Coke adds life to...

Title- Coke adds life to...

16 x 16", acrylic on mounted gessoed aluminium panel

painting #287, 2021

Coke adds life to... was the slogan used by Coca-Cola between 1976 through 1979. The ad campaign showed Coke as the perfect accompaniment to food, fun and leisure in many situations common to consumers around the world. The company went all out with print ads, billboards, TV commercials and even a 7" vinyl - 45 rpm record of the jingle.

Coke adds life to... magazine ad 

Coke adds life... 1977 TV commercial - click HERE to view

Coke adds life to... jingle - 45rpm record, 1976

This Coke carton was a lucky find from the same estate sale in Summerside, PEI when I bought several mason jars and soda pop bottles back in 2016.  

I've pretty run the gamut when it comes to documenting the history of Coca-Cola since this is the 16th themed painting that I've posted on this blog. For a link to all of my past Coca-Cola paintings - click HERE. 

This painting will be part of a small solo show entitled "Art-ifacts", hosted by the Fog Forest Gallery in Sackville, NB from October 14 to November 5, 2021. 

Unfortunately, in order for the gallery to remain open during the pandemic while keeping everybody safe, the gallery director and I came to the decision that it was safer not to hold an opening reception. The public however will be able to visit the gallery at their leisure during the run of the exhibition. The gallery is open on Thursday and Friday from 10 am - 5 pm. or by appointment.

Fog Forest Gallery

14 Bridge Street, Sackville,

New Brunswick, Canada, E4L 3N5

Phone (506) 536-9000

e-mail: janet@fogforstgallery.ca

-SOLD

Cosmos & Coke

12 x 10'', acrylic on gessoed mounted aluminium panel

painting#271, 2019

The windowsill photo study used for this painting was taken in our kitchen about 8-10 years ago. In the background was an enormous cherry tree that has since been removed because of illness. The crop of cherries was always bountiful. Black birds and robins always enjoyed the fruits on the top branches.

When I spotted this green tinted drinking glass on a store shelf, its shape alone reminded me of a flower vase. Growing up in Cap-Lumière, NB, my mother and grand-mother always planted Cosmos flowers every spring. After the blooms were gone, they would collect the seeds for the following year.

To acquire this painting please contact:
To be exhibited in a summer group show starting later next week.

Fog Forest Gallery

14 Bridge Street, Sackville,

New Brunswick, Canada, E4L 3N5

Phone (506) 536-9000

e-mail: janet@fogforstgallery.ca

-SOLD 

Grill Side Refreshment

20 x 10", acrylic on mounted aluminium panel

painting #264, 2018

This painting is my 9th to feature a red Meco charcoal grill which we've owned for some 20 years. Although it's been retired from use for at least a decade, I've have held on to it mainly for art sake to use as a prop. It still resides in our backyard. Last year it received a much needed makeover with a fresh coat of paint and new cedar plank side tables. It now looks as good as new. 

Previous artwork 2006-2016

This iconic Coca-Cola bottle and carton are both from the 1960's. I was lucky enough to find these from two different Kijiji listings; the bottle here in Moncton, NB and the carton from Summerside. PEI. 

Part of group exhibition - Under Summer Skies being held at the Fog Forest Gallery, until September 8. 

To acquire this painting please contact:

Fog Forest Gallery

14 Bridge Street, Sackville,

New Brunswick, Canada, E4L 3N5

Phone (506) 536-9000

e-mail: janet@fogforstgallery.ca

-SOLD

Shooter Marble in Shooter Glass

7 x 5", acrylic on gessoed hardboard

painting #255, 2017

A play on words inspired the imagery for this study. During the spring of 2014, we visited Coca-Cola World, a museum of everything Coke in Atlanta, which is also where their headquarter is located. I picked up a few items in the gift shop on our way out, this shooter glass was one of them. The glass study rests on blank card with Andy Warhol's "Three Coke Bottles", 1962 on the cover. 

Coca-Cola is by far the most popular soft drink in the world, sold in 200 countries, with 1,8 billion servings consumed daily.

Part of my two-person show with Yvon Gallant entitled ''HARVEST'' at the Fog Forest Gallery from October 12 - November 8, 2017.

