters, revolters, etc.) to truly put their foot down and say "I will do something different to better my community and promote equality and fairness." Open letter to retail stores for future Black Fridays: Keep normal hours, compensate your employees for the extra work(and free caffeine gum doesn't count), make the sale items a lottery so everyone gets a shot, not just the greediest, and in general make an effort to lead by example. To effectively say "We can still be successful and have a higher quality experience for everyone involved. A well planned capitalist venture doesn't have to be a hate filled blood orgy. Enjoy your Thanksgiving. And come enjoy a civilized and exciting shopping experience." Or words to that effect.

Tiny Portraits for Little Things Show

2011-11-23T11:27:00.000-08:00

"What can I do that will be appealing, not too time consuming, fun and follow a theme for a series - quick?", I was pondering on Nov 15th with a Nov 18th deadline. I had already dropped the ball on getting a piece to this years Tarot Show at Splendorporium. I have never not made a deadline let alone not gotten a painting into a show I had committed to be in. I did have something but the curators decided not to let me bring it in late. Lucky for me Donna of Guardino Gallery gave me two extra days to get my work together for Little Things. I found these wonderful tiny Masonite panels at Blick's (formerly Art Media - can't believe they sold out after 25+ years) already primed and so I decided to do little portraits in a limited palette.

Eight of the paintings are 4" by 4" and three are 5" by 5".

Lost Then Gone (Part 2)

2011-10-25T13:45:00.000-07:00

Ricardo

Ricardo about 1993

Lost Then Gone is the way I perceive Ricardo's departure. He had been lost to me, lost to himself - just completely lost for a while and it got worse and worse until he finally had to exit completely. In the first part of writing this I lost hours worth of writing in which I continued on with his life's timeline, including partners he had been with, the break ups, the troubles, the triumphs. I honestly don't have the energy to try and retrieve it all - what I wrote previously and lost does not need to be put out there I guess.

Tate (former partner and current friend) and Ricardo 2000?)

Ricardo helping set up my wedding 2000 photo by Krista Kay Wheeler

I miss Ricardo but I have been missing him for quite a while. The last few years were difficult and the last 7 months were a trial. He was very sick, much sicker than he let on to some people and for those of us who did know, we could not save him. The roots of his illness go way back. I have seen evidence of it off and on throughout the years. He was haunted by his father's lobotomy and he was also fearful of his mother's Alzheimer's disease. Ricardo was very worried when he would get forgetful. I'd been thinking yesterday that I really needed to focus on how much Ricardo gave me while he was here instead of lamenting how sad and difficult the last 7 months have been. His high school friend Julia called me and helped me put some of these jumbled thoughts and feelings into perspective. In retrospect it is pretty remarkable that Ricardo was able to make the positive impact he made on so many people given what he was up against. He could burn so bright and cast his light in such wonderful ways. He was a worker and a helper, he was a musician and a gardener, he was a healer and he was a big ham - he loved to express himself visually and vocally. But along with all his beauty and his big ,tender heart, he was carrying the burden of his sickness. Every now and then it would cycle back and flare up. In the last few years it was more obviously present. And in the last 7 months he struggled so much- and I think the struggle was two fold : trying to get better and trying to depart. This is so hard to write because I miss him and I wish he was still here - but I wish he was still here and 'well'. I would not want his soul to continue suffering as it was all year. Ricardo was determined to go, and as much as I believe that with better treatment he could have continued his life in a positive way, no one could control the outcome but him. Julia said some things to me that really made sense. She said she felt like " Ricardo had trouble negotiating his freedom". This rings true. While he was here he was always bumping up against it, alternately being reckless and reigning himself in. But on Monday, October 10th, 2011 he freed himself from the struggle.
I don't know that I believe in an afterlife. I am a pretty pragmatic person. But I do know that Ricardo lives in me, so while I am here, he has an after life of a sort, and everyone of us that knew and loved him are continuing him. I think it is important to succumb to the feeling of loss for a time so that we can move through it, but eventually I want to feel how much I gained by having Ricardo in my life and keeping him in my heart.

Me, Susan, Ricardo,Meredith and Kitty, my wedding, July 29th, 2000. Photo by Krista Kay Wheeler

If you or anyone you know is suffering from mental health issues please get help.

Remembrances or donations can be made in Richard's name

(Richard "Ricardo" Ludt) to Q Center (www.pdxqcenter.org) or The Trevor Project (www.thetrevorproject.org).

Lost Then Gone (part 1)

2011-10-24T12:48:00.000-07:00

Ricardo (Richard Ludt) 2000

Ricardo (Richard Ludt) about 1992

Ricardo (Richard) Ludt and me in about 1995

On the morning of Monday October 10th, 2011 at about 8:12 am. my dear friend Ricardo pulled over in his car and jumped off the north side of the Fremont bridge, "without hesitation"as was quoted by a witness in the brief news report. He was the 55th person to jump from a bridge in Portland, Oregon this year. I have been meaning to write something about mental illness and suicide for a long time as both have interrupted my life on several occasions. Ricardo is the 4th friend I have lost to suicide. It stuns me as I sit here- this is what has pushed me to finally sit down and write, it is a huge interruption that needs to be attended to. I will start by talking about the 3 friends I have lost and then return to Ricardo.

PHILLIP

Me and Phillip about 1989

I lost my friend Phillip in 1990. He was 27 years old. Phillip and I were brought together via our friend Michael. Michael has been my friend since 1982 and is still very much present in my life. He is also a friend of Ricardo's.
Phillip was very gentle and beautiful and smart. He was not being treated for mental illness but it is safe to say that he was clinically depressed or likely bi-polar. Phillip was drinking a lot, so alcohol was perhaps his chosen medicine. Phillip was living in San Francisco when he died. Michael and I were up here in the Northwest. Phillip went to a B52 concert with some friends and left in the middle of the show. He was discovered dead in his apartment from an overdose several days later.

CELESTE

Celeste about 1987

Me and Celeste 1982

In 1993 I lost my friend Celeste. She was 32 years old. Celeste, along with six other girls, formed my group of closest friends. Some of us were pals from various grade schools eventually becoming a very tight click by age 14. During those high school years we spent a lot of time together - much of it partying and getting into and out of trouble. As we grew into our early adulthood it became apparent that certain of us were more troubled then others. Celeste was a seemingly strong person. She was the oldest of the girls, a grade ahead of us and she went to a different high-school. Her family was wealthy and she was spoiled with material things. She drove us around in a big, emerald green car with "2112" license plates in tribute to her favorite band, Rush. We were all reading and re-reading The Trilogy of The Rings by JRR Tolkien. Cleste adored those books. She had a very infectious laugh and the most incredible eyes. They were green and blue and one of them had flecks of amber. She was emphatic when she spoke - gesturing a lot with her hands and shaking her head, tossing her hair. She drank a lot. Her joy was extreme and her anger was intense. She was smart and bright and never came close to using any of her gifts. Celeste was most certainly an alcoholic and suffering from depression or Bi polar disorder which was never addressed or treated. It has been said that she quit drinking a year before her death but it is impossible to know if that is true. One night in 1993 she asphyxiated herself in her car in her garage. Apparently she told a friend (who I will refer to as A) via the telephone that she was going to do it. Later a message was found on Celeste's telephone answering machine from A telling Celeste goodbye.

