"LOVE" acrylic and collage 9" x 12"

I've been working on a series of paintings for the last week. This is one of my favorites. It was created with a foundation layer of gesso and torn paper to create the texture that you see. I concentrated on using a different color palette from my usual dark blue night skies. This time I used Golden acrylics as opposed to my usual Liquitex acrylics. The colors and their combinations are very different from any I've used before. To achieve a unified look for the painting I used only a few colors and mixed them together to create compatible colors. This way even though the colors are bold and bright, they are not gaudy and they don't clash with one another because they're made of the same "stuff".

Sally Struthers Buys Edith!

Yes, it's true, Edith has just been purchased from the Art and Soul Gallery in Ogunquit, Maine by Sally Struthers. For those of you who don't remember Sally, she played Gloria in the ground-breaking sitcom All in the Family back in the 70's. Sally was recently in Ogunquit for an encore presentation of The Full Monty at the Ogunquit Playhouse. I saw her in this musical with my family in June and she was hilarious, as was the play. Part of the appeal of my painting for Sally was perhaps that Edith was the name of one of the characters in the sitcom. The gallery owner, Whitney Ott, said that Sally was "thrilled" with her purchase. I couldn't be happier myself. SOLD

Be All You Can Be

All images copyright Cindy Silverstein. Cannot be reproduced for any reason without written permission of the artist.

Click on pictures for larger detailed versions.


This small painting/collage (9x12) was just completed and is about letting go of the fear that keeps us from celebrating life to its fullest. I used acrylic paints and mediums with layers of texture, type, paper, fabric, ink, dimmensional paint and charms that I made with shrink plastic, stamps and inks.

I just finished a wonderful book called When Fear Falls Away by Jan Frazier, the story of her spiritual awakening. She helps us to believe that it is possible for us to reach a place where our lives are not ruled by fear. When fear falls away it leaves a huge space where love rushes in to fill the the emptiness. We already own this state of fearlessness and just need to remind ourselves that we already are that being of infinite love.

The Fiddler and his friends wait.

This most recent painting is waiting for its story, the words that make it come to life. I'm sure they will soon arrive. They are percolating beneath the level of consciousness and will soon bubble up.

Muffins just came into his trust fund.

Muffins just came into his trust fund.

I love cats. Especially large round ones. That's because I have two large round British Shorthair cats, Matisse and Monet. They are a big influence in my paintings. You know how superior cats can be if you are a cat lover. This painting captures that attitude. This painting has been sold.

Fly on periwinkle dreams of a world wrapped in velvet. You were born with wings.
Winged creatures, human and not, are featured in a lot of my work. I think flying appeals to all of us because of our unconscious desire to be free. Free from the fears that hold us back, and the false notions of who we think we are.

Edith knew she was out of control
I like to use photos of family members. Old photos are the best. I use the head,(that sounds worse than it is) and draw, paint and collage the rest of the person. Creating a story about the resulting character is the best part, and can be quite amusing. This painting has been sold.

I float dreamlike through the heavenly spheres and worlds misty with the voice of hope.
If you enlarge this image you can read the beautiful and inspiring words Katie wrote. The "love" tag is made from shrink plastic. The piece that is part of the word triangle at the top is made of polymer clay. The collage includes fabric, buttons and dimensional paint as well.