Remix at Dry Fly Distilling, November 5th 2021

Absinthe Blanqui, oil on panel, 8" x 8". ©2021

At long last - a new work alert! 

Hard to believe it's been five years since I posted here. A lot has happened, much of it not good. In 2017 my charmed life came crashing to an end, with several terrible losses taking a toll. It was strange to see my last post date from Before. But life goes on for those of us left behind, so, onward...

Meanwhile, art has taken me in different directions. I've decided to end the Mixology series, as I have too many bodies of work to keep up. But rather than quietly move on, I went the other way and painted eighteen new pieces for one last show. 

Mixology: Remix opens at Dry Fly Distilling in downtown Spokane, Washington, this Friday at 5p.m. Pacific time. When the show opens, the Remix online web shop goes live at sheilaevans.net/mixology-remix. (Preview now at the same link.) The show includes five absinthe-themed paintings inspired by vintage French posters, and thirteen new 6" x 6" pieces featuring popular cocktails. A few older pieces may make an appearance as well.

I hope to see you there, or if not, I hope you take a minute to have a look at the show online. A few notes:

• I'm planning a special Mixology offer for email subscribers only in the next month. Get on the list here.
• There will be five sets of two cocktail books and a deck of cocktail recipe cards for $48 in the shop
• I'll be leaving the blog up so you can access recipes and find links.
• The address for the Remix show is 1021 W. Riverside, Spokane, WA 
• Please visit my website to see what else I've been up to
• Scroll down for a few more images from the show

Cheers! 🍸🍸

Artfest 2016 Starts Friday!

Shake it Up. Oil on panel, 15" x 30".

Artfest is coming! Spokane's own Northwest Museum of Art and Culture hosts its annual juried art festival June 3rd through 5th this year. The festival takes place at Coeur d'Alene Park in Browne's Addition, just west of dowtown Spokane and a few blocks from the museum.

I'll be back at Artfest with Mixology paintings, reproductions and books this year. I'm so excited! Many of the original paintings from both Mixology: The Art of Classic Cocktails and Mixology With a Twist: The Art of Modern Cocktails will be available for purchase, along with dozens of smaller pieces and some larger works created just for the show. And of course I'll bring along lots of the popular Cocktail Cards!

Here are the details:

When: June 3–5, 2016
Where: Coeur d"Alene Park, Spokane, Washington
Hours: Friday, Noon–8, Saturday, 10–8, Sunday, 10–5.
Booth # B-23.

Hope to see you there!

Here's an Artfest map, with South at the top (I think.)

Siesta

Siesta. Oil on panel, 8" x 8". 

$295. [buy now]

As May approaches, I'm fondly remembering our lovely trip to jimgermanbar a year ago. The way things have been going, it seems miraculous we were able to gather ten people for a weekend getaway!

Since then, we've been busy moving Iron Goat Brewing to its new location in downtown Spokane, and in what meantime was available, I created an entirely new body of work in enamels and snagged myself an exciting new gallery.

But as the weather warms up, it feels like time to make one of Audra Wint's summery Siestas: reposado tequila, chamomile liqueur, Cocchi Rosa and lemon in perfect, refreshing balance.

I can't think of a better way to toast some exciting Mixology news: Mixology With a Twist will be featured in the May issue of Spokane Coeur d'Alene Living magazine. 

And in June, all things Mixology return to the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture's Artfest. As always, I'll have original paintings (this time from both books!), copies of the books, small originals, and giclée reproductions. New to Artfest this year, the popular Cocktail Cards, which combine all recipes and paintings from both books in a handy deck of 52 recipe cards.

So if the Siesta looks good to you, please join me this year and pick up a book! Or a painting! Or several!

(The museum emailed me this cute e-card as I wrote this post, so I can't resist...)

MI6

MI6. Oil on panel, 12" x 12". Not for sale.

Many homework assignments were given over the course of making Mixology With a Twist, but Ruins' Crystal Bertholic dished out the biggest one of all.

She sent not one or two, but five recipes to try. By the time I collected the ingredients, the book deadline loomed large, and painting time was nearly gone. So we had to narrow it down to one. 

Vying against contenders such as DJ Lance and the Black Yukon Sucker Punch, MI6 stood out. Clean and light, this spiritous drink filled a needed position in the recipe lineup. The MI6 is a twist on the classic Vesper, and is named for the British secret service. It adds a lovely, subtle floral note with chamomile liqueur, offset with a dash of bitters.