SUSAN

Susan 1990

Susan and me 1988

Amy and Susan 1990

In the late summer of 1998 I got the news that my friend Susan killed herself exactly the same way as Celeste did. She was the second person from my above described group of friends to commit suicide in the same town. She was living in Pueblo, CO. while the rest of us were scattered throughout the country. We all gathered in Pueblo for her funeral and spent a lot of time with her family. One day we sat around the table with various sisters and brothers (Sue came from a large Catholic family). We spent hours piecing the puzzle together. Sue had lived in several different States in the last few years of her life. She settled in Portland for a while and that is when I became aware of how sick she was. Sue was an alcoholic and also used cocaine and I'm not sure what else. I feel sure she was Bi polar. For a short time - less than 2 months-she took medication for depression but that is as far as her treatment went. Sue would go on a wild tear quite frequently. Her acting out emotionally was very intense. There is a lot of mystery surrounding what happened and when, but apparently she was raped, she was jailed, she broke her back falling out of a window. Sue did go to Alcoholics anonymous for a time. She met someone there whom she had a child with. She adored her boy but was too sick to take care of him and so he was taken away from her when he was a toddler and adopted by his foster parents. Susan very randomly married an acquaintance from grade school shortly after losing her son. Approximately 6 weeks later she killed herself.

Susan was gorgeous. She was smart and funny and could be the biggest goof. In retrospect I can see that there were signs of her disturbance very early on, but when you are a kid yourself there is no way to see mental illness for what it really is. Her quirks and moods developed into a storm of sickness as time went on. There were times as a teenager when Sue would display very strange emotional behavior alternately ecstatic and despairing. Despite this she got through High School with a respectable GPA and was even a cheer leader until she got kicked off the squad. She escaped her home town, went to college in Northern Colorado, and later lived in various places on the West Coast. Sue continued her education and became a respiratory therapist. There were times when she seemed very together and functional and she was a very good and solid friend to me. The thing about depression and bi polar disorder is that it is sometimes invisible to the observer. At times all that is evident on the outside seems perfectly normal and even very positive. The loss of Sue was devastating. I dealt with feelings of guilt for years. I distanced myself from her. I just could not help her and she was very hard to be around. At the time I was dealing with my own depression which I would only later come to terms with. But a part of me swore that I would never let this happen again, never let someone I love slip away like that. I would never pull away from someone just because it felt really uncomfortable to be around them because the drama was too big a burden to bear. Self-preservation - whatever you want to call it. I thought of my retreat as selfish and cold. And in the last eight months this thought has been on my mind a lot - this can't happen again.

RICARDO

This is Ricardo around the time I met him - 1982


This is the only picture I can find of Ricardo that I took when I knew him in Colorado. He is in the middle on the steps to the apt I shared with our mutual friend Jason (standing behind Ricardo)

Ricardo at my wedding 2000

I met Ricardo in 1982 in Colorado Springs, CO. at Giuseppe's Italian Restaurant. Ricardo (At that time he went by the name Rick) was a bus boy and I was a waitress . I fell in love with him instantly. He was so beautiful, funny, witty, full of energy - truly delightful to be around. We were friends at first sight. I also had a crush on him. At that time he was bisexual so I figured - you never know. I got a job at a better restaurant called Jose Muldoon's close to my 21st birthday and Rick followed shortly after. We became friends with the above mentioned Michael as well as Jason who also worked at Jose Muldoons. The 3 of us were all enamored of Rick and I have to admit their was some jealousy. In the above photo of him by the pool looking like a movie star you can, I am sure, understand the attraction. But it was his heart, not his looks that held me. We became very close very quickly as people do when they are so young . My memories of Rick from that time are all pretty joyous. We worked together, we played together, we were beginning to grow into adults together. There was drinking and dancing - there were raids on my make-up and my wardrobe (unbeknownst to me until after the fact) for a drag adventure that he and Jason went on in Denver. We danced to new wave music at "the Annex", a Colorado Springs underground club frequented by young gays and straights who loved to dress up and party at the cutting edge of what was hip in our little land locked city. At the time Rick was dating a beautiful blond, blue-eyed boy named Steve. Michael, Jason, and I thought they were the most beautiful couple in the world.
From here my memory fails me when it comes to the order of events. Michael, Jason and I planned to escape Colorado and finally settled on Portland, Oregon as our destination for College and a new life. Rick's parents bought him a ticket to Europe. He traveled through the UK, Germany, France, and finally ended up in Spain where he fell in love with Jose Manuel. He became fluent in Spanish and had dreams of opening a bar with Jose Manuel in Malaga. In Spain he acquired the name Ricardo given to him by his boyfriend. For some reason he returned and then spent time with his Grandmother Stella in San Diego. At some point he moved to Sacramento. In the meantime we kept in touch and he came up and visited us briefly in Portland in 1985 on his way to a meditation retreat in Washington.
In 1990 after graduating from art school I moved to the Bay area in hopes of continuing a romantic relationship with my boyfriend. Riccardo and I would see each other now and again now that we lived in close proximity. This is when I met Jose Manuel on a visit to see Ricardo in Sacramento. He seemed very much in love with Ricardo and they had plans to live together again in Spain. A lot happened in the year I lived in the SF area. I had 5 different jobs and lived n 4 places -Palo Alto, Menlo Park, San Mateo, and San Francisco. Things were very rocky in my relationship with my boyfriend. Ricardo was my rock. One of my most treasured memories is of riding on the back of his Triumph motor cycle from Sacramento to San Francisco one night. I remember at first being nervous on the bike. I had my arms around Ricardo's waist and I could smell the amber he always wore. I felt safe and free.

