Day Eighteen of Thirty

Instead of having our Rainbow Artist's July meeting at our regular venue, we went to the Rio Grande Community Garden in the North Valley of Albuquerque; one of our members has a row there (they have rows, rather than plots; makes it easier to irrigate). It is a charming spot and we had snacks and the director of the Garden spoke to us of it's history and mission. The sketches above are some that I did after we broke up and went into the garden, and the photo below is roughly the area that I sketched. The flies were pretty bad, so I gave up early and walked around and took photos, but was proud of myself for sketching (which is my least favorite art endeavor!) as much as I did. Jackie is planning to make some kind of collage that can be hung at the garden from all of our sketches.

Day Seventeen of Thirty

This was a page that I had started in my Dream Big Journal. The right hand side was Traci Bautisita's art that I printed on labels and pasted to the page (Traci gave permission to use her art). I put the circles on the right and then decorated the left hand side with circles and various colors of felt tip pins. I felt compelled to finish this, which does not usually happen to me, but I did finish the circles early this morning and finished coloring the backgrounds this evening.


Close up view of both pages. I had another artful weekend. Saturday I worked on these pages after meeting with a client. On Sunday I went to Santa Fe and saw the Mining the Unconscious II show. This show was inspired by C. G. Jung's Red Book. It is a very inspiring show and they show a video with artists explaining the symbols and inspiration of some of the pieces. If you are in Santa Fe it really is a must see show, it is at the Santa Fe University of Art and Design, at the Fine Arts Gallery unitl August 7th.

Day Sixteen of Thirty

OK, I had a very busy day, but still managed to do some Fabric Art. There are five batik layers, and each layer is a different color and is snipped very carefully (I almost made a boo-boo on the blue layer which is the last layer and if I had cut through it, it would have all been over. ) Since I have not decided what I will do with this and this is the first time I have tried the technique, I will probably not do anything with it right now.

Day Fifteen of Thirty

OK, I was busy last night editing videos for my friend Juliana's online classes so that will have to be my 30 minutes of Art Making for Friday. On Saturday I plan to do some sewing because I have not done anything fabric wise yet for the project.

Day Fourteen of Thirty

This is collage of two layers of photos I took in Columbus. The facility we were at was being remodeled after years of water damage, etc. This is green peeling paint over a brick layer. I can see some graffiti added to this one!

Day Thirteen of Thirty Part DEUX

Here is the video from last night, it finally uploaded about 11:30 and I was already dead to the world....

Day Thirteen of Thirty

Drat! I shot a video today for my 30 days art project, but it is still uploading and I have to go to bed now, or I will never get up in the morning. I will post tomorrow night!

Day Twelve of Thirty

This is a digital collage I created on the plane back from Dallas Monday night titled white flower. It uses two background pics, one of a marble tombstone and one of rust stains on a wall, and then the white flower in the foreground.

Day Ten of Thirty

After creating the labels for the Rainbow Artist's show at the Albuquerque Little Theatre, I had all these sticky back pieces left over. So I peeled them off and stuck them to some cereal boxes I am going to use for business cards. Should give them some nice subtle texture and then I am not tossing out so much paper or cardboard.

Day Eleven of Thirty

Rough sketches of what I would like to do to my house to make my studio more special (includes buying another unit and knocking out walls, so it will have to wait until I win more than $3 on the lottery). The right page is squiggles for a potential logo... need to have it by July 29th, so I better hurry!

Day Seven of Thirty

Since I am packing, will fudge tonight with pics of the kittehs!
Babycakes is ready to go with me, until we have to leave the house, then she changes her mind! Imagine TSA's surprise when BC came bounding out of my suitcase!





fuzzy Buckets was lazy today...

Day 5 of 30

I FINALLY did it! At QSDS one of my classmates had concentric circles on her photos and I asked how she did it (I have no shame when it comes to asking about a technique that I like) and she told me it was in photoshop and it was easy. WELLLLLLL I have found very little in Photoshop that is easy, and this was no exception, but I finally got it down. She had them on photos of ancient ancestors, and it looked smashing. I just grabbed any old image and put it on it, but I love it.

Day 4 of 30

My inspiration wall, which is just to the left of my computer station. I am influenced by so many things!
I have had such a luxurious, art filled weekend, and I do not want it to end! On Saturday I went to an opening at the ABQ Open Space Gallery for some Silk Painter friends, then went downtown to the Main Library for a printing/bookarts exhibit by Off Center artists. Other than church on Sunday, I have done nothing but art and art related things all weekend! Such a nice way to spend my time. I am also posting my day four entries. These are pages prepared for Traci B's Discovering You e-course, and are all about me and my company, what I offer and what I want to accomplish. If you notice, retire plays a HUGE role in these spreads!

Day Nine of Thirty!

A digital collage, with a journal page from my book of the dead, and several texture layers.

Day Eight of Thirty!

Another digital collage featuring Morning Glories. Do I see a pattern here? Two morning glory photos, french postcard text and two different layers.

