The Beauty of Working Small

Untitled
6x6"
mixed media collage on wood

As I move into the new year I have several art commitments coming up as well as a trip to New York City, so
I am once again working small and on a variety of ideas and imagery.
I have not forsaken the "Botanist's Journal Series".
I am still working on those pieces, just mixing it up a bit.
Actually the flower in this piece is from a copy of one of the Botany pieces (see Golden Poppy, Dec. 14 post).
Look for this new small piece on Etsy after the New Year.

There is something very satisfying about working small.
 Immediate results and a sense of accomplishment that often takes so long to achieve when working larger.
It also allows one to try new techniques or colors, imagery or abstraction and then analyze what works and what doesn't.
Just what I need right now.

A Blog Worthy Demo

Paisley
6x6" encaustic painting

Last Thursday and Friday I was teaching an encaustic painting class.  As a part of the class I did a few demos of  various encaustic techniques.  Usually my demos aren't anything to write home about. Or in this case to write a blog about.  But this particular demo had some potential and above is the final result.
The paisley design came from a sheer fabric that I adhered to demonstrate the use of fabrics when working with encaustic.  Some of the other techniques include using stencils (dots in the lower right corner), creating textures (left side), and collaging paper (heart in upper right corner).

My husband, who is also an artist, and I recently had a discussion about the value in working a surface or a project or a concept until it gets to some resolution.  I am not always able to get an artwork to a finished state that I am happy with with, but I agree that the process of trying to do so can result in valuable insights into the ways in which one works with their materials and ideas.

Sneak Preview !

Window
mixed media collage  6x6"

Some works are more mixed media than others.
This one leans toward the very, very mixed media end of the scale.
Underneath what lies on top is a failed encaustic work that I sanded and scraped to make it a workable surface for other media.  There were still remnants of the original work on the board when I started to add more new media.  And I like working with those ghosts and histories.
But it was a struggle to get to this point.

This piece (and lots of my other pieces) will be with me at the Bellissimo Art Fair on Sunday July 19th.
Over 50 visual artists and artisans will be featured.
Come join us for art and wine in a beautiful setting.

5th Annual Bellissimo Fine Arts and Craft Show
Sunday July 19, 2015  12-5PM
Gervasi Vineyard
1700  55th Street NE
Canton, OH 44721

Starting and Stopping

Adobe
mixed media collage  6x6"

When I made the piece called "Greenhouse" (see May 29th post) I thought I was starting a series of pieces with house shapes in them.  As I worked on this piece it started looking just like "Greenhouse"...similar colors, definitely the same pointed roof shape, and positioned in the same place on the page.  So I really struggled to get what I have here.  I do like this as an end product but feel ambivalent about the house series idea.  I find this disconcerting since much of my early quilt work (we are talking 1980's here!) was based on architecture...doors, windows, arches etc.

I don't want to repeat what I have done in the past but I feel like it is territory that I am familiar with and can reinvent.
Now I am not so sure.

As I think about the problems / struggles I am having in the studio right now I feel I can attribute some of it to being away from the studio on a regular basis.  I was out of town for a few days, and getting the garden in and the flower beds weeded has been time consuming.  Perhaps I am just making excuses for myself.  But I do find that starting and stopping work can be problematic.
I lose the thread and continuity of my intentions.
The flow of ideas and process becomes fractured.
Discontent and insecurity set in.

I think these thoughts are as much a part of the process as the actual making of work.

Creative Needs

Greenhouse
6x6" mixed media collage

Playing around with a house shape and plaster, shellac and paint.
I don't play enough.
 Need to play and experiment more.
Need to embrace the accidents.
Need to push the process.
Need to trust my instincts.
Need more time in the studio.
Need a concept.
Does needing a concept contradict the need to play?
Time to find out.

Observation and Anticipation

Observation
6x6" Print

I have been away for a few days visiting family in Texas where I attended my niece's wedding.
A good time was had by all and now it is back to the studio and the gardening.

A number of years ago I made this print that combined chairs with a pair of eyes "observing" the scene.
I love chairs and this photo of rows and rows of chairs seems fitting for the season when graduations, weddings, and reunions take place.  I must confess that I did not take the photo.  I don't know who did.  And I don't remember how I came upon the photo, but I have loved it for its repetition and solitude.  It also speaks to me of anticipation....the anticipation of an event where the chairs will be filled with people.  Where each guest will be "observing" and participating in some way in the event.

