Fishy Pastels

3/25/09

When I am working on the layout for new artwork, I frequently take digital photos of the different layout ideas. Then I print them out to decide which layout is the most effective. Once the piece is collaged together, I am left with these mini printouts of the various layout ideas. The background of this collage is created from some of those prints from a new series that I am almost finished stitching. The fish provide a bit of whimsy to the collage.

Neutrals

3/24/09

This collage was a personal challenge to create a collage using only neutrals. Usually when I start out with that as my goal, I get to a point where I feel like I have to add a splash of color to make it "pop". This time I decided I would re-work the collage if necessary, rather than succumbing to the use of color to make the collage viable. Surprisingly, this collage went together fairly quickly, and I am happy with the result.

It is good to stretch our creativity --- with different color palettes, techniques, subject matter, etc. That is what keeps our art fresh and helps us grow as artists.

Seashells in the Corner

Yesterday I bought 2 of these great glass vases. They are 4" square and 20" tall. I have been redecorating the upstairs bath with an ocean spa theme, and these vases are the perfect way to display some of the seashells that I have collected over the years. The shells in this vase are from the coast of Delaware.

Mourning Doves

Every year we have at least one pair of mourning doves that nest in our yard and hang out on our deck. We have a scattering of bushes and trees for cover and nesting, plus we offer fresh food and water every day. Not a bad life, as they undoubtedly have discovered.

Mourning doves mate for life. Usually they lay 2 eggs at a time and will hatch several pairs of youngsters each season. Every year we look forward to seeing the young doves venturing out in the yard and at the feeder. These photos are this year's first set of adults to nest in our yard. Here they're sitting contentedly on our deck railing in the sun.

April's Calendar Collage

Almost the end of another month -- time to create the collage for the next month's calendar page. Above is my April calendar collage. This one includes part of a wallpaper sample book, found paper, handmade paper, and a piece of Sumi paper that I painted and screen-printed on.

Don't forget that you can go HERE to download your own copy of a blank calendar for each month, with room at the top to add your own original collage. And if you participate, I'm always interested in seeing your version of the calendar!

Daily Collages

3/15/09

3/16/09

3/17/09

These daily collages are so similar that I decided to show them all in one post. For 2 days I was busy painting the upstairs bath and didn't get any work done in the studio. So, after I made the first morning's collage, I left all the papers, etc. on my work table. Each of the next two mornings, I worked with the same basic materials. So all 3 collages have a very similar feel. I do think they got better as the days progressed, even though my supplies were running out more and more. Interesting phenomenon. (I also create some of my best work when I have a deadline looming.)

P.S. Thanks for all of the comments on my self portrait collage. I am going to add a little bit of screened text and call it good. Although I may make another one in color later on.

Entertainment

Zeke loves to chew on drawstrings and strips of fabric that have knots tied in them. The downside is that he wants someone to hold the other end for him as he chews. Usually this is no big deal, but yesterday I didn't have time to sit for an hour and hold the other end of this drawstring for him. So..... I tied it around a bookshelf post, and he was entertained for an hour trying to pull and chew it off. Eventually he got the knots undone and successfully pranced off with his prize. It takes so little to amuse him!

And I am not much better. Someone mentioned a fun software program called Corel Painter Essentials, so I downloaded a trial version of it. What fun! You open a photo file, and the software will convert it to look like a painting. It actually is very realistic, and it's fun to watch it create the painting brushstroke-by-brushstroke. Above is the first one I did from a photo of Zeke in the backyard. You don't want to know how much time I spent playing with this software. Guess I am easily amused, too!

Self Portrait Collage

Layer 1 --- numbers (representing my career as an accountant), a photograph of trees (for my love of nature and current fascination with Winter's bare trees), and a small scrap of scraped paper (for my love of old buildings filled with rust and crumbling bricks and peeling paint).

Layer 2 --- added the photo of me printed on the QA subscription card (appropriate for my current career as a fiber artist), some torn strips from the same papers as layer 1, a chunk of painted paper, and a scrap of text (for the font junkie in me).

Layer 3 --- used some white spray paint to soften things up a bit. I like the effect --- the hard lines of black and white are gone now, and the photo of me "pops" a bit more.

