It's June on ARTastic ...

This month on ARTastic we are being a little light-hearted with our choice of inspiration.  Every year I like to introduce one artwork that represents the rural Australian landscape - it might be a modern landscape or a more nostalgic look at a time gone by.  This month I am sure you will appreciate this gem and I certainly look forward to seeing how you might be inspired by it.

Introducing Max Mannix with The Jam Session.

Criteria is  to use distressing on your work.

Hint - think colonial Australia, country pubs, shady veranda's, musical instruments, watching bands, weatherboard houses, lanky boys and faithful dogs!

A little about Max Mannix.

Max Mannix is an Australian artist who paints stories or ‘yarns’, based on his years growing up in Victorian country towns and working on cattle stations in the Queensland outback. These experiences and the colourful characters along the way have provided Max with an endless flow of inspiration for his artwork, depicting Australian country life in a light-hearted vein with keen insight and gentle humour. Max is a highly collectable and published artist, whose work is exhibited in one-man and group shows and owned by private and corporate collections around the world. Max’s work is predominantly painted in oil on specially prepared canvas board, but he also uses acrylics and pen and inks as well as creating etchings and figurative sculpture.The Mannix Studio Gallery is located in, ‘The Sandstone Church’, at the front of his residential property in Kenthurst, New South Wales.

http://www.maxmannix.com/

and here is my page ...

This painting is all about country and music so naturally I had to marry them both with a layout celebrating THE country music event in Australia - The Tamworth Country Music Festival.  I used colours from the painting and ink and paint distressing techniques to create my page.

You have the entire month of June to enter.  We'd love to see your new paper, digital, or off the page entries.  Please no back-dated submissions.  You may combine with a sketch and/or colour/technique challenge and international entries are always welcome.