What is Old is New

I recently took a trip back to my 'old' style work, that being mixed media more in the style of my Common Denominator series. In this case I made an abstract for a group show that recently ended.

Gentle Noble Earth, 20" x 20" on canvas (click to enlarge)

It was weird working on canvas after having done so much work on wood panel and claybord. It was also weird using Molding Paste (I found this huge tub of it when I cleaned recently). I have become so accustomed to using Wood Icing that I had forgotten how long it takes the Molding Paste to dry. Oy Vay am I ever impatient, ha!
So I took this piece to my Critique Group on Tuesday night. I kind of wanted to bring my encaustics, but I had already hung them at the store, along with all the rock pieces. I thought about not even bringing a piece, but instead grabbed this one at the last minute. It was the only new-ish work I had on hand and truth be known I didn't even want to discuss it because it was done already, varnished, had been in a show.
But then, just when I am least expecting it (and I say this not because my group doesn't add good input, but because I foolishly didn't think there was anything to say) I hear brilliant words coming from the mouths of artists who I respect.
And the feedback was all about words......you see that little white square in the middle? If you enlarge you may be able to see my words, from a vintage book page, random yet meaningful, done a la Humument,  meaning that I painted over the words I did not want. I do this in a very random, meditative way and it never fails to amaze me the messages that appear. Words have played a big role in all my work from the very start. I have always suspected it was my journalism degree kicking in, this compulsion to add commentary to everything I do. I have been putting little word 'captions' in my work for over 10 years now. They are wildly meaningful to me, sacred almost. Sometimes I feel like they are the true guts of my work and I simply can.not.stop. using them.
So anyhoo, two people in my group both locked in on the words. One felt they were 'shy' and the other suggested I use more of them for there to be a real impact.
Wow.
Wow.
Wow.
Slap self in head.
Amazing food for thought and now this sends my brain spinning in new directions.

Waxy Meltdown

In a good way, of course! I am talking about Encaustics! Yum. I have been aware of encaustics for years; to be truthful, I have avoided them because it is kind of expensive (for one thing) and I also didn't want to be distracted from my regular work.
Well. I had an opportunity to play a few months ago when my friend Julie invited me to her fully functioning encaustic studio. It was too fun for words. I was instantly smitten.

12" x 6" encaustic with collage

I have been playing on my own now. A lot - yeah, I'm a little obsessive that way. But you knew that. Anyhoo, here is one of my new ones, very neutral, also a mix of smooth and textured effects. And see those little round things? They are palette pieces, snipped from my dried palette - I have a lot of them that I've been saving just because they are cute. I actually didn't even use the painted side here (silly girl) as the back side had a look I preferred.

4" x 4" encaustic, click to enlarge

I posted this one (above) on Facebook and it was selected as the 'fave' by a number of people. That is my new baby stencil there at the bottom. Also at the top of the piece shown above. Wow do I ever love how those stencils work with the hot wax. Anyway, I like this piece too although it wasn't my fave, don't know why.
This one is maybe my fave. I think I mainly like the color, I was mixing the wax right on the palette and loved the way the colors merge up.

4" x 4" encaustic, click to enlarge

One of my favorite things about the encaustic work is the blowtorch. Whoa is it ever cool, well, not really cool, but you know what I mean.  Of course I am making John a wreck about it as I am sure he envisions his absent minded wife with a blowtorch and who knows where his brain wonders. I am careful and responsible though. I wasn't in the insurance claim biz 18 years for nothin'!!
If you also love Encaustics or want to try it for the first time, you might consider attending Encausticamp this year. I will be there (assisting Judy Wise,  oh be still my heart). I think it will be hothothot, literally and figuratively of course.

Of Girl talk and tmi

Remember the good old days? That was back when I used to say whatever popped into my head. Anything really, seemed like I was full of self deprecating humor regarding my escapades.  And I told lots of stories. Like here and here. Or here.
I was funny. Or perhaps only in my own mind (hmmm, note to self).

Then I started putting myself out into the teaching realm. And for some reason I thought I should conduct myself with a tad more decorum. So I tried to be serious. Talk about art, stick to sharing art related things. Reduce the number of cat stories and certainly eliminate my body issue talk.

But now I'm wondering if you'all (my reading audience, whoever you are) might miss me being a little more loose, showing my true self on occasion, vapid though it be? 

Thus the motivation behind this story. Shared on the day when most everyone else in the Cyberworld is having a sale. But I didn't think of that, so nothing is being sold here, just kick back and get a laugh at my expense.

