Made in America - Baseball art that’s as American as….Baseball?

February 4th, 2009

It seems as if we, as Americans, are beginning to see the value in American made products. With the US economy on shaky ground, it is becoming increasingly important to support products made in the USA, that result in domestic jobs, domestically reinvested profits and adherence to our rigid child friendly health and human safety laws.

Quite simply, the point of this post is to celebrate and announce the fact that all my children’s wall art canvas reproductions are made here in the United States. The manufacturer/distributor is a southern California company which has the highest quality standards, provides a living wage, donates to children’s charities and in the bigger picture pays local, state, federal taxes supporting our regional and national economy.
Whether you buy wall art for your child’s room from me, my retailers or even my competition, I hope that you make the decision to buy an American made product and when you can, support a small or local business. Likewise, I am committed to supporting my local and national economy by purchasing as many of my artist supplies and theme building materials from domestic sources and small businesses when possible. THINK GLOBALLY, BUT BUY LOCALLY.

New Art Licensing Trade Pages

January 31st, 2009

I’m pleased to announce that I have finished launching my new art licensing trade only pages on my website www.AaronChristensen.com.  The password protected site will allow manufacturers, vendors, art licensing professionals and approved visitors to browse through my portfolio of artworks available for licensing.  Within the site they will find product Mock ups to illustrate the potential of various pieces as well as supplementary patterns that coordinate with my lines.

   As a prolific and enthusiastic artist, I’m excited to compile all the information in one place.  Not only will the site elaborate on existing themes like Princess, Rock and Roll, Transportation, Sports, Garden and more, it will offer a glimpse into new works that I am working on for Holidays (Christmas and Halloween), Adult contemporary and of course children’s.

artist-aaron-chritensen-artwork-licensing1

I love Rock and Roll - Themed rooms with Rock and Roll art

January 29th, 2009

 “I’m going to be a Rock Star”….says your 10 year old as she wails away at her plastic Guitar Hero controller to the vintage Rolling Stones tune, Paint it Black.  The game responds to her fumbled keystrokes with a blunk-kurplink noise, supporting your claim that last weeks goal of veterinarian school is probably a better choice.   So why fight it?  If she’s going to be a rock star why not get started now and get it out of her system before college.  Then maybe accelerated physics, quantum theory and floccinaucinihilipilification will be back on her short list of possible career studies.

 

Might I suggest, my recent addition to my boutique art line entitled “I love Rock and Roll.

copyright-2009-aaron-christensen-i-love-rock-and-roll

Available as a canvas print reproduction, the piece brings together various patterns and music icons in a fun whimsical color palette.  Since its launch, I’ve had a few clients comment on rock star bedding they found while others ask me for suggestions.   Take a look at these ideas to accentuate her rockstar wishes.

Brittish Flag and Guitar sheets by Wake up Frankie

These great brit flag and guitar sheets are from www.WakeupFrankie.com

 urbanoutfittersguitaramppillowcases

 Hardcore simple!  The amp and guitar shams say it all quite simply “Rock On”  from www.UrbanOutfitters.com

pb-teen-guitar-sheets

How about an army of guitars care of www.PBteen.com

companykidsheartsandskullssheeting

Nothing says love like pink hearts and skulls…hmmm?  Gotta love the break from the ordinary from www.CompanyKids.com

 

pb-teen-pink-guitar-duvet    pb-teen-leopard-sheets

Go Girl!  Shades of pink guitars wail on the sheetgoods from www.PBteen.com

 wake-up-frankie-zebra-sheets

 

Zebra just says it all from www.WakeUpFrankie.com.  These are more comfortable than stretch lycra zebra pants!

