Sunday, February 28, 2010

"Tango"

Can you Dance the Dance?
I am so very pleased with this painting! The initial idea I had went a very similar way that I intended for and the things that didn't go as planed turned out even better than I had hoped! The textures, style, and imagery is what makes this painting what it is, so do not be fooled by a tiny sample picture of this whopping 5x3 foot colorful and imaginative painting! It is currently on display at the Bistro 326 located downtown Kamloops, and I know I cannot rave more about this restaurant, but if you have never tried it you must put it on the top of your list! The Bistro has amazing food, even better service, and as a bonus it is filled with 8 of my larger paintings :)
The techniques behind this painting is very much about shape, color, and layering. The background contains of various layers of color and shapes which play with the lcurves of the figures, and sometimes tricks your eye! If you can not yet see the figures in the painting you will just have to go and see it in person, as it is sometimes easier when seen at a more proportional size.
Initially I wanted to see this painting as a very happy and colorful painting. I think this was achieved by the flow of the color palette combined with the dance which was created by the characteristics of the shapes. Plus it was a perfect fit with the theme and feeling I wanted to give to the viewers.

After returning from the Olympics tonight I am in very high spirits and am more proud than ever to be Canadian. Which is very good in my case cause happy Keishia means happy paintings, and happy paintings mean happy viewers :)

Thursday, February 25, 2010

"Choices"


You Look Fabulous Tonight!
Well who would have thought that a "crappy" New Years picture could turn into an eye catching painting!? Here you have the night getting close to an end and a moment of doubt... "Why Oh, Why!... But wow did I look gorgeous tonight!"
In the end it was always worth it! ...Right?


Normally in a typical new years eve album this would be in the delete file, but I was so drawn to this picture when I found it... which it then became inevitable that it should be painted. There are just so many different ways that this painting can be interpreted!
I used a stain technique in the background with a really textured effect for the figure's legs. I wanted you to be focused on the legs and leather, cause well...that's what this is all about isn't it? Being sexy!
For a busy and 'out there' look I like to call it my "put the color down and leave it" technique. I thought it would create a really busy and fun painting which went with how I see the image and could also have many different interpretations! The painting is on display at the Sagebrush Theatre in Kamloops, BC along with 10 other (mostly large) paintings! Go take a look at my latest collection, almost all of the paintings in the Sagebrush are brand new... not even on my website yet (busy bee!), and let me know what you think! If you guys don't start leaving me comments or becoming my follower soon I am going to think no one is reading and I will be forced to stop writing blogs to cyber space! Ha, ha.
But seriously go check out the Sagebrush it is unbelieveably huge in the lobby, and have I ever led you wrong before? :)
http://www.sagebrushtheatre.ca/default.htm

GO CANADA GO!

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

MY ART on display at the Sagebrush Theatre

New Artwork at the Sagebrush Theater in Kamloops
To all my lucky viewers who have been keeping up with my blog! You get to see one of my most recent paintings! I created this one early February 2010! It is Acrylic on Canvas, a whopping 2.5x3.5 ft, and is painted flat so you can get a feel for the beauty of peacock feathers...color and shape! I find it hard getting a visual of this piece when it is so small on the computer, when seen in actual size this piece with the attention to color and detail makes quite the statement. I love it and it is going to be a struggle to take it away from my house to put it up for display! I'm not sure exactly at this moment where this painting is going to be on display as I am currently moving around my work to get the new work on display! However, you check on my website within the next week it will be posted beside the painting where it is on display! I am also currently in the middle of displaying new work in the Sagebrush theater in Kamloops, so that you can see that I have been a busy bee!
But in any case here is a little taste of some of my newest work. In the next few days I will post the rest of my new work on my website so be sure to check it out!
www.ktreber.com
Also, after February, 24th, 2010 I will have the Sagebrush Theater lobby full of my artwork, and I will be constantly bringing in new work to be displayed there since the lobby is so huge!
...Remember...big space...and big walls... means big artwork...and Bigger is Better!
Come see the big bang! :)

Thursday, February 18, 2010

"On The Road Again"