You all know I have this TV gig on Great Day St. Louis, right? Duh, of course you know cause I talk about it all the time, it still friggin' amazes me that someone puts me on television and that folks actually watch. Or maybe I am simply so enamored with my own image that I am the only one watching the clip over and over, analyzing my hair color, whether I possess the ability to do my own makeup, blahblahblah. Yep, I am that vain, sad to say out loud.

Anyhoo, last Wednesday, I was set up to do my gig and John decided to go with me so he could see the set and meet some of the folks and, well, it was raining and he was going to drop me off at the door. Have I mentioned how much this man indulges me?
It was during the drive downtown when I realized that my front-snap bra had popped open and my, well, you know.....the girls were hanging out. Or down as is the case considering my age and the fact that I breast fed a baby many moons ago. OMG, I couldn't believe it, I mean this has never happened to me before, let alone right before a television appearance I mean Good Lord, like I needed something else to worry about.

KMOV -  set for Great Day St. Louis

Needless to say, I had to go through some unseemly physical gyrations in order to get them harnessed back into place - we were in a moving car after all. It would really be tmi if I told you that whole story but it involved me hunched over in the passenger seat, attempting to move the girls out of the way so I could see the little hookie device, while attempting to simultaneously move the girls back into their place. And to accomplish this entire maneuver without my reading glasses which I sadly need more and more frequently, that being a topic for another day. All while trying not to attract the attention of fellow travelers.

So we get to the show and I can't shake that nervous feeling it might happen again which is when I shared my story with Deb (she being the person who gets me miked up which often involves clothing adjustment hence my personal relationship with her). She absolutely snorted out loud, "Shut UP, girl, you gonna improve our ratings!!!"

And so the show pretty much went downhill from there. You can see for yourself as I glue a portion of the project to the tablecloth. And Kent Ehrhardt, the host, cracks me up, as usual. Watch the clip and pay attention to when I say "you need to grab your little drawers." Tee, hee, this one will go down in history, but at least there was no ahem 'poppage' during the show.

Countdown Calendar

This is a project I will demo on Great Day St. Louis this coming Wednesday. If you are in the St. Louis area, set your DVR for Channel 4 at 10am on 11/24. Come back here to get the details and make the project for yourself.

I think this could be used as a 'countdown' for whatever you desire. I am making two of these for my grandsons (don't tell them!) as a Countdown to Christmas. But I think they would be super cute for nearly any occasion; think about Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Spring Break, End of the School Year, Birthday, etc.

Supplies:
matchboxes
glue gun
wrapping paper
decorative doo dads, as desired
scissors, ruler, cutting mat
glue stick or white glue
paint or colored markers
black marker or rubber stamps of numbers & ink
ribbon

1.  Decide how many matchboxes you need. I am using 25 since I am making a countdown to Christmas. Empty and discard all the matches and pull the drawers out.
2. Count out nine boxes (the outside sleeve part of the box) and glue them together using the glue gun. Then glue seven together, then five, then three.
3. Cut wrapping paper to cover each section of boxes. Here are the dimensions you will need for each section:
2-1/8" x 12-1/2"
2-1/8" x 10-1/4"
2-1/8" x 8-1/4"
2-1/8" x 6"
2-1/8" x 4"
4. Using the largest piece of wrapping paper (see above), glue it around the section of nine match boxes. Glue the next largest around the seven boxes, then five, then three, the one, until all the boxes have been covered.
5. I took some decorative ribbon and glued them around each section to embellish further.
6. After this is all finished, glue the sections together as shown to make the tree. I found the glue gun kept the overall tree more sturdy.
7. Embellish further if desired, see pom poms I added above. You could add glitter or whatever you want.
8. Using a red and green marker, paint the front of each of the match box drawers.
9. Number the drawers from 1-25 using either rubber stamps or simply write the numbers on the drawer.
10. Assemble the drawers randomly making sure that drawer 25 is on the top.
11. Gather tiny treats to put in each drawer - candy, stickers, erasers, etc.

Obviously, there are tons of options with this project so have fun and vary it as you wish.
Enjoy your countdown!!

How about a little trip

Part of the deteriorating wall around historic Quebec City

Chocolate Museum

The Wall

Pastry shop - I had Cafe au lait and a scone

Quebec City street

I never got around to sharing any pictures from our vacation. We went up to Canada, to Quebec City and Montreal, after I taught at Squam.  John flew over to meet me (I had the car) and we took off on a driving trip. I could not tell you the last time we had a 'real' vacation, one that didn't involve work obligations, visiting family, etc.; this was utterly divine!