Fog Forest Gallery
14 Bridge Street
Sackville, NB, Canada
(506) 536-9000
websire- http:/fogforestgallery.ca

-SOLD

The Coca-Cola Bottle at 100

20 x 10'', acrylic on hardboard, 2015

Painting # 230

The title says it all. Coca-Cola might be 129 years old, however the iconic form of it’s bottle is celebrating 100 years in 2015. This 6-pack edition was made especially for the occasion.

Coca-Cola was invented by Dr John Pemberton, a pharmacist living in Columbus Georgia. It was first introduced in 1886. The famous fonts used for in the lettering / logo is named Spencerian Script. In 1915, Coca-Cola launched a competition for the design of a unique bottle that could be distinguish by it's form alone. ''The contour bottle'' created by Earl R. Dean was declared as the winning entry. Coca-Cola has great sustainability. It is undeniable that from a marketing stand point that the company has gone to great length to remain current while retaining a nostalgic edge unlike it's main competitor Pepsi-Cola. Based on a best global brand rankings in 2014 by Interbrand, Coca-Cola was the world's 3rd most valuable brand, behind Apple and Google. Pepsi is ranked 24th. 

During the month of May of 2014, my wife Suzanne and I had the immense pleasure to visit the World of Coca-Cola. The museum is located in Atlanta, Ga, the same city as it's headquarters. It houses an immense collection of artefacts and vintage Coke memorabilia and is a must for any individual who collect anything Coca-Cola. The highlights for me was certainly all of the vintage signs, the Olympic Torch display from past games, the original paintings of the most iconic Santa Claus by Haddon Sundblom and the 'Taste it'' exhibit where you can sample at will the 100+ products made by the Coca-Cola Corporation that are available around the globe. As a parting gift, you get a newly bottled Coca-Cola to take home. 
  

Coca-Cola is a  major sponsors for several sporting events like the Olympic Games and the FIFA World Cup. With Canada hosting the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup, Coca-Cola sponsored a Cross-Canada Tour of the trophy before the tournament began with several stops across our country. I was fortunate enough to be part of the medical team for all the seven games held here in Moncton, NB. One of six host cities that also included Montreal, Ottawa, Winnipeg, Edmonton and Vancouver. 

The painting is currently on exhibition in the group show, Under Summer Skies!

To acquire this painting, please contact the 

Fog Forest Gallery 
14 Bridge Street, Sackville, NB. Canada
(506) 536-9000 or e-mail-gallery@nbnet.nb.ca .
-SOLD

Always Coca-Cola

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, 2011

7 x 5'', painting #203

The title is from a 1993 Coca-Cola slogan. The image is a crop shot from the same source photo used for Coca-Cola Bottles. This is the actual original version before I started to change colors using Photoshop. I was hoping to get this painting and tomorrow's posting at Handworks Gallery way before Christmas, but there was just too much stuff happening in my life to reach the deadline.

Wishing you all the very best for 2012, with a full new year ahead of us, all is possible. May your inner light shine brighter than ever before.

-SOLD 

Coca-Cola Bottles

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, 2011

14 x 14'', painting# 198

I was invited to take part in a group show entitled ''The Real Thing'', celebrating the 125th anniversary of Coca-Cola. The art exhibition is set to open on September 16 at the Mason Murer Fine Art in Atlanta, Georgia. The headquarters of the world's most famous soda pop is also located here. The gallery received a request by the Coca-Cola corporation to host this special anniversary show for the general public and for it's 200 top shareholders

For this painting I was hoping to find some vintage bottles with white lettering. The same type of bottles that would have been in use when I was growing up. I couldn't believe my good fortune when I found some on a Kijiji listing from a seller who lived only 2 miles from my house.

Also in this composition is an early 20th century replica tray that boost the 1904 slogan ''Delicious and Refreshing - Sold Everywhere 5¢''. A later 1909 slogan, '' Whenever you see an arrow think Coca-Cola'', prompted me to use a carboard cut-out that I had picked up at a yard sale last summer on Prince Edward Island. I believe it was part of a larger advertising display. It had a retro look and I instantly recognized it's potential as a prop for a future painting.

