Collages by Amber (18), Topaz (15), Tyler (13), and me:
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Collborations
Here are three of the collages my students and I made together in a round robin collage session the Saturday before last. Each person had twenty minutes with each collage, then passed it on to the next person. It was a very gratifying, fun way to work. Even the students enjoyed themselves! I did, too.
Collages by Amber (18), Topaz (15), Tyler (13), and me:
Collages by Amber (18), Topaz (15), Tyler (13), and me:
Monday, October 12, 2009
Turn of Events
Things took a crazy-ass turn this weekend! I have suddenly become a part-time artist's assistant. Here is the story.
So, on Friday night I was just browsing Craigslist, as I often do. I look at just about all the for sale sections and the jobs sections, just in case something good is out there. Actually, scratch that: In the jobs section I usually only look in the arts/media/whatever and creative sections. But Friday, I looked at everything, including general labor. There I happened upon an ad that was titled something like housekeeping/art assistant position... my curiosity was definitely piqued, and I figured, I'm not proud, I'd do some cleaning if it also involved some sort of art or just for an art kind of person. So I responded with a short note...
The next morning as I was getting ready to leave for my little Saturday teaching gig, I got a reply. Turns out it is one of my professors from UB (grad school), a young art history professor with whom I took a museum studies course. She's also a painter. I have really admired her, enjoyed her class very much, etc. and so was excited to find out that it was her, and that she was excited to hear from me, too!
The ad stated that she was looking for ~5 hours a week, but it turns out that she is getting ready for a big solo show in Shanghai and has a ton of art-related stuff to get done. So, she wants me to do a lot of painting for her, plus other sorts of prep like cleaning antique frames that she'll be using and whatever else. The other major thing she's having me take care of is her website, for which she wants a complete redesign.
And since this the exhibition in Shanghai is in November, this is all VERY time sensitive. So she wants me to work as much as I can to help her get ready. I started on Saturday afternoon and put in several hours yesterday, too. It's pretty crazy.
The whole thing is pretty bizarre, but it's fun (though very tiring). Yesterday I finished priming an old frame, and then worked on a large painting the rest of the time! The painting I worked on amounted to painting a portrait of her on top of an old painting of hers, and then she will possibly work on top of that. She ended up really liking the painting so far and said she may just include the painting in the exhibit as is, as my own. I don't really care either way, which I know must sound strange, but... I am producing things for her show under her direction. I don't really see what I am making in her studio mine at all, does that make any sense? And I feel totally comfortable with that. Yesterday's painting was very different and new for me because she currently only has a limited palette to work with, so I was forced to use colors that I normally wouldn't; and the scale is larger than most of the paintings I can make at home, so that was different, too. I see my experiences working with her very much fueling a whole new approach that I can use in my own art—it's like this forced breakthrough.
Very, very strange. October is going to be a intense month and my life just a whole lot busier, to say the least.
My painting/not my painting. About five feet square, acrylic on canvas. In progress.
***
I'd also like to point you over to my lovely friend Cathy Cullis's blog, where she is doing a Week of Painting. I'd also planned to do a week of painting and make new work available for sale, but considering how things are now, I'm not sure how far I will get with that. But I will try! Maybe some small tabletop-sized works on paper in gouache... hm...
I like these "Week of..." events. The one at Poppytalk the week before very much inspired me, and now Cathy's. It helps me to have a focus, a goal. I plan to do my very own "Week of..." in the future, as well as perform some in tandem with Cathy.
I will keep you posted on the exciting developments!
So, on Friday night I was just browsing Craigslist, as I often do. I look at just about all the for sale sections and the jobs sections, just in case something good is out there. Actually, scratch that: In the jobs section I usually only look in the arts/media/whatever and creative sections. But Friday, I looked at everything, including general labor. There I happened upon an ad that was titled something like housekeeping/art assistant position... my curiosity was definitely piqued, and I figured, I'm not proud, I'd do some cleaning if it also involved some sort of art or just for an art kind of person. So I responded with a short note...
The next morning as I was getting ready to leave for my little Saturday teaching gig, I got a reply. Turns out it is one of my professors from UB (grad school), a young art history professor with whom I took a museum studies course. She's also a painter. I have really admired her, enjoyed her class very much, etc. and so was excited to find out that it was her, and that she was excited to hear from me, too!
