It has been awhile...

I have been working and teaching a various places and trying to keep up with my own business, and sadly I have neglected this blog (among other things). I have two more art venues coming up. Second Storie is Saturday, November27th, 11 am to 5 pm and Sunday, November 28th, 11 am to 4 pm at The Visual StudiesWorkshop auditorium and Hearts and Crafts is on December 12th at Javas Coffee Shop on Gibbs Street. I have been making as much as I possibly can for these last holiday sales. I hope you can come see me and the many other amazing artists.

Buy Local, Buy Hand Made, and Be Happy!

Estate Sale Selling

I go to a few Estate sales when I can. There is an awesome website called estatesales.net that lists the dates and times, maps and pictures for the sales. I have noticed some particularly amazing photos on this site- these are unchanged by moi - these are the exact snapshots that the organizers take to showcase the items in the sale. I think this first one had a lot of influence on my recent collage work.

I may frame this one and hang it in the living room. I just love the set like appearance, the colors and balance, and I especially like the blinds reflected in the TV.

Owls and Other Animlas

I am actually keeping this first owl for myself. He is all cashmere and probably the best shaped owl I have yet to make. The others are posted and for sale for $55 on Etsy, both in second seed and in secondseedinstitches.

Life

Aster raked the leaves on Sunday - just to take pics. I think this looks like a Loreal Paris ad.

I have decided to quit Anthropologie. I really like working there, but I feel like I cannot keep house or make dinner or spend any decent enough amount of time with my family. Since I mostly work nights there - that was the job to leave...

only a few hours after I e-mailed Anthropologie my resignation and two weeks notice - a manager at Naartjie quit and I was promoted to replace her. So now I have to work two nights at Naartjie. I also teach on Thursday Evenings and I am simply tired of not being home for dinner. I have been living on root beer and pretzel hotdogs while all I think about are wonderful healthy meals. I need to get organized to make a number of dinners on my free days to be able to pull out of the fridge or freezer last minute. Today is one of those days - I don't have high hopes.

enough about me

This Friday offers numerous wonderful exhibits. VSW presents artist and poet Jen Bervin to speak at the Black Mountain North Symposium at 2:30-4:00 PM at the Memorial Art Gallery. The Black Mountain North Symposium is a three-day conference and festival of the arts in Rochester, NY. It celebrates upstate New York’s experimental arts, whose lineage is partly traceable to the migration of artists and scholars from a radically innovative school situated in the hills of North Carolina from 1933 to 1957. Jen Bervin's work is so lovely, I assume she will be speaking about her new book The Desert. This book is made by her (hand) machine sewing over the text to reveal a found poem. (She made an edition of 40!)

.

more to love

head over heals

I have never felt this way about my own work, but, yes, I am head over heals in love with the collages I have been making for the Record Archive exhibit.

I am only just completing the last of them and the show opens this Friday. I will deliver the work on Tuesday and hope to keep making a few pieces to bring in later in the week. The picture of the studio shows the work I am still attempting to accomplish in the two or three days I have left...

Hearts and Crafts at Java's is tomorrow and I work on Monday but I should be able to get into the studio and get moving. I have 15 painted canvases with collage as well as a number of pieces on paper and blocks (I posted images of those blocks earlier)... For those of you cannot be in Rochester to see this work, well, I feel badly for you. It really is a stupendous group of pieces and I am obviously very proud of myself although I truly feel that the work just needs me around to glue and cut...

collage

Here is a preview for of some work I have created that will be exhibited at Record Archive. I will also have some new prints of new work for Artist Row on Sunday. Come and see me and many other amazing artists at the Pubic Market! These are 5 x 5 inches. I have been playing around with ideas of gender and empowerment. I wish I had more time before the exhibit opens because I really like the direction the work is taking.

studio pics

Aster came and did a photo shoot at Rockwood Place ( where I share a studio with Sarah). She uses a tripod and the timer. I could hear her on the roof above me as I worked on collage. She created these amazing pictures. (If you like these - there are more on her facebook).

As promised

Here are more pics from our family trip in August. We stopped in Ithaca for one day. There are all these amazing public sculptures in town...Some of you know how I love pods!

Below are pics from a gorge just north of Ithaca.

