Trials and Tribulations, and New Work on the Way

I have several pieces that have been laying around my studio that haven't been shared due to the fact that I didn't have a decent, fully functional camera. After much research and thought, I finally bought a Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ1000. It was more than I really wanted to spend, but I needed something that would take excellent artwork photos, and a DSLR costs that much just for the body; then, in addition, you have to buy various expensive lenses for different purposes. Another point against a DSLR is that I realized that I didn't want to be bothered with lugging around a bunch of lenses, which I would have to be changing all the time, so a high-end fixed-lens camera seemed like the perfect choice.

So now, if the weather cooperates, I will be able to photograph those pieces, along with everything that needs to be re-photographed because I originally used my cell phone, and the photos are seriously lacking in quality. Especially since I'm going to be building a new website, I want the image quality to be as high as it can. I don't really want to upload my current photos, and then have to go back and replace them.

But now I have a new problem; setting up the new camera is somewhat (read: a lot) daunting. I'm afraid it's going to take a while. It has so many features, I'm not even sure what some of them mean! So in the meantime, I'll have to keep using my phone, unless they are flat and can fit on my scanner. Sheesh!

Anyway, I'm finally taking time from my technical studies to make some art! Here are a few sneak peaks of what's happening in the studio. Taken, of course, with my cellphone.

Materials used: vintage book cover, vintage maps, antique engineering drawing, monotype, book pages.  This one has a ways to go, but so far I'm satisfied with it.

I hope you are all having a great weekend, and making some art! Namaste, my friends.

A Day in the Life of a Collage

It started this way:

I had an old watercolor of a tree that I didn't want any more, so I thought I might recycle it and use it as the base for a collage.

First, I glued some brightly colored pieces of an old museum guide onto it, since I wanted to be able to scrape through to show bits of color.

Then, I covered the entire thing with pieces of vintage paper from old books, drawings, and sheet music.

I immediately added a second layer because it's easier to scrape or rub off when still damp from the glue. (I use matte gel medium as my adhesive.)

Here's a close-up view. I have to apologize for the poor photo quality, as it's been very dark and dreary here, and there's not really enough light to get a good photo with my phone.

Here it is after I scraped some of the papers off to reveal the colored paper underneath.  I call this the "Glaaaaaaah!!!" stage - when a piece gets to the point where I'm either going to throw it away or cover it up again; in other words, I hate it. Could I make a decent composition out of it? Probably, but right now I'm not seeing it.

My studio and materials were also in a complete state of "glaaaah!", but I still couldn't leave well enough alone...

 I glued some more papers on, then rubbed some more off (lather, rinse, repeat) .... and this is how I left it for the night.



Tune in tomorrow to find out what happens to our poor, pitiful collage. Will it live to see another day?  I'm not so sure...

WIP

Just a few peeks at some work in progress. I'll be showing you the complete and finished versions soon.

And some teasers from another piece that's almost finished:

Stay tuned!


Happy weekend, Happy Samhain (Halloween) and All Souls' Day, everyone, and thanks for looking!

Around the World Blog Hop

The very talented Maya Matthew has tagged me to participate in the"Around the World Blog Hop"!

Each participant must share their answers to these questions: 

1. What am I working on? 

I'm working on a couple of different things right now. If you're a regular reader of my blog, you know that I had three miniature pieces in a traveling exhibit called Tripletta.  All three of my pieces sold recently, so I now have to replace them. The pieces  that sold were called Seed Story I, II, and III; you can see them if you follow the Tripletta link. So,  I'm working on some more Seed Story pieces to replace them in the exhibit. Here are two that are not yet finished:

I'm also working on another piece in the Heron and Crow series, which are actually illustrations for what will hopefully be a children's book:

Heron and Crow II, monotype with mixed media, 9.75 x 9 inches

 It's about 90% finished, but still needs some tweaking here and there. 

2. How does my work differ from others of its genre? 

The mixed media genre is pretty wide open and eclectic, so I chose to answer this question in regard to monotype. Traditionally, monotype is usually done by coating the plate (I use a sheet of plexiglass) in one color of ink, then wiping the ink away to create the image. In contrast, my working is made by building up layers of transparent inks. Essentially, my method is almost the direct opposite of  the way most monotypes are made.