Old Quebec City is a walled city, the oldest in North America. I was absolutely fascinated by the wall as you might have guessed, me and my rock thing. We walked on top of the wall in some areas and I imagined what it must have been like 'back in the day' when it was needed for protection. Such a concept to think about. Old Quebec City is fantastic for walking; I don't think we used the car once, walked to and from dinner each night which was marvelous and reminded me of when we lived in SF and used to walk oh-so-much, I adore that sort of lifestyle.

And I used some of my very rusty high school French, throwing out words here and there with my abominable midwest accent. I wanted to pretend that I was more sophisticated than I am, possibly of French descent of something more exotic than just being from Ohio, but ya know, I just can't pull that off. Ha!

Basilique Notre-Dame

So anyhoo, After Quebec City we went over to Montreal and had some truly stellar food which for some reason I didn't photograph. We went to one of those uber hip restaurants where you have to know where it is to eat there. Like they have no sign, just a pink light. It was jammed with people, tables crushed together and we sat next to a Canadian couple who were delightfully friendly.

I seldom pass the opportunity to visit old churches as I find them to be the ultimate in eye candy. Basilique Notre-Dame was no exception; for some reason I did not expect it to be so B-L-U-E and it just took my breath away, almost like Van Gogh's Starry Starry Night, that kind of blue with glimmers of gold. Ah, just gorgeous with inspiration at every turn.

My favorite pic

And how 'bout this biker babe? Is she cool or what? I want to be her, perhaps in my next life, that is the life when I will be tall and thin.
I bet she speaks French too.

Can you say Obsessive

Me, oh no. Never. Mwohahaha (evil laugh).

Anyway, last week I went to the monthly meeting of the St. Louis Collage Club and Barb O'Brien, one of our members, did a demo on patchwork  collage pieces. She was inspired by a Cavallini journal; you can click here to see what I am talking about - the Flora and Fauna ones all have patchwork backgrounds that are oh-so-sweet.
These are very easy to make and a great way to use up scraps.
Here are a few I have made and the steps to make them.

Step 1 - Gather a bunch of paper scraps, cohesive colors if possible, also get a few 'neutrals' like text, sheet music or the like. Use your paper cutter to randomly create squares and rectangles of all sizes.
Step 2 - Select a background - use whatever you have, doesn't need to be good paper, I used cereal boxes for mine. Cut to whatever size you want; a bigger one can be a motherboard.
Step 3 - Run your background through the Xyron to coat it with that sticky stuff.

Step 4 - Start your assembly by putting your pre-cut pieces down on the sticky background. Butt them up next to one another in a mosaic fashion. Re-cut pieces as necessary so they fit together.
Step 5 - Trim overhanging pieces.
Step 6 - Embellish with ribbon, Stickles, glitter, doo-dads, whatever.

Step 7 - Cut into smaller pieces, mount onto black paper (if desired, see John's b-day card from my last post) and assemble into greeting cards or just whatever you might want. I think they would make adorable tags for gift giving so I think I will pull all my old Christmas cards and make some tags.

The sky is the limit, this is a fun project to do while watching TV cause it is pretty brainless. And they are just so cute! I adore them. Thanks Barb (and Cavallini) for the inspiration.

Anybody wanna come over and make me stop!?!?!?!??!?!

An auspicious day

Birthday card I made for John

Today is my sweetie's birthday. It's a big one. I can't say how many years, but let's just say our health insurance will actually go down cause he starts Medicare. If you can believe, we are actually celebrating that too, haha. Anyway, we are off to party with the family, having a big old fried chicken dinner, yes we are. It will involve gravy (the white kind), need I say more?

So Happy Birthday baby, to my lover and my best friend, my hubby John. He is truly the best man I have ever known. I feel so lucky he is mine. 

Linky dinky do da

See this........



.....it's my book. On Amazon. How friggin' cool is that??  I can barely stand it I am so excited, hee!! Anyhoo, just wanted to share. And yeah, you may want to pre-order. But you may also wanna wait cause I am going to offer some uber cool sumpin if you order direct from me. Just saying.....

When one door closes....

Those of you who read my blog regularly know about the juggling act called 2010. In addition to writing my book; I have taught locally and nationally; I have been a partner in a retail operation; I have participated in outdoor Art Fairs around the Midwest; I designed and promoted a line of stencils; I did monthly TV gigs for Great Day St. Louis.
I wore myself out.
Yep. I just said it out loud. I have been wiped. The juggler whose game never came to an end. Lots of people suggested this would happen to me, but naturally I poo-pooed that. Because I thought that I could do it all. And yeah, maybe I could.....for awhile.....
But you know what?

