Crazy Canvas Artist Buckets

Around the holidays, our local Fuller Lodge Art Center hosts an Affordable Arts show, in which they devote the entire gallery to, well, affordable arts. There is pottery, photography, jewelry, sewn household items, ornaments, hand knits, and many other creative and beautiful items. I submitted and was accepted to sell my Artist's Buckets.

I was re-purposing my college canvases, which was very satisfying. I went through an abstract, nature-based phase way back when that I really enjoyed, and produced some colorful, fun canvases, in addition to the assignments like still lifes and figurative paintings. They have spent a lonely life since 1999(!!!) rolled up in various places, mostly the garage. Manufacturing them into something new and sending them out into the world has been extremely gratifying!

Fresh from the garage

A sampling

One whole canvas, before cutting

In pieces before stitching

Some of the canvases were too thick to sew, so I need to come up with another project for them! 

They are lined with burlap coffee bags. I had a great source for a bit, but the roasters went out of business. I'll need to find a new (free) supplier; in the meantime, I've also purchased a couple bags (cheap, but free is better. Ha!)

They have little beady bits at the top corners to help provide some stability, which isn't easily apparent in these photos.

They sold well at the affordable arts show (19 out of 23 sold in about 6 weeks), so I had to keep making them. Afterwards, I was invited to become a part of the long-term gallery shop, so that's very exciting! Now that the holidays are over I don't need to crank them out at quite the same frenzied pace, but I need to make some more to have on hand to re-stock as needed in the shop.

I had not originally intended to use the canvas I painted in October for this project (Painting in Place), but I needed to make new buckets in a hurry, so it was used (and all of them sold...).

And I need to make some more. I love it!