The First of Many
I created this painting during University for my second year painting class back in April 2008. It was the end of semester and by this time I was ready to do my own thing with my paintings. T
hankfully the project subject was of my choice, and I had just recently been traveling and taken some really exciting pictures. I took the original photo into Photoshop and played with the effects until I found the image you see above. What motivated me most about this photo in particular was the depth it created with the wet road descending compared to the water marks on the windshield. At first I thought I wanted to create a representational painting, but then after it was finished the effect that I wanted in this painting was just not there, so I went back in to keep working at it. Now, during this time I was certain I would never be an abstract artist at all. My thoughts exactly were "It's rediculous how someone can make millions by throwing paint at a canvas"... Little did I know...there just might be a bit more to it than that... So, when I started to re-work this painting with a bit of abstract I created even more depth and interpretation which intrigued me even more! I then became excited to see representational and abstract working together to create something more, which at the time I didn't think that was the solution at all!

This painting was one of my first works that were avaiable for sale, and I wish I had taken some progress pictures. It was really interesting to see how it eveovled, expeically from the original photo (which I should have kept as well). Perhaps that should have been the part that I listened to in University, especially cause it was all my teachers ever talked about... "Document Keishia, Documenting your work, Document! Document! DOCUMENT!"

Oh... you live and you learn...and then you live some more!

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

"Unconditional"


Commissions! What a Wonderful Thing!
I thought it would be interesting to you, my fellow viewers, if you could see where my commissions come from!
This is one of my most favorite pictures of my brother Ryan, and his girlfriend Kristen...
Can't you just feel the love?!
I did this painting for them without them knowing as I already knew they would love it and it is a fabulous picture that just screamed... Paint Me!
Right after I surprised them with the painting I got an "Awww, thank you! We love it!" ...Then straight to "Are you sure my nose looks like that?"
... Got to love family!... :)

For this painting I used a stain technique, which involves a lot of water and a lot of mess. By using a stain technique the colors and patterns blended together a bit where it created a softer more subtle look. This I thought was appropriate to the theme of the picture and the feeling I wanted to push even more in the painting. I am quite pleased with this one because I don't think anyone could look at this painting and not appreciate the feeling they get from it.
Plus it's a nice painting :)
If you check on my website at the thumbnail of this painting you will see my most favorite part. But really, when you are happy with a piece sometimes it is hard to choose!

So if any of you were wondering how commissions work... a picture, an idea and a lot of talking is normally the route I take with my customers. However, a lot of the time people will have their own ideas without a photo and I will work with them on background ideas, textures, subject matter, color schemes, etc.
I find it a lot of fun working with other people on commissions because it is a different type of art, where you have to listen and use your techniques and inspirations to represent the style and outcome the customer intends for. However, it is also equally important to combine my own artistic inspiration of how I see that image or person as the customer has come to me because they like my style as well as their own. But then I will get some customers who will come to me saying... "I am no artist, so you know best, but I love how my kids boots are pink, and I love the color red." Now those paintings are the most fun!

In a few days I will post one of my newest paintings that I have been working on for the Sagebrush theatre here in Kamloops, BC. I will be having an opening sometime in the next month and I will be sure to invite you all to join me and view my new work through out the Sagebrush!
Happy hump day!
...aka Wednesday...middle of the week...over the hump...downhill slide to the weekend...

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

"Outstanding in Her Field"

Wide Open Spaces
Good morning everyone, and I'm sorry that I have not blogged in a few days... it was a busy weekend for Keishia and her paintings!
Here is a painting I sold just last week. I had it on display at the Bistro 326 in Kamloops, BC, along with 7 other paintings through out the restaurant. The size of painting (6x2.5 ft.) really makes it what it is. A lot of people would comment that it reminds them a lot of their hometown of Saskatchewan because it is so long, open, and soothing like the fields in their home town. It is also a very calming painting as the colors are very muted and brush strokes are quite blended. The name of this painting actually came from my proud Grandma Treber, and might I add that it really was quite clever. :) I had a lot of fun creating this painting back in October 2008 as I worked out of my parents shop on an old tarp covered dresser. During 2008 and early 2009 I created a lot of my work without an easel, and for some odd reason I loved working on my loving room floor... It never really hit me until I ended up in a lot of pain from not realizing how long I had been in the same position for....kneeling...cross legged...crouching over my painting...reaching...working upside down... So, thankfully I eventually made an easel and purchased some sawhorses... However I still work in my living room, and on the floor...
All in all we to start somewhere, mine just happened to be on the living room floor... I also wanted to thank the lovely couple from Vancouver for their recent purchase of "Outstanding in her Field"
Go check out the rest of my work and the food! At Bistro 326 located on 326 Victoria street.
Happy Tuesday!

