New Works at Helikon for Hometown Heroes!

Informal Chat. 

Mixed media (watercolor, India ink, acrylic inks, UV protectant varnish) on watercolor paper mounted on birch.

This 8" x 10" painting is one of five pieces that I'll have in the exhibition, Hometown Heroes at Helikon Gallery  

The opening is this Saturday, July 28th from 6-10 pm!

Informal Chat was inspired by all of the magical faery-folk in tales and legends. I've always loved little guys, lanterns, owls, and the natural world, so this piece was a blast to create :]

Here are three more of the ready-to-hang works available at the show or through Helikon's site. These are wood cut-outs (mixed media works on watercolor paper mounted to hardboard). I used watercolor, India ink, acrylic inks, and acrylic gouache. The finished works are then cut out on a scroll saw and coated with UV protectant varnish.

Two of these cut-outs (the rooster and mouse; approx. 9" x 15") were inspired by folk tales, while the froggy-fellow (approx. 5" x 10") was inspired by the footman in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Hope you'll join me and all the other dynamic Colorado artists for Hometown Heroes--plus amazing new figurative works by Ryan Morse Underneath in the Annex Gallery!

If you can't attend, or would like more information, just click on this link:

Hometown Heroes

And all works (and more!) are available online through

Shop Helikon Gallery

Please support artists and the arts--it's more important than ever.

As always--Thank you!

Afterword at Helikon Gallery--Opening this Week!

Above is one of the posters for Afterword. A Tribute to Literature.

It's the completed piece from my previous post,

Macbeth and a Ghost

Here's the line-up of all invited artists for an easier read :)

Many of my friends are showing works in this show. If they have a website, it's listed below. Click on their names for more of their works--you'll be amazed!

Vinni Alfonso

Dymond Starr Austin

Clay Brooks

Laura Imbler

Rob Jordan

Mike Kloepfer

Jeremy Aaron Moore

Ryan Morse

Valerie Savarie

Kelsi Jo Silva

Tony Steck

John Van Horn

Kaitlin Ziesmer

Here's the direct link to the show:

Afterword at Helikon Gallery

In addition to Afterword, Helikon Gallery is presenting

Muses V 

and
Goodnight Sweet Prince--The Artwork of John Van Horn

So much stunning artwork to enjoy--so please come out this Wednesday or First Friday and support the arts, working Denver artists, and a great gallery!

Animal Parameters at Valkarie Gallery!

http://www.tomsarmo.com

For the third year in a row, I'm excited to be part of a fall show at Valkarie Gallery!

Animal Parameters is coming soon, and my works will join the amazing art of

http://karrieyorkart.com/

Karrie York

http://www.mikiharderart.com/

and Miki Harder 

Please click on their names for links to their sites and more of their art!

Here's a little preview of a few of my works which will be in the show:

http://www.tomsarmo.com

For folks who like fantastic creatures, here's a Lava Monster! A few illustrators and I were discussing how to create a stone creature who oozed lava from cracks in its hide, so I tried my hand at this fellow.

http://www.tomsarmo.com

I love owning sketches by artists, so I make many of mine available to collectors. And I gotta have a few Cranky Birds in every show.

http://www.tomsarmo.com

My animal works are most often images that spring from real animals but end up imaginary creatures.

http://www.tomsarmo.com

And dragons are animals, right?

http://www.tomsarmo.com

So I hope you will join us for Animal Parameters!

Here are the particulars:

 And be sure to check out Valkarie Gallery's current show Elements and Curiosities, featuring the works of Valerie Savarie and Sharon Eisley!

http://www.tomsarmo.com

Also, Innate Tapestries: The Endless Stage--a 96 page book full of my paintings and sketches--will be available for purchase at Animal Parameters. I hope you will grab a copy!

 Thanks for reading, and for supporting us artists!

Harmonie at Helikon Gallery & Studios

New show!

From the Helikon site: "Two highly notable artists of illustration and the figurative arts come together in Harmonie, an exhibit featuring the intersection of styles and sensibilities between the figurative paintings of George Pratt and Felipe Echevarria."

