Smitten with Kittens

Ok, so here's the thing about me and John. We are slightly nuts. Ahem, or perhaps I only speak for myself. I would venture that John often feels like our life is an amusement park ride. But I warned him about that, admitted as much on our first date.
So anyway, last time I wrote, I told you all that Gilligan died, right? It was horribly sad and our feelings were only eclipsed by the forlorn attitude of Jasper Johns, our remaining cat who continued to mope around the house day after day. I was grumpy, John was silent, we were mourning. 
At the same time, we knew we wanted another cat (and I secretly wanted 2 more) preferably Maine Coons since that is what we like - big ole furry animals!
John and I worked all the angles and contacted numerous organizations, toured humane societies, surfed online, etc, etc, etc. We were a tad obsessed and yes, I do mean both of us.
I registered on the Maine Coon Rescue site and was assigned an adoption counselor named Kelley. She was a treat to work with and quickly tied down what we wanted, that being 'older' kittens. But, as these things sometimes happen, the cutest kittens were in North Carolina and were plural as in there were 2 of them and you know how tragic it would be to split up a duo. Hmmm, what to do, oh what to do?
My glorious, perfect, kitty loving husband jumped in the car and drove on over there. From Missouri to North Carolina. Ten hours, you say? Pshaw, we say!

From upper left - Remy with Jasper, Lyra stretched out, Lyra asleep, all 3 on the landing, Remy playing, then on the scratching post, Remy closeup, middle pic is Lyra standing and Remy seated.

He met with Cat & Glen, the wonderful foster parents, loaded up the babies, and then drove 10 hours back home. After a brief isolation period (ok, I'm impatient, so sue me), we introduced the critters and life has never been the same. They jump, play, leap, scratch (we're working on that) and generally sound like a small herd - oh so much action and noise for such small kitties - running around the house. We love every second of it. In fact, it was love at first site for me. Definitely smitten. 

So there you have it. We are a 3 cat family again.
Everyone is getting on splendidly and happiness has returned to the Shaw household.

Rambling around

When I stepped into my Collector's home and saw the diptych in their foyer, I felt like I had come across an old friend. I honestly couldn't even remember when I painted it, at least 5 years ago. Then I walked into the dining room and saw a more recent piece, I think that one was maybe last year?

And there were others too, not shown here because my photography is so unbearably pitiful. It is interesting to see how my style has changed. This Collector first met me when I was doing the Common Denominator series, which started over 10 years ago. They own a few of those too, what a blast to the past. I feel incredibly blessed to have Collectors; people who own multiple pieces of my work. What a gift to be in their home and see my work all around. 

They told me a story about a friend who visited and, after looking at their art collection said....I saw some art you need to see because I know you would love it, I think the artist's name is Mary Beth Shaw....We all got a laugh out of that one.
And their children, so adorable, they have been the subject of several commissioned works although they are too young to take it seriously, I feel they will appreciate it one day.

I am coming off a crappy week, what with my cat Gilligan dying on Tuesday. I have been wallowing around, can't seem to motivate myself in any specific direction; I wander about my studio making ugly art, sit in my office staring at a blank screen or hang out in bed way too long.
I though perhaps I would try to pull myself out of it today. And be thankful for all that life gives me, thankful for the fact that I shared almost 20 years with such a loyal and loving kitty. Thankful for the gift of art, the way it restores and invigorates me and allows me to share my passion with like minded souls. Making it, looking at it, reading about it, all those things. And especially that lovely sweet spot when someone resonates with a piece.
So thanks to all of you too, my readers and friends. 
I think I am finally ready to get back to work. I have paintings to make, ideas to explore. How about you? What is going on in your neck of the woods?

I'm in The Pulse - let's celebrate with a contest

YAY, We have winners!!!!! Carlanda, Bren, AmyD Woo hoo!!!

Check it out HERE. It's Techniques & Tools, so this ought to be good. I think I'm going to mosey on over myself and see what everyone talks about. I have also includes a link over in my sidebar, so you can click over any time.