I'm going vertical now. And loving the red.

I no longer want to do it all. I want to focus on the things that mean the most to me, are intrinsically rewarding; the stuff that makes me jump out of bed in the morning.

So I am trying something new. I am saying no.
Several months back, John and I went to a book signing of Anne Lamott. I love her and had never seen her in person, but I hung on every word and could have listened to her speak all night long. She said something that resonated with me sosososo much. She was talking about how she used to say yes to every opportunity that came along, how she was so scared to say no because it might not be offered again. Uh huh...sounded so familiar to me. But then she finally learned to say no. And....this is the part that got me....she said, "NO is a complete sentence."
Wow.
I have thought about that a lot.
And I resigned my partnership in the store. I am still exhibiting and teaching there, just not partnering.
I have also decided that I will not do as many shows next year, possibly reduce to only one or two.
Instead, I am focusing on doing what I love. Teaching, designing, making my art, developing new ideas, techniques, products to share with others. Because that is what I love.
And you know what?
My brain has kicked back into gear. It's as though a weight has been lifted. I feel alive and fresh and new, with ideas coming every minute. And the opportunities, oy vay, it is exciting. I will say Yes to the ones I adore and will say No to others. It is such a feeling of freedom.

Red Rocks

And the rocks continue

Finally. I have some painting time and it is simply mahvelous, dahling. Oh my oh my, I am like a pig wallowing in, well, you know....Except I don't really wallow in the paint, it just looks like it sometimes.
I am moving further along with my rock series. I love finding ways to create texture by poking, prodding, scraping the mediums. Fun!
See the send to last section - the one right before the bottom.....glued some more Mica onto the painting, a process best saved for closer to the end as the beautiful finish dulls down if you get paint on it (you can 'fix it' by gently using alcohol though).
And that red part? Palette knife work.

And psssst, wanna know a secret? I have brand new bouncing baby stencils on the way......you'll be the first to know, so stay tuned.

Rocks, rocks, all the time rocks

You can see that I have abstracted my rocks.

Here are some completed images from my prior post. A funny thing happened while I was working on them. It was last Sunday. I was all wound up, just a bundle of energy, jazzed about my rocks and felt like I was on top of the world just exploding with new ideas. John walked into the studio to tell me it was time to leave for the kids for Halloween. I gushed out about the new work, like I tend to do and John inspected it, then commented, "well, they're not done....."

This was inspired by the Wall around Quebec City.

 Splat. That was the wet blanket I imagined that he threw; it enveloped me. Butbutbut.....I sputtered, then got defensive about how I was trying to be more neutral. Then I got mad. Naturally I pouted during the 20 minute drive to the kids house. 

More Ruggles Mine inspiration - see the little Mica circles? Bought those from Dan Essig when I was teaching at Art Unraveled.

But Monday morning, when I walked into the studio, it was all clear. And he was right. They needed more work. Which I believe I have accomplished. These are now done. I am hopeful you can click and enlarge them, give it a try. Lots of interesting texture.

And yeah, I did apologize to John. Right after I thanked him for his honest feedback. See, he always says he doesn't know anything about this, like he thinks his feedback couldn't possibly be valid. But his heartfelt response is very helpful to me (once my ego moves aside) and I hope my rude reaction never discourages him from speaking his mind. Geez, I know I am a pain but criticism can be tough. And despite what we say or how we behave, we artists have thin skins, don't we?

I know, I know.......

It has been forever. I apparently took a blog sabbatical as I have been struggling to find my painting mojo, oh where oh where has it gone? Actually, it isn't the mojo itself that is missing; it is simply this thing called L-I-F-E that has intervened.

Lately I seem to find my inspiration at the exact moment when I have to go take a shower cause we have theater tickets. Or it is time for us to celebrate Halloween with the kids. Or even time for a lovely dinner that John has created for me.

These are the rock paintings that continue.....

 
Geez. I feel ugly and ungrateful when I am like this and I understand why so many artists have chosen alternative lifestyles. Cause 9-5 is just damn difficult. It's not like there's a switch after all and oy vay, if only!!!
Cause you see, I had been telling myself (all year) that I would immerse myself in a new series. After the teaching. After the shows. After vacation. Blahblahblah. It was my carrot, my reason for living (ok, I'm being a tad drama queen about this but seriously).

And more, a closeup of one, see the Mica?

