michelle ward

frondly yours

I just learned that Debris Journal is currently full for the event in July.  *dances a jig*  There is still room in Frond Chronicles.  I've been working on another class sample....I am addicted to making and using these shapes, inspired by real plant life, with a little creative license. 

 

 

See, even the wishes have *winks*.  If you want to know more and are thinking of attending the event in New Jersey in July, visit the CREATE site HERE.

 

Thanks for all the birthday wishes.  For me and for Shannon. 

I'm heading home.  See you in a week.  *waves*

 

happy birthday to us

Whether you say Always Remembering You or Remembering You Always, it simply means you never stop thinking about someone.  Especially when your heart is so filled with love.  And sweet memories.  And sister secrets.  Especially because you are missing her.  The day she left for heaven is significant, but the day she was born is the one to celebrate, especially if your share that same birthdate. 

 

 

 

Roses fill the gardens.  Roses fill the vases.  Piles of cards and packages.  Lots of joy here.  I'm a lucky girl.

 

 

*blows kisses*  xoxo

discomfort zone: orange

I don't do orange.  I don't have orange paint.  But I had to make a page about my new crush:  Cara Cara from Sunkist.  I usually wake up with a glass of orange juice but lately I'm substituting with these.  So juicy, seedless, nearly red interior...they got a celebration in my journal.  No orange?  Red + Yellow does the trick.

 

 

 

 

Have you stepped out of your comfort zone lately?  I'm feeling a little better about orange today.

artmaking tools: carved stamps

Yesterday I was reminiscing with Mom about May Day activities in our old neighborhood.  We would make (and receive) handmade paper baskets and cones filled with flowers cut from the garden - usually nearly-expired tulips or daffodils, wrapped with a wet paper towel and tin foil, or a handful of leftover Easter candy.  Ding Dong.  We'd drop our offerings on the front step and run for cover.  Did you do that too?

My doorbell did ring yesterday, but it was the mailman with an armful of deliveries too big for the mailbox.  Included was the latest issue of Somerset Studio.  It remains a thrill to be included in my favorite publication.  My Make it Your Own column has me standing on soapbox to encourage you to carve some rubber. 

Here is a better view on the first piece - metallic doesn't show up very well in print.  Made for Shannon.  We all think of her when we see pink roses, but sunflowers were one of her favorites. 

I included my journal pages but I always find it interesting to see the thought process of an artist at work.  Here are what my process pages typically look like while I'm working on other surfaces.

And as I said earlier, and in the article, I've assembled previous posts about carving onto a tutorial page - not meant to be a comprehensive how-to, but you might find it useful, or motivating.  See HERE.

distractions

I'm a sucker for punches. LOVE this one.  It has the new clever option of setting for two different outcomes.  One adds a border to the edge of a page.  The second yields a freestanding border with more detail.  A quatrefoil - swoon!  I was so excited to put it to work that I made some quick tags....the stamped images came straight from one of my new sheets.  You'll see I didn't even cut it out...item number shows up.

I have other things I should be doing but this recent acquisition has me distracted.  Do you do this too - pull out some supplies to test drive your new toys?  No purpose, just play? 

I don't have my copy of the new Somerset Studio (May/June 2012).  If you are visiting here after seeing my article about Why to Carve Your own Stamps, you will find my tutorial on carving by clicking the Tutorial button on the right sidebar, or click HERE.

 

Thanks for all the comments about our Special Olympics event.  It makes it even more fun that you share in the enthusiasm.  If you have a chance to volunteer at an event, or just go as a cheerleader, do it!

growth and growth

The rose bushes are really growing.  They took off so fast this year, before I even had a chance to cut them back.  I love this time of year as we see new growth, whether from the earth, or from ourselves.  I find Spring to be a time for starting new projects, pulling out brighter colors, and seeing everything with a refreshed perspective.

