May 15, 2016 by Nancy Satin - 1 Comment

On Gifts…

Two years ago, I decided to paint a small portrait of my friend, Sydelle, who was celebrating the same “big birthday” I was celebrating that year. Wanting to surprise her with it, I couldn’t ask her for a photograph, so I snapped a picture of a framed photo of her with her significant other, my great good friend, Herb, and his dog, Charley, that was on the desk in their kitchen.

Sydelle

I gave her that portrait a few months later and was happy to see it in their family room every time I was there. More than that, Herb was really taken by it and constantly complimented my ability to catch a likeness, encouraging me to market that ability.

Charley

Fast forward…now Herb is about to celebrate an even bigger birthday. How could I not paint a portrait of him, after all that praise? Although Sydelle tried to send me photographs to use this time, none of them quite worked for me, so I went back to the same one I had used for her portrait and, just because Herb loves him more than anything on earth, painted Charley as well, on a little 5” X 5” canvas of his own. When I first painted the grisaille for Herb’s portrait, I thought I had not quite caught the likeness yet, so I started calling it “Almost Herb.” The title tickled me, so it stuck, though I do think that anyone who knows Herb Siegel, legendary playboy and lawyer from Buffalo, NY, would recognize him in this.

Almost Herb

Happy birthday, Herb!

March 8, 2015 by Nancy Satin - 0 comments

Touch Blue

Make A Wish

I’m a birthday person. I’ve always been. When I was a child, my family made a big deal out of birthdays, and when I blew out my birthday candles, they’d always tell me to make a wish and touch something blue to make my wish come true. So when I thought about painting Make a Wish, the third time I’ve used smoke as my subject, and blew out my birthday candle, I knew I had to paint it on a blue backdrop. But I won’t tell you what I wished for…

August 29, 2013 by Nancy Satin - 0 comments

About Girlfriends and Birthdays

I have a bff who was approaching a “big birthday” about five years ago. Her husband was throwing a surprise party for her, and I was thinking about what gift I could give to a woman who really does have everything. Of course, I would paint something for her, but what? After awhile, it came to me…

Since my girlfriend and her telephone are never very far apart, I decided to paint a telephone keypad for her, with every number and symbol representing something personal about her. To make it physically look like a keypad, I painted twelve 8” X 8” canvasses, each an inch and a half deep, to look like buttons. The result, in its own way, is a portrait of her (I told you I think of all my paintings as portraits). I’ll explain:

Number 1 is painted on a house. She’s a very successful realtor and has been the number 1 producer in her agency for most of her career.

Number 2 is a conversation bubble. She’s a talker.

Number 3 is a nod to our girl golf trips to Aruba and her enjoyment of the craps table.

Number 4 celebrates the game we love to play together.

Number 5 is all about makeup. Did I say she’s a looker?

Number 6 is a conversation hearts candy. See number 2. Her favorite food is candy.

Number 7 is a ticket stub. She loves plays, musicals, and concerts and is the social director for a group of friends who rely on her to get them tickets too.

Number 8 is a triangle. Remember the ones you got to play in kindergarten? She has one. It makes her happy to play it sometimes.

Number 9 is a mah jongg tile: 9 dot. Girlfriends like to play games. See number 3 and 4.

The * key is a magic wand. She has one and uses it when she thinks she needs it. See number 8.

The # key is a scale (get it?). She organized a group that worked with a nutritionist to lose weight and eat healthier. See number 6.

Operator is a CD. She’s a big fan of music (see number 7 and 8) and often gifts friends with CD’s she’s burned of her favorite singers. If you play the notes on the music staff below the CD, you will hear Op-er-a-tor (Jim Croce).