Jose Manuel and Ricardo during Jose's visit to Sacramento, 1990

Ricardo and me hiking Mount Tamalpais north of SF near Mill Valley, 1990

One day Ricardo got a heart breaking letter from Jose Manuel . He had met someone else and so discouraged Ricardo from returning to Spain - but Ricardo was determined. I tried to talk him out of it. I knew it would be a bad situation. He went anyway, shipping his motor bike and all his worldly good with him. I remember the two of us walking through the Mission on a sunny day and saying goodbye. He was off to try and retrieve a dead relationship with Jose Manuel and I was returning to Portland after suffering the ending of my own relationship. We kept in touch via letters (no cell phone or email for us then). Things went from bad to worse for Ricardo during this stint in Spain. There was turmoil between him, Jose Manuel and the new boyfriend, Francisco, someone broke into his room, stole all his jewelry, his jeans and his money, someone set fire to his motorbike and finally he slipped a disc in his back. I had been writing him imploring him to return to the States and in particular - to join me in Portland. I spoke to his mother and she arranged to get him back to Colorado. He had surgery on his back, got a truck and drove to Portland. I think this was in 1992. We lived together in my apartment for about 6 weeks until another apartment opened up in the building. Ricardo got a job at Cafe Mingo and immediately started amassing his many friends and acquaintances. He was always so socially comfortable and very much the life of the party. He was still very enamored of the Spanish culture and dived into Flamenco lessons. He met and fell in love with Thomas Lauderdale who ended up moving into Ricardo's apartment. Those were very happy times. Ricardo got more and more into performing and took up belly dancing. He also began to sing some of the standards that were sung by his English Pop Star father Dickie Pride back in the 1950's/early 60's such as "Anything Goes" accompanied by Thomas on piano. Ricardo bore a striking resemblance to his father. Here is a photo of him with his father's album in the background : Ricardo and his Dad. Ricardo's father suffered from mental illness - quite possibly Bi Polar disorder and was lobotomized in 1969 when Ricardo was 4 years old. shortly after he died of a possible overdose of sleeping pills.

Ricardo was a mainstay in my life for many years, like a selected family member. He was supportive to me throughout my ups and downs. He could make me laugh like no other. He could take on so many voices and characters and be so entertaining. He could be so goofy and free. At the best of times Ricardo seemed to know himself so well - be so comfortable with who he was. At other times he was searching so intensely for who he thought he was supposed to be. The loss of his biological father at such a tender age left him with a big hole I believe. When Ricardo's 28th birthday was approaching I remember he was so caught up with the realization that he was about to surpass the number of years his father had lived. Ricardo remained a citizen of the UK despite that fact that he had spent most of his life in the U.S. - he was an alien. He did not have a birth certificate as the Weir Maternity Hospital in London, where he was born closed so he didn't know the exact time of his birth. We used to talk about this because it meant he could not get an accurate astrology chart done. The above combination of facts always seemed very significant to me. Ricardo was always searching and jumping with great passion between various ways of being and expressing himself as I mentioned before. He seemed to have found his calling becoming a massage therapist in 1998. He was very good. He was a healer. He became very involved in various types of spiritual endeavors and for a time was active with a group that practiced Lakota Indian Spirituality.

Ricardo as Satyr for the Capricorn Cabaret by Kitty Diggins (1995?)


Ricardo as Satyr about 1995


Ricardo, Krista and Jay about 1999 ?

Susan, Todd, me Ricardo as a Witch Doctor (Halloween 1999?) Ricardo had no underwear on under his grass skirt :)

( I just spent the last several hours finishing this and I just lost it all so I am going to stop now and continue this in a second part later).

2 new paintings

2011-08-25T08:25:00.000-07:00

I have been very busy this summer with the addition above the garage which is soon to be my Mom's new home. Construction began in the middle of June and now the final details are being wrapped up. I have some cabinets to seal, touch up to do as well as a bit more painting and the staining of a concrete counter top. There has been quite a bit of chaos here - more than usual that is. It is never easy for me to attain order amongst material things and when the house is out of control it makes it difficult for me to draw myself in and paint in the studio. In spite of the above I have been able to muster enough solitude to produce a couple of hard fought paintings. I always have something going; various pieces in different stages of painted-ness. I really need to clean the studio today so that I can focus on the yet to be and begin some brand new work.

Primitive Mods will be hanging at the New Brow of Portland 2nd annual show which I am pleased to be included in. New Brow of Portland at the Art Bar


Primitive Mods acrylic on wood panel 24" by 17.5" by 2"


Summering South (detail)

Summering South acrylic on wood panel 24" by 48" by 2"
Click on the above image to see large

New York Rifles

2011-08-09T11:21:00.000-07:00

Blue Drawings

2011-07-23T09:34:00.001-07:00

Blue Drawings, a photo by cathie joy young on Flickr.

These little drawings are for the Ducket and Jeffrey's Gallery goes touring in Yorkshire, UK.
Acrylic, ballpoint pen on heavy weight drawing paper aprox 4.5 " by 4.5"

Via Flickr:
For DJ goes touring show, Yorkshire, UK

Things I am looking forward to

2011-07-08T11:00:00.000-07:00

Golfing on Sunday July 10th, dinner with soon to be wed friends, some of the wedding party, and the band July 15th, my hair cut and color at Flux with Tate on July 26th, going to see New York Rifles in Olympia August 4th, my birthday on August 16th, putting up my show at Black Sheep, working on the interior of my Mom's new pad sometime around then, going on my birthday present trip to see PICASSO at the DeYoung in S.F. with my friend Lucia, (crossed fingers my Mom's pad getting finished up and moving her in), going to Sayulita with a bunch of friends for Tooze's birthday Oct 15th!

My Designs on IPhones and IPads

2011-06-20T16:26:00.000-07:00

Zazzle

I am now offering my art work on I Phone (3G and 4G) speck cases and on I Pad cases via Zazzle. If you have an art work of mine in mind that you don't see available, let me know and I will set the design and offer it for sale.

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/May-June-Shows--Cathie-Joy-Young-Paintings.html?soid=1102382223402&aid=ZTltSFArYIs

2011-05-21T14:05:00.000-07:00

Check out my news letter above and if you would like to be on my mailing list please let me know.

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/May-June-Shows--Cathie-Joy-Young-Paintings.html?soid=1102382223402&aid=ZTltSFArYIs

More Spring in the Hood

2011-05-09T13:33:00.000-07:00

Be it ever so gloomy it is decidedly Spring and I an getting used to it. What is going to happen when we actually get some heat and full on sunshine? We are well into May and it feels like this intermittent cool, wet, and lukewarm Spring could puddle right into Summer and I have kind of stopped caring. At least it is mild - except when the wind picks up. Seriously though I would like to have a real summer here in PDX but I am losing hope and the energy to moan about it.

This is Portland's Spring 2011

2011-04-25T12:46:00.001-07:00

This is Portland's Spring 2011, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Steadily, steadily Spring is creeping...

2011-04-25T12:45:00.005-07:00

Steadily, steadily Spring is creeping..., originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Aphid on a Hellebore

2011-04-25T12:45:00.003-07:00

Aphid on a Hellebore, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Early Cherry

2011-04-25T12:45:00.001-07:00

Spring_2011 027, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

April Bee

2011-04-25T12:44:00.007-07:00

April Bee, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Forget Me Not

2011-04-25T12:44:00.005-07:00

Forget Me Not, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

April Skies in Portland

2011-04-25T12:44:00.003-07:00

April Skies in Portland, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Cherry Tree is Bursting

2011-04-25T12:44:00.001-07:00

Cherry Tree is Bursting, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

There is Someone in There!