 

The lawn has been mowed once already....not for trimming grass, but to manage the weeds.  I admit, I do not mind weeds.  Afterall, that is where the clovers grow.....and it's where I find inspiration for adding organic shapes to my journal, Frond Chronicles.  I'm started another one, for my class in July.  Love trying to draw a replica of a real plant, but love making fantasy fronds too.  Check out my pussy willow.  The bunch was set in water at the grocery store so I put them in water at home - never did that before.  And look!  They are growing.  HCIT?  I'll be cut a few new stencils and masks inspired by them!

 

Maybe you'll come celebrate fronds with me in Jersey in July?  We will focus on making our own tools (stencils and masks), and we will paint pages and make a fab journal.  See HERE for details.

HAPPY EASTER!!

lucky day

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  I had full intention of making and sending cards this year but I didn't get them completed in time so here is a virtual one I can share with everyone.  I have been busy at the studio table making these....but they were for iHanna's annual postcard swap.  I was full messy mode and found a fun format to work in, or is it formula?  Maybe it's neither.  Maybe you could call it a series.  I like to formulate series.....and I LOVED breaking in my new stencils from SGP!

 

So here's the LUCKY part of today....Stencil Girl Products is now encouraging me to sell my designs on my site, Green Pepper Press.  I have uploaded all the stencils, including four new ones released this week, at my site.  Next week I will add the paypal buttons for the shopping cart.  I will also be revealing some new rubber that coordinates with the stencils!!

 

minimalism

Our challenge this month on the Street Team is a exercise of restraint.  Hold back.  Compose cleverly so there is more breathing room, less clutter.  Often we think that untouched space means it's unfinished.  Not true.  Less isn't superior or inferior, just a different approach.  Busy can be good too.  There are no rules, but for this crusade it's been interesting to see how the artists have responded to purposely going minimal.  Like this the page below....because last week I saw my first new patch of clovers!

 

This will be the last crusade for a while as I take a self-imposed hiatus.  Maybe you'll come play? 

Find us HERE.

 

confetti time

First, let me say Thank You to everyone who came by for Seth's book launch celebration.  Loved hearing from so many new readers, and love seeing all the answers to the questions!  It felt like I was in a confetti storm - it's been a festive week. 

 

In case you didn't get the memo, today is Oreo's 100th anniversary.  Can you believe Google didn't jump on that?  Hello, where was the clever variation of their logo?  Two cookies that drop down into milk.  Easy.  Oreo is a treat available worldwide.  Where is the respect?  I wonder if they will pass over Titanic's anniversary next month too?  I didn't forget....I made a page.  Yes, 100 dots.  And a few quickie carvings to help me mimic some Oreo-ness.

 

 

We scored some birthday cake confetti frosting Oreos last week.  We don't usually stray from the original.  Double Stuff probably makes alot of people happy but I think they are too much.  Now these dunkers were cool - did you ever see them?  A few years ago Shannon brought these to the cabin.  I howled at the cleverness.  Never saw them after that but never forgot them either. 

 

I'm off to dunk a few of the standard issue Oreos in my coffee.  But before I go....let's meet in the comment section again.  It was so much fun to see the conversation that was generated by the questions in the last post.  How about another?

1.  Are you a cookie person? 

2.  If so, what is your favorite?

3.  Do Oreos fall in your top 5 of cookies?

 

Check your Pulse

If you haven’t already met him, I’d like to introduce Mr. Seth Apter.  Our first exchange of blog comments dates back to 2007.  Always encouraging and enthusiastic, his remarks were not only appreciated, they became a foundation of a friendship.  In addition to being a mixed media artist, I’ve come to regard him as a curator and collaborator, which you will agree if you’ve frequented his Altered Page.  He regularly presents his own handsome work, as created for himself (like the "making Waves" series above), or as part of a collaborative project.  Some years ago he began presenting The Pulse – an ongoing self-imposed assignment where he surveys artists on a number of topics of interest.  A visit to his blog is always fun and informative and you will find yourself hopping around to the many useful links he provides, to events, exhibits, and sites, while widening your circle of acquaintances.

