Category Archives: All things Vodnik

Why Graph Paper Press?

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Sidewinder Template

Well, after years of designing websites and also WordPress templates I started to investigate how others were designing templates. Since I am also into fine art and photography I wanted to easily add my work without getting bogged down in coding.

I came across Graph Paper Press and I loved what they were doing with WordPress, the layouts, the code, the attention to photographers and artists to display their work.

After spending some time investigating their work I finally chose their Base template and the child template Sidewinder. I love their gallery plug-in, perfect if you want to show your work off with ease.

I am also an advocate of having your site function on mobile devices and their templates do just that. Testing on the iPhone and iPad, I can tell you their work holds up. What better way to show potential clients your work then on your iPhone?

Their customer support seems to be 24 hours a day and they are very quick to respond to questions. If you are serious about using WordPress to show off your work I would highly recommend them.

Of course I cannot help but tweak code so I modified some of the child template in CSS and with a few changes in the code I was finally ready to make it live.

Michael

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Well I actually completed a painting this year, just not the one I started last year. Some will ask “Are you ok?”, “What’s with you doing a painting of him?”

Well…I was asked to. Now I probably know every song by him. Pretty much my whole life this man was in the spotlight and a household name. Love him, or hate him you can not deny he was very talented and changed the entire music industry, next to Elvis. I must admit some songs I enjoy, I never cared for his personal life, always thought he was very strange, maybe that much talent makes someone that way.

MJ 2010

Michael - ©2010 ChrisVodnik.com

So I was asked to do a portrait for a friend’s child who really loves his music and him.

I thought black and white would fit the mood in this portrait. So I worked with a palette of 5 basic colors. I am not sure why but I love to paint in black and white. I had to work with photos which was a challenge because photos never give you what real life can. I prefer either live or photos I take so I can have the lighting and pose the way I want it. I took no money for the portrait, it was a gift and I hope the owner will enjoy it while listening to her favorite singer.

Sea Breeze

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Well to make sure that I actually accomplish another painting this year I sat down and sketched out my three favorite things in life along with my other favorite thing, the beach. Since it has been snowing and cold perhaps its the best time to paint a beach scene. This day was a fun time in Newport Beach, perfect sunny day with lots of sand. I took a ton of photos of my family playing in the sand and committed to memory the idea for the painting. Since children do not sit still for more than a second I put together the scene from several photos.

Sea Breeze Sketch

Sea Breeze Sketch

Sea Breeze-First Sitting

Sea Breeze-First Sitting

Sea Breeze-Second Sitting

Sea Breeze-Second Sitting

Where does the time go?

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bathtub_art

So I noticed that it is now the end of June and I have not touched a paint brush in several months. I am writing this down to remind me the next time I visit my site and wonder…. wow still no new art.

I have been taking lots of photos during this time of non painting. Hoping that something will inspire me to pick up a brush other than for my teeth. My daughter on the other hand has been inspired to create in the bathtub. She is showing me that creating is a joyful event and shouldn’t be daunting. Maybe I should take a bath…