2011-04-25T12:43:00.001-07:00

There is Someone in There!, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Patience and Painting

2011-04-18T11:29:00.000-07:00

I have learned recently that relearning patience is probably something I will do again and again through out my life when it comes to painting. Perhaps that is what my struggle in the studio this year was about. I have a need to produce and show new work frequently via Flickr , FB , etc. And this need needs to learn patience because I am not producing as quickly as I have been used to in the past. I am painting more patiently . Fortunately for me I work on several paintings at once so when one has got me stumped, or if I am simply losing interest in a particular piece I can move on to another one. This frees me up from getting precious about any imagery in the former painting and allows me to come back to it with fresh eyes, turn it upside down and continue the composition from a different area of interest. The crucial thing is to keep a flow. I am happiest when I have several paintings in different stages. Completing a piece without something else in the works can be a problem. But then painting is all about creating and solving visual problems. I just prefer to have several problems happening at once so that one problem does not overwhelm me.

Flight Through April 12" by 15"

It seems like my flying dreams have actually overlapped with a painting in a rather direct way. I have been asked if my dreams are the inspiration for my work because so many of my paintings have a dream like quality. Although I do dream about painting and paintings the imagery never literally ends up in an actual piece. The closest I have come to that before the above piece was a dream I had of painting with yellow. The next day I decided to do a yellow painting. I stuck with a lot of yellow through out the process of working on this piece which in itself is quite a feat. Many of my paintings started out as something completely different. A predominately blue painting may have begun as red and gone though many layers and hours of other colors before it was finally finished. In "Flight through April" I painted as I always do with nothing particular in mind. But somewhere in the weeks I was working on it I had one of my flying dreams and I noticed when I next worked on this paintings that the figures were flying. My paintings will get where they are going in their own good time, and in new and different ways I never expect. The key for me is patience.

Painting is not for the faint of gut

2011-03-23T14:12:00.000-07:00

It has been a weird winter. I had a really dry spell, painter’s block, struggle in the studio, a failure to fruit sort of thing going on for what seemed like a very long time. The shift towards productivity happened in the last few weeks and the amount of relief it brings me is beyond welcome and absolutely essential to my well being. It has taken me a long time to complete several paintings but now that they are actualized to my satisfaction it gives me a good head of stem to keep rolling. Now that life is good in the studio I can focus on some practical things like I need to buy more paint, the studio could use a good cleaning, and I need to have plenty of panels in different sizes primed and ready to go. I can also reflect on what the difficulties were for me during the tough spell I have just come through. I have not necessarily come to any conclusions about why I was struggling but I have realized anew what is most important for me in respects to painting, and that is producing solid and exciting work. This probably seems like a pretty obvious focus but sometimes it is easy to get lost in the need for recognition which comes in three primary forms: Selling is quite a heady affirmation as well as showing the work and being praised for it. But now I am back to square one which is always painting. Painting because I paint. Many years ago my voice teacher told me that before you reach the next plateau with your voice you often slip back and can’t hit the notes you could the week before, then suddenly you leap two steps ahead. She said this can also happen when you have a cold. Something about being sick makes your voice come out differently and it can actually vault you to the next level. I never got very far with my singing but I do think the same thing applies with painting. Being in the midst of a struggle is part of the process of producing the next good work. Being patient is essential, pushing through despite the lack of gratification and having faith that the rewards will come.

Ples Za Ivan Generalic acrylic on wood panel 48" by 36" details here : detail 1 detail 2

Music to Swim By acrylic on wood panel 24" by 48" details here : detail 1 detail 2 detail 3

Crimson Cabal acrylic on wood panel 24" by 24" detail : detail 1

in the atelier…with cathie joy young

2011-03-21T11:09:00.000-07:00

I am featured in Cynthia's wonderful design blog.

in the atelier…with cathie joy young

Rusting Pole Peeling Paint

2011-03-13T14:20:00.000-07:00

Low Sea - Alex

2010-12-13T19:53:00.000-08:00

Why Buy Hand Made?

2010-11-26T13:16:00.000-08:00

At this time of year more than any other there is a huge selection of small art, crafts, and hand made items available at various exhibits, craft fairs, and pop up stores. Artists and crafters are very busy in the months preceding the holiday season producing affordable items in hopes that some of the Christmas shopping fever will elicit sales. This can be a win win situation for artists and patrons. The artist can reach a wider audience with often times bargain priced work, and the customer can collect on a small scale from an artist who's larger work may be out of his/her financial reach.

Here is list of various shows and fairs in Portland where you can pick up small treasures for Holiday giving:

Little Things Show at Guardino Gallery
The opening is tonight and the show is cash and carry so you don't have to wait to take your art home. The show runs through December 26th.

Splendor Craft

Crafty Wonderland

Downtown Artistry

The Big 100 Fund Raiser

Another good way to shop for art and crafts is online. Etsy is a great resource. Below are links to my shops and a few of my favorites:

GalastaciaWorthwhile

ModernIntrigue

Goose Berry Light Boxes

The Blackbird Sings

LuciaJohnson

Cendrine Rovini

KitLane

GirlSavage

dChampine

Here is a link to my Zazzle shop where I have prints, greeting cards, Christmas ornaments, High Top Keds, etc with images of my art : CatJoy Buzz
And finally, don't forget the places which are open all year long such as the Hollywood Senior Center Shop:

Golden Treasures
Hollywood Senior Center
Hand Craft Shop
Monday thru Friday 9:30am—4pm
Saturday 10am—12:30pm

All the goods at this shop are made by seniors, very reasonably priced and the seniors make a bit of money and profits also go to supporting the Hollywood Senior Center. My Mom volunteers here and says the knitted baby wear and blankets are truly gorgeous.

This is just a small sampling of places to find unique handmade gifts. If you know of others please put links to the venues and events as comments.

More for The Little Things Show

2010-11-11T10:38:00.000-08:00

Friends for Life 5" by 4"

This Just In 5" by 4"

Deflection 7" by 6"

The Little Things Show

2010-11-09T09:48:00.000-08:00

On Thursday, November 26th there will be an opening reception from 6-9pm for The Little Things Show at Guardino Gallery. Lots of small, very reasonably priced work by 39 Portland artists will be available. This is a great time and place to do your Christmas shopping and to meet the artists. The show runs through December 26th.
Here are some of the pieces I will have on exhibit.
If you are interested in purchasing please contact Donna Guardino

Monkey Jump 5" by 4"

Chrysanthemum Girl 7" by 4"

4 Sisters 7" by 4"

You Sank My Battleship 4" by 7"

Ghost Story 5" by 4"


Floaters 4" by 4"


Sister and Brother 7" by 4"

Bunnies in Charge 4" by 4"

Lefty 5" by 4"

Target Area 7" by 4"

Portland Tarot Show

2010-11-04T14:52:00.000-07:00

Join us this Friday! Cards of the Tarot re-imagined by Portland artists...

Over 100 artists are creating their artistic representation of their selected card based on their own interpretation of its meaning and symbolism.