The online project has now manifested itself in book form.  Seth has once again culled from a community of artists, and invited many to share their art and their perspective by anwering many types of questions.    I am priviledged to be among the spotlighted contributors.  His book will be released this month so he is celebrating by presenting 31 artists in 31 days.  Visit his blog for daily updates, plus a chance to win a copy of his book, HERE. 

Queue the trumpets, sound the drums....

I have observed, both in the book preview available on Amazon, and the posts on his blog, that he doesn’t answer his own questions.  Ok, he did participate in chapter one of the Pulse on his blog a long time ago, but since then we have not heard his opinions.  Don’t you think it’s time we start asking him a few???  Pick up the pen Seth, (or poise your fingers over the keyboard), it’s your turn. 

Later this month I will be one of the guests for the two hour podcast where Seth will be co-host with Mark Lipinski at Creative Mojo.  And then I will join a group of artists for a live panel at The Ink Pad.  Looking forward to celebrating creativity and what it brings to our lives....and finally meeting the man!

March 28: Podcast with Mark Lipinski on Creative Mojo. Seth will be Mark's co-host for the entire 2 hour podcast which airs live from 3-5pm EST (and which will be archived for listening anytime). They will talk all about The Pulse of Mixed Media and be joined by contributors Michelle Ward, Angela Cartwright, Pam Carriker, Julie Prichard, and Lisa Hoffman. Get your questions ready as this radio show has a live call-in feature!

March 31: Live artist panel at The Ink Pad in NYC. Seth will be joined by contributors Leslie Marsh, Karen Cole, Jill Zaheer, Julie Prichard, Roxanne Evans Stout, and Michelle Ward. The panel will be video taped and available for viewing on Create Mixed Media sometime in early April.

EDIT:  HE HAS SPOKEN!  Please continue to join in the conversation taking place in the comment section below.  Seth has been a good sport about taking on the questions above...here are his answers:

1. I have always worked small and enjoy the challenge of having something small make a big impact. By far my largest piece to date was 3 feet x 3 feet and I made it as part of my Graffiti Wall collaboration with Julie Prichard and Lynne Hoppe. My most recent series of paintings, called Interior Angles, was created on 12" x 12" panels - and I have to say that I definitely liked working larger.

2. For my book, I wrote a very, very long list of questions from which I chose the ones that ended up in the book. They were all questions that came to me because I was curious about the answers and I felt that in all cases, the responses would really offer the reader insight into each contributing artist.

3. Autumn is definitely my favorite season in general and the one that is most inspirational too me. It is the combination of the feel of the season, the colors, the weather, the nature, the smells, the food, etc. that really gets me going.

4. One sentence huh? Now I know how my contributors feel when I ask them for only one instance of something. Here goes: Allow what is inside you to be your artistic guide, with a sense of playfulness, a feeling of passion, and not a trace of judgement.

APPLAUSE APPLAUSE!  Thank you Seth.  Hey, while we are clapping, how about the clever title of his sculptures at the top?  "Making Waves"...get it?  Waving hands.  *dies at the geniusness*

debris from tuscan horizons

I was watching Letters to Juliet recently and loved being transported to Italy.  Part of my journey took me beyond Verona to the hills of Tuscany, speckled with rows of trees that hold down the horizon.  I had to cut new shapes - stencils and stamps - so I could investigate how to incorporate the trees in my work.  Here is some of the debris from my table left behind after painting a few new pieces for an article...

Want to start a debris journal of your own?  Join me at CREATE in July!

Registration for Create NJ - TODAY!

Beginning today (2/16) at 2:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time, registration will begin for the first CREATE event in New Jersey.  It's been a long time since we have had a creative gathering of this magnitude here.  Looks to be alot of fun.  Hope to see you there!

CLICK HERE for details.

happy valentine's day

I spent some time this morning clearing the debris from my work table.  Lots of remnants to scoop up and throw away....or wait, put in my journal! 

 

And because it's Tuesday...one more page.  This took three minutes as I saved the lovely details from a Linda Warlyn package - she always adds the most special embellishments and I treasure them by saving on a page. 

