Artopia Update

The Word is “Slow”

2011-07-31T23:08:00.000-04:00

At David and Leigh’s wedding three months ago I got into an intense discussion about journaling with one of Leigh’s bridesmaids, Kristy Cuskelly. We both agreed we’d like to be more faithful about keeping our journals (or blog for that matter), but unfortunately “life” often got in the the way, and we both kept putting things off.
Kristy suggested that an easy way to keep a journal would be to pick one word that encapsulated what we’d experienced that day and just leave it at that. For some reason, I woke up thinking about her words this morning, and I've been mulling them over ever since.
I think my word for today has to be slow because that’s basically how the day unfolded. But what does slow really tell you? I could decide to take things as slowly as possible in order to savor each moment. Maybe things could go very slowly for me, but not in a satisfying way. Or I might just decide to be lazy and describe it as slow. Yes, the word can mean so many different things. On its own, slow is like a poem, then once you start writing about it, or trying to visualize it, slow turns into something else. So what did slow mean to me today? Go with the flow.

(Speaking of journaling, you might want to check out Strathmore’s free visual journaling workshops at
http://www.strathmoreartist.com/vj-workshop-about.html.)

The Finish: A Vision Grid

2011-06-30T11:29:00.000-04:00

Our last assignment for Claudine’s Composition Workshop was to construct a collage in the grid format. I’ve never done this before because creating each section to work on its own as well as in the overall group is a big challenge. It’s like putting a jigsaw puzzle together, a pastime I’ve never had much patience with, I’m afraid (although gluing individual jigsaw pieces to something is always fun).
I’m sure that an artist with a more spontaneous temperament than mine would find this project easier to do, and when you think about it: what does it really matter if the sections don’t work well as a group? I finally got to this point after being overwhelmed by all the possibilities. The plus of Photoshop is also its minus …you can keep undoing and altering until you’re in the it-will-never-be-finished zone. Of course that’s the advantage of an assignment. You feel you must complete it no matter how it turns out. If there hadn’t been a deadline, I would have deep-sixed this project a few hours in. As it is, I don’t know how much I learned but at least I know that I’m capable of producing something complicated if I have to.

Week 3: A Vignette Composition

2011-06-19T15:19:00.000-04:00

One of the things I’ve appreciated about taking Claudine Hellmuth’s online class is the opportunity to think about what I’m doing creativity. Most of the time I don’t analyze what I make as I go along, but when you gain some new tools (or refresh what you already know), it makes it easier to solve the problems that come up.

Perhaps this is an unromantic way to view making art, but I do believe that much of the process is about problem solving. Because you have a gut feeling you want things a certain way, it’s all about experimenting until you get things “right” …in other words, until you achieve something that allows you to move on.*

I played a lot with this composition in Photoshop. It’s the first time I’ve consciously tried to make a vignette (usually it just evolves), and I liked the challenge of having boundaries and trying to do as much as I could within them. Of course the beauty of Photoshop is that you can keep doing and undoing to your heart’s content, although I had promised myself that I would use some of my collage stash to do at least one of Claudine’s projects. Oh well, maybe next time…

*It’s not so much that you want things to look a certain way, you’re after a certain feeling which you might not understand until you actually start working on a piece—and then when you get it, you get it.

Week 2: Composition with Claudine

2011-06-15T23:11:00.000-04:00

Our challenge this week was to experiment with the horizon line. If you go to Sharon Ginzberg’s blog you can see her hands-on approach to the assignment, which I think works really well.
I decided to stick with Photoshop myself, and even though I liked what I did, I got off track pretty quickly. For some reason, when I’m working on an assignment, I usually forget why I signed up for the class in the first place. But I had fun with it.
The game piece is from a handout Claudine included with the lesson, and the digital scrapbooking paper is from a line Christina Lazar Schuler designed a few years ago. As for the hat and diagram background, I used some images from my own line of digital stamps.

Claudine & Composition

2011-06-08T14:12:00.000-04:00

I’m glad I signed up for Claudine Hellmuth’s new online class: Composition for Collage. It’s not only helping me to take my mind off losing Lily while I’m doing it, but I’m also gaining some much needed focus.
Both Martha and Marissa have written on their blogs about how they enjoy online classes, so I’ve been wanting to experience one myself. I thought I’d start with Claudine’s because I’ve taken a couple of real time classes with her, and she always gives you 100 per cent, plus you come away a better artist. One of the things I admire about Claudine’s work is her sense of composition, and it’s great the way she explains how she makes decisions regarding the placement of her picture elements.
Our first assignment was Asymmetry (see above), which I did in Photoshop using (mainly) elements that Claudine provides as part of the class materials. I was surprised how challenging this was and how much I learned. Because I worked for years as a layout artist, composition isn’t usually a challenge for me. However, I do think that a large part of creativity is self-correcting in order to make your work better, and I really appreciate the tools and vocabulary Claudine is giving us to do just this that.
P.S. I think today is the last day to sign up if you’d like to.

My Fair Lily: 1995 to 2011

2011-06-04T00:41:00.000-04:00

I know there must be worse things than losing your beloved dog, but right now I can’t imagine what those things could be.
On Tuesday afternoon I got a bad feeling about Lily, so I left work early and rushed home. When I looked through the door I saw her lying there waiting for me. Her eyes were open and she looked very relaxed, but I knew immediately that she had passed away. Her little body was still warm and I tried to revive her, but it was too late.
Even though I am grateful that we had her love, joy and companionship for fifteen and a half years, there’s a hole in my heart that keeps filling up with tears. Goodbye sweet girl. Your joy and innocence will always be with us.

Y’all, eh? David & Leigh’s Wedding

2011-05-04T17:10:00.000-04:00

We’re back from David and Leigh’s lovely church wedding in Austin, Texas. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever been to a wedding where people cried more. There was a string quartet, a flower girl and bevy of bridesmaids including Emma. The maid of honor was Leigh’s sister Marilyn; David’s closet friend Neil was best man.
After the ceremony, we went to the Daniel H. Caswell house, which is just a few blocks from the Texas State Capitol Building. Built around 1900, the Caswell House was the perfect venue for a romantic reception. After plenty of classic Southern cooking like grits, collard greens, black eyed peas and Texas-style brisket, the speeches began. Leigh’s mom Suzie sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” which was the hit of the night.
Suzie, Leigh’s dad Gayle, Marilyn, and all the extended family and friends from Texas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, and California welcomed us into their hearts and demonstrated true Southern hospitality. Now that Texas and Toronto have merged, we have a new saying: “Y’all, eh?” Love those accents.
P.S. Click photos above for a larger view.

Now on Sale ― Artopia Digital Stamps

2011-04-26T00:38:00.002-04:00

You’re invited to visit my new blog Artopia Digital Stamps, and check out the unique collections I’ve designed for artists and crafters: French Hats, Vintage People and Art Gizmos.

Whether you’re into mixed media, card-making or digital collage, my goal is to provide you with low cost images to inspire you creatively.
If you’re not familiar with digital stamps, they’re black and white images you download and use in your art:

You can print them on paper, fabric and film.
You can resize them, and then add colored pencil, pastel and paint.
You can import them into Photoshop or Photoshop Elements, and transform them digitally.

Why not take digital stamps on a test drive

by downloading my Free Images?

And visit my Project Ideas page for creative suggestions.

Digital versus Physical

2011-04-07T22:28:00.001-04:00

Even though I’ve reorganized all my art supplies and I’m set up to paint again, I don’t seem to be doing anything yet. Thinking about it (definitely). Fantasizing about it (always pleasurable). Generating ideas (never a problem) ...but actually doing it? I’m afraid not.
Since I don’t have this problem with digital work, I’ve been debating lately about whether or not I should give up the physical act of painting and focus entirely on Photoshop.
And it’s not because Photoshop is faster. If anything, it’s a slower process for me. Because there are so many possibilities to explore digitally, I can lose myself happily for hours and then emerge with something that pleases me.
When I pick up a brush and dip it in paint, though, there’s usually some hesitation on my part. Am I making the right decision? Could I going down the wrong path? What am I trying to do anyway? It’s just plain easier for me to be more playful and spontaneous in Photoshop. Plus, just think uncomplicated my life would be without all those art supplies!
Unfortunately, while Photoshop might be mentally tactile, it doesn’t translate to the physical—yet. Won’t it be amazing when three-dimensional stuff starts emerging from your printer? I just hope this happens in my lifetime.

Reading and Writing Poetry

2011-03-18T01:12:00.002-04:00

Emma told me recently that writing poetry (and reading it) not only gives her ideas for her novel, but also makes her feel more creative. This surprised me. Although I used to teach fiction and poetry writing workshops, it never occurred to me that the two could be of benefit to each other. But it’s obvious really. Part of what makes a great poem—movement and strong imagery—also contributes to great fiction.
Back in May 1998, I set myself the task of writing a short poem every day. It’s not that difficult if you think of them as haikus: short and sweet.
What was interesting about this project to me was that I had to be deliberately aware of the something deeper that’s always going on. And re-reading these poems today, I could remember what inspired me to write most of them.
For example on May 6th, 1998:

Her heart

travels straight up the lead

into my palm…

As I recall, I was walking Lily very late at night and we passed by a bizarre girl. Even though it was a warm night, she was dressed in heavy, dark winter clothing from head to toe, and vibrating with anger. She terrified Lily who started barking madly—I could actually feel her doggie heart pounding at the end of the lead.
I’ve never done much with my poetry because I really don’t consider myself to be a poet. I think it’s partly because that kind of writing tends to be such a personal thing, you don’t want to admit to it unless you can polish your words up properly. (It’s a lot more fun not to feel you have to, though).
I had to laugh when I picked up the latest issue of The Oprah Magazine. There are several articles on poetry, but the P-word does not appear on the cover. Maybe the editors were afraid they would scare prospective readers away with the word POETRY, so they chose instead to lure them in by promising …How to Inspire the Best in You: Words That Sooth, Ideas That Delight—36 Pages You’ll Want to Keep Forever!
Enough said.

Fifth Year Blogiversary

2011-03-03T22:54:00.001-05:00

Just this morning I realized that I’ve been blogging for five years today. Obviously not always faithfully or with consistent quality, but I’ve never thought seriously of it giving up.
It was Carmi who encouraged me to start a blog, and who could ask for a better cheerleader or mentor? Frankly, her enthusiasm, energy and willingness to try something new gave me the courage to try it myself. I have to admit I needed that push because my tendency is go inside rather than outside, and keeping a blog is a good way to stay connected to the big picture. True, I wish I had the drive to post original art several times a week and to write something transformational, but when you get right down to it, you have to blog in the way that’s best for you and groove to your own inner timing, even if is kind of hit and miss.
One of the good things about blogging is that you become accountable to yourself and others. Three or four years ago, I was posting a digital ATC here on a regular basis. That activity, more than anything else, helped me to develop my Photoshop skills. But developing your creativity is just one of the benefits of blogging. For me, the most important thing has been establishing important friendships with people I would probably never have met in the pre-blogging universe. It’s exciting to know there are so many kindred spirits out there to share the world with, so thank you for stopping by and being one of my readers!

The Sketchbook Project

2011-02-22T23:45:00.002-05:00

If you’re interested in artist sketchbooks, there’s a big exhibit on right now at the The Brooklyn Art Library that will also travel to Portland (Maine), Austin, Atlanta, Washington D.C., Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago and Winter Park in Florida. (See locations and dates below). I have a sketchbook in the exhibition—along with a ton of other artists including my good pals, JK Gent and Jennifer Pearson Vanier—although I would have to use the word “sketchbook” with some latitude in my own case.

Because the topic I chose was Secret Codes, I fully intended to invent my own arcane language, and then draw on every page. But when the reality of what I intended to do sank in, I remembered the saying: Don't let perfection get in the way of good. In other words, there was no way I was going to finish (or even get started) without drastic compromise.

I ended up using rubber stamps and adding to them with pen (see above). Saul Steinberg included stamps in his drawings and I always loved the effect, except I started from the other end. And since I didn’t have time to work on every page, each image showed through on the opposite side ...not an effect I would normally go for, but sometimes it’s just a relief to finish something without stopping to critique it along the way.

P.S. The purplish textured background I used to display my pages on is from Lennie Locken’s set of textures on Elemenopea, a new blog of custom brushes, textures and photography by digital gurus Nancy Donaldson, Marie Otero and Lennie herself. Check it out!

Click map to enlarge.

More about inspiration…

2011-02-06T22:42:00.002-05:00

I’ve always thought being inspired meant that Spirit was activating something wonderful inside you that wanted to come out. When I actually looked up the etymology of the word inspire, I discovered it means, “to influence or animate with an idea or purpose.” Presumably inspiration can be activated by anything from a sunset to a person with a clear vision of how things could be. At the heart of it, though, Spirit is always there, always available; the challenge is aligning ourselves with It.
One of the things that inspire me is making Artist Trading Cards. Because they are so small, you don’t tend to over think what you’re going to do and can be more spontaneous. I find this whether or not I’m doing them digitally or puttering around with paints and collage bits and pieces. The same feeling extends to making backgrounds. Because you’re basically playing and don’t have an endpoint in mind, you’re freer to express yourself and you don’t worry about making mistakes.
While it’s true that expectation can paralyze the creative drive, strangely enough, it can also motivate you. I sold the pink shadow box sample I did last year for my workshop to a woman who wanted a second one, so that both her young nieces could have their own piece of art in the bedroom they share.
I’ve never been comfortable with commissions, and this one was no exception. My client wanted the shadow boxes to be different, but to still compliment each other. I wasn’t sure I could do this since I’d had so much trouble getting the first one together. But sometimes it’s good to move outside your comfort zone. Rather than second guess what my client would like, I decided to just do something all in one go, and she loved it. So did the two little girls. The six-year-old asked me how I did it because she wants to make one herself!