Since I talk about Wood Icing (yeah, yeah, I love the stuff, what can I say?), thought this might be a great time to have another contest.......so......just leave a comment below and you will be entered for  container of Wood Icing. YAY!!!!  I will give away 1 container each to 3 lucky winners. I'll draw names on Friday, so you have plenty of time.

Artsy Shout Outs

In the course of my rambles, I often run into other artists. Well duh, of course I do! I always enjoy seeing other people's work but sometimes I really really like what I see. And that is when I need to do a 'Shout-Out'. Just so you'all get a chance to look at these neat things too.

First up, and this goes back awhile, to when I was in Chicago at CREATE. The first day - in my Circles class - June Pfaff Daly was in there. She is a blogger I met online and then I met her in person several years ago. We sort of clicked, you know? Needless to say, I was thrilled when she signed up for my class. And....brought a couple of her friends, Claire and Heather. They were so.much.fun. My roommate, Julia and Kelley (I met both at Valley Ridge, is this a small world, or what!??!) had dinner with these girls.

Aren't they cute? Anyway, if you look real close you will see they are all wearing uber-cool fiber necklaces made by Heather, she is the one in the middle. She collects gorgeous vintage fabrics from Paris and sews them (by hand!) into amazing necklaces. I bought one. Julia bought one. Pokey Bolton, yes, *that* Pokey bought one. We were all wearing them, cult-like, as we perused the stores of Napierville. I can't believe how many people complimented us on our necklaces, it became a joke of sorts. But they are really that cool. So, anyway, I was cleaning my office. Ahem. When Heather's biz card surfaced and I knew I had to tell you guys about her. So here is a  LINK to her etsy shop if you happen to be interested.


The second artist is Carmen Alana Tibbets - she goes by Alana. I met her at The Historic Shaw Art Fair, a show I used to do, back in the day (a few years ago, ha, ha) when I was doing the outdoor art fairs. Anyhoo, even though she lives in Edwardsville, IL, I had not crossed paths with her before.  Here is a pic of her holding one of her completely delightful creations.

You must go look at her WEBSITE. Seriously. Go now, I'll still be here when you get back. Look at the gallery and enlarge the pics of all her creatures. They are so amazing in person, the level of detail blew my mind, especially the hands.....and the faces. Plus all their little outfits. Oh my, I really want one of the rabbits. Their expressions are so real, I can't even find the right words and you know I am rarely rendered speechless, ha!!
Seems to be a little trend here, in my admiration of fabric work, eh?

Destination Creativity Blog Hop

We have a winner, woo hoo!!!! Contest is over, thanks so much for entering :)

Have you heard that Ricë has a new book? You all know who I'm talking about, right?  Ricë Freeman-Zachery, writer extraordinaire! Maybe you saw her hilarious video book promo? Maybe you heard people talking about the book at a recent retreat? Maybe you have already pre-ordered a copy? Or perhaps you wanna WIN a copy? More on that in a minute.

Ricë's new book, Destination Creativity: The Life-Altering Journey of the Art Retreat is all about Art Retreats. She and Earl (her hubby, aka The EGE or the Photographer) spent a year touring the country and attending Art Retreats, interviewing artists and kind of documenting 'the scene.' I ran into them several times, first was Artfest 2010. Naturally I had heard of Ricë, I mean she is a celebrity in my world. So I was more than a wee bit star struck. And yeah, I acted ignorant like I do when I get nervous and don't know what to say. But thank goodness I got to know them better. Cause they are such fun folks!! 

Since Ricë spends so much time interviewing artists, I thought it was high time someone turned the tables and asked her some questions. So how about a little back story.....some of the nitty gritty, never been told details, revealed right here, right now (oh my goodness, I feel like a tabloid writer). Because I dare to ask the questions, tee, hee, hee........and share the answers. Read on for my interview with Ricë.