 

Not to forget the rest of the family….for boys I have created…Rock and Roll

And for their parents, below is….Rock and Roll Collage launching now, contact me for details.  It’s available in prints on paper as well as special order giclee reproductions on canvas in various sizes.

copyright-2009-aaron-christensen-rock-and-roll

copy-of-aaron-christensens-rock-n-roll-small

 

 

School Auction Projects Revisited

January 23rd, 2009

 

I’ve had a ton of requests for more auction project inspiration.  I’ll keep adding some as time permits, so here are two more. See my previous post for a third. 

Here’s my mantra with regard to auction projects that has served me well.   You might think about what’s important to you or how you can make your collaborations easier.

1) Form is more important than function!

I want the final project to be a piece that is art first, auction project second.   People are more likely to bid on a project that works as a piece of art, that displays well.  Always ask yourself “would I hang that on my wall?”

2) Treat it like a piece of art.

Do not clutter the piece with personalization or identifying messages.   You want the viewer to be engaged with the imagery not handprints, names or signatures.  I have the children sign the back of the project and, if needed, provide a “map” of each students contributions.  When a piece is devoid of personalization it appeals to a larger audience.  Several of our projects have sold, for a lot of money to parents, business people, art collectors and supporters that had no connection to the classroom.  It appealed to them on an artistic level.  Remember, the more people you engage with the work the higher the bids will go! 

3)  Use a color palette that is current and easily accepted into most homes.

In designing our projects, I establish the color palette of art supplies, papers and materials ahead of time.  Here in Portland we have a lot of Bungalows with historic color palettes, so I lend the project towards that direction.  This ensures that the piece will have a harmonious look in the home.  Sometimes the kids are caught a little of guard because they want the exact colors of their bodies features.  I explain to them that art isn’t literal, therefore, your skin color, hair color or colors you see in real life can be expressed without using “red for red hair” “peach or brown for skin tone” etc.  They quickly embrace the idea and often have fun playing with the stylized palette.

4)  Be the art director.

I usually “teach” our way through the projects using a step by step illustration of what we will be doing.  I try to explain to the students how an art director plays  part in the creation of stylized art.  I use cartoons as examples, explaining that there are dozens of animators working on one project.  To achieve a uniform style in shows like “the Simpson’s, Spongebob, Spiderman and Cinderella ” the art director has to establish guidelines of how the characters are rendered.  From there I take them through steps using a sample I rendered ahead of time.   It describes and illustrates the guidelines we will use for the projects.  For example: to create the Alphabet piece below we used a step by step guide starting with examples of face shapes that have cheek profiles,  how to draw an open eye and simple noses without nostrils.    We work through a rough draft, comparing it to the style I’m asking for.  The rough drafts allow them to make revisions without damaging the final piece.   The roughs are copied to their final piece and colored.

5)  Utilize technology to make your life easier and the final piece more effective.

There are a lot of parents who express sadness that they can not compete in an auction to “win” their child’s work.  So, in my early years of auction projects I decided to only use reproductions of the child’s work, allowing for the return of the original work at the end of the school year.  It is best to give them back at the end of the year so it will not undermine the excitement of the auction.

I scan and save their work or have it colored copied.  In other cases where we’ve utilized direct printing techniques, I have the children make two, one for the auction and one for their family.  Copying their work allows for enlargement and reduction, image enhancements and safeguards damaging the originals. 

There are also dozens of items that can be created digitally utilizing the children’s art that can enhance the auction piece.  One year, I hand painted and decorated a desk with the children’s work.  Utilizing the digital files, I had a local printer make me some padded note cards and stationary with the children’s images on them.  It was a huge hit.   We also gave extra copies to their teacher for a year end gift.  She was thrilled.

6)  Have fun!

