February Monthly Challenge

Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose by John Singer Sargent 

68.50 inch wide x 60.50 inch high

About the Art

Conceived under the most unusual of circumstances, and nurtured in a remarkable setting at Broadway, The Cotswold, England, this painting is overwhelmingly held out by the public -- then as well as today -- to be the most favored painting of all his work. It is universally believed to be one of his masterpieces. Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose, the title lifted from the light-hearted lyrics of a popular song, is a triumph of John's use of light which would never be equaled in quite the same way.

About the Artist

John Singer Sargent was an American painter by birth-right. He loved his country yet he spent most of his life in Europe.  He was the most celebrated portraitist of his time but left it at the very height of his fame to devote full time to landscape painting, water colors and public art

He was born in Florence, to American parents  and traveled extensively throughout Europe. His parents never settled back in America, not stepping foot in the States himself until right before his 21st birthday to retain his citizenship. 

He was schooled as a French artist, heavily influenced by the Impressionist movement, the Spanish Master Velazquez, the Dutch Master Frans Hals, and his teacher Carolus-Duran.

His output was prodigious. Working dawn til dusk in some cases -- even on vacations, and sometimes seven days a week. Between 1877 (when his work really started taking off) and 1925, he did over 900 oils and more than 2,000 watercolors along with countless charcoal sketch-portraits and endless pencil drawings.  

He painted two United States presidents, the aristocracy of Europe, the new and emerging tycoons and barons of business -- Rockefeller, Sears, Vanderbilt; and he painted gypsies, tramps, and street children with the same gusto and passion. He hiked through the Rocky Mountains with a canvas tent under pouring rain to paint the beauty of waterfalls, and painted near the front lines during World War I to capture the horrors of war. He painted the back alleys of Venice, sleeping gondoliers, fishing boats and the dusty side streets of Spain. He painted opulent interiors and vacant Moorish Ruins.  He painted the artists of his time -- performers, poets, dancers, musicians, and writers --  Robert Louis Stevenson, and Henry James. He painted the great generals of the Great War, and the Bedouin nomads in their camps.  He painted grand allegorical murals, and his friends as they slept.  

Where others kept journals, John Singer Sargent painted his, and his life can easily be chronicled by these records in color and canvas. He loved people, yet was intensely private. And he loved his family deeply and devotedly, though he never had a family himself (was childless and never married). He was simply, a great man and a great Artist.

Challenge Color Palette:

The Prizes:

Winners will be randomly chosen from all the qualifying entries on March 1st.

Our sponsors this month: 
Miss Fickle Media and Natural Touch Beads please visit us tomorrow to see the prizes!

Featured Designer of the Week:

From all the entries during the month, an editor is going to pick their favorite design to be featured every Monday here on the ABS. We want to give our participants more time in the spotlight! Our Featured Designer will be this Monday, so get those entries in soon.

Blog Tour:

To have your entry included in the blog tour, leave a direct link to your challenge post in the comment section below.  Links must be post by February 27th to be included in the tour. 

How to enter the Monthly Challenge:

1. Create something using an art bead that fits within our monthly theme. We post the art to be used as your inspiration to create. This challenge is open to jewelry-makers, fiber artists, collage artist, etc. The art bead can be created by you or someone else. The challenge is to inspire those who use art beads and to see all the different ways art beads can be incorporated into your handiwork.

***Beads strung on a chain, by themselves and beads simply wire or cord will not be accepted.***

2. Upload your photo to our flickr group. Detailed instructions can be found here and click here for a tutorial for sending your picture to the group.

Please add the tag or title FEB ABS to your photos. Include a short description, who created the art beads and a link to your blog, if you have one.

Deadline is February 28th. Photos are approved by our moderators, if a photo hasn't followed the guidelines it will not be approved. You may upload 2 photos a day.

What is an Art Bead? 
An art bead is a bead, charm, button or finding made by an independent artist. Art beads are the vision and handiwork of an individual artist. You can read more about art beads here.

***A bead that is handmade is not necessarily an art bead. Hill Tribe Silver, Kazuri ceramic beads or lampwork beads made in factories are examples of handmade beads that are not considered art beads.
Beaded beads, stamped metal pendants or wire-wrapped components are not considered art beads for our challenge.***

p.s. If you have a blog, post your entry and a link to the ABS challenge to spread the beady goodness.