Artist Trading Cards

This are a great way to jump start some studio time. Just use 2.5 X3.5 cards, scraps etc and make these cards. They can become a catalyst for larger projects. Also are to be traded like traditional trading cards as well.

Illustrations for Children's Steeldrum songbook

Have been very busy....but here is some new stuff.

Betye Saar

On Wednesday I attended a lecture by philadelphia artist, Beverly Bullock at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine ARts. Bullocks work is mostly collage on paper with African themes, especially women. After the lecture I went upstairs to the eht Betye Saar exhibit "Extending the Frozen Moment" of her assemblage with photographs. Very moving and amazing images, my favorite was a large dress on paper with hues of yellow and gold called "High Yellow." An added treat was watching Beverly Bullock and some of her friends view the exhibit. The following is from the PAFA website:

Betye Saar: Extending the Frozen Moment

Through December 10, 2006

Known particularly for her use of mixed media, this exhibition will focus on Saar's persistent use of the photograph and the impact of the photographic realm in her art. From her earliest experimentations with assemblage in the late 1960s to her installations of the present, Saar has employed the photograph as a storytelling device, transferring personal memory into the realm of history.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

A portion of a doll painting that I did several years ago while taking a class in still life painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. This one was done as a homework assignment and took quite awhile. The underpainting was in purple with oh so many layers on top. The best detail, the foot is not included as my scanner was not tall enough for the whole thing. My mother was dying of breast cancer when this was painted and as usual my feelings of that sad realty are reflected in the painting.

Fortunate Cookie...

or what to do with a drawer full of old fortunes, some chinese brush practise drawings, and a ruined bamboo brush. The fortune of the mask says, You are original and creative.

Modern Humanist

I spent about an hour at this site, and highly recommend it. Am adding it as a link as well. Gives one so much to think about found so much that I agree with with regards to religion and philosophy.This is from the about page.

Welcome to Modern Humanist, an online journal of modern humanism and humanist thought. Here you will find news, ideas, information and insights on the world. It’s life through the eyes of modern humanist philosophy. Modern Humanist is not only for humanists and freethinkers but for anyone interested in reason, exploration and understanding. Think for yourself and enjoy your life.

As you can see this is a new site. It’s purpose is to offer a view of Modern Humanism and it’s place in the world and community. Not only is Modern Humanism a life philosophy, but it’s also a beacon for rational and thinking minds that believe that life can be lived not only well, but inspired. An inspired life without the need for, or desire for, supernatural forces, limiting beliefs and traditions. A life without hateful, divisive and violent practices that only serve the segregation, isolation and destruction of community rather than the harmony, equality and unity of it.

Modern Humanist will present understanding, perspective and practical wisdom on how to incorporate humanist principals into life and community and how to serve as an example to and for others.

Lastly, Modern Humanist seeks to provide viable answers and life perspectives to the community to illustrate that humanists are not only as moral, neighborly and dedicated to freedom as any church-going person, but also to help illustrate that the philosophical, moral and ethical questions of our time can be answered without the need to impinge on life, liberty or the pursuit of happiness for any citizen of the world or subvert their lives in favor of any other.

September 11, 2001

The sky was as clear and crisp and blue five years ago as it is today. A beautiful day, just like today. Just before getting out of my car I heard a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center....must be a small prop plane...it thought. Our group started with presentations, someone interrupted telling us another plane had crashed into the towers. We continued, then another person came in and said a plane had crashed into the Pentagon...someone in the group said, "We are at war"..we adjourned. The day was still crisp and clean and lovely, and smoke poured out of the towers and souls jumped to their deaths and others watched horrified and helpless from below. Then the towers came crashing down. I was in the studio trying to copy a rather benign pastel I had painted of a small portion of a Van Gogh. Mostly, I was inspired by the colors and the daisys. But what I came up with was no copy. This one is much more dramatic, as I watched the news coverage. In a symbolic way the two daisys represent the towers and shaken innocence that crashed and burned during that event. They seem to be falling. Have not looked at this piece in some time, but thought it appropriate given this fifth anniversary. Peace to any of you or your loved ones affected by this ongoing tragedy.

A song by Paul Hipp click on post title

Bonnie MacAllister

Save the date September 23rd!
Bonnie MacAllister is showing her work with other artists in the area at 4014 Walnut Street at 7pm. Bonnie is the operations administrator of October Gallery and an accomplished painter, filmmaker and spoken word performance artist, as well as a DGP(darn good person.)

