Tina Karagulian at Intermezzo Gallery in Boerne

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 Tina Karagulian is a storyteller, writer, poet, artist and friend. I was lucky enough to see her recent work at Intermezzo Gallery and Studios on Saturday afternoon in Boerne, Texas. Intermezzo is an amazing art-filled space. Owner Cathy Galloway‘s mission is “to bring together people and creativity, color and sounds, textures and poetry, ideas and hope, surprises and beauty.”

All of these were in evidence as Tina read her poetry and discussed her work while jazz guitarist John Lind played interpretive music to the audience’s suggested descriptive words for each of the paintings. Here’s a short video of Tina’s paintings and poetry, John’s music, and the Intermezzo Gallery.

It was, alas, the closing day of her Inner and Outer Space exhibit, but you can learn more about Tina and her work on her website. And do go visit Intermezzo Gallery and Studios when you’re in Boerne. It’s a serene and sacred space. Thank you, Tina, for your gifts and for sharing them with all of us!

 

Friday freebie – scratch and scrape

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This’ll be quick – the Spurs are playing Houston and the game is tied! This week’s Friday freebie is a simple but effective little tool set for making marks and textures in painted surfaces, plaster, clay, anything that needs a skritch or a scratch. I ordered an extra set to give away to a SHARDS subscriber – be on the blog subscriber list by midnight Sunday and this fabulous, wildly expensive (think “Three-Buck Chuck”) set of DecoArt Texture Tools could be yours!

textureOK, back to the game – GO SPURS!

 

 

 

I got to be a student, and just about dyed :)

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jarsI got to play  at the Studio today as a student of fiber artists and friend Rosemary Uchniat! Rosemary will be presenting a special workshop at my Studio in July that teaches us how to dye artful fabric the easy way with spectacular results.  I’ll let you know as soon as it’s scheduled, but in the meantime, here’s a sneak preview (see pics). Sidney Burnette, Nita Hazel and I learned three techniques that just blew us away because they were simple to do (with Rosemary’s help)  and produced results that looked as if we knew what we were doing! It was very cool.

This was a trial  run for the upcoming July workshop with Rosemary as a guest artist/teacher, and based on our experiences today, I know you’re gonna love it – so stay tuned for date and time. This workshop and all of the others for late summer and fall will be announced before the end of April.

A HUGE wake-up call – thanks to my fellow art educators!

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If you read my recent post, you know how excited I am about working with beeswax and digital photos (thanks again, Clare O’Neill). Friday evening I got a wake-up call – literally – validating my artistic intuition. Thanks to two super friends, Gloria Hill and Melissa Wittman, I made a last-minute entry in the Artists Who Teach show at Blue Star which opened Friday. I chose a wax and tissue photocollage titled – guess what – “Wake-Up Call.” And it won Best of Show!! I was stunned and incredibly grateful, both for the astonishing award and the validation of a new direction.

It is an especially meaningful honor because it came from one of the most talented group of friends and peers that I know – art educators. Take time to thank an art teacher today – what gifts they give. And support the San Antonio Art Education Association. They rock!

Special thanks also to juror Jim LaVilla-Havelin, artist and poet and mentor, for the conversation we shared after the awards. He is so wise! I’ll share his piece of wonderful advice with everyone – Jim said, “Never paint for a specific juror – it will backfire. Paint your heart, paint you best without compromise.” . . . . Wow. Life is good.

Three-minute “big question” video

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I was upgrading my Vimeo account this morning and came across this Staff Pick called “What Comes After Religion” by Jonathan Hodgson. It’s thought-provoking and beautifully made and addresses (in just three minutes) questions about the human need for spirituality in the absence of formal religion – and the way art plays an integral part. I thought it was worth sharing. Comments?

WHAT COMES AFTER RELIGION from Jonathan Hodgson on Vimeo.

OK, back to work – is it Friday yet?

Minding my own beeswax

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beacon-hill-art-walkEvery June I look forward to participating in the Beacon Hill Art Walk in Boston – the venerable old red-brick and cobblestone neighborhood opens its courtyards and gardens to over 100 artists for a unique event that includes music and food.

This year, inspired by Clare O’Neill and  the work that my students did in our first Beeswax Collage workshop, I’m including some of my own encaustP1100506ic beeswax collages for show & sale. I’m also developing a new eBook about the process called Behind the Veil – it’s almost ready for publication. And I’ll offer a new workshop on this Beeswax Collage process on July 12th, and another one in the fall, so stay tuned for those things. The new eBook will give you several tips on working successfully with this process, including:

  • Limit your palette, both in imagery and in wax color
  • Work small scale at first
  • Use a good substrate such as Arches #300 watercolor paper

Taking any art to Boston is kind of a challenge because it has to be lightweight, packable, and easy to set up. These collages fit the bill – I’m hoping they will be popular with Boston patrons. Two years ago, my work won a third place ribbon, last year I took home a second place ribbon – maybe these little pieces will snag a first place at the show on June 7th! Here are a few of the new beeswax & collage pieces that are completed. Do you think they will be a hit on Beacon Hill? Fingers crossed 🙂

 

 

Friday Freebie from the land of magic – Dimensional Collage eBook

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Teaching last week at the Gaian Soul retreat on Whidbey Island  was such a joy! Dear friend Joanna Powell Colbert has a gift for bringing together a group of diverse women and weaving them gently into an inclusive circle that is beautifully unforgettable. Heck, Joanna could probably herd cats and make them like it – she’s that magical!

