Ribbit, ribbit!

Day 5 of photo challenge.

The frogs have been myteriously sitting like this for awhile now. They are supposed to be perched around the bird bath, but between the birds, Gilligan (the cat who has claimed us as his people!), the deer and raccoons the frogs are constantly knocked off of the rim. The mystery? How did they end up in such a perfect pose? I doubt that I could have posed them any better than this!

(Yes, I know that I left the "r" out of turn. There are flaws in most of the scans, it's just my way of insuring
my copyright. Some flaws are more obvious than others.)

Photo Challenge

I haven't been able to tame the ivy from popping through the boards on the gate. The gate could use some paint; actually, I prefer the aged look!

"Youth is the gift of Nature, but age is a work of art." Garson Kanin

May your days be filled with art!

Photo Challenge

I believe that if you can't photograph your surroundings in an exciting and expressive way it won't matter how far you travel to photograph; the subject matter may be different but without acute obserservation a change in locale won't improve your photography. I also believe that we should occasionally observe our surroundings with a "fresh eye." Become a tourist in your own house or town!

Outside of few day trips this summer I don't have any major vacation plans so it's the perfect time to concentrate on making "anew" what is in my own backyard. The photos on the left were shot on the 16-18th ; the "712" is obviously a house number. The rocks are of my fireplace and I sort of cheated on the bottom photo, but the crate is in my yard! A friend gave me a crate with peeling paper on it and it's a treasure!

Not only is the challenge to photograph something every day for awhile but to do something with the photographs. The 3 images on the left were used in the manipulated photo on the right.

Mandala

The waterfall photo was shot at the Hakone Japanese Garden in Saratoga. A little manipulation and viola! A Mandala!

The text says: According to Jung, the mandala is the ultimate symbol of well-being and wholeness.
The bottom text: The mandala is an ancient pattern that has a specific center, and concentric rings that emanate from the center.

Not all mandalas seem to be based on the belief above. I added a touch of light emanating from the center. The photos shot at the garden on July 7 were previsualized, something I hadn't done in quite awhile. I knew exactly why I took each of them. Previsualization makes working on photos even more exciting than the moment they were taken!

Hwy 156

The day, June 30, I shot this I had no idea what the night held for me! This shot can only be taken from a moving car and I've tried for years to get it. The road is narrow, busy and the speed is normally about 65, but on that day we were able to slow down to about 45. I had rolled the window down and my friend, the driver, said, "now," and I clicked! I'm pretty happy with it.

On that Friday we were on our way to San Juan Bautista for lunch at our favorite German restuarant and after I shot the above photo I thought the day would continue to be perfect. The weather in San Juan was a perfect 85 with a slight breeze. Lunch was great and browsing through a couple of antiques shop turned up a post card of a man riding in a carriage. In another shop I purchased a printing block with a motif design.

At about 10pm I was downloading some photos when the computer froze and then delivered a message on the screen letting me know that Windows had shut down to protect the computer from further damage. I had no idea what that meant but when I couldn't reboot I knew in the place where we sometimes know things we don't want to know that the computer had crashed big time! The next evening at 4:45 I got the word from a guy at PC People that I had been right and of course I hadn't backed up anything in about 2 years! Hysteria!

A week later the computer has a new hard drive and I can honestly say that life feels a little bit lighter now that there isn't so much stuff on the computer! Maybe it was a good thing to lose so much of my work. I had no idea that it was dragging me down. 

Mixed Media Explorations - continued

The Blues - Altered image of one of my art dolls.

Gleaned from "Mixed Media Explorations." When a theme or a glimmer of an idea strikes start with a color palette. Paint/dye papers and fabric. Choose purchased paper and fabrics in the same palette.

Hand made embellishments mixed with a few purchased ones make a piece more personal. Purchased embellishments can be altered with paint and thread; altering embellishments helps them blend into the piece rather than distract from it. Try using purchased embellisments in unusual ways.

Dimensional ephemera, can be as simple as buttons, charms, or air dry clay castings. When considering textural elements, think cheesecloth, netting, mesh, and molding paste spread onto paper and fabric with a palette knife.

Hand stitching can tie a piece together in ways that a sewing machine can't. Use metallic thread, cords and ribbons.

Collect motif ephemera. Once you start a selected motif collection your work will take on a personal style.

What I learned from "Mixed Media Explorations."

Plum Crazy - revisited! A friend asked if I could create a card using one of my art dolls.

When I finish reading a new book I often review it by making notes about what I've learned from the book, or what I'd like to experiment with or in some cases jot down reminders of things I've forgotten.

Beryl Taylor's book "Mixed Media Explorations" is a book that has haunted me since it arrived from Amazon a few weeks ago! Her work is completely different from mine and I have no desire to copy her style, but there is something so engaging about her color palettes, use of simple materials, and approach that I knew I could learn something if I spent some time with the book.

