KenSwinson.com

Author: Ken

  • Workshop with Mark Errol and special guest Kathy King

    Greetings from Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts!

    I just wrapped up an amazing workshop learning from two of my pottery heroes (Mark Errol and Kathy King).

    group photo of happy students posing in the Arrowmont clay studio with superstar teachers, Mark Errol and Kathy King.

    It has been a dream come true meeting them and seeing Mark and Kathy’s work in real life. –sorry, photos on the internet just aren’t the same.

    artist ken swinson posing in front of a salt fired kiln with a pile of bisque pottery displayed inside it

    I have been on a pottery break, and can’t tell you how good it felt to have my hands back in clay for 5+ whole days. i ended up making 34 pots (that’s a lot in comparison to my normal speed)

    Every workshop I have taken at Arrowmont has been an incredible experience. It’s a perfect environment to push my creativity to places I could never reach by myself. The bears of Arrowmont make it a magical and special place.

    two baby bears playing in a tree. A human bear (artist Mark Errol) watching from the kitcher porch at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts.

    If you are in the Knoxville area, Mark and Kathy have a group exhibit, “Zero Lucks To Give” on display at the Arrowmont Gallery in Knoxville for the month of August. I was really thrilled to see their work in person and add these two cups to my collection!

    photo of two cups by mark errol and kathy king. they are displayed in front of a mirror, so you can see a few sides of the pottery. A poster promoting their exhibit is also in the background

    My heart is bursting, i’m so grateful to those who have made this experience possible for me!!! Thank you! Thank you! thank you! Stay tuned, i’ll have more to share soon.

  • Gallery of the month – website changes

    I recently removed my online gallery which archived over 20 years of my artwork.

    From now on, this gallery is going to change every month, and will include 12 hand picked artworks.

    Here are a few examples that I picked for the month of July
    Click any of the images (or use the menu above) to see the whole JULY GALLERY

    folk art abstract style country painting of 3 cows by a lake with a house in the background
    folk art abstract style painting of pigs and a cow in front of a barn with the american flag by kentucky artist ken swinson
    folk art abstract style painting of a man selling watermelon from the back of his truck

    click any image to see the whole gallery for this month

  • new painting – Hound Dog

    colorful abstract cubist folk art acrylic painting of a hound dog. there are birds in the trees and a house and barn in the background

    HOT OFF THE EASEL:
    my latest painting “Hound Dog”. 20×18″ acrylic on canvas.

    The Original will be available to view in person at the Pendleton Art Center on 26 May, 2023.

    prints are available NOW. Click the image for more details

  • New Painting – Under The Pear Tree

    abstract folk art style painting of a goat standing under a pear tree. A bird is standing on the goat's horn talking to another bird standing in the tree.

    it’s been awhile since I’ve painted on canvas, so I’m super excited to show off my latest acrylic painting:

    Under the Pear Tree 14″x34″ Acrylic on canvas.

    The Original is not available until tomorrow (Friday 28 April 2023) from 5-9pm at The Pendleton Art Center, but signed cotton rag archival prints are available online now. Click the image for more details.

    Hope to see you tomorrow!

  • Midnight Snack Pigs in Corn – New Acrylic painting!

    it’s been awhile since I’ve painted on canvas, so I’m super excited to show off my latest acrylic painting: Midnight Snack: Pigs In Corn. After working in colored pencils, this feels big- 18″x36″ inches. If this is something that you might like to have for your art collection, the original will be available for view (and sale) next friday, 28 April 2023 at the Pendleton Art Center! I’m also selling prints on 100% cotton rag paper with archival inks right now. Stay tuned, more coming soon!

  • Birds And Blossoms limited edition linocut print

    printmaking studio with handmade wood etching press

    It’s nice to be back home and in my studio (with my rusty/trusty press!

    carved linocut of birds in a flowering tree. ready to ink

    I just finished carving a spring inspired linocut, and am ready to print

    cotton paper with an embossing after going through the press

    I’m printing with a slightly different technique; using cotton paper and etching blankets.
    This creates a beautiful embossing on the back of the paper after going through the press.

    Just in time for spring!
    Birds and Blossoms

    Limited Edition (45) block print with dark blue ink on 100% cotton paper.  Hand printed with an old fashioned press.  Signed and numbered edition of 45.  Artwork is 6×8″  on an  8×10″ sheet of 100% acid free cotton paper.

    There is a some slight variation with the ink color and texture, this is due to the handcrafted nature of printmaking, and part of what makes prints special.

    Free Shipping to the USA

  • Human Rights Portfolio exhibit at IAGO Oaxaca

    A quick walkthough of the SOS Art Human Rights Portfolio. Sorry about the glare on the artwork and rushing through the exhibit. Although i was there at a slow time of the day, i still did not want to be a distraction to the people enjoying the show. Hopefully the video gives you an idea of the presentation and the space for the exhibit.

    This Portfolio of Woodcut Prints on “Human Rights” is a project of SOS ART in collaboration with Taller Burro Press in Oaxaca, Mexico. It consists of 25 prints by 12 artists from Oaxaca and 12 artists from Cincinnati, each addressing one of 12 human rights, and the 25th print, the title page, created by an artist from Cincinnati.

    The purpose of the portfolio was to challenge artists to create images and messages around human rights through a collaborative process across different cultures; also to raise funds for both SOS ART and Taller Burro Press for their current and future projects.

    you can read more about the project, and take a better look at the artwork here:

    Derechos Humanos • Human Rights Portfolio

  • Midnight Serenade – colored pencil drawing

    I’m learning to draw with colored pencils, and experimenting with limited palettes. This drawing only uses 4 colors.

    Drawn on 8×10” cotton paper

    Polychromos by Faber Castell
    205 Cadmium Yellow Lemon
    109 Dark Chrome Yellow 
    192 India Red
    246 Prussian Blue

    If you are interested in supporting my work, you can get more information about this drawing here:

    midnight serenade

  • Happy St. Pat’s Day! – the good fruit

    I’m learning how to work with colored pencils, and am experimenting with limited palettes. Although it wasn’t intentional, this drawing is a perfect way to celebrate St. Pats day, as it only uses 4 colors: 3 of them are green, and an India red.

    Polychromos by Faber Castell
    205 Cadmium Yellow Lemon
    170 May Green
    159 Hooker’s Green
    192 India Red

    If you are interested in supporting my work, you can get more information about this drawing here:

    The Good Fruit


  • Serenade – colored pencil drawing

    Inspired by the idea that: If you have a talent, you should share it with your friends.

    This is an interesting drawing for me, because it was my first since spending a few weeks working on a series of block prints. also, this uses a minimal color scheme. Only 5 colors: 3 different blues, a yellow and brown.

    Polychromos by FaberCastell
    154 light cobalt turquoise
    153 cobalt turquoise
    246 prussian blue
    183 light yellow ochre
    283 burnt sienna

    I’m selling the original drawing* and prints in my Colored Pencil gallery. you can see them all here.

    *while available