My friends *get* me, don't they?  I have a beautiful stack of cards today...AND A DOZEN RED ROSES.  What a terrific surprise!  Back in college my friend Anne used to give me the same card every year..."hope your Valentine's Day is less pathetic than mine".   It wasn't meant to be serious, just a statement about the unreasonable pressure this day can bring.  Take the pressure off - share your love.  It will come back to you.

Sending my love to you.  Happy Valentine's Day.

ruby tuesday and crusade no. 60

It's been a while since I've posted Ruby Tuesday journal pages.  I still work on them....sometimes working out ideas for art, and sometimes just collecting debris from my studio table and even the kitchen counter.  These spreads are to support the latest crusade, No. 60 ~ I HEART (fill in the blank).  You know I love stencils and masks.  I sometimes forget you can simply use them with pens or pencils (right)...not always necessary to get them wet.  However, when you do use paint be sure to flip over for a monoprint (left). 

 

And after much taste-testing I'm finding that I really <3 Dark Magic....no, not the sinister kind, the K-cup kind.  There are others I do enjoy, but this one is my favorite this week so it went in my journal.  That's why we do pages like this...so we can recall and reflect on things we love/loved.

 

To learn more about the current crusade, click on over and come play with us.  HERE.

 

rolling out another bit of news

In addition to my workshop at Valley Ridge, and the two in New Jersey, I am coming to Colorado in April!  My friend Nancy Brill, has made the arrangements for a three day event in Lafayette, just north of Denver.  I love extended workshops - it's a time to devote yourself completely to the process with a community of like-minded artists.  We learn as much from each other as we do from the class agenda because that's what happens when there is a gathering of eager, enthusiastic, curious beings.  To learn more about the workshop, the venue, and the registration details, visit my page HERE.  EDIT:  this class has been cancelled. 

Have a fun Superbowl Sunday.  Graham's Eagles and my Saints aren't in so we have to go with the home town boys.  Go Giants!

 

good news, more news, and nests

Guess what arrived today?  The new rubber!  I am packing with wild energy - so fun to see the new images, love sealing up the envelopes, and checking off the pre-order list.  Thank you for your patience dear customers.  Packages will depart first thing in the morning.

For locals, or those willing to travel, the CREATE Mixed Media Retreat in New Jersey site went live today!  Wow - lots of terrific classes and instructors.  There will be a vendor night too.  I'm teaching Friday (7/20)and Saturday (7/21).  There is alot to scroll through on the Create site.  If you want a quick look at my classes you click over HERE. 

Registration begins Thursday, February 16th at 2pm Eastern Time.  Hope to see you there!  For all the details, click HERE.

 

The current Somerset Studio issue is January/February 2012.  My column, Make It Your Own, is about altering items we find in a craft store becuase we can, and because we feel like being creative.  The supply lists and brief project descriptions were omitted so I am posting here. 

If you look at the magazine it appears the red egg nest is larger or the same size as the turquoise egg nest but actually it is way way smaller.  Looks super cool next to my crows and ravens that are set out at Halloween.

The next crusade was going to be posted today but I'm busy packing rubber so I will get it up tomorrow.

CREATE EAST 2012

Next week the Create Mixed Media Retreat will go live, announcing the workshops and instructors that will be in NEW JERSEY in July!  It is very exciting to be in the line-up and teaching less then five miles from home!  I've posted links to my classes in the left sidebar, (Carrie already spied it!) and you can get to my workshop listings on the toolbar just below my banner.

I hope to see some of you at the event.  I don't know who else will be teaching yet, except for my friend Seth Apter.

It's 9:00 on a Saturday.....

REMINDER:  Registration for Valley Ridge Art Studio Workshops starts on Saturday, January 14th at 9:00 a.m. Central Standard Time.

We've been watching season three episodes of Castle on dvd, which includes my favorite, "Last Call".  It ends with a fabulous scene, if you missed it click HERE.  Piano Man is one of those songs that you love to sing along to isn't it?  So you can imagine I cracked myself up when preparing this blog post as a reminder that registration for Valley Ridge opens at nine o'clock this Saturday. (FYI: it's 9:00 a.m. CST)

The phrase hasn't left the soundtrack running in my mind and I'm guessing if you take a listen it will stay with you too....and will be a fun reminder to register at 9 or whatever time it is in your zone this Saturday morning.  A live version of Piano Man by Billy Joel HERE, or in tandom with Elton John on the Tonight Show below. 

