The Three Ukuleles

When I walked in to Southland Hardware with the 30 pound Still Life with Ukulele # 1 in order to engineer the best way to affix it to a wall, it was almost as if I was a rock star. Employees and customers alike seemed fascinated with the piece and kept gazing adoringly back and forth between me and the art work and asking thoughtful questions. Understand, it's a heavy piece. Of course, I was flattered by the attention. But lugging it from one end of the hardware store to the other trying to find just the right eye hooks, chains, and bolts to make it work was laborious to say the least. Getting stopped every few paces...well, it was nice to have an excuse to rest. Finally, one of my (alleged) new fans asked if he could please help carry it? Gladly, I agreed with much rejoicing. (yea)

As of yesterday, the series is officially finished. All three pieces will be dropped off at Block 7 within the next week. Reese literally helped with the nuts and bolts on #1 and #2, and I re-worked my bio and resume. It's great to be finished with the whole project, and great to have an updated resume.

Below is a copy of what was sent to the wine bar to use in their publicity or whatever, if they end up using any of my pieces. They've already stipulated that they reserve the right to not display all works. The bio is something re-worked from a previous Houston art thing, hence the abundant references to Houston. (It always feels a little strange doing a bio. It's weird and a discomfiting to, for lack of a better word, brag.)

Painted a wine related still life series in conjunction with the opening of Block 7 Wine Company. All three works were painted in oils on three very different surfaces re-purposed from the former warehouse.

The series includes:

1) Still Life with Ukulele # 1

20" x 24 3/4" x 4 5/8" oil on marble tiles magnetically mounted on metal drawers -- 30 lbs.


2) Still Life with Ukulele # 2

22 1/4" x 24" oil on corrugated metal


3) Still Life with Ukulele # 3

20 1/2" x 23" oil on canvas from discarded army cot stretched over a frame also made from the cot


All materials were salvaged from the warehouse except for the paints, magnets, chains and bolts.

All pieces are complete and ready to hang.


Bio

Having had no previous experience or training, the artist started painting in late 2004. A relative encouraged the new artist to display her first 30 works on Texas Independence Day in the Pioneer Log House Memorial Museum. However, it wasn't until November, 2006, that she started pursuing the making of art as a career. To that end, she has exhibited in several venues in Houston, including the Glassell Student Exhibit in the spring of 2007. She was asked to be a community artist juror for Yes Prep's Student Art Show, and has repeatedly been asked to be a select artist for the Center for Hearing and Speech's fundraiser, Via Colori. She spent her formative years in Mississippi, but attended high school and college in Hawaii. She met and married her husband in Aspen, Colorado, and they briefly lived in southern California before moving back to her husband's hometown of Houston. She and her family, which includes four daughters, have lived in Houston for 24 years in the East End, the Third Ward, and most recently the Rice U/Med Center area.

Though very passionate about painting, the artist is an equally passionate writer, and blogs regularly about the artistic process. Her blog can be accessed through http://sarahhazel.blogspot.com