What Inspires You?

2011-01-27T11:58:00.000-05:00

I can’t honestly say that a lack of inspiration prevents me from doing something creative. In fact, it’s probably just the opposite. I have so many ideas that it’s hard to choose what I’d like to work on especially since my creative time is limited at the moment. Still, I’ve noticed that when I do have the opportunity and start vacillating, there are things I can do that put me in a more creative frame.
Here are just a few:
Looking at books: These can practically based like Digital Paint Techniques, which my friend JK Gent sent me for Christmas, or a book on a particular artist like Joseph Cornell and Astronomy (another current favorite). I believe books open the door to that part of you that’s big, colorful and bursting with possibilities.
Looking at Photographs: Lennie’s blog on Vivian Maier a month or so ago was really inspiring to me. Not because I wanted to go out and start taking pictures, but because the revelation that there must be thousands of unrecognized artists out there doing brilliant stuff right now really moved me. We tend to think that if we’re not recognized, we don’t have talent or the right to create. Vivian obviously wasn’t concerned about this. Her attitude seemed to be: “I love taking pictures and I’m just going to keep doing it no matter what.”
Watching TV: I’m sure a lot of people would disagree with me on this, but I find watching TV and doing art at the same time energizing. My theory is that I don’t obsess about how good a “job” I’m doing on a particular piece of art because I’m too distracted by the TV. Plus I’m getting in guilt-free junk time, which I seem to need. Maybe this is a weird kind of multi-tasking?
Loving my dog: When I cuddle Lily I feel this clear, beautiful sense of love. There’s nothing complicated this. It’s cleansing and liberating. Loving your pet enables you to see how you complicate things when simplifying them would be much healthier and more creative. Nothing gets to the heart of what’s important like Love, the source of true inspiration.

The Word for 2011 is Focus

2011-01-03T23:32:00.001-05:00

For the first time in ages, I decided to set some goals for the New Year. I usually avoid doing this because I don’t want to disappoint myself when I fail to achieve what I’ve promised myself I’ll do. However, the reason I changed my mind for 2011 is that not setting goals hasn’t been working for me either!
I accomplished very little last year. This was understandable given the challenges and circumstances, but still hard to deal with anyway. I’d like to feel better about myself at the end of 2011 than I did in 2010, so I know I need to focus to tackle some of the things on my list—like starting an Etsy shop, doing more with Photoshop and working on different writing projects.
Bob Proctor says you should only work on one or two goals at a time and I’m sure if he looked at my list he’d probably burst out laughing. Nevertheless, I think the way to accomplish some of this stuff is to Focus and to Put in the Time. The good thing is that I still have 362 days left to accomplish a number of my goals (and come up with a fool-proof system of beating procrastination).

The Heart of Things

2010-12-10T20:12:00.001-05:00

In my last post of 2009, I wrote about a much-loved heart ornament that mysteriously broke apart. My sister Pam has given me a deluxe replacement (see photo to left)—probably to get me in the mood to put up the Christmas tree. When we changed to an artificial one, I was thrilled to have a tree that looked realistic. The only problem is that each one of the 10 zillion branches has to be inserted individually into the trunk. It’s a lot more fun shopping for the ornaments that’s for sure.
Speaking of shopping, the annual Holly Jolly Sale is being held tomorrow in the Toronto area. Mary Ambrose, Sharon Ginsberg, Carmi Cimicata, Karen Arts and Marissa Decepida-Wong are all participating, so I’m sure you’ll find some unique gifts for those special people on your list.
Check Marissa’s blog for details.

2010-12-10T20:04:00.002-05:00

Although I won’t be at Holly Jolly this year, there’s still time to order my book for Christmas.

Creating from the Inside Out: Motivational Strategies for Artists and Writers is 177 pages: 6.5 x 6.5" and coil bound. It’s filled with inspiring quotations, mini essays on the creative process, over 75 black-and-white digital collages. It also comes with a Thank You CD of 10 collage sheets to use in your art.

The cost is $25.00 CAD plus postage and you can use PayPal to pay online.
To order: email me at wordandimage@hotmail.com.

P.S. Because I am starting to run low on copies of Creating from the Inside Out, I will probably start offering my book as a digital download when they run out. If you’re interested in being notified when I do this, just let me know.

To read reviews of my book in recent issues of Somerset Memories and RubberStampMadness—and to see some sample pages—click here.

Checking In

2010-12-05T02:14:00.001-05:00

One good thing about blogging regularly is that you not only feel like you’re keeping in touch with your friends, you also find it’s easier to come up with topics to write about. You simply launch your word boat into the online flow and rev up your motor. But when you leave it for a while as I have been doing, you tend to ponder too much about the possibilities – especially when there are so many interesting topics to write about …like the difference between butterflies and moths, or why some people put up their Christmas lights the day after Halloween.
When I was teaching creative writing I would give my students a sheet of words and ask them to pick one out randomly, and then write about it for ten minutes to focus their mind(s). As I recall I got the idea from one of Roger Von Oech’s books and it always worked like a charm.
My brother Robin and I used to play a lot of writing games too. My favorite was where we would each write a paragraph and then swap, but we could only read the last sentence and then had to carry on from there before we traded again. Robin has been a much more prolific writer than I will ever be because he jumps right into things and is disciplined as well. You can check out Robin’s poems, plays and fiction on his website, and catch a brief video of him talking about his work.

Lily turns fifteen

2010-11-15T13:22:00.000-05:00

Leigh took this picture of David and me with Lily recently. It’s hard to believe our doggie is fifteen years old today because she raced down the stairs and out the door like a shot chasing after a couple of squirrels this morning. Not that Lily is a threat to them, or to any cats or rabbits invading her territory for that matter. No, her barking is basically a lot of hot air. Well, I guess there were those two skunking episodes a few years ago, but I like to think Lily's maturity has brought with it a good measure of canine wisdom. I could be wrong there though.

According to Stanley Coren who wrote The Intelligence of Dogs, Cavaliers like Lily rank number 44 out of the 80 breeds he surveyed, so she has "an Average Working/Obedience Intelligence." For example, in order to understand new commands, a Cavalier needs 25 to 40 repetitions, and he or she will obey your first command 50 per cent of the time or better.
I’m not a big fan of statistics myself, but just to let you know: if you have a Border Collie, a Poodle, a Doberman or a Golden Retriever, your dog is way smarter than mine. Nevertheless, I think it’s interesting that while Coren might have a couple of smart dogs himself, he also has Cavalier King Charles Spaniel called Banshee (see below) who is referred to as “old” (whatever that means) in Coren’s online biography.

P.S. What I’d really like to read is a book on disgusting food that your dog loves to eat and nevertheless thrives on. Aside from the virtuous home cooked meals of steamed broccoli, string beans, lean ground beef and chicken, Lily loves toast and peanut butter (breakfast), grilled cheese sandwiches (lunch), and her all time favorite: Kraft Dinner, which she will be chowing tonight for her birthday dins. (You go girl!)

Julian Schnabel

2010-11-08T16:04:00.001-05:00

Ever since I visited Buffalo’s Albright Knox Gallery in 1998 and saw a giant “broken plate” painting by Julian Schnabel, I’ve been curious about him, and I really enjoyed his retrospective, which is on at the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto until January 2, 2011.
His work won’t be to everyone’s taste because it’s so free and individualistic. Some of the paintings are 22 feet high, but whether large or small everything seems to be on a monumental scale. Schnabel says he was inspired to become an artist after seeing a Rembrandt. It was the glow emanating from the painting that inspired him, and now as a practicing artist, he says, “I know how to lean towards the light” (adding that while he always knows how to start a painting, he doesn’t know how he’s going to finish).
There are paintings done on giant tarpaulins and in the photo of Schnabel with two of his pieces (see above), the one on the right is painted on a sail he bought right off a guy’s boat on the Nile. To the left is a “Big Girl” painting, a rendition of a small picture he bought in a thrift shop, which is also on display at the gallery.
The curator also chose several portraits painted by Schnabel, including one of Gary Oldman as a matador and the twin daughters of Steve Nash, the basketball player. Schnabel describes the shiny finish he applied to their portraits as “liquid glass.” Obviously Carmi isn’t the only one crazy about resin!
Schnabel spends most of his time in his pajamas and slippers even when he’s going out for dinner or shooting one of his movies. I can totally relate to this habit because I’ve worn my nightgown to go shopping on several occasions, although I always wear a coat to cover it up.
You get the feeling that Schnabel really doesn’t care what anyone else thinks about his painting, and that’s very liberating and inspiring …to me at least. I came out of the show feeling that I’d never really let go in my own work because I’ve barely scratched the surface of who I am creatively. But instead of feeling overpowered by this insight, I felt energized to go deeper into my imagination and see what happens.

Below: Schnabel with two of his surfer paintings.

The Book of Life

2010-10-24T18:27:00.000-04:00

I wouldn’t say I’ve been suffering from writer’s block for the last few months, but it’s something akin to it I’m sure. Even though I always have lots of ideas, wrestling them into shape verbally is often a problem. It’s so much easier to express and understand things visually.
For example, you know those before-and-after pictures in a magazine like People? The ones where you have to spot the ten little things that are different between them? Well, I’d rather do that than a crossword puzzle because I can usually pick up the things that have been Photoshop-ed in right away. Unfortunately the only time I’m successful with a crossword puzzle is when I Google most of the clues.
When I think of a word, a picture almost always comes up—even if that word is an abstract one. For example, I know I’d like to “write” another “book” and the first thing that that popped into my mind was one filled with random pictures that didn’t seem to be connected to each other in any obvious way. Apparently it would be up to the reader to unite things visually and come up with a story.
I did get a title though: The Book of Life.
Naturally I went straight to Google, and it turns out that The Book of Life is mentioned in Christian and Jewish spiritual teachings, and is also the title of by a 1921 novel by Upton Sinclair. You can’t copyright a title of course, but I think I’d shy away from using something someone else has already come up with.
I’ve heard writers like Wayne Dyer, Dean Koontz and Neale Donald Walsch all say they can’t start writing until they have a title. In Wayne Dyer’s case, he even visualizes the cover and has a mock-up done by his publisher to inspire him during the writing process. As for me, there’s no cover yet, but there’s already something inside.

Recent Publications

2010-10-01T21:37:00.000-04:00

When Emma and I went to Indigo just before the wedding, I headed straight for the magazines on everything digital. I usually pick up Advanced Photoshop and Photoshop Creative because they include a CD with free clip art and brushes. In my opinion, anyone doing digital work can never have too many brushes to choose from.
I also buy Somerset Digital Studio because it’s always jam-packed with a wide and inspiring selection of art. This issue—Fall 2010—has one of my collages on page 121. (See above). When I got home, I compared my original print with the one in the magazine and the color was spot-on. This actually surprised me. If you’ve ever had any of your art published in a magazine, it can be upsetting when you see how it’s reproduced. Sometimes you don’t even recognize it.
Daniza emailed me on Thursday to say that the current issue of Somerset Memories has a review of my book Creating From the Inside Out. I haven’t read the review yet, so I don’t know what was said. But the fall issue of RubberStampMadness has one too. The reviewer, Barbara Blanks, says: “I think her most important advice is: create in spite of your moods”—advice I should be taking to heart right now!

Emma & Bryan’s Wedding

2010-09-27T22:59:00.001-04:00

Emma and Bryan got married on Saturday at my sister and brother-in-law’s cottage in Meaford, Ontario, and it was such a joyous day. The ceremony was performed by the Reverend Doctor Brian Goodings at 4 p.m. under a tent overlooking Georgian Bay. There were 150 people in attendance from age 6 months to 89 years old, and the violin selections were performed by my friend Andrea Currie Jefferson.
John gave Emma away, and David did a reading, which made everyone—including David—teary. It was a very romantic service, and I have to say that I’ve never seen two people happier about getting married than Emma and Bryan.
Afterwards there was a fantastic dinner (lots of comfort food like fried chicken, beef tenderloin and Emma’s favorite—mac and cheese, plus home-baked pies instead of the traditional wedding cake). Then there was lots of dancing—and more dancing—until 2 a.m. It was a splendid day and the perfect start for my dear Emma and her new husband Bryan.

Playing with Pictures

2010-08-25T00:43:00.002-04:00

If you’re interested in vintage photos and collage, and you’re in the Toronto area, you might want to catch the exhibit Playing with Pictures: The Art of Victorian Photocollage before it closes on September 5th. Not everyone will love this AGO show because it’s not large, flashy or painterly (things I admit usually appeal to me when I visit an art gallery). However, it’s fascinating what these Victorian artists did with pen and ink, and watercolor …incorporating photos that couldn’t be resized.
They didn’t have our cornucopia of tools and materials to work with, but given their work, you get the feeling most of them would have loved the digital. For example, the collage I did above incorporates a cabinet card, one of my own photographs and several pieces of vintage line art all altered and layered together in Photoshop. I didn’t pick up a pen or brush, and I played with colors, sizes and effects until I got what I wanted.
I’m not the only person who recognized some kindred spirits in this show. Just look at all the people who submitted digital art to the Playing with Pictures Flickr group below.