Friday, February 12, 2010

"Sweet Disposition"


Time to Paint Another!
February 2009 was when I created this vast 6x2.5 ft painting. The figure you see is painted in a very smooth manor with thin layers of paint but the background is painted with a palette knife so the figure and the background are completely separate yet they work together by being so different. If you've ever seen this painting in real you would see what I mean with the texture vs smooth, it really adds some grace to the figure, while letting you appreciate the beauty of color and paint as well! It was a lot of fun painting this one mostly because I got the best of both world's - painting realistically and painting more abstract but both where you can solely focus on shape, color and texture. I sold this piece to a couple in Vancouver about a month after my show opening at Tango in Kamloops, B.C.
"Tango" is a fabulous Tapas Bar which welcomes all ages, and great food, with a funky modern atmosphere. On weekends they will often have DJ's or sometimes a Band playing and to seal the deal they also have my art displayed through out their Restaurant as well! Check out their website to get a feel for their place... http://tangorestaurant.net/
I have to say that I do miss having this piece, it was so calming, warm, and soft but rough at the same time. Even though I was the artist who painted it I was always finding little things in the painting which became my favorite parts. For me there is always little parts of each painting which I am most proud of and love looking at the most. (On my website when I make up the thumbnails for the gallery pages I normally choose my most favorite part of each painting) I'm sure it is different for each person and for each painting but for some reason I could not make up my mind which part of it I loved looking at the most. There was always something different in the painting that I loved more each time I looked at it. You know what...enough talking about it...I'm going to go paint right now! :)

Tuesday, February 9, 2010

"Sun Struck"


More Texture! More Color!
This is one of my most recent mountain paintings of course of the ever so popular MT. BEGBIE! I painted this painting in November of 2009 to be on display at the Avalanche Centre in Revelstoke, B.C. and then it sold right before Christmas in late December 2009. At the time it was a really refreshing painting as this Mt. Begbie was all warm bright colors on a soft background with thick gestural slabs of paint to create the three mountain peaks, and of course the unique size of the stretcher made it the most exciting of all to paint.
Now in comparison to my first mountain painting in my earlier blog "First Snow" you can see there is quite a difference in color and style! Which styles or colors do you like better? For some people it depends on your decor, others will change their wall color to match that painting or picture they love so much. I love how differently each person react to each of my paintings, so please feel free to leave me comments or become my follower on this blog!
In a nut shell this style of painting is by far one of my most favorites to paint!!


Monday, February 8, 2010

"First Snow"



First Commission
The Mountain painting you see above is the very first Mt. Begbie painting that I ever created. I thought you would find it interesting to see the difference in my painting techniques from 2008 till now, so in my next blog I will be writing on my most recent Mt. Begbie painting in comparison to this painting. I also added another picture of the "Iridecsence" piece from yesterday's blog so you could see a bit more detail in the painting, as the picture on the blog is quite minuscule.
Now back to "First Snow", for all of you who are unfamiliar with Revelstoke, it is a fabulous place surrounded by mountains, blessed with mounds of fluffy snow, and most recently now filled with skier's from around the world as a new large ski resort is under an on-going construction. The mountain's are what make Revelstoke such a beautiful place to live,
(Mt. Begbie being the most popular) and as I now know by living away from it just how much you miss it all when you are unable to smell the fresh breeze of glacier air everyday.
The idea for this painting stemmed from a photograph that my dad had taken in 2007 as it was at the time snowing on the top of Mt. Begbie during late fall in Revelstoke. It was a wonderful shot that my mom just adored, and she was actually the one who gave me the first push towards my career and commissioned me to paint this particular picture for her. So during the summer of 2008 I came home to sit in the sun for several days and paint one of my mother's favorite pictures for her. Since then I have not looked back, and I am only getting more excited and infatuated about every inch of my work, ideas are exploding on to the canvas....glass...silk...any kind of textile....any kind of wood...you name it and I'll paint it!
If you would like to view this mountain painting and enjoy a revitalizing cup of tea or a relaxing massage visit my mom's store "Energy Matters" in Revelstoke, B.C.

