Surviving The Plague

Check out this steamy Etsy Treasury curated by AlliesAdornment ! It is truly a pleasure to have my Apprentice Box included with such fabulous phantasmagoria. Click the pic for a closer look soon, as each treasury is up for only a few days.

ABC...Lr...M? Must be Random Thoughts Tuesday

My blogging groove has slipped a bit the last couple of weeks. So it's a Quick & Linky drive-by posting today.....What is with all that life stuff, trying to get in the way ??

A is for ..... Art Students (Happy Birthday Robert Doisneau - where would all those dorm room walls be without your famous Kiss by the Hôtel de Ville or photos of Picasso??)

Also see some fun student pieces at Artsonia. Their blurb states: "Artsonia is the largest student art museum in the world! Our dream is that every child will have an online art gallery, preserving their masterpieces for all time!" I've only just peeked in but it looks like a cool place

B is for..... Books. Been playing with some more altered journal covers a bit but nothing finished yet. In the meantime, TotusMel's Wonderkammer has featured some very cool books today. Many of my Melange teammates have been creating stunning journals too - these are mostly blank books with fantastically altered covers. Type "Melange team Books " into Etsy.com search or just click HERE.

C is for....C'mon! It isn't Friday yet?! (or cop-out depending on your mood)

Lr (formerly Lw) is for.... Lawrencium (man made element 103) produced in the US in 1961 today. I have no idea what I'm talking about but you can read all kinds of wacky smarty-pants stuff at Today in Science History

LR is also the multi-talented artist & costume designer Lorraine Reynolds. Visit her awesome etsy shop, glimmeringprize & her blog to see what she's up to next

M is for.... Man, I Missed Monday's Muse (again).My excuse: I got sucked into Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book last night - fun read! As a kid, I loved Edward Gorey & Alfred Hitchcock. This would have found a place on my bookshelf, probably beside my well worn copy of Bradbury's The Halloween Tree

For Tuesday posts more far interesting than mine, pop over The Un Mom to see what she & her loyal followers have been up to lately.

Afternoon On A Hill

I will be the gladdest thing
Under the sun!
I will touch a hundred flowers
And not pick one.

I will look at cliffs and clouds
With quiet eyes,
Watch the wind bow down the grass,
And the grass rise.

And when lights begin to show
Up from the town,
I will mark which must be mine,
And then start down!

- Edna St Vincent Millay

Jumpy Jester Goes Sky Diving

First a special thanks to Kathy Maximo for lending me her photo of the challenge kit as I deleted mine. See her finished piece on her blog here. Each participant got a manila envelope containing a small folded bit of corrugated cardboard plus all these lovely bits:The idea was to create something using all (or all but 2) of these elements. Use a substrate of your choosing plus your own paints or whatever. Each participant was also allowed to add 1 item of their own, if desired.

So here is Jumpy Jester


And his hot air balloon
Sorry the pic is such crap - it was too windy to shoot outside today.

Here's a few detail shots.

The balloon is "powered" by faux candle, my extra piece.

Balloon & basket are paper mache."Sandbags" are clear plastic chips.
The wire on edge of chips was removed to make the Jester's joints

Backside of jester is colored bingo sheet.
Anchor is altered puzzle piece.
The "pull" is cut from a King of clubs playing card

And here is the jester just hanging around.

There is also a large colored ring on top but you can't see it in these pics. Out of necessity, I used all of the items in the package. I also tested the rules & used the shipping envelope plus the little piece of included cardboard. These added some much needed structure. I took a lot of WIP photos. Thinking about posting a tutorial if anyone is interested.

Early next week, the Melange On Etsy Blog should have images of the other entries. I'll add a link so you can see all the fun creations. Melange members have a sneak peek in our yahoo photos. There are some very cool interpretations. Each piece is one of a kind & very creative

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OFF TOPIC: Illustration Friday prompt is "fleeting". That describes my free time this weekend! Hope to post something but not sure if I'll find the chance. Please play along (such a fun word) or see what others have posted by clicking on the link.