 

Here are a couple more projects:

 

This was a fun project for 1st graders using scratch foam printing.  The foam is similar to the type they use to manufacture foam paper plates.  All the children do is draw on it with ballpoint pens to depress the foam.  Then the foam is rolled with ink and pressed onto paper.  If you read the above, you know that I utilize technology.  In the case of these foam prints, we printed black ink on white paper which leaves the children’s drawings as paper color and the uncompressed foam areas in black, I scanned them, inverted the colors, so now the drawings are black on white.  I digitally layered the drawings over colored blocks and printed them.  If you don’t have a program that allows you to make colored blocks, you could load colored paper directly into your printer.   For the auction, I decoupaged the works onto a wooden storage table with curvy wrought iron legs, I had picked up at a wholesale furniture company.  Then at the end of the year we presented the teacher with a framed print of the illustrations.

The idea behind these prints was to exclude face shapes from the illustration.  I wanted them to place their features within a square, making them all blockheads.  They laughed.  This is one of my favorite effects because  it’s dynamic, uninhibited and minimalistic.

scratch-foam-auction-project

The following project was inspired by vintage flash cards.  I wanted the final piece to look like a piece of folk art from the 1940’s - 1950’s.  Following my guideline teaching process described above I taught the class how to create a caricature of themselves in a stylized fashion.  We worked on continuity of characteristics so they would look as if they all came from the same cartoon show.  I think they did a wonderful job.

I digitally placed their works onto the cards I designed.  The remainder of the work was decoupaging, antiquing and building a frame with a beadboard mat.  

 

Vintage Alphabet Board Auction Project by Aaron Christensen

Vintage Alphabet Board Auction Project by Aaron Christensen

 

Alphabet Auction project by Aaron Christensen close up
Alphabet Auction project by Aaron Christensen close up

I’d be curious to hear about your auction projects…drop me a note or better send me a picture!  If you would like to be kept informed of any additional auction project postings, add yourself to my mailing list with “auction projects” in the comment line.  Visit here -Mailing List

 

School Auction Projects - So much to learn and share.

September 24th, 2008

September is not ushered in by fall leaves, wool sweaters or back to school farwells, it is heralded in by parents scrambling about looking for a fresh new idea for their school’s auction.  The fact that our public and private schools must count on these fundraisers to meet their annual budget need, is a sad one.  Although they can be a lot of work and sometimes cost more than they return, they are gratifying and priceless.

I will work to provide some pictures of my previous projects and post them for inspiration, hoping it helps. But, I am curious, has anyone found an Auction Mecca?  If so, please pass the website on to me and I will make sure the information gets posted for all to see.

Here’s a pilot for an HGTV style reality show, take all the contestants from Design Star, Project Runway and Trading spaces for kids and have them all do an Auction project marathon. 24 hrs to create one student assisted masterpiece, highest bid producer wins!

Your thoughts or Comments…

Children’s Theme Bedrooms - Kids Room Decorating Trends

September 18th, 2008

Being involved in the Children’s Room Decor business, I subscribe to and receive a lot of publications specific to the industry.  I also try to attend as many of the trade shows as possible.  While there are “tried and true” products and designs out there, it is always refreshing to see something new.  The children’s decor industry is a lot like the fashion industry.  The truly stylish and cutting edge ideas are coming out of the smaller, more flexible and reactive “houses.”  Once those ideas catch attention from the mid size or moderate business, you see introductions that resemble them one or two seasons later.  Finally, in slower motion come the big firms that can not react quickly, especially with their overseas manufacturing cranking out look-a-likes a year or two later.  For example, it was very chic two to three years ago to have designed modern bedding or accessories.  They were the talk of every trade show.  The negative side was the fact that you couldn’t find a modern crib or compliments to that crib to save your life.  The furniture companies were still catching up on Shabby from 2-3 years prior.  The buyers wouldn’t write orders for the modern decor pieces because there weren’t any other products to go with them.  In the current publications you see major launches of “mid century” and modern furniture from the huge players introducing their a little late cutting edge looks.  Problem is all the small houses are moving on from the overly graphic and simplified silhouette stuff of modernism to a more comfortable style, one that wraps itself in texture, mix and mis-match…..yes, mis match fabrications.  Instead of the 1950’s think later 60’s early 70’s.  There is a resurgence of interest in owls, mushrooms, the peace sign, music revolution, natural wovens, wood veneer and itsy psychedelic prints.  By no means is this “Hippy”, it is more of a high style version, with great quality, attention to detail with a dash of handcrafted charm. 