Sunday, February 7, 2010

"Iridescence"


Set the Mood...
This painting is a must see, the pictures just simply do NOT do it any justice at all.
However the title of the painting says it all, the colors that radiate throughout this abstraction is really captivating, and the different textures evoke the mind even more so. "Iridescence" is quite a large but skinny painting (roughly 8x5x3 ft) and can be hung either vertical or horizontally. I created this painting in May 2009 before a show that I had at the Outtabounds nightclub in Revelstoke B.C.(the show was a one day event during a sidewalk sale...very fun and eventful day let me tell you!) After this painting was finished I hung it in my house to analyze it and feel the mood of the painting in different atmospheres, different angles etc. That is when I found that this is one of my most versitile paintings, and because it is so long and skinny it can virtually hang anywhere! It is amazing how it created such a mood in my living room, and filled any space that I had so well.
At the moment it is on display at the Bistro 326 in Kamloops, B.C. , along with 7 other large paintings of mine. ...And have I mentioned that the food and service
at the Bistro are fabulous, and very well priced for downtown fine dining.
This painting sure was a hard one to take out my home and put on display, but I visit it every once in a while and have a delicious bite to eat as well :)
Go take a look , maybe you'll see me there! :)

Friday, February 5, 2010

"Board Brod"


Groovy Baby...
Here is another painting I did more recently in October 2009 which uses a similar technique as I explained in the blog yesterday. Only this particular painting is painted right onto 2 skate boards without any wheels so when they are hung on the wall they come out at you and give a groovy effect. The material I layered on top of the boards is a metallic silver which I
engraved designs into, and then
painted on top of. I love this painting because it is different and as much as it is abstract where you can enjoy the flow, shape, and texture of the colors you can also enjoy the image it portrays as well. At the moment this painting is on display at "The Cabin" in Revelstoke, B.C. and the price is $175. Go check it out, paintings especially ones with metallic or textures are so difficult to capture as a picture, and are always better appreciated when seen in it's right dimensions and mediums! There are also two others of my work that are on display at The Cabin as well at the moment, soon to be more!
Happy Friday Everyone!




Thursday, February 4, 2010

"Trick of the Eye"




New Technique!
Hello everyone,
What did I say... another day, another blog, and yet another artwork!
This is a painting I did back in May 2008. It's title is "Trick of the Eye" it's size is 3x3ft, and is roughly 2ft off the ground. The coffee table is still available for purchase and is listed at $295.00
During mid year of 2008 I was starting to explore techniques, mediums, and different methods of painting. They way I figured out how to create this marble look is quite funny, and I'd like to share it with everyone.
So every time I wash my brushes in the sink the colors from each brush combined with the water would create this beautiful swirling array of colors which made me (surprisingly) thoroughly enjoy cleaning my brushes. It's funny how things work cause ever since I started painting I always enjoyed this effect and had not even thought of incorporating it into a painting! At least not until this painting! By painting with mounds of water, layers, and paint on glass (and making a HUGE mess might I add) I was able to create what I love so much about cleaning my brushes. Ha, ha!
After the table top was finished I found that the combination of the earth tones, the painting technique, and it being under glass created a marble effect, which I just adore!
To this day I can't get enough of this technique in my paintings... Who would have thought that ACTUALLY enjoying cleaning would bring you success?
Experiment gone right! :)

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

"Undefeated"

My First Book Cover Art
The first blog of Keishia Treber is going out to Celeste and Angela Catena! The picture above is the cover of a 12 chapter novel which I have been honored to paint for an amazing 9 year old, Celeste Catena. Celeste has written and published roughly 1000 copies in the first few months, and is currently working on her second novel. Working with an 9 year old with a vocabulary that I hardly could keep up with was an exciting adventure, which I look forward to working with her again on her second novel! To read more on this amazing young lady or to purchase her novel you can connect to her website at: www.youngauthorspeaker.com or visit the Chapters in Kelowna, B.C. and possibly catch her during one of her many book signings!