Join with us as we celebrate the rich and vast array of local talent and view unique and perhaps quirky, absurd or campy interpretations of the Tarot deck art. Artwork will be on display throughout the months of November and December.

Opening Reception Party including tarot readers, hoop-dancers, music, etc.
Date: Friday, November 5, 2010
Time: 7pm-9pm
Location: Splendorporium
3421 SE 21st Avenue
Portland, OR 97202

Here is the list of fabulous artists participating in the Portland Tarot Art Show!
Adrienne Fritze
Alexa Lewis
Alice Dean
Alison Gayne
Amanda Lee James
Amelia Opie
Amy Myeis DeNies
Andrew Rivera
Andy Davison
Angel Roman
Anna Magruder
Anna Todaro
April Kim
Ariel Kaplan
Birdie Marmaduke
Blanca Plata
Bonnie Meltzer
Cathie Joy Young
Charlotte Pulitzer
Chris Haberman
Clara Dudley
Coleen McIntyre
Colleen Nevins
Colleen Patricia Williams
Conner McDonald
Cyndy Chan
Cynthia Heise
Dana Henderson
Daphene Furra
Eartha Forest
Elliott Wall
Eric Swenson
Erika Lee Sears
Erin Duffy Osswald
Gina Reed
Gracie Cambpell
Heide Davis
Iris Kern
Jack Gamboa
Jennifer Cox
Jennifer Feeney
Jennifer Mercedes
Jessica Johnson
Jim Brinkmeyer
Joanne Licardo
John Mcclain
John Osswald
Karen Radd
Kat Seale
Kenneth Botsford JR
Kindra Crick
Kris Castell
Lauren Waldinger
Lea Peace
Leisa ReFalo
Linda Sawaya
Lisa Kaser
Lisa Valle
Liv Rainey-Smith
Louis Delegato
Margot Berlin
Marianna Gordon
Matt Scholozsky
Michael Mann
Michelle Gallagher
Milton Tucker
Morgaine Faye
Nathanial Joseph Ashby
Nell Werner
Nicole Rollins
Nina Kirby
Noah Thorne
Pattie Palmer-Baker
Pawnee Furra
Robert Gerhardt
Robin Ator
Robin Phillips
Rosemary Sheets
Ross Christy
Ryan Williams
Sandra Santoro
Sara Crooks
Sara Hamill
Sara Morrigan
scott chase
Shannon Covington
Shanon Playford
Shara Chwaliszewski
Shawn Demerest
Sheryl Riley
Stacey Emerick
Stephanie Ayhens
Stephanie L. Gillette
Susie Croxton
Suzy Laruffa
Tara Murino-Brault
Tatiana Kotov
Teresa Bergan
Terrence Gasca
Theresa Andreas-O'leary
Theresa Pridemore
Vanessa Gonzalez
Viktoria La Paz
Virginia Flynn
Wendy Marshall
Zach Roy

New York Rifles

2010-10-30T11:30:00.000-07:00

New York Rifles

Fall

2010-10-30T10:37:00.000-07:00

Fall is exhilarating. A last hurrah of color and visual warmth before the drear of Winter sets in. We have a few more weeks of this and then it gets to the time of year when I start wishing I was MoominTroll so I could stuff myself on pine needles and hibernate until the Spring.

Two Group Shows Coming Up

2010-10-26T18:34:00.000-07:00

Dia de los Muertos at Guardino Gallery Opening Last Thursday Oct. 28th 6pm -9pm

Tarot Show at Splendorporium Group show of 100 artists exhibiting images of their interepretations of the major Arcana. Opening reception, Friday Nov. 5th 7pm-9pm

cathie joy young - Art Takes Miami

2010-10-01T10:24:00.000-07:00

cathie joy young - Art Takes Miami

I am submitting to Art Takes Miami and would very much appreciate your votes. Please go to the above link to view my portfolio.

Paintings at Portland International Airport

2010-09-09T09:41:00.000-07:00

If you are traveling between Sept. 15th, 2010 and March 13th, 2011 keep you eyes peeled in Concourse A. I will have seven paintings on display including this one:

The Unbuilders 24" by 24" by 2" acrylic on wood panel

New Brow of Portland

2010-09-09T09:36:00.000-07:00

This is my painting Albastru Incantatie which can be seen at The New Brow of Portland Show in the Art Bar at The Portland Center for Performing Arts through September.

Joe Wheelwright Scuplture at Fruit Lands, Mass.

2010-09-04T13:29:00.001-07:00

Joe Wheelwright Scuplture at Fruit Lands, Mass., originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Merlin looks up at Tree Man

2010-09-04T13:28:00.001-07:00

Merlin looks up at Tree Man, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Joe Wheelwright Scuplture at Fruit Lands, Mass.

2010-09-04T13:26:00.001-07:00

Joe Wheelwright Scuplture at Fruit Lands, Mass., originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

I was in New England a couple of years ago at this time. This is an enchanting place and Merlin is an enchanting little boy.

Postcard from Somewhere Warm

2010-06-12T08:02:00.000-07:00

Postcard from Somewhere Warm acrylic on wood panel 24" by 36" by 2"

Retrospective of my work

2010-06-12T07:59:00.001-07:00

About 5 1/2 years ago I returned to painting after a 4 year hiatus. My friend Timothy was getting ready to open his wine bar, Vino Paradiso. He wanted to show art on a monthly basis and he also needed some help with the color and decor of his new bar. After painting and shopping for the new look of VP I hung my paintings for my first show in many years for the opening.
Up until February of this year I was the curator of monthly exhibits by many wonderful Portland and Seattle artists as well as a few from of out of state.
I will have a selection of work from the last 5 years as well as several new paintings on display from June 15th through July 31st. I hope you can stop in and see the work and enjoy Vino Paradiso.

Garden Envy

2010-03-10T12:59:00.000-08:00

Cherry Blossoms

Red Anemone

Witch Hazel

Paper Bark Maple

White Hellebore

Violets

More Witch Hazel

March : The Inbetween Month

2010-03-09T16:13:00.000-08:00

March - did it come in like a lion or a lamb? don't recall but I think it was lamb-like so it will go out like a lion but I don't really think it will. Ides of March coming up on the 15th. I did have one really lousy Ides of March day many years ago. All in all though I am a fan of March. Signs of Spring everywhere but it is very moody weather-wise; one day it is sunny and soft the next it is hailing and chilly.

I wish I could blog the scent of March. It makes me yearn for something. It's nostalgic. These last few cool evenings the smell of cherry blossoms has been so subtlety sweet and powdery - just like their color..

I love my black Hellebore even though it has a colony of aphids which will soon be infesting the roses.

There they are - little green bastards hiding under a petal. I will kill them.

Blue in the garden I love very much. These guys have personality. They are so upright.

Blue, blue, blue...!

Oh my King Edward Flowering Currant~!

