Thursday, October 6, 2011

Monster mash Up at Psycho Donuts!

Monsters, donuts and art...what could be better? I've got some new paintings over at Campbell's Psycho Donuts for their annual Halloween show.  Try their new Zombie Balls...delish!


Mark your calendar for
October 15, starting at 10am for
Psycho Monster MashUp!

We're mashing together original artwork (by local artists such as Christine Benjamin, Nic Caesar, John Hageman, Murphy Adams, Michael Foley, Lacey Bryant and more), along with Psycho Karaoke in the padded cell. If you've never experienced Psycho Karaoke, you haven't lived! Join us with our fearless karaoke leader, Bruce Rogers of Korkaraoke.

Mash that up a little further with off-the-wall donuts, and zombified nurses - and there you have it
I Have Demons

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Luna Park Chalk Art Festival


Ok, so this was my first time doing chalk art on concrete.  I was a little intimidated but just decided to go for it. I didn't bring a photo or a sketch or anything to go by, like most things in my life I just winged it. Because I normally work really small, most of my pieces top out at 7 inches, doing a 10x10 foot drawing seemed impossible but 4 1/2 hours later there you have it.

This was the 4th Annual Chalk Art Festival at Backesto Park on the Northside in San Jose. Friends Lacey Bryant, Al Preciado, Paul Gonzales, and our fearless leader Katrine Loera chair and organizer of the festival, along with loads of other artists, kids and high school art students made some incredible pieces. There was also some really cool entertainment, art booths, food trucks (I had rad Korean tacos from Mogo and amazing handmade ice cream from Treatbot!) This was a fantastic event and if you weren't there, check it out next year!

Lacey Bryant and her amazing piece!

Katrina Loera and "Fallout of the Rising Sun"

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

 On Saturday September 24th I'll be participating in the Luna Park Chalk Art Festival. Not only will I make a big ass chalk art piece, I'll also have a booth seeling my paintings, prints and lots more. There's also going to be cool food trucks, live music and dancers and tons of other nifty artists.  I hope that you can be there! Details below...
 
 
Time
Saturday, September 24 · 10:00am - 4:00pm

Location
Backesto Park
North 13th Street between Jackson and Empire
San Jose, CA

Created By

More Info
The Luna Park Chalk Art Festival is happening on September 24th from 10-4pm at Backesto Park in San Jose. Featured chalk artists include Wayne and Cheryl Renshaw, Julio Jimenez, Paul J. Gonzalez, Lacey Bryant and Katrina Loera. Other artists include Murphy Adams, David Mejia, Monika Rose, John Cloud, Empire Seven Studios Juan Carlos Araujo , Sonja Caldwell, Frankendoll, Shannon Amidon, Miguel Machuca, Anthony Barbaria, Al Preciado, Francisco Franco and many many more! Musical and dance guests will include Cuatro con Tres, accordion player Michael Zampiceni and Movimiento Cosmico Aztec dancers. This year we have over 30 vendors and over 100 artists planning to attend. Treatbot, Mogo BBQ, Mona's Fruit, San Jose Noodle, Giovanni's Pizza, Sonia's Sweets and Eats, and Lorena's Taqueria will also be there. You don't want to miss this unique event! It will be unlike any festival you have ever attended! Join us!

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Sisters of Mercy: Nine Nuns I Have Known


Friday night is usually date night. Mr. Adams & I went and saw a movie...The Help. I had read the book, which is unusual, I mean I can read, but my spare time is usually devoted to making stuff so I don't read that much, and especially not best sellers. In any case I did like the book and the movie was really good as well. Anyways, I'm straying away from my point. While getting our tickets, 2 nuns were ahead of us in line. Real nuns. Updated habits, not the kind I remember from catholic school, and blue not black, summer weight habits. One looked just like my 3rd grade teacher, Sister Celelia. We called her Sister Hitler (top row, 3rd from left). She was not the nicest of nuns and reminded me constantly that I bore a resemblance to the troll doll Ricky kept in his desk. She sent me to the principal's office more than once, and once I called her a bitch under my breath, which got me in real trouble, the kind that included a yard stick in the cloak room. I spent the rest of that school year in her classroom a prisoner unable to move or open my mouth for fear of what she might have planned for me.

In any case in seeing these nuns enter the theater my husband says to me, "You're feeling guilty, aren't you?"...yes. Yes I was. I had just finished "Sisters of Mercy" a nod to the nine nuns I had known in elementary school. Most I imagine are probably dead, so here was my chance to immortalize these women, the kind of women that don't exist much anymore, save the 2 nuns who decided to see The Help that evening, a strange coincidence and reminder of what a bad person I am or uh, was.