I haven't decided if this is finished and should be left as a gray-scale collage, or if I should add a wash of color to it. And if I add color, which colors? Any opinions?

First Day of Spring

Today is the first day of my favorite season --- Spring. How can you not love a season filled with growth and renewal? Everything gets a fresh start, and the dreariness and cold of winter is starting to fade. Robins are the quintessential harbinger of Spring, and this one was singing in our ash trees this morning.

FFAC Invitational Reverse Auction

Rusty Grove
Artist: Linda Teddlie Minton
28"h x 26"w

Fiberart For A Cause will hold its fifth Invitational Reverse Auction from March 24-26, 2009. A preview of the artwork opens today:

http://www.virginiaspiegel.com/ReverseAuctionArtwork2009.html

The contributing artists are Natalya Aikens, Gerrie Congdon, Marjorie DeQuincy, Rayna Gillman, Carol Larson, Linda Teddlie Minton, Susie Monday, Judy Coates Perez, Leandra Spangler and Roxane Stoner.

All artwork will begin at a fixed minimum donation. This minimum donation is reduced by a fixed (and very generous) percentage of the original minimum donation each day until the artwork is chosen by a generous patron. 100% of all donations go directly to the American Cancer Society.

"Having lost my husband to cancer nine years ago, I wanted to make some small contribution to something that is so close to my own heart, as well as a joyful way to remember my husband and other friends and relatives who have fought this disease. Since fiber art is both my vocation and my avocation, this seemed a perfect match for me. I was honored to be asked to contribute to the Invitational Reverse Auction, and delighted to accept," said Linda Teddlie Minton.

Fiberart For A Cause has now donated more than $165,000 to the American Cancer Society in the last four years and was the second highest national fundraiser for the 2007 American Cancer Society Cancer's Relay for Life.

Round 3

My 3rd attempt at a self portrait piece for Kansas Art Quilters --- this is a scan of a small section of the background, and I'm actually quite pleased with the colors and textures in this piece. Today I will add the stitching and the photo of me --- keep your fingers crossed that I still like it when those steps are done.

Kiwi Landscape

3/12/09

This collage started with the kiwi image as a sun/moon symbol. This is actually the second collage that I have created with a kiwi image. I'm not sure why I like this image in collages, but I intend to explore it further.

Glow

3/11/09

One of the qualities that I love most about collage is its ability to draw you in as you discover more and more about the artwork. Initially you are drawn to the glow in this collage, but upon closer inspection you will notice the image of the street lamp. The rust pieces are torn from a photograph of clay canyon walls, and the final layer is lettering from a rubberstamp.

Another Reminder

3/9/09

My word for 2009 is "Simplify", so I couldn't resist creating a collage when I found this word in a magazine. It is mid-March, and I am making good progress on simplifying my household possessions and fair progress on simplifying my life. Oh well. Some things are easier said than done. I do still hope to get both aspects simplified by year end though.

"Textiles Now"

Tropical Blues
20.25"h x 15.25"w
$250

"Textiles Now" is a gorgeous new book, published by Lawrence King Publishing in September 2008 and featuring international contemporary textile designs. I was contacted by the author about including some of my work in the book, and I sent her several images. The piece above is one of my pieces featured in the book, and I am thrilled to be included in such a great reference book. "Textiles Now" includes over 400 photographs of textiles and fiber art by approximately 100 artists from all over the world, organized into 3 different sections. My work is included in the Dyed, Painted and Printed Textiles section. Click here to read about Textiles Now and order your copy.

Self Portraits and Junk Mail

I'm almost afraid to show you today's post, as now you will see how truly bad my mind wanders at times. For those of you that are in envy of my organizational and time management skills in the studio, here's some redemption.

A group I belong to has requested that each member create a self portrait art quilt --- one that is a head shot and that is recognizable as me. I totally dislike creating art quilts that are representational, and self portraits are at the very top of the dreaded list of representational art that I dislike. However, it is a group that I enjoy and I am a board member, so I decided to give it a try.