3. Why do I write/create what I do?  

The images I make are formed from the vocabulary of symbols that I’ve developed as I sought to express the theme that lies at the foundation of it all: a deep belief in the unity and connectedness of everything in the universe.  Related to this is my conviction that every part of the earth is sacred, including the myriad beings that ride it through space.  At the most basic level, we are made of the same stuff as the stars, the trees, the air, the ocean.  Having come from the same source, we are all connected in the most intricate ways, both visible and invisible.  This belief is expressed by the transposition of objects, the overlapping of transparent images, and by forms that seem to transform into something else.  I'm constantly searching for more effective methods of revealing this mystery, and it is the basis of my artistic practice.

4. How does my writing/creating process work?

My process for these mixed media pieces usually begins with a monotype base layer, to which I add further layers of color.  The monotype itself consists of many layers of oil-based lithographic ink, thinned to transparency in order to allow the colors of previous layers to show through.  In this way, I believe the mixing of colors to be richer and more varied than if I pre-mixed the inks in advance.  Normally there are at least four to six passes through the press, with leaves and other plant materials included in at least some of the pressings.  All of these pieces are done on a substrate of Rives BFK 100% cotton printmaking paper; inks and other materials are as archival and lightfast as possible.  

After the monotype is dry, layers of watercolor, colored pencil, and other (mainly transparent) media are added.  Collage elements may also be added; these are usually pieces of discarded monotypes.  With this layering process, I hope to achieve a certain luminosity and brilliance, as well as a blending and unity of images. This unity is an objective in conveying the content of my work.  The process I use in creating these pieces is one that I developed myself through trial and error, in an effort to achieve the result I desired.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find anyone interested in continuing the blog hop, so I guess the hop stops here. If you'd like to join in, please let me know, and I'll send you the details.

WIP: What's on My Table

Here's what's on my work table right now (besides the mess, I mean).  What's on yours?

Stay tuned, I will be showing the finished piece very soon!

What's on My Easel

I promised to show you what's on my easel, so here goes.  The piece on the left is one that was already deemed "finished"- an illustration for my yet to be written book, called, "Crow Creates the Night".

Crow Creates the Night (version 1)

Even though I thought it was finished, the crow's beak really bothered me because I felt it wasn't shaped like the one in "The Separation of Heron and Crow",

The Separation of Heron and Crow

and therefore would be too inconsistent if I ever do finish the book. Finally I decided to fix it, and here's what it looks like now.

Crow Creates the Night (version 2)

Changing it was very difficult, and at one point I was sure I had ruined it, but I'm much more satisfied with it now. 

The piece in the middle of the easel is kind of a re-do of part of an older piece which just wasn't working. I don't have a 'before' photo of it to show you, but several things were erased and a few were added. Right now I'm putting a chaotic flock of birds in the sky, flying as birds do when they're startled out of a tree or something.  The idea is to create a sense of unease here, giving the viewer a feeling that something ominous is about to happen.  I can't tell how this one will turn out, or even if I'll like it.

The third piece is the next illustration for my non-existent book, entitled, "Heron Creates the Day." I hope you're able to see the outlines of the heron, which at this point is just a sketch on a piece of tracing paper.  Hopefully, I will get to this one soon.



                              

The View From My Window

This is literally the view from my back window - you can see the screen - because it was so cold I didn't want to open the door or go outside.

I was surprised yesterday morning when the phone rang, alerting me to the fact that school was closed.  I wasn't expecting this, nor did I expect to find another 4 inches of snow on the ground when I got up.

Scout was not pleased, as you can plainly see by her expression.  (She really does have facial expressions, odd as that may seem!)  I'm unsure why she thought the top of the picnic table would be any warmer than the ground; she was probably disappionted to find that it was not.


The gift of the extra time, plus sunlight reflected off the snow meant I could finally try to photograph one the pieces - now finished - from my previous post. It's not the greatest photo, being taken inside the house, but it still gives you a pretty accurate idea what the piece looks like.

Untitled 

ingredients: vintage book cover and page, vintage ledger page, vintage envelopes, decorative paper, hell note, vintage map, image transfers, colored pencils, Caran d'Ache crayons, found objects, milagro, vintage lace, brads, beads, stitching

I hope you're enjoying your weather, wherever you are!

Moving Along with WIP

I'm amazed that it's already summer solstice! Summer officially starts today, and time keeps moving along- what's that they say about time flying when we're having fun? Somehow, time always seems to move faster than I do, but I'm still moving along with my art at my human pace, trying to take advantage of the free time (ha!) I have now to get things done.

