The Lardner Report

Unleash your creative superpowers!

50 Paintings in 50 Days

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Results of “The 10-Minute Task”

On March 26, 2010, I began to commit to 10-minutes of painting or drawing every day. Sometimes, the 10-minute session turns into 30 minutes or an hour, but no matter how much time I have, I look forward to the daily art-making experience, whether I finish a piece or not. Again, it’s about the process, not product.

I’m experimenting with collage, ripped newspaper, water–soluble pastels, and dense graphite. No image here is larger than 9″ x 17.”  I’m still drawing with my left hand (even though I’m right-handed) because it separates the work from my judgmental brain. It’s way more fun to watch my left hand make strokes that I really can’t control. The marks often lead to happy accidents, which I adore.

Here are  a few random samples: (Photos taken with iphone.)

“The 10-Minute Task” May 24, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” May 29, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” May 11, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” April 29, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” April 9, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” May 2, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” April 9, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” June 6, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” June 1, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” May 3, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” April 2, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” May 3, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task”  May 9, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” March 30, 2010

“The 10-Minute Task” April 4, 2010


Pasta Perfect Art

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Pic #1 – Pasta Art: “Link” (detail) by Steven Simon, 2010
Dr. Atkins would probably hate this.

Steven Simon’s artwork cracks me up. You might say his latest installations are devoted to an all-carb diet. His medium is pasta. Simon is a dedicated environmentalist who uses his work to educate and inspire others—especially children–about the beauty, usefulness, and fragility of the world’s living coral reefs.

He’s also the guy who created a coral reef installation with 31,000 pieces of campanelle pasta (Pics #2 and #3 below). Each piece is hand-painted with brightly colored acrylic paint. Simon says he fell in love with campanelle’s  flower-like shapes—finding them to be the most perfect, realistic way to represent rich and vibrant reef life.

PIc #2 - Pasta Art: "There" (detail) by Steven Simon, 2010

We displayed this piece as a conversation stimulating backdrop for a FORTUNE “Brainstorm: Green” Conference at the Ritz Carlton, Laguna Niguel this Spring. Now, it’s on temporary display on the lobby level of the Ritz, next to the new, way cool fluconazole environmental education center, “Ambassadors of the Environment.”

The Ritz partnered with Jean-Michel Cousteau’s Ocean Futures Society to launch this unique educational program on Earth Day. Expert naturalists take guests on adventures through the natural wonders of the local seaside environment, including the kelp forests, tide-pools, and coastal bluffs.

Pic #3 Pasta Art (wide shot) "There" by Steven Simon

According to The Nature Conservancy, if the present rate of destruction continues, 70% of the world’s coral reefs will be destroyed by the year 2050–yet they are among the oldest ecosystems on Earth. Simon is hopeful his work will stimulate viewers into action in protecting our disappearing natural resources on land and in the sea.

Pictured on top, (Pic #1) Simon’s multi-colored “Link” installation, also made with pasta–from playful “bowtie” farfale, to utilitarian  macaroni. The “aquarium” holding the sculptural piece is 7 feet by 7 feet, and presents a window through which viewers can peek–and wonder–how the heck did he pull this off?

Ritz “Ambassadors of the Environment” Link: http://www.oceanfutures.org/news/press-releases/ambassadors-program-open-ritz-carlton-laguna-niguel

Steven Simon link: http://www.solarsculpture.com

The many lenses of Robin Layton

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Fine art photographer: At home on the field–or on the farm.

"Windy" Photo Sculpture by Robin Layton, 2007

When you first see her fine art collection of photographic images, you know she was born an artist. Then you hear about her days as a photojournalist, and you realize she’s always been breaking new ground.

Case in point: If you’re a baseball fan—you can’t help but remember the photo below. Ken Griffey, Jr. joyfully smiles at home plate under a “dog pile” of fellow Mariners, after he scored the game-winning run in the playoff series against the Yankees in 1995.

"Dog pile" Ken Griffey, Jr. scores game-winning run against Yanks in 1995. A Layton sports classic.

Layton shot that.

She wasn’t supposed to be assigned to third base that night–her editor at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer told her to take her place at first. But at the last minute, a fellow shooter asked if he could work that position, and Layton said okay. That dude is probably in rehab right now. Many consider this photograph one of the most memorable images of Griffey’s storied career.

Celebrity Cool:

Layton has since carved out a super successful, lucrative career shooting celebrity portraits and weddings.  Some of her clients include: Oprah Winfrey, Felicity Huffman, Jennifer Aniston, Kenny G., and Tobey McGuire.  Huffman, seen below at a recent Layton exhibition in West Hollywood, raves enthusiastically about Robin’s unique gift to capture what no one else can.

Robin Layton (left) and "Desperate Housewives" star Felicity Huffman at Layton's solo exhibition in West Hollywood, May, 2010. Photo Credit: Jayson Mellom .

Perfect Pairings:

Now, this super cool Angeleno/Seattleite has turned her lens toward the marriage of an unlikely duo: nature and industry. Once declared one of the world’s eight most talented photographers by Life magazine, Layton gracefully juxtaposes stunning photographic abstractions with quirky remnants of industrial hardware, antique farm equipment, and weathered doors and windows. At top, she pairs a rare Midwestern barn vent with delicate images of egrets captured in Point Reyes, California.

Below, Layton nestles “Nest Egg” within a set of blue shutters with original paint from the 1800s, and (at bottom), she frames Big Bear “Monet Trees” with a funky cranberry picker from the 1930s. Definitely worth checking out her sites: (Fine art: robinlaytonworks.com) (Commercial: robinlayton.com)

"Nest Egg" Photo Sculpture by Robin Layton, 2008

"Monet Trees" Photo Sculpture by Robin Layton, 2006

(Robin Layton Exhibition video, West Hollywood: ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LeG_7HA1Hzc)