From Oaxaca City, Oaxaca to New York City, New York - Sharing My Love of Color With Fellow Artists

I wanted to share some fun and exciting things that have happened this past week which involve other artists who clearly enjoy playing with color as much as I do. I find this very refreshing as I think that in our culture, in general, we are much too timid with color. 

 Each of these artist uses color in a masterful way!

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For several months I've been admiring the beaded designs of Pedro Robledo of Oaxaca City, Oaxaca, looking at the Etsy shop he runs with his wife, Danielle, and reading some of her blog posts. I finally decided that I needed a bracelet. But I couldn't choose, so I bought 3!!

 Each one is fantastic! 

He draws inspiration from the Huichol Indians of northern Mexico and their symbolism, mandalas, spaceships and crop circles.

"Huichol, Mandala Inspired, Galactic Spaceship Diamond" 

I  love the center which appears to have one large red area, until you look closely and see that there are actually two colors there, one slightly more purple.
When I hold it up to the light, it really comes to life. Magical!

In this design, my favorite part is that there are only 4 turquoise beads placed near the 

outside of the central diamond. That and the lovely gradations of color.

Pedro's designs are beautiful especially because  he has given incredible depth and movement to them by incorporating somewhere between 15 and 19 colors. (There are 1500 to 1700 beads in each bracelet.) I realized that he also uses this idea in his designs which I talked about a few posts back. They are woven on a bead loom and I was thrilled to learn that he, like me, most often does not use a written pattern or chart, but each of the designs come from his imagination straight to the loom. I highly recommend a look around the Pachamama Native Art Etsy shop.

Prepare to be bedazzled!
https://www.etsy.com/shop/pachamamanativeart

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Tripp Derrick Barnes, a painter living in New York City, saw my posts on Instagram and told me that he'd love to have one of my straps for his camera. Judging from his Instagram posts, I saw that he uses a lot of vivid color in his artwork. Inspiring! We began talking about what colors he'd like for his custom strap, and to my surprise, he said that primary colors are his favorites.

Here you can see him at work in his studio. 

Originally from the deep woods of South Carolina, Tripp is now living on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.  Pop Neoism is a new movement based on Tripp's new style on Pop Art.

 His artwork is best described as a cross between Andy Warhol and Jackson Pollock.

"When Worlds Connect" by Tripp Derrick Barnes 

What I love about these paintings is the way he takes so many bold colors and makes them all work together. And while they appear to be at random, each color is in balance in the piece overall.

 Have a look at his website here to see some of the interesting projects he's worked on.

http://www.popneoism.com, but to see his latest you really have to follow him on Instagram!
Instagram: Tripp_Art

He sent me this photo of the new strap on his camera.
I had a great time doing this special order, because of his easy, friendly manner and especially because of his super enthusiasm!! If I ever get to New York, I'm looking him up!

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I 'll leave you with some music. Last week I met Steve Palazzo, a Santa Cruz guitar player. 

Thanks, Steve, for choosing one of my straps! Have a listen to his great style here: 

 Hard Times Come Again No More