A Review of Carmi's Book

2010-08-22T13:47:00.000-04:00

I think it was Harlan Ellison who said that anyone who can make out a grocery list thinks he (or she) can write a novel. Ellison is well known in the sci fi community for his cynical bent on life, but my guess would be that most of us recognize that writing anything – even a grocery list – can be a test of our mental prowess.

Because I’ve written and illustrated a book myself, this gives me an instant bond with anyone who has gone through a similar process: like Carmi Cimicata, for instance.

Carmi has written and illustrated the Art Girl’s Guide to Paris which is chock full of her quirky charm. There are lots of great photos and suggestions on places to visit like shops, palaces and museums where you can have the complete Gallic experience. In other words, if you didn’t want to visit Paris before savoring this book, I guarantee you will afterwards.

I’m actually on my second copy now. The first I sent off with my brother Robin who was meeting my sister-in-law Wendy in Paris earlier this month. Like Carmi, Wendy makes an annual pilgrimage to the city, and her take on the book when she got back? “Oolala – it reminded me of places I’d adored but forgotten, and introduced me to new things to do and places to go. Loved it!”

Now you may think because “Art Girl” is in the title that it wouldn’t be of any interest to men. Wrong! John is Carmi fan too. “I think the book is really good,” he says. “Not only does she make me want to go back to Paris, but she inspires me to write a book too.”

For more information on an Art Girl’s Guide to Paris, visit Carmi’s book blog. To see the first few pages of the guide, check out her site on Blurb.

Work of Art

2010-08-15T19:59:00.001-04:00

I have to admit I’m hooked on reality shows like Project Runway and So You Think You Can Dance because the people competing against each other are usually skilled at what they do. So when I read about Bravo’s Work of Art on Lennie’s blog, I knew I had to start watching it. After all: how could I resist a show about artists?
But it’s harder to make judgments about art. Somehow knowing what constitutes a good meal, a great dress or a fine singing voice seems much easier. What does make a work of art though? You could list all sorts of requirements like harmony, rhythm, balance, use of color, development of ideas, and so on, but in the end, it’s usually how you spontaneously react to a piece that convinces you whether or not it’s art—for you.
China Chow, the host of the show, says it best: “Art is one of the most authentic ways for a person to express themselves. Clothing has to be functional, food has to taste good – but art is the purest form of expression, existing without set boundaries.”
That lack of boundaries is what makes Work of Art so interesting. At first I was baffled by how the artists on the show struggle with the process of implimenting their creative ideas. Then I realized that what I was watching was normal. Most artists find art-making a challenge at times, and focus is often a problem. The advantage to being on this show is that you are pushed to produce art in a short period of time, so you can’t help but benefit from the creative stretch even if the work you produce isn’t that good. And a lot of it isn’t. As a viewer, I personally don’t think this matters because it’s fascinating to watch how artists really work.
On the other hand, a couple of the judges seem to have their own boundaries (read “prejudices”) firmly in place. Listening to them critique the artists makes me uncomfortable. They have a tendency to promote the slick, the sophisticated and the manipulative. In other words, if you’re cool, anything you do is basically cool. But if you happen to be odd in an unfunky way, well, you might as well just forget it.
To me, this cult of personality has created an emptiness at the heart of the mainstream fine art world, and I’m just happy we have blogs and the Internet to expose us to all sorts of amazing and inspiring artists—artists we would be denied acess to if those pretentious, professional windbags had their way. (Moral to this story? Go forth and create anyway!)

Who do you write like?

2010-08-03T01:22:00.001-04:00

After having a chunk of his writing analyzed at a site called I Write Like, John informed me that his style resembles Kurt Vonnegut’s. Not too shabby I’d say. Then he mentioned that my brother Robin’s writing style alternates between Edgar Allen Poe and the sci fi writer William Gibson. I was almost afraid to ask who I write like. But he told me that Stephen King kept popping up when he entered some of my blog posts. I once stayed up all night reading The Shining, so I was quite pleased about being compared to SK.
What about my book though? Apparently here my style resembles David Foster Wallace, a writer I’d never heard of. But I wikipedia-ed him and plan to read some of his work. All I can say is that I’m glad I didn’t know my style resembled Wallace’s while I was writing Creating from the Inside Out. It probably would have intimidated me.
Now when it comes to my fiction, two names came up: Stephen King again—and James Joyce. I think that’s absolutely hilarious; my split writing personality might just be the reason why I’ve never managed to have a novel published.
If you want to find out which famous writer you write like, get some of your writing together (a few paragraphs at least) and visit this site.

P.S. Just analyzed this blog post and got H.P. Lovecraft. Hmmm. I may have to revise the split personality thing to include multiples.

Mind Implements

2010-07-05T18:23:00.001-04:00

Last time I posted here I wrote about my favorite art implements. Since then I’ve been thinking quite a lot about implements of the mind. In other words, you can have all the nifty art supplies in the universe, but unless you’re actually using them, they won’t fulfill their potential. Or you either.
Why is it so difficult for some of us to use our stuff? A few weeks ago a friend told me the reason she doesn’t do much art is because she’s lazy. But I don’t buy that for a minute. Lazy is one of those judgmental words that’s just guaranteed to make you feel worse. I know when I think of myself as lazy, I tend to act that way which is always counterproductive.
From what I can see, there are plenty of reasons why people procrastinate. This can be anything from just needing to take a break to feeling you have to do things perfectly or you shouldn’t be doing them at all And of course, let’s face it: making art isn’t always easy—and sometimes we just need things to be undemanding.
I read somewhere that the pleasure of writing is never equal to the pleasure of reading, so that’s why it’s easy to suffer from writer’s block. It’s the same thing with art. When you look at a fabulous mixed media piece, you can be inspired to do something of your own. But then when you actually get down to work things are usually more complicated than you think they will be. So what to do about this?
Sometimes I feel that art is more about problem solving than anything else. It doesn’t really help to think about it as a problem though. I find that looking on it as a project is the most helpful to me. A project implies things like brainstorming, planning, playing, tinkering around, fine tuning, taking detours and so on. In short: if you look on your art as an on-going project there’s more room for fun.

My Favorite Art Implements

2010-06-18T23:39:00.001-04:00

Brenda sent me and some of her other art homies a nifty little booklet called the Implements of Art Creation. A couple of her favorites? Tear by Hand Scotch Tape and a Pigma Micron Pen. Of course as soon as anything approaching a list appears in my mail or inbox, I have to sit down and make one up too …although I’ll admit that most of the time, the list stays inside my head (mind you, adding to it there is a great way to fall asleep, if you’re having trouble drifting off).
My list turned out to be a lengthy one: Golden Crackle Paste, and Titan Buff fluid acrylic; Liquitex Matte Medium and Black Lava; Pitt artist pens; a black Versafine dye ink pad; baby wipes; Zip Glue; E6000 glue; a miniature screwdriver kit; an X-acto knife, and cutting mat; a set square; Prismacolor pencils; and my two supply totes (not precisely implements but handy all the same).
The first time I ever taught a workshop at a stamp store, one of my “students” brought along her massive just-in-case supply tote that included every pencil, ink pad, paint, paper, marker, pen, pencil, punch etc. known to woman (or man). It was like being invited into an art circus. Because this contraption seemed to take up about 10 square feet of space, I vowed then that I would never ever have a tote.
But words are meant to be eaten, aren’t they? Eventually I fell in love with a mini journaling tote and a larger one that keeps most of my supplies handy. Not that I’ve been using them much these last few months. But truly—sometimes I think the satisfaction of keeping everything organized is almost on a par with making something.
Now where was I? Oh yes, what I realized when I started my list is that there’s one implement I absolutely couldn’t live without, and that’s Photoshop. Over the last eight years, Photoshop has gradually unlocked a whole world of creativity I always suspected existed and now I know actually does. Sure there’s a big learning curve, but that’s fine with me. Art mirrors life after all, and what is life but one long learning curve? Just when you think you’ve got something figured out, you realize you haven’t. C’est la vie.

Shadow Box Stamping

2010-06-02T00:13:00.002-04:00

I’ve been stamping for about twelve years now and never lost interest in the medium. Unlike most of my art buddies, I prefer to stamp in my journal, so I’m not much of a card maker.
But I’ve always thought stamping is underutilized when it comes to doing creative projects, and since my turn to do a workshop for the Stampers of Southern Ontario is this Saturday, I decided I wanted to try something different. Instead of my usual approach (doing something stamp-ish with an origami book form), I came up with the idea of incorporating stamping into a shadow box. I guess I’ll find out on Saturday whether or not the members signed up for my workshop enjoy this approach.

Home is where the heart is...

2010-05-16T23:45:00.009-04:00

Our ATC theme for May was home, and I was tempted to let it slide because I’m still playing catch up with everything that’s been going on in my life recently. But since I’ve been angling for this particular theme for a couple of years now, I decided I just better get down to business and produce some cards. Besides, it would give me a chance to use these Teesha Moore stamps I love, along with some colored pencil—plus home is a wonderful subject to contemplate visually, isn’t it? Rather than an actual place, I think of home as a state of heart and mind. Ideally you carry it around with you and some situations, groups of people and activities can be more home-like than the so-called real place. That said, I do feel happy in my own little nest tonight. I have my flashing Las Vegas sign on, the angel is hovering over my computer and Lily is recovering from the indignity of having her nails clipped by snoring triumphantly away at my side.

Hubbalicious!

2010-05-06T00:19:00.002-04:00

I’ve always been drawn to outer space images …everything from the planets in our own solar system to galaxies that may not still even exist. That’s why I was excited to discover that you can actually download a selection of l-a-r-g-e images taken by the Hubble telescope’s camera in space. You can print them up, or import them into Photoshop and go to town—although what I found when I downloaded this 16 x 20” photo of the Carina Nebula was that I was too awed to alter it.
The Hubble website describes this image as a “turbulent cosmic pinnacle” that lies within “a tempestuous stellar nursery” so I guess I’m not the only one who goes gaga over things like planets and nebulae.

Victorian Photocollage

2010-04-26T23:49:00.004-04:00

There’s a show on right now at The Met in New York City called The Art of Victorian Photocollage I’d love to see. Apparently upper class Victorian women during the 1860s and 1870s were experimenting with collage by combining photos and watercolors like the two examples shown here. What is fascinating about this is that avant-garde artists like Braque and Kurt Schwitters who are considered to be the originators of collage—and the Surrealists—hadn’t even been born yet.
Obviously these women were well in advance of their time and it makes me wonder what those of us experimenting away in Photoshop will end up inspiring sixty years on down the line. Of course by then all art may be taking place inside our heads. But in the meantime, I thought I’d pretend to be an aristocratic Victorian photocollage artist—with a little help from Photoshop. (Wouldn’t those women have loved using it!)

The Pattern of Her Thought

2010-04-23T00:15:00.002-04:00

I haven’t been keeping up with my blog for a while now and there are a lot of reasons why not—reasons I know most of you could relate to. Instead of cataloguing them though, I thought I’d mention the post on Copyblogger that convinced me I needed to get back on the horse again. Well, not that I fell off exactly. I’d describe it more like taking a long voyage into the interior and staying much longer than I probably needed to.
Anyway, according to the writer on Copyblogger, the five warning signs you might be a “Blograstinator” include: (1) You keep postponing (2) You push so hard it hurts (3) You are easily distracted (4) You’re constantly generating ideas (5) You’re a chatter, not a writer.
There didn’t seem to be a category for I’m-too-busy-watching-TV-and-reading-at-the-same-time, but I could see from the list it was obvious I was postponing things—and the longer I kept putting things off, the easier it was to continue doing this. So enough is enough. I’ve done a spring-cleaning mentally and decided I have to get with the program and start blogging regularly again. Wish me luck.

Identity

2010-03-18T23:08:00.006-04:00

I wanted to do something different for our ATC meeting this month. The theme was whatever we wanted it to be, so I chose “Identity.” I think I know who I am, but identity seemed to give me lots of scope to ponder its meaning in Photoshop—and I decided to use a booklet created by Brenda Shackleford for Artfest last year as a guideline.

If you want to try it yourself, just double click on the image above and download it to your desktop. To print it out, set your paper orientation to “landscape.” The area to cut out measures 10” x 7” …just trim along the outside edge.

To make up the ATC booklet, fold in half, quarters and then eighths as shown below. Open out and cut a slit between the four center panels. Then fold in half horizontally and pop out along the center fold so that the front cover “Identity” is on top.

Sound complicated? If you’re like me, you’ll do better with a demo. Just follow this link for video instructions, but you don’t need a staple as they suggest.