And another, I love this one, I really let loose on the composition.

The inspiration, sitting on my work table at all times.

So here I am, weaseling a little bit of time here and there, between classes and this and that. Trying to find meaning in this pile of rocks. Puttering along like everyone else, grateful and extremely possessive of each and every moment I spend in my studio, always pining for more and feeling the hunger.

Life is good. Bountiful. Wonderful.
repeat three times


 

Rock It

On the way to Squam I stopped at a Mine. Yep, a real Mine. Thankfully, it was an open Mine, meaning you don't have to go down through a shaft or into caves or anything like that. In fact, it is called the 'mine in the sky' because it is on top of a mountain (of sorts). Anyhoo. I loved it, Ruggles Mine. Big big thanks to my friend Lyle, who told me to stop there.

So.....if you've been reading my blog for awhile, you certainly know how much I love my rocks. I collect them from everywhere and have a dish of rocks in my studio which inspires a lot of my work.
Like here.
And here.
And here. (my river rock stencil) 

Well, I am on another 'rock binge', painting all sorts of geological-referenced things, this time more from a stratum vantage point. Lots more of these pieces in the works, I think you might see this for awhile, hope it doesn't get boring. Obviously it doesn't bore me, tee, hee.......

I feel therefore I am

A husband's friend (thanks David!) sent me a link to this amazing website that has a goal of 'harvesting' human emotions from weblogs. Basically, whenever a weblog post has the words "I feel" or "I am feeling" this site extracts and saves the information. Once you recover from the freakish Orwellian nature of this project, it is kind of cool.

You need to click on the applet to get the whole story - check out the 'Madness' area, a visual representation of posts, dots and squares and all sorts of colors, flying around on the screen. By moving your mouse over an area, you can see the geographic origin of the post; by clicking, you can see the actual phrase. Another area called 'Murmurs' is a scrolling screen of posts, one after the other, sort of mesmerizing. There are other sections as well, all showing a different view. Truly fascinating.

I feel like a voyeur and some of these make me smile while others are sad.

Now I am going to watch to see if my post shows up.....

Still amongst the living

Yep, I am still here. Good grief, it has been a ride these past few weeks. Between renovating our bathroom, participating in an Art Fair, going to NH to teach at Squam, spending a week in Canada with my sweetie and hosting a visit from my parents I feel a little like a whirling dervish. I have done little art except for writing in my journal, that being the Teesha-style journal that I made awhile back.

Judy inspired me when we were roomies at Squam. I was so envious of the dedication she has to her journal(s) and observing her made me think about what prevented me from a daily journal habit. Seriously. I thought about it a lot and tried to figure out my issue. I came up with a lot of friggin' lame excuses ranging from lack of time to exhaustion from making my 'real' art to need time w/the hubster to blahblahblah. It really doesn't matter because they were all just excuses. And aha (as in Oprah aha moment) it hit me. I have a choice. To journal or not to journal. My life. My choice, if I want to journal, I simply need to choose to do it. Duh.

And so I do. I have carved out a time in the evening - that time when John and I sit down with a glass of wine to decompress - I pull out my journal. Am I an everyday journal writer? Not quite yet, but I am working on it.

Recalling Squam

The students in my 'Nature of Klimt' class blew my mind with their work. Wow, talk about making a teacher feel proud!



And I even got to take a class this time, from the brilliant Jen Lee. Getting to spend an entire day with her was sweet! And I am totally inspired to do more writing and share my stories with the world.

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It's Squam time

Taught my first class today. And now I am relaxing. I'm in a class tomorrow with Jen Lee. Then teaching again on Saturday.


It is so pretty here. Nice.

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Wouldn't you know!?!?

The incredible Jenny Doh has come up with a new use for my River Rocks stencil. Absolutely too clever the way she is using it as a stitching guide for what will undoubtedly be an uber cool scarf. Click here to take a look.

Nine little claybords

Here they are, the ATC's. I scanned them and a couple are upside down, hahaha, I have faith you probably noticed that already. Geez. I have fond memories of them now that they are gone. As you can see, I used my stencils along with the Wood Icing Textura paste. Also little bits of Mica that I bought from Dan Essig when I was at Art Unraveled. I have never really used Mica before but Dan had these really cool shapes and I just loved them. His hotel room was on the same floor as mine and one day I found a little chip of Mica on the floor near the elevator - a calling card of sorts - dork that I am, I carried it in my pocket all day long as if it would bring me luck.

