Summer Solstice

Studio desk.

Old art.

Finally some sunshine.

And tasty fruit.

I've got some things going on that take time. Time to be in the moment, take it all in and move from that spot without expectations. That's when my imagination flows best. I am preparing for a gallery jury, slowly working on commission pieces, preparing encaustic photography and conquering anything that falls between the lines. Summer means my life will continue on it's fast pace yet the lazy days will reign over any stress and chaos. The family disperses during the day and always comes together on the front porch at dusk. There's an odd sense of relaxation when the sun sets at 10pm. As if there's plenty of time to accomplish everything that needs to get done. This [click] and this [click] are making me smile.

Silly Rain

A little something the rain made me do.

(click on play even if you don't see a screen)

Bee Girl

I finally finished my Bee Girl painting a year after starting it. There's a story in there somewhere. I couldn't help but write it in my head as I painted. I used old torn book pages, mica disks, oil bars, aluminum & copper leafing, acrylics, colored inks and a stablio pencil to complete her. I think the only thing I left out was the encaustic wax. She has turned out to be a mixed media piece, as all my painting do. She's already SOLD! but booked for a few appearances here and there before traveling to her new home in a sweet little girls room. I find it amazing each and every time I complete a piece, their final state is typically very different from the vision I originally create in my head.

Boredom leads to Porch Time

This week's been filled with mostly essay writing & preparing for finals. I did however squeeze in a home art project out of boredom, found an art piece I had forgotten about and spent some well deserved porch time with the person who makes me laugh the most. In attempting to "capture" the moment of sheer contentment I found myself distracted in taking shots of the lanterns that covered my porch. I failed by comparison and need some work in my photographic skills but did manage to snap what I believe to be some so so shots with my limited resources. Grace is how I was feeling one day when that peace was created. Not a typical feeling but welcomed when it arrives. My stairs were in need of refreshing, black paint and a silver sharpie did the trick for that little extra personality. Lissie's music is ringing in my ears [click].

The Weather Made Me Do It

 I've been snapping a lot of photos lately and altering them with new yummy tricks & filters. It's been raining an awful lot in the Portland area and perhaps that boosts my inspiration. I feel nurtured and in somewhat of a cocooned state when it's gray and rainy. What's left of the magnificent peony in my kitchen window is the remnants of a hostess gift from dear friends I had over for a dinner party a week ago. The tiny cobalt blue bottles cast a brilliant hue into the kitchen (more brilliant with less dust on them). The striped tights are of a stunning young artist type girl that was waiting to use the lieu at The Pied Cow [click] who graciously let me snap a shot when she caught my eye. The self portraits are taken in my dormer walk in closet in my 1920's bungalow. It's painted a light ballerina pink (no boys allowed) with random piles of laziness and personal treasures. It's my own little space full of icons of my personality. Check this song out [click] and this one [click] they are two of my new favorites right now...especially the second one ♥ ♥ ♥.

Bonus Scraps & Fresh Air

Bonus scraps of misc. ephemera stained with inks & encased in encaustic medium. Not sure what I'll do with these exactly. The bottom one I did use for a thank you note. Below I show the work I did today. While I have the encaustic mediums melted I try to use them for as many projects as I can. I'm covered in wax splatter and need some fresh air. Although my studio is well ventilated working so close to melted beeswax & pine resin makes it difficult to completely avoid the fumes. This [click] and this [click] were amongst the musing that flowed through my head while lost in my process...all...day...long. It was one GREAT day.

Speedy Shots Encased in Wax

Today was a day of encaustic work. Seems if I don't schedule a day to do art, art gets bumped to those spaces of time that feel crammed and hurried then I get crabby and impatient. The photos were taken on a walk in late winter, I textured salvaged blocks of wood, tinted them with inks, encased everything in encaustic medium then gently rubbed a white oil stick into the dimples and scratches. These are part of a line of organic/earthy art for a local shop. OK...only the bottom was taken on a walk the other two were 75 mph drive by shots while on vacation in January. No we did not vacation in that desolate area, merely passing through on an adventure. I can tell you...this song was was playing on the ipod [click here].

Passing the Time

So last weekend I went into Portland, parked at the Lloyd Center Mall and hopped on the free MAXline to the Oregon Convention Center where my friend Shawn (a talented metal smith) was selling her jewelry at a show. In the same building were the woodworkers, glass & pottery guild shows as well as a thing called Crafty Wonderland. The artist poured their souls out into their work for all to enjoy. The top photo is of the park at the Lloyd Center MAXline. A sweet spot to cop a squat. The next is some giant art in the Convention Center and the third are art journal entries. I don't have lavish overly creative journal pages but I do spill out a lot of ideas that turn into projects. I also tape in magazine clippings of the things that catch my eye. A showcase of inspirational artistic fantasy no matter how simple or elaborate.

+ Substrates & - Time

I noticed today I have enough random substrates lying around I could keep busy for months without spending any $$$. I have substrates; I haven't completed (Bee Girl), I've worked on-disliked-and regesso'd (word?), scrapped from construction projects, re-purposed, impulse bought, shoved under and behind furniture and have not used up. I also drive some around in the back of my vehicle from time to time. All that surface waiting to be used. What the heck am I waiting for??? Divine intervention? More time? Someone to say GO? Currently I have one project in the works but I haven't touched it in weeks. I look at it, pick it up, admire it's limited progress but haven't made the time to empty my imagination out enough to give it a purpose. What ever it is that's limiting my ambition it must leave. Go away. Beat it!

Triple Whammy

It's been a while since I did some self portraits so tonight I went for the triple whammy. They are not taken in a creative place...well perhaps my "tub room" is a space for thinking creatively and it's really nice but it's not Bali or anything. The top photo is processed with a cross patching filter. The middle one, very disco (with a modern twist [click here]), is a focal flash type of process and the last one I couldn't figure out anything different to do so I layered multiple filters several times over to come up with something golden. It's good to take self portraits every once in a while. It seems to become more comfortable each time I try. Good, bad or indifferent. It is what it is and how could I ask for anything more.