Day Six of Thirty

Another digital collage. This is a photo that I took on my balcony of morning glories. I used a text background (the writing) and two texture layers from Kim Klassen.
I decided that I want to spell out the day numbers, just looks nicer.

Day 3 of 30

Journal page for Traci Bautista's Discovering You online course. On the left is what I love and the right hand page is My Big Dream page.

Day Two of Thirty!

Cheetah Bricks, a layered digital collage. I think this symbolizes how civilization (and our attendant "progress") is infringing on the natural world. I used a magazine image of the cheetah (one of my power animals) and a photo of a brick street that I took in Columbus Ohio while attending QSDS in June.

Day One of Thirty!

Day one is a bit of a fudge, but I did not read Traci's post until late. This is Xs and Os #3, the third in a series featuring red, black, Xs and Os. It was started at QSDS from a class with Fran Skiles. I stretched the canvas tonight, so that counts as art for the day, huh?

Joining Traci Bunkers 30 days!

Join Traci for 30 days of art making.
I am going to do this!

Check this out...

If you are into Egypt at all, check this out...
http://www.freehabib.com/work/into-egypt/

Here are the words, but the words and images are stunning!

into egypt

to be ready
you will want beauty
as your face
you will want to greet the day with a heart
you will wish was open
you will want to be brave
and you only fear
want belief in anything
and everything is doubt
when there is light finally you might squint
the sight of it all might make you

steady you will want
a vision ahead
redemptive dissonance
music for the end of
chorus for the coming of
manifest hum into hymn
the noise of it rivers you
you will cry water into flames
vulture your own heart to feed

you will want to love your self
at all enough you will want
to flee and forget the leaving
will have to leap still wanting
you will want to wait for witness
you will want to wait for those already gone
you will want until you are want
you will want until
you are ready

- Suheir Hammad

Clarissa Pinkola Estes Quote

The real miracle of…the Wild Woman is that we all begin the process beforewe are ready, before we are strong enough, before we know enough; we begin a dialogue with thoughts and feelings that both tickle and thunder within us. We respond before we know how to speak the language, before we know all the answers, and before we know exactly to whom we are speaking. -
From Clarissa Pinkola Estes’ Women Who Run with the Wolves

I consider myself a Wyld Womyn Nrrd, a derivative of the Wild Woman!

Who does she think she is????

Watch Who Does She Think She Is Full Free Online... by viekig342655

This is only the trailer, I just watched the full video on PBS. It is available online by following the link on trailer.

Yeah I know - ANOTHER amazing TED video...

Back in the Smokey Southwest!

Xs and Os, one of the pieces that I worked on at QSDS


On Wednesday, we took a bus trip to Athens, Ohio to see the famous Quilt National exhibit at the Dairy Barn. No pics inside, but this is the exterior. It really was an old dairy born.

Untitled large piece from QSDS, also starring Xs and Os.
Xs but no Os
Display of some of the work that I did at QSDS, bottom left is my "wipe piece" that I used to clean brushes and paints. Looks pretty good and may become a selfstanding piece.
Art Sculpture at Columbus College of Art and Design, Columbus. QSDS relocated the workshop here from a hotel. Much nicer atmosphere! The glass building behind the sculpture is the Design Center Studio Apartments, where we stayed.

I am not sure if Columbus air was especially clean or not, but at least it was not smokey! I came back to a yucky, smokey atmosphere that is really bothering my eyes! But it is good to be home.

My "Artological" clock has started again

This is the cover of my new moleskine journal that I am going to use for "My Big Dream Journal". This is for Traci Bautista's Discovering You on line course.

This is the first layer of the background on my title page for the dream journal. Many more layers will follow.

At last, a good sunset picture

Due to the smoke that has been streaming into Albuquerque, sunsets have been muted. But tonight, I looked out and there was a goreous sunset! There is still smoke in the air, but certainly less than the few previous days. The light smoke gives the orange color and you can actually see the horizon line.

Happy Friday

This is a quote from Susannahsays:

...chorus from Anthem by Leonard Cohen

"Ring the bells that still can ring

Forget your perfect offering

There's a crack in everything

That's how the light gets in."

Litany of the Spirituality Book

I am off Sunday AM (a 6 AM Flight-WHAT WAS I THINKING???) to QSDS for a full week of classes! I can't wait!

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

In case you do not know, there is a huge wildfire in Eastern Arizona. The plumes of smoke are inundating Central and northern New Mexico.
This is the usually bright and shining sun about 7 PM. In just a few minutes it disapperared into the wall of smoke. You can smell the smoke, like standing downwind of a campfire.

There is a 10,000' mountain behind this veil of smoke. You wouldn't know it by looking, would you?


This is the view towards the airport and downtown. There are several large buildings that have been swallowed by the smoke.
The sun in the first picture casts an eerie orange glow. This is the sun coming in through my french doors and shining on my yellow couch. You can see the glow.

as of 9:15 Blogger finally relented and let me post the above pictures.
I have some great smoke pictures, but blogger will not let me upload them! I will try again later.