So, this is what I've jotted down.
We all have "early years" on our creative journey. And if we change mediums we go through another "early years" phase.
Beryl grew up in England during the same years I was growing up in the US. We both made our clothes and we both discovered creative embroidery and while I dabbled with it Beryl studied at City and Guild. It was through C&G that her love of fabric blended with creative embroidery fell into place.

We're all inspired by different things and that once our imagination is sparked we should keep it fired by feeding it accordingly.
Listen to music that inspires and surround ourselves with exciting visuals. Beryl is fond of the Medieval period. Her favorite motifs are hearts and fleur-di-lis. (Mine aren't)

Beryl agrees with me about the importance of carrying a digital camera with you. You never know what might spark an idea.

She also believes like I do that it's a good idea to spend time experimenting with new techniques and materials. Keep good notes; you never know when a touch of a technique might be the start of a new piece or the perfect finishing touch. Practice new techniques by creating small projects such as ATC's, postcards, cards etc.

Paper really does complement fabric and vice versa!

Learn some hand embroidery stitches which will add character to both paper and fabric.

Some Fun Supplies Are:
Hot water-soluble fabric
Model Magic by crayola
Wonder-under is wonderful!
Kraft paper and tissue paper
Water-soluble paper by Solvy makes great paper castings

Beryl's intricate looking pieces are actually lots of small pieces that are combined! It's her attention to detail and layers that is truly innovative.

to be continued . . .

Blahs!

I have one of the worst cases of blahs* that I've had in a very long time! I can't shake off what this FM flare-up is doing to me physically and mentally. Thoughts fly out of my brain as soon as they enter. The pain keeps me awake most of the night and stands in front of me during the day like a prickly stabbing shield. I can't break through the shield so the days become endless and unbearable as I watch them slip away from me. A day not filled with creative pursuits always seems to feel like a wasted day. I know that this won't last, it never does, but when the fare-ups last for a few weeks I mourn the end of each unfulfilled day . . . But, even in the midst of the blahs I wake up optimistic each day. I am a realist, this is what my life is, has been, and will be until it's over; life with a dysfunctional immune system that attacks itself without any reason. I have discovered that the grieving process is the road back to coping mentally. I also know that if I skip this process it will take me longer to break through the shield.

*Blah - lacking interest or general dissatisfation. This sure fits!

(Photo: Close-up of a cactus with script overlay.)

Something exciting is on the horizon! A long-time member of ExpressionVillage has volunteered to be the first Artist-in-Residence! Ginger's enthusiasm is infectious and couldn't come at a better time. Her gift to the group is a life-saver while I find my way back to a better place health-wise. Please check out her work at:
http://gingerfied.blogspot.com/ And if you'd like to join us click on ExpressionVillage under links on this blog.

Abstract Cactus

Abstract cactus! This was taken with the mini digital Innovage camera mentioned below. It's a white thorny cactus with red flowers and doesn't look much like this photo.

Cactus Flower

I never remember to photograph this 24-hour bloom that a rather mundane cactus produces a couple of times a year. In the mail today was a nifty 5-inch Vanguard tripod I ordered a couple of days ago. It helps to steady the digital camera for close-ups!! The top two photos were taken with the digital and the bottom one with my mini digital toy camera! I couldn't resist a key chain camera when I saw it advertised on Overstock.com a couple of months ago. If you love the uncertainity, playful, arty-type photos that toy, Lomo or Holgas take then an Innovage is for you! You might get a sharp image like the flower, but more often than not there will be some uncontrollable vignetting and peculiar lighting.

I had considered purchasing one of the Polariod toy-type cameras, but I love the frugality of non-film cameras! Though, this little camera does eat up the AAA batteries!

San Juan Bautista

Under the distressed transparency there is a chicken on the lower right corner. I couldn't resist putting the chicken into this piece, after all the chicken modeled for me! No matter how many times I photograph the Mission at San Juan Bautista I end up with something new.

I'm not sure that I like this piece as it looks derivative . . .

Crow Response!

This photo is my take on the glut of crow images in mixed media work! It's like the dunce caps, crowns and wings on people; I wonder when this craze will end. I also wonder if imitation is always flattering? Do people really need to soar with wings on them? Do they really need caps and crowns on their heads? Crows aren't all that exciting, are they? This one is a thief who often flies off with items from my front yard. He loves nothing better than to sit on the chimney and wait for me to go indoors so he can steal again. Mmmmm, well maybe crows do symbolize something in an odd and curious way . . . This thief did sneak his way into my work a few posts ago!

Two days later from Robert Genn's "Twice Weekley Letter." "Work in series so paintings come out of themselves. Cruise your work-in-progress for new motifs or designs. Name and claim your particular methods and touches." And, "Original styles start with understanding that art is not necessarily what is seen--but what is to be seen."

New motifs and designs!