The ad stated that she was looking for ~5 hours a week, but it turns out that she is getting ready for a big solo show in Shanghai and has a ton of art-related stuff to get done. So, she wants me to do a lot of painting for her, plus other sorts of prep like cleaning antique frames that she'll be using and whatever else. The other major thing she's having me take care of is her website, for which she wants a complete redesign.
And since this the exhibition in Shanghai is in November, this is all VERY time sensitive. So she wants me to work as much as I can to help her get ready. I started on Saturday afternoon and put in several hours yesterday, too. It's pretty crazy.
The whole thing is pretty bizarre, but it's fun (though very tiring). Yesterday I finished priming an old frame, and then worked on a large painting the rest of the time! The painting I worked on amounted to painting a portrait of her on top of an old painting of hers, and then she will possibly work on top of that. She ended up really liking the painting so far and said she may just include the painting in the exhibit as is, as my own. I don't really care either way, which I know must sound strange, but... I am producing things for her show under her direction. I don't really see what I am making in her studio mine at all, does that make any sense? And I feel totally comfortable with that. Yesterday's painting was very different and new for me because she currently only has a limited palette to work with, so I was forced to use colors that I normally wouldn't; and the scale is larger than most of the paintings I can make at home, so that was different, too. I see my experiences working with her very much fueling a whole new approach that I can use in my own art—it's like this forced breakthrough.
Very, very strange. October is going to be a intense month and my life just a whole lot busier, to say the least.
My painting/not my painting. About five feet square, acrylic on canvas. In progress.
***
I'd also like to point you over to my lovely friend Cathy Cullis's blog, where she is doing a Week of Painting. I'd also planned to do a week of painting and make new work available for sale, but considering how things are now, I'm not sure how far I will get with that. But I will try! Maybe some small tabletop-sized works on paper in gouache... hm...
I like these "Week of..." events. The one at Poppytalk the week before very much inspired me, and now Cathy's. It helps me to have a focus, a goal. I plan to do my very own "Week of..." in the future, as well as perform some in tandem with Cathy.
I will keep you posted on the exciting developments!
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Sarah F. Burns says, Collect Art!
Sarah F. Burns is an artist I found on Etsy a while back and whose blog I follow (though apparently not closely enough, since I missed, like months of great content!). She is not only a talented painter but also a good writer. As I was playing catch-up today, I found her blog post about collecting art that I thought was spot on; couldn't have said it better myself, by a long shot. So, if you are a collector or have always wanted to start your own art collection, definitely read what Sarah has to say on the subject!
Visit Sarah's Etsy shop.
Visit her website.
Dottie Damsel, charcoal on paper, 18" x 20", 2008
One Rock and Two Shells, oil, 9" x 12", 2009
Such lovely and thoughtful work!
Visit Sarah's Etsy shop.
Visit her website.
Dottie Damsel, charcoal on paper, 18" x 20", 2008
One Rock and Two Shells, oil, 9" x 12", 2009
Such lovely and thoughtful work!
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
This painting is available, along with some of my other artwork, at my Etsy shop! I don't think I've posted it here before, but it is one of my favorites. It was included in my solo exhibition at the Castellani Art Museum back in the spring.
Hot, acrylic and charcoal on canvas, 22" x 24", 2009.
Hot, acrylic and charcoal on canvas, 22" x 24", 2009.
Monday, October 5, 2009
Etsy Shop Update!
As I said earlier, I had hoped to get around to updating my Etsy shop a little bit at some point. And so I have! I renewed some items and added some that have not been in the shop before. I hope you will stop by and check it out!
Note to US residents: Many of my pieces have shipping included in the price! Yay!
Note to US residents: Many of my pieces have shipping included in the price! Yay!
Post-weekend
It was an interesting weekend.
On Friday, I made it to a third "collecting" post on Poppytalk! Talk about a nice way to wrap up the week. It has geared me up to get back into the studio and maybe even update my poor, languishing Etsy shop. I'd like to generate some more interest in my work online, and make an active effort to sell more. Sadly, I've gotta pay the bills somehow. What better way than to sell the work I love to make?
Speaking of which, I sold this piece over the weekend to one of my online friends! She has been collecting my work over the past few years, and since this is one of my favorite recent collages, I am happy that it will be going to live with her.
U-Men, mixed media, 9" x 10.25", 2009
And I am thrilled that the same patron has renewed my Pro account over at Flickr, which means that you can once again see all my photos, including the ART Set. I hated not having access to everything, so this is just wonderful. It's like Christmas! So thank you, J.!
