Artists For Love

Browsing through the blogs I follow, I have noticed a common theme lately. Many of us are searching for a way to deal with and heal from the images and words of soul-draining discord, hatred, and fear that surrounds us. At times it has just been too difficult to watch the news, to see the mess that humans are making of the world, and the unrest that plagues our country. As someone who suffers from an anxiety disorder, it can have a negative affect on my health, and I need to disengage from it from time to time. Some friends have said they are taking a break from facebook and/or other social media, or that they're staying offline altogether.

Strategy: Focus on the good things - like this gorgeous sunset.


Ironically, however, I have found much comfort from my blogger and facebook friends, as they share not only their fears and doubts, but also their encouragement, love, and inspiration. There are many wonderful people in the world, whose words of hope and inspiration are like healing drops of wisdom that have washed over my soul. Words do indeed heal; in art there is much power if we choose to see it.

For instance, I found these wise words on Terri Windling's beautiful blog, Myth and Moor: "... Stories do not give instruction, they do not explain how to love a companion or how to find God. They offer, instead, patterns of sound and association, of event and image. Suspended as listeners and readers in these patterns, we might reimagine our lives. It is through story that we embrace the great breadth of memory, that we can distinguish what is true, and that we may glimpse, at least occasionally, how to live without despair in the midst of the horror that dogs and unhinges us."    ~ Barry Lopez

Terri also shares these thoughts from Toni Morrison:
Troubled times, she says, are "precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.
"I know the world is bruised and bleeding," she adds, "and though it is important not to ignore its pain, it is also critical to refuse to succumb to its malevolence. Like failure, chaos contains information that can lead to knowledge -- even wisdom. Like art."

Don't forget that the world is still filled with breath-taking beauty.


I found great inspiration in these and other words by Effy Wild, who is a facebook friend, an artist, a teacher, and a wonderfully articulate writer. In a recent blog post, she writes: "I realized, thanks to a few shining lights in my universe, that all I could do in the face of this was *what I already do* but more fiercely. With more love. More compassion. More emphasis on mutual understanding. And better boundaries....
But before I, personally, could do anything, I had to give myself space to feel what I felt. Rage. Mistrust. Deep, feminine wounding. Fear. All of it had to rise up, and all of it needed expressing.
And once I'd done that, I knew that the right answer for me was to do more of the same, but more fiercely.  I knew that the right answer, for me, was to treat everyone like they are God In Drag (thank you, Ram Dass), and to remember, above all else, that We Are All Just Walking Each Other Home (more Ram Dass)."
I agree. More of the same, but more fiercely. Please read the entire post; in fact, you'd be well served to read everything she writes.

The world is still full of random beauty...


 Then, I found this on Seth Apter's blog, The Altered Page.  Seth has always been an artist and blogger who has focused on bringing people together, generously coming up with exciting projects that promote collaboration among members of the art blogging community.  In this blog post, he says, "We are all individuals with complex experiences, unique ideas, personal histories, and our very own baggage. This guarantees that life will be complicated and challenging. However, this post stands as a reminder of the importance of support, love, acceptance and respect. Always. And the rejection of bigotry and intolerance to difference. Always.

For me, this is not about who voted for who -- although I know for many that cannot be dismissed. For me, this is about something bigger than the election. This is about taking an individual step toward a collective healing. Naive? Maybe. Necessary? Absolutely.

In that vein, a group of artists have created the hashtag #artistsforlove. Use it, embrace it, share it. I first read about it here and then here.  Take the time to click the links and see how you can join this movement and create your own poster that celebrates rather than diminishes inclusivity and love."


Thank you, Seth, Effy, Terri and everyone who promotes tolerance and love.

Namaste.

Studio Table

The incomparable Seth Apter of the The Altered Page has challenged us to reveal the truth, and I have accepted the challenge. In Seth's words, "Let's go behind the curtain, throw any feelings of shame out the window, and show the world the underside of art and craft. I'll show you mine if you show me yours!"

Embarrassing as it is, here are photos of my art table in all its messy glory, just as it happened to be on this 20th day of September, 2014. Was I tempted to clean it up, just a bit? Yes, I was. But I left it as it really was, and snapped a few shots to share with you.

Yes, this is where I actually work, in the middle of all this chaos. And I do, pretty much, know where everything is, which surprises me as much as it probably does you.

And, as Seth noted in his own reveal, when we run out of room on the table, the mess tends to spread onto the floor...

For links to over a hundred (and counting) other artists' studio table views, head over to The Altered Page, Studio Table Reveal.  I just love seeing the reality of other artists' messes! Am I some weird kind of voyeur, or does it just make me feel less guilty about my own?  Whichever, it's great fun!

