Tuesday

May 24, 2011 by

Well, I guess Mondays are lining up to be my “domestic” day.  After making Mounds balls,  I also made biscuits for supper later in the afternoon yesterday.  Did some laundry and cleaning up a bit too.  My husband hates to see things laying around and me…well, if I can’t see it, I forget about it and there are some things I want to remember I have to work on or at least think about so I can make a decision! (I recently found my Indiana sales tax form somewhere it should not have been…out of sight, out of mind.  Luckily, I still could meet the deadline.) My “studio”, aka, the shrinking 9’x 9′ extra bedroom, does not give me the space to leave things out where I can see them and think about them.  I pretty much use the whole house!

The thread came yesterday, so today I will again start stitching on a piece I am working on for my show.  I should be doing that now, but well, here I am.  I wanted to post some of the deconstructed results from last week, and I now have the photos loaded onto the computer.

I used different sized screens and some of these are overprinted…and may still need some more overprinting.  And they have not been washed yet, but you get the idea.  I really really love the breakdown look of this kind of printing.

The reason this whole piece of cloth is not printed is because I am pondering using these  as 4 separate prints for wall pieces.  We’ll see.  They might need more printing on them.

Filed Under: Art Exhibits, breakdown printing, creativity, dye paint, paint, printmaking Tagged With:

Living Busy

February 1, 2011 by

I have lots to blog about because lots has been happening.  Last week I went on a quilt retreat.  I didn’t quilt very much because I usually do artsy things.  Do you receive the Cloth Paper Scissors Today email in your inbox?  Well, you should.  I got one last week with a project from Pam Carriker.  She has just come out with a new book  called Art At The Speed Of Life.  I was interested in doing the project on my retreat.  And especially since I have just finished a 4 week online course with Pam.

Here is how mine turned out:

This journal page started out using some pictures cut from magazines.  Then I began to draw over them with graphite pencil, adding color with oil pastels since I didn’t have any liquid paint with me.  I used poster paint markers and other pens to finish.  Not the greatest, but not too bad for the first try, I think. I also used some techniques and ideas from the journaling class.

Here are Susan and Robin from the retreat in our basement workspace.  They kept a secret from me for about 3 months…the secret was that Robin, who now lives in North Carolina, would be joining us.  I was SO glad she got to come. It was very good to see her again.

Our motley crew:

 

Yesterday, I hung an exhibit at the North Park Library in Evansville.  It is on Koehler Drive off of First Avenue.  Stop by and see it…I think it looks pretty nice!

Filed Under: Art Exhibits, quilt retreats Tagged With: , ,

Select Collections

December 2, 2010 by

Select Collections is an annual event hosted by the Evansville Museum Shop.  It is a unique shopping experience with selected vendors.  Here’s a few photos.

The entrance to the gallery.  The black and white printed pillows are mine.

My booth….and a short view down the hallway.

Julia’s wonderful dolls.  She also had some raku pins and some wrist bags.

Julia arranging things.

Filed Under: Art Exhibits, art sale, Contemporary Art, screenprinting Tagged With: , ,

Where Did I Go?

September 5, 2010 by

Oh my…I STILL have not printed that screen from the last blog post…and that was quite a while ago.

Life is going on…I am preparing for the upcoming show season.  That means placing orders for retail items to sell at the quilt shows.  Sometimes it takes me lots of thinking to get an order together.  There’s an instructional video with these sets of inks…that’s nice. I wanted to see it.

Now I have to try them out so I can demo them…then there’s some new books…mmmmm…

I sent an application in to enter a SAQA show for the first time.  We’ll see if I can get past the jury. ;=)

I worked on my earring inventory last week getting ready for fall festivals.

I also started a new sample of a Christmas pattern.  I am having trouble with my Bernina..it needs to see the “doctor”.  I think the problem may be in the floor pedal…sometimes (well, maybe about 1/2 the time) it doesn’t want to quit sewing!  This is annoying when you are doing applique…so I am not going to applique the gingerbread pattern until it’s fixed.  I have to drive it to the shop an hour away from me.  I will do that this week.