My lilac is very tightly clasped. I think it is at least four weeks from blooming. It intrigues me right now, the buds are so dusky.

This is a buttercup..it is a weed. Looks pretty right now but it's days are numbered.

I wish I had some violets - true wild ones. I see them here and there in lawns and parking strips. Every year I plan to dig some up and I have yet to do it. The scent of violets is really impossible to describe.

Art - The Long Conversation

2010-03-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

When I was in school (Pacific NW College of Art) many years ago, I was going through so much angst and struggle. Being a student of art was such a wonderful excuse for everything. I did not eat well, I wore the same baggy clothes over and over again, I carried around my large homemade cardboard portfolio. It was sort of like a shield for me. I was an art student and therefore gave myself lots of lee way for my moods and unconventional life style. Nothing else should have mattered but art, school, work, making ends meet. Unfortunately I was also struggling with a difficult relationship. I can't say that I completely regret it. Everything we do colors our development. But it definitely sucked away some of my much needed energy and influenced some decisions I made. But school was mine. My experiences there were very much separate from what I went through in this personal relationship. I did however lean towards a spiritual exploration influenced by my boyfriend. It did not fit me but it took me a few years to figure that out. I meditated on occasion because of it. The most profound moment I had during meditation was a session in my thesis studio at PNCA. A phrase came into my head which has stayed with me: "Words interrupt the long conversation". I had a long way to go in my exploration of art, but to me, this was a directive. I don't write specifically about my art. I don't dissect it, break it down, record the process digitally. I am superstitious about revealing. I suppose this is because it is a private conversation between me and the work, a visual conversation. It really is the closest I get to magic or religion.

After graduation my heart took me to San Francisco to pursue my ill-fated relationship. I had a very hard year. I moved five times and had as many jobs. I worked sporadically in whatever studio space I could contrive. I applied to graduate school at Berkely and did not get in. When the relationship had finally run it's rocky course I had no excuse to remain in the Bay area. I was very broken. My brother came down from Portland and carted me and my futon, bike, and art supplies back home in his van. Upon my arrival in PDX the rains had started. It was a long, miserable winter and I indulged myself completely in my pain, filling journals and boring my friends and family to tears with my long-winded tales of how heart broken I was. It took me a very long time to get over it. In the meantime I painted and eventually used art to support myself via commercial work.
I got hired as a set and scenic painter by a place called StageRight. It was a very rewarding but physically demanding job. I learned so much because I was forced to develop and use skills I never would have otherwise. It was a team job and there were many people involved in each project we worked on. Sometimes it would involve something very mundane like sign painting or faux wood graining miles of molding for a set. Other times it would be something more interesting like doing a Bruegal-esque back drop or leopard spotting an entire set - walls, carpet, furniture etc. The hours were sometimes very long with excruciating deadlines. Often we would work long into the night and then be back the next morning to continue the slog. I would ride my bike home at the end of a long session and pretty much collapse into bed without having showered which was actually pretty stupid since a lot of the materials we worked with were pretty toxic. My least favorite thing to work on was carving Styrofoam. Cutting it with a hot wire and sanding it etc. One time Gator (fellow worker) and I were hot cutting Styrofoam in the bay and got so dizzy that we had to go for a walk to get some air. I inhaled a lot of things I should not have over the five years I worked there- various chemicals and wood dust - to the point that I actually lost my sense of smell for over a year. When an opening came available as a painter for the McMenamins I was ready to move on it. My brother had painted for them for several years and so I had an in.

Me at the Grand Lodge. I found this Mason's rug. I also found a squashed Mason's ring.

ABC cat at the Kennedy school. I did a series of alphabet themed paintings.
You can see more of my work for the Mc's here: Mcmenamins

Painting for the Mc's was another adventure in learning and stretching my skills. The McMenamins own and operate a slew of hotels, pubs, and theaters throughout Oregon and Washington. Each place is decorated with murals, art pieces, and mosaics done by various artists and crafts people. Each artist works alone within the subject matter and criteria inherent to the property. There are historians on staff who do research on the history of a place and then give that information to the artists. My first project was the Kennedy School which is just a few blocks away from where I live now. At times it was a lot of fun, particularly because I got to work with my brother and some of the other core artists who became good friends. During the 3.5 years I worked for the Mc's I did almost no painting of my own. When I got laid off after the Grand Lodge project it actually took me several years to start painting again. I did a few free lance projects here and there but to do my own work seemed impossible. I had to clear out a space it seems.
I concentrated on making a home with my husband and gardening and raising my dog. I struggled with the fact that I was not making art. I felt a profound sense of guilt - I had a gift I was not using and it seemed rather like a sin. And so eventually I forced myself to start painting again. It was a rough beginning. I had to let go and so after doing a pretty pathetic self-portrait from a photograph I pushed my self to just paint. Paint without thinking, without trying to get anywhere in particular. Paint with paint on a painting and just paint it.
Here are the first two paintings I did when I began again in 2005:

Moment 16" by 12"

Out of the Blue #1

Working

2010-02-25T11:26:00.000-08:00

The Guardino Gallery show has come down and I am off to a slow start in the studio. I have three paintings underway and some panels to prepare. I say slow start because nothing is at the gripping point yet. That is I have not reached the point when anything particularly interests me yet with these pieces, and at this stage things could change drastically. One of the things I love about painting is that I make up the rules. The laws of decision that I set up for myself can be broken at any time and occasionally I need to remind myself of this. I have ideas about starting a separate line of work specifically for my Etsy site. At the same time I want to pursue what I have come to with my latest body of work and continue to work large. I realize that I will need to double my energy and time in the studio to do this. I am working towards a show at Vino Paradiso, the venue I used to curate for, and I am wondering whether to just let myself go and see what comes, or to attempt to work for more cohesion either via color, size, or potentially even theme. Because I work intuitively this is something I tend to avoid, but it is something I am certainly capable of since I have worked this way in the past when it was called for in various art jobs. I am wondering if it is time to merge the intuitive process with more direction. Either way I am looking forward to being firmly in the flow again. It is a very good feeling and makes my mornings exciting. I love to start out the day sitting in my studio with a cup of coffee, staring at a work in process which is gaining traction.

I have updated my website marking pieces which sold at the Guardino show and I have posted prices of available work which can be purchased via PayPal. Hopefully I will be updating the site with new work in the coming weeks.

Vote for Ned Biscuit and help save dogs' lives

2010-02-06T16:38:00.001-08:00

"Ned Biscuit"

Opening Reception Guardino Gallery

2010-01-30T10:23:00.000-08:00

Opening Reception Guardino Gallery

2010-01-30T10:20:00.000-08:00

Me and my Todd

Opening Reception Guardino Gallery

2010-01-30T10:18:00.000-08:00

Opening Reception Guardino Gallery

2010-01-30T10:17:00.000-08:00

My Mom being coy.

Pictures from the art opening at Guardino Gallery

2010-01-30T10:11:00.000-08:00

"Regal Watchers" soon to be heading south to Austin,TX.