Lynne Perrella’s Latest Book

2010-03-09T01:20:00.002-05:00

What would your ideal studio space look like? And on a more practical level: how would it all work?
You’ll probably find yourself asking questions like these while you’re perusing Art Making & Studio Spaces (An Intimate Llook at 31 Creative Work Spaces) by Lynne Perrella because I know I certainly did.
Even though I loved looking at this incredible profusion of eye candy—many of the artists featured have huge collections of fascinating stuff—I found myself drawn to the more streamlined and utilitarian studios like Michael deMeng’s. I personally find that having all my stuff out is overwhelming and distracting. If I have too much choice, I can’t make any decisions. That said, I’d jump at the opportunity to visit any of the artists Perrella interviewed for this book!
Some of the studios featured are quite small, but most are on the large side and several are self-contained spaces like Bee Shay’s and Sas Colby’s. I remember seeing a photo of Edward Hopper’s Cape Cod studio years ago and it looked just like a boathouse. I’d love something like that.
But one of the featured artists, jeweler Nancy Anderson, says she’s learned from experience that you don’t need a perfect space. “Give up that thought now. The perfect space only exists in your dreams. I say: Just create. Let it happen in your basement …on your kitchen table. Just do it.”

My Mum: 1919 to 2010

2010-03-01T18:17:00.002-05:00

After two months in North York General Hospital, my mother Dorothy Fulford passed away in palliative care there last week. Anyone who has lost a loved one to cancer knows what an excruciating and heart-wrenching process it is to watch them go downhill. But mixed in with the sadness is a feeling of relief that they no longer have to suffer.

Up until last fall, Mum was still driving, making fabulous desserts, hosting dinner parties, attending her book club, volunteering and shopping for new outfits. Even though she was in her 91st year, she still had lots of life left in her and was aware of us all up until her final moments.

Mum deserved a quick, uncomplicated passing after celebrating with everyone who loved her at a gigantic party. She didn’t get that of course, but at least we were all able to say goodbye to her before she went and to hold her close.

John took this picture of Mum enjoying herself in September of 2008 and I think it captures her perpetually sunny nature and love of life perfectly.

Imagining the Past

2010-02-06T13:57:00.000-05:00

Remember When was the theme for our ATC group last month, and I couldn’t decide what to do for the exchange, probably because there are so many choices available. I’m at the age now where my own past is full of all sorts of interesting nooks and crannies (to me at least.) I actually remember wearing white eye shadow, ironing my hair and meeting Manfred Mann in an Eskimo art shop at Yorkdale Plaza.
So what to choose?
I debated doing an ATC of The Beatles concert I went to with my friend Barb on September 7th, 1964. I saw The Stones, James Brown, The Dave Clark Five and The Mamas and Papas in the 60s too, and lots of bands like Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Supertramp, and Genesis in the 70s. One balmy night I even experienced Yoko Ono wailing from inside a burlap bag.
But the problem with being a 60s and 70s girl is that while the years may be piling up, you’re still not copyright free. So this led me to imagining a past for the threesome shown above.
I like this carte d’viste because the little girl is being hugged by her dad, which is an unusual thing to see in pictures from this era. And I’m guessing he must have been especially fond of her because you usually see the young ones grouped around the mother. Then again, maybe the woman shown is her stepmother. Or perhaps the man is the little girl’s grandfather, and the woman he’s seated with is his much younger second wife who is not that that happy being photographed with the grandchild he adores.
There are really lots of scenarios available to anyone with an active imagination here. But it occurred to me that it might be more interesting to rewrite your own personal history instead. I think I'm going to add dating Mike Smith of The Dave Clarke Five to mine.

Identity

2010-01-23T00:44:00.000-05:00

As I was getting into the car the other day, a perfect snowflake landed on the sleeve of my coat. But this tiny ice mandala only lasted for a moment before vanishing. I remembered reading that no two snowflakes are identical (just like each one of us) and I wished I’d had a camera handy to make a record of it like Wilson Bentley, the Vermont farmer who made photographing individual snowflakes his mission in life.

Bentley’s obsession with snowflakes began when he received a microscope for his fifteenth birthday in 1880. He tried drawing them but since they melted too quickly for sketching, he eventually turned to photography (see below) and took thousands of pictures of snowflakes until his death in the 1930s.

Today I discovered that Bentley was the one who came up with the no two snowflakes are alike theory, which is now generally accepted as a scientific fact. “Every crystal was a masterpiece of design and no one design was ever repeated,” he told a reporter in 1925. “When a snowflake melted, that design was forever lost. Just that much beauty was gone, without leaving any record behind.”

I really like the idea that the universe in general is teeming with abundant individuality …everything from an atom to a star, although I don’t think I could reproduce the snowflake I saw. One thing I do know is that it was different from anything else I’ve ever seen and has enhanced my life in its own small, sweet way.

Believe in your plant

2010-01-12T23:58:00.001-05:00

Hazel—one of my plants—has had more lives than a family of contented cats. She has been completely dead (apparently), sort of dead, on the verge of passing on, semi pathetic, extremely pathetic, depressed, deflated, so-so and so on. Well, I’m sure you get the picture. But as you can see, Hazel is flourishing in her present incarnation. One blossom is in full bloom and another couple are just waiting to unfurl. Given Hazel’s history, I’m ashamed to admit I considered tossing her into the compost many times. But I couldn’t bring myself to do it because David gave me Hazel for my birthday a few years ago, and it just seemed plain wrong to abandon her. And I’m glad I didn’t.
Hazel has convinced me that you shouldn’t give up on anything that’s important to you—no matter what the evidence seems to suggest. Even though it appeared she was a goner, John put her in a new pot and I watered her anyway. Everything else Hazel has done on her own, and it’s very gratifying to know she’s got a new lease on life.

The Color for 2010

2010-01-03T23:43:00.002-05:00

“Turquoise Transports Us to an Exciting, Tropical Paradise While Offering a Sense of Protection and Healing in Stressful Times,” says Pantone the company that provides professional color standards for the design industries (and obviously loves to capitalize Just In Case We Miss Anything).
This year the company has chosen Pantone 15-5519 Turquoise, “an inviting, luminous hue,” as the color of the year. “Combining the serene qualities of blue and the invigorating aspects of green, Turquoise evokes thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and a languorous, effective escape from the everyday troubles of the world, while at the same time restoring our sense of well being.”
Whew! But wait, there’s more…
“In many cultures, Turquoise occupies a very special position in the world of color. It is believed to be a protective talisman, a color of deep compassion and healing, and a color of faith and truth, inspired by water and sky. Through years of color word-association studies, we also find that Turquoise represents an escape to many – taking them to a tropical paradise that is pleasant and inviting, even if only a fantasy.”
Personally, I love the color turquoise, but I can’t help wondering—would Pantone ever pick Beige as the color of the year? Could a copywriter wax poetic over Beige? Having been one myself, I’d say if I had to, I could. But I think I’ll just settle for wishing all of you a Happy, Healthy, Creative and Colorful 2010.

The Power of an object

2009-12-31T00:03:00.003-05:00

When I was decorating the tree before Christmas, I heard a crackling sound. At first I didn't know what it was. Then I looked down at the remaining ornaments still carefully laid out on the coffee table, and I could see that one of my favorites—a lilac and silver heart—had cracked all over.
When I showed my “broken” heart to John, he said the reason why it had cracked was to let out more love. Hmm. I had a feeling there was a lesson in all this ...or maybe even a poem. But I forgot about it until Christmas Day when my sister-in-law Wendy presented me with a replacement: a beautiful silver heart. (Wendy and I both love hearts, so she could relate to me losing mine).
Yesterday I decided I'd photograph the two of them together to send to Wendy. Unfortunately the lilac and silver heart disintegrated when I touched it. The funny thing is: when I looked at the photo afterwards, I could see myself taking the picture of it reflected in several of the fragments. I’m not sure what the lesson is here (or if there even has to be one), but I do know I've let go of my attachment to the heart and ended up with a visual poem.

Poetry says something...

2009-12-22T13:26:00.003-05:00

While I was printing up some pictures for Christmas presents last night, I realized that I’ve said goodbye to a lot of my art in 2009—like this mixed media piece: Poetry says something nothing else can. I worked on it on and off for at least five years, and with the deadline of my show approaching in October, I said to myself: This is something you must finish. Suddenly, it all came together. Then Poetry spoke to someone and now has a new home.
Thinking about the whole process in retrospect, I can see I was so enamored with the central image (it’s a painting by the 17th century Italian artist Carlo Dolci called Poetry) that I couldn’t make a any kind of decision I felt was visually worthy of her. Once I made her less personal and focused on the act of writing poetry, I was able to finish.
The interesting thing is that Carlo Dolci was a notoriously slow painter himself. “[S]ometimes he would take weeks over a single foot,” wrote his biographer Baldinucci. By all accounts, Dolci was a very sensitive man. He suffered from depression and went into a decline triggered by Luca Giordano’s 1682 visit to Florence. Luca joked that his own rapid style had brought him a fortune, but Dolci would starve if he kept taking so long. Dolci also had a daughter called Agnese who made copies of his work and was a painter in her own right.
The image I used of Poetry seems to be the one around that's available to scan. I got her from a book my godmother gave me years ago …a 1908 bio of Carlo Dolci by George Hay. The reproductions are all hand-tinted because there was no color photography in those days. If you want to check out the book, you can read it online here.And by a curious coincidence, a miniature portrait painted of Dolci painted in the 18th century by Nardelli is available on Ebay right now for $1795.00 U.S (see below). I'm thinking it's time to buy myself a lottery ticket pronto.

Emma and Bryan

2009-12-08T13:58:00.003-05:00

It was Jean Luc Picard who frequently said Engage on Star Trek, and he might as well have been advising my children because Emma is now engaged to her boyfriend Byran …or I guess I should say: fiancé. We really like Bryan who is a salt of the earth kind of guy and perfect for Emma. But Emma says she lacks the wedding gene and thinks heading to Vegas might be a good idea after figuring out that she wanted to invite at least 300 people to her wedding and will need about twenty bridesmaids.
Is it my imagination, or are weddings much more complicated today? Having been a bridesmaid, a maid of honor and a bride I’m almost certain that they are. But just to get Emma inspired about the bridesmaid’s dresses, here is a picture of my cousin Ann’s 1970s wedding party. (I’m on the left).

Almost Midnight

2009-12-03T23:49:00.004-05:00

I haven’t been doing any assemblage lately because I’ve been focusing on Photoshop. But I really like this one I did a few weeks ago called After Midnight which includes the rusted back of a nametag and a china doll missing a leg that I ordered from Jennifer Pearson Vanier.
Jennifer has all sorts of nifty stuff for collage and assemblage at The Milkhouse Gallery in Prescott, Ontario and CTV did a feature on Jennifer and her husband Marty a few months back I really enjoyed watching.
Now where was I? Oh yes, Photoshop and assemblage. I’ve been busy creating, printing and framing some new pictures and as usual, framing makes me gnarly. Fed up with dust motes and fingerprints trapped under glass, I sat down to play in Photoshop and became completely absorbed. When I finally came up for air, I shifted to get more comfortable and, well, there was the musical sound of glass shattering under my rear end.
How could I have possibly spent all that time framing and then sat down on a finished piece without realizing it? No point in being annoyed though. I think things like this happen for a reason …i.e. stay focused on the task at hand (or wherever). It also made me realize how much I’ve missed doing assemblage. I have some great ideas that involve an oil tin and a chemistry beaker (also from Jennifer), but time will only tell if I follow through.
P.S. If you live in the Toronto area and can make it, our annual Extra-Ordinary Jolly Christmas Sale is happening this Saturday December 5th 2009 from 10 am till 4 pm at the Swansea Town Hall, 95 Lavinia Avenue, Toronto Ontario M6S 3H9. Hope to see you there! I’ll be flogging my wares, or more precisely wearing my flogs …whatever that means.

I’d Rather Be on Bird Time

2009-11-29T15:05:00.002-05:00

We’re heading to the airport in about an hour to pick up Emma. She left Maun in Botswana on Friday night and flew to the country’s capital, Gabarone. From Gabarone she flew to Johannesburg, from Johannesburg to London (an 11 hour flight) and right now she’s somewhere over North America heading on home. In all, Emma will have spent 22 hours in the sky over the last couple of days.
Somehow flying seems way more efficient if you’re a bird (or even a monarch butterfly). No need to worry about luggage restrictions, customs, airline strikes or missing your connection. Maybe one of these days we’ll have figured out teleportation and will be able to get from Toronto to Botswana in the twinkling of an eye. On the other hand, I guess the longer it takes the more aware you are that the world is a very big and very varied place. All this ruminating about flying makes me think about I’d Rather Be on Bird Time—a mixed media canvas I did a couple of months ago. I didn’t name it until I’d finished because I really didn’t know what I was doing with it up until the moment when I added the birds. But somehow I think my birds appreciate the unpredictability of it all.

Extra-Ordinary Jolly Christmas Sale

2009-11-26T12:28:00.004-05:00

Our annual Extra-Ordinary Jolly Christmas Sale—organized by Karen Arts—will take place on Saturday December 5th 2009 from 10 am till 4 pm at the Swansea Town Hall, 95 Lavinia Avenue, Toronto Ontario M6S 3H9.
I will be selling mixed media art, digital prints, collage sheets, new CDs of images and my book: Creating from the Inside Out.
Here’s a list of the other artisans and their nifty creative stuff.
Karen Arts – Works of Arts
Beautiful and unusual gemstone bead and silver, one of a kind jewelry
Carmi Cimicata
Resin, paper and fibre embellishments, buttons, magnets and baubles
Mary Ambrose
Eclectic / vintage style jewelry and home accessories
Marissa Decepida-Wong – MDW Designs
Collection of unique jewelry, hand-made cards and art pieces.
Aracely Cruz
Quilled art and collection of exquisite ribbon jewelry
Sharon Ginsberg
Fabric boxes, vintage, framed tree ornaments, doggie knits
Martha Brown
Soft and sparkly ornaments hand-crafted from fabric and aluminumFor instructions on how to get to Swansea Town Hall, just follow this link.