George Pratt

Felipe Echevarria

"Ranging from watercolor, oil, pastel, and other traditional media, this body of work examines the beauty and mystery of the human figure. On the whole, ‘Harmonie’ is composed of aesthetic reflections on figurative expression, exploring the evocative power of color, texture, design, and style as harmonious parts of a single emotional and visual vocabulary."

George Pratt

There are two full galleries of these evocative works, plus hallways full of art to view, plus works in each of the Open Studios upstairs. This is a one-stop First Friday where you can spend the whole evening looking at amazing art! 

Felipe Echevarria

 Here are information links:

Helikon Gallery

Facebook event

The show runs from May 3 - June 3, and the First Friday event is May 5 from 6 - 10 pm.

You don't want to miss it--See you there!

Crimson and Cobalt at Sally Centigrade!

This pretty much sums it up; there's a cool group show happening at Sally Centigrade in Denver, and this Thursday, October 20th is the opening and artist's reception!

The Boy Who Took the Moon for Himself (detail crop). 

Acrylic on wood panel.

I'm happy to be a part of this great crew of artists for Crimson and Cobalt:

Andre Lippard, Axe Haka, Christopher Stewart, Erin Andrews, Grace Lang, Jess Brick, Johnny Acurso, John Van Horn, Justin Ankenbaeur, Ryan Morse, Tom Bond, Rabies Babies, Tom Sarmo, Victor Escobedo, Vinni Alfonso, Wizard Bong

If you are in Denver, or here for a visit, I hope you can come by and check out this unique show at a gallery I love!

Click on the links below for more info:

Crimson and Cobalt Event Page

and their site:

Sally Centigrade Gallery

Thanks for reading!

 

Parallel Universe Presents: A Unique Show at Helikon Gallery!

A detail crop of my artwork for Parallel Universe Presents

Very pleased to announce a new show, coming July 1, 2016 to Helikon Gallery in Denver!

This show is the brain-child of illustrator Thomas Haller Buchanan and gallery director and illustrator Cayce Goldberg.

Helikon is known for it's fresh and uniquely exciting shows, and this one will be no exception.

From Gallery Director Cayce Goldberg:

"Helikon Gallery is pleased to host ‘Parallel Universe Pictures Presents...’ this July! P.U.P.P. is a group exhibit where illustration reigns supreme over Hollywood, and features powerful drawings and paintings of posters for movies that exist only in the cinematic imagination of the artists."

This is Sherlock Holmes from my Parallel Universe offering of the movie The Hammersmith Ghost.

I love anything Victorian, and the Conan Doyle stories, but have always wanted to see Sherlock pitted against an actual, supernatural being. Hence this version of my dream film.

 

Along with your chance to see amazing finished paintings and posters by a group of stellar illustrators, you'll view the process each artist used to reach the final artwork. Each illustrator has the opportunity to show the sketches--thought processes--that went into the production of the final works!

From the chicken-scratchings of my initial idea...

...to character studies of Holmes and Watson...

...to value and composition thumbnails; this is only part of my process.

You won't see this at the show, but using my scary self as a model helped me draw...

...the initial sketch for the Hammersmith Ghost.

Here's a list of all the other fantastic illustrators in the show:

 

Thomas Haller Buchanan

Mike Kloepfer

Elena Gunderson

Matt Needle

Daniel Shaffer

Rob Jordan

Brooke Vandevelder

Arna Miller

Vinni Alfonso

Cayce Goldberg

I can't wait to see their finished artworks--and their sketches and processes and posters too!

And a huge bonus: Portals and Parralax!

 

 

"Portals & Parallax is a duo exhibit of new work by Thomas Haller Buchanan and Willa Haller. Shown simultaneously with Parallel Universe Pictures Presents..., the work in this exhibit stands as a conceptual and narrative bridge between both shows, exploring an organically unfolding story of two artists seeking to pierce the veil of time and space. Thom works in charcoal and pastel, while Willa presents large watercolor paintings. Both artists contributed to collaborative works where their concepts and aesthetics overlap."

 

Check out more details about both awesome shows by clicking the link below:

 

Helikon Gallery

And if you're in Denver, don't miss this show!!

Thanks, as always, for your support :)

A Lot of Monkey Business!