The Sisters of Mercy weren't all bad, I loved some of these women, even Sister Loretta, with the lovely singing voice, and crackerjack skill at whacking your fingers with a ruler when you weren't paying attention. Or Sister Mary William, who loved math and spoke with a funny little lisp, the short and stout puffy little nun we called Muffin. Our principal Sister Virginia was probably the first practitioner of tough love. She was known by the nickname Beaver, for all the years of her reign, because of her prominent buck teeth. Once a group of students set a trail a sawdust from the convent to her office, the kind of cruelly funny prank that only kids forced to wear wool uniforms in California and go to mass everyday are capable of.

So "Sisters of Mercy" will be available soon as a 16x20 inch limited edition giclee print. It will be $95. unframed. If you're interested in pre-ordering one I'll throw in free shipping, just let me know! murphyadams@sbcglobal.net


Upcoming:

Luna Park Chalk Art Festival
Saturday September 24, 2011 10am-4pm
Backesto Park, San Jose
www.lunaparkbusiness.com

I'll be creating some street art at this Chalk Festival, but I'll also have a booth selling my paintings, prints and sculptures, come check it out. Luna Park is a sweet little San Jose neighborhood!



Friday, August 26, 2011

Illustration Friday: Disguise



Well I haven't posted in IF for awile but saw this weeks topic and knew I had the perfect piece. This is called "Show Me Who You Really Are".

Monday, June 6, 2011

Trying Something New


Keeping things new and exciting is always a challenge and I'm not just talking about my marriage (hee hee). As an artist I try challenging myself regularly, I figure there's always something to learn and I don't want to just settle into one thing and become a Thomas Kincaid type, cranking out the same crap day after day. (Note: His stuff is crap, not mine, but I guess that's a matter of opinion) Anyways, you gotta grow, change and part of that means trying new things in order to keep it fresh, peoples.

OK so I'm a painter, but I'm always experimenting with new materials, I'm a freak for inks, odd rubber stamps, fancy art markers and all kinds of art supply store goodies. I often work in clay, handbuilding sculpture and for my day job I make alot of handmade tiles for architectural projects. However, I've never been able to master the art of throwing pots. While in college many years ago I attempted this great feat and was a complete failure. Of course back in those days they were kick wheels, none of this silent electric wheel stuff, it was hard work. The fact is I never did get the hang of it, my pots all looked like some kinda rumpled tube top on the laundry room floor. Yes, this was the 80's.

Well so recently an old friend who is an amazin
g ceramicist opened a studio called Higher Fire and I decided to take a class. The owner Dan, is an amazing teacher and has been super patient with me. I'll admit I didn't take to it right away, but I'm starting to get it and and after sort of putting my own take on it, I actually like my pieces. I've been using letter stamps for some recessed phrasing and then when the clay is leather hard carving in some of my images. I then hand paint them with glazes and fire. Check out some of my first pieces and some still in progress.


Another new thing I recently tried was making mono-prints. A couple of weeks ago I also got the opportunity to take part in a workshop at The Institute of contemporary Art here in San Jose. I was sponsored by a member of the board there for this workshop where the idea was to take artist who work in other media, like painters, photographers, sculptors etc. and teach them to make prints. The teacher was Fanny Reznek, an accomplished printmaker, who was wonderful in teaching us the basic use of materials. Anyways, check out my results!




Upcoming Show!
This summer I'll be a featured artist in "Mischief" at Studio Gallery in San Francisco. Spend a day in the city and come see the show!

Mischief
, characters, creatures & comics
July 13th - August 7th
opening reception: Sunday, July 17th, 2-6 pm
http://www.studiogallerysf.com

Read About Me!
Awesome outsider artists The Nally Boys, father and son duo Wm B. and David "Big Dutch" Nally have featured me on their blog, please check it out! They're both amazing artists from Pennsylvania.
http://thenallyboys.blogspot.com/

Like beer?
Exciting news...I've been commissioned to design a beer label for a local brewery, this red ale is supposed to come out soon and will be sold at BevMo. More on this later! I'm hoping to do an art show/beer party...sounds fun, huh?

As always, I'm always listing new stuff in my Etsy Store http://www.etsy.com/shop/murphymae, take a peek


There's also some new work including lots of affordable prints at Kaleid Gallery, if you find yourself in downtown SJ check it out http://www.kaleidgallery.com

Feel free to contact me with any questions, commissions, suggestions, you know, whatever, I always love hearing from you all!

Happy Summer!
Murph

www.murphyadams.net

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Dollmaker Show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4jfQBUNkY0

Here's a great video that shows all the work in the Dollmaker Show at Cactus Gallery in LA's Eagle Rock neighborhood. My stuff is near the end. The opening was great fun!




Also don't forget this Sunday March 20th, I'll have some paintings in "Delicious" at Studio Gallery in SF!
http://www.studiogallerysf.com/