Integrating and Unifying

At the End of the Road
6x6"

This was total play!  I did not start out with an idea of what I wanted at the end.  The only preconceived element was that I would create some texture in plaster with a cotton doily I have.  As with much of my work, it is mixed media...very mixed media!  In the layers of the collage there are found papers, part of a photocopy of one of my artworks, plaster, shellac, watercolor and acrylic paint.  I worked back and forth between all of these elements, sometimes sanding the layers with my mouse sander.  I applied the shellac and used the sander the way one might apply paint or erase out charcoal or graphite.

Because plaster and shellac take time to dry between layers, I find that I can multi-task, working on several pieces at one time.  What happens in one piece often becomes something I incorporate into some of the other pieces depending on what else is going on in them.  I like that when I look at the finished works I often can't tell the order of my process.
For me this is the definition of truly integrating all of the elements into a unified whole.

Ten Little Leaves

10 Leaves
6x6"

More painting and stitching on  tea bags.
Here the artwork is done totally with tea bags collaged to a thin base paper then painted with watercolors
and hand stitched.
The tea bags accept the paint really well and the stained marks and texture from the tea is a bonus.
I cut through the tea bags in some areas to expose the white base paper.
I really struggled with those white recessed areas.   They were just too white.  In the end I used some colored pencil and shellac to tone them down.

For sale on my  Etsy site for $65.  

Back to Work

Swing
6x6"

So...finally I am back in the studio!  I still have gardening to do, but I feel like I can start to balance home and garden with the studio.  In the past, because I was teaching, summer was my studio time and the rest of the year was for teaching.  Now, I can flip-flop that and concentrate on artwork in the winter months and the garden and home in the summer.We will see how that works out.
So you have here another tea bag painting...a transfer of an original artwork onto a tea bag enhanced with water color and stitching.  I like the intimacy of these small pieces.  There is a freshness to them and an unexpected quality of play.

Quilt on a Clothesline

Clothesline Art no. 3:  Quilt
6x6"

This is the third and final piece in this particular series of clothesline artwork.
It is a photocopy of an earlier collage with the addition of the sewn paper sheets and quilt.
I like how this piece looks as if it is hanging in a field of wheat.

The work is $45 with free shipping in the US.  Look for details on my Etsy shop.

More Clothesline Art

Clothesline Art no. 2
6x6"

Not everyone has white sheets. In fact, the  range of color and design in sheets today is amazing.
It is Friday here and a day when I typically do some laundry.  Should I string up the clothesline and hang my wash out?  It is currently 40 degrees but sunny.  I have never hung my laundry out while wearing gloves!

Clothesline Art

Clothesline Art no. 1:  White Sheets
6x6"

In the Spring and Summer I like to hang my wash outside on a clothesline.  I love the smell of the clothes "kissed by the sun" and I like seeing them wave in the breeze.  It does take more time to carry them out and pin them to the clothes line.  Throwing them from the washer into the dryer is definitely easier, for sure.  But for now I am happy with this little nod to domesticity.

I also have always liked seeing clothes hanging on a line.  I live in Amish country and these admirable women hang clothes out year round.  I like the architectural look of clothes on a line and the way people choose to hang the clothes....all the sheets and pillow cases together, all of the underwear together, shirts together, overalls together.  While I am doing laundry for just 2 people, I do tend to put like articles together on the line.

This series of just 3 pieces is a nod to all that I like about hanging clothes on a line outside.
It is somewhat abstract yet I think the sheets are readily seen as such.  The background came from a photocopy of a collage I made a few years ago.  "Fresh" sheets have been sewn onto the line adding a bit more dimension to the new work.

The work measures 6x6" and is mounted on a board, ready for hanging.  It is priced at $45.
To purchase, please visit my Etsy site.

Promise

Bulb in a Vase
3.5x3.5" floating in a 6x6" box

I came across this image from a collage I made a few years ago just as I was noticing all of the spring bulbs coming up in my garden.   In the past I have often forced bulbs in the dead of winter by putting them in a bowl of stones and water.
Usually February is when I feel the need for something blooming, just to give me encouragement that spring is actually going to happen.  And after this past winter that is truer than ever.
So here is a little bit of that hope in a small  painting on a tea bag.

$50 with free shipping in the US.  To purchase, please visit my Etsy shop.

