Staying Rooted to Somewhere

"Staying Rooted to Somewhere"
acrylic and collage on drywall
24 x 46"

This is the fourth piece in the series of larger paintings that I have been doing incorporating geometric and architectural elements with circle and ladder forms.   I often work with vertical surfaces but not one as narrow as this so that was part of the challenge for me.
The title comes from a poem by Naomi Shihab Nye.
I happened upon her work and love how she writes and explores contemporary situations.
While I am currently trying to work abstractly, something literal almost always sneaks into the work as it did here
with the flower.
I guess that is just part of my thought process.  And I need to acknowledge that and just go with it.
The flower and ladder part of the painting was already there when I came across Nye's poem
and I knew that her words were what I was painting toward.

Layered Ambiguity

"Forgotten"
11x14" mixed media on board

Impressionistic, Attic-y feel with a subtle use of mostly black and white.
Lots of history or soul to this piece in the many layers.
Materials include acrylic paint, found images, Japanese papers, parts of an old painting, fabric and plaster.
Can't get much more mixed media than that.
But maybe I will try!

Many Techniques, Many Layers

Rust Belt Landscape
Mixed Media on Board

This started out as a demo for a workshop and actually made its way to finished product.
That doesn't always happen with my demos.  It did take a lot of work for me to get it to this stage.
Many revisions.  I was working with the rusting technique, burning, and painting.
The other 2 pieces in this series are more blue and cool colors, so it was a challenge to work with the pinks and browns here.

I really like incorporating found materials in my work.
With this piece I was able to use some found metal objects to create the rust stains on the piece, and then use those along with some actual rusted objects. The incorporation of the gold squares reference another form of alchemy where no tarnishing or patination has taken place.  I wanted the contrast of the bright, clean gold color along with the rusted areas. The idea of a landscape comes from the architectural nature of the artwork...buildings, doors, windows, fences.
Bright and clean.  Rusted and tarnished.
Like life.

Many techniques and layers...my signature.

Arch and Ivy

Arch and Ivy
8x8"  mixed media collage

The last few pieces (some of which I've posted and some not) have been heavily layered.
I wanted to go back to work with layers that are thinner thus revealing, not totally hiding, the ground or base layers.
As with much of my work, the materials and process influence my decisions.
The circle of ivy leaves was one of the original elements in this collage.
The archway developed or appeared as I added other papers and paint.
I am finding that the stained tea bag papers remain transparent so what ever is underneath still has some presence.
They also take paint well.  The arch appeared from the stained marks on the tea bag and was enhanced by some
watercolor paint.

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.

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.

A Return to Doors

Back Alley
Part of the Upcycle Series

When I first started making quilts in the late 1980's and 90's windows and doors
were a large part of the imagery I used.

I have always liked the geometry that these architectural elements present.
Their visual impact carries a lot of emotional, social and sometimes cultural connotations.
Doors allude to the ideas of openings and closures, entrance and exclusion.

What kind of place is this with its dark exterior and crooked door?
Do I want to enter or stay out?
Is it day or night?
There is something both lovely and rich about the colors.
It is artistic intuition at its best.
I really like this one!

This piece is 6x6" and priced at $75 including shipping to the US.  To purchase please email me.

Getting There is Part of the Fun!

When in Rome...
Part of the Upcycle Series

In this series I have been working with an old acrylic painting, using sections of it and creating new works with those pieces.  Along with working small  (6x6") I have given myself some other challenges. I am
using plaster, shellac and encaustic paint trying to see how those
materials affect the work and how compatible (or not) they are together.

I have worked with encaustic paint for a number of years and like the way you can build up layers and scrape them away to reveal what is underneath.  I am finding that the plaster has similar properties.  I can apply it thickly or thinly and then sand, instead of scrape, to reveal the "soul" or history of the layers.

In the "Sun Series" I used lots of plaster along with the shellac.  Including the encaustic adds another dimension.
Now I have to consider when to apply each material as it is difficult to sand encaustic.
I like the depth that the encaustic creates and its transparency.
I like the crispness of the plaster.
I like the shellac for its ability to seal the layers and create a sense of luminosity.

The task is finding the correct balance between these materials that I really love using so I can create work that I think feels fresh and innovative.  As always I am looking for growth in my approach to mixed media.
I am not there yet, but getting there is part of the fun!

This piece is 6x6" and priced at $75 including shipping.  To purchase please email me.