And We're Back!

Yikes. Nothing has been posted here since December. Talk about being remiss in my bloggerly duties! What can I say? Sometimes life happens, and those happenings make me sort of neglectful of some of my projects. (Shrugs shoulders) I've also been known to take on way too much at a time, but that is besides the point.

So yeah. The good news is that I have been busy connecting with other creative souls to talk about and make art. When I think back to the origins of this blog: a mutual need for creative accountability, well, I guess I have been applying that same need to my day to day interactions too, I just haven't been good about sharing those endeavors here.

I'm lucky enough to have stumbled into some pretty talented social circles here in Portland. It's one of the things I really felt like I was missing in my old life back east. This city oozes creativity though. And in the last year or so, I have met some really inspirational and creative people. I've even embarked on some creative experiments with some of them.

• Foley is an incredibly talented artist who has a gift for drawing off the top of her head. I've always had to be looking at something for my inspiration, and am incredibly envious of her ability to simply create. She's open and funny and helps me to loosen up a bit in my own work. Foley is writing her first graphic novel. She posts pieces of it on her blog, Boy Howdy, and her work is damn sexy! Our collaborative project will be called "Sex Pots"- her drawings on my clay pots. Don't understand the title? You will after you look at her blog.
• My friend Damon, is a photographer who uses medium and large format film. He shoots architecture and other urban scenery. The beauty of his work is that he reinterprets the photos by cutting and rearranging them. Sweet symmetrical beauty. Of course, I've always been a fan of symmetrical anything- I find the implied order it creates very comforting; this might make me biased. Current plan is to combine his symmetrical images with my plates and other clay forms. I'd tell you more, but then I'd have to kill you. Check Mr. Sneed's work here.

I've also met folks who are constantly making work: watercolor, sketching, colored pencils, slip cast clay forms, music making, collage, acrylic- you name it and it's happening all around me. It's all very inspirational. Now I just need more hours in the day and/or days in the week. I'll tell you, this full time job thing is for the birds!

Mandy and I will be back on making projects together here soon. We chatted yesterday and she reminded me of a collage project from college that I barely remember, but it got the wheels turning and now I'm noodling a little collage experiment for us. I'm heading out of town on a business trip tomorrow, so it will have to keep until I return. Think magazines, scissors, glue, lots of little pieces. Anyone have a challenge to offer up?

Holiday Christmas Creativity

This post is directly related to the guilt-trip Nicole put on me for abandoning the blog.  Believe me when I say I'm not abandoning it, I just haven't had much to say lately. Lots of chaos in the personal realm leads to little to no creativity for me.

However, for Christmas presents this year for the kids friends we did make fleece hats. These are incredibly easy and turn out so adorable. Take a look,

All I did was cut a rectangle out of fleece measured to head size, sew the ends together length wise to make a tube.  Then with scraps tie the top together and cut into shreds for the top plume. I also rolled over the bottom cuff for effect (cute if doubling up the fleece for a reversible look and warmth:)

If you can't decipher my directions I found a link to directions..

Check it out HERE

Happy Holidays!

Mandy

Techno Tuesday

While I've been off making pottery for the 3rd Annual Give Good Art Sale and not writing or posting photos here, I have discovered a cool blog called Techno Tuesday. It's an online comic strip that "began as an exercise in drawing comics and complaining. In fact it still is, after it’s inception in January of 2006. The comic is based on technology and the modern world." Being that I often find myself pondering the social implications of all of this technology, I found it especially enjoyable.

The artist, Andy Rementer, actually contacted me at work yesterday to tell me he had drawn one of Rejuvenation's mid-century modern pendants called the Astron, in his most recent comic. I enjoyed it so much I thought I'd share it here. Check out his blog and let me know what you think, or just comment on our blog in general.

Does anybody actually read this thing? Bueller? Bueller?

Post Turkey Post

Hope everyone had a nice holiday yesterday. This morning felt a little more like Christmas than the day after Thanksgiving as I dragged my sleep deprived self over to the studio to unload the kiln. I am pleased to report that there was only one casualty from the bisque fire, and that both of my cake plates survived! Phew.

Now, two days to glaze and re-fire everything. Pictures coming very soon...

Coloring Outside of the Blog

I'm feeling sort of pensive this evening so I'm channeling those thoughts into a post here. I'm two CWP projects deep and have nothing new to report. Mandy's "Bloom" painting got some love last week while I was on stay-cation (or clay-cation as one friend dubbed it). I'm actually quite satisfied with the direction it's heading. So far, I've kept the colors the same, but have inflicted my pseudo-pointillist style upon it. I love the sense of movement and texture applying the paint this way provides. It's back in the holding pattern for now, but I'm close to the finish line on it for sure!

Sketchbook Project? (Deep breath) Let's not talk about that right now.

So, if the aforementioned projects have received minimal creative attention, what have I been up to, you may ask. Well, I have rekindled my love affair with clay. I finally sprung for a shared studio space with twenty-four hour access so that I can create anytime I feel the urge. At first I was skeptical of the artists co-op environment, but after two weeks of spending many hours a day there, I'm happy to report I think it's fantastic! While working at Lonesomeville was a lovely experience, there certainly were creative restrictions. Working around other clay artists gives me ideas and the opportunity to learn new tricks. So far all the folks at Radius have been great.

I worked diligently all last week, throwing mostly 2 lb. plates and bowls, with a side of giant platters and smallish vases. I also have two cake plates ready to fire and I'm curious to see if either of them survive. There was a third that cracked today before even getting near a kiln. The nature of the beast with clay. With the Give Good Art Sale a mere 12 days away, I'll admit I'm a little nervous about the outcome of my clay creations.