The bottles from this painting were actually clear glass. I took the photo studies on our green tinted tempered glass patio table, that boost a green market umbrella and I slid a green place mat under the tray in hoping that some of the green would somehow be absorb by the glass, which it did. After doing a tighter cropping on Photoshop, I tweaked the color green a bit, and a new heighten imagery popped on the screen. 



My very first painting done in 1987 featured my wife with a Coca-Cola cup & straw. My oldest painting to sell done in 1989 was of a Corner Store with a Coca-Cola button sign. For this show, I was hoping to produce a piece that really had a WOW factor. With that said and many Coca-Cola paintings done over the past 24 years, this one is my very favorite.

Twelve artists are taking part in this exhibit which also includes the talents of Neil Hollingsworth, Jelaine Faunce, Teresa N. Fisher, Todd Ford, Otto Lange, David Malan, Michael Naples, Christopher Stott, Sally Tharp, and Vic Vicini .

Exhibited- September 16 - late October, 2011
Painting selected to be part of the Coca-Cola 125th Anniversary Invitational Group Exhibition held at Mason Murer Fine Art in Atlanta.

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Update - September 7, 2012
This painting will be part of a group exhibition entitled: 

ASPECTS OF REALISM
Saint John Arts Centre
City of Saint John Gallery
20 Hazen Avenue
Saint John, NB CANADA
(506) 633-4870

September 7 - October 27, 2012
Opening reception is on September 7 - 5:30 to 7:30pm

Please contact Handworks Gallery if you wish to acquire the painting.

12 King Street,
Saint John, NB, CANADA E2L 1G2
(506) 652-9787
e-mail - info@handworks.ca 

-SOLD

Lost a marble over a Girl (aka - Crazy for this Girl)

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, 12 x 12''

2011, # 192

This past January, I received an invitation to participate in a Realism Juried Show organized and held at the Mason Murer Fine Art in Atlanta Georgia. The show will run from April 8 to May 12, 2011.  It's a kind of opportunity that only until recently, I could only have dreamed of. 

I came across this die cast 1961 Lincoln Continental convertible while Christmas shopping for my son during the late fall of 2007. It featured a miniature Coca-Cola tin tray as a bonus item. I actually bought it for the tray and did a photo session not long after. With the Coca-Cola's headquarters located in Atlanta, the timing seemed perfect to finally bring this image to light, since Coca-Cola has often contributed in my choice of subject matter while documenting popular culture.


I did some research in order to give credit to the illustrator of the lovely bathing beauty depicted on the tray and suspect that it might be attributed to painter illustrator Gil Elvgren.


The most intimidating factor in the imagery was to get the facial features correct and for the marble to even have more impact as the main object competing for the viewer's attention. In both cases, I am happy with the outcome. Even if the painting is only 12 x 12'', the subject depicted here is enlarged by 500%. The photographic image was a bit grainy when enlarged. I worked from several photographs in order to eliminate the depth of field to give the impression as if it was painted from life rather than from a photo. Without the help of my new ipad, I'm not certain that I could have pulled it off. My inclusion of a marble in a painting may appear decorative, but more often than not it refers to an altered state of mind. In this case, it is both.


I borrowed the title from an Evan and Jaron song of the same name. Twin brothers, Evan and Jaron Lowernstein grew up in Tucker, Georgia.....located 15 miles from Atlanta. Click HERE to listen.

Exhibited- September 16 - late October, 2011
Painting selected to be part of the Coca-Cola 125th Anniversary Invitational Group Exhibition held at Mason Murer Fine Art in Atlanta.  
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Exhibited - September 7 - October 27, 2012
Crazy for this Girl (Losing a marble over a Girl) in part of a group exhibition entitled: 
ASPECTS OF REALISM
Saint John Arts Centre
Saint John, NB CANADA

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Exhibited in a two-person show with Yvon Gallant entitled, "HARVEST" at the Fog Forest Gallery, Sackville, NB

October 12 - Nov. 8, 2017.

To acquire any of these painting, please contact the gallery.
Fog Forest Gallery
14 Bridge Street
Sackville, NB, Canada
(506) 536-9000
website- http:/fogforestgallery.ca

-SOLD

Empty Coke Bottles

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, 14 x 11''

2010 - #185

After completing the study of Empties in 2007, I had the intention to do a much larger and more detailed piece from that same session....it just took a bit longer than anticipated. I've done several Coca-Cola paintings in the past, and the subject matter stills fascinates me. It's that Spencerian Script fonts in combination with the shape of the bottle that I find seductive as a painter.

