Dec. 26, 2017 collage mixed media on paper 5x8" I did manage to get one small collage done between Christmas and New Year's Day, when I always think I have lots of time to create but in reality have very little. I still have today and tomorrow, so let's see if I can make it happen once more in 2017. Fingers crossed, but no promises. I did go out to my studio yesterday to put something away and retrieve a mug of tea that had been out there for several days. Although I had another appointment that would keep me from working in the studio I did linger a few minutes. ...fingering through the tray of collage materials I keep by my work station. ....tidying up the brushes, pencils, and pens. ...eyeing possible materials to use as the first layer in the next collage. I sincerely hope I can make it into the studio for one more small collage before the ball drops on Times Square moving us all into 2108. www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Writings devoted to the ways in which materials and techniques affect my art process.
Sun Series #1
Saturday, December 30, 2017
Before the Ball Drops
Wednesday, December 27, 2017
The Challenges of Time
Mining the Sketchbook no 2: Time mixed media collage with found clocks 36x16x8" Finally I was able to amass the kind and various sizes of clocks to complete this piece. The issue of time has been constant throughout my journal writings and art work over the years. It is still my biggest challenge... having enough time to make work, the amount of time it takes to do certain processes, managing art time in conjunction with what I like to call life maintenance, all the glamourless and thankless jobs that we do day in and day out, over and over again. Some of the time references above are pretty straightforward and universally understood... Big Ben, clock gears, wrist/pocket watches, the marking of time on a wall. Others are more personal time references. The element that is missing from this work is sound - the repetitive ticking of those clocks. I am working on that. www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Tuesday, December 26, 2017
End of the Year Thoughts
Dec. 16, 2017 mixed media almost daily collage 5x8" Sometimes I find it difficult to make work during the holiday. To paraphrase something my friend Faye said the other day, "It's as if we have to push everyone we know and all of the celebrating into a an 8 day period between Christmas and New Year." So with all of the cooking and shopping, the visiting and good-cheering there is little time for the studio. I also have to add in the fact that my studio is cold on days when it is below freezing, even though I have heat in there. That being said, I do try to make something on a regular basis. That makes these small collages perfect for this hectic holiday season. This one is from before Christmas and I hope to post a few more (okay, one for sure!) before 2018. Happy Holidays! www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Monday, December 25, 2017
Monday, December 18, 2017
Third Time's the Charm
Dec. 6, 2017 Collage |
Dec. 7, 2017 Collage |
Dec. 8, 2017 Collage mixed media collage 5x8" each |
These three collages were made from an older collage that I deemed unsuccessful.
As I cut the older piece into the 5x8" pieces I am using for my "almost daily collages" I realized that there was another older work on the back of this piece as well.
So now I am reworking this piece of paper for a third time!
What I had to work with after I cut the old collage into the 5x8" rectangles was a rich dark brown painted background with some strong black circular shapes.
The apple shapes came from a paper I found in my stash of possible collage papers. Also incorporated are bits of rusted papers, an eco printed paper in the the Dec. 7th collage, and in the bottom piece a section of silk screened fabric.
I had so much fun with these and they seemed to take on a life of their own.
I liked the way the oil crayons responded to the dark brown acrylic paint layer.
I enjoyed incorporating the fragments of the black circles that remained after I adhered the apple collage elements.
The marks on the deconstructed silk screen fabric found their way from the
fabric into the fruit.
Loving this color palette!
I just put these pieces on my website.
And I am now selling my artwork directly from my website.
These 3 pieces would make a wonderful grouping matted, framed and hung together in a
small intimate space.
They are $15 each and you can find them in the Mixed Media Gallery under
Until January 20, 2018 I am offering 10% off any work on my site and free shipping!
I hope you will take a look at my newly reorganized website.
Follow me on Instagram!