1. You have such a strong sense of personal style and make/alter/dye many of your clothes. As a 'fashion chameleon' I am curious as to when and how your style developed?

Thanks, Mary Beth! I’ve been obsessed with my clothes as far back as I can remember. My mother and I would go shopping for my school clothes, but not in clothing stores; we’d go to the fabric store and pick out fabric and patterns. But not just A Pattern. Nope. My mother would get one pattern for the bodice, and one for the skirt, and another for the sleeves. I would describe what I wanted, and she would bring it to life. She indulged me totally. My favorite outfit in grade school was an orange corduroy jumper worn over an orange-and-white striped long-sleeved t-shirt with orange fish-net tights, burnt orange patent leather shoes, with an orange plaid poncho my mother made and finished with a rabbit fur collar from an old coat. I ADORED this outfit and would have worn it every single day if I could have gotten away with it. I started altering my own clothes when I was in high school, embellishing my jeans and swapping out the buttons on my workshirts every night. I was inspired by Native Funk and Flash and just kept on going.

2. Prolific is your middle name! How do you find your writing inspiration and do you ever face the blank page syndrome. If so, how do you handle those moments?

Mostly I work on assignment, and those have deadlines, and I’m really good with deadlines. So I don’t have a lot of trouble getting started. I’m *kind of* (snort) anal-retentive about it. But if I have something huge to do--a book, for instance--I get started by setting my own deadlines and working back from those, picking a day to start and telling myself, “OK. Today you need to write just the first sentence, and then you can stop.” Since I really love to write more than just about anything, once I get the first sentence, I want to keep going. I love the process of writing; it’s just that, like most people, I dread getting started on something huge. By telling myself I can take baby steps, I’m off and running. It’s kind of pathetic when you use reverse psychology on yourself, isn’t it?

3. Ok, so who did the driving, you or Earl or do you take turns? What do you do in the car - listen to music, books, work on hand sewing, etc?

Earl drove every. Single. Inch. Of the entire trip. I didn’t even back the car out of the parking space at the hotels. We have music on the iPhone going through the speakers, and I sew whenever I’m not navigating. I love road trips where I can get a ton of stitching done--that’s why I love going to Dallas or Houston--it’s far enough that I can get a lot done, but we’ve done it so many times I don’t have to navigate at all. The truck could drive itself.

4.What's up with all the animals in your car? 

Those are Car Toys. The SUV is so big and empty, we thought it needed some toys. Some are ones friends made for us, and some are those you buy at Kohl’s for $5 and the money is donated to some good cause. You need toys, you know?

5. When did you start with the tattoos and are they your own design? Are you still adding more tattoos?

Until I was 45, I had brown hair that was below my waist--I could sit on it--one set of holes in my earlobes, and not even the slightest interest in tattoos. I’d never even thought of getting one. Then I started going through menopause, and, man, did my life change. By the time I figured out what was going on, I had a couple tattoos, very little hair, and a bunch more holes in my ears. Better than joining the circus or having an affair, for sure. I haven’t gotten any tattoos in several years--I had the whole melanoma thing with checkups for two years, and I kind of got out of the habit. 

6. Your favorite road food? Snacks you keep in the car?

We’re not really snackers. [of course they aren't, this is MB talking, because they have amazing friggin' bodies and, well, how did I think they maintained them, duh, stupid question on my part .] We’re pretty disciplined about what and when we eat, but when we travel, we do make some allowances. Earl gets ice cream every now and then, and I will sometimes eat Cheetos, which is pretty much like eating deep fried salt with a shovelful of fat. Sure, I feel guilty for abusing my arteries. Also bloated. And thirsty. But, oooooh, the crunchiness! 