I thought I'd share my progress with one of the pieces I showed you in this post.  It's called "Story of My Life", which I took from the title of the lovely vintage book cover I'm using as a substrate. It's hard to resist a ready-made idea like that, right? The book is actually about the life of William Taylor, an evangelist missionary who was Bishop of Africa during the 1800's.

These are 2 of the many configurations I've tried as I continuously rearrange, ad, and subtract various elements, in search of the best composition I can come up with.  I should have taken more photos, and intended to, but I get carried away when I'm working and forget, or just can't stop long enough. They help me to remember where I placed everything, which can be really helpful.  Oh well.  I hope to be able to post the finished version of it soon.


Also, I should announce that I have a piece in the National Collage Society's Annual Postcard Collage Exhibition.

The exhibit will be on display at Kent State University until July 20; subsequently, you can view it online at the National Collage Society website.

Happy Solstice, everyone!  Have a wonderful summer!

Work in Progress

Message from a Dream

ingredients: vintage book cover, vintage Japanese envelopes, vintage stamps, vintage book pages, image transfers, graphite drawing, watercolor pencils, metallic oil crayon, mica, stitching

This is a piece I'm working on for the upcoming (February) Print Club show at Northern Kentucky University, the theme of which is "In Your Dreams".  This part is not quite finished, and will eventually be glued onto a larger book cover with more images. So far, I'm actually liking it, and when do I ever say that?

Stay tuned for further developments!

I'm still working...

Even though I haven't been posting much, it's not because I'm not working; it's just difficult to process photos right now.  But I did want to give you a little peek at what's going on in the studio.  I'm hoping I was able to make the photo small enough so that it can download without too much trouble.  I guess we'll find out!

This is a work in progress called "Book of Dreams."  An art organization (The Print Club) of which I'm a member will be having an exhibit at Northern Kentucky University in February, with the theme "In Your Dreams."  As of now, I plan to exhibit this piece, along with some others, if it's not "an epic fail", as my students would say. This is just the front cover, and even it has a long way to go.

Ingredients so far include: vintage book, maps, vintage dress pattern, image transfers, watercolor pencils (Derwent), artist pens (Pitt and Artline), acrylic ink.


I'll try to remember to take photos of this as it evolves, and post them regularly.  Also, I'll attempt to describe the process in a somewhat step-by-step manner, beginning with the next post, because right now I'm doing special ed paperwork!

And, as always,

Shepherd Fairey

New Work in Progress

With the prospect of the beginning of a new school year in just a few days hanging over my head, my goal has been to finish, or at least get a decent start on, my next altered book cover before school starts.  I'm feeling pretty good about where this piece is going (if not quite as good about where I'm going), in spite of some struggles with problems that I've hopefully remedied.  Here is the left side of the piece as it stands now:

The book page and end paper are from a vintage book of Longfellow's poetry and other writings, and the plant with roots as well as the petunia are image transfers of illustrations from a vintage botany textbook.  I don't know if you can see the little map scrap at the top right; it says, 'Old Davidsonville State Park'.  (You can probably read it if you click on the image.)  The odd thing about this is that it just showed up on my drafting table, and is not from the map I was using for this piece (which is now mostly torn off and underneath several layers of other stuff).  I just happened to look down, and there it was- and I took no notice of it really, until I realized there was a familiar name on it.  I guess it must have been in among some other things I pulled out of one of my scrap drawers.  I have no idea where this park is; if you do, I hope you'll let me know.

I apologize for the poor quality of the photo; I just quickly stuck this on the scanner, and it's not entirely flat, so some of it doesn't show up well.  I'll be posting better photos of further progress in the next day or two, and also explaining some of the meaning behind this piece.  

Just so you know, blogger is not always letting me leave comments on others' posts, and I'm having great difficulty uploading photos; once uploaded, it sometimes won't allow me to add them to my post.  What's up with that?  Maybe I shouldn't have made that comment about blogger and I not being on friendly terms... should I apologize?

Transformation 42, coming along

This is what I have so far for the next piece in the transformation series.  It still needs some tweaks here and there, but I think this is close to its final form.  I'm hoping to do one more before sending the photos off to the client who requested them.  (More about my commission conundrum here, if you're not familiar.)

Let me know if you any advice about the tweaking, please, if you don't mind.  In the meantime, have a wonderful weekend and holiday!