Birthday in Botswana

2009-11-22T23:25:00.002-05:00

Emma is into her third week of volunteering as a human rights lawyer in Botswana. This is a picture of the faux African hut where she’s living. It has air conditioning, a TV and a fridge which I think is hilarious. I don’t think she ever imagined that roughing it would involve central air, although it is over 90 degrees every day.
Emma celebrated her birthday this weekend by going on a safari to the Okavango Delta with two of her friends. She saw hippos, impalas, cheetahs, lions, elephants and giraffes. At one point she was just a few feet away from two lions eating a baby impala. “If that doesn’t make you a vegetarian nothing will, Mom,” she told me when I talked to her today. Nevertheless, Emma said it was the most exciting weekend of her life. So in honor of Emma’s birthday and the great continent of Africa, here’s a mini collage sheet of mainly African wildlife to download.

Lily's Fourteenth Birthday

2009-11-15T23:30:00.000-05:00

I didn’t have any Kraft dinner to give Lily for her birthday today, but she seemed delighted with her dinner of cheese and spinach ravioli with green beans and broccoli. One of the great things about having a dog is that they don’t complain about their food. They’re usually just delighted (and grateful) for anything you manage to rustle up. At least Lily is. I thought her appetite would decline as she got older, but no: she would happily snack 24 hours a day if I let her.
There’s no doubt that Lily is showing her age though. Her eyelashes have gone white and she sleeps a lot more. However, she still chases the neighbor’s cat (unsuccessfully of course) and jumps up onto the couch without any difficulty. As anyone with an elderly pet knows, you don’t want to even consider your beloved going. It really squeezes your heart just thinking about the inevitability of it all.

David and Leigh

2009-11-08T18:08:00.002-05:00

David and Leigh are planning a lovely church wedding in Austin, Texas next year, and they had their civil ceremony yesterday at Toronto City Hall. It was a beautiful day and you’ve never seen two people happier about getting married than David and his sweet Leigh. John and I were the witnesses, and Emma, her boyfriend Bryan, my parents, my siblings and most of my nieces and nephews (plus partners) were there too. After the ceremony we all went to the Peter Pan Bistro on Queen Street for brunch. (John and I had our first date at the same restaurant in 1980 so we thought it would be the perfect spot to celebrate).

What do people really want?

2009-11-04T00:57:00.006-05:00

Yesterday Jennifer and I had a discussion about participating in art shows and craft sales. We agreed that neither of us could figure out in advance what people actually want or like. When you can do this, then you’re able to tailor your work to meet the demand for what’s hot at the moment visually.
Unfortunately this doesn’t always translate into positive feedback or sales, so that’s why I just follow my own personal agenda and hope that people will get me (although I must admit that I don’t get my own self most of the time).
Take this mixed media piece in my show for instance. The main reason I made it was because I wanted to use the magnifying mirror I’d found on one of my jaunts to Active Surplus with Mary. I don’t know what pleased me more, the serene way in which this work unfolded or choosing the title when I finished: Her Inner Aviary.
So far no one is as enamored of this piece as I am …i.e. it hasn’t sold yet. I really can’t say this bothers me because I have been doing well sales-wise with my show. I also feel that if my art children don’t find their real art home, they’re always welcome to come back and camp out with me—or in this case: roost.
If you haven’t seen my show: Creating from the Inside Out, it runs until November 15th at the Peel Heritage Complex in Brampton. You can click here for more details or visit www.susanwilliamson.ca to see the slide show John put together of my show.

Checking in from the digital salon

2009-10-18T21:40:00.002-04:00

Leslie had an entry on her blog back in August called Bring back the Salon and I’ve thought about it nearly every day since. With a certain wistfulness, Leslie mentions how wonderful it would be to just lounge around—I believe she uses the word languish—just talking, reading and socializing regularly with like-minded people.
In a way, that’s what happens online. When you go to other people’s blogs you get to catch up with their news, and you’re usually stimulated, refreshed, entertained and inspired. But there’s nothing like this actually happening person-to-person. If you’ve ever watched the TV show Lie to Me, you can see how important visual and verbal queues are to communication, and how much they add to it.
Of course not all groups provide the right atmosphere. My parents belong to a book club they really enjoy, but I know other people who say all the members in their group do is to argue about the choice of books and/or what is in them—which kind of defeats the purpose of having a club, doesn’t it?
I’ve never belonged to this kind of group myself mainly because I don’t want to have to read certain books. Then again, if I got to choose all of them that might work! One month it could be science fiction, next month Wayne Dyer and the month after that, a romance—and what about the Photoshop WoW book just to drive everyone completely crazy? The problem with having a jackrabbit mind like mine is that you’re always on your own trajectory, which doesn’t necessarily intersect with anyone else’s.
I do have a fantasy of winning the lottery and buying an island in Muskoka or Georgian Bay with sunset views, fireplaces and a beautifully appointed guesthouse. I’d invite all my friends like Leslie up for weeklong salon/spa experiences and fly in interesting people to entertain them. I imagine Nick Bantock himself might even be tempted to come to if the price was right.

Creating from the Inside Out

2009-10-15T17:57:00.010-04:00

For those of you who have been asking about my book, you can order a copy now.

I’ve called it Creating from the Inside Out: Motivational Strategies for Artists & Writers.

It’s filled with inspiring quotations, mini essays on the creative process, and black and white digital collages.
Creating from the Inside Out is 177 pages: 6.5 x 6.5" and coil bound.

Each copy is $25 (Canadian) plus postage.

To order: email me at wordandimage@hotmail.com

So how do you review your own book? If I had a promotional turn of mind I’d probably come up with a list of five good reasons why you should read it. But I have to be honest. The main reason I wrote Creating from the Inside Out was because I had to.
For years I felt like I was hovering around the edges of my own creativity. I could never seem to access it with any kind of consistency, and this frustrated me. I became convinced that if I only had more—more time, more money, more talent, more opportunities, more support from the universe, more recognition from others (etc.)—then I’d be able to enter the magic kingdom/queendom of creativity and proceed full speed ahead.
I thought to myself: if there’s a system to creativity, I’m going to find out what it is and then tell everyone else. And if it turned out there wasn’t one …well, I was going to invent my own!
But I soon discovered that you can’t control creativity. It’s huge and it’s fluid, and all you can ever hope to do—and the only thing you should do—is to align yourself with it. You’re an individual reflection of something greater than you are, and your task is to get down to the business of expressing who you really are.
This can’t be done by wishing your circumstances were different or by waiting for ideal conditions. No. You need to act—and you need to act now. I suggest you begin by examining your thinking because the way you view the creative process will influence the action you’re likely to take—or not take, as so often happens.
Let me give you an example. Time was the first topic I tackled when I started working on my book. I’d always felt that not having enough of it was responsible for holding me back. But the more I thought about this, the more I realized I spent more time being annoyed about my lack of it than actually using what I had! I also believed that unless there were several free hours available to paint or write, there was no point in starting anything.
While it’s true we don’t ask for many of the challenges life hands out to us, we have to take responsibility for them anyway—and once I recognized it was up to me to use what time I did have wisely, things really began to open up for me.
Self-motivation is crucial to anyone who wants a happier and more fulfilled life, and it’s my hope that people who read my book will be inspired to take action towards realizing their own creative dreams. Making even small changes to the way you engage in your creative process can deliver big results down the line. I firmly believe that if I can write and illustrate a book—and have a solo art show—you can achieve what you want to do as well. You probably won’t accomplish this with Zen-like serenity and immediate results because I know I didn’t. But don’t let that hold you back. Just go for it. Not tomorrow, next week or next year but right NOW!

When Destiny Calls

2009-10-05T02:05:00.003-04:00

What I really wanted to do today was to stay in bed reminiscing about the opening of my art show on Saturday and how much fun I had. But I needed to finish writing a long freelance article I’d been assigned before indulging.
Now it’s early Monday morning and I’m sitting here at the computer grinning. Maureen, who was in charge of hanging and coordinating my show at The Whitney Gallery, told me not to be discouraged if only a few people made it to the opening because sometimes this happens.
But I wasn’t worried. One of the good things about having a large family is that you know they will always support you whether or not they’re in the mood, so at least 12 of them showed up plus a boyfriend and a fiancée, along with a ton of friends, neighbors and art buddies. Okay, so I don’t know how much a ton is, but it was a heartwarming number. Mary, Lennie, Nancy, Cori, June, Lanre, Cherri and Karen all stopped in to visit along with Bill, Andrea, Yvonne, Peter, Steve, Al, Peggy, Doug, Carolyn, Kim, Diana, Dave, Susan V and husband, Rosemary and Jeanette—if I’ve forgotten to mention you, I apologize. At one point Maureen told me that 118 people had been in to look at my work, so there were obviously lots of people I didn’t know, but I enjoyed meeting quite a few of them.
Naturally I had a great time gabbing to everyone and signing copies of my book Creating from the Inside Out. (Speaking of my book, I’ll have more to say on that subject very soon). There were several highpoints including meeting Lennie (my online pal and Photoshop guru), and being taken out to a big family dinner afterwards by my sister Pam and brother-in-law Brian.
John is putting together a slide show of the event which he plans to put on the website he’s working on for me. In the meantime, here’s a 16 x 20” mixed media canvas, When Destiny Calls, which will be heading for its new home when the show is over on November 15th.

Only ten more days…

2009-09-23T00:42:00.002-04:00

Apparently it was Duke Ellington who said: “I don’t need time; I need a deadline.” I’ve always thought that was a great quote because there’s nothing like a deadline to sharpen your focus and concentrate your energy. But when you actually have one that’s unavoidable—like I do with my upcoming show—the gift of more time would be a spectacular bonus. (However, I also know that work will continue to expand as long as there’s space available).
What I’ve discovered over the past few months is that no matter how single-minded you are and how solid your work ethic is, three things are certain:
First—anything you do (especially if it’s important to you) is going to be way more complicated than you thought it would be.
Second—it’s also going to take you about three times longer than you planned …if you’re lucky.
Third—being in control is a complete illusion. Just when you think you’re organized and ahead of the game, something happens to turn that perception inside out.
There have been many moments when I’ve considered bailing out altogether because what I first envisioned won’t be appearing in a gallery anytime soon—if ever. This experience has turned into a finishing off of things I wanted to finish, and a saying goodbye to others.
I’m sure there are plenty of life lessons here that I could be more aware of and thoughtful about, but all I can think is: only ten more days and I’ll be free to indulge in a marathon of socializing, reading trashy novels, watching a ton of TV, and yes, doing more blogging.

The Life of Byron

2009-09-15T12:27:00.005-04:00

I owe Carmi Cimicata a big thank you for the care package of vintage photos she mailed to me last week. Let me tell you, it acted just like catnip to my Leo senses—I think I actually meowed.
Anyway, in amongst the pictures Carmi sent me was this one of a baby with the face and posture of a grown up, and written on the back was “Byron Blackthorn Hawksridge 2nd, Aged 10 months.” Yes, I know it sounds like the name of a hero in a romance novel, and while Byron is actually the baby’s first name, I changed the other two to preserve his privacy. But his middle and last name are actually more interesting than the ones I chose for him.
The reason I want to protect his identity is because I decided to do a web search for him after talking to Mary. (Mary Ambrose—in case you don’t know it—has her private investigator’s license, a feat she accomplished while she was pregnant with her son Hayden).
Now where was I? Oh yes, so I did a search for Byron, and first found his namesake and grandfather who was born in 1835, hated his name Jedediah and changed it to Byron. To make a long story short, through an obituary, I eventually tracked down one of Byron II’s daughters in the U.S. and offered to send her the photo of her dad. She was thrilled to hear that there was a baby picture of him in existence. Between us, we figured out that the photo was probably taken in 1918 and sent to a Canadian relative by Byron’s mother in Maine. Naturally I’d like to know more about Byron (who was an engineer), but I didn’t want to seem pushy.
What was gratifying to me about this experience was not only to find out there was a real person behind one of the images I like to work with, but that I was also to be able to send Byron’s three daughters a precious memento of their dad. So thank you Carmi for this heart-warming experience. I couldn’t alter Byron’s image though. Somehow it didn’t seem right.

You are invited

2009-09-09T00:47:00.002-04:00

I’d like to extend an invitation to all of my readers who can make it to come to the opening of my art show on Saturday, October 3rd between 2 and 4 pm at the Whitney Community Gallery in Brampton.
The gallery is part of the Peel Heritage Complex, which includes our regional archives, a museum, a 19th century jail and the Art Gallery of Peel.
My show runs from October 3rd to November 15th and will include mixed media, digital collage and assemblage. I’ve called it Creating from the Inside Out—after the title of my upcoming book—and if all goes well with the publishing end of things, I should have some copies of my book available at the opening too. The Whitney Gallery is located at 9 Wellington St. East in Brampton and you can visit Monday to Friday from 10 am to 4:30 pm; Thursday evenings from 6 to 9 pm; and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4:30 pm.