Playing Favorites

A big hunk (is that the right unit of measure? should it be pounds? or maybe liters? ) of gratitude goes out to Seth Apter, collaborator extraordinaire, for including my response in today's installment of

In this part of The Pulse, artists were asked to: share a picture of a favorite piece of art that you have created and explain its meaning to you...

So head on over to The Altered Page to find out which piece I chose, and treat yourself to artwork by talented people such as Miz Katie, Pam Carriker, and many more.  I've immensely enjoyed each and every installment of Playing Favorites so far; I have no doubt that you will, too.

Scary Christmas to Me

Christmas can be a bit scary.  I don't just mean the whole "getting-the-house-cleaned-&-decorated-(omg- where did we put those ornaments?)-&-buying-presents-&-wrapping-presents-&-making-food-&-no-way-will-I-get-all-this-done-in-time" thing.  No.  My Christmas is even scarier than that.

"What could possibly be scarier than that?" you may ask in astonished skepticism. OK. I'll show you.  Be ready to hide your eyes.  It's-

a blank canvas.  This simple white rectangle has struck cold fear into the hearts of artists for centuries, and I am no exception.  The fact that I hadn't done this type of work in- oh, let's see- since I got my BFA in 1993- served to increase the degree of terror by a factor of about- well, a lot.

But I forged ahead, because, you know- it's Christmas.  My baby (my daughter, who, by virtue of being my youngest, will always be my baby) had expressed to me that she wanted a painting of a big, red, 'abstract-ish' flower to set on her living room mantle.  I chose one of my red amaryllis photos, and cropped it to make an interesting (or so I hoped) composition. 

the original photo

I sketched the composition onto the canvas, bought paint, got out the brushes, took a deep breath, and began.

At the end of the second day (sorry, I forgot to photograph the first day), I was surprised at how far I'd progressed, and was feeling pretty pleased with myself.  I guess it's sort of like riding a bike; it all comes back to you...

...or not.  At the end of the third day, it seemed I hadn't gotten much done at all, compared to day two.  What the heck happened?  Well, I was suffering from a respiratory infection, and it could be that I spent more time blowing my nose than painting.  Sure, that must be it, right?

 

The fourth day was a nine hour painting marathon; I could hardly believe it when I finally checked the time and found it was 4:00.  I'd started at 8:00 that morning, and after being surprised by the time, I painted for another hour.  At that point, I felt it was approaching the way I had envisioned it. What bothered me was the first part I had worked on- the big flower at the top left, which now seemed too flat and too orange.  The stamens/anthers were also a problem; I couldn't decide if they needed to be brought out more, moved, or what.  Two days to Christmas and counting.

The next day I resolved most of the issues.  I repainted the left flower almost entirely, including the stamens, which I moved over toward the right.  I repainted the background for at least the twelfth time, and decided to call it finished.  Here is the final version. For whatever reason, the background color looks weird in this photo, but otherwise it's pretty accurate. 

But then, my final, and biggest fear reared its ugly head:  What if she didn't like it?  Of course she would never tell me; she'd just live a tortured life with this horrible thing on her mantle.  What was I thinking?  The painting really wasn't abstract at all- my own personal style had taken over without me even knowing it!

It was Christmas Eve, so I resisted the temptation to re-paint the whole thing (yes, that insane thought did actually cross my mind), and decided to wait for her reaction before freaking out completely. (Yes, I can hear you all laughing right now...) 

She loved it!  She said she liked it because she could tell I painted it- it was my "style".  Do you think she meant it?  Maybe she just didn't want to hurt my feelings...



OK, now for an abrupt change of subject... I hope you've been reading Seth Apter's online collaborative project "The Pulse" on his blog The Altered Page.  Part three, "Master Class", is now underway, and my answer to the question, 'If you could take a class from one artist from anytime in history, including the present, who would it be and why?' is featured on the Christmas day post.  Please click on the link above or the image below to check it out!

Merry Christmas and a wonderful holiday season to you all, my dear friends.  May you be blessed by true peace and joy.

Stacks

I have photographed my stacks for Seth Apter's Stacks Project, and here they are.  These are my stacks of vintage books, which seem to be growing.ever taller. I'm kind of obsessed with collecting them.  Some of them will be used for mixed media and altered book projects, and others I just love to marvel at. 