7. I know (for sure) that you love to hit used clothing stores, can you reveal your favorites around the country?

Ha! You know the answer to that one: My Sister’s Closet (all four fabulous locations!) in Phoenix, introduced to us by Jeanie Thorn. Here in Midland, I love BJ’s (yeah, the name always makes me snort, too, especially since the sign for the shop features just the name and a huge pair of lips. For years I thought it was a naughty lingerie shop, which is totally laughable if you know Midland, Texas (they’d have the sheriff shut it down in a heartbeat)). I’d love it if people would take me to their favorites when we travel, but Jeanie is one of the few who’s willing to share. Most people keep their sources pretty secret, you know?

Would you like a chance to win a copy of Rice's book? Oh I know you would! Please leave me a comment below and you will be entered for the book drawing. 
If you want to go ahead and order the book now, you can hit the link below. 
Be sure to check out the other stops on the Blog Hop!  

Thursday, October 6th: Carla Sonheim 
Friday, October 7th: Lisa Myers Bulmash 
Saturday, October 8th: Melissa Manley 
Sunday, October 9th: Deryn Mentock 
Monday, October 10th: Jen Cushman
Tuesday, October 11th: Jill Berry
 And don't forget to visit Ricë's blog here.

My summer vacation - ICA Boston

After I left Squam, I drove down to Boston to pick up the hubster who was flying in from St. Louis. I knew I would have a little extra time and I wanted to see the Swoon exhibit at the Institute of Contemporary Art. 

Swoon is a street artist who has gone museum, woo hoo for her, huh? I adore her work because of the printmaking and of course all the paper cuts. They are incredibly intricate and honestly I can not even imagine how her mind conceptualizes these pieces.

At ICA Boston, the piece spans their lobby area and then sort of meanders over into an elevator shaft where you can view the work from various floors. Needless to say it is hard to photograph. I swear I walked around with my mouth hanging open the entire time. Really cool. I wanted to take the papercuts home with me. LOVED.THEM.
Go watch this video to see what I am talking about.

Encaustic Landscape (of sorts)

 Recent encaustic work that I completed while I was at Squam. 

It is so rare I demo and then actually complete a piece during class. 

But I like these.

That goes to show you I was really relaxed. 

And that's a good thing.

The Journey called Squam

This is the third year I have been privileged to teach at Squam.
SAW is a difficult event to explain. One, because it isn't really an 'event' per se; it is more of an experience, a journey.

Kelley, Susan, Sue, Kathy

I shared a large house with 12 other women, some I knew from my first year, others I met this year. To say they were all special sounds idiotically trite, but they really were. I felt a connection with each and every woman, this deep visceral thing that doesn't lend itself to words.
It is so odd to me how this group of incredibly diverse people migrate to Squam each year and how the right ones manage to find and connect with one another. Like I always find the exact person I need at the exact moment. I don't know how it happens really, I am convinced it's magic conjured up by Elizabeth and somehow dispersed through a wand??
I took very few photos this year, preferring to sap up the feelings instead. But now I wish I had more photos. I wish I could have captured a shot showing the spirit of friendship that developed in our house, a camaraderie so natural it was as if we had known each other forever.

Linda and Jacqueline

Mary's butt - the quote says Live fully, Laugh often, Leave a legacy.

But it wasn't just about my housemates. I saw other people too, my teaching peers, people of whom I am IN AWE, like how can I even be part of this inspiring group!?!?
Jen Lee, who I met my 1st year; she is an ancient spirit I am certain of that, uncanny wisdom in such a young body. And Misty, what a treat for me to see her a second time this year! And Flora. Ok, maybe I have just a wee little crush on Flora. Me and the rest of the world, that woman is on fire, simply radiating beauty in everything she does. Pixie, it was the first time I met her, another old soul - naturally I knew who she was, but was stunned when she knew who I was, geez, I am such a dork like that, all self confidence on the outside but a bundle of insecurities on the inside.
And Elizabeth, always the hostess with the mostess, what a legacy she has built. I soooooo admire that.

Ice block at the Art Faire

And my students, with their love of learning and willingness to try new techniques. Sadly, my photos of their work did not turn out, but suffice to say I was blown away by the work they produced, wow, wow, wow! They filled me up.