Friday, December 8, 2017
Mining the Sketchbook
"Mining the Sketchbook no. 1: Balance" 25 x 16" mixed media collage on paper The other day I was looking for something in the cupboard where I keep my sketchbooks. I don't remember what I was looking for, but before I knew it I was lost in going through my sketchbooks and thinking about ideas that never came to fruition, ideas that shouldn't ever be realized and noticing common themes in the drawings, ideas, and notes over the years. This brought me to reviewing works that I did make from either the drawings or notes, still recognizing common themes. From that I began this work about aspects of balance. There are some new additions to what I found in the sketchbook but the theme was definitely in the dress drawing on the top left and the dress and scales on the bottom of the work. The elephant and the man balancing on the high wire are new more concrete references to balance. I was thinking about these two separate pages as if they were sketchbook pages but with a little more finesse. While the writing or quotes weren't in my sketchbook, I feel they reflect more directly the ideas surrounding balance, both in my work and my thought process. Even the way the two pages are composed, one in its proper orientation and one on its side, are about balance. www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Monday, December 4, 2017
Award Winning Art!
"Six Degrees of Separation" mixed media: portraits on tea bags Just got a Second Place award for this work...100 tea bags with portraits addressing the idea of how close we all are to each other whether we realize it or not. Thanks MassMu! The work in the show is diverse in media and execution. It is up until January 31, 2018. Check it out! Massillon Museum 121 Lincoln Way East Massillon OH www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
Photocopies, Bleached Paper, and Remnants
Almost Daily Collages mixed media on paper 5x8" On my work table in my studio I have this tray of papers and materials that I have working from for the past several months From time to time I add more bits and pieces. I enjoy sifting through these remnants, seeing what I can do with them. Often the work is sparked by the new additions, but the pieces on the bottom of the pile also hold some fodder for inspiration. For these two pieces I spied, not in the tray but laying on top of my printer, an accordion fold book I had made comprised of rusted and stained papers with some leaves attached. I decided to photocopy it and work with what I got. This was the new addition to that day's work. It is amazing how the photocopied image in black and white took on another persona. (If leaves and stitching on paper can have a persona.) The light marks on the black paper in the bottom piece were made by bleaching the paper. That particular piece has been the tray of materials for months. And I am pretty sure I made it 2 years ago as an example of bleaching for a class I was going to teach. There wasn't much of it. But I knew I shouldn't / couldn't throw it out. Glad I had it in that pile of collage materials. www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Wednesday, November 22, 2017
Thanksgiving
Sunday, November 12, 2017
The Weight of Words
Those of you who know me know that I am the least likely person to be censored.
People often tell me that some of my work has an edginess to it or that it strikes a sad or emotional note. But it does not come off as offensive.
But...I was recently accepted to an exhibit only to be told before the show opened that the words in the work were inappropriate for that venue. They were very gracious about it and adamant that my work be included if I could some way remove the words or change the words or cover the words. The concept centered on name calling, bullying and the kind of words that cause emotional pain. The ethereal and innocent look of the piece belied the words the viewer confronted when coming in for a closer look. It had an impact. It was powerful.
The piece had been exhibited several other times without the censorship I now faced. I do understand that the appropriateness of the work is subject to the venue and the kinds of clientele that will see the work. I had a short time in which to decide what I would do.
Should I just pull the work from the show and be done with it?
What kind of change can I make without changing the original intent?
Am I caving in or am I compromising?
Do I even want to compromise?
I talked with my husband who also is an artist. I talked with another artist friend who is familiar with me, my work and my philosophy about making work. If I change the work have I lost the initial powerful piece? Can I substitute other words that will still convey my intent and cause the viewer to think about words that are damaging, hurtful and can't be unheard?
In the end I did find a compromise. I substituted words that addressed the emotions one might feel when being called names instead of using the actual offensive words. Because the words were attached to the larger part of the work and could be removed I did not undermine the major part of the work. The new words replaced the original one and I now have two works that address this issue. I feel the piece lost some of its impact but it still causes the viewer to think about the name calling, bullying and the hurt that verbal abuse can cause.
I feel okay with my decision to compromise because the message is still out there.
I am wearing my censorship as a kind of badge of honor
ever conscious of the weight of words.
Wednesday, November 1, 2017
Visit the Christkindl Markt Nov. 10-12!
