Dragon Lore is my first painting for 2012. It was created for the Enchanted Visions Project. My daughter actually asked that I do a dragon wrapped around a book. After a few different sketches with that idea I finally settled on having the dragon’s tail wrapped around the book to hold it for reading. With the theme Dragon Lore,I really wanted to do something to express the idea of sharing cultural history with the next generation so I added some little ones to K’s request. I am also using this design to practice working in photoshop. I am using the same ink drawing,but different colors. I will learn digital art…I will learn digital art……
The past year I have felt a bit overwhelmed at every turn. I think I might have taken on a bit too much. Valentine never got submitted to the show she was created for. But no loss,because now I can list her on etsy. The new year means new projects. I have already started to work on my first painting for the new year. It is my submission for Enchanted Visions for this month. Yes,I am starting later than is usual for me. But there is so much coming up this year. I am going to finally learn to paint digitally –one way or another. I am also on a quest to get out more and see folks –which means conventions and art shows. And if I can’t make it,I will try and send my art anyway. So far,this year’s schedule includes ConDFW in Febuary as a panelist and Octopodicon in October as a panelist or ummmm Vistiing Professor. I ended last year an started this one presenting art and crazy quilting at The Difference Engine in Ft. Worth. Do you have a favorite convention that you would like to see me at,or maybe just get a chance to see my work in person?
As some of you know,I have been working with the PTA at my daughter’s school the last couple of years. I made the mistake of complaining a bit too loudly about the standard catalog sales that sold cheap junk no one wanted for excessively high prices. I have tried to help foster ideas to raise money that would help build community as well as not over extend our small volunteer pool. I also have tried to put my particular skill set to use for the benefit of the PTA. I designed the school shirts last year and this,got to help establish a school carnival and watched our PTA fundraising change,under the guidance of some great parents and teacher,grow to something really wonderful. It has been difficult since we were making changes during a recession and lost a vital member of our group over the summer. I have started putting together a cafepress shop for the PTA,because there is so much we have yet to do. With the cuts in education it is up to us to get new play ground equipment,help pay for field trips,help needy families and bring in some educational programming. Bet you didn’t know that that is pretty standard stuff for the PTA. My own artwork has taken a back seat to my volunteer work. Not only have I been designing shirts,building cafepress shops,and helping organize some of the fund raising events. But I am also at every event doing face painting,donating my artwork for sales and auctions. My time only represents a small fraction of the work being done for our school PTA. I am not even a major contributor. I sometimes feel like the wonderful people I work with have managed to figure out how to get more than 24 hours out of a day,because I feel like I am working like crazy and am doing so much less than they are. But one small thing I can do while everyone is off on their winter break is to build and promote the shop,which is why I am coming to you now. Please visit our little cafepress shop,and share it with friends.
Okay,I have blogged to let you know I am alive and why I have not been posting much art,so back to work for me. And I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season.
I have been working on my mercat crazy quilt in between making steam punk jewelry. I used some of the Light Effects thread in white and pale pink on the tail and to outline the flower on the cat’s head. I used a green cotton over the seaweed and put in some little pearl beads over some of the pearl images. I am thinking of using the white light effects over some of the smaller pearls on the head piece. I am also starting to frame the patch with some light purple embroidery.
And when I am not working on my crazy quilting,I am doing things like:
Years ago,I used to crazy quilt. It was something creative to do after getting my art degree that wasn’t painting,for I was burned out on painting. I was obsessed with it for a few years and then found I was spending more time designing embroidery patterns,than actually working on my quilts. And I went and bought myself a sketchbook,and that of course led back to me drawing and painting. A few months ago I signed on with Queen Kat Designs to have my paintings turned into fabric patches. They reminded me so much of the Tobacco Silks that everyone was wanting for their Crazy Quilts in the late 90′s when I was myself doing lots of CQ. Which had me thinking about crazy quilting all over again. Then I was a panelist at a convention and got put on a panel on steam punk. The moderator asked what we would like to see in steam punk. That is when it hit me that crazy quilting wasn’t showing up in steampunk,even though crazy quilting was a popular Victorian craft and was a great way to use up costuming scraps. So I talked a local Steam Punk convention into letting me have a panel on crazy quilting in hopes of having costumers bit by the cq bug. And if they don’t want to take the time to cq themselves,mybe it will have them thinking of donating their scraps to friends that will make beautiful crazy quilts with it. In preparing for this crazy quilt discussion I have asked to borrow back some of my work that I had gifted years ago,and am starting a new crazy quilt block. It is just now patched,as you can see in the photo here. Next is the really fun part,where I will do all sorts of fun hand work. I am thinking it needs pearls,and maybe that cool embroidery thread that changes colors in the sun. I used my mercat fabric patches from QKD,some scraps and a few fabrics bought especially for this project. When I get done with this one,I really want to do one with my Arrival of Spring patch.