And last week I made a banner for my booth for art festivals.  Now people will know who I am without asking. ;=)

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Filed Under: applique, Art Exhibits, breakdown printing, quilt shows Tagged With: , ,

A Week of Working

May 23, 2010 by

The title sounds like I have really been working hard, right?  Well, I have, but just not with cloth.  I have been actually cleaning house and washing windows.  I can’t tell you the last time I washed windows….I  had been noticing that the bedroom window was getting a bit “hazy” to see through.  That’s my cue…it’s time.  I didn’t even get them all done, but got about half and the two big sheets of glass we call doors.  I mowed the grass, trimmed the trees in the front so I don’t have to duck when I’m mowing and cleaned the flower bed in preparation for new chips.  In between other household tasks, I have managed to get things sort of “under control”…mmmm…yeh, we’ll see how long that lasts.  I even cleaned and gave a semblance of order to my sewing room…we’ll see how long that lasts too.  I’ve been in there working today, being creative.  I suppose if I would only clean up after myself every time I work in there, it would be easier, but more often than not, I am not DONE with the project, so there it is with the accompanying chaos, waiting until I can come back to it.

Yesterday I took off and went to Paducah, KY.  Yes, the quilt show is over, but I didn’t get to do everything I wanted the day I was down there.  I also decided it was a day for me to go and be inspired by some art exhibits. I visited Hollis Chatelaine’s exhibit, “Imagine Hope“.  It was at the Quilt Museum and it was quite wonderful.  Hollis dye paints all of her images that she uses in her medium and very large quilts.  She is very gifted.  I also found it interesting how she dreams in a certain color and that is the color she will paint the cloth in.  I visited the Yeiser Art Center’s current exhibit.  I could have skipped that one.  There were a few pieces that I appreciated but for the most part, it was made up of drawings and paintings of creatures who were half rabbit and half man.  I didn’t really find any inspiration in that work.  Then I went across the street to see an encaustic exhibit by Gretchen Smith.  I found it VERY inspirational….wonderful work and well worth seeing and reading about her inspiration.  After that I went to visit Helene Davis’ new studio digs.  I had great conversation with her husband Bob and bought a couple of handfuls of his ceramic beads that he made a long time ago.  They will work well with some of my art.

But I will be getting back in the real swing of things this week.  On Thursday an artist friend of mine is coming over to spend the day.  She makes wonderful fiber dolls (see JustJulia.com if you want to see her work) and I am “purchasing” one (on her site, 4th row down, middle one in the dyed cheesecloth, that one’s mine), only we are doing it in trade.  She wants to learn some screen printing techniques so that is what we will be doing on Thursday.  But before she gets here, I want to get some scarves printed in case I want to “erase” (wash out) some of my soy wax screens.  I also need to prepare a couple of deconstructed screens for her to play with.  I will prepare those ahead of time to be dry for her to mess around with.  We will have fun.

What else this week?  Well, I have some family members graduating high school at the end of the week…since I probably won’t be making the 3 hour drive home, I will send them cards and money and perhaps that will alleviate their disappointment that I am not there.  I would love to be there, but I have done an awful lot of driving in the last few weeks.  But who knows, I might change my mind and jump in the van and go on Friday.

I received my textile work from the Fiber: 2010 exhibit back.  I am disappointed that it didn’t sell, but I have another show that I can enter it in this summer.  I also got the cd catalog of the show that I am enjoying.

New felt beads made into earrings…I want to call them Jimmy Buffet earrings because of the turquoise and orange colors…very bright and tropical.

Filed Under: Art Exhibits, artist's thoughts, creativity Tagged With: ,

Some Thoughts About Making Art

April 18, 2010 by

I guess I really should get out more; I learn things.  I just returned from seeing Fiber: 2010, an exhibit sponsored by Missouri Fiber Arts (MoFA) and the Foundry Art Center in St. Charles, MO.  The exhibit consisted of all kinds of fiber work, tapestries, woven  pine needle items, felted items, some quilts, and other types of fiber pieces.  As I began to walk through the show from the first part of it, my first reaction was this:  How did I ever get in this show?  The tapestries were exquisite…the work was wonderful.  I hadn’t even gotten to my piece while I was thinking this.

