~ Bon Voyage 2021 ~ USA 35 x 35 ART PROJECT

Dear Friends, 

I hope you are having a wonderful start of a new year.

There were many changes in my life this past month that I cannot see yet I know it has changed. Sometime, maybe I will have a chance and a right time to share with you in person or in this blog.

In January 2021, my two small dreams came true,

One..., I wanted to see all my artwork in an art show to be sold out during the show.

Two..., I dreamed about my artwork to be included in an art book.

My dream always involves other people so it is a miracle to me that something I have dreamed of is coming true. (Thank you so much.) Excluding group exhibitions I had only one art in the past, the Trading Card Art Show at Gristle Gallery, which just had closed, became the first show that all my work had sold out during the show. For my work, it must be in the right moment and a right person to meet the specific piece, so it is only natural that some artwork takes more time and stays in my studio longer than the other pieces to leave my place. I do enjoy the company as our history while it is with me.
Still and all, I will always look forward to having great moments where my artwork is seen by a large audience and it finds and is found by the right place to be.

I feel this year will be an exciting year for me with new and continuous challenges, and with dreams and views in my mind I have yet to make.

In 2020, I participated in the USA 35 x 35 ART PROJECT by Copelouzos Family Museum in Greece. For this project I made a fishtank painting called "Overthinking" in 35 inches square.

In quarantine and city lockdown last year with covid-19 pandemic when we were unable to travel outside the USA, I received an invitation to this   project and I decided to send my work to where I have never been. It was a mysterious invitation, per se, from a private family owned museum in Greece, but after some research, I said yes. 

The Copelouzos Family Museum is a private family owned museum that means it is not open to the public. They do not have an official museum website, and there are quite few negative reviews about them being sketchy and scam, but I would call it mysterious though instead. I joined the invitation being fully aware aboutthe background. After all, whether it was said a "scam" or not wasn't important to me. To me,  knowing that the Copelouzos Group is a large steady energy supplier company, and that somehow the family is interested in art, and the company won't run out of business anytime soon, were enough to join this project. I know some art critics who create what the art world should be and what artists should look for, and some artists who know very little about background of how large art projects to be realized, write negative comments articles about them, and I feel sorry for this family owned museum after joining their project.

Throughout the process it was pleasing experience to join their artbook project. They prepared their own canvas and case that made me feel my painting will be well cared, and professonal international shipping, and the book came out to be in a high-quality publication. I do hope they will at least have a website for their private museum someday that will be one thing I will look forward to. Unfortunately this book isn't sold in bookstores, but if you ever have chance to visit my studio, it is available for viewing here). This book will be "be distributed worldwide to friends of the Museum and partners of the Copelouzos Group of companies, but also to the participated artists." so I hope people who see my work through this book will find it something special.

There are different opinions for this kind of project but to me it's romantic to join this kind of project from time to time. I am thankful for them finding me and my art. There are many ways that can take my art to different places. I will look forward to see my art in many more books in the future.

Now when I close my eyes and imagine my painting, it lets me also see images of Greece I know only in 

postcards and pictures and videos, my painting now lets me feel the wind of a different country....

Last year, many of my original artwork went to my new home from my studio, and although I haven't met them  in person, I really love my collectors. 

It's about time for me to go back to my studio practice.

Thank you for reading my blog and keep following my art and I will talk to you soon. 

Warm Regards, 

Natsumi