Busy Playing!

For a variety of reasons,I've been even more bogged down than usual this week. Lots of stuff has gone by the wayside including art & blogging. 1 project I am determined to finish soon is the ongoing reorganizing of my studio/home office. I've decided to post some embarrassing "before" shots in the hope I will shame myself into creating the "after" shots soon.

Studio is 1/2 torn apart (still in the destructo phase of reorganizing).
I'm also cramming to finish my piece for the 1st Melange Team challenge (due tomorrow). I've been sitting on it for weeks, but only just found the materials while cleaning yesterday - oops!

Melange is a new Etsy Team for Mixed Media artists. If you like to play with all your toys on one canvas, new members are welcome. Here's the team profile on etsy. Here's the team blog. And here is some of our art for sale

The 1st challenge is from Glenda (see her etsy shop here). She sent out identical packages filled with a wild assortment of items. I had a pic to post but seem to have accidentally deleted it (Dang. Just 1 of those weeks). There's colored tissue paper, an old bingo card, a b&w jester paper doll template, metal ring, fraying fibers, what looks like colored bingo chips & other bits & pieces. The challenge is to create something using all the items,leaving out any 2 if desired. We can provide our own substrate & add 1 extra item. Mine's been done in my head since I 1st opened the envelope. Man, glue sure dries a lot slower in real time!! Been a lot of fun though

I'll post the final piece sometime tomorrow or Sat with links to the other entries once I have 'em. Remembered to shoot WIPs too so if anyone is curious I'll stick those up this weekend too

Before I forget: thank you, thank you,Everyone. Your kind comments and encouragement really keep me going. Especially on the days when all the art stays in my head & I run out of time to create by days end. A few of those & my mood turns sour. I was truly overwhelmed by the quantity & quality of responses to last Friday's post! I've visited some of you but life got in the way again. Your comments are much appreciated

IF - Talisman

Talisman: an object that is thought to have magic powers and to bring good luck.


Hush - charcoal on paper

The above definition was sent by the folks at Illustration Friday. Such a fantastic prompt, Talisman. It immediately made me think of this charcoal piece I made several years ago. It is almost life size & was drawn from a Polaroid I shot years before.

This piece of art was my talisman.

Until this past year, I've rarely kept up a steady flow of creativity. I'd get into 1 medium or other & make stuff for a couple of months. And then Nothing .... for years. Yes, years. This piece marked the end of a long dry spell & became my good luck charm. It got me into a number of juried shows & galleries, won some awards, and opened up PR opportunities. It became the key to whatever little door I had my eye on.

Then it was stolen.

A dozen pieces were taken, but I felt the blow when I lost this one. This was almost 6 yrs ago. I also had my son around that time & found myself very busy. The new baby, some health issues, plus work were great excuses to not create for a long long time.

February 2008 I started drawing again. 1st ATCs & then larger pieces. I am now at a point where I have more ideas than time. Although I'd like to create more each day, I am grateful for what hours I can claim as my own.

They're Here - charcoal on grey paper

Speaking of "carving out" I'm trying to carve out more elbow room so I'm adding some older pieces at my etsy shop, ArtSnark. The latest is this matted charcoal drawing & it is priced sell! I've also listed my two newest pieces (from yesterday's post)

If you've stayed with me through today's ramble, thank you. The encouragement I have received from so many kind & talented people has helped me get over the loss of my talisman. Now I make my own luck ;D

Waiting 1 & 2

Oh she looks
but there's nothing to see.
Still she looks
saying come back for me...

Waiting

Been listening to Al Stewart's Fields of France again.

I mentioned a bit ago the dozens of Polaroid Transfers I need to list at ArtSnark . Well, I seem to have the attention span of a gnat lately (not to malign the gnat). I listed some but still have dozens sitting in the studio.

Got bored tho. Tired of waiting to create! So, I decided to slack off responsibilities once these 2 lovely ladies came calling. They're both relaxing in the etsy shop now. Just click the pics to pay them a visit.

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Waiting for Spring