Apple Blossoms from the Botanist's Journal

"Apple Blossoms" from the Botanist's Journal Series
14 x 20"
mixed media collage on canvas

The illustration of the apple blossoms and the writing about it are layered on a painted canvas with papers, fabrics, and threads.  Sewing paper seems to be imbedded in my art practice.  Also incorporated are mono prints on silk organza and some stamping.  There is some dimension to the work from the sections where a vintage quilt was incorporated.  I really want to incorporate more direct drawing into these pieces but am having a hard time making that leap.

Second Piece from the Botanist's Journal

"Late Season Sweet Potatoes"
13x14"
mixed media collage on paper

This is the second piece in the Botanist's Journal series.
The drawing of the sweet potatoes was done by my dad as part of some college course work he was taking.
The work is heavily layered yet with as much transparency of layers as I could get.
I am happy with the looser quality of the collaging and the lean toward more abstracted work.

Trying to Up My Game

"The Botanist's Journal"
14x15"
mixed media collage on canvas

This is the beginning of a new series.
DISCLAIMER:  I do hesitate to say that this is the beginning of new work,  a new series, a new anything that implies more to come, as I have done that in the past only to abandon that direction.  But I am pretty excited about these pieces.  There are 4 of them thus far.  And I am off to my studio to work some more once I finish this post.

I am really trying to be more abstract and loose in my approach to collage.
The inspiration is from some botany journals that my dad kept while in college.  It looks like they were part of his course work at some point.  Although he was a business major and not in the sciences.
  The drawing of the lily in the center of the page is one of the illustrations he did that accompanied some descriptions about the plant.  I did not use the writing in this piece but did include the accompanying written descriptions in the next 2 pieces.
More to come.  At least I know for sure there are 3 more that will be posted!

Life Maintenance or When Real Life Takes Over

"Botanical Lies" (first side)
Originally posted on July 1

"Botanical Lies" (reverse side)

So, you may have noticed that my posts have been few and far between as well as all over the place...artwork, gardening, canning the produce, old shorts, art fairs, workshops.   That is kind of how the summer has been.  Add in lots of company and cooking and hopefully you can see how real life usurped the idyllic art life.
When this happens I call it "life maintenance", just carrying on with all of the duties that daily life requires.

But I am closing in on finishing this two-sided accordion fold book titled "Botanical Lies" which I wrote about back on July 1 (Yikes!).  The top photo here is the finished side that was previously posted in July.  The lower and larger photo is the reverse side of the book which is almost done.  So close, and with the prediction of rain for this week maybe I can get into the studio because I won't be able to work outside.  The left half of the reverse side needs more work and I want to do some negative painting as well.  My goal is to get this finished this week.  And I don't have much more time to work on it as it has to be delivered to the show it will be in around the middle of September.

More About "Botanical Lies"

Box for "Botanical Lies"

Botanical Lies & box

I love putting things in boxes!  So, creating this accordion fold book and finding a way to display it allowed me to utilize a box once again.  The tags hanging from the box in the first photo above show the title,"Botanical Lies".   The second photo  displays part of the accordion fold book (in progress) emerging from the box.

My book project is part of a larger body of work done by the artists who are a part of ABC...Art Books Cleveland.
We are participating in a display of book arts in conjunction with a larger exhibit at the Cleveland  Museum of Art,
"Painting the Modern Garden, Monet to Matisse".  For those participating, we are asked to create an original artist book that has a garden theme.  The finished books will be displayed in Ingalls Library located in the Cleveland Museum of Art  during the month of October with a special one night exhibit of the works in the atrium of the museum on October 14, 2015 from 6:30-8:00pm.

My idea was to create a book of fantastical flowers inspired by the work of Gaugin and Rousseau.  I started by drawing my own versions of flowers and adding found botanical drawings along with collage elements from works I had done in the past.  I did some stitching on the paper to emphasize leaves and stems which I plan to paint later.  Because I am stitching on paper, what I do on the front side affects the back of the paper as well.  So this will be a two sided book with imagery and information on both sides. I like that the stitching causes me to think. What happens with the stitching which was deliberate on one side affects  what I can do on the back or opposite side.  Working back and forth from one side to the other sets up a dynamic that doesn't happen when  one considers just the front or one side of the paper.