Opening Reception Guardino Gallery

2010-01-30T10:00:00.000-08:00

Me and Amy

Pictures from the art opening at Guardino Gallery

2010-01-30T09:44:00.000-08:00

Mark and Theresa with their new painting, Bright Red Reach

Thinking about the book Seymour: An Introduction

2010-01-28T13:39:00.000-08:00

Today is the day my art opening reception happens at Guardino Gallery. The work on exhibit is the culmination of six months of steady painting in the studio. I have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride. This is to be expected. I have been so excited at times that the butterflies in my stomach made me queasy. This has been my state for about the last 3 weeks. In October I was in hell, worrying that I would not have enough work for the show. After a conversation about my worries with a friend I suddenly got a surge and painted my way to this point - 15 new paintings, certainly the most I have produced in this amount of time.
Earlier today I was feeling very sad and then flat and now I feel ok again. I think there is something about the anticipating of something good which can wear on the wires a bit so that when the actual good thing is upon you your emotions are too exhausted to feel it. I think that is where I am right now. The sinking feeling began when I saw that JD Salinger died today. It is not that I am actually lamenting the loss of Salinger himself, he has been out of the public eye for so long and the guy was 91 so no great tragedy that he has moved on. It was more the memories of his work, particularly Seymour: An Introduction that got me feeling wistful and then deeply blue. One of the most inspirational lines in that book is this : ""Were most of your stars out? Were you busy writing your heart out?"If I substitute the word painting for writing this sums up the meaning of success for me when it comes to making art. I have carried this phrase with me for many years and today it feels very close.
The book "Seymour" is a heart breaker as it is the story of the narrator's brother's suicide. I could feel JD Salinger's heart break in the writing, and it brought up every heart break I had ever experienced. Thinking about it now makes me recall friends and loved ones I have lost, both to death as well as circumstance. I am in particular missing three of my friends (two from high school) who killed themselves over ten years ago. I can remember them all so clearly; their voices, their laughter. I dream about them individually every few months. Lately I have dreamed about one of them in particular as our high school reunion is coming up this summer. There is really nothing to say when someone kills her/himself. There is no way to come anywhere near to understanding it.The passing of time does not bring you any closer to answering the question "Why?". And lately when I think of Susan , the phrase "she killed herself " does not even seem real- I remember bits and pieces from the aftermath of her death, but it all has a dreamlike quality. I don't know what else to say about this. I just had to acknowledge, albeit loosely, Susan, Celeste, and Phillip today. I miss them.

Unexpected Clues

2010-01-18T12:35:00.000-08:00

Unexpected Clues acrylic on wood panel 48" by 48" by 2"

This is the largest painting for the Guardino Gallery Show. Below is a small one called "Golden Geste"

Golden Geste

2010-01-18T12:31:00.000-08:00

acrylic on wood panel 12" by 24" by 2"

New Small paintings

2010-01-09T10:46:00.000-08:00

Moonlit Cow : 10" by 10" by 2"

Somewhere To Go 12" by 12" by 2"

Conference of Owls

2010-01-08T10:50:00.000-08:00

Here is a small new painting for the show - 10" by 10" by 2". This painting has been staring at me for months and has gone through many changes. That's how it goes sometimes. A little painting can take an age where as a bigger painting can resolve in a week. I will miss these guys gazing back at me should the piece sell soon.

Egyptian Faience

2010-01-05T10:48:00.000-08:00

Acrylic on wood panel 24" by 36" by 2"
Available through Guardino Gallery.

Bright Red Reach

2010-01-05T10:45:00.000-08:00

Available through Guardino Gallery

acrylic on wood panel 24" by24" by 2"

New Paintings at Guardino Gallery Opens Jan 28th 2010

2010-01-05T10:36:00.000-08:00

I am very pleased and excited to be starting out the new year with a showing of all new paintings at Guardino Gallery along with mixed media artist Gaelin Lakin. I have been working on this particular body of work since August and it is interesting for me to see the theme running through. Except for a couple of group shows that called for multiple pieces I usually don't work as steadily for a long period of time. This is the first time I have worked without a break (except for one long weekend in Phoenix) continuously for 6 months.

I will be posting the rest of the paintings once I get them photographed but to see some of the show scroll down to older posts ending with Victory Dance.

Inside Miracle (needed)

2009-12-21T18:05:00.000-08:00

New painting for show Guardino Gallery

Regal Watchers

2009-12-21T18:02:00.000-08:00

New painting for show www.guardinogallery.com

Acrylic on wood panel 36" by 48" by 2"

Certain Devils

2009-12-12T12:22:00.000-08:00

I would much rather encounter uncertain devils than one's which are certain of their evil convictions.

New painting " Certain Devils" 36" by 24" by 2" for Guardino gallery show Opening on Jan 28, 2010

Holiday Art Sale Tonight @ Annies Art and Frame

2009-12-12T11:01:00.000-08:00

Annie's Art and Frame

detail from "Victory Dance"

2009-12-05T12:26:00.001-08:00

detail from "Victory Dance", originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Yellow hallowed devil perhaps.

.detail from "Victory Dance"

2009-12-05T12:25:00.003-08:00

.detail from "Victory Dance", originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

.detail from "Victory Dance"

2009-12-05T12:25:00.001-08:00

.detail from "Victory Dance", originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

It is interesting to compartmentalize them for observation.

detail from "Victory Dance"

2009-12-05T12:24:00.001-08:00

detail from "Victory Dance", originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

I like to isolate the details of my paintings.

Victory Dance 24" by 24" by 2"

2009-12-05T11:15:00.001-08:00

Victory Dance 24" by 24" by 2", originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

New painting for my show at Guardino Gallery opening last Thursday of January 2010

Blue Rabbit (image only)

2009-11-24T10:36:00.000-08:00

Bue Rabbit listed on Etsy (with Frame)

2009-11-24T10:35:00.000-08:00

A Wing and a Prayer -(image only)

2009-11-24T10:16:00.001-08:00

A Wing and a Prayer

2009-11-24T10:12:00.000-08:00

I listed this small painting today on etsy.

Holiday Group Art Show in Seattle

2009-11-23T11:24:00.000-08:00

I will have some archival prints and tiny paintings in this show along with 14 other artists at Annie's Art and Frame in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle. All the work is priced at $100 and under.The opening is Saturday December 12th, 6pm - 9pm. This event takes place during the Ballard Art Walk and assorted Holiday activities in the neighborhood.

The Spout: Better Today - been blogged :)

2009-11-18T10:44:00.000-08:00

The Spout: Better Today - been blogged :)

Better Today - been blogged :)

2009-11-18T10:34:00.000-08:00

What would this Toad Stool do without November? I have to think about others. My mood has been elevated in part though - I must admit - by a couple of Etsy sales and 3 people blogging my work! Makes me happy.