 My piece and Valerie Savarie's art for Monkey Business!  The show opens tomorrow night at 6:00 pm and runs through February 21st.

Here's the info direct from Valkarie Gallery:

valkarie
gallery

presents:

Monkey Business: Invitational Group Exhibition

January 27 - February 21, 2016
Opening Reception, Friday, January 28, 6 - 9pm
  2016 brings us the Year of the Monkey in the Chinese calendar and to celebrate, our kick off show is an invitational titled "Monkey Business". Each artist was given an 8" square panel to create their interpretation of the theme but need not include an actual monkey. There is sure to be a great variety of art including paintings, photography, drawings, mixed media and digital art.

Artists include: Jared David Paul Anderson, Adrianne Tamar Arachne, Aria ~ She Paints With Blood, Clay Brooks, Hannah Conlisk, Danyl Cook, Kalindi DeFrancis, Dorothy DePaulo, MJ Dowling, Kayla Edgar, Sharon Eisley, Corrina Espinosa, Erin Hagle, Christy Lynne Harris, Rob Jordan, JxRxKx, Doug Kacena, Lisa Luree, Bernadette Lusk, Pat Marek, Frank Martinez, Eric Matelski, Ryan Morse, Ray Muñoz, Robert Newman, Nixi, Penny & Alex Oliver, Hallie Packard, David Perea, Zachary Reece, Sammilo, Tom Sarmo, Valerie Savarie, Heather Sims, Heidi Snyder, Dane "Colfax" Stephenson, Melanie Steinway, Michael Vacchiano, John Van Horn, Jesse Van Horne, Brian Wall, Emily Wilcox and Zaitlin Ziesmer.

Here are more photos of only some of the cool works:

Adrienne Tamar Arachne

Kayla Edgar

Aria She Paints with Blood

Ryan Morse

Raymundo Munoz

Rob Jordan

Clay Brooks

Lisa Luree

John Van Horn

Pat Marek

Hallie Packard

There, you have a tiny preview of the show. Check out all of the pieces and prices by clicking on this link, then scrolling down to Monkey Business:

Monkey Business

And if you're in Denver, come to the opening, meet the artists, and add to your collection!

Thanks for reading--and supporting the arts (and the artists who contribute to them)!

Screenplay Process: Part Four

The last post about the process for three Screenplay paintings, this shows the final inked piece--pre-watercolor.

 

I ran across this tintype early on, and used it and others for resource.

Most often, after the thumbnail sketches for any artwork, I collect a lot of resources. I use Pinterest in order to keep them organized. If you are interested, the link to my Screenplay resource folder is here:

Sarmo's Pinterest Board

 

Here's a sheet of thumbnail sketches for Projectionist. The sketches always seem to begin sort of motionless.

 

Originally envisioned as a young man reading a newspaper, the projectionist morphed into a kid. I thought the idea of a person smoking in a projection room with flammable celluloid would be humorous, but on second thought, not really.

 

So the human character became a kid reading a monster movie magazine. Frankenstein's monster plays a part in all the pieces.

After inking the outlines with a small brush, I use a very light 2H pencil as a shading guide, and begin layering the ink lines.

 

There are many layers of cross-hatched ink lines in a piece like this.

This section threw me a bit because of the glowing light from the magazine. I wanted the effect but hadn't a clue how to achieve it until I got to this point.

The pieces, like many of my works, are pretty much drawings with watercolor washes laid in afterwards. The hardest part of this stage was getting the washes to blend around the glow. I used Quinacridone Gold and Burnt Sienna for the washes.

This was also a section in which I knew I wanted the monster's face in the light beam but hadn't an idea how to accomplish it. Somehow it all worked out.

The rat was a compositional device. The projector, the projectionist, and the monster created three subjects at the top. The pic needed balance, so the rat came to the rescue.

Well that's about it. If you are in Denver for the Screenplay reception on October 30th or the month of November, head over to Helikon Gallery and Studios to see all three finished pieces. They will be there, along with Screenplay interpretations by 30 other fantastic and inspirational artists. Each of us got to create three, 12" x 12" artworks for the theme, and it is going to be a great show!

Thanks for following my progress here--I appreciate it!