In other news.......wow, what a nice weekend. It is amazing to not have to work on the weekend. I have had so many shows/teaching/store obligations onetwothreefourfive all in a row that it has been forever since I have had a weekend off. All I can say is I like it. A lot. Not to say I lazed around. Ha! Perish the thought. I worked on the cabinets for the bathroom remodel and they are in a good place. Done? I am not sure, you know how that goes.

This week I am getting ready for Art Outside at the Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood, MO. If you are nearby, you should pop over to St. Louis this weekend. The 'big' show takes place in Clayton. that is the well known show with top artists from all over the country. It is a lovely show and I was lucky enough to be accepted several years ago. Art Outside is the 'local' show, filled with 50 local artists including many friends of mine. It is always very good art and lots of fun. Plus great beer. So two shows the same weekend. I trust the weather will be perfect.

Home

I have been on a whirl lately. I wrote a post last week, along with a picture and poof! it disappeared, surely I did something wrong, who knows what. Is anyone still out there? I feel disconnected, life has picked me up and tossed me into the surf, where I am jostled in the waves, rushing in and out and in and out with little sense of direction.

I am looking forward to this weekend - no shows, no work at the store; I am home. Of course I still have lots to do. Preparations for Schlafly Art Outside which is Sept. 10-12, then I leave for Squam on the 15th. Not to mention we are having our bathroom remodeled (master bath) and I have to finish our vanity this weekend. I will paint and distress it like I did with the kitchen. The project came about much quicker than I expected so it all feels a little frantic right now.

The pictures above are 2 ATC's I made for a project one of my friends convinced me to do. She intends to publish them I think, it is an incredible group of women, I do know that. So I said yes. And then I cursed every step of the way. It is such a tiny format, terribly hard for me to work like this - these are on claybord by the way. I will show the rest of them in the coming days. I can't wait to see what the others made.

Bundles

I participate in a local group called St. Louis Collage Club. We take turns leading projects and doing demos; we make things for charitable organizations; we share techniques; we shop (!); we eat; we have fun. At our August meeting, one of our members organized a Bundle project based on the DISCO collaboration that Seth Apter did.

Like Seth, I am fascinated by natural destructive processes. I don't know what that says about me, ha! All I know is that it propelled me to search out a beach in Hawaii where metal objects from a dump have landed on the beach due to erosion of the land. The combination of salt water with junked objects attracted me like a bee to honey and I filled roll after roll of film (this was years ago) with photos. Oh how I have this strong desire to search thru my boxes to find those photos, oy but I digress.

And then the fire - in 2002, when we lived in San Francisco - a warehouse next to The Cannery caught fire and, living just a mile from there, we heard sirens for hours and hours. The next morning I walked down to see what had happened and once again, took tons of pictures. A horrific event (thankfully no one was hurt) that seemed beautiful to me - a gutted building, charred timber, blown out windows - oh my oh my, the compositions fueled one of my very first abstract series.

And I adore the work of a local artist Patricia Vivod. She works on fabric using rust, natural elements, and composting to achieve unbelievable earthy depth in her pieces. I remember my introduction to her work; I stood spellbound by her process and statement. The works were so incredibly evocative to me.

So the Bundles were definitely my kind of project. I grabbed some random stuff out of my studio - painted paper towel debris, corrugated stuffing that happened to be on the floor, a ball of old fabric strips, some paste painted paper scraps, stuff from the garbage. Wrapping them was a spontaneous process and I worked fast and furious completing the three bundles shown in about an hour. My friend Caroline had some used/wet tea bags and I jammed one into the center of two bundles.

They are now hanging from our Japanese Maple and I confess to being a wee bit mesmerized by them. I think you can click on the picture to enlarge if you want to see them close up. I feel this crazy connection as though they are children or something. And I can't wait to see what happens. I will keep you all informed.

Thanks Seth for the brilliant inspiration!!

Colbert with Chuck Close

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Chuck Close
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes 2010 Election Fox News

So interesting. Strangely, I had just read the part about Chuck Close in my copy of Inside the Painter's Studio. I thoroughly adore this book and find myself savoring every single page. Anyhoo, this is a fun and informative interview - Chuck Close rocks!

Re Entry from Art Unraveled

I am back as of Monday night. Thought I might have some brief down time but oh no, we will have none of that here in the Shaw household. Tons of things to do including watching the boys, attending meetings, doing laundry, cleaning the laundry room after washer decides to semi-flood, unpacking, working at the store, planning the next round of classes, cleaning the studio so I actually have space to work in the event I am ever able to make art again.