Another Star Pupil

You may recall that I taught in Chicago at the CREATE retreat in August. Oh was it ever fun, hope I get to do it again next year. Anyhow, I did a Circle Mania Class and Peggy Wilkinson was one of my students. She did great work in class, but then went home and made a CLOCK! Wowza, what a terrific idea. Needless to say, it is gorgeous, and look how amazing with her pieces from class. Great job, Peggy and thank you so much for allowing me to share your creations.

This is so gratifying to me you can not imagine. Oh be still my heart :)
Happy weekend, everyone. Let's all paint, how about it!?!?!?

Star Pupil

Since I have run away from home(joke), I apparently am not generating intelligent blog content at the moment. But! Lucky for me, one of my students from Art Unraveled has been working away......check out his post here.
Thanks, Don!!!
And keep making those color charts, what a great way to enhance your painting skills. For those of you wondering, there is a chapter in my book which includes the instructions much like the class I teach.

Where oh where is Mary Beth

Resting.....

reflecting and remembering;

thinking and musing.

But not too hard.

Sewing with Stencils

Some of you dear readers follow me over on Facebook and noticed my post about my stiff neck and shoulder.......from my hand sewing efforts no less.



Well, here it is. My second altered t-shirt using my stencils (the first debuts in the next issue of Pasticcio)
I first saw The Incredible Jenny Doh using one of my stencils on a scarf. Then I saw stencils used as applique patterns in the The Alabama Stitch book. So why not mine?
I think Pam Carriker's WING or Judy Wise's ROOSTER or Michelle Ward's CIRCLE RAY or Patricia Seggebruch Baldwin's BUBBLES would be amazing........and just think, you could paint the design too.
Ohohoh!!! I just remembered, has anyone else seen the new Martha Stewart paints at Michael's? The display said they would work on glass, ceramic, fabric, metal.....hmmmm, don't tell me I need to try yet another product?? Has anyone tried them yet?

Lookee Here - Podcast time

Oh me oh my, it is with a little ok, a lot of trepidation that I announce 

Ricë Freeman-Zachery has done a Podcast with me. 

I can't listen to it, seriously I can't. My voice drives me crazy for one thing. Plus I have already heard it, being there while it was recorded, ya know. 

Ricë is so fun I forgot we were recording. 

Consequently there were several times I was possibly a bit too animated for a podcast. 

Ahem.

Just saying. 

Seriously though, I adore Ricë. She is a wonderfully caring individual and I have such respect for all the contributions she makes in our little patch of the art world. Take a minute to check out the content on her Voodoo Cafe Blog or over at Create mixed Media. How does she do it all!?!?

And listen to my Podcast......if you must......oh geez, I think I was probably supposed to publicize this better......

Happy Weekend everyone.

Triad Color Theory - with just 3 paints

This past weekend, at Create Chicago, I taught Color Moods, which is basically a half day color theory class based on different Triads of Red/Yellow/Blue. The idea is to work very abstractly with the paints, trying out a few triads until you find one that suits your mood. This project is outlined in my book too in case you are interested.

One of my students, Bette Brody, loved(!!!!) Claudine Hellmuth's Studio Paints. Using the Triad - Dash of Red, Smidge of Blue, Dab of Yellow (and white), you can make such pretty colors - I mean look how happy these colors are - they make me smile!

And the little pieces that Bette cut out?  They are adorable abstract compositions, aren't they?

Destination: Creativity

Rice Freeman Zachery's latest book. I saw a sneak preview when I was at Art Unraveled and can't wait to get a copy of my own so I can wallow page by page.
Check out this delightful video promotion. There is silly footage of me dancing (omg, that is too much information) and hanging a spoon from my nose. The retreats are so much fun.......and we even make art too, ha!!!