Yes, I’m still here

2009-08-27T22:46:00.003-04:00

I’ve had a few phone calls and emails lately asking me if I’m okay—and whether or not I’m still planning to post to my blog. Of course I am. Things just seem to have gotten away from me in the past few weeks though. I haven’t written in my journal for over a month now either.
The problem is: the longer you put off writing a blog entry, the harder it becomes to do one. Instead of it being a natural and spontaneous action, you start questioning if you actually have anything worthwhile to say. Not that I don’t have good reasons for being a blogcrastinator—writing articles, getting ready for my show, preparing my book for the printer, having the flu and so on. But thinking back, I guess the only fun thing I haven’t let slide is Photoshop. I took these two pictures of flowers on my daily walk and then combined them with a couple of textures Lennie posted to her blog on August 21st. There’s nothing like playing around with other people’s photos to get me back in the swing of things. So thanks Lennie. I owe this post to you.

Fifteen Books

2009-08-04T23:52:00.009-04:00

Last Monday Irene was tagged by Leslie to take fifteen minutes and make up a list of fifteen books that have stayed with her—so, of course, I had to make up a list too.
But I limited mine to novels because it was just too overwhelming to make decisions otherwise.
In no particular order (and with some ganging up), here is my list:
The Emily Trilogy by Lucy Maud Montgomery
Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger
Trust Me and Hidden Talents by Jayne Ann Krentz
His Dark Materials Trilogy (The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife, The Amber Spyglass) by Phillip Pullman
The Chronicles of Narnia (particularly The Voyage of the Dawn Treader)
by C.S. Lewis
Inner Harbor by Nora Roberts
Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
Weaveworld by Clive Barker
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein
The Shining by Stephen King
The Tales of Alvin Maker by Orson Scott Card
The Complete Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
I think it’s obvious from my list that I was never an enthusiastic English literature student even though I have a B.A. in the subject. I like mystery, fantasy, science fiction, romance, the occasional horror novel and books about individualistic children finding their true path in life.
The only one I actually recall studying in university was Pride and Prejudice. But I didn’t appreciate it until I saw Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy in the 1995 TV mini series. The fact that several people phoned afterwards to say that Colin Firth looked like my husband obviously affected my judgment.
As to the other books on my list, each choice was an instinctive one. I think the books you gravitate to are like the people you hold dear. You can’t always explain the attraction, you just know it’s there, so the best thing to do is just go with the flow.

Slow Art

2009-07-28T23:56:00.004-04:00

Because of everything else that’s going on in my life, I haven’t been able to blog as often as I’d like to for a while now. So tonight I was thinking: I wonder if I can Photoshop something in five minutes and then post it? Five minutes went by, then ten and twenty, and I finally got something that seemed okay to me a half an hour later.
Whoever my muse is, he/she just hates to be rushed. In fact he/she really just prefers to sit around ruminating and puttering (rather than actually encouraging me to finish things off).
This started me thinking about doing things slowly. I know there’s a whole slow food movement that’s really, really popular all over the world. In fact if you google slow food, you’ll get at least 300,000,000 hits.
But what about slow art? Turns out it’s popular too. There are actually people around who will spend several months working on a postage stamp sized piece of art.
“Slow is used as a term of respect for the way art is made and how it is best viewed,” says artist Deborah Barlow. And here’s another quote I love:
What we need more of is slow art: art that holds time as a vase holds water: art that grows out of modes of perception and making whose skill and doggedness make you think and feel; art that isn’t merely sensational, that doesn’t get its message across in ten seconds, that isn’t falsely iconic, that hooks onto something deep-running in our natures. In a word, art that is the very opposite of mass media. (Art critic Robert Hughes)
Cool, eh? Looks like I’ve finally found my tribe. But I think I’m going to take my time getting to know them.

Digital Coolness

2009-07-19T16:59:00.004-04:00

For anyone who is would like to learn Photoshop, but is apprehensive about it, here’s some inspiration. Five years ago, at the age 87, fashion photographer Lillian Bassman decided to tackle the program. She spends six or seven hours a day playing in Photoshop and says it has opened up a whole new world for her.
The interesting thing is that Bassman is a Photoshop girl only—no Google or email for her. To see some of her work and to read more about her life, check out this article in the New York Times. Now here’s something else that's cool. Did you know that you can paint using your iPhone? Apparently you download this program called Brushes, a low-priced software application that has a color picker, zooming, virtually unlimited undo and redo, and a set of realistic brushes. You can also export your paintings at high resolution (up to 1920 x 2880), and turn them into QuickTime movies. See the video below.

Art Journals & Creative Healing

2009-07-15T01:46:00.002-04:00

I buy most of my books online because there are no bookstores in my neighborhood. And of course it doesn’t hurt that Amazon and Chapters have lower prices, which means you end up getting more books in the long run. The problem is you don’t always get the chance to look at the books you want first.
Take Art Journals & Creative Healing by Susan Soneff for example. The main reason I bought it was to finish off the amount on a gift card. Once the book arrived, I took a quick look at it and then set it aside.
Why? Because it looked like heavy-duty stuff to me and I’m usually in the mood for eye candy. As someone who has struggled with depression off and on for most of her adult life, I like to avoid the negative and just peace out. But for months now, Soneff’s book has been sitting around waiting for me to notice it, so I finally took a deep breath and plunged in.
Just as I suspected, there were plenty of soul-wrenching moments inside. Women with everything from anorexia and cancer, to depression and MS share their personal stories and journal entries. While there are visually moving pages here, and plenty of creative tips, the main emphasis is on being brave enough to chronicle your journey through words and images.
Even though journaling is used in clinical and therapeutic settings, and research supports the benefits, I have to admit I’m skeptical. I say this because writing in my journal allows me to vent, but I can’t say it helps me; it simply seems to be something I’m in the habit of doing.
However, it occurred to me while I was working through Soneff’s book that I’m in a rut. Like a hamster on her wheel, I do what I do and forget to focus on choices or different perspectives. In short, I don’t go that deeply into things when I journal, although it may seem like it when I’m upset.
I’ve thought quite a bit about this book since I finished it last week. In the next couple of days, I’ll be finishing off my current journal and I’ve decided that I need to take a different approach. I’m not sure what this will be, but I think it’s time to be more honest with myself, so I’ll let you know what happens.

The Volleying Continues

2009-07-08T23:32:00.002-04:00

Jeanne and I have been volleying in Photoshop for a couple of years now. We take turns altering a photo until we’ve reached the magic number ten, and then we start all over again.
We’ve been more off than on for months now mainly because life has been complicated for both of us. Even so, one of us always manages to pick up the ball and volley back at some point. I’m feeling pleased with myself that I managed to finish volley six of this round yesterday …only four more to go!
(I posted one and two of this round back at the end of February if you want to check them out. At this rate we should be finished by Christmas).

Elusivity

2009-07-05T01:57:00.003-04:00

Have you ever noticed that when an image rivets your attention, trying to express that feeling seems to elude you?
Take this doll for instance. Mary gave he/she/it to me last year and I find it weirdly captivating. I don’t know whether it’s the way the doll feels, its markings or even the hole in its head. Whatever is going on, I can’t make sense of it. I just know I’m hooked, and for months now, I’ve been moving the doll from assemblage to assemblage where it's always restless, and never quite at home.
I wondered what would happen if I took some pictures and then played with them in Photoshop. Well, no luck there either. I kept wishing that I had the Lennie gene and could at least have started the process with a decent photo.
But looking at the results now, I think the best approach would be to wrap the doll in some kind of fabric and just pretend something real was actually going on inside.

Rejuvenating Old Photos

2009-06-29T01:13:00.003-04:00

One of the satisfying things about working in Photoshop is being able to give an old photo new life, or in some cases to repair the damage done by time and careless handling. My guess is that this picture of my Uncle Ken was taken in the early thirties, and the photographer hand-tinted the bird on his sweater and the grass in the background (which was probably green to begin with). After I’d scanned the photo and got it on-screen in Photoshop, I could see this “painting” was crudely done, but I decided not to alter the color, just brighten it up.
You will get some idea of the original state of Uncle Ken’s photo if you compare it to the one taken of my father at the same time (see below left). Restoring Dad’s childhood picture is probably the most difficult task I’ve attempted in Photoshop. The vertical creases through his face were really challenging to repair. I actually thought re-working the eye area would be the hardest, but it turned out to be the chin. Go figure.
The interesting thing about photo retouching is that each picture presents its own set of visual problems that need to be solved. While the tools to do this are available in Photoshop—I use the Clone Stamp and Spot Healing Brush tools the most—in the end it’s more about the moment-to-moment creative decisions you make than anything else.

Journaling and Memory

2009-06-25T00:34:00.005-04:00

I rarely re-read entries I’ve made in my journal because I’ve found I don’t like what I’ve written—or more accurately, I don’t like to be reminded of the mood I was in at the time. I know some people use their journal to celebrate, but I tend to write in mine when I want to ponder the meaning of life, or to whine.
On the other hand, I don’t mind revisiting the art I’ve done—even if I don’t like it. My collages and drawings have their own kind of memory that has nothing to do with how I’m feeling about the events of my life at the time. In this journal I used dollar store paints for my backgrounds. It’s not the kind of paint I’d use on canvas because it’s too thin and has a chalky texture when it dries. But I’ve found it works just fine on the paper in a Moleskine sketchbook.
I like the two green pages below mainly because of the stamped dress. Anything paper-dollish appeals to me for some reason …maybe because I got so much pleasure from playing with paper dolls as a child.

What I remember about the red pages at the beginning of this post is how annoyed I was by the way they turned out. It was the first time I’d used a Copic marker and I really disliked how thickly I drew the lines around the map shapes. Normally I would have just obliterated what I’d done and started again. However, there’s something about being almost at the end of a journal that makes you anxious to finish it, so I let them be.

I think I was feeling much the same way when I did these last two pages of the journal. When in doubt, Stick in a Parrot is my motto. Well, not really. But what a parrot represents to me is Joseph Cornell (with maybe a splash of Monty Python?) In any case, if you have an image that appeals to you, just pop it in when you feel stuck. It may not do anything to improve what you’re working on, but at least you’ll feel good using it.

Weekend Play Spaces

2009-06-21T23:50:00.003-04:00

I thought I’d show you some of the pictures I took yesterday when I was at my friend Bev’s for an art day. Six of us got together to play with alcohol inks on bamboo tiles, dominos and clear plastic—and later on, pouring UTEE into molds.
A few months ago Mary taught me how to make molds. I was really pleased with how they turned out at the time, and took them along to our playday. By the time we got to that point, though, my camera had run out of juice.
Because I’d posted photos earlier in the week of different art tables, I really noticed how people worked yesterday. Some were messy, some were neat, and still others (like me) seemed to swing wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other.
What I tend to do is to get messier and messier until I reach the point where I only have a postage stamp-sized space to work in. Then I regroup and start all over again in pristine surroundings. It’s obvious to me that 50 per cent of the time I spend creating involves tidying and sorting, 30 per cent involves trying to make decisions and the rest of the time I’m hands on.
(I really don’t like to think about how productive I’d be if I was (A) Neat (B) Decisive).

More Art Tables...

2009-06-16T16:15:00.010-04:00

It just occurred to me now that I have other photos of art tables to share with you. To the right is Carin Brahm leaning on the stamping table that she shares with her cat Sammy. Below is a shot I took of Carmi's studio a couple of years ago. I know she has reorganized recently ...you can read about it on her blog, but this photo will give you some idea of how industrious and inspired she always is.

Art tables

2009-06-16T15:32:00.002-04:00

I wish someone would do a book on artist tabletops. Not only would each one be different, but I’m sure they’d also be inspiring—or at least satisfy some of that insatiable curiosity we have about other artists and their stuff.
I took this photo of Mary’s art table (see above) when I was up at her boat last summer. I love how she always has tons of stuff going, and yet it all ends up working together.

I got this shot of Anita and Brenda’s journals at Artfest. Brenda was working on a double-page spread of her experience in Susan Wooldridge’s poetry class, and I remember wishing I could draw as well as she does.

Jeanne sent me this picture of some of her pottery finds when she went mudlarking recently on the banks of the Thames. Dictionary.com defines mudlarking as: Chiefly British: a person who gains a livelihood by searching for iron, coal, old ropes, etc., in mud or low tide. I used to call it “rooting around the beach hoping to find cool stuff,” but mudlarking sounds much more romantic to me. (You can read more about this on the Icons: a portrait of England website).

And finally, here’s a photo of my own art table, which John took last week. The mixed media piece I’m working on isn’t finished yet, but it’s definitely progressing. Just looking at the photo reminds me of that when I’m tempted to think nothing has “happened.”

The Soul of a Flower

2009-06-14T22:56:00.001-04:00

It’s always a good day when you feel you’ve accomplished something creatively. What I find difficult, though, is working away for hours but having little to show for it—at least in a tangible sense. That’s certainly been the case with today, but I don’t feel disappointed. I think I’m finally beginning to understand that there has to be an in-working before there’s an out-working. And furthermore, the process keeps reinventing itself in different ways.
While I was playing in Photoshop tonight with these photos John took this afternoon, I started thinking about how I amazed I am when our flowers actually bloom every spring. For maybe 51 weeks of the year they’re getting ready for this. Then they do their thing, peak and start all over again. The funny thing is, the same plant seems to produce blooms with a different personality each year. Like this pink poppy for instance. This year you can see the carpals and stamens through the petals, and the effect is like looking at a tiny soul cradled inside each bloom. I can see now why people become addicted to painting flowers and I know I could stay up all night doing this. (If you’re working in Photoshop, I would recommend experimenting with the Dry Brush, Palette Knife, Paint Daubs and Water Paper filters).

