Featured Artist

Much to my surprise, I got a call yesterday morning to see if I would substitute for the featured artist of the month at the Lodi art Gallery. Not much time to get it together, but in four hours I put a show together. It helped to have my favorite things at hand, so it was more a matter of cleaning glass, dusting frames, typing labels, and setting prices. My work generally is cohesive and the pieces work well together. No sore thumbs sticking out in the batch. I put in some three dimensional things which always makes the gallery happy, and some altered books as well. Candis and a friend of hers helped cart it all into the gallery and we left it in their hands to hang it. I can't wait to go back and see how it looks.

I was expecting to be the featured artist probably in October or November of 2011. I'm way ahead of my goals again. Guess we'll paint the house and put in new front fence. I've got to have goals to work towards.

While I was there, I picked up a painting I bought from Rich Allen - a woodsy scene that reminds me so much of the scene outside my back window in the country. Now, I can see it everyday from home as well. I hung it this a.m. and already it makes me feel so peaceful. I'll post pics later when I get the other computer fixed. Right now, I'm still using the laptop so I"m hampered in what I can share.

Another goal was met last week when the insulation was installed in my studio. Wow! What a difference. If your studio is too hot in summer and too cold in winter, don't put this off like I did for several miserable years. It will be so much more useful now - not just mornings and late evenings in summer and only mid day in winter. I'll need to insulate the floor before winter, but for now, the ceilings were the most important part. I'm so thankful to have a helpful son and grandsons who make impossible things look so easy. They are my heroes.

Horns blowing in the Valley

Well, I reached a goal this year that I planned to put on my to do list for next year. I entered four pieces in the Lodi Community Center Membership Art Show. Each piece won something. My reworked Daily Bread won best of show! The steampunk style Slave Scientist won first place in mixed media. The Alice piece won first place in 3 dimensional art, and a piece with a bird and cage took an honorary mention in mixed media. Four for four. After the shock, I have to admit I'm tickled pink.

The Alice piece I finally finished and figured a good way to show it. I had Tap plastics construct a box/book form to protect it, after mounting it on a black piece of wood. It looks like "real" art with those additions.

Last Friday evening there was an Art Walk reception and lots of people milling around checking things out. I noticed two men standing there really engrossed in looking at this piece so walked over to see if I could answer any questions. The first question was "what came in this packing?" That's kind of an odd question, as it really doesn't pertain to the art or concept. But, I'm always happy to converse so told them a portable DVD player came packaged in it. "I knew it!" said the one guy to the other. Both seemed so happy with my answer, I had to ask why? Did they get a DVD player too and they recognized it? Nope. Even better. The one guy designed the mold for the pressed paper form. That's his profession. So, we posed for some pictures together with "our" creation. What a small world.

Tonite the show judge returns to critique the artwork in the show, piece by piece. This is a wonderful way to learn what she looks for and why certain pieces were chosen. Another learning experience I'm not about to miss.

Time in a Frame - again

Here are two very different pages. On one I use the new rubber stamp I cut of the eye. I liked the chapter heading so made the page to play off that starting point. The old man portrait is very slightly altered. He looked like and eagle to me - I just needed to add the nose/beak. isn't he a handsome fellow?

Time in a Frame - even more

This picture of the girl inspired me to get out my sewing machine and threads. Also a little purple tulle. The photo of the hanging of Lincoln's assassins is one I did awhile back. By painting out a lot of the background, the central images stand out all the better. I used thread for the nooses and added the ravens. The portrait of the man is only slightly altered with white gesso and black paint. Here is the link to earlier pages.

Time in a Frame - more pages

My art pal Jackie and I have been passing this book back and forth, with each of us doing a few pages at a time. It's been so hot in the Valley that I'm sort of stuck inside - no gardening for me in the heat! So, I've been adding pages in the book. Here are a few new ones. The blue man has a hand extended onto the preceding page. He was meant to be a mummy. I planned to paint him except for the face - right into the background, then shade around him and highlight the lines of the tape with stains. But - I love blue masking tape and could not bring myself to paint it out. Who says mummies have to be wrapped in white? On the opposite page there was a quotation I liked. "Stretched his hands, enforcing silence - Said 'Be motionless, I beg you!' Mystic, awful was the process. All the family in order Sat before him for their pictures.?"

The three spooky fellas need a caption - maybe someone will suggest something? Please.

Rubber stamps

A new online group for making lino cuts and rubber stamps has started and of course, I joined, because it is something I'd like to do - but never get around to it. So, last night I dug out my old lino cutting tools and they were all rusted and dull. Most of the exacto blades are rusty too (I inherited most of them from my 90+year old aunt. Goodness knows how old they are.) So, I used my small snap off box cutter and managed to cut one eraser into a stamp. Tonite I did another one. I needed a stamp of a skunk for an altered book. Here they are.

A freebie

Here is a sweet cover from an old book I thought you might like to use.