Stuck in the Middle Again...

I have been steadily working whenever I get a chance.  In the past, there were far too many times when I'd get 'stuck' while working on a piece - just couldn't figure out what to do next to save my life.  I would waste time fighting with it, trying this or that idea, and hating them all.  A good solution, I thought, would be to work on more than one piece at a time, so that I could let one rest while I attended to another, thus lessening the frustration as well as giving it time to percolate in the back of my mind. This also keeps me from wasting time, which is at a premium. I'm sure many of you do this, and it's generally a very good strategy.

However, I have now reached this impasse with 2 pieces at once.  Story of My Life, which I showed you at an earlier stage of unfinished-ness, has come a little further, but then ground to a halt again.

The other one I'm currently working on is this, with the working title Doors of Perception:

The problem with mixed media is that you may not have exactly the right 'thingamajig' or 'whatchamacallit' you need in order to complete the piece to your satisfaction. One thing that helps when doing this type of work is to have a wide variety of materials available. The more stuff you have to choose from, the greater the odds that you'll have the perfect object or material in your studio.  Unless you have so much that you can't find anything, which is a whole other sack of potatoes. The other drawback is that you may be regarded as a hoarder.  My kids are not shy about telling me this; other people are probably thinking it, but are too polite to say so.


So, in the meantime, what do I do? Start on another?  Make pesto?

Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen's New Gallery

Wednesday, I drove to Berea, Kentucky to volunteer at the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen's new gallery. According to their website, KGAC was established in 1961, and is "a dynamic membership organization comprised of the finest artists, craftsmen, collectors, galleries, interested individuals and businesses in Kentucky and surrounding states." The Guild works to "preserve and promote the rich heritage and exciting future of art and craft. The KGAC headquarters is located in Berea, Kentucky, officially designated as the "Art and Craft Capital" of Kentucky."

 Log cabin outside the tourism center.

Here are a few of the galleries and shops in the Old Town Artisan Village.

This newly renovated building, located at 116 North Broadway Street, is the first permanent home of the Kentucky Guild of Artists and Craftsmen.

 Enjoy a bit of a virtual tour of the spacious and beautiful gallery:

As you can see, there is a lot to look at - even more gorgeous, high-quality work than I was able to show here. I'm very proud to be a member of this wonderful group of talented professionals.


If you'd like to see more of beautiful Berea, take a look at one of my previous posts, here.