Editor’s Note: Recently, we were contacted by Jasmine Stirling with an invitation to view her new photography website. We loved what we saw – in particular her use of space, light, color and social commentary. There’s shadow-play from above, a shoeless shoe-peddler, some Hitchcockian birds, striking facades, bold tones and a tongue-in-cheek wind sock. Please enjoy these photographs, taken from coast to coast and across the globe. * * * The first six photos are from the “Order” series, the next four are from the “Color” series and the final photo is from the “Take a Bite” series. Our featured image is from the “Africa” series.   * * * Jasmine Stirling has been an obsessive photographer since she was a kid shooting blurry shots of the woods, her feet, and a stranger’s dog with…

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Editor’s Note: Hank Keneally’s “Diffusion Portraits” series captures real life images and presents them in a blur of color that toes the line between dream and apparition. Read on to hear what he has to say about his “a-ha moment” with this series and how he achieved his effects in his photographs. Click on any image to see a larger version. Click your browser’s Back button to return to this page. * * * A Moment Of Discovery: The “Cosmic Download” During a class I was teaching for Brio Fine Arts Center one of my students got a call on her cell phone. She headed for the door to answer the call so as not to disturb the class. As she opened the door I got my “Cosmic Download”: Hank! You Should Photograph The Entire…

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Editor’s Note: We met Erica Nazzaro at an art exhibition this fall. Her mixed media watercolor paintings of scenes in the forest and by the water instantly grabbed us because of the way the colors popped and played with each other. We needed to see more. If you’d like to see more, Erica has two exhibits opening this week and two more next month: November 7th and 8th at Roslindale Open Studios, 141 Aldrich St. in Roslindale, MA November 6th-29th in the “Abstracted” exhibition at Uforge Gallery, 767 Centre St. in Jamaica Plain, MA with an opening night reception at 6pm November 6th. December 4th from 6:00-10:00PM: ART 100 BOSTON at Piano Craft Gallery, 793 Tremont St, Boston December 5th and 6th from 12:00-5:00PM: Pop Up Holiday Shop at Loring Greenough House, 12 South, St. Jamaica…

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Here at the Fictional Café  we pride ourselves on publishing talented artists who create fun and unique works of art. The first time I saw Nicole Beauchaine’s guitar art, I knew we just had to get her work on the Fictional Café. Further perusal of her website revealed that she’s talented in many artistic areas including illustration and stop motion. A truly creative person, we are excited to bring you her guitar art.   These violins were painted and carved into wall-mountable lamps Artistic, musical, practical: Guitar shelf Decorative guitar art  Carved back of another guitar lamp Day of the Dead guitar art Like what you’ve seen so far? If so, go check out Nicole’s Halloween-inspired guitars at her current exhibit in spooky Salem, MA at the Howling Wolf Taqueria. Here are just a few…

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Last October we featured an excerpt from Daughter of Fire, a novel in progress by Dory Fiamingo. Shortly thereafter, Dory received an invitation to exhibit her art, a series of sensual and erotic nudes, at Westwind Frame and Gallery in The Dalles, Oregon. She told us: “Every time I think my work isn’t a big deal, not really, I think, yeah, how many artists get told by a gallery that they want 11 paintings to display!?! You should have seen the owner greedily grabbing canvases and saying, “I want this one and this one, and definitely this one!” Dory likes to paint nudes, and she reports the show was a smashing success. When the show ended, Dory had sold one and gotten three commissions. More commissions have followed. Most recently, Dory has submitted a few pieces in the Artists of the [Columbia River] Gorge competition taking place October…

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