"Painter, filmmaker, and spoken word performance artist, Bonnie MacAllister "reveals the structure of fragments, decoding illicit meaning in elicitly abstract poses." West Philadelphia resident MacAllister has been published on three continents and has performed at over sixty venues including the Wilma Theatre and the Adrienne Theatre.

An independent film maker and oil painter, she is the Publicity and Membership Chair of the Philadelphia Chapter of the Women's Caucus for Art. She has most recently exhibited at Café Soleil, Zonk Arts Gallery, and will show in March at the Highwire Gallery with the Women’s Caucus for Art. Films which she has worked on have been visible at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Musée de la Mode in Paris, France."

You can visit her website here: Bonnie MacAllister

Chick etc...

Jazz cruise with your best chick, Could this be Love? The assemblage and a detail. Comprised of a flattened penny, lock, wooden piece that looks like a saxaphonist, a tiny ink painting I did of a chick, music, a leaf on a piece of cork. Feels like autumn as well. Thanks to all you good folks who braced the torrential down pour and stopped by my booth at the October Gallery. Also thanks to Bonnie Mcallister for all her help and good conversation.

The Foo Logs

Stop by my tenant this week, The Foo Logs, a blog about life, technology, sports and movies. Interesting sites with good blogging info. I liked the list of current social bookmarking sites, and the growing older pics of Andre Agassi. Also found out about:

• A Blog in a Book: You can now publish and sell your blog/photoblog on actual printed books for cheap with a new service called Blurb.com. They officially opened to the public this week - check them out!

Anyway, a space worth your time, go there.

And if you happen to be in Philly this weekend stop by the October Gallery at 68 north 2nd street for First Friday, 5-9pm. I have a little booth there with some small things, will also be there 12-3pm on Saturday.

Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White

New Assemblage sculpture created with old sheet music as a theme. Mostly the colors and Jane Russell swimming under water with a knife were the inspirations. The curler, and pink wood, and shell I found combing the beach in Singer Island, FL.

When You are Old by William Butler Yeats

WHEN you are old and gray and full of sleep
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;

How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true;
But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face.

And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead,
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.

No, I did not read this poem in my brooding teenage years, or study it in college, was an english major after all. But mostly I was first turned on to it from the the Francis Ford Copella movie "Peggy Sue Got Married." Love this movie, and think all high school teenagers should watch it. Premise being, if you could go back to high school knowing what you know now, what would you do differently. Here is a great still of Peggy Sue with the Bohemian Michael Fitzsimmons, reciter of the Yeats poem.

Stars, Songs, Faces

Gather the stars if you wish it so.
Gather the songs and keep them.
Gather the faces of women.
Gather for keeping
years and years.
And then..........

Loosen your hands,
Let them go and say good-by.
Let the stars and the songs go.
Let the faces and years go.
Loosen your hands,
and say
good-by.

By Carl Sandburg 1920

This is a blank journal I altered, am also finishing
a larger work inspired by the same poem.

Asia Minor

Examples of some Japanese Brush paintings. There are a number of the magnolia and lotus series in various sizes and on different types of wasi paper. More fish and flower paintings will be completed by the end of August, as well as a large panda piece. I studied Japanese Brush painting with Keiko Miyamori at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts for two semesters. She is an outstanding artist and teacher as well. Both the magnolia painting and the bamboo can be found in reproduction at My CafePress store.

Stumbling Through Life With Grace

My tenant this week is 3rd times a charm, aka 3T, owner of the blog "Stumbling Through Life with Grace." 3T is a blogger after my own heart, and age brackett, and has a great blog design. The blog is described as a "Diary of a psychologically, analytical,neurotic, closet Bitch. Musings of a retired bad-girl, who unwittingly stumbled in to life as I know it today. (Material contains bad girl tales,daily life,psycho babble, venting, and some adult content. Mature audiences only."
Her content is really diverse, with quizes and promos as well as photos of herself and fellow blog ladies, one of which is Jade, who I rented from a while back. You can find out what sort of Martini you are, and check out Jade's party of the season, which looks like large fun.

Good Bebble. Also she will be the first tenant to receive a free "Pinky the Watering Troll" magnet as a thank you gift.