Ok. I am whining. I have the best life in the world yet I whine. What's up with that!?!? Seriously. I just wanna make some art. I managed to do that for one day last week and oh what joy. That was the day I tarped my hotel room with a Dollar Store shower curtain. It was simply marvelous.

So then I arrive home to find all the Encaustic supplies (palette, heat gun, paints, etc) I ordered had arrived. I looked at them last night. Longingly, like a dog eyes a steak. I want to chuck all my commitments and simply hole up in the studio and play with the new toys. But work beckons, this crazy thing called 'earning a living.' So I need to keep on keepin' on there are classes to teach and shows to do.

I will be teaching locally next Wed., the 18th. Decided to offer a local session of my recent 'Moving in the Right Circles' class, one of the ones from Art Unraveled. It was a huge success and I wish I would have taken photos, but I was a little off my game. Everything that could have gone wrong did in Phoenix. Yet I still loved every minute of it. It is a really nice event and I would strongly recommend it to anyone. Hope I will be there next year.

In other upcoming events, there are still openings in my classes at Squam, including the Color class, the one that everybody begs for and tells me is life changing. Ok, maybe I am exaggerating that life changing part, but you should see the way it changes how you paint! And that Klimt class, ah, working on Claybord, lovelovelove. In the way of Klimt, lovelovelove. Consider joining us at Squam. 

And Artfest anyone?? Start your apps people, it is almost time and what a lineup, probably the best I have ever seen. I have a little bit of crazy regret that I am teaching the whole time (how lucky is that!?!) cause I would sooooo take lots of the classes. If only there were more hours in each day. And more days in each week.......

Breathe in. Breathe out. Repeat.

Of Martinis and Madness

I am here in Phoenix. Yeah, it really is a dry heat. I like it here. Flew in early so I could decompress before I teach.



I have turned my room into a studio of sorts, thanks to the shower curtain I bought at the Dollar store. Sadly, the boxes I mailed were Mia until this morning.



Which is why I needed this big ole martini last night. I am still waiting for the last box which has the paints I need for tomorrow's class. Worst comes to worst and I am heading over to Hobby Lobby. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

And be sure and check out the Artfest 2011 site. Amazing classes next year, wow can Teesha pick them!

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Art Unraveled here I come

There is something so satisfying about a stack of handouts.


Ah, just getting them finished feels good. As I was stapling them together I remember working in the insurance industry. Part of our training included stapling in the exact proper position. It seems so funny to remember that. What a lifetime ago when I spent my days in a fluorescent lit cubicle.
Life is so very very good.



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Art unraveled

Here I come!!


I've been revisiting my classes and making fresh samples oh what fun! The Circles class has filled up quite nicely but there is a lot of room in the Three Times Charming class. Consider it as a very intimate setting and chance to pick my brain. Seriously. I won't cancel for low numbers.

Both classes are similar in that we are working on claybord using texture including the fantabulous Wood Icing. We will also cut simple stencils in the Three Times Charming class.

And for vending I will offer my own stencils plus the debut of 2 coordinating clear stamps. They are pretty cool if I do say so myself.

So come join us. It's going to be a lot of fun, you can count on that!


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Open Studio Weekend

If you are in the St. Louis area, it's Open Studio weekend sponsored by The Contemporary Art Museum. For artists with studios outside city limits, the museum provides alternative space which is really cool!


You can visit me at 3842 Washington on Sunday from 10-4. Stop by to visit! I'm sharing the space with a bunch of other artists so there will be a lot to see. And I'll let you in on a little secret......there might be bargains....and you can count on me serving Sangria!



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And the water is fine

Early morning journal time.


Quiet. Stillness. Peace.
In the midst of a family reunion trip, I haven stolen away to the boat dock. And I sit. Watching fish jump, observing the Swallow momma tend her young. Breathe in. Breathe out. Bliss.


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Books du jour

I have been on a bit of a book buying spree lately. I guess I should add the phrase 'as usual' to this sentence because I do really adore books. I use the library for books that I want to read, fiction type stuff, but I really like to own art books. Here are a few that I like:

Carla's book is a must-have for anyone who wants to loosen up and capture the true fun of drawing. Her personality shines through on every page and her drawings are so delightful I find myself smiling as I read. The book is formatted in weekly sections which is genius. It's my intent to work through it with my grandson and I know we will have a blast.

