Featured Artist: Nina Aubé
From baking with her grandmother to picking berries with her sisters, Nina Aubé draws inspiration from sweet childhood memories.
Nina Aubé was telling people she was going to be an artist almost from the day she first spoke in complete sentences.
She doesn’t remember it herself, but her sisters recall a nearly perfect ear of corn sculpted from children’s modeling clay by the self-proclaimed future artist. And their enthusiastic appreciation of Nina’s efforts had much to do with her development. The sisters would even play art-based games together, a particular favorite of which Nina called “Draw in the Dark.” You can easily guess how the game was played and how much giggling took place once the lights came on and the unpredictable results became visible.
Nina’s artistic gifts occasionally caused problems at school. Classmates would plead with her to complete their art projects for them. And her attention during math class would sometimes be more strongly fixed on a sketch taking shape in the margin of a worksheet than on what was taking place at the chalkboard.
A running theme in Nina’s art has been fashion. As a girl, she loved drawing women sporting the trendy styles of the ’60s and ’70s. If you look closely, you’ll sometimes find unique clothing touches embellishing the signature sweetness of Nina Aubé’s Keepsake Ornament designs.
Cookie Cutter Christmas (2015)
“This is from the Cookie Cutter Christmas series. The inspiration for this one was my love for baking and sweets. I still use my grandmother’s old aluminum cookie cutters, so that was the inspiration for the little shadow boxes where the characters live.
I grew up in Chicago and I raised hamsters, birds and gerbils because we couldn’t have bigger pets. I used to make shadow box scenes and handmade outfits to create a whole world with little characters living in a big world. Dreaming of sugar plums is something I did all the time as a kid—I’ve always been crazy about candy.”
Clock Shop (2015)
10th and Final in the Noelville series
“I inherited the Noelville series from Linda Sickman in 2012, so I’ve done the last four gingerbread houses. Since they’re all gingerbread houses, once again I’m working with sweets.
This one is a clock shop, which is personal to me because my dad used to collect clocks. I’d go to auctions and antique shops with him, and he’d buy clocks that were in disrepair. He’d then come home and clean them all up and get them working again. I did this ornament in a cuckoo shape because my dad had a lot of those types of clocks. Plus, I have birds at home.”
Pick You Again, Friend (2015)
Disney Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
“I grew up in the city, but I have memories of going berry picking with my two sisters and my mom. I thought it would be a cute idea to have two strawberries in an old-fashioned basket, like two friends who picked each other.
The friend I would give this ornament to is my mother. She’s my best friend, she’s my confidant…she’s just amazing. Even if she weren’t my mother, I’d still pick her as a best friend.
Featured Artist: Edythe Kegrize
Title:
Hallmark Master Designer
Started at Hallmark:
October 1979
Started at Keepsakes:
October 2002
Hometown:
Pennsylvania
Hallmark Keepsake Artist Edythe Kegrize loves birds and has brought her passion to the Keepsake Ornament Beauty of Birds series since 2005.This year’s stand-out cardinal may be her most dramatic and elegant bird ornament yet.
Continue reading to learn more about Edythe and her ornaments.
Edythe Kegrize had an in-depth love of three-dimensional art ever since she was young. She remembers making all kinds of creations from scraps around the house, including a tiny paper television with pictures that rotated with the turn of a knob and a crèche fashioned out of laundry detergent and food coloring.
Edythe’s talents blossomed with the help of her loving family. Her grandmother saved tidbits of fabric, trims, and pretty papers. Her mother never hindered her daughter’s creativity despite the risks of having holes cut in tablecloths or glue on the rug. From her father, Edythe inherited attention to detail, patience and mechanical curiosity that make her Keepsake designs so intricate.
While in college, Edythe majored in illustration, but also was inspired by ceramics and weaving classes. At Hallmark, she would often devise unique folding cards that brought an extra dimension to her designs. Edythe featured needlework and collages in her greeting cards and crafted several original dolls to be photographed for select card collections.
With nearly 25 years of experience illustrating greeting cards, Edythe cultivated an appreciation for a wide range of decorative surface designs, from traditional folk art to classic, elegant scrollwork. This is perhaps most evident in the details of her Santa’s Around the World unofficial series.
Live Chat Recap: Anita Marra Rogers
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Aita Marra Rogers
Hallmark Artist
On Tuesday, November 17, Hallmark Artist, Anita Marra Rogers chatted with collectors via Facebook. Here is a synopsis of that chat that highlights most of the questions and responses. Please note the chat is not in chronological order and has been grouped by subject and edited for brevity.
Puppy Love
Puppy Love
25th in the series.
Other Work
Best Chef
Scooby-Doo
Other
Live Chat Recap: Sharon Visker
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Sharon Visker
Hallmark Artist
On Thursday, October 22, Hallmark Artist, Sharon Visker chatted with collectors via Facebook. Here is a synopsis of that chat that highlights most of the questions and responses. Please note the chat is not in chronological order and has been grouped by subject and edited for brevity.
Día de Los Muertos
Día de Los Muertos
Sharon: Yes, I made about 30 sugar skulls for the Day of the Dead theme.
Sugar Skull Wedding Treats
Season’s Treatings
Season’s Treatings
7th in the series.
Merriest House in Town
Merriest House in Town
Other Work
Here Comes the Pumpkin King
Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas
Other
Fondest of Farewells (Mary Hamilton Retires)
Mary V. Hamilton
Retired Hallmark Master Artist
Hallmark Master Artist Mary Hamilton has created countless memories.
Hallmark Master Artist Mary Hamilton recently retired after 60 years with Hallmark. After studying at the Kansas City Art Institute, she joined the company at age 19.
Her soft and distinctive watercolor animals and angels that are lovingly called “cutes” have graced more than 3,000 cards for more than half a century, and have been a constant source of inspiration for ornaments and gifts.
“They’re sweet little things,” Mary says. “They convey lots of love and emotion, and I never get tired of painting them.”
Mary’s Bears print
from ’09 KOC event
Mary’s artwork reflects herself in many ways. It is expressive, gentle and appealing. Her ability to visually capture the language of the heart has given her universal appeal and a devoted following of appreciative admirers.
Consumers have especially loved “Mary’s Bears” throughout the years. She began receiving fan letters about these whimsical little teddy bears almost as soon as they went on the market more than 20 years ago. As an artist who cares deeply for the people who buy her products, her fan letters have given her a great deal of insight and inspiration.
Although Mary officially retired from Hallmark on June 15, 2015, Mary has no intention of ever retiring from making art and will continue painting in her home studio.