EDIT:  *smacks head*, it begins at 9:00 Central Standard Time....I revised from previosuly posted PST.

 

 

Hope to see you in Wisconsin in October.  There are many fabulous class offerings by stellar instructors at VRAS this season, visit the site to check it out.  ValleyRidgeArtStudio.com

Epiphany and epiphany

We don't begin taking down Christmas until after today, Epiphany...the true Twelfth Day of Christmas.  The first thing we set up following Thanksgiving is our manger scene.  A perfect way remember the meaning of Christmas is to start and end with our Nativity.  It continues to grow with new additions each year.  You can't really see it here, but we have over a dozen angels flocking around the back.  Nearly every item has been a gift....except for a new tree we indulge in each season. 

 

While today is Epiphany with a "E", back in October I had an epiphany with a "e".  After seeing Candyce Marten's article in Somerset Studio, where she fabricated trees from stacks of cut cardboard, I had to give it a try, and add one more silver tree to our sparkley forest.  I got a good start on it then the holiday schedule crept in and I set the project aside until just after Christmas.  I wrote to Candyce to thank her for the inspiration and we shared some lovely email exhanges....then the sweet and precious tree that appeared in the article arrived at our door.  A most special gift!  When I asked her permission to blog about this she asked that I explain how she wanted to return a kindness, and that kindness is contagious.  So true, right?  A simple gesture of sending a note with much deserved recognition of fine work, resulted in an unexpected surprise.  How often to we miss an opportunity to brighten someone's day by reaching out because we can?   Try it....both the homemade tree, and the spreading of kindness, any time of year.

 

 

Our existing trees have been collected from TJ Maxx, Marshalls, Home Goods, or Michaels.  The layered text tree was a score from Anthropologie's after-xmas-sale last week.  When I saw this red metal tree at Target (on clearance too!) I knew I could make it my own with a quick shot of spray paint.  Shown here as Before and After with my cardboard stacked tree.

 

As you may remember from past posts about my table top setting, we have a pink tree to go with the pink deer from Judi, a sign for my sister.  Another sweet deer keeps her company, gifted from Linda this year.  And then I found this tin embossed deer from Pottery Barn....a staggering find with the leg raised ;) 

This morning I began journaling about the holiday....love the cut strips fashioned into a tree to remind me of this year, and my new friend.  What traditions do you build on each year?  Put it in your journal.

 

Happy Epiphany! 

hey locals!

The last time I taught a public workshop locally was probably 2005.  I am very happy to be telling you I will be teaching two classes in New Jersey in July.  I will offer more details soon, but here is a teaser....

I get alot of requests to teach near home which I would love to do but haven't found a venue until now.  I hope you'll join me - stay tuned for the details :)

having a ball

I've been playing alot with circles - in both photoshop and the messier kind of art making.  My table is covered in them.  I'm having a ball.  Moving things from my to-do list to the ta-da list.  It's not quite the 11th hour but I am chasing down a few lifelines before company arrives next week.  I love being in this phase of the creative process when the little voices chime in with opinions.  They can veer me in directions I hadn't considered so I listen closely.  Can't show you what I'm working on yet.  Soon....

 

Have a good weekend!

now and then

Can't stop screening Shakespeare over my painted backgrounds.  I'm in bard mode, can you tell?  It's not just because I'd recently seen Anonymous, but a few weeks ago I started planning the current crusade, and called it " All the World's a Stage", a W.S. line, and a title of a piece I did a lifetime ago.  I pulled out the Somerset Studio from over ten years ago.  I bet you still have it - it was a gorgeous issue.  My friend Lynne is on the cover.  And Judi has a multi-page article on book arts.  I made a triptych - thinking myself so clever to turn it upside-down, wanting to offer an alternative to the trendy-at-the-time art form.  That was then.....if I were to work on assignment now, this is what I might offer:

 

 

Digitally designed using custom brushes and text overlayed as screen.  Below, a variation after sliding the color around.  I find this a really useful part of the process.  Color combinations appear on the screen that I would never select in real life.  It gives me ideas to take to real pages. 