Gizmoto

Last week we adopted a 6 month old cat that needed a home. He is a sweet thing, but April and Nemo, our other dog and cat are pretty upset with him. Gizmo, Gizmoto, Gizzle, Gizzard or just plain Giz is a strong stubborn cat. He definitely stands his ground with the dog. April is used to getting beat up by our other cat, but usually Nemo runs away after a few good wacks. The new little guy just waits there until April backs away. He has Nemo so frightened that we hardly ever see him. I know it will take some time, but sooner or later they will all get along.

Sixteen?

I am disappointed in myself that I have not posted in so long. I have been very, very busy. I have taken a new, second, part time job and last week I was teaching collage and mosaic all week at an art day camp and I have a show that will open October 1st and am trying desperately to complete a lot of collage work...

But today is my amazing son's birthday - so, it is essential that I share this wonderful day with the world. Gage is 16, stupendous sixteen, I can't believe it myself, but the calendar states it is true. HE is the most wonderful, analytic, interesting person I know. I love him a ton. This picture above is Gage and the one below is Allen and Gage. Both were taken at Storm King Art park. We all went on a mini vacation to Dia Beacon and Storm King two weeks ago - I will post more images from the trip soon.

Christmas in August

Christina Hendricks

Mad men's second episode was nothing less than weirdly awkward. But at least it was an improvemnet from last weeks somber, sober, boringness. That unpleasant feeling of being in a difficult situation overwhelmed the show. It is difficult to describe that feeling in words, but that is why the show is so fine, it utilizes the emotional and visual to convey that which would be pathetic depiction otherwise. "Ill at ease" comes to mind, also embarrassed and uncomfortable, but I'll take Peggy's confused gaze over these words any day.

The sophomoric behavior of a number of characters was unnerving and upsetting but hopefully will lead to complicated story lines. I do love the chubby disturbed Glen and hope he becomes a regular creepy character.

disapointed

Mad Men finally returned to television last night. I was anticipating the show too much I think - and was disappointed. There just wasn't the same sexiness and interesting undertones - couldn't even find one metaphor - oh well it is still better than any thing else on the tube.

Here is a picture Aster took using the tripod. We went shopping for boots, as fall attire is in the stores now. These were last year's style on sale for only $20!

new toy

Allen got me this Handy Button Machine at a yard sale in Pennsylvania. It is a beauty and makes 3/4" buttons (about the size of a nickel). I have a limited amount of fronts and backs but am searching for a supplier. I haven't had much luck yet - I guess I will have to call the Handy Co. tomorrow.

Collage Treasury

Summerline created this amazing treasury of collages. My "coming home" collage is included!

Inception corrections?

Last night, Gage and I saw Inception, written and directed by Christoper Nolan (writer/director of the demented memory flip book that is "Memento" and the freakery of Gotham City in "The Dark Knight").

As in his other films, Nolan again created a complicated, multileveled (in theory as well as narrative), challenging, cerebral experience. This time around, he delves into the creative process, the construction of experience and concepts of inspiration. I was disappointed when these themes disappeared as the story became more about the of the actual espionage and continually occurring obstacles, rather than the conception of the plan.

Heightened by time disparities, exact punctuality becomes essential and creative problem solving becomes more than just necessary, but life saving. I suppose that the creative process is threaded through out the film by these clever solutions and Nolan does have a wonderful way of placing a familiar genre inside a visual landscape that seems new... I feel I have no justification to criticize such genius, but the basic heist, caper, job (whatever name you want to give it) is still just that.

There were also some ideas that I think went amiss, I don't want to spoil any of it - seeing this movie more than once seems inevitable. As with Memento, you need to know the details of various levels in order to create your own spin of it all. I think I will bring a notebook and pen with me the second time.

Birthday Dinner

We all went to Good Luck for Aster's Birthday dinner. I never had such amazing food and fun! Aster asked me to wear a dress and heels because she was dressed up - so I did. We all laughed and ate too much. Here I am holding the leftovers which come in boxes that say "Lucky You."

Birthday girl

It is my sweet little girl's 14th birthday today. Here she is pictured at 3 years old-Here she is at 13 and 9 months- dangerously photographing herself using a tripod on the train tracks.

And today at 14 years old -

Allen created a poetic scavenger hunt for her birthday presents, although she was not exactly thrilled, she smiled through our shenanigans. Below she is on the phone with Grandma Carol as Gage tries to keep her on task-

happy birthday honey! Love you forever!

treasury

Letthemeatkate from Australia created a wonderfully wintery treasury and included my fingerless gloves!