It’s very charming.  Will it last?  Probably not.  It’s just a blip on the road to the 80’s.  Yes, I said it 1980’s.   There is a lot of interest in the color palette, the fabrics and graphic nature of that era.  I have yet to see how that will translate into furniture.  Could we expect to see molded rubber accents,  Techie synthetic surfaces and loads of formica?  How would one reinvent the scrunchie and the leg warmer into a children’s bedding line?  It’s a million dollar idea. 

Just like the high fashion market, one could spend all their money keeping up with the look of the day, or try a simpler approach combining classics with a hint of hip.  My favorite products right now have traditional styles that a hint of influence from the modern wave.  Classic cribs with a little less carving, less turnings and up to date colors.  Combining these with the more modern accessories and you’ll have a wonderful room that will last.  Likewise, you can combine the more updated furniture with the traditional accessories and still feel hip. 

There is a similar evolution in themes.  We are moving away from the shadow creatures (the ones silhouetted) and entering a move toward illustrated animals.  Ones with quirky patterns, fun textures and the 1960-70’s big eyes.  The owl from Mr. Rogers should make his comeback, he’s tre’chic. 

All of the standard kids themes; Sports, Princesses, Racecars, Cowboy, Jungle animals and flora/fauna are going strong.  There are slight variations between modern and traditional, but not enough to rule either out. 

It makes you wonder.  In twenty years when they are reinventing the 2000’s, what imagery, themes and icons would they look back on as “so 2000″?  Similarly, when our grandkids are having 2000’s dress up day, what will they wear? 

In closing, I think it is safe to say that the variety and volume of children’s decor and furniture is at histories all time high.   No matter what interests your child, you can find accessories, art, fabric and materials to elaborate on their theme.  If you find yourself at a loss and can’t find something, drop me an email and I’ll try to offer some suggestions for in-store, catalog or internet shopping.  Also, if you have decorated your child’s room in a theme that’s unexpected, I’d love to see pictures.  Once I collect a few, I’ll post them to the blog to share with others.  

Give some thought to the legwarmer crib sets….. 

 

 

Children’s Themed Rooms update - Chocolate Dot Princess, Sweet Retweet, The Good Doctor and Surf Shack

September 14th, 2008

Okay, I’m being beat up for being delinquent in adding some new children’s room pictures to my website.  So, I’ve spent a little time pulling up various room shots and laying out my presentations.  Four have been added so far….here they are.

Girl's Bedroom - Chocolate Dot Princess room by Aaron Christensen

Chocolate Dot Princess - A fun, playfully colored room featuring Pink, Chocolate and Green.  This room is shared by two girls.  It is an “L” shaped room with a huge opening from one main area to the smaller, longer space.  It lacked any sense of intimacy, it looked as if two beds were being stored in a pink warehouse..yikes.Chocolate Dot Princess Room - Before picture  

 

 

 

 My approach to fixing the problem was to 1) break up the pink by altering some of the wall colors to green, cream and accenting with a stripe wall treatment, all of which coordinates with the bed skirts and pillow trim.Chocolate Dot Princess Room - Striped wall

 

 

 

2) Creating a sense of depth and separation by dividing the space with magenta velveteen curtains.  There is a third panel just to the right of the bed with the crown (it’s out of view in the pic).  In my studio, we created the oversized fabric bulletin board, crown shelf, scalloped shelves, bed crown, swag canopy and the glittered letters.  We utilized the girls existing bed and armoires while adding a painted frame mirror and some accent furniture. In the pictures we hadn’t accessorized yet.  I’ll add an updated picture later.