"Flower Girl" mixed media collage 12 x 9" framed $200 |
Daily Collage mixed media 5x8" unframed $15 |
Daily Collage mixed media 5x8" unframed $15 See more on my website! |
Sunday, October 29, 2017
Defining Anonymous
"Defining Anonymous" mixed media sculpture 18x16x6" This is the fourth and last piece in my Anonymous Series. Not for lack of ideas or way to continue but because this body of work hinges on that blue and white quilt which has very little left to give. In this work I was grappling with the ideas of identity. Identity of unknown quilt makers. Identity of quilts that were unsigned, undated. And the transience of identity when one thing becomes another thing. Initially a blue quilt that I owned made by an unknown woman (most probably a woman) was deconstructed and remade into an object that was more akin to a collage or painting. A work that hung on the wall. While I am more than aware of the 1970's installation of Amish quilts that were hung in an art gallery in New York City creating the first public awareness of "quilt as art object", my intention was to go beyond that concept. To create a work that used a quilt, or parts of a quilt, both front and back, inside and outside as collage material for a 2D work that would be more related to painting than quilt. Changing the identity of quilt as functional bed covering to an identity more closely aligned with painting. There are three of these quilt-become-paintings in the series. (See March 3, March 12 and March 25 posts to view this work) While they definitely read, to me at least, more as a painting object, their quilt-ness is still quite prevalent. My intention was not to delete their relationship to quilt but to distill it into an unexpected form. The next step seemed to be to make the work sculptural. There is a solidity to "Defining Anonymous" that is not present in the previous three pieces. As a sculpture it inhabits 3D space, as it's presence reaches out away from the wall. It is solid and heavy. It has an interior that is both inviting and mysterious. There is a strong reference to quilt in the folds and the way it seems to still want to be a functional object. Yet there is a strength of character, if you will, that transcends the ideas one associates with quilt. Have I changed this blue quilt's identity in this work or the previous three pieces enough to go beyond the functional, traditional notion of a quilt? Or have I just reinforced the true nature of a quilt that offers /suggests comfort, home, tradition. For me the transience of identity is in the change from traditional functional bed covering to three dimensional wall sculpture that certainly references the blue quilt's past, suggesting comfort and perhaps an essence of memory but establishing its own character as an art object. www.claremurrayadams.com Want to receive these posts in your email inbox? Just use the "Follow by Email" box at the top right of the page to sign up. Thanks! |
Monday, October 23, 2017
Rusting, Burning, and Printing...Oh My!
Oct. 17, 2017 collage mixed media on paper 5x8" |
Oct. 22, 2017 collage mixed media on paper 5x8" I am loving working with these rusted and eco printed papers. It is pushing my color choices and my thought process. Both of these pieces have a section of a bright pink paper that I bought some time ago and just never used. This particular pink is not in my usual color palette but I bought it because I liked the metallic silver chandeliers that are printed on it. Of course you don't see any chandeliers on these pieces, in part because the sections I used are small and also because I think I may have used the reverse side of the paper here. I rusted the paper and now really like its look and texture. Also incorporated in both pieces are some eco printed papers and some areas that have been burned with a wood burning tool. The rich dark brown areas are from the black walnut dye Robbie Grodin made. We tested the dye last week and it is already to go for the workshop on Oct. 29 at her studio. Come join us for the fun. Just click Robbie's name above and it will take you to her site. You can see more small collages incorporating eco prints, black walnut dye and rusting along with other process and materials on my web site. http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Tuesday, October 17, 2017
Eco printed greeting cards dyed in black walnut dye bath!
We have a black walnut tree in our back yard. The squirrels usually get the benefit of the nuts as they are difficult to shell and turn your hands black. I guess the squirrels don't care about black hands!
And neither did my mother!
Mom would often go to my grandfather's home to gather black walnuts which she loved and used in baking. That's a lot of work Mom! She also used the stain from the nuts to touch up nicks on the furniture. My interest in the past few years for these nuts is the beautiful dark brown dye they make.
Enter Robbie Grodin, owner of Alpaca Fiber Studio in Chagrin Falls OH.
After meeting Robbie Grodin this past summer, we struck up a friendship based on the many interests we have in common. She took my encaustic on paper class. Soon I will be taking her eco printing class where we will use botanicals to print designs on silk scarves. And finally we will be teaching together, combining her knowledge and love of eco printing on fabric with my love of that same technique on paper.
All of the images in this post are of eco prints on paper, some in a black walnut dye bath and others just steamed with the botanicals releasing their tannins to make beautiful prints on the paper.
You can see the effects on the scarves by visiting Robbie's Alpaca Fiber Studio.
Come join us for the fun on October 29th from 9AM-3PM!