Want to see what the retreat was like? Click this link to go to Joanna’s very cool webpage about our time together. Then come right back, because I have a free eBook for you that will show you step-by-step how to participate in the project that we did – even though this example was specifically designed for the Aldermarsh retreat, it’s personal and fun for everyone and every level.

collageoncanvasbook

Click here to access your free 32 page eBook called Create Dimensional Collage on Canvas – it’s a short and easy version of one of my most popular workshops. You can download it if you like. Let me know how you like it, especially if you make your own Dimensional Collage. Have a wonderfully creative weekend, Y’all!!

She’s baaack . . . in the swing of things – with Monika Astara this Saturday

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I just returned an hour ago from beautiful Whidbey Island near Seattle, WA, where I spent a week teaching and learning with Joanna Powell Colbert at the Gaian Soul Retreat – thank you, Joanna , from the bottom of my heart for this reflective time in such an incredible space at Aldermarsh Retreat Center. There was virtually no Internet or email and I was totally awed by huge trees, twenty amazing women, and the singing of frogs in the marsh.

I’ll have more to say about it as last week gets processed in my overwhelmed brain, but one of the most amazing experiences was walking along the beach on Useless Bay on Friday morning. There were crows and gulls and wind and chill and solitude, and in the not-so-far distance was Canada.

There’s so much more to talk about and think about, but right now I’m excited about being home and back at the Studio.

I’m especially happy to welcome Monika Astara back this Saturday the 28th! There are spaces left in her Inspired Dressing workshop and I hope you’ll email me to let me know you’ll join us  – here are the details.

SPIRITED DRESSING

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Monika Astara, highly-followed fiber artist and clothing designer from Austin, will be bringing her incredible wearable art to Lyn Belisle Studio for a trunk show on Saturday, March 28th, from 1:30-5:30. Many of you love to wear her designs, and now you can browse in a comfortable environment with friends and refreshments and no crowds.

But there’s more! Monika is teaching a private workshop called “Spirited Dressing” on that Saturday morning from 10:30 until 12:30.  She will work with each attendee personally to show how colors, layers, styles, textures can make our soul sing and give us confidence and joy. Monika has worked for over a decade helping her clients, and says, “If we get supported and strengthened by what we wear, we  stand up straighter, our voice gets stronger, yet more pleasant, we feel good about ourselves and we literally radiate from the inside out. People respond to us differently. Our days are brighter and easier.”

mon2Attendance at the private workshop is limited to ten participants. (note – there are six spots left at this writing) Tuition is $50 a person, and that can be applied as a rebate when you purchase $200 in clothing. You’ll get first pick of Monika’s designs before the sale starts at 1:30. And you will enjoy a light brunch and camaraderie with the group at Lyn’s comfortable studio. To reserve your spot and be among the ten participants, email Lyn: lyn@lynbelisle.com

This sounds especially good – Monika also says, “Prices at private shows are about 25% – 35 % below retail and I will also have a sample sale rack with wholesale prices and below.” Well, yay!

Monika’s looking forward to seeing you all on March 28th. And I’m excited, too! Please forward this to friends who appreciate wearable art.

Showing and telling all

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Man, you throw a few artists together in one room on a Saturday afternoon, and crazy things happen. We had the most info-packed, inspiring Show and Tell at the Studio on Saturday – everything from techniques on leather and fabric, to bone-bleaching, to Vicki Siptak’s Spirit Lamp. And more! The video will give you an idea, but ya just had to be there. I’m glad I was!

Franni’s Beach Project was a huge hit – and it even resonated long-distance to Bonnie Davis, who was in Florida but must have picked up the vibes, because she sent me this photo:

beachAnd speaking of beaches, I’m leaving tomorrow at the crack of dawn for Whidbey Island just north of Seattle to be with beautiful friend Joanna Powell Colbert at her Gaian Soul retreat. I’ll be teaching with Joanna – and can’t begin to describe how excited I am. Four friends from San Antonio are going along – we are anticipating all kinds of adventures. Maybe we will see whales from the ferry! Or polar bears – nah, probably not. But the next time you hear from me, I’ll be on the outskirts of Canada!

eBooks and iCovers

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Back in the olden days, when I first started this blog, I was still making a lot of Kindle reader and iPad covers to sell on my first Etsy shop (Steve Bennett of the Express-News did a story on them in 2010 – “Judge eReader by Its Cover”). One of my buyers from that time wrote last month to ask if I would make a custom cover for her iPad – she likes retro elements but with a bit of whimsy. Here’s the cover I did for her, the first in a long time – she just sent me a note saying how much she liked it. Yay! 

The iPad fits in between elastic cords on the inside front cover. It was fun revisiting this project – these covers are pretty labor intensive depending on how many collage elements you add, but you really can do one for yourself. In fact, I also wrote a post on how to make you own! You will enjoy this mixed-media project – it has both attractive form and useful function. Try it!