First I set the timer on my camera and started taking self portrait photos. Yuck, double yuck. Next idea --- gather things that I like or that tell a little about me. Out came a copy of Quilting Arts magazine, and to the floor dropped the subscription card insert. I remembered that somewhere I had seen an artist who created a piece of artwork from one of these cards, so I decided to try that concept (another recycle, reuse project). So I started cropping one of the self portrait photos until I got it down to a part that I could live with displaying to the public, changed it to grayscale, and lightened it up considerably. Then I printed it on the subscription card insert. Turned out fairly cool!

So I dug out another magazine and looked for the insert in it. You know every magazine has these PITA cards. This magazine happened to be Dwell, so I decided to go through the same process, only with a tree photograph. I love this one!

By this time, I'm excited and feel like I've discovered a new raw material for collages, but of course I am way off track on my self portrait project, and that is how it stayed for the rest of the day --- playing with photographs and overprinting them on junk mail and totally ignoring any idea of a self portrait.

Old, Rusty Trucks

I love taking photographs of rusty objects, and old vehicles are one of my favorite rusty objects. The two photos above were taken in Texas, while I was at Karey Bresenhan's ranch. This was an old truck sitting on the property, and I probably took about 30 different photographs of it. These are two of my favorites.

Greenery

3/7/09

A collage of leaf photos with gold stripes as the final layer. I love how it gives the appearance of looking through the blinds into the garden.

New Color Palette

3/4/09

Working with neutrals and a hint of purple. Spray painted background on sumi paper, applied to a watercolor base. Then I brayered the gold, and stamped the purple with a piece of corrugated cardboard. The top layers are brown paper bags with black text screened on them and a touch of white and gold paint.

Dark & Dismal

3/2/09

I am often amazed at how my day is reflected in the daily collage that I create. This one was created on my first day back from Texas. I came home to several inches of snow and overcast skies --- overall, a dismal, dreary day --- both in weather and in the fact that I was exhausted and sick. Unconsciously I gravitated toward dark colors for that day's collage.

Junk Mail Birches

2/22/09

Spray painted background on watercolor paper, torn strips of junk mail to resemble birch trees, actual piece of birch bark. Another collage about the plight of trees being sacrificed to create junk mail that I don't want or need.

Morning Song

Male Cardinal
3/5/09

One of my favorite birds to see and hear is the cardinal. Every morning the male cardinals are in the trees in our yard, singing their hearts out. I truly enjoy drinking a morning cup of coffee on the deck while watching and listening to them. We have numerous bird feeders of all sizes in our yard, filled with all varieties of seed and suet, but in reality it is all to entice the cardinals to nest and inhabit our yard.

Lizzie Lou's

Artist, Mary Lou Marks, at work

Saturday I spent the afternoon in Round Top, Texas visiting various galleries. First stop was Lizzie Lou's, a shop filled with an eclectic mix of clothing, jewelry and assemblage artwork. Above is one of the owners, artist Mary Lou Marks, working on a collaged torso. Most of the assemblages in the shop are created by her, and she is a very talented artist.

The Great Expectations Creativity Center

Virginia A. Spiegel, artist-in-residence, in front of a display of some of the cloth that she painted during her residency.

Carol Moore, artist-in-residence, in front of one of the pieces that she created during her residency.

Virginia and Carol were the two artists-in-residence at the Great Expectations Creativity Center during the month of February. I traveled to Texas to attend the open studio day that was held at the end of their residency. Both artists created some amazing pieces --- Virginia painted 200 yards of cotton cloth, and Carol created several finished works, including two redwood pieces made with torn strips of cotton, silk, and velvet. This is where I will be an artist-in-residence during March 2010.

The Great Expectations Creativity Center is located on a 67 acre ranch in LaGrange, Texas. It has a walking trail through much of the property, which includes several wooden bridges that cross a seasonal creek. There are also numerous benches along the trail, offering a place to sit and contemplate the beauty and serenity of your surroundings. I took over 300 photographs during my walks along the trails!

Home, But Tired

I had a great time in Texas! It was wonderful to see old friends and meet new ones. The ranch has breathtaking views in all directions, and so much to explore and photograph. The bluebirds were nesting, and I was smitten with them. They are very timid, so the photo above is about as close as I dared to get without disturbing them. I am even more excited about my artist residency at this ranch next year!