I saw this book at Anthropology last week and I might have accidentally drooled all over it. I did go home and order it off Amazon though simply because it saved a considerable sum. Being a painter, I find myself chuckling at lots of the studio pics in the gorgeous eye candy magazines (you know the ones I am talking about) on the market today. Sure I read them and love them, but my studio doesn't look anything like that. My place is a pig sty. Stains on the floor, paint marks on the walls, dirty coffee cups, petrified paint palettes, all sorts of yuck everywhere. I simply can't help myself, I get pretty passionate and really feel stifled if I try to stay clean. My furniture is all used and was free (picked up on garbage day). I would be nuts to furnish my studio with nice things.

So anyhoo, imagine my thrill when I pick up this book and see a bunch of famous contemporary painters (I am talking about big famous names like Eric Fischl and April Gornik) whose studios are a wreck too - the kind of mess I produce - whew, I thought there might be something wrong with me (ha! that's a topic for another day). In depth and interesting interviews accompany the photos and this is a book I know I will read in its entirety. Simply fascinating to me, a little like crawling into the heads of these artists.  Drool, drool......

The Sweet Life

Doodling by the water, how divine.


And I am restored and filled with new ideas.

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Art 4 Your Home

And today I am featured on another website. Specifically my painting, The Firmament. Catherine, the reviewer, really gets it about my paintings. That is kind of cool. As an abstract painter, I often don't know whether people like my work for the colors (because it matches their sofa) or if they discern some deeper meaning. Obviously there is a message or implication to every piece.

Click Here to see the feature and thank you, Catherine, for doing this!!

Featured Artist - Creative Therapy

Several months ago I was contacted by Karen of Creative Therapy and she asked me to be feature artist. I was given a variety of 'catalysts' to chose from. Today is my day - check it out at this link:
Creative Therapy
Kind of weird that I chose such a sad topic and it is featured on my 50th birthday. But it seems very apropoa in some strange way.

Oh where oh where has my little blog gone?

Sorry for the interruption in programming, good grief I have been buzzing around in about a million different directions lately - writing tons of blog posts in my head, mind you. Yet none of them seem to make it to the page. That being the case, thought I would try something different today and do some free form.....

Ok.

Tuesday was a near perfect day. My friend Julie (no blog or I would link her up) invited me over to play with encaustics. I have never dabbled in this medium before and oh my do I ever have the bug. LOVE IT. And yeah, I guess I am shouting. I think there might be some encaustics in my future. Here are my first efforts. I know they are not brilliant, but I do like the way they turned out especially considering it was my first try. I reallyreallyreally want to do more of this.

In the meantime, I've been at work in the studio on a commission that is now complete and ready for shipping. I can't show you because the client hasn't seen it yet, plus I couldn't get any decent shots of it for some crazy reason.

Also making lots of new pieces for the upcoming show in St. Joseph, MI - Krasl Art Fair on the Bluff if you happen to live in that area. If you don't live in the area, you might want to plan a road trip as it is adorable and quaint and artsy and, well, the weather is cooler than St. Louis. Although we are having this unbelievable spell of gorgeous sunny yet coolish days that are so rare in these parts.

I am working on the Author Review for my book which is kinda cool. This is when I get to see it all put together for the very first time and it is quite exciting. Plus starting to feel a lot more real. I am even beginning to think about how to promote and launch the book. I really want to travel around and promote it in conjunction with teaching classes, books signings, etc. If anybody out there in blogland has suggestions for me, I would love them. The book comes out in February which will of course be here in the blink of an eye the way things are going lately.

Wishing I could get some more peeps signed up for my classes at Art Unraveled. I am going into a whine here.....typically I attract a decent crowd, but not so much this time, hmmm, maybe because it's my first time there and people haven't heard of me, I don't know. But I will say that if you have ever thought of doing a class with me, consider it. Small classes make for incredible quality time and I do love that even though a girl's gotta make a living. Or at least this girl does.

And finally, getting ready for all sorts of parties this weekend. Holy moly it will be fun and festive and will involve Pop Rocks (more on that later) - these are early birthday celebrations as I move toward the big Five Oh! Which occurs officially on Wednesday. In case you were wondering.

And, oh yeah, there is a really cute picture of me (yes, I really did just say that but seriously, it was flattering - I was so stunned I even showed it to the cashier at Barnes and Noble, that's what a dork I am) in La Vie Claire magazine. It's part of an article about Elizabeth MacCrellish who runs Squam. There are 2 shots of one of my classes (fall last year). My family always teases me about posing every time I'm within eye shot of a camera. Which of course I did when the film crew showed up in my classroom. Hence the photo of me smiling (while teaching). Good grief. Embarrassing and sweet all at the same time, she says, as she smacks self in head.