Paintings With Soul

Detail of Siren #41, "The Day My Heart Exploded," full painting is 24" square, acrylics on panel. Not currently for sale, but inquiries are always welcome. Please send them directly   to me . This painting is a self portrait - while the likeness is not mine the emotional state most definitely is. This morning there was yet another school shooting. I cannot understand why our children are killing each other.  This siren came from my gut. There's others still in there. I imagine they will show up in the coming days. May your children all come home safely tonite.

Growing Gray (a self portrait), 18 " x 24" x 1.5", acrylics on gallery wrapped canvas with image painted around the sides. I am uncertain that this one is truly finished, just as I am unclear whether she will be available. This is an intensely personal painting, meant for loved ones denied the simple privilege of growing gray. Or gray-er. Life is a miracle, every minute. My gray hairs remind me of that. Inquiries may always come to   ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com   - thank you SO much!!

Learn From My Mistakes.  24" x 36" x 1-1/2", acrylics on cradeled panel, not for sale. However, inquiries may always come to   me . My newest selfie - I've been doing these regularly for over 2 years. After so much practice, I am finally getting the hang of figurative painting. Still have a looooong way to go, but I am very pleased with all the forward progress I have made.

Mum, a new selfie in celebration of Mother's Day 16" x 20", acrylics on panel, part of my ongoing series of self portraits. This one is not for sale - I'm going to will it to a kid with specific directions to hang above their eye level, so that I am always looking down at them, just like when they were all shorter than I...... Meanwhile, inquiries may come  to me . Please and thank you. Self portraits are a remarkable exercise. I've been practicing them at least monthly for nearly 2 years. They are an insightful exploration of mood, energy and outlook. Sometimes they aren't terribly flattering, but I'm not painting them to pretend I'm a supermodel. I'm painting them to become a better caretaker of myself.

"Divine Intervention," a self portrait, 24" x 30", acrylics on panel. Available to the  first asking nicely , $899 (includes s&h inside the US). Thank you so much. I've been painting regular selfies for over two years and find it a great practice for examining my emotional state and working through various situations. Today's selfie was begun a few days ago and has been my obsession ever since. My original concept was set aside when I realized the painting (and my subconscious) was asking for something else. Each of the items in the painting were chosen for symbolic reasons. They tell my personal story of this year so far - it is my hope that viewers will weave their own tale from the composition. Thanks for supporting my art, Warmly, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com   

"The Struggle is Real," 16" x 16" x 2", acrylics on panel, $999 + s&h to the first asking nicely. Inquiries may come to me . The newest from my series of selfies , this one pretty much sums up how sickened I am by the current state of affairs inside our political scene. I'm sure you can relate, regardless of party affiliations. Thanks for following along with my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com    Shop Reproductions Here

"Pretty in Pink," 16" x 20" x 1", acrylic painting with the image wrapped around the edges (so no need to frame), May's entry for my year of selfies (self portraits). And yet, despite those eyes being quite familiar to me, I feel like this painting in particular is a timeless study in finding oneself. So I've decided to let her go - she can be yours for $1699, including complimentary shipping and handling inside the US. Inquiries may come to me . I'm leaving tomorrow to teach in Tulsa. You can bet I'll remind my students about the practice of self portraiture - there's so many ways to bend the rules, what we create does not have to be daVinci-esque. But first, I'm going to hang Pink above my desk and enjoy her until she finds a new home. Thanks for following along with my artwork, Kim ksantini@turtledovedesigns.com   

Both very much in process, above an untitled (and larger than life) portrait of The Princess, 36" x 48" (gallery stretched canvas), and below, a life sized self portrait, 18" x 24" (panel). Multi media paintings, my own personal collection. While cleaning out the fish bowl yesterday, I realized that it would make a great vase (started one of those too, with goldfish in the bowl and swimming amongst the roses!), and then began thinking of other non-traditional containers for flowers. That was when my head exploded, which I tried to paint. And I was up most of the night working on it. Then I made Anna my next victim. I have mostly thought of painting florals the last couple weeks. I cannot turn my brain off - it is constantly going, even when I'm not at my easel. I'm really going to have to reel things in soon and paint a couple of dogs!! Meanwhile, the pieces are piling up from the online class I'm taking - I need a bigg...

"Selfie 1-1-16," 19" x 24", acrylics on bristol board, not for sale. NOTE:  When I first shared this on Facebook, I got flack because I wasn't smiling/people thought it wasn't flattering. But Glamour Shots wasn't my goal. Yes, I look tired here, and that's because I am. Holidays are emotionally and physically exhausting and I'm owning that outright. In my jammies, with wild hair and my favorite warm scarf. So there. I spent yesterday making a killer ginormous breakfast for my family. Then we all enjoyed quiet time with our own goals and wishes for this coming year. (Someone also chose to binge on Netflix but I'm not judging) For me it was both personal and professional - it's important (to me) to understand the difference, although they both inform each other. Part of that involved meditation and a review of my numerous journals, where I discovered a predominance of self portraits. I thought, "Self, what are you tryi...