Sandy Blows

Earlier in the week I blogged about resilience in our ButterflyKissesbook blog.  My recent trip up to the Jersey coast to visit my friend Betsey Regan was a reminder about what we need to survive- and stay a float in times of upheaval.  Betsey, a wondeful artist who has been on my Artist as Collector Series was heavily hit by Super Storm Sandy.  

This is not Betsey's house, but close enough

We spent the day together and she gave me a tour of her area. 

It has been a rough road for so many, heartbreaking.

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Betsey has to rebuild and the road is rocky, frustrating, and these days, cold.

Hutch, Nanci & Betsey keeping warm

But what I love, and this speaks to resilience- is how, even in her turmoil and uncertainty, she finds ways to have little places of beauty and comfort in her house.

She will rebuild.

and in the meantime, that girl is still painting!

Betsey's studio in the midst of it all!

Now that's inspiring!

Who inspires you these days?

From One Fan to Another- Artist as Collectors

Betsey Regan is this week's guest blogger for the Artist as Collector series.

Nude
©JohnKochansky

John Kochansky was a Monmouth County (NJ) artist who passed away in the early 2000s.  
He painted for years and then suddenly turned to photography. His subject however, always remained the female form.  


Many saw him as a brash misogynist.  But I always thought he adored women and that's why he acted out both in his art and his personal relationships.  I maintain not to exploit but to revere.
He was a larger than life figure in stature, personality, and his use of materials. This caused him to be either loved or reviled within the venerable echelons of the Art Alliance in Red Bank, NJ of which he was a longtime member. That's how I acquired this piece, I believe we made a trade. I was one of his fans.   


New Jersey artist, Betsey Regan is a painter who recently had a solo exhibition at the Watchung Art Center , Watchung, NJ of her latest work, all completed during winter 2011-2012. She continues to work on her series concerning sheep, lambs, and other beasts of burden.

Betsey (middle) and friends at Watchung Art Center
photo by Stacy Smith

Kitsch vs. Art- Artist as Collector #2

Rabbits have been a part of my life and art for many years.  Because of that people have given me rabbits, rabbits and more rabbits. Kinda kitsch, but fun.

Sheep, on the other hand are on my walls because they are art.  

I first saw the work of Theodore Waddell at the Bernice Steinbaum Gallery many years ago when the gallery was in New York City.  Scott and I bought this small drawing when we were in Seattle just after we were married. Excited to find an exhibition of his work at the Linda Hodges Gallery, I noticed it leaning against a wall and brought my husband back to see it.  It became a wedding present to ourselves and now hangs in our dining room.

Ted Waddell, 1989
Winter Sheep Drawing 3A
Oil/graphite on paper

 Betsey Reagan is a friend with a unqiue and quirky view of the world. Like Waddell, she is adept at depicting a range of animals, but sheep permeate her work. Anthropomorphic, they help us see ourselves with humor and irony.  This detail, illustrates her subject and her own unique way of working with plaster and oil. In this case, on a small found college banner. A gift and a gem.

Betsey Reagan, 2002
Dolly Goes to College
Oil and plaster on Pennant

Art or kitsch,  what do you collect?