Adding or Subtracting

I am fascinated with the idea of adding or subtracting. Have no fear, I am not talking about math, just hang with me for a moment.....I remember the exact moment this occurred - I was at an artist's talk being given by local sculptor Iain Fraser.....someone asked him if his process was completely additive.....to which he replied, "yes" and then talked about that for awhile. I listened with one ear as I pondered my own process.
To be honest, I had never thought about this before as it seemed a little esoteric. But the more I pondered (and yeah, I get totally obsessive this way, especially in the middle of the night, ha!) the more I came to understand that my process is both Additive and Subtractive. Very strange for a girl who has never enjoyed Math.

"Happy Birthday Mr. Turner" 30" x 30"

(You can click on both of these images to enlarge, by the way)

"Ode to a Wall" 24" x 18"

These are my most recent explorations. There is a lot of additive followed by a lot of subtractive including use of a palm sander, distressing down into the layers......plus, the white squares were carved out of the finished piece, back to the white of the Claybord - don't the squares look like confetti? I will confess that the palm sander was slightly scary and I felt out of control during that part. But maybe that's a good thing?

Artfest 2012

I swear I am on a perpetual swirl. But I am not dizzy......
Anyway, I forget if I mentioned that Artfest is up and open and registrations need to be sent in very soon. Teesha will start to open and process them (by lottery) on September 1st.

 I am thrilled beyond belief to be teaching 3 classes. You an see lots more detail on the site but I thought I would tease you with some images just because that is how I am.

 I sooooooo look forward to Artfest. For me, in addition to teaching, I meet up with friends who I see only at this event. Artfest is a pilgrimage of sorts, for us to gather and spend time together making art, such an amazing way to honor our creative souls. Teesha and Tracy have created something magical with Artfest, the original art retreat, in its 13th year. Whether teaching or student-ing, I lovelovelove to attend!! There is something indescribably delicious about being part of a huge gathering of like minded souls. Oh swoon goes my heart......

Art Unraveled 2011

All I can say is wow, wow, wow and wow. What a great time I had this year - caught up with old friends, made new friends, taught classes to genius students, signed books, sold stencils, ate good food, bought art supplies (mica from Dan Essig!!) and jewelry (bracelet from Ruth Rae, earrings from Deryn Mentock).
Now I'm back home, slept 12 hours straight last night I was so exhausted. Geez.....

But I'm back in action and made a little slide show.....wish I had taken more pics, but I lost my camera at one point (lucky for me it was found). Hopefully you can get a flavor of the event. The Embassy Suite is a sweet place to hang out and Linda and Chuck do a first class job. I need to put together my class proposals for next year, any suggestions? I have some ideas, but would love to hear what my blog readers have to say about this too.

Open Studio Recap

Here are some pictures that Greg took at Open Studio. This first picture is the view from the door. That is Dawson standing on the left, her ceramic art in the middle. Straight ahead is the Flat File draped with paint stained tarps (as a tablecloth). It was a cool and artsy touch, Dawson's clever idea. I think that me, Greg & Dawson put together a pretty nice show if I do say so myself. I felt very proud.

 

The bottom picture is 'my' view from my painting table. As you can see, even when given tons of space, I manage to reduce my working area to postcard size. Geez......
On the left, my stepdaughter and one of my grandsons admiring Dawson's work.
The entire event was a roaring success and CAM did a great job - the best year ever! We had quite a nice crowd of people come through, pretty much a steady stream of people all day long. It was so neat to talk to folks who asked interesting questions and seemed to have a genuine interest in the artistic process - I love being able to share my passion with like minded peeps.
So now I am headed out to Art Unraveled. If you are in the Phoenix area, you can even sign up last minute and still take a class.
And..........registration for Squam closes on 8/15.
And, wait, there's more.........classes for Artfest are up!! Details on the site. It is a stellar lineup with return teachers (I am so thrilled to be back) as well as exciting new names. I can.not.wait.

Circling round Encaustics

Yes I am mad for Encaustic Painting.



Yes I am mad for circles.



See what happens?