Vesica Pisces

"Vesica Pisces" is the mystery that came home with me from my third encaustic class. Our teacher demonstrated intaglio lines (cut and fill), stencils, making transfer paper and molding into the warm wax and filling. It is priceless to see someone with a lot of experience demonstrate how to hold the tools and carve away the wax; the first time I tried it I had very little control. Our assignment was to play around with the new techniques and get a feel for the wax; I was drawn to the way the material veiled the color layers beneath and the foamy texture I could get with the side of the brush as the wax cooled. The rest is a mystery; no matter how much we study and meditate it comes back to that central truth.

The next week promises to be the busiest of the summer with Art & Soul happening, my wonderful Carla coming as a houseguest, a date tonite with the butt-kicking Mary Ann, classes, Birthday celebrations and more. My email program dumped a pile of emails between here and the beach so if you haven't heard from me that is probably why. I'm preparing for all of it by drinking more coffee than usual and carrying a clipboard everywhere. If you're coming to Art & Soul, I'll be the one who looks a little wild-eyed and dithery. Here goes - wheeeeeeeee!

End of Summer at the Beach

Time for some family fun at the Oregon coast. This is Avery, a friend of the family since the day he was born to my daughter's best friend. He and the grandson are within months of the same age and have been like brothers all their lives. He is the sun to the mystery man's moon (thank you, Loretta, for that term which fits our boy to a tee); talkative, bubbly and outgoing. He was fun to have along.

A hopeful seagull, waiting for a handout.

The weather was gnarly after the first day so we all spent a lot of time just looking at the pounding surf from the warmth of the living room. On Sunday we spent at least 8 hours watching a marathon of Miami Ink and LA Ink. It was great fun watching all the tattooing and hearing all the stories behind the tattoos. John and I don't have cable so we had never seen the series.

Cooper is growing up. He was so happy to see his crazy cousin Moose show up for some serious beach romps. Ear to ear grins and wild cavorting ensued.

Crazy cousin Moose.

The quiet man plays a video game. His was one of the Birthdays celebrated this month.

So Birthday presents of course.

Salad from the garden.

Cooper loves to play Yahtzee but needs help with the math.

Everyone napping - tired, sandy, rested, happy. Good to go, good to return home. I appreciate my funny and entertaining family more with each passing year. This has been our end of summer celebration for the past 5 years or so and it is a wonderful way to end the season. On the drive home we remarked that the maple is turning (colors) now and the pumpkins are being harvested. The rains are here and the house was cold. Fall greets us after summer gave us everything she had. One last long good-bye and then we turn to the spooky season.

Encaustics; Second Class

I am mad about encaustic. Last night in our second class we put together our torches and made copies of fayum mummy portraits. (that's mine above) Our teacher, Jeff Gunn, is a peach. So personable, relaxed and encouraging. He demonstrated how you add a little powdered pigment (color) to the melted wax (clear) on the surface of the hot plate and then used that as your paint. So that the entire portrait above is colored wax - nothing underneath, no underdrawing to guide you, just *splat* melted wax on birch plywood. And then *whoosh* the flame from the propane torch.

I am in love with my torch. I want to sleep with it under my pillow. Always before in encaustic classes my teachers had us painting out of muffin tins of dense, opaque color (always in the ugliest colors imaginable) and nothing I made ever looked like anything. So I am elated to learn how to make mixtures of color as I go and to be able to keep my colors transparent and alive. I have no idea where this is going. I just see hundreds of doors swung wide open beckoning me to enter. I am the wide-eyed beginner. It is the very best place to be, with so many possibilites before me.

I haven't been spraying much. With only 24 hours in a day I have had to choose. I did manage to mark up my front porch some more spray yesterday though. I know - newspaper. But I'm always in too much of a hurry so now the front of my house is sort of, er, sprayed.

Another mini-me stencil collage to sell at Art & Soul. Next Saturday in Portland. Fun!!!

So today I'm ordering pigment for encaustic and rigging up an exhaust hood for my studio. In my previous studio I made a very clever work area on top of a wood table with just cardboard and glass (arranged like the sneeze-glass at the salad bar). I had a vented fan built into the wall. It was awesome as I was working with very strong nitric acid and KPR Developer and Xylene (nasty, nasty, nasty). I miss that wonderful and safe little hood. So this new exhaust area will be a little funkier but then the fumes aren't quite so bad and whatever I come up with will be better than what we have at school (fan in a window. no hood.)

Here's to new materials, a spirit of adventure and shopping for more art supplies!

