road trip ( one of two)....

I am headed to Trenton Missouri for a family reunion (on my Dad's side).  Trenton is a tiny town north east of Kansas City and I haven't been there since I was a teenager.  I'm really looking forward to catching up with distant relatives and checking out places that have lived in my memories all these years.  After the reunion events we are going to visit the town of Hannibal where Tom Sawyer took place (cue the 7 hour audio version).  When we visited when I was younger my Mom was the audio version and I do believe she read the entire book aloud on that trip!  I'll be back next week with an update on my move and a few exciting things to share.  Have a great weekend and stay cool!

wish i'd been there.....

I was talking with a good friend earlier today and she mentioned that i seem to have layers of limbo in my life at the moment ( I loved the idea of layers of limbo and pictured a scrumptious cake made up of many light moist layers, lots of fluffy frosting and maybe a bit of rasberry jam in between).  I don't really get ga-ga over cakes (or sweets for that matter) but the idea of this layered limbo cake made me happy.  Then I came across a photo of the Guggenheim and I reconfigured my layer cake into the swirling piece of art that is the Guggenheim.  Once I poured a glass of wine and actually got to reading the article I was swept away with the desire to have experienced this combination of art, music and theatre.....cheers!

i had a dream (but it wasn't mine)

This phrase has been resounding in my head since my five year old started singing it in the car last week (there was more to the made up song about not knowing whose it was or why i found it etc...)  The more I think about this idea the more meaning it takes on.  This 10 x 20 inch painting is was created using images from dreams, bits of old letters, newsprint collage and color transfer.  I have to thank Sage (my wise little one) for another beautiful bit of inspiration.

hmmm....

Today I finished preparing the landscape background for another 10" x 20" painting.  I have an idea of where I want to take this piece but am not ready to commit to it yet (I need to do a few sketches to map out the basic imagery before I start etching in and layering).  Since the conference last weekend I've found myself thinking about imagery a lot.  I think if you paint what is true your work reflects that.  For example, I've tried to paint dark and moody before but it just doesn't suit me and it always seems contrived or false.  I am drawn to images of beds and boats, landscapes and clouds and am always thinking about dreams and the bridge they form to our subconscious.   The work I've created around these themes (the stargazers, the jars etc...) have been my favorites and ring most true.  I'll share the progress on this piece after the weekend (and will properly thank my little source of inspiration).  

The last two photos are more experiments with paper and wax.  They are both encaustic monotypes (which involves painting the wax onto a flat heated surface and layig the paper on top to absorb the wax and make a one of a kind print).  The second one was produced in the same way as the first but then I flipped the paper over and  ironed the back side (with my new encaustic iron) until the wax soaked thru completely (so you are looking at the back of the print but i rather like it!). 

 I've got to get some kiddos in bed so they can get up for the last day of school...sweet dreams!

The conference (aka: the motherlode)

                 paper and wax play well together...who knew?

My head is still spinning from the 3rd annual Encaustic Conference at Montserrat College of Art which I attended this past weekend. Approximately 250 artists (mostly women (as in 98% women)) from 8 different countries gathered to wax poetic for three days and nights.  Barbara O'Brien was an inspired choice for the keynote speaker to kick things off friday evening and her honesty, intelligence and humor set the tone for the weekend.  Over three days I learned about working large, working on paper, monotypes, framing, transfers, development of imagery and the use of wax in artist books.  The amount of information and inspiration I gleaned from my teachers and fellow students was truly a gift.  I am working to make sense of all my notes and ideas and plan to copy them into a journal while they are all still fresh in my mind.  I kept bumping into the idea of working on paper and so today I spent a wee bit of time in the studio working on wee bits of paper shown above ( 2" x 3" artist cards to be precise)...very interesting indeed!

ps:  at the conference i purchased a small fusing iron ( woohoo! i will share the sure to be interesting (meaning messy) results later in the week!)

never one for leaving well enough alone....

Sometimes I make up things to do.  It's not as if there isn't enough going on around here but I get something in my head and a day is gone. So here you have the 24 hour transformation of our 4th bedroom.  My fingers still aren't working very well after using 2 cans of primer and 7 cans of spray paint to give new life into this beadboard bed and an old dresser but I'm quite happy with the outcome.  Tomorrow I head to Beverly, MA for an encaustic conference at The Montserrat College of Art ( I am so excited...three whole days of art!)  Have a great weekend!

PS:   My newest painting  turned out to be the perfect compliment to the Denyse Schmidt quilt I had in the linen closet...

Clarity

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Look up clarity in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Clarity is the property of being clear or transparent.

Clarity can refer to one's ability to clearly visualize an object or concept, as in thought, understanding, and the "mind's eye", as well as the traditional notion of visual perception, that is, with the actual eyes. Clarity may also refer more broadly to 'perspicacity', the Zen concept of 'no mind', or other terms denoting general clear and unperplexed cognition.

I love the water and am happy to be back at the lake and under it's spell for another season.  When your feet enter the water the sand and silt are stirred up and the water ripples but after a few minutes of stillness it all settles back down and there is clarity (crystal clear see the rocks and minnows clarity) until you move again and then there is dust and confusion and then clarity again.  The woman in this painting stands with her feet in the water staring into the night sky and it is there in the water that she feels most connected to the earth. 

Sweet Dreams.....

(PS:  she is 10" x 20" and she'll be in the shop next week once i frame her....)