Then I colorized the first image (to the teal family) and layered over the second image, and used a large blurry edged eraser and got this one, Gah!

 

Here is the old piece made about twelve years ago....look how much it had faded since the publication:

 

And more lessons:

 

playing with the playwright

I love to play digitally.  I find it keeps my acquired skills sharp.  I can honestly say I learn something every time I open a document and start messing with layers.  It's not unlike the lessons learned on my journal pages.  You hold an element over the surface, squint a little, then move it around with indecision until it feels like the right spot.  Commit and move on.  Each choice you make informs the next step to take because you see what's missing or what needs to be taken away. Working out composition - whether on the screen or on the page, is the kind of problem solving I love. 

Yesterday I cut a stencil of Shakespeare.  Haven't used it yet but loved playing with design in photoshop.

Then I shifted the color balance, and got this...looks like money doesn't it?

 

And here's a lesson:

 

More Shakespeare tomorrow.

the latest

Obviously I'm a little slow to the scene for this one as it's been hit over 4 million times.  In case you haven't seen it either, I'll share here.  I was just thinking I may own too many scarves....between Fallon and I we must have, well,....not telling....because I don't want to be put on the *don't send her anymore scarves* list.  On the contrary, I love scarves and will never stop collecting.  Would you ever admit how many you have? *wink*  This video is informative, but also very very clever and mesmerizing.  I'm not just impressed with the 25 ways to tie a scarf, I can't imagine what it took to put this clip together.  Wow.



 

 

I updated the Home Improvement page with sample pages of my Alice book.  Click HERE to see, or start the tour by clicking on the right sidebar button.  More kits will be listed on ETSY this week.

 

Last week I posted Crusade No. 57.  FIVE years of hosting the Street Team blog!  Sheesh, times flies.

Come on over and play with us.  We make new friends every month, and love to build connections through creativity.

tattooed albino

OK, so it's not a real tattoo, and it's not a real albino pumpkin either.  I opted for the fakes this year.  Spent most of yesterday's free time working on this one.  There is something so relaxing and rewarding about drawing, especially when there is no agenda, just random markmaking.

We had an increased number if trick-or-treaters this year!  Love when the neighborhood is filled with children, wagons, parents, teens...all happily navigating the streets and sidewalks around piles of fallen branches and trees from the recent snow storm.  Not much white stuff left.  Just memories of another fabulous holiday, enjoyed by our family.  It was the year of big hats.....

 

got Poe?

Some of our Halloween decorations.  Very Poe-ish this year.  Once upon a midnight dreary.  Feels alot like that right now...heavy snow falling and tree branches dropping everywhere.  No room on the sideboard for my Poe-inspired theater but I was revisiting photos this week so I'll show them here.

 

 

 

 

 

Somerset Studio will be hosting Poe themed art in the September/October 2012 issue.  I'm already conjuring up a few projects.  Why don't you consider submitting too?  Due April 15.  You'll be able to watch The Raven, opening March 9, in plenty of time to get inspired.  Can't wait for this one!

 

 

what's new?

The Nov/Dec Somerset Studio has arrived.  Look for it on your shelves soon, or subscribe so you don't miss an issue.  I'm so happy to see my friend Anna published in it for the first time!  Yay Finn!  Also inside:  Artist Portfolio of Mary Beth Shaw (of Stencil Girl Products!) and my friend Lynne Perrella with her longstanding column.  My article this month is about making your own wrappings - something to think about with the holidays on the way.  Get out and spray paint some paper while the weather still allows. 

Stampington sent their newest publication Mingle for a blog giveaway.  It is a fabulous magazine - beautifully put together with gathering and party ideas for everyone.  I think they hit it out of the park with this one!  If you want to win a copy leave a comment.  To order, visit the newly re-vamped (love it!) Stampington website.  See this page for more details about Mingle, HERE. 