Jeff's Leaf

Jeff's Leaf
3x3" floating in a 6x6" box

Transfer of an original collage onto a used tea bag.
More color was added with watercolor paint, shellac and pen and ink.
French Knots to embellish.
I need to drink more tea;  I am almost out of tea bags to repurpose!

Mended Door, Tea Bag Painting

Mended Door
3.5 x 3.5" recessed in a 6x6" frame

I received a comment yesterday about the tea bag painting of a poppy addressing the stitching on a piece so small.
(Thanks, Heather!)
The stitching in that piece was on the original collage that I resized and then transferred to the tea bag.
In this piece you can see the size of the stitches and that they are sort of out of proportion to the rest of the painting.
The used tea bags are somewhat fragile, depending on what kind of tea bags they are, how long I let them sit before I emptied out the contents, etc.
I don't mind the small tears and holes.  I think they add a certain character that is authentic to the fact that it is a recycled material.  In this piece I added more watercolor paint, pen and ink lines for definition and some shellac.  The shellac adds more strength to the piece without affecting negatively the translucency of the tea bag.
The artwork is not mounted directly onto the inside of the box, but raised on some foam core so that it appears to float within the box.

Priced at $50.  To purchase, please visit my Etsy shop.

Painting on Tea Bags!

Poppy
3x3" recessed in a 6x6" frame

I love poppies!  And they are just beginning to emerge from my garden.  I love the kind of fuzzy irregular leaves, the tall thin stems, the red-orange flowers and even the stalks with the seed pods that remain once the petals have fallen off.
Those stalks are so sculptural.
This small artwork is a transfer from another poppy collage that I did a number of years ago.
It is transferred onto a used tea bag, hence the small size.
I added some more watercolor paint and drawing elements.
I am finding the used tea bags to be a good receptacle for paint and ink, although they are rather fragile.
I haven't experimented with fresh or new tea bags but think they might be stronger.
I like the staining quality that one finds on a used tea bag so I am willing to work with the delicate nature of these bags.  There are also additional characteristics like small tears and spots of tea that add to the artwork.

Measuring Up

Good Girl/Bad Girl
6x7"

For me a ruler or tape measure has always referenced the idea of measuring up...
meeting up to  someone's expectations.
The dress that is framed by the ruler pieces is half white and half dark,
representing the good and evil that is in all of us.

Multi-tasking

Un-Sung
6x7"

This small mixed media work incorporates some found metal pieces along with upholstery tacks.
I love upholstery tacks!  They are both beautiful and useful.
That ring on top came from the same going-out-of-business fabric store where I got the large zipper pulls
 (see the post on 3/26/15).
This is one of the smaller works that I am multi-tasking with while doing the more labor intensive sewing on the white pieces from the "Variations on a Theme" series.
A girl has got to keep busy!

The Backbone of My Work

Two Park Benches
6x6"

Final collage in the Chairs of Paris Series!  That doesn't necessarily mean you won't see chairs again, but for right now I am done with chairs and benches, flea markets and antique shops.

I find that I often return to my past artworks for inspiration or for source material for new work, as I did in this series.
Doing this adds an authenticity to what I do.  While I enjoy looking at the work of others, visiting art galleries and shows, viewing Pinterest and Etsy, I know myself and that I can get easily distracted  by the great variety of work in these places.  I see people working with techniques I'd like to try and materials I wish to use.  One of my art goals for this year is to remain true to myself.  I know I have posted some things that are somewhat like me and my work, but also me experimenting with someone else's style, technique, materials, etc.
But I almost always return to what I call the backbone of my work...imagery of some sort, collage and encaustic.
I work better and more authentically when I have a "image to hang my hat on" (as Jim Dine said) and/or a concept from which I can work.
I need to remind myself of that from time to time.

This piece is 6x6" mixed media collage on a board with encaustic.  It is ready to hang and requires no framing.
It is priced at $75 with free shipping in the US.  To purchase, visit my Etsy shop. 

Green Chairs and Blue Shutters
6x6"

Mixed media collage on board using a photocopy of an original collage with colored pencil and
some transparent papers added.  I love the inaccuracies I get when I collage elements that are of incorrect proportions or sizes.  Like these large urns with the thin legged chairs.

This work is 6x6" on a board and ready to hang.  It requires no dreaming.
To purchase, please visit my Etsy shop.