Girl's Bedroom - The Good Doctor, a tribute to Dr. Suess by Aaron Christensen

The Good Doctor- A tribute to Dr. Seuss.  What a fun project!  The clients are collectors of Dr. Seuss’s wares.  They have multiple works of art and an office filled with Seuss taxidermy. 

As an owner of several vintage Seuss pieces, I was honored to take on the task of creating a room for Natasha without the expected plagarism of licensed charactors.  To achieve this transfomation I designed and created several 3 dimensional pieces in a Seuss style.  The color palette was selected from the 1950’s printed pages of his books.  Bedding was selected for it’s whimsical pattern and color.  In my studio we created the white shelves to coordinate with her existing bed

the Seuss hand light fixture

Dr. Seuss Hand Reading light by Aaron Christensen copyright 2008

the accent table with the fun twisted post

 Dr. Seuss table by Aaron Christensen copyright 2008

the hanging bed canopy

Dr. Seuss bed canopy by Aaron Christensen copyright 2008

 the etagere

 Dr. Seuss etagere by Aaron Christensen copyright 2008

and altered her bookcase/doll house to a more Seusslike design.  To add a bit of animation to the room, I striped one of her walls and capped it with a asymetrical scallop.  

I hope somewhere the Good Doctor is pleased!

 

Here are two more I’ll provide more info on soon.

 Girls Nursery - Sweet Retweet by Aaron Christensen

Girls Room - Surf Shack by Aaron Christensen

New children’s art releases - Rock & Roll and I Love Rock & Roll

September 11th, 2008

This week was The ABC Kids Expo in Las Vegas.  It is the primary trade show for the juvenile products industry of which includes wall art.  I was quick to ship out my latest art “I love Rock & Roll”, so it made it to Vegas in time for the show.  I will be anxious to hear how it was received.  The Rock and Roll style has been so influential in the past year and it was fun to interpret it into wall art.

  copyright-2009-aaron-christensen-i-love-rock-and-roll

Its parter piece entitled Rock and Roll offers more masculine/gender neutral imagery.

copyright-2009-aaron-christensen-rock-and-roll

There are so many young children interested in music, music celebrities and musicals.  I know that Mylie Cyrus is not “Rock” but she has single handidly gathered millions of fans and enouraged their inner musical artist.  As they age out of her jingle pop tunes and browse the world of recorded music, they are finding Classic Rock.  For others the whole Guitar Hero, Rock Band phenomenon has exposed so many to the family tree of Rock.  When my son is playing Guitar Hero, it catches my attention when it breaks into retro Rolling Stones.  My final observation is the tradition of giving gifts at Birthday parties.  Apple’s Itunes has cornered the preteen/teen gift giving tradition with it’s invention of the Itunes card.  During my Son’s recent birthday, it seem as if he received over $150.00 dollars worth of music.  it will be interesting to see what he chooses to download.

Update:  The rock and roll pieces were a hit.  They are now available in giclee reproductions through my online boutique at www.Embellishmentsstudio.com.  You can order indvidual prints of the images, a set of three in trypthic or the entire 9 piece collage.  If you have special requests or need color matching advice send me an email via my contact page

www.EmbellishmentsStudio.com

Decorating Children’s Rooms - To theme or not to theme…

April 18th, 2008

  The very first kid’s room I decorated, as expected, was my own.  As I describe the room, you might notice clues to which decade I’m talking about.  I was about 6 years old and had just inherited my sister’s old room.  She was the coolest older sister, she had style!  She made Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit gum wrapper necklaces from memory, listened to the Monkees and had her own record player and curly corded rotary telephone.

