STACYSAKAI

Today, I painted my largest painting yet, five feet high and twelve feet long. It’s an abstract expressionist painting, done performance style. I’ve been planning it for months! There were so many decisions to make, and so many details to work out…

In the midst of painting, I kept thinking, I just don’t want this to end! It was incredibly exhilarating putting so much passion and energy into a such a large painting!

Soon to come: a music video featuring my painting performance, and also a very short Flash animation!

It was a lot of fun attending the VIP Opening Gala for Vancouver Fashion Week! I also went back on Friday night, and again for the closing on Sunday. There was one fashion designer after another for hours each day – so many great designs! I was busy enjoying the show and having fun, but I did remember to take a few pictures. Here are a couple from the last night…

Vancouver Fashion Week

Stacy Sakai in the VIP section with Barry Ostash

Last night we had a great show. There were people waiting outside before we even opened the door! It ran from 3pm to 9pm, and there was a constant flow of people. I had several pieces up, including Birdsong and a framed Birdsong limited edition print. At the end of the evening, Auret Esselen gave a singing performance which was filmed for TV.

Here is a small selection of photos from the event…

My paintings were hung at the entrance

Birdsong with a framed print. The sheet in the middle describes the music / art collaboration between Barry Ostash of STAVOC, Steven Kitchen of Dephorm, and myself. A small device for playing a sound clip of the song was included on the sheet.

This beautifully framed limited edition Birdsong print belongs to one of my collectors. She very kindly loaned it to me to hang at my show.

Auret Esselen performing in front of my Bonanza painting, while being filmed for TV.

Another shot of Auret singing.

Stacy Sakai in the hallway of art, at the end of the night. Photo by Barry Ostash.

The artists in the Artistrun Collective art show! Left to right: Carolyn Kramer, Stacy Sakai, Jim Landecker, Rojia Dadashzadeh, and Liza J. Lee. Our collaborative pieces combining painting and photography are behind us. Photo provided by Carolyn Kramer.

The Birdsong painting is now available in limited edition prints! Each of these high quality fine art prints is numbered and signed, and comes with a signed Certificate of Authenticity. To order a print and arrange for shipping, please send me a message using the ‘Contact’ tab above.

Technical details:
Printed on smooth fine art paper with archival inks
12.5” x 16” (image size 10.5” x 14”)
Edition of only 50
Price $100

'Birdsong' now in Ltd Edition prints!

The creation and development of this painting was also photographed, and is now featured in a STAVOC music video. The lyrics in the song were written specifically for this painting! The music video can be viewed on YouTube. Enjoy!

The Artistrun Collective QR Code Art Show takes place during the second annual Culture Days national event!

Saturday, October 1 · 3:00pm – 9:00pm

The Old Foundry Building
1790 Vernon Drive
Vancouver, BC

At the historic Old Foundry Building, the public will meet the diverse Artistrun Collective: Liza J. Lee, Carolyn Kramer, Stacy Sakai, Rojia Dadashzadeh and James Landecker. The group will unveil four newly commissioned collaborative art works on wood panels to demonstrate the “mashup” of individual art styles and mixed media, along with over 40 original art pieces. Auret Esselen will provide a live singing performance during the reception.

In addition to the sign-in book on October 1, guests are encouraged to scan the Artistrun Collective QR Code on location for a chance to win free art and prizes!

Sponsors include Fuzion Wines, Vancouver Foundation, Prosyna Communication, Pacific Coast Information Systems (PCIS), and Sound Therapy Radio.

For more information, visit http://artistruncollective.org/.

During Culture Days, on October 1st, I will be part of a group exhibition at the historic Old Foundry Building in Vancouver, BC!

The other participating artists are Carolyn Kramer, Liza J. Lee, Dr. Lycia Trouton, Rojia Dadashzadeh, and Jim Landecker. We are creating collaborative pieces of mixed media, and also exhibiting our own work.

More details will be announced in the coming weeks!

Sakai with her "Bonanza" painting, featured for Culture Days art show

Another collaboration with STAVOC is in the works, once again combining music and art! One of my paintings will be used as a backdrop for a YouTube video with music by STAVOC.

For more information on this band and their music, please see the following sites:

stavoc.com
facebook.com/stavocmusic

I’ve been very busy painting, and I’ve also started on some specific paintings for a group show during Culture Days! One of the paintings is a collaborative piece with another artist. I will post more details on this, as the dates approach.

I’m having so much fun working with other artists from different genres of creative expression. It is both inspiring and mind-expanding!

Photo credit: Dan Poh

Stacy Sakai with Barry Ostash of STAVOC at Pamela Masik's recent art show.

Below is my painting of the breathtaking image selected to mark the 21st anniversary of the Hubble Space Telescope.

Stacy Sakai's painting of the Hubble image, Rose of Galaxies

On Friday, January 14th, 2011, I had dinner with Ray Villard, the News Director for Hubble. It was great having a one-on-one conversation with him, and hearing the latest news. It was also fascinating to hear about how it feels to be the first ones to see the amazing, mind-blowing views Hubble brings us.

After dinner, Ray came to my studio to see my paintings of Hubble images. It was in 2008 that I was first inspired to create paintings based on Hubble images, and I showed him a selection of paintings from then until now. He also got to see my latest work in progress!

It was truly an honour to have Ray visit my studio. It was wonderful to hear his comments, and get his feedback on my work. Of course while he was there, he was also able to check out the 18′ telescope designed and built by Craig Breckenridge. It was certainly an inspiring evening…

Stacy Sakai and Ray Villard in front of the Magellanic Cloud painting.

In front of the telescope with Craig Breckenridge and Ray Villard

It’s been an exciting and amazing year of art for me!

To top it off, this morning, the last day of the year, I was thrilled to run into internationally renowned artist, Gordon Smith at Opus! We had a lovely conversation. I told him I was an oil painter, and he asked if I was an Emily Carr graduate. I said “no, I’m a self-taught artist.” He replied, “even better!!!” That was wonderful to hear.

He gave me a signed card with one of his paintings on it. I’ll put it up in my studio as a reminder, and for ongoing inspiration…