***
On Saturday, I taught my collage class again—just three more sessions to go! This time I had the three students work for twenty minutes on a collage, any subject matter, any size, etc. Then, they passed their collage to the nest student, who would then work on it for another 20 minutes, adding to it however they wish, on to the next, and so on until each collage was returned to its originator. (Actually, I ended up participating in this, too, since there were just three students.)
I must say, the collages turned out fantastic, way surpassing any expectations I had myself. I will take photos and post them here this coming Saturday to share with you. I really enjoy working with my little group of teenagers and it seems like they are really opening themselves up to the hands-on process of collage, too. Can you believe that none of them had ever tried it before?
Next week, we are moving onto digital collage (sadly, I think), but I am going to encourage them to mix and match between cut and paste techniques and scanning and digital manipulation. I'm sure they will come up with some cool ideas.
***
As for me, I want to gift myself with some much-needed studio time this week.
On Friday, I made it to a third "collecting" post on Poppytalk! Talk about a nice way to wrap up the week. It has geared me up to get back into the studio and maybe even update my poor, languishing Etsy shop. I'd like to generate some more interest in my work online, and make an active effort to sell more. Sadly, I've gotta pay the bills somehow. What better way than to sell the work I love to make?
Speaking of which, I sold this piece over the weekend to one of my online friends! She has been collecting my work over the past few years, and since this is one of my favorite recent collages, I am happy that it will be going to live with her.
U-Men, mixed media, 9" x 10.25", 2009
And I am thrilled that the same patron has renewed my Pro account over at Flickr, which means that you can once again see all my photos, including the ART Set. I hated not having access to everything, so this is just wonderful. It's like Christmas! So thank you, J.!
***
On Saturday, I taught my collage class again—just three more sessions to go! This time I had the three students work for twenty minutes on a collage, any subject matter, any size, etc. Then, they passed their collage to the nest student, who would then work on it for another 20 minutes, adding to it however they wish, on to the next, and so on until each collage was returned to its originator. (Actually, I ended up participating in this, too, since there were just three students.)
I must say, the collages turned out fantastic, way surpassing any expectations I had myself. I will take photos and post them here this coming Saturday to share with you. I really enjoy working with my little group of teenagers and it seems like they are really opening themselves up to the hands-on process of collage, too. Can you believe that none of them had ever tried it before?
Next week, we are moving onto digital collage (sadly, I think), but I am going to encourage them to mix and match between cut and paste techniques and scanning and digital manipulation. I'm sure they will come up with some cool ideas.
***
As for me, I want to gift myself with some much-needed studio time this week.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Paper Puppets
I just took photos of the movable paper puppets I recently made! Here they are.
This fanciful horse is my own design, using a decorative paper that was part of paper company's promotional packet. I related the bird design to the feeling of freedom and flight I think about when I see a horse.
This colorful guy was based on a template that I found in the great book Paper Puppet Palooza by Norma V. Toraya. His outfit and faces (yes, faces!) are my own design. I was thinking initially about a vintage circus theme, and then thought back to a collage that one of my BAS students made in our first week together of a wrestler. I am interested in the colorful costumes and masks of Mexican free wrestlers, or Lucha, so I decided to use his other face to create my own, as you see in this next photo...
The figure has a double head that you can turn at the neck to switch between personalities! Very fun!
I'll be teaching a class called Artful Paper Puppets for ages 14 and up at the Buffalo Arts Studio in November. Information can be found here, just scroll down for more information. In the meantime, I'll be making many more puppets myself—they are so much fun to develop, and can be as simple or as complex as you would like!
This fanciful horse is my own design, using a decorative paper that was part of paper company's promotional packet. I related the bird design to the feeling of freedom and flight I think about when I see a horse.
This colorful guy was based on a template that I found in the great book Paper Puppet Palooza by Norma V. Toraya. His outfit and faces (yes, faces!) are my own design. I was thinking initially about a vintage circus theme, and then thought back to a collage that one of my BAS students made in our first week together of a wrestler. I am interested in the colorful costumes and masks of Mexican free wrestlers, or Lucha, so I decided to use his other face to create my own, as you see in this next photo...
The figure has a double head that you can turn at the neck to switch between personalities! Very fun!
I'll be teaching a class called Artful Paper Puppets for ages 14 and up at the Buffalo Arts Studio in November. Information can be found here, just scroll down for more information. In the meantime, I'll be making many more puppets myself—they are so much fun to develop, and can be as simple or as complex as you would like!
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