A Glimpse of Venice

Every summer my thoughts fly off to Europe! Memories of sitting at the Cafe Florian in the Piazza San Marco as the setting sun cast shadows on the Basicila was one of the grandest moments . . .

Details: the background is a Citra-solv paper with layers of monoprinting, embossed metal and a transparency of an image of the Basicila.

Embossed Metal ATC's

2 embossed metal ATC's for trade. The one on the left, with a rubber stamp image in the center, is an abstract and the one on the right is a village, in case you couldn't figure out what they are! The background paper is the infamous Citra-solv technique.

I'm feeling a bit introspective.

"When we set goals, we are looking for a particular event to occur. That is, we have defined a specific outcome we are looking to achieve…When you are not looking for a specific outcome (Goal-Free Living), but instead are open to any outcome that could be of interest, the likelihood of a synchronistic event happening is very high.”
Stephen Shapiro

Stephen's blog:

http://www.goalfree.com/

When my energy levels are at minus zilch I love to go blogging!

Sarah Fishburn http://ragtagsf.blogspot.com/
Karen Michel http://alteredimagery.blogspot.com/
Kris Hendersonhttp://brain-bubbles.blogspot.com/
Lesley Riley http://myartheart.blogspot.com/
http://www.kerismith.com/blog/
Nina Bagleyhttp://ornamental.typepad.com/
http://birdinthehand.typepad.com/

The Perfect Pose!

The perfect pose! I was photographing a window in San Juan Bautista when my friend said, "I think that chicken wants you to take a photo." The chicken stood perfectly posed for an entire minute and then strutted off to the deep shade of tree as if to say, "You nearly missed my greatness!"

Even though San Juan Bautista is less than an hours drive from home, psychologically it's a vacation!

Metal Weaving #2

I liked the first metal weaving (March 13) so much that I created another one. This one has an embossed tag in the center. The image is a rubber stamp of the Eiffel Tower. I've been dreaming about standing below it again! Twice wasn't enough.

Paris

This piece is "loosely" based on the Texture Background Technique in "Cloth Paper Scissors" issue #7. The altered image of a mannequin reminded me of some I had seen in windows in Paris. Other than acrylic paints
the only other medium used was rubber stamps.

Links

These ought to keep everyone busy for awhile!

http://whipup.net/
http://www.m-roberts.com/home.html
http://lafeecoriandre.blogspot.com/
http://artwordsclan.blogspot.com/
http://drawdaily.blogspot.com/
http://www.durochers.org/journal/
http://lindart.blogspot.com/
http://www.almastoller.blogspot.com/

Faux Tintype

Faux tintype, metal fragment, tissue paper fragment on a color wash tissue background. The tintype was published along with my article on "Faux Tintypes" in the Spring issue of "Artitude," #20.

Plum Crazy

I'm feeling "Plum Crazy" right now! I have no idea why I agreed to do a garage sale with my landlady! The next 3 weeks will be taken up with sorting, cleaning out and getting ready for it! And then once it's over I know that it will take at least a week to recuperate; stress like this takes a toll on my health, so I usually guard against doing things like this.

"Plum Crazy" is one of my latest P-Gian replicas. I will be posting about the P-Gian's of Sea Wind Country, a mythical place, soon . . .

Later: it's up:
http://p-gians.blogspot.com/

Found Object Assemblage

Assemblage made from items found around my house and in my stash! The wood is an old roof shingle, the leaf is one I dried last year, the oak twig and moss floated into my yard during a storm, and the cast polymer clay face is set on recycled metal. The assemblage was photographed on moss covered bricks just outside the front door.

Weather Report

Weather Report - Rain, rain and more rain!
I photographed a crow on the fence near my front door who was attempting to look un- interested in the cat food I leave by the door. An abandoned cat has adopted us. Knowing that the background was going to be unsightly I also photographed the outdoor thermometer. With a little manipulation, viola!

Assemblages

Assemblages.
Cast polymer faces, distressed and embossed metal on canvas boards.

Q. P-Gian

Newly listed on my picturetrail.
Update 3/24: "Q. P-Gian." Sold.

Faux Tintypes

New collage elements listed on etsy.com. Manipulated photos on distressed recycled metal.
(The one on the left sold on etsy and the right one sold on my Picture Trail.)

Acetone transfers

Acetone transfers. On the left a map was aged with paint staining, coffee and chalk pastels before the image was transferred.

Paint stained, rubber stamped newspaper was prepared before the application of the transfer.

Dreamer

Dreamer is created from polymer clay in colors of turquoise, bronze, yellow and gold and is adhered to recycled metal. The background is one of many techniques I'm currently working on.
(Sold.)

Metal Weaving

Metal weaving on a new background technique I'm working on. I like the uneveness of the metal strips.

Leaf Study

Digital close-up of a leaf on distressed metal. Detail embossed.