Empty or Spacious?

2009-06-11T02:20:00.005-04:00

I spent some time looking through my journal tonight because I felt too lazy to do anything creative. I’d never realized it before, but some of my pages look kind of empty …as if they wanted me to add something to them and I’d forgotten to.

On the other hand, why should I add something just for the sake of adding something? In the parrot spread above, the pink flower is a transfer done on Japanese paper that Mary showed me how to do back in February. After I glued it down, I kept adding things until it looked done and then I stopped.

Is the right hand page on this lilac spread empty or spacious? Hmmm. I keep changing my mind about this. I have a feeling I won’t be adding anything to it though. Some things are just better left as a question mark.

Saturday Night

2009-06-06T23:57:00.001-04:00

Tonight I talked on the phone to my sister Pam about romance novels, created this ATC in Photoshop, and then played several intense games of Tetris to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the game’s invention.
I’ve been a Tetris fanatic for about fifteen years now, and it’s the greatest time waster ever. I usually play on my vintage Game Boy, but since the batteries are drained, I had to go online instead.
Tetris is the only game I play and I’m addicted to it. I’ve always felt guilty about this and a little embarrassed too. Tetris is the kind of game you associate with nerdy teenage boys and the movie Hackers. My family thinks my Tetris habit is hilarious, but the weird thing is that with all the practice I’ve had playing it over the years, I’ve actually become really good at it.
Aside from wasting time in an absorbing manner, is there any purpose to playing Tetris? I didn’t think so until I read an article about an Oxford University experiment which found that Tetris reduces post-traumatic stress syndrome.
I’ve gone off track here because what I meant to write about is: How come it’s Saturday night and everyone I know is either on the computer or watching TV? In other words: what ever happened to date night?
Not that I’m complaining. Back in the 70s I received the Antisocial Person of the Year Award from my group of friends. As my boyfriend at the time explained it: “Susan’s idea of a really good time is reading a book.”
I never felt like I had to be out socializing just because I was supposed to …although I do remember going to the movies one Saturday night on my own, and then running into the guy I was dating with another girl. I made a point of going over and saying “hi” to them just to see the look on his face.
In retrospect, it must have been this traumatic event which eventually led me to Game Boy, and the healing power of Tetris on a Saturday night.

Photoshop Magic

2009-06-03T00:52:00.005-04:00

The New York Times ran an article a week ago called Smile and Say ‘No Photoshop.’ It basically focuses on how magazines have gone overboard with digital enhancement. Thanks to the Photoshop wizards who work their magic on models that are already gorgeous, pimples can be removed, teeth whitened and hips whittled.
But Kate Winslet wasn’t happy with the result when she posed for British GQ a few years back. She complained the cover photo didn’t look like her because her legs had been Photoshop-ed to look longer and skinnier.
In a recent issue of French Elle, Sophie Marceau appears on the front cover without make up or any digital tinkering. She looks fabulous of course, although it seems sad to me the magazine has to tell us that nothing has been done. Should we consider everything is inauthentic unless we’re told otherwise? And where do you draw the line?
I gave Emma’s boyfriend Bryan this picture of them for his birthday, and I must say Photoshop came in very handy here. I combined three different photographs to come up with a composite that worked. But I didn’t remove any blemishes or whiten any teeth. I try and avoid doing this for the most part, even though I’d be tempted to fix myself up if I was working on a picture with me in it.

Art and the economy

2009-05-29T22:57:00.002-04:00

My father told me a couple of weeks ago that he has no plans to cut back on his spending because he thinks spending is good for the economy. I’ve wondered about his words off and on ever since because practically everyone else I know has cut back.
When people tighten their belts, artists, writers, musicians, dancers and so on feel the pinch first. In a way it’s understandable because we tend to think of engaging in creative pursuits or buying their “products” as a luxury. But this makes life challenging if you’re a member of the clan.
At the moment I’m attempting to stockpile art for my show in the fall, so I haven’t been trying to sell anything. But I must admit I’m worried about what the economy will be like in October, and whether or not people will buy anything then.
One thing I can definitely say is that I am getting fewer writing projects from mainstream publications now. The number of magazines is declining, and those still publishing are opting for shorter articles. When you get paid by the word as I usually do, this is discouraging. Some magazines haven’t changed their rate for a decade, and others have even lowered it. There are also publishers who use what’s happening in the economy as an excuse to take advantage of freelancers.
Recently I received an email about writing a 500-word technical article that would have paid me $10. No, this isn’t a misprint. The editor’s thinking was that I could re-sell my writing. While I have done this in the past, it can take months of networking to find a new market, and editors naturally don’t want to pay you what you received for the original article.
When you’re dependent on freelance work and selling art for your financial survival like I am, it’s easy to feel fearful. But you have to work at overcoming this because it’s crucial to cultivate resilience. I decided yesterday that what I needed was an image to look at while I worked …an image that would remind me to stay positive and to be proactive—instead of focusing on the negative, as I’m prone to do.
I immediately thought of the angel wing I’d bought from Colette Copeland back in February and I put it right in front of my computer. Every time I looked at Colette’s creation today, I smiled. Engaging in this activity makes me feel much better than reading yet another depressing report about the state of the economy (and then dwelling on it).
Who says art is a luxury? In my opinion, I believe it’s a necessity.

Georgia O'Keeffe

2009-05-26T00:01:00.004-04:00

If I had to pick a favorite flower, it would probably be the iris because it reminds me of Georgia O'Keeffe. She painted dozens of flowers from the iris to the poppy and lily, and what I love about her images is that she usually zoomed right into the most interesting part of the flower. In her own words: “I often painted fragments of things because it seemed to make my statement as well as or better than the whole could.”
I saw a documentary on O'Keeffe once and the most interesting part was the tour inside her studio. Before she began a new piece, all her brushes were chosen and her paints mixed in advance. I guess she must have taken Gustave Flaubert’s advice to heart. “Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.”

What It Is

2009-05-22T01:39:00.001-04:00

It’s been over a week since I posted here, which is probably the longest I’ve gone since I started blogging. To be honest, I’ve been in a creative rut for a while now, so it’s been hard to stay positive. When the way you’ve been doing things isn’t working, you can’t keep doing them and hope things will change anyway.
I hate feeling like this, but on the whole it’s proving to be a good thing. Sometimes you have to reach the bottom of the trough before you can become more buoyant and start making sense of it all.
In What It Is, cartoonist Lynda Barry writes about pursuing good drawing for 30 years and how all the joy went out of it for her. She finally realized that when she drew she was being held hostage by two questions: Is this good? And ... Does this suck?
A light bulb went off in my head when I read her words because I could see I’ve been doing the same thing myself and it’s been holding me back. (Does anyone ever get a positive answer to either of those questions, I wonder?)
Barry believes that focusing on images is an ideal way to break the mesmerism. Or as she describes it: “We’re not having the experience in order to make an image; we’re making an image in order to have an experience.” She doesn’t present you with recipes for making finished stuff though. Through provocative collages, illustrations, insights and exercises, What It Is encourages you to liberate your creativity by making it your own.
In my opinion, this is a must-have book for any artist or writer, whether you’re feeling blocked or need a push to go more deeply into your craft.

The Museum of Bad Art

2009-05-12T15:44:00.003-04:00

I kind of like these two dog paintings—particularly the one on the right. They’re part of the permanent collection of MOBA (the Museum of Bad Art), which is located online and in the basement of two Boston-area movie theatres. All you have to do is buy a ticket to Slumdog Millionaire or Star Trek and you gain free entry to the latest exhibits.
Looking at all the paintings in MOBA’s online galleries, I couldn’t help wondering what the difference is between "outsider" and so-called "bad" art. Maybe Outsider Art is bad art that sells? In any case, my opinion is that art is art whatever the level of skill and number of sales.
To see a Canadian painting that’s part Of MOBA’s permanent collection, check out this article in today’s Toronto Star.

Happy Birthday Mum!

2009-05-10T23:58:00.001-04:00

This is the memory box I decorated to hold all the cards, letters and photos my mother received today at her birthday party. Believe it or not, Mum just turned 90 and she is still driving, throwing dinner parties, playing bridge, going to the opera and her book club plus volunteering one day a week in the gift shop at her local hospital. I could go on and on, but I’m sure you get the picture: she’s amazing. She does more at her age than I do at mine, and she does it with such style. I’ve decided that I want to be just like her when I finally grow up.

To Twitter or not to Twitter?

2009-05-06T23:53:00.000-04:00

Remember when posting to your favorite Yahoo group was a big deal? Nowadays it’s hard to keep up with all the ways you’re supposed to communicate (and participate) online. It’s almost like having a full time job.
I have to admit I’m fascinated by people who Twitter and Tweet though. I mean, how do they remember to do it? And is anyone really interested?
It seems like they are. I read a newspaper article recently about Twitter, and the writer mentioned that his first post was: “Just ate half a sandwich.” Within a few moments over 50 people had tweeted back to say: “That’s great!”
I thought this was absolutely hilarious. I guess you can’t say much when you’re limited to 140 characters, but somehow I thought the whole process would be more haiku-like. For example:
Should I feed the dog?
No. I’m going to take a nap.
Oh, oh. Too late.
She read my mind.
However, I don’t think I’ll be setting up a Twitter account anytime soon. In my opinion, I do way too much thinking and obsessing about myself anyway, and it probably isn’t fair to drive my friends crazy with it too.

Back from Boston

2009-05-05T23:53:00.001-04:00

I’ve been to Boston several times in the last ten years, and one of the things I love about the city is its architecture, especially the Victorian brownstones in the Back Bay area, and all the amazing churches like Trinity, Old South and The First Church of Christ, Scientist.
But I was tempted to title this post: Don’t Fly Delta because of the experience I had coming back. Have you ever heard of an airline moving your flight forward not once or twice but three times, and then notifying you by phone after you’d actually arrived at your destination? If my friend Jackie hadn’t warned me how unreliable Delta could be, I would never have checked.
Once I arrived at JFK in New York, I had to wait for eight and a half hours for my flight to Toronto. In addition to several delays, there was a security breach (Delta’s fault), which involved all of us being removed from the plane, and subjected to yet another security check including a full body pat down. When we were finally taken back to the plane, two people headed for Washington were put on our flight by mistake. Delta’s solution to all this? A mini bag of peanuts for everyone who had been “inconvenienced.” Next time I’m going Air Canada.

Beginnings

2009-04-30T23:20:00.003-04:00

We all know there’s such a thing as writer’s block, but how about fear of starting a new journal? Actually, fear is probably the wrong word to use here because it’s more like the I might wreck it so I’ll wait until I know I can do something fabulous with it syndrome. In other words, you just keep putting it off until you’re feeling perfect, which as we all know is basically never. Enough of that, I thought to myself. I’ll just jump right in and do whatever. Whatever turned into a big question mark for me, so what else could I do but go with it?

Liberate Your Inner Writer

2009-04-28T23:57:00.004-04:00

When Artful Blogging asked me to write an article for the Summer 2009 issue, I knew immediately that I wanted to do something about writing. When I first started my blog, I thought coming with interesting visuals would be the hard part. But as it turned out, my main challenge was writing entries.
Of course you can do what you want to when you blog, so I seriously considered dropping words altogether. And just when I thought I’d made up my mind to go this route, a huge snowstorm hit our area.
Now you’re probably wondering what a snowstorm has to do with all of this. Well, what happened was that I saw two of my neighbors leaning on their snow shovels deeply involved in conversation across the street. What was so interesting to them that they would stand around talking instead of shoveling, especially when the snow was coming down so heavily?
That’s when I realized that I had to keep writing. One picture may be worth a thousand words, but it’s good to hear (or read) at least some of them too. My article: Liberate Your Inner Writer covers a few of the ways I’ve found that make blog writing go easier for me, and, hopefully, for you.

The Lynne Perrella Experience

2009-04-26T15:20:00.004-04:00

While I was looking at my photos from Artfest this afternoon, I realized that I hadn’t written a post about the workshop I’d taken with Lynne Perrella. But this probably has more to do with procrastination than oversight.
Over the years I’ve taken quite a few art classes. Most of them of them have been focused on incorporating new techniques into a finished project, so this kind of workshop is usually easier to write about. However, a show-and-tell really doesn’t do Lynne Perrella justice because she’s on a different wavelength entirely.
Even though Lynne shared plenty of techniques with us, what you take away from her is an experience rather than a how to. Personally, this is my favorite kind of class. I figure you can always pick up techniques from a book, and while you may not do them well, at least you have a starting point. But once you’re given a window into the mindset and practice of an artist you admire, you gain the kind of inspiration that stays with you long after the latest technique has galloped off into the sunset.
Lynne herself is an interesting mix of the controlled and the spontaneous. If I could describe her method of working, it would be that she has a definite way of proceeding, but will deviate from this in a heartbeat if takes her to where she wants to go. And where she’s always headed to is that place where she expresses herself best by staying engaged in the process.
Of course I went off on a tangent myself and didn’t finish the class project as usual (see a snippet above). In my opinion, another couple of days with Lynne would have been ideal. But it was the Artfest workshop I gained the most from, not only in terms of what I could do with my own art, but also how important it is to stay tuned into your own vision of things and to stick with it.
P.S. If you want to see more from Lynne Perrella’s class and other Artfest stuff, visit my friend Janne’s blog and check it out.