Two Sided Collage

Spring Collage (front and back)

I have talked about my two sided collages from my "Farmscape Series" but have neglected to post both sides of one of them.  Here is a collage from the 4th week in April.

If you follow the geometric aspects of the work you can see where the stitching and collaging on one side influenced what happened on the reverse side.  Usually one side ended up being lighter and brighter than the other.  I would start by collaging elements on one side of the paper, then reversing it to see what I might want to include on the other side.  I would return to the first side and do some painting, then reverse it and work on the other side.  It was a continual back and forth process.

This allowed me to make 2 observations about what was happening on the farm during that particular week.

And how do I know this was from the 4th week in April?

I included a code.

If you look at the bottom of the piece you will notice 

some stitched blocks with lines through them.

The number of blocks indicate the month and the number of lines indicate the week.

This piece has 4 stitched blocks with 4 stitched lines indicating the fourth week of April.

Mother's Day Reflection

Joanne 1927

This Sunday is Mother's Day.
In honor of my mom who is no longer with me in person but definitely with me in spirit I offer this encaustic work which pictures my mom dressed up and holding a cute little purse.
I have put a halo of sorts on her head.
In the background is the image of a dress, appropriate because she sewed many of my clothes and taught me to sew.
As an avid gardener, both vegetables and flowers, I include this blue flower. and the brown vines.
I miss her every day and think of her whenever I sew, garden, can vegetables, or do home improvement projects which she did constantly throughout her life.

Happy Mother's Day to all!

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.

Cheating...Yes or No?

Variations on a Theme no. 3
8x10"

More light colored work, although a little bit of pink crept in, some of it from the staining on the tea bag I used and some from my watercolor brush.   I've had this doily for a long time and love it but could never find a way to use it.
Glad it became the star of this piece.  I do have a few more of them. They were all individual pieces but the raw edges tell me that they must have been part of something else at one time.
So am I cheating by using a bit of color and some black here and there for contrast?
My goal was to make white/light colored pieces without much color.
And to use the materials I have without purchasing new items.
So what do you think?  Am I a cheater?!

Large Zipper Pulls!

Variations on a Theme no. 2
8x10"

More white, this time with fabric and lace that has plaster added to it.
I love the large zipper pulls that I scored at a fabric store that was going out of business.
Returning to white and sewing materials is in my comfort zone along with the rectangular format.  I have to say that working in a square is more of a challenge for me since much of my work is vertical and rectangular. So I am enjoying having a bit more space and working with a rectangle again.

This work is 8x10" mixed media collage on paper mounted on a cradled board.
It is priced at $110 with free shipping in the US.
To purchase, please visit my Etsy shop.

Cleansing My Palette

Variations on a Theme no.1
8x10"

I have heard some artists, painters mostly, say that they often like to "cleanse their palette" by taking away all of the color and working in just black and white.  I think it might be time for me to do that in my collages.  I have long been attracted to collages with lots of white or light shades in them.  There was a show a number of years ago that I saw on line, not in person, where the theme of the show was artworks in white.

So I am going there for awhile...working with white/light fabrics, papers and ephemera.
I have gathered together a pile of materials and want to work from those with our purchasing new materials.
The challenge for me will be to grow in my collage work while working with the light palette.

This work is 8x10" mixed media collage on a board ready to hang without any framing.
It is priced at $110 with free shipping in the US.  To purchase, please visit my Etsy shop.

Down Memory Lane

From the Collage-a-Day Series:  Boys and Girls

In 2005 I made one collage everyday for a year.
These pieces measure 5.5 x 8" and are mixed media collages.
Each one had a piece of a journal I had found at a flea market and was stamped with the date
using one of those stamping devices that they used to use when you check out your library books.
I am showing my age here!

I did not miss a day but promised my self that if I did there would be a blank 5.5 x 8" card in its place.
I also would not allow myself to work ahead or work behind.  The pieces had to be done that day.
During that year I drove to Wyoming for a residency and checked into motels along the way with my very small bag of clothing, toothbrush, etc. and a large box of collage "stuff".
I also got married in June and made a collage that day.
So you could say I was driven not to have that blank card show up!

These pieces are on my Etsy site and selling for just $5.00.
I keep adding pieces every few weeks.
They are unframed but can easily be mounted and framed to your own tastes.

Visit My Etsy Shop