My CafePress Store

A Few Items from my new CafePress Store. The light switch cover turned out great, and has a nice enameled look, easy to clean as well. The journal is blank unruled paper. There are many more items for sale, tile coaster, greeting cards, t-shirts, magnets etc. Click to the left at the CafePress Button or on the link of this post. The items are ordered directly from CafePress and they take all forms of creditcards or paypal. The things I ordered looked great, I was really amazed with the quailty of the transfers.

Happy Birthday!

Have a rockin' birthday, hope you eat lots of cake, do some funky dances, get many expensive presents from all your admirers. Yabba Dabba DOOOO!!!!

Air and Angels

This one is for a friend who buried her husband this weekend, peace to you and your family during this time of grief.

Bamboo

Ink on speckled Wasi paper. The chops are both my own designs. Other brush paintings to follow.

The Walt Whitman Bridge

Tis' the season for a patriotic post. Whitman used this quote to discribe Carl Sandberg, "his country absorbs him as affectionately as he has absorbed it." Also it could apply to defining a true american artist of national reputation, Andrew Wyeth comes to mind..... and what a world it would be if politicians tried a little absorbtion and less banner waving.
This is a journal cover that I altered with various bits of paper and scraps of fabric. Really wanted to achieve a sense of humility contrasting with a certain "proud ragedness." Since I scanned it rather than photographing the colors are less vibrant. May do a larger piece with same theme and quote.

Eco Arts

In celebration of WORLD ENVIROMENT DAY, Wednesday, June 5th Art4Development launched an international 'eco-arts' project To celebrate World Environment Day. I submitted "Whiter than Rice" to this project and it can be found on page 7 of their down loadable catalogue. To view the entire catalogue click the post title, then the eco' arts icon then the projects link. Will post some work from the catalogue in upcoming weeks. More info about Art4 Development from their website is as follows:

"eco'arts project by Arts For Global Development | Art4Development.Net intends to tackle vital developmental issues with creativity; inform and inspire individuals to take preventive actions; and acknowledge those creative individuals who focus on habitat and environmental challenges. eco'arts consists of an arts project presenting images of artworks / projects / performances created by artists and advocates from around the world; a catalogue listing information on the arts project participants; an online site providing resources about creative projects that address environmental issues; and an educational event in Washington DC commemorating the World Environment Day (WED). WED celebrated each year on June 5th, is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances citizen action.
The eco'arts event took place on June 8 at the International Visions Arts Gallery featuring guest speaker, David Waskow who is the International Program Director of the non-profit organization, Friends of the Earth. He emphasized the effects of climate change, global warming and gas consumptions as well as provided guidelines in which participants could implement in protecting the environment. The Arts For Global Development, Inc founder and president Nil Sismanyazici Navaie presented the eco'arts project, talked about the connection between the arts and the environment, and highlighted the importance of taking immediate preventive measures on environmental issues. In addition, the Creator of Postcards from Katrina Project, Tambra Stevenson introduced her project to bring awareness that people in the Gulf Region still need help and hope. The arts project of eco'arts was launched in May 2006 to facilitate an opportunity for individuals / groups (who care about environmental issues; use environmental friendly materials and recycled objects to shape their work; raise awareness on environmental challenges or organize eco-friendly projects) to share their works and ideas. Through the call placed on Art4Development.Net E-Community and supporting online platforms, within 31 days of its launch eco'arts received artwork and art project images from over 60 artists from the US, Canada, Italy, Germany, Netherlands, Sierra Leone, Columbia, Angola, Finland, South Africa… The eco'arts mural, suspended from the ceiling, displays images of artworks / projects / performances created by those artists and advocates who shared their work with Art4Development.Net. The mural measures 24 x 48 inches and has two sides. eco'arts, which is a collage of works placed on wood, decorated with acrylic paint, mirrors, ornament, and silk leaves, depicts the connection of humanity and environment, and calls for protective action! The eco'arts event guests were artists, representatives of cultural organizations,
environmental agencies, graduate students, development and social marketing specialists, and more."

Winsome Gunning

Winsome is an Australia Goldcoast artist whose work I have in my own collection. This piece is one from the 90's that I really like for the contrasting seipia flowers with the brightness of the ocean. The blues from the ocean and sky seem to seep into the room flooding the floor with the blue checkered pattern. Click the title of this post to visit Winsome's sight and see her current work which is quite different from this piece.

Where will Pinky Go?