Coca-Cola has always been in the forefront in promoting it's product and has gone to great lenghts to remain current. It has rightfully earned a place in popular culture and there are certainly many Coca-Cola aficionados and collectors of anything Coke.

With the Holiday Season just around the corner, much of true meaning of Christmas has been lost to good old Saint Nicholas, while the birth of Jesus has taken a back seat. Santa Claus is bound to make a personal appearance in a parade or Shopping Mall near you.

Thomas Nast, the father of American Cartoon was credited for creating the modern image of Santa Claus wearing the red and white suit in 1881. The Coca-Cola Company had a spark of genius when they hired illustrator Haddon Sundblom during the 1930's to incorporate Santa Claus in their advertisements in response to the colder winter months when sales of the soda pop were down. For the next thirty years Sundblom would create the most vivid and iconic images of Santa, thus creating an urban legend that Santa Claus was invented by Coca-Cola. (Click HERE for a sampling.) However, these campaigns had a tremendous effect of popularising Santa Claus as wearing red and white, in contrast to the variety of colours he wore in earlier depictions.

Much can be said about the shopping frenzy and overspending surrounding the Holiday Season. A lot of retailers and businesses rely on the economical impact of Christmas when sales are at their highest. If these imaginative and magical images created by Haddon Sundblom did not exist, it would be interesting to see how it would affect the way we currently celebrate Christmas. The spirit of Christmas is often associated with Santa Claus and instilled by the media into our consciousness at a very early age. Coca-Cola might have boosted their own sales with these campaigns, but their contribution to popular culture may be even greater.

Haddon Sundblom illustration for Coca-Cola

This painting will be included in the Christmas Showcase exhibition at the Fog Forest Gallery in Sackville, NB

-SOLD

Olympic Confectionary

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, 12 x 12''

2009 - #178

Corner Store no. 2 completed in 2007, was from of the same store located on Barrington Street in Halifax, NS. This time, I painted the other end of the sign which boast not one, but two of these Coca-Cola buttons. Just in time for the upcoming Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympiads with Coca-Cola being a major sponsor of both the Olympic Torch Relay and the Games themselves. I was actually painting the word Olympic on the sign as the Olympic flame had reached Halifax and ice hockey superstar Sidney Crosby (member of team Canada) was passing the flame to Sarah Conrad, a Nova Scotia snowboarder vying for her second Winter Olympics, who got to light the cauldron during the community celebration at the end of the day. Wishing them both the best of luck in their quest for GOLD!

-SOLD

Marbles on ''Three Coke Bottles''

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, #176

5 x 7', 2009

Three Coke Bottles is an acrylic and silkscreen done by Andy Warhol in 1962. Here it appears as a blank card format on a semi out of focus Campbell's Soup Can 1 (1968), from the book Pop Art by Tilman Osterwold.

I leave you with famous quotes by Andy Warhol:

-''I am a deeply superficial person''.

-''Everybody must have a fantasy''.

-''Art is what you can get away with''.

-''Think rich, look poor''.

-''TV is not something to watch, but something to be on''.

-''Employees make the best dates. You don't have to pick them up and they're always tax- deductible''.

and of course,

-''In the future, everybody will be world famous for 15 minutes''.

This is the final piece for my solo show, Near & Far that opens this evening at Handworks Gallery in Saint John, NB. Everyone is invited to the Opening reception that will take place this evening from 5 to 8 pm and will coincide with a Gallery Hop with the other 10 art galleries/institutions of the city.

Part of my solo show- Near & Far - October 16-30, 2009.

-SOLD

Reciclaje de botellas de Coca-Cola

Acrylic on gessoed hardboard, #172

7 x 5'' - 2009

The photo study for this painting was taken in Ruitelan, Spain during day 22 of my trek on the Camino this past June. My walking day of 26,5 km was over and it was still very early in the day, before noon in fact. After dipping my tired feet in the cool stream nearby, I had lunch in the local bar. Upon exiting the premise, I spotted a stack of Coca-Cola crates sunbathing in the hot rays. This crate had been around for a while. It had a weathered look and the red had lost it's original punch.