You will walk away with a scarf to wear and some papers to use as cards or as inspiration for other artwork. And with a whole lot of new knowledge about working with all of the gifts Mother Nature offers us.
Signing up is easy: Just go to Alpaca Fiber Studio and you can sign up on line.
Sunday, October 15, 2017
Thanks Oklahoma Arts Institute!
Last weekend I was thrilled to be teaching a mixed media collage workshop at Oklahoma Arts Institute at Quartz Mountain. I had a wonderful experience which can be contributed to the fabulous staff who organize this event, the incredible teaching faculty they pulled together and the creative and talented teachers from the Oklahoma school systems.
We started out working on small pieces where everyone had the same collage materials to which they could add other elements. From there some began to work larger and from their own imagery and ideas making work that was narrative and personal.
All of the pieces pictured here are from the participants in my mixed media class. I can't show all the work they did but wanted to share with you the great variety of styes and final products they created. Thank you all for making my weekend at OAI so memorable!
www.oaiquartz.org
We started out working on small pieces where everyone had the same collage materials to which they could add other elements. From there some began to work larger and from their own imagery and ideas making work that was narrative and personal.
All of the pieces pictured here are from the participants in my mixed media class. I can't show all the work they did but wanted to share with you the great variety of styes and final products they created. Thank you all for making my weekend at OAI so memorable!
www.oaiquartz.org
Thursday, October 12, 2017
Keeping Up With It All
Untitled collage mixed media collage on paper 5x8" Some times it is hard to get it all done...the social networking, blogging, art making, marketing, teaching, gardening, house keeping, putting by the produce from the garden. The list goes on. So some of the items from above get neglected. It seems that I concentrate on one or two of these aspects of my creative life and let others slide by. For awhile it was the Instagramming that got neglected. I have barely looked at Facebook in at least a month. And this blog has also suffered from my lack of attention. But the garden is beginning to wind down, although these warm October days are keeping things going longer than usual. I am seeing that I will have more studio time and hopefully more time to write, both here and in my journal ( another neglected element). I love all these aspects of my life. But I need to put some perspective on some of what I do and perhaps narrow down my expectations for what I can accomplish and accomplish well. Fall is a good time to "fall back and regroup", assessing how I can keep up with it all. Or perhaps find those things that are the most relevant and keep up with those. Lest you think that blogging is one of the elements that I will terminate, I am here to tell you that I am not ready to give this up. I find that it allows me to make some of my inner musings more concrete through the act of writing or typing. It is a way to sort my thoughts, prioritize, clear my head, prep for the day. The blogging may be less often, but I need it in my daily ritual. www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
A Change in Seasons
Sept. 5 Collage mixed media on paper 5x8" Notice that these new small collages aren't titled; instead just dated? I think I am revisiting the idea of making small collages on a regular basis. Probably without the pressure of making one every day but perhaps beginning my studio time with a small collage as a warm-up. While my original collage-a-day series had lots of recognizable imagery, these pieces are definitely more abstract and non-objective...not always totally without imagery but leaning toward layering and transparency in the compositions that become more important than any recognizable thing that might also be there. I have been doing a lot of rusting of papers and those pieces are appearing in the work. It is black walnut season here on the farm, so eco dyed papers and fabrics will probably be making an appearance as well. The change in seasons is good for me. I can shift my thoughts and my working time from outdoor work to being in the studio more regularly. At least that is the plan. I will be taking these small collages to Christkindl Art Fair in Canton in November. But if you want one now just email me and I will send you an invoice for paypal payment on line. $15 each www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
When In Doubt...