I expressed this sentiment on FB and a friend commented back that my work was wonderful and almost seemed to wonder why I was thinking what I was thinking.  This year is the first year that I have juried into a couple of regional shows.  These are out of the mainstream of what I mostly jury into.  I have  only entered the Arts Council shows, where there is hardly any fiber work.  It is mostly paintings and some mixed media.  So comparison is difficult…like comparing apples and oranges.  Essentially, there is no comparison.

Although I was in awe that I did get a piece into the 2010 Form, Not Function exhibit, I still didn’t have the same reaction.  Form Not Function was  mostly all layered and stitched work, like I do myself, so my piece was hanging with “my own” type of work.  Perhaps it was because Fiber: 2010 was at the “Foundry Center”, this really huge,  awesome gallery space.  That may have had something to do with it…but it was also seeing the quality of the other work that was displayed.  There was a lot of variety.  And my work was hanging in the same exhibit as all of this other wonderful work….that must mean….my work must be pretty good too!  Wow.

Now I do know that jurying is subjective and it’s all about what the juror likes.  But I gotta tell ya’…it made me feel pretty darn good that this juror who is big in the arts (and fiber in particular) thought my work  was good enough to be in this show.

I make my art to please myself and not so much about pleasing anyone else.  It’s just fantastic icing on the cake to find out someone else likes it too.

Filed Under: Art Exhibits, artist's thoughts, Contemporary Art, creativity Tagged With: , ,

Back Home…

March 14, 2010 by

It’s always busy when I get back home…there’s the usual going over the sales, credit slips, checks, banking, over-sales, where I need to order stuff to ship out because I ran out, etc.  And that’s not even including unloading the van…which can take several days just because I don’t get in a hurry!  Going out on the road is tiring work.

My poor neglected blog…well, on Friday I did do some dye painting/screening on the start of a new piece in the series “…But Words Will Never Hurt Me”. I don’t know if it goes beyond this one or not…perhaps. Tomorrow I will put the finishing touches on #2 that will be shipped out this week for the Fiber 2010 show in St. Charles, MO. I just need to put my label with all the artist info on the back, cut the pool noodle the right length for shipping and it will be ready to go.

This is the week I must finish boring taxes. I am working on getting all of my business information together…that is the biggest job. Then I just drop it off to the cpa. Oh but how I hate paperwork…

I’m toying around with the idea of creating some ACEO’s for art fairs. And they may not be fiber either. I have been perusing ebay to see what people are doing and selling…I’m also doing some buying. :=) There is some interesting talent on there. I find myself drawn to bright colors and funky drawings of objects and even some realism, although I still don’t want to do that myself. Wonder why I would like the bright playful colors?

Ok, I’ll share one picture of some drawings I’m playing with.

Well, I didn’t say it was good….I’m just playing around!  I added the “stitches” to see if I would like the interest they might add and explore the possibility of them becoming a trademark.

Filed Under: Art Exhibits, color, Contemporary Art, creativity, new art Tagged With: , ,

Form Not Function

January 9, 2010 by

The title of this post is the name of a contemporary art quilt show in New Albany, IN. It is held every year at the Carnegie Center of Art and History.

After my shopping spree and a short visit with friends who were attending a quilt retreat in Newburgh IN, I met up with my husband and we were off to New Albany.  The weather and the cold was not near as bad as had been predicted and anticipated.  I’m glad I didn’t let it stop me.  It was a wonderful experience.  316 entries were submitted to the show and the three jurors chose 31.  I was fortunate to have a piece juried in and this was my first time entering this show.  I haven’t entered a lot of quilt shows…well actually maybe none, come to think of it!  For the last couple of years I have been entering Arts Council shows and hanging out with the local art crowd.  This was a step out of the box and I felt “nudged” to enter something I had put in the Arts Council show last year.  Anyway, the reception was fun, I met some fun people, and I’m very glad I was there.  My friend Cynthia, along with her husband, drove down from the Indianapolis area.  They were brave too, to get out on the roads,  but I think she wanted to be there for me.  We ate at a pretty good Mexican restaurant before the reception.

So here I am with my piece, Weathered Places (and a shiny forehead!). Although I didn’t win a monetary award, I heard lots of good things about my work.

Filed Under: Art Exhibits, color, Contemporary Art, creativity Tagged With: ,
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