Great bumper sticker

As I was running around today getting ready for QSDS in Columbus, I saw this bumper sticker:

Dogs on Board, Bitch Driving!

Love it!

Off to do laundry in preparation for my Columbus trip.

Great Music and Art video

Found this in Lesly Riley's latest newsletter Artists Success!

Handmind

I really enjoyed the long weekend, and did some art and some house cleaning.
Over the weekend, I was reading UU World, the Unitarian Univeralist monthly magazine. They usually have some very interesting articles, and one this month was: Slow Making by Doug Stowe. He quotes Ursula K. LeGuin's "Always Coming Home"
"It was a good thing for me to learn a craft with a true maker. It may have been the best thing I have done. Nothing we do is better than the work of handmind. When mind uses itself without the hands it runs the whole circle and may go too fast. The hand that shapes the mind into clay or written word slows thought to the gait of things and lets it be subject to accident and time. Purity is on the edge of evil, they say."
Stowe continues:
"When an item is crafted with useful beauty in mind, it transcends not only the years it may last but also the need one might feel to hurry in its making. What are the few extra minutes to do things right when each moment of attention is witnessed in the finsihed piece for such a lengthy span of time?"
I like the idea of HANDMIND.

Warm Saturday and ABQ Fiber Arts Fiesta

I bought Gladioulous this week, and they were beautiful. This is the last spear.


This is my booty from the Fiber Arts Fiesta, held every other year in Albuquerque. Pamela and I went this afternoon, and saw all of it before we pooped out. There were some gorgeous quilts, amazing goods for sale and the fabric was great. I only bought a jacket pattern, some beads and bangles, and I got the earrings for a donation to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. Very enjoyable afternoon.
I spent the morning getting my car serviced, and put that time to good use. I went through all my pictures on the laptop, labeling all of them so I can find something. My new camera posts them to a date folder, and I could never find anything.
Most of my pictures (probably 75%) are on my old desktop, and will take some time to organize! That may be a stormy winter weekend thing...

Gas and other musing on Friday evening

When I filled up my gas tank two weeks ago, I paid $3.89 (but I did not drive to my cheapy place, too far and I was tired). On Tuesday, I went to the cheapy place and paid $3.48! That is a big difference. I think that Americans getting upset about the huge profits and the rising price of gas, that we were listened to! Finally.
I am looking forward to a long three day weekend. My friend and I are going to go the The Fiber Fiesta tomorrow, and I plan to be inspired.
I am also going to do some art over this long weekend!

Rapture??

Our Senior Minister, Christine Robinson, returned from Sabbatical today, and this quote was in her sermon:
"And we affirm, on this beautiful day, that the rapture must have occured, and taken all of us into the holy place of earth and the blessedness of all that is our lives; Let us live this day as if it were heaven; and that way, we will know heaven. love and peace. Amen"

Lazy Sunday

This is something that never happens: both of my kittehs in the same room, on the same bed, within inches of each other! They usually stay in separate rooms.
Still lazy... fuzzy bucket is on the left, baby cakes on the right.
I intended to do some art this weekend, but instead lazed around with the cats and watched movies (btw I could not cover up with my quilt, as it was covered by kittehs!)

Yeah I know - ANOTHER amazing TED video...

But this is truly awe-inspiring...

Mothersitting Weekend

I had a great weekend. I went to Tularosa to "mothersit" my Mother, and I left town Friday afternoon. Had my Mother's day massage (gift from my son) on Sunday and it was great.
When I got home this afternoon, I was checking email and noticed a rainbow on my hand (see my prior post about the water prism I got myself for Mother's Day). I removed the hand picture from the camera, but did not get it transferred! But I did get one image of my Laini's Ladies card, with a rainbow from the water prism. The quote says "A dream is just a dream. A goal is a dream with a plan and a deadline." Harvey Mackay

NM Wildfires

WE are having a particularly devastating drought in New Mexico and there is a huge 28,000 acre wildfire in Mayhill.




The Mayhill Ranger Station to the east of Mayhill, the station is to the right and the burn area is to the left
Hilda's 3 houses were the only homes lost, but the fire had to jump the road to get to them . Note the blackened butane tank to the left of the picture.
This is the campground that is immediately to the west of Mayhill.
This picture shows the burned and unburned area. Looks like mostly brush and dry, dry grass that burned.

Remember that only you can prevent forest fires!

I LOVE TED!

Windy Days Again

This is my latest piece of artwork. It was inspired by a piece I saw on Jenny Doh's blog. The quote reads What you do speaks so loudly I cannot hear what you say. Ralph Waldo Emerson. This has lots of free motion stitching. I also made a small ATC sized piece that is not finished yet, but says "I am Enough". Interesting process.
These peonies were gorgeous. Doesn't come across in the photo... Both of these photos were taken in Placitas NM during the Placitas Studio Tour
I love Koi. These were not very large, but very interesting.