Friends

Today my friends came over to play with me. We got out the washable paints and rubber stamps and brushes and paper and commenced with the fun. I couldn't resist sharing these pictures with you. My little friends shared with me that they love to make art in school. Well, of course they do. Everyone loves to make art.

This dear child is going to a new school this year but she already has two new friends and she said her teacher is nice so I am relieved for her. She has been my buddy for 3 years now. My heart swells when she comes to visit.

This is her adorable cry-baby sister. They say she cries but she has never cried at my house. She is a meticulous child and a wonderful painter of abstracts. Really. I wish I had her je nes see qwah.

She laboriously cleaned every single rubber stamp with a toothbrush. She scrubbed them clean. She matched each lid with the correct jar of paint. She is only 3 years old but already a patient, genius artist. I stare in awe.

And finally a crazy-azee journal page for your consideration. Oh life. You are such a wonder. Such a dream. Thank you for all the sweetness.

Kraft Paper Booklet

I guess I'm not out of my book making jones yet. I meant to tackle my disorderly studio for a good clean up but when I went to change the kraft paper under my painting area I went into a swoon over all the random color. And then I decided to make it into a booklet to slip into my purse. So that when I have a brilliant idea I can just whip it out and write it on something deliciously beautiful. Yeah, baby.

So I tore it all up with a ruler and divided it into 3 signatures. Then I sewed the signatures coptic style into a booklet. Viola.

In some ways I find this brown paper as beautiful as the most expensive hand made. It records every splotch of moisure with such exquisite sensitivity. I love those ripples and curls.

This is my favorite bit. Where the cover page is torn and reveals a peek at what's below. Color. I need it like I need oxygen.

This is the back of the spine. It is not a fat book but I dont want a fat book for my little notes.

Here we go. Ready for its new home inside my purse. It's the little things. Simple and joyful.

New Journal, Zap Mama, Artfest Sign-Up

I love to make the next journal before the last one is filled. Such a feeling of anticipation; to see the book with its pristine pages waiting to be started. For this journal I did a very extravagant thing and decided to use a stack of fabulous Fabriano paper that I've been saving. This paper is so exquisite - just to touch the pages is to feel the quality and history of the mill that created it. I used the light gray color and since it is thinner than what I usually use in my journals I was able to make 4 signatures instead of 3. An old printmaker friend gave me this paper as well as lots of handmade paper (an obsession we shared) so I think of her often while in my studio. We were friends in the late 70's, so long ago now.

I made the front and back covers on 8" x 10" acrylic panels. If you enlarge the photo above you'll see that the front cover is partially transparent. I glued tissue paper printed with inkjet images directly onto both sides of the acrylic panel and then glued on a cut-out photocopy of one of my stencil images. For the back cover I created an image in Photoshop and then printed it out onto fabric transfer paper. Once I transferred that to fabric and I glued that to the outside of the cover, then glued Japanese printed paper on the inside of the cover.

So above is both front and back attached to the canvas spine. I forgot to reverse the fabric transfer but decided to live with the outcome.

And this is what the inside of the covers look like, ready to receive the signatures. I got a great shot of the pierced signatures but then accidently deleted it. Ack!

My gosh-awful messy studio, sunny window, favorite fig tree, itty-bitty journal cover standing up on the work area to show that it is transparent to the light.

As I was working I found this scrap of paper on the floor, exactly as you see it. Since it certainly was a glorious day I glued it on the cover.

Here are the four signatures looking down from the top of the spine.

And the stitching on the spine. Terry Gross was interviewing Alice Cooper as I worked. Funny how something like that will stick in your mind. Now every time I look at this journal I'll think of Alice Cooper. Ack again.

Here it is, photo copies of my own work, tissue collage, the whole enchilada. Reminding me. Pilar gave me an awesome gift this week. She said she loves to cook; the whole kitchen witchery thing of stirring up seductive food. Oh, I loved that image. I am a reluctant cook. But yesterday I cooked another meal for my recuperating friend (chili verde, tortillas de maiz, arroz, salad) and as I worked I thought of brujeria de la cocina and that made it FUN! So now I want to cook more stuff. (no photos this time)

Here is a wild shot of the opening act of Zap Mama. We went to see them on Saturday night and it was a great concert. No photos allowed of the Mama's (sorry). I am such a rule follower. But here is a link to a cool song-video of them. Eye candy and ear candy.

This is a cheater page because I hooked 2 pages together for you. Why? I don't know. Just messing around. Loving a Labor Day with no labor whatsoever (I slept in to 10:25 am - hah!) and just plenty of time to pet the cat, drink coffee, get a little caught up (but not enough) and finish the new journal.

