Hi, I’m Janet, the creative artist behind Smithy James Creative Arts. If you’ve seen my work, you already know that my sweet spot is watercolor miniatures. I love to find inspiration in and around Williamsburg, Virginia, where my husband and I have lived on and off for the past 20 years.
Why Smithy James?
Smithy James Creative Arts is named for my two Miki dogs, Smithwick and Jameson. If you detect a pattern, you are correct – both are named for Irish beers/spirits. In fact, there used to be a Guinness, too, but we lost the poor little guy to degenerative disc disease in the collective dumpster fire that was 2020.
Mikis are pretty much a combination of all the cute little dog breeds rolled into one. More specifically, Maltese, Papillon, Japanese Chin, Shih Tzu, and maybe even a little Yorkie. Smithy and James are my happy, yappy companions. They are the reason why my Zoom calls default to mute. And if I’m being honest, also to a blurred background. Not that they aren’t adorable, but it only took one virtual Executive Management meeting at the company I used to work for featuring Smithy and James humping enthusiastically on the sofa behind me to set all future calls to blurred. Better for everyone that way. Except maybe Smithy and James, who tend to crave the attention.
Why Art Life?
As you may have already gleaned from the rambling above, “Art Life” is a catch-all for me to tell you about my inspirations, my latest projects, and artsy happenings around town. And in what amounts to the best website/blog launch opportunity ever, I’m starting off by participating in the Busch Gardens Williamsburg “Summer of Wonder.” Busch Gardens has partnered with the Williamsburg Artists Group (WAG), of which I am a proud member, to develop a community interactive mural in the park, an installation of the iconic Virginia LOVE sign painted by the member artists, and opportunities for us to paint plein air throughout the park. And in case you’re not in the know, plein air is what it’s called when you see an artist set up with an easel outdoors, painting what they see around them. See? Art life!
Should you happen to visit Busch Gardens Williamsburg this summer between June 21 and August 11, be sure to stop at the WAG kiosk at Prost Patio in the Germany area, where you can meet the artists (maybe even me!), participate in the interactive community mural, and purchase original artwork.
Why a Blog?
Besides painting, I have a long history as a writer. More on that another day, but in the meantime suffice it to say there was no way I was going to launch a website without having a blog to go along with it. So, welcome to Smithy James Art Life Blog! I'd love to hear from you, so feel free to like and comment below. And if you do like what you read, be sure to subscribe and Smithy James Art Life Blog will be delivered directly to your inbox. As an added bonus, future posts will also feature new artwork.
Congratulations on your new venture, Janet!