  My impressionable, critical eye wandered around my groovy new room, amazed by its many colors.   The modest space was a marigold yellow, with a white popcorn textured ceiling.  On the bed head wall there was a wall system of interlaced shelves that formed a grid pattern from wall to wall and ceiling down to 5 feet.  The pre-Ikea design was well executed, consisting of birch plywood painted in shades of olive green, chocolate brown and burnt orange.  At my height, I had a clear view of the random scribbles and notes she inscribed on the underside of the lowest shelf.  I imagine these were in response to a well deserved grounding or were vacant doodles of a teenage girl lying on her bed while chatting on the telephone.  My twin bed fit perfectly length wise along that wall, allowing me a safe mattress landing while skydiving down from the shelves above.   To personalize the room, I was excited to bring in my favorite possessions, a Dakin-like tiger lamp, my Creepy Crawler Bug Maker and my well stocked piggy bank that looked like Alfred E. Newman’s head popping out of a money bag.

dakin tiger creepy-crawler-bug-maker.jpg

With my intensive decorating complete, I moved onto more important things like building forts and haunted houses out of blankets, stacked furniture and string.  I invited friends and family to experience the ultimate in bedroom amusement parks.  Although the reviews were positive, I never was able to collect the 25 cent admission.

To me, my room had somehow graduated from a little boy’s room to a coolest big kids room.  My theme of tiger-bug-fort room was playful, yet (in my mind) sophisticated.  By today’s standards it would not win any awards, make HGTV, or technically qualify as a themed room.  To me, the room was beyond compare, whether it was due to leftover style mojo, from my sister or the daring colors, I’m not sure.  Yet, despite my fading memory for more important things, I can recall with fondness, the lingering scent of Juicy Fruit, the acrobatic flips while freefalling from my shelves, my turquoise shag yarn rug, our pet cat Smokey sleeping in my pajama drawer and the well orchestrated hauntings by toilet paper ghosts.

Now, I imagine you are wondering what this has to do with theme rooms.  Come on, theme room guy….give us some information we can use!  Admittedly, I have not offered any design tips, nor product reviews or even hinted at the latest trends in children’s themes.   What I have done, is opened a door into the mind of a 6 year old.  Who’s small little room left a lifelong impression and inspired his future (or maybe damaged him for life…it’s debatable…Ha Ha).

  We live in a world where children grow up way too fast.  It’s a world where the ever growing and sometimes harmful exposure to media, electronics, mature themes and the strife for better, stronger…faster has robbed many of their childhood.  My job, if it were described as a cause, is to help prevent maturity and nurture the magic that is childhood.  What may seem like four blank walls and furniture to an adult, is actually the ingredients to high adventure, merriment and fond childhood memories.  So, within your busy adult life, juggling parental demands, fighting for good and undoing evil, take a few moments to contemplate or discuss with your child what it would take to make his or her room a magical place.  Maybe all it would take is a few colors on the wall, a blanket fort or admission at the door.  Sometimes it’s the little things!

I am blessed, if through my creations, I have helped create those fond memories, not only for my children, but for the children I am lucky to design for.   Now, if I could just teach my children how to make a Wrigley wrapper necklace.

School auction project collaboration featuring Birds

February 22nd, 2008

My daughter’s elementary school has an annual auction which anchors its fundraising efforts by encouraging classroom projects.  Every year, I try to invent a fun, educational and hopefully high wager product.  In the flavor of mid century illustrator Charles Harper, I worked with the students to create their own minimal realistic interpretation of a bird.  As a supporting ingredient, they authored quips and rhymes to engage the viewer, which were handwritten on vintage style ruled paper.  These elements were integrated into a triptych series that I rendered with branches and a sky blue background.  The kids had a great time and were very pleased with the final product.  The true test will come on auction night.  Wish us luck!

bird-auction-project-collaboration-by-aaron-christensen.jpg

Charles Harper, born 1922 in Virginia, was trained as a realistic painter at the Cincinnatti Art Academy.  His works evolved away from realism into a more interpretive modern (for the times) feel.  Check out his works here at Flicker’s Harper Fan Club http://www.flickr.com/groups/charles_harper/ or http://www.theframeworkshop.com/store.cfm?SubCatID=25