September 4 mixed media collage on paper 5x8" |
September 6 mixed media collage on paper 5x8" When in doubt...make a collage! That is my "go to" medium for getting back into the swing of things Or when time is short. Or when I need a gentle push to get back into the studio. So these two were last week's gentle push in a week when I had little time to work. I will be taking these to Christkindl Art Fair in Canton in November. But if you want one now just email me and I will send you an invoice for paypal payment on line. $15 each www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Wednesday, September 6, 2017
The Promise of Fall
an untitled small collage 5x8" As summer winds down and fall enters, I find a renewed sense of purpose that makes working in the studio the priority. Studio work is always on my mind but not always the work that I do. Summer was full of work in the garden and teaching opportunities. While I couldn't always get into my studio, I was thinking about my art and doing what I like to call "making art in my head". Working small allows me to create something that has immediate gratification. It also allows me to work up to some larger more time consuming pieces. I look forward to a fall routine that finds me putting the garden to rest and opening the doors of my studio with regularity making both small pieces and larger works created in my own voice... mixed media collage with an emphasis on "mixed". Thanks for waiting patiently for me to return to blogging. I always appreciate your comments. www.claremurrayadams.com http://instagram.com/claremurrayadams I |
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Before and After
"Notes to Self no. 3" (before) 30 x 22" mixed media |
"Notes to Self no. 3" (reworked) 30 x 22' mixed media This is the third piece in my series of expressive or automatic drawings. The one on top seemed a little too safe as if I didn't go far enough. So I went back into it with more brown conte crayon, black colored pencil, black paint and of course lots of white. I am happier with the reworked piece, although there might be no end to this process. www.claremurrayadams.com https://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Thursday, July 6, 2017
My Brain's Desire
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
From the Garden / From the Studio
Perennial Garden with Vintage Chair Back |
Sewing Ritual encaustic monotype and collage on paper with hand stitching 5x5" My time is split, and not evenly split, between working in the gardens and my studio. I am still working on the sewing ritual series. At this point there are 25 pieces that I plan to sew together. I have a few more of the individual pieces to hand stitch and then I can arrange them making one larger overall piece. Presentation of this will take some thought. It will depend upon how transparent the final work is and whether it is important to see that transparency in a 2D work that needs to be mounted to something. Mat board? Framed? Free floating? TBD Some of these small pieces are taking on a landscape feel, as this one does. That is kind of unavoidable once you emphasis a horizontal line that becomes that separation between land and sky or sea and sky. The sewing is totally intuitive and playful. As I was thinking about the work this morning it is also somewhat quilt like with these individual blocks that have a common color palette but random stitching. Fingers crossed that they will be a cohesive work in the end! www.claremurrayadams.com https://instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Saturday, June 24, 2017
New Garden Fence!!
Old Garden Fence |
New Garden Fence Early in the Spring, I asked my husband if he would make me a new garden gate. The current one was pretty wonky and had a huge gap at the bottom...easy access for the bunnies. You can see in the top picture the window screen that I used to block that gap. He did my request one better. He ordered a whole new fence with rabbit guard wiring attached. We had a larger area enclosed than the previous garden. It included along with the raised beds and blackberry bushes some young blueberry bushes that were in wire cages and his two year old persimmon trees. Also enclosed at the back is my compost bins. I loved the fence made from trees cut from the woods on our property, but that fence was 12 years old and beginning to deteriorate. We decided to keep the tall pergola that was what the the old gate was attached to and also the wrought iron fencing at the back of the garden. The new fencing looks great! The gate is easy open, easy close and rabbit secure. Thanks John!! I'm sure the garden is doing so well (knock on wood) in part due to the new fence. Or at least that is what I want to believe. www.claremurrayadams.com www.instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Saturday, June 17, 2017
Ohio Collage Society Exhibit
"Flower Girl"
mixed media encaustic and collage on paper
10x13"
This piece is part of the current Ohio Collage Society 's Annual member exhibit.
I was lucky enough to receive an award for it and have it pictured in a review in the Akron Beacon Journal. The article was written by Anderson Turner, Director of Kent State University's Galleries.
Thanks Ohio Collage Society and juror Arnie Turnstall, Director of Galleries for Akron University Myers School of Art. for the recognition!
The link to the article is below.
Thursday, June 15, 2017
Encaustic Vessels
"Old Testament" encaustic on paper with collage (from left to right: Lot's Wife, Adam and Eve, Jezebel, Abel, David) These vessels made with encaustic collage on paper will be on display at the Morgan (www.morganconservatory.org) as part of their Workshop Instructors' Exhibit from June 23-July 29, 2017. I will be teaching encaustic on paper techniques at the Morgan July29-30th. It is always fun to teach or take a workshop at the Morgan. Great people, great place, great learning experience. The show opens on Friday June 23 with an artist talk by some of the exhibiting instructors at 7:00 PM. Maybe I will see you there! www.claremurrayadams.com www.instagram.com/claremurrayadams |
Thursday, June 8, 2017
"Housecoat"
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
More "Sewing Ritual" Pieces
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