TO WIN A COPY OF MINGLE, LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW.  DRAWING ON FRIDAY.

And one more update:  For the House Book artists, I uploaded the first set of sample photos.  More to come.  Click on sidebar link or HERE to see.

 

scaling it up

I love this.  Maximizing the scale of the logo minimizes the information conveyed....except here.  There is no doubt what the name of the product is as we are so familiar with it, no matter what the scale.  Two letters and we recognize it's Diet Coke.

I love to advocate for using multiple sizes of same imagery.  I repeat it often in classes.  We even did it as a crusade.  I will chop up one of these special issue cans to put in my journal alongside the standard issue as a perfect illustration of how changing a scale not only works, the answer of how to reinvent a look came from the original design.  Nicely done!

Special Issue Diet Coke design by Turner Duckworth.

believe in your beat

This was the first project we did at Valley Ridge.  Cool, huh?  The point:  it was a great ice-breaker to begin class, and to illustrate the point that we all need to march to our own drummer - especially in a workshop.  Find your pace, then stretch it a little.  Each artist made an awesome set of sticks...I wish I had taken a group photo!  Drats. 

I was a little late this month getting the new crusade posted.  The challenge is to put into words how you feel about creativity being part of your life.  And then, so we get to know one another better, I invite you to tell us about the different kinds of art you make.  Isn't true we never really fit into one category?  The umbrella term 'mixed media' seems to be a label many use...but I have never really liked it.  Too vague.  Be more specific...I am a painter, a book artist, a visual journaler, a found object manipulater, a constructivist, an amateur jewelry maker, a polymer clay player, an aerosol artist, a stamp, stencil, and graphic designer...like that.  Gives you a better picture, right?  Anyway, come play...Crusade No. 56  (warning:  if you are at work, turn down your speakers before visiting the street team site.)

Withering petals, Workshop in Wisconsin, and Whales

*waves*  Hello!  It's been a while.  When we last spoke I was on my way to Valley Ridge.  We had a terrific time - a full class of enthusiastic artists who painted and played for three whole days!  It was rewarding on so many levels and filled my well for a long time.  Love being in the studio and feeling the energy that gets generated when artists gather.

One of our assignments was to walk the gorgeous property in search of new shapes to inspire hand-crafted tools (stencils and stamps).  It was a perfect break from the work, to take in the scenery, breath in the not-quite-fall-air, enjoy the sun, and observe all that was before us.  I found my way to Katherine's garden - very much in hiberbation and decay, with amazing shapes.  The once vibrant flowers and plants presenting themselves as dried pods and other interesting stages of non-life. 

 

I later learned these were coneflowers - typically adorned with violet petals.  My impression upon observing the dried evidence, was that the flower had possibly been a black-eyed susan, with golden petals.  I am so glad I didn't know they were once purple, as the darker rustier color served as my inspiration for this painting.  I used the river rocks stencil by Mary Beth, adding in a few larger stones to make it my own for the section of ground.  I made my own stencils for the flowers, and included roots since my attempt at pulling a few to photograph came straight from the earth with entire stem and roots. 

 

Some evidence of our walk around the perimeter of the VR property....Mom is there gathering weeds and avoiding coyotes.  (Actually, we only hear them at night....haven't seen one there yet.)

 

Here is the group - thank you ladies!  I loved seeing your individual perspectives, and your fabulous work.  So much fun to see old friends and make new ones.  I had a great time Raising the Bar with you :)

And just days after arriving home from Wisconsin we road tripped up to Canada.  It's been a few years since we have been there and promised the kids a return visit to see our beloved friends, the orcas.  You can read about our previous memorable visits in a past post HERE.  It was so heavy with rain on the first day that the park was not even open.  Drats.  Luckily it cleared enough by the next day that we headed straight for Friendship Cove at Marineland, Niagara Falls, Ontario, to see Kiska and Ike.  A happy ending.