HOMEWARD BOUND

People of Philadelphia and its outlying regions!
Attend the event tomorrow, the opening of Homeward Bound at Grindcore House.
Ryann Casey has come up with a star-studded collection of artists who have donated work to support PAWS, the Philadelphia Animal Welfare Society.

The piece which I created for the show is below - the US Postal Service decided that it should take a little detour en route to Philadelphia, so a print and the original will be on sale (once the latter arrives).

So many talented creatures are putting good work into this show, I am so sorry I won't be in Philly for this excellent show, so go and make your love for animal rescue and animal art be known!

Sing Me To Sleep

 My favorite from the set of illustrations for Muse Magazine that I just completed. 

They go to print in April!

Detail View:

New Illustrations Completed for Muse Magazine

I recently completed this set of illustrations for an article on noise pollution's effect on the ocean's ecosystems for Muse Magazine.

I loved working on this assignment and was an avid reader of a number of this family of kid's magazines when I was little, especially Cricket.  

They do great work for independently thinking youth with an eye for science, writing, and all the good things out there for sharp young brains to take in.   Very stoked to work with them!

Upcoming Reception!

Upcoming Show

Await forthcoming work in these next few weeks for my show at the Bean in Philadelphia! It's a lot of new gouache work and its whipping up into a frenzy of new concepts already.
Dates and title to be posted soon!

Within // Out There

Sketching for New Show

I am starting the planning stages for a new upcoming show at the Bean in Philly for December.
This will either be a show of gouache or glass and acrylic paintings getting into the territory of boundaries and limits to realities.
Updates to follow!

In Appreciation of Unusual Love

I received this particularly fun and unusual animal art commission this week and was over the moon about it.   Nothing is more exciting than something you have not done before, and this person really gave me free rein on the design, making it all the more exciting. 
Yes, this is a watercolor and gouache painting of a donkey and porcupine in love.  Yes, they are standing over a garland of old school style tattoo flowers.
Want something like this?
Do let me know.

Milan

Had a lot of fun drawing in Cecilia Granata's studio today!

Adventuring & Illustrating

For the past two months I have been exploring Europe with my partner and visiting friends and family. Along the way I have worked on a lot of new drawings, some for my next shows, others just to pass the time or to give to friends.
This one was for two of Melanie's little cousins in Rapallo, who are anything but slothlike. They gave me a sloth sticker when they found out I like animals so I figured one good sloth deserves another.

Natural Lands Trust Commission

Just before leaving the states I did one last commission for the Natural Lands Trust for their next print media campaign. It was great to work for an organization that is working for an environmental cause, and I'd be happy to do it again!

The subjects are all indigenous animals making recoveries after being at high risk in New Jersey - a bluebird, bald eagle, and wood turtle. It is a sort of comeback theme for reupping membership that may have reduced, as I understand it. They chose the content and taglines. Support this org if you live in NJ (or not)! There are a lot of important natural spaces in that state that are well worth preserving.

Final Commission Before Takeoff

I'm an hour away from leaving for JFK airport and am just wrapping up some illustrations for the Natural Land Trust's new print media campaign.
Down to the wire!

Planning Stages

These are a few pages of sketches for the next show I'm hatching out of my brain right now.  I've been really overloaded with commission jobs and planning a European art show tour, so I haven't had a minute to get details on this out yet. 
I am currently discussing shows in Milan and Berlin and am still looking for any other galleries or spaces to show in while in Europe from Feb. 29th - June 13th.
I'm making a large body of sketches like these to work from for my next mirrored installation.  2012 is a great year for physicality, evisceration, and finally making it into the University of Penn Veterinary School's anatomy lab!
Know any spaces in Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, Belgium, and much of Eastern Europe that would be a good fit?

Contact me at ketchwehr @ gmail dot com.

Re:Occupation Show at Green Line Powelton

Check out the link above to hear about the group show I am curating at the Green Line Cafe - Powelton Village!

It's a collection of work from Philadelphia and New York-based artists considering the meaning of Occupation (politically, socially, economically, and how we make a living). 
Below are images of work I have hanging in the show - the totems hanging above the mirror work are by the amazing Corina Dross.

Mirror Work

 

Here are a few images of the recent mirror work that I have been doing.  

This is my new direction and I plan to be doing larger scale murals from mosaiced mirror paintings for the next shows I put out in the coming year.  

I stumbled upon this variety of work while doing a commission piece with a local business owner who wanted bees painted on these hexagonal mirrors and I became completely obsessed with them.  The paint is Liquitex Acrylic Glossies, a glass acrylic, and it was tricky to handle at first but once I got accustomed to it I really couldn't stop.

Upcoming Group Show : Autumn Spell

 

I'm getting back in the saddle again as I just returned from my wedding and am making this 3 tile piece for the group show, Autumn Spell, that Paul Romano is curating at Gallery 309.

Here is a shot of it in progress - it is completed now, and to simplify my life and any buyers, I am crafting a handy mounting system for the piece so that it is more of a painting, less installation work now.