Poor mouth, poor me, poor blog

2009-11-17T20:18:00.000-08:00

I don't know why it is that I can spend so much time messing around online (as well as working) and not manage to write in this blog. It does not make any sense at all to me. But for instance - perhaps I don't trust myself to write about anything interesting. As in now all I can think about is that my teeth hurt and I probably need to have work done on a tooth that just got filled and really needed a root canal. Who really needs to hear that? Or that I have been sick and have not worked in the studio in over a week and now I am having a difficult time getting back into the swing of things. I have been sleeping too much but at least I have been reading. I am on the second book of The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peak and it suits my mood ~ . I also am obsessed with Jack the Ripper and as luck would have it, there have been some documentaries on him/it and some recent news of a possible new suspect. I am sick of November, deepening drear toward December and then - ick, January.
I know that as soon as my head is deep into a few paintings I will feel better.

eta 6 card front

2009-08-21T15:42:00.001-07:00

eta 6 card front, originally uploaded by nahcotta gallery.

I will be taking part in this group show in Portsmouth, NH. Opening Reception : Friday Sept 4th 2009

Mermaid

2009-08-14T08:36:00.000-07:00

When I was a little girl we lived in Galveston, Texas for a time. The water was warm, green and calm and surrounded the tiny island. We spent a lot of time at the beach because the summers were so hot and muggy. I was raised to believe in fairies, elves and mermaids. I thought that the oleanders which permeated the air with a scent like baby powder and vanilla were governed by fairy spirits. I was convinced that mermaids flourished right there in the Gulf of Mexico. Once when wandering the pier with my father we found evidence of a real baby mermaid, although deceased. In a glass case inside one of the shops there was the skeleton of a very tiny mermaid or ( as described in the linked article) a monkey attached to a fish. I remember being suspicious even at age 7. When I asked my dad if it was for real he just shrugged and said , " I don't know. It could be a baby mermaid." And so after that I would stand in the shallow waves which hit me at about shoulder height and murmur a prayer to the mermaids to take me with them out to sea and make me a mermaid too. I think I was simultaneously greatly relieved and a little disappointed that they ignored my pleas.
I would make a terrible mermaid as I am not a strong swimmer.

Mermaid sightings in Israel :http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/090813-bad-mermaid.html

Cousins

2009-08-11T14:05:00.001-07:00

Cousins , originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Small painting on wood panel. Acrylic and ballpoint pen.

Shall the Meek?

2009-08-11T13:57:00.000-07:00

"Shall the Meek?" was recently purchased by a Seattle collectors - the sister ( and the brother-in-law) of some very dear friends. Archival prints are available in 3 sizes on etsy

Arrival

2009-05-22T12:17:00.001-07:00

Arrival , originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

This is a recent painting which feels very hopeful and month of May-ish to me. I am going to exhibit it in an upcoming show here:
http://www.corepdx.com/about.html
the opening is Thursday June 4th 6pm - 9pm.

GO BLAZERS!

2009-04-17T14:04:00.001-07:00

Uprise! Rip City! We are going to the Play offs!, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Dancing guy and cop. Uprise! Rip City! We are going to the Play offs!

2009-04-17T14:03:00.003-07:00

Dancing guy and cop. Uprise! Rip City! We are going to the Play offs!, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Uprise! Rip City! We are going to the Play offs!

2009-04-17T14:03:00.001-07:00

Uprise! Rip City! We are going to the Play offs!, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Blazer Mania! Yes we are going to the play offs and it feels so good!

Studio

2009-04-15T10:27:00.003-07:00

Studio, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Studio

2009-04-15T10:27:00.001-07:00

Studio, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Studio

2009-04-15T10:26:00.003-07:00

Studio, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Studio

2009-04-15T10:26:00.001-07:00

Studio, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Studio_March

2009-04-15T10:25:00.003-07:00

Studio_March, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Studio_March

2009-04-15T10:25:00.001-07:00

Studio_March , originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

Some shots from my studio last month.

New Work and Prints Available

2009-02-16T14:19:00.000-08:00

Fruits of Her Labor

Available as a Greeting Card at http://www.zazzle.com/catjoy

Under a Blood Moon

2009-01-04T14:08:00.001-08:00

Under a Blood Moon, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

My cousin Glenn in England recently purchased this painting.

Blue Cauldron

2009-01-04T13:21:00.001-08:00

Cauldron, originally uploaded by cathie joy young.

I have been s pathetic Blogger.
I am going to try again.
I am starting by posting this painting which is on exhibit at Vino Paradiso in the group show I curated called : Blue Squared.
www.galleryparadiso.com

2008-08-31T13:55:00.000-07:00

Long time no blog

2008-08-31T13:21:00.000-07:00

Moon Over Amy and Jereme's Wedding, Sauvie's Island, August 16th, 2008

Yes it has been a while. I had an extremely busy summer and am actually enjoying a slowing down spell and listening to the rain outside. Does not look like we are going to have an Indian Summer this year. Well it was a very full summer any way and at times very hot. For instance for the wedding I was in on August 16th (also my birthday). My dear friend Amy is now off the market as she and Jereme tied the knot on Sauvie's Island in 104 degree heat. One of the hottest days of the year to be sure, similar to the day we had her Wedding Shower - another 100 degree boiler.

She was a GORGEOUS bride!

We had a young visitor this summer for about 11 days; my friends' Neil and Alison's 15 year old son, Harry.It was non-stop action and a lot of fun. Harry is very sporty so there was softball, golf, rock climbing and bungee jumping . I refrained from all mentioned activities except for golf. Harry is also an avid shopper and I was able to help out in that area. He was flush with cash because our dollar was so puny up against the pound and scored some great Nikes and sports shirts. The highlight of the trip was a Mariners game up in Seattle with the Curran/Erikson clan.

Dean,Harry,Declan

I was also working busily towards several shows for September and October.I am very excited to be included in The Enormous Tiny Art Show in Portsmouth, NH at Nahcotta.
I will be heading there for the opening with my friends Michael and Billy in a couple of days. I have not spent much time in New England so I am really looking forward to it. I plan to go to some old graveyards and get some good pictures I hope. Also want to eat some lobster. Here are two of the thirteen paintings which will be in the show. More can be seen at my website: www.cathiejoyyoung.com

Etsy Shop

2008-06-02T17:21:00.000-07:00

Oddest Email I have received to date.

2008-05-06T17:59:00.000-07:00

This email came to my junk folder and usually I just delete what I don't recognize. This looked legit though so I read it and emailed the lady back. I don't know any Warren's besides Warren Beatty and he does not know me. See below:

New message from:
BMC - Contact: message for you?.
________________________________

hello,

i don't know if i have the right cathie young, but i have received a message from someone who has crossed over named warren. i googled the name based on where he said she lived. if you are the right cathie, please let me know and i'll pass along his message. interesting that we have the same first name! :)

thanks,
cathie newcombe

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