Aquarius is an electrolyte replacement drink bottled by Coca-Cola in Spain. I drank some every day on the Camino. Here, Diet Coke is bottled under the name Coca-Cola Lite and sports a shiny metallic label with red lettering (bottle to the right). At the bars, they would serve Coca-Cola on ice from these mini bottles with a wedge of lemon.

I could probably do a series of paintings of Coca-Cola signs seen during my 800 km trek across Spain. The photos below are from Azofra, a small village I passed through on 
day 8. 

Part of my solo show- Near & Far - October 16-30, 2009.

-SOLD

BBQ caddy

Acrylic on stretched canvas, #160

16 x 12'', 2009

Heinz Ketchup was first introduced on the US market in 1869. In 1909, it crossed north of the border and became available on store shelves for Canadian consummers, making 2009 it's centennial year. For this painting, I've recycled props from past paintings to create a new composition. The Coca-Cola caddy was featured in Empties, the salt & pepper shakers in Atlantic Salmon, and the red charcoal BBQ in a least five previous paintings. Have I ever mentioned that red is my favorite color to paint with, the more the better. Here, this painting gets the royal treatment. One of my rare paintings done on canvas.

Part of my solo show- Near & Far at Handworks Gallery- October 16-30, 2009.
-SOLD

Coca-Cola Art Blog

A few pieces of my artwork are currently featured on a Coca-Cola Art blog. I've always had a fascination with all of the memorabilia associated with this product, it's impact on popular culture and that it also appeals to so many. It is a subject matter that will be resurfacing in many more future paintings. Many thanks to the host of the blog for the inclusion. Click HERE to view.

Corner Store no. 2

Acrylic polymer emulsion on gessoed hardboard, 6 x 6"

Painted Sept. 16-22, 2007, #130

This past July (2007), we spent a getaway week-end in Halifax, NS. On day-two, shortly after leaving our hotel for an early morning Sunday run around Point Pleasant Park I passed in front of Olympic Confectionery, a corner store at the other end of Barrington Street that boasted not one but two Coca-Cola button signs. It literally stopped me in my track. I had to return later that afternoon to take a few snapshots. 

Corner Store no. 1 was done in 1989 and was my sixth painting. The setting for no.1 was on the other side of the country, at the corner of Commercial and Venables Streets in Vancouver. This one also had a beautiful striped canvas canopy. It still surprises me that these type of corner store façade still exist today. Hopefully when the time has come, these will be restored instead of replaced.

- SOLD

Empties

Acrylic polymer emulsion on gessoed hardboard, 6 x 6"

Painted- Sept. 16 - 20, 2007, #129

It's crunch time, 9 days left before the opening of my solo show. At this point I have started to concentrate on smaller pieces, 6 x 6", a format that has become quite popular with the daily blog painters. I am aiming for a total of 8 or 9 paintings in this size. This is the first installment. These Coca-Cola bottles are actually the same that are featured in Pop Tent, except their contents have been emptied. As a commercial product, it is one of the most recognized both for it's famous logo created by the inventor's bookkeeper, Frank Mason Robinson in 1885, and for it's equally famous contour bottle of greenish tint glass. Coca-Cola was introduced to the public in 1886. I have realized that the empty version is much more suitable to paint. There are areas that sparkles like tiny emeralds in the light. I will be doing a more elaborate version that is not cropped in the near future.

- SOLD

Pop Tent

Acrylic polymer emulsion on gessoed MDF, 
18 x 18", painted July 12-29, 2007, #124

One thing that wakes you up in the morning when you are camping (except crows), is the bright sun. On one of those morning, I realized that the inside of a tent might be an unusual setting for a still life. Fast forward.... Jean-Luc, our then 11 year old son and I, had done some backyard camping and the Coleman tent was still up on the lawn, when I did this photo study. These were actually the last shots I took that afternoon.

My fascination with this subject is how the light filters through these bright colored drinks and become illuminated, almost as if they have their own power source. And of course, the way the light is being refracted on top of the beverage, which often changes color. This is my third installment of the Pop bottle series in a galvanize pail. The previous two were completed in 2005 & 2006.

- SOLD