Adventure and a new home await Pinky The Watering Troll. Today starts her auction on EBAY, she will be available for ten days. Say goodbye will be bitter-sweet, but the time has come for her to spread her special magic to someone else...the magic of starting over, of being down and out in a flea market in New Jersey, rescued by a 10 year old and given a new outfit and hairdo, matching pink boa...and then a perfect home to take with you always. She is headed for adventure wide-eyed and happy, and will bring that spirit to whom ever gives her a home. Just click on the word "Pinky" or the title of this post and you will go directly to my auction. Leave any good wishes for her in the comments section of this post.

Outerbanks

The painting at the right is a cottage in Nagshead, NC where our family spent many summers. A big old rambling cottage that was always painted white with red shutters, it had 10 bedrooms and was built in the 30's I believe. The sand is coarse and an orange color and the water is colder, Gulf Stream does not go up that far. Playing under the cottage was one of my favorite things to do as a little girl. One summer I created a Croatan village out of sea oat stems and fishing line. iStanding on the stairs is "Little Mitchel" the lady of the house and the bathing beauty facing sideways is my grandmother back in the day. I never knew Little Mitchell, her step daughter Ruby was my grandmother's good friend and always invited us to stay with her in the summer.

Fragile Industries

Many apologies to my tenant this week as I am late with introductions...caught a nasty cold from me better half. Fragile Industries is a varied and dynamic site with posts about exciting assemblage/altered art work as well as website issues and philosophy...a post with Talking Heads song Once in a Life Time. Ironically this song was running through my brain all day to day. Was also very intrigued with book selections, esp CS Lewis' C.S. Lewis: "The Weight of Glory"
"I am trying to rip open THE INCONSOLABLE SECRET in each one of you -- the secret which hurts so much that you take your revenge on it by calling it names like Nostalgia and Romanticism and Adolescence." There is much too this blog and I am sure to go back many times. And so should the rest of you.

Hollow Tree

A small painting on board that I did in Landscape class, for some reason my instructor really liked it. Product did not actually coincide with my vision, but it does have a bit of a zing on some level. The perspective is looking down into this hollow tree that has a triangular hole in the back where bright light comes through. Was quite tough to paint as a subject, for me anyway. My paintings will also get more color bang if I switch from Winton student grade paint to Windsor and Newton professional...or so I am told. I added the frame and border, makes me like the painting a bit more. Maybe I will go back and paint it again another day, did learn a bit from this one.

Buffalo Gals

This is a journal, I altered the cover, but the inside is blank. The photo is my grandmother's aunt Liza...the pretty one of the 5 Sykes aunts that she was so fond of. As a military wife she was able to travel the world, living for many years in the Philipines, and is buried in Arlington cemetary. I have a number of photos of these sisters from the early 1900's as the older brother was a photographer. My grandmother us to say that family was not especially wealthy or poor, but they were "good livers." Seems we should all aspire to be such.
Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed sang "Buffalo Gals" coming home from the school dance in the movie "It's a Wonderful Life." t An appropriate journal for a Buffalo Gal to record events leading up to and after dancing by the light of de moon.

Mama Makes Stuff

My tenant this week is a Florida artist, "Fidget." Her site features her work, guest artists, as well as tips and how toos. A very expressive first Altered book is a must see and there is a link to her gallery as well. She is very supportive of the visual arts and crafts of her fellow moms out there, and wants to feature them in her blog. Creating is great therapy especially at a time in your life when demands are high...I started painting and creating when my kids were toddlers and it was the best thing I ever did. Keep it up!

A Bit Chilli Tonight

Indeed. So here are some chilies in a bottle that I painted in a class on light and shadow in Still Life. Spent a great deal of time on the background before I even began painting the objects, three hours. Then next class painted the rest, did a raspberry glaze over the table that the chilies were on. The box behind the bottle was one of those gold godiva chocolate boxes. Hope to take a class on glazing over the summer. Tomorrow is landscape painting class, it is very rainy here though and we may have to meet in an alternative in door space. My canvas is stretched and brushes are cleaned, must remember to take a real break at lunch tomorrow and not try and paint the whole time.

Philadelphia from Bartram Gardens

A close value painting I did in Landscape painting class. From a distance and with a soft and fertile landscape spread before it our city of "Brotherly Love" appears welcoming and still obtuse. So far I have only been able to paint it from a distance and feel a strong compulsion to include urban elements in all the landscapes. Capturing light is the most gratifying experience, although when I do finally get it, it is almost by mistake. So far the wind has been the most biggest obstacle in painting "en plein air." Oh, and a wet black lab that ran by and licked my painting of the inside of a hollow tree.