Wanting to capture the bright elegance of the drink in the painting, I bought a mid-century stainless mixing pitcher (thanks, Raising the Bar!) as a nod to the 1953 James Bond novel "Casino Royale," in which Vesper Lynde appears. The metallic pattern in the art deco wallpaper reflects in the drink, emphasizing its clarity. MI6 ended up one of my favorite paintings from the book. Lucky for me, as my husband claimed it, and now I will have to look at it for a very long time.

Adriana Janovich featured the MI6 prominently in her article about Mixology With a Twist in the Spokesman-Review. You can read the article here.

Bad News From Houston

Bad News From Houston. Oil on panel, 12" x 12". 

$595. [Buy now.]

It's January already, and time to ease out of the deadly holiday combo of insanity and debilitating laziness. Naturally, on the first post-holiday Monday, I came down with a cold. Small wonder it isn't worse, given the number and strength of cocktails consumed over the preceding weeks.

On the subject of strong cocktails, I give you Bad News From Houston. (Well, not literally give, but it is for sale.) This is one of my absolute favorite drinks from both books combined, hands down. The mix of rye whiskey, amaro and two vermouths is already right up my alley, but the real kicker is the little bit of salt that makes the whole thing so buttery-awesome.

The recipe came to be in Mixology With a Twist courtesy of Seth Sempere at Spur in Seattle. Seth also happens to be the vice president of Washington's chapter of the national bartender's guild, as if this drink isn't proof enough that he knows what the hell he is doing. (Trust me, it is.) 

This was one of those paintings that I did twice, as the first painting didn't come close to doing the drink justice. Not sure what painting would, honestly, but I was much happier with this one. Both paintings featured the "horn"-handled mid-century bar tools and wagon-wheel-esque fifties coupe found at a second-hand store in Sunnyside. But this painting succeeded with a simplified—therefore strengthened—composition.

If you desperately want the recipe but don't have the book, please click this link to get it. If you desperately want the painting, please find the link under the photo above.

Happy New Year!

London Breezy

London Breezy. Oil on panel, 12" x 12".  $595. [buy now]

London was already calling Camrin Costello when Teya and I met her one summer night at Casper Fry. The bar wasn't terribly busy, and as usual, the subject of the work-in-progress book came up. Camrin, intrigued by the book idea, told the story of a cocktail she invented on a trip to England.

In London for an interview at the University of Westminster, she spent a day at Westminster Abbey. The breeze blowing through the city provided both the inspiration and name for the drink she made that night: a concoction of gin, chartreuse, lemon and lime. I think she must have known the interview had been a success when she finished her new drink off with a splash of celebratory champagne. (Camrin lives in London now. Bully for her!)

For the painting, I wanted to capture the contrast of the citrusy drink with a cool cloudy background that suggested the tradition of an old english pub. I changed the color of the purple flocked wallpaper to a stormy gray, and was quite happy with the result—especially the way the oversized pattern leads into the composition.

The recipe for the London Breezy is available in Mixology With a Twist: The Art of Modern Cocktails,

Good Humor

Good Humor. Oil on panel, 12" x 12". $595. [buy now]

Seattle-savvy friends from both sides of the state unanimously recommended Canon Whiskey and Bitters Emporium as a can't-miss cocktail destination in the Emerald City.

So, during the west-side summer-show trip, Paul and I dutifully stopped in. Canon was already busy at around 4pm, but there wasn't time to come back, so the first bartender to hand us a menu got my spiel. That bartender was Sean Johnson. Without missing a beat he whipped up a frothy orange-colored concoction, then proceeded to decorate the foamy drink with a stencil and a spray bottle of bright-red Angostura bitters.

One sip explained the drink's moniker:somehow Johnson had caused a combo of gin, Cointreau, OJ, Licor 43, egg white and Angostura to taste exactly like an orange creamsicle. Minutes later Sean's original recipe appeared on the bar in front of me, jotted down on a scrap of  paper between drink orders. I think Good Humor described the bartender as well as the drink!

A note about Canon's bar: everywhere I looked was a still life setup. So much great stuff! I literally could have brought in an easel and painted right there. Since that was slightly out of the question, I had to recreate it best I could. Which ended up being pretty well, since I already owned some similar items and, oddly enough, the identical vintage art-deco lamp (see photo of Sean making my drink below). Only the base of the lamp shows in the painting, as the lamp itself conveniently provides the lighting for the still-life setup.