Last on the list: Artfest registration tomorrow. This will be my 4th year. I am thrilled to be teaching 2 classes but also missing out on taking from some of my talented companeros. I will never stop taking classes as long as I'm able. Learning new things keeps me energized and happy and that keeps me healthy and glad to be alive. I think that's all for now.

And the Living is Easy

Life is peaceful here today at the farm (hah! It's not really a farm but my imagination is strong). I've finished up some projects that I'll be able to share later and I've worked more on teaching hand-outs. My friends have been nearby with suggestions and support; what good and reassuring friends they are. One phoned me this morning and emailed me her latest journal pages which I loved seeing. We admired them together as we conversed. What a great way to start the day.

So that is why I'm sharing my "garden-variety" journal pages with you. Not because they are special but instead because I love to look at the pages of others myself for all the personal idiosyncrasies they hold. Obviously I don't work from a template or central idea; I just let them grow as they choose. Some people have a style but mine I think are all over the place.

Dear Hermanito had to have oral surgery this week. He is old, his gums are bad, he walks like his joints hurt and his kidneys are failing. I've written before about how his increasing fragility just makes me love him more. And more. And more.

We canned 20 quarts of tomatoes yesterday, aren't they beautiful? When I do the job alone it is all helter skelter (like I am in the studio) but when John mans the canner it's all by the book. I peeled tomatoes and then got out of his way. They are like jewels, shining down now from the pantry shelf.

If only we could put other things in jars to enjoy later. I'd save a hot summer day, a perfect Cecile Brunner rosebud, the smell of the barbecue, the sound of crickets in the evening and the feeling I get when my heart is open. What would you save?

Back from Idaho, On to Arizona

We just touched down from Art on the Green at Lake Coeur d'Alene in Idaho. The weather was perfect and the lake was all that and more. The art fair was tremendous fun as always and the people in Idaho were very kind to us. I gathered a new group of artists to share with you; as always, the ones I found outstanding and unusual. I hope you like them.

This is Nan Drye of Drye Goods Clothing & Art. She is modelling a jeans jacket with hand painting and transfer and embellishments. Love the shells and trim she's chosen.

The cowboy in chaps struck me as particularly frisky and fun. Embroidered bright red poppies and Nan herself. Good job!

Nathan and Mary Eberle set up next to me and have an unusual art form. They make flowers out of various kinds of paper. They just finished filming a segment for DIY network and their business is really taking off. They are also musicians; Mary is a vocalist and Nathan plays keyboard. This is a very exciting time for them; it's fun to watch talented young artists get recognition and success. For a close-up, check out their website.

And here again is my friend Ami Davis. She weaves the nicest wraps and garments of anyone (they feel different; softer and more luscious) and you can contact her at avivapat@aol.com. I wrote about her at Edmonds but Blogger lost all the photographs that went with the post and I didn't save a copy so I thought I'd try again. She lives in Missoula near the very famous awesome Michael DeMeng. For such a small town, Missoula sure is home to a lot of artists.

This is Rik Nelson and his school of fishes. Made out of can lids, bottle caps and colorful kitchen tins. He showed me how he coordinates the colors of the tins with the beer and soda caps he flattens and uses. Recycled - yay! Colorful - yay! Clever - way yay! Check it out here.

Next is Mari Anne Figgins. She is a Spokane artist and can paint watercolors like nobody's business. Enjoy her website. She is a master of the art.

Under the tall pines surrounding Lake Coeur d'Alene. In a grassy meadow. Listening to the great music and eating huckleberry ice cream. Feeling a great calm as we watch the people go by. This year for amusement I counted crocs (the shoes) and listed them by colors every time a pair went by. They are hugely popular. (I have 2 pairs.)

This year's sand sculpture. If you click on the archives you can see last year's sand sculpture too.

The customary celebratory after-show Margarita celebration. Life is good!

And this was waiting for me when I arrived home. I collect tarot decks and did not have this one. When Ricë Freeman-Zachery offered one up on her blog I hurled myself at the chance and thrillingly was chosen to receive this. I can't wait to sit down and play with it thoroughly; thank you Ricë, not only are you the web's funniest writer but you are generous as well.

BTW, Ricë has a new book coming out in about a month entitled Living the Creative Life. I just know with her incredible writing that it is going to be a great one. You can pre-order it at Amazon.

So now I have to cover my eyes so I don't get tangled up in reading all the blogs I've fallen behind on (this is soooo hard. I try to keep up with all of you and usually do a pretty good job) - but I am off to Art Unraveled in 2 days so I have to RUN and get ready to go now. I will catch up on everything when I return and I will bring news from sunny, monsoon-y Arizona.

In haste,
Girl-Reporter.