Being an artist is hard. It is lonely sometimes,which leads to insecurities which leads to being less effective as artists. But for our artist part of our lives we seem to need 3 types of friends. Sometimes one friend can play multiple rolls in our lives,but these rolls are important to us. Sometimes these are people we see every day,just occasionally,or have never met in person.
#1 is the Cheerleader. This is the friend that always has something nice to say about what we have done and can point out the things they like best about our work. Just having this sort of friend in an artist’s life can keep them creating and sharing their work even when everything seems to be working against them.
#2 is the Fan. This is the friend that is sharing the artist work for them. It might be something as simple as clicking share on a facebook post or linking to a blog post. Or it might be talking about the artist work to their other friends. Or maybe when they introduce their artist friend to new people they make a point of telling them that this person is an artist. This by the way helps teach the artist to talk about their work to new people. Having this sort of friend helps the artist see that their work has worth and gives them the courage to accept financial benefits from their own work.
#3 might be the most important. This is the Peer. This is the person with enough grounding in art themselves that they can offer a real critique. They can point out where a color choice might have gone wrong,or explain a composition error. They can also help flesh out ideas that the artist is struggling with.
I love the people who play these rolls in my life. And the one friend that has had the courage to step up and play the Peer in my life has been one of my greatest treasures. It has to take a lot of courage to point out an issue with artists latest painting. Because really for most of us,the newest painting is the most loved. Artists can be sensitive people and don’t always like to hear what we need to about having mistakenly changed the source of light on the lower right hand corner or similar. We are starting the season for expressing our thanks as well as the season for gift giving. Please don’t forget these wonderful friends that are really responsible for you being an artist. And since they are playing these rolls for your artist self,might I suggest art as a gift. Unless their home is already overflowing with your art,then maybe a box of chocolate with a nifty card with your art on it instead.
And since we are all here for the art is my latest that I would like to share with you all.
I just had to share this painting,even though she is not yet for sale. She is a painting I am working on for a local exhibition that is happening early next year. I was a bit obsessive and worked all night for a few nights. But I think the results are stunning. This just might be the best painting I have done to date. There are some lovely details in this one. I am particularly proud of the ribbons of pale colors that weave through the painting. She is an 11×14″watercolor and ink.
This is an inking of a painting I am working on for a local exhibition. I am at a loss for a title for her. If I was good with words,I would be a writer. But I am not. She is supposed to a fixer of broken hearts. Part Goddess,part girl next door. The girl that is there for you when the bad girl breaks your heart and somewhere along the way you finally figure out that she was your soul mate all along,but you were blinded to it,because she was always a fixture in your life. And until you have that epiphany,you are clueless to the fact that she is really a goddess in disguise. But how do I convey that with a title. Right now my working title is The Fixer. But my husband says that sounds more like a mob position.
Spirited Away I have been trying to remember to make some videos of myself painting so you all can see how my paintings develop. Although seeing several hours work compressed down to just a few moments is kinda cool for me to watch too. It makes it all look like magic. So click the link and check it out. Spirited away is 8×10″and was created for the Enchanted Visions Project with the theme of the same name.
Dragon Lore is my first painting for 2012. It was created for the Enchanted Visions Project. My daughter actually asked that I do a dragon wrapped around a book. After a few different sketches with that idea I finally settled on having the dragon’s tail wrapped around the book to hold it for reading. With the theme Dragon Lore,I really wanted to do something to express the idea of sharing cultural history with the next generation so I added some little ones to K’s request.
