Nothing but hearts...

With my almost five-year-old niece Avery back in the hospital, recovering from complications following her most recent open-heart surgeries to repair a congenital defect, it shouldn't be surprising that hearts (or more specifically, her heart) are just about all I can think of these days, so for the foreseeable future, that is what I am painting. This painting includes a collaged calendar fragment of the month of April, which marks her birthday.


April Heart - 16 x 20, acrylic & mixed media collage on canvas.


April Heart - detail

Today, among the many, many things for which I am eternally grateful, are all of you who continue to send your thoughts, prayers and positive energy to my niece. I cannot begin to tell you how much it means to me and my family, not to mention how much it helps Avery. I believe it makes all the difference. Thank you.

Red.

The title of my latest mixed-media painting. Also, that time of the month. (TMI??) I don't care. I'm in that kind of mood today. I think the muse has returned because I am becoming more myself. It's a process over which I have little control. Or perhaps I could control it but I no longer want to. I'm being very honest today. Not that my blog is a lie, but it's fairly heavily edited. I am usually careful to share only so much of myself in such a public forum. And I usually choose to share the good parts -or at least what I think are the safe parts. Not too revealing. Not too emotional. Not too personal. Not too mean. Not too sad. Not too petty. But you know what? Sometimes I am mean, and petty and sad and miserable. And during a week like this, I can be all of those things for half an hour, and then I am calm, and peaceful and fairly happy. For another half hour. And then who knows???

So that's where I'm at today. Right now. This minute. And I love every RED, manic, crazy, juicy minute of this life. And then I hate it. And then I love it. again.

Red. 16 x 20, mixed-media acrylics & collage on canvas.

Red Hot...

That was the title of this acrylic collage on canvas, which I mailed into Somerset Studio waaaaaay back in early 2007. I submitted a number of artworks for one of their themes -- "Nature Preserved" -- one was actually published, but I had completely forgotten about this piece after all that time. I love chiles -- both as an icon and as food - hot, hot, hot -- yum, yum yum, so I was very happy to see it published. I also love the color red, and I really love the simplicity of minimalist collage, so this piece gives me a warm feeling right in the center of my chest -- or is that the jalapenos I had with dinner...hmmm??

Anyway, my collage found its way into the latest edition of Somerset Gallery, and it was a treat to find this comp copy in my mailbox yesterday.

Oh, and my good friend Marilyn's wonderful house collage is in there too!!!

Images & words...

"Images and words are such fortunate cousins."

Those were the first words in a book I found at a thrift shop last summer. A book about monotypes created by artist Bruno Leti, the foreward (and that wonderful quote) were written by poet Chris Wallace-Crabbe. I am enamoured with words and images combined. I cannot resist putting a well chosen word or quote in my paintings and collages.

Even though visual images are often just as powerful on their own, perhaps it is my need to imbue a specific meaning rather than leaving a piece entirely for interpretation that compels me to add them. Sometimes it is the graphic shapes of the letters chosen for pattern and texture rather than for description. Lately, I've been inspired by my friend Marilyn's collage swap, based on the techniques of artist Kelly Rae Roberts - well chosen affirmations that motivate and uplift both the artist and the viewer.

Today, digital art allows even more exciting combinations of words and images. From digital collage artists to families capturing and recording memories with both handmade and digitally rendered scrapbooks, images and words have never been so fortunate.

Aaaaaah. A Sunday of Art-Making...

I played with a technique by Kelly Rae Roberts that was featured in two issues of Cloth Paper Scissors. The finished piece may be my submission for an affirmation collage swap hosted by friend and artist Marilyn Rock. I am in the process of making several more, so I am not sure which one I will swap. Marilyn cautioned that making these could become an addiction. I loved working on what affirmations I would use. It was definitely an exercise in self-awareness.

Size matters...

...and sometimes, smaller is better.

I have always preferred smaller formats in my artwork, from greeting cards to paint canvasses to my graphic design work --(I hate designing bus shelters and billboards -- and fortunately, I have a colleague who likes that work, so she takes on all of the "big" design jobs, whenever possible.)

So when I started following the latest mixed-media trend of creating "inchies," I was not at all surprised to find that I love them!!!! I think the trend originated with fabric artists, who began by making and swapping 1-inch by 1-inch squares of fabric, quilted and embellished with beads and fibers. I saw these miniature masterpieces for the first time last year on someone's blog, and I knew I wanted to try my hand at paper versions. I must confess that the first few I made were a real challenge. A one-inch square is a very, very small art canvas, so it's easy to overdue it. But a dozen inchies later, I was hooked!

I developed some design guidelines for myself that made working in this teeny, tiny format very satisfying, and I'll be sharing them in a class that I'm teaching at Stampassion (a wonderful rubber stamp and mixed-media arts store near my home) beginning this Saturday. This is the display board I made for the class, with my first (but definitely not my last) "batch" of inchies.

Acrylic and collage exploration...

Experimenting with acrylics and collage on canvas board

In her vintage room...

Art Night Schenectady’s Mission
Art Night aims to introduce a wider audience to the unique vitality of the Arts, restaurants, and businesses that Schenectady has to offer. “Art Night” promotes interest in the arts by making it accessible, thereby strengthening the arts and business communities in Schenectady.


My friend, collage artist Marilyn Rock, was one of the participating artists at last Friday's Art Night Schenectady, and I was so excited to see her incredible collage art on display along with so many other talented artists in our area. Above are some amazing fabric and mixed media greeting cards that I purchased from Marilyn that night. After I had left, I wished I had taken a photo of her work on display. Among her many altered art pieces, Marilyn makes the most amazing altered birdhouses, and I would have liked to show one here.

In addition to being one of the most talented collage artists I know, she also teaches classes, and I've never met a more nurturing and inspiring soul. She has an amazing talent for helping new artists find their creative voices.

Her website -- www.inmyvintageroom.com, is new, so I encourage you to stop there periodically as she adds artistic inspiration!