Self Portrait

2009-04-22T00:07:00.002-04:00

This photo of me as a child was one of the first things I worked on when I started learning Photoshop. I rarely use images of myself because I find other people more interesting visually. But I like this picture because I can see my present self in it, albeit with no wrinkles!
Of course I know a lot more about Photoshop now than I did seven years ago. Still, I did manage to use the Threshold command properly and to add wings, But now that I understand about layers and digital painting, I had to color me up and put in a background.
If you would like to use the canning label, you can download it for free from the Graphic Fairy’s blog.

For Leslie

2009-04-20T00:06:00.003-04:00

The April theme for our ATC group was music. Even though I couldn’t make the meeting on Friday night, I thought I’d join in digitally anyway.
While I do have a jukebox stamp that would have worked well here, somehow I kept thinking about this image—In a Garden: Corfu, painted by John Singer Sargent in 1909. When I finished my ATC, it immediately reminded me of Leslie, music muse and ardent reader …so girlfriend, this one is for you! (After all, there are few things more enjoyable in life than reading and listening to music, especially when you're doing them together).

Homage to Vegas

2009-04-16T18:01:00.002-04:00

John was so intrigued by this mini Las Vegas sign that he had to make a video. It really made me laugh and I hope you do too. Just turn up your volume before you begin.
P.S. Yes, I did a little gambling and actually made five dollars!

Moo Challenge #49

2009-04-16T00:39:00.001-04:00

One of the things I love about Photoshop is that I seem to be able to do it anytime, even when I’m feeling jet-lagged like I am right now. So—home is where the heart is—this week’s theme at Make a Moo or Two seemed tailor made to get me back into the swing of things creatively.
I decided I would do everything from scratch digitally, and as I was working (or rather: playing) away, I realized that it would probably be much easier to accomplish this in Illustrator, an Adobe program I basically know nothing about. Maybe one of these days I’ll give it a go, but somehow it makes more sense to build on what I already know instead of thinking that I need to learn something new in order to express myself.

Back to Reality

2009-04-14T16:08:00.011-04:00

How can I describe the Las Vegas experience? I think the clichéd expression: What a trip! says it best. Where else can you take a helicopter journey into the primal majesty of the Grand Canyon, and then visit scaled down versions of Luxor, Paris, Venice and New York? Half of you longs to go on your own personal vision quest to the Grand Canyon or desert for several days. The rest of you can’t wait to load up on tacky key chain rings, mugs and T-Shirts emblazoned with the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas logo.
Emma and I had a wonderful time together. We visited as many over-the-top resorts and casinos as we could fit in, went to Cirque du Soleil, shopped (mainly window), relaxed by the pool and trekked out to Viva Las Vegas Stamps which has more rubber stamps than I’ve ever seen before in my life. Most of them are designed by the owner Stampo who takes his Bichon Frises and cats to work with him every day. Speaking of cats, there is a lion exhibit at the MGM Grand that we were fascinated by. And did you know that the Las Vegas area is the biggest producer of kitty litter in the world?
One night we went out to dinner with several of Emma’s friends who were in Las Vegas for a bachelor party. Then we drove down the strip in Mustang convertible (top down) and headed off to the top of The Palms—55 stories up—to go clubbing. I had a pretty good idea that I would be old enough to be everyone’s mother there, and I was right. Instead of it being a weird experience though, I actually had a lot of fun.
But the best part of Las Vegas was spending all that quality time with Emma. When you love someone, you can never get enough of her (or him). Thanks for the trip baby. It’s something I’ll never forget.

Off to Las Vegas

2009-04-08T23:17:00.002-04:00

I don’t know whether or not I’ve mentioned this on Artopia Update before, but Emma gave me a trip to Las Vegas for Christmas, and the two of us are off first thing in the morning to fly to Sin City.
I am super excited about spending five days with Emma. We’re booked on a helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon—something I’ve always wanted to do—and also visiting Viva Las Vegas Stamps and going to Cirque du Soleil.
It hardly took me any time to pack. All I did was open my suitcase and toss in a pile of clothes. Not like Artfest, that’s for sure. I even had time to do this week’s challenge at Make a Moo or Two, which is “eggs.” I love eggs because they seem to be full of possibilities to me.
Have a great weekend and I’ll see you here when I get back on Monday.

The Encaustic Class

2009-04-08T01:35:00.002-04:00

Wax the Casbah was the only Artfest workshop where I managed to finish both of the in-class assignments (see above) …although the one on the right could use a little something extra now that I think about it.
I don’t know whether or not encaustic is something I’ll pursue because I’m sure you need way more than one day to get the hang of working with wax. I’ve never done anything with glass, but judging from what David says, wax is like glass in that you must adjust to it rather than it adjusting to you.
What I enjoyed most was the painting. I’d taken a full set of Claudine Hellmuth’s new Studio Paints with me, and as I hadn’t used them yet, I decided that I’d christen them at Artfest. I just love them!!! Nice and buttery with great coverage, and they really worked well with my set of Portfolio Oil Pastels.
Waxing the painting was more of a challenge. I tried a number transfer on the left hand piece but applied too much heat and it fragmented. When I asked Judy Wise what I could do to correct it, she laughed and said: “You’ll have to learn to love it.” I think this might be my new mantra …i.e. I’m going to love it anyway.

The Clayboard Class

2009-04-07T01:00:00.001-04:00

I’ve never been very good at following verbal instructions when I’m taking a workshop. What often happens is that I hear (and see) what I’m supposed to do, then I immediately wonder how I can give things my own spin and go off on a tangent. I get so involved that I ignore what everyone else is doing (even the instructor), and I usually end up with something completely off base. That’s what happened here in the Clayboard workshop at Artfest, so I wasn’t very happy with what I “produced.”
Sometimes I think my main role in this kind of experience is to make everyone else feel better about what they’re doing! Not only was I the slowest person in this class, but I also failed to use most of the techniques that Mary Beth Shaw showed us—like how to mix colors—and I could certainly have benefited from that if I’d been paying more attention.
One thing I did notice was that I spend way more time on composition than other people do, instead of just going with the flow. While there are times when this works to my advantage, in this case, the means didn’t justify the end.
Martha told me that she always follows exactly what the instructor says so that she can pick up new techniques and use them properly. I just wish we’d had this discussion before Artfest instead of on the plane coming back.

I'm Back (sort of)

2009-04-06T23:56:00.004-04:00

I don’t know about Martha, but I’ve felt wrecked all day. Our journey home started at 8 ‘o clock yesterday morning from Fort Worden, which is about 2 hours northwest of Seattle, and our plane landed at 11:30 last night. (I took the photo above from behind the dorm where I was staying just before we left). Although I never mind traveling on my own, it was certainly a lot more pleasurable sharing the experience with Martha. We gabbed, traded reading material, had takeout McDonald’s in Chicago and even took pictures of a mouse running around the terminal there.
Both of us had a fantastic time at Artfest. I know I enjoyed it even more this time than I did in 2006. Most of the anticipation I experienced beforehand revolved around the workshops I knew I’d be taking, but I’d forgotten how much fun it is socializing with so many like-minded people especially Brenda, Anita, Antoinette, Adriana and Tammy. There were serious discussions, hi-jinks and lots of laughter. One high point was meeting the poet Susan Wooldridge and getting to know her. Another was going to the journaling bonfire night on Thursday. I’ll post a couple of photos of what I did in the workshops and tell you more about them soon.

Artfest Bound

2009-03-30T23:49:00.005-04:00

Well, I’m finally packed for Artfest and off at the crack of dawn. The picture on my blog today is on the front of the little booklets I’ll be trading with other people there. (This year’s theme is sea monsters).
I’m really looking forward to seeing Brenda and Martha, and participating in the three workshops I signed up for: Wax the Casbah with Judy Wise, Lynne Perrella’s A Face in the Crowd, and Spontaneous Intent Clayboard with Mary Beth Shaw.
I swore when I came back from Artfest last time that I wouldn’t do any painting classes if I went again because of all the supplies involved. But here I am with a truckload of paint ...even though Jeanne encouraged me to exercise restraint. Hopefully I’ll actually be able to finish something and then share it with you.
See you next Monday and have an artful week.
P.S. If you live in the Toronto area, don’t forget to visit the One of a Kind show to see Carmi's new fleet of book assemblages and cards. Check out her blog for pictures and more information.

We’re in ATC Quarterly!

2009-03-27T12:13:00.002-04:00

Today got off to a great start when I received my copy of the Spring 2009 Artist Trading Card Quarterly. I’d written a piece on our group of Toronto area traders, and it was exciting to see so many of our talented participants published in my favorite zine.
Beverly Dalton, Colette Copeland, Daniza Benic, Diana Yee, Susan Venditti, Katie Maksym, Kris Fenwick, Ludgera Mueller, Marissa Decepida-Wong, Martha Brown, Mary Ambrose and Sandy Camarda all have their work featured in this issue
For more information on Artist Trading Card Quarterly, check out editor extraordinaire Ronna Mogelon’s blog.

Moo Challenge #47

2009-03-26T10:53:00.000-04:00

Because of everything I have to do this week for Artfest—and Emma is taking me to Las Vegas for Easter weekend too—I hadn’t planned on participating in the Make a Moo or Two challenge this week. But how could I resist the postal theme?
For several years I was an active mail artist and participated in shows all over the world. Unfortunately it was one of the things I had to put on hold to write my book, but I plan to get back to it when I have more time. There’s something so satisfying about sending and receiving mail. I also loved making my own artistamps. Hmmm …maybe it’s time to get my perforator out of the garage and start using it again.

Anxiety

2009-03-26T00:26:00.003-04:00

I’ve been thinking about everyone going to Artfest tonight and wondering if they’re as excited—and anxious—as I am. My guess is they probably are.
I’ve always found packing for major trips stressful because I’d just like to transport everything I have there and not have to make any decisions about what to take. Plus there’s the whole will-my-luggage-go-missing thing, which I hate. Not that it’s ever happened to me, but the last time I went to Artfest, one woman’s suitcase didn’t make it and it was awful for her. We all pitched in and gave her supplies, but I never did find out how she managed without clothes and important things like a hot water bottle.
At the moment I have little piles of stuff organized everywhere and I’m just hoping everything will fit into my suitcase. I also have all my trades done—80 little booklets—and some idea about what I’m going to do in the three painting workshops I’m taking. Because I usually spend several hours contemplating a piece before I begin, I have to get some of that out of the way or I won’t be able to finish a thing.

For Irene

2009-03-23T17:32:00.002-04:00

When Irene left a comment here the other day saying she missed my weekly ATC, I realized that I haven’t been indulging in that particular pleasure for a while—so girlfriend, this one is for you! To create my ATC, I superimposed one of my favorite old photos onto a vintage book cover and then played with the Saturation and Hard Light blending modes in Photoshop. The book itself is called Spirit and Life and was published in 1896. Apparently it was a popular compilation of church music and you can download it for free from The Graphics Fairy. If you’re interested in images like this, you might also want to check out another free site: The Vintage Moth.

The Sunset

2009-03-20T00:23:00.001-04:00

John took this picture of the wonderful sunset on Wednesday night. He has been documenting the sky off and on for a few months now, and each photo is different because the sky changes so quickly.
Speaking of skies, if you love the work of Joseph Cornell, there’s a new book out on his work by Kirsten Hoving called Joseph Cornell and Astronomy: A Case for the Stars. I haven’t read it myself, but I did flip through a copy in a bookstore recently and the art is amazing. It’s definitely on my to-buy list.
There’s something so inspiring about the sky in its many incarnations, and I’m sure that’s why Cornell was moved to express this in his art. I think this quote by Rumi says it best: The universe and the light of the stars come through me.

Moo Challenge $46

2009-03-17T23:37:00.003-04:00

Hermine is the guest hostess over at Make a Moo or Two this week, and her challenge is to incorporate a jigsaw puzzle piece into your moos.
Even though I had trouble coming up with something I liked, I found this challenge really appealing. There’s something about a jigsaw puzzle that intrigues me—maybe because life is like a puzzle, and we’re trying to fit the pieces together to make sense of it.
In any case, I used the custom shape tool in Photoshop to generate the pieces I used here. But if you want a whole photo to look like a jigsaw puzzle, there are a couple of ways of doing this.
Use the Texturizer tool in the Filters menu. For a complete step-by-step tutorial, check out the Photoshop Talent website.
Download Panos Puzzle Effects which installs as a Photoshop action. There is a lite version that’s free, or you can buy the one that creates a more complicated looking jigsaw.
I prefer the results of the Panos action to those of the Texturizer tool because I think it looks more realistic. But if you’re a Photoshop user, you might want to try both and see what you think.

More Polaroid Fun

2009-03-16T00:10:00.003-04:00

Azirca emailed me recently to tell me about Poladroid, a simple program you can download that turns your photos in faux Polaroids.
It’s easy to use. All you need is a picture saved as a JPEG. You just slide your photo into the Poladroid icon and wait for it to “develop.” Then, right click on the picture, and a message comes up asking you if you want to save it to your desktop. Click the message and you’re done.
Once it’s saved, you can post it to your blog. Or if you want to add something else, you can import it into Photoshop like I did here.