I’ve just come across the work of potter artist Alice Ballard. It’s one of those revelation “aha” moments – this came right after my favorite local nursery, Shades of Green, requested my work for their shop yesterday. They are putting air plants in my Sprig Shards (thanks, Gloria, for showing them) and it’s made me rethink the form and function aspects of my earthenware. Take a look at Alice Ballard’s work, particularly this Pod series. Beautiful.
Starting a new project is scary for me – what if nobody gets it? What if it doesn’t say something that’s worth anything? Then, as serendipity has it, this was yesterday’s excerpt from Julia Cameron’s book, The Artist’s Way, Everyday: A Year of Creative Living. Hooray, I feel connected again! Whew, back in the nest with the rest of you birds 🙂
“We are like songbirds. When one of us gives voice to our true
nature, it is contagious and others soon give tongue as
well. There is an infallibility to the law that as we each
seek to express what we are longing to say, there is always
someone or something that is longing to hear precisely
what we have expressed. We do not live or create in isolation.”
Grid of Nests – Richard Barnes, 2000/Artstor
Here’s you preview of today’s Open Studio/Open House – I just realized that all of the artworks are under $29. Gosh, I’d shop with me!
But first, this Special Reminder! Open House/Open Studio tomorrow, 3-7, 119 Robinhood – there is so much food I’m starting to panic – leftovers till the new year! Come get fed, steal some art ideas, pick up a free little shard face and see which blog subscriber wins a custom shard face pin (I’ll email the results to subscribers tomorrow). Now back to our regularly scheduled How-To for You.
Check out this cool little folder ornament that has a note or a wish inside. You can hang it, put it on a package – it’s easy for kids to make, too.
Here are the steps:
Want more cool ideas? Sign up for a workshop in 2013!
I went to La Vida Gallery today to meet Steve Bennett, the art/culture columnist for the San Antonio Express-News, to talk about my series of paintings. I’d never seen all thirty of them at once – yay! They work really well as a series!
Steve was so easy to talk to – I love reading his stories about art and artists. He’s a good journalist with a finger on the pulse of the San Antonio community. The newspaper editor and the readers are very lucky to have him. The interview should be out sometime next week, but in the meantime, I just can’t wait to share how the paintings look on the gallery wall – thanks to Matt Weissler for hanging so many paintings so straight! Please come to the opening on Friday, December 7th – besides these paintings, you’ll get to see and meet Oaxacan Master Carvers and Painters Jacobo and Maria Angeles, and Chef Susana Trilling.
Hope to see you Saturday – Here are the details!
Quote for the day:
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.”
–Albert Einstein
Gina and I had scheduled an unannounced Collage on Canvas workshop several months ago, and it ended up being a very enjoyable one-on-one afternoon. Gina is a talented crafts-person in her own right and has made some beautiful journals for me – today she brought photos and mementos from her trips to Ireland. The hardest part was deciding on the central image. She chose a Irish beach photograph she had taken, and she also had shells from that same beach, including a razor clam shell that ended up being an integral part of the composition. We had a great time going back and forth about colors and textures and her collage is just lovely, organic and serene. Take a look.
I love receiving comments and photos from other artisans who have used my faces in creative ways, particularly in Spirit Dolls because there is so much meaning, positive energy and symbolism in those constructions. Look at this photo and read the comments from Louise in Washington state, and you’ll see what I mean – the face and body have almost come to life:
Several months ago I purchased some of your lovely face shards and although it has taken me a while, I finally completed a Spirit Doll which I named, “Plant Woman of the Pacific Northwest Woods”, in honor of my commitment to deepening my knowledge of the medicine of the local plants. ~ Louise
What a glorious weekend to be in Boston – I’m staying in the Beacon Hill neighborhood just across from the Boston Public Garden where I went walking this morning. The trees are a zillion different colors – I expect that some of these images will show up in my work soon. Plans are to see the Boston Museum of Art before we leave on Tuesday – I could get used to visiting here often.
It is always such a delight to see how other artists use my face shards – here’s a small one on the left of a larger sculpture. The amazing wood is naturally colored in reds and oranges. The artist, Debra Bernier from Victoria, British Columbia, sent me this photo. See this piece and more of her work at her Etsy shop, Shaping Spirit.