Who doesn't have stacks of stuff sitting around?  If you're an artist, you're bound to have at least one- it must be some kind of rule, or law.  Or is it that we're all messy, or hoarders?  Anyway, we might as well admit it.  Seth's gone so far as to embrace it, and put links to all the hoarders'- uh, I mean- artists' photos on his blog, the Altered Page.  Check them out here.

And don't forget to sign up for my give away!  All you have to do is leave a comment on the previous post.

Hello, I Love You- and a Give Away

Hello all!  You may or may not have noticed my absence lately, but I wanted to explain.... There are several things keeping me away from blogland, but the biggest culprit is the increased workload at my job; the beginning of the school year has been overwhelming, taking up most of my "art-making" time.  Also, I've had computer problems, not least of which is the apparent comatose state of my printer, which means I cannot print out images for transfers, nor can I scan anything, which is how I usually get images of my smaller pieces, which is all I have time to make right now. (whew! did you follow that?)  On top of all that, my mouse was working only intermittently, and not without much coaxing and cursing.  The mouse seems to be all better now, but the printer, alas, must undergo more tests and possibly a hospital stay, if I can find someone to fix it.  OK, blah. blah, blah, whine, whine, whine- enough about that.

Now for the good news: I've wanted to do a give-away for a while now, so this seemed like an opportune time.  I so appreciate the wonderful people of this online community; your support and encouraging messages have meant so much to me, and always lift my spirits.  Whenever I ask for your opinions or advice, you invariably come through with insightful and practical ideas.  As my 8th-graders would say: you guys are BEAST!  As a thank-you, I'll be giving away one of my small collages, But Still (shown below),

 But Still

as well as a package of decorative papers and vintage book pages (examples shown below).

So, this is how it will work:  Leave a comment on this post, and your name will be included in the drawing.  You don't have to be a follower, just a commenter.  If you "like" my facebook business page, your name will be put in twice.  Then, on Spetember 30, I'll toss all the names on the floor, and one of my goofy dogs (whichever one is handy) will "sniff out" the winner.

 Arlo (left), Scout (center), and Sunny (right)

(cuter when they're asleep)

FYI, I'll be participating in Seth Apter's "Paper Stacks" fun on Wednesday, September 21 at The Altered Page.  Be sure to check it out!

Style File

Apparently, blogger isn't going to let me upload any more photos.  But you can still visit this week's Style File, part of Seth Apter's ongoing collaborative art project, The Pulse.  So head on over to The Altered Page, introduce yourself to some new artists and their blogs, and find out how they describe their own individual art styles.  Examples of their work accompany their words, so it's a real feast for the eyes and mind.

Personally, I find it difficult to pinpoint my own style and translate it into words; I speak much more articulately in pictures.  But I gave it my best shot.  Just click on the icon below, or on the words, "Style File" above.  I think you'll enjoy it.

And if I'm lucky, Blogger may let me upload more images tomorrow...

(Late) Weekend Update

I've been so busy lately that I haven't posted in more than a week!  It's hard to believe it's been that long; time flies when you're struggling to keep up, and apparently it's gotten further ahead of me than ever.  I haven't kept up with my blog reading very well, and when I have looked at your posts, I haven't always had time to leave comments.  But my thoughts have been with you all, my bloggy buddies; your friendship is very important to me.

One thing I need to tell you is that my studio vignette is being featured in Chapter 6 of

 (click image to go there)

at Seth Apter's wonderful blog, The Altered Page.  If you're not familiar with this project, Studioscapes is part of the fourth edition of The Pulse, an ongoing "survey in words and pictures of the online arts community."  Seth has conceptualized and facilitated (meaning he has worked his butt off!) the entire thing, and has created an amazing wealth of shared information.  You can find links to the other parts of The Pulse on Seth's sidebar.  I feel very lucky and honored to be included in the project.

I haven't had much time to make art at all, but I'll show you the tiny bit of progress I've made with the current piece.  Here is where it started... and it ended up looking like this:

 ... and here it is now.  It came together so easily in the beginning, but now I'm sort of stuck! Can't worry about it right now, though.

 I have spent much of this weekend framing the remainder of the work for my show in Richmond, Virginia. Anyone who has followed my blog for a while knows how I feel about framing, so lets just not go there!

 Here's the invitation card for the show.  If you're in the area, I hope to see you there!

Here are some of the pieces that will be in the exhibit:

Transformation 24

Seedling

Transformation 

Transformation 18

 Kalachakra Matrix

 Rise

Transformation 10

Sacred Geometry

I'll miss you all while I'm in Virginia!  I'll be "unblogged" for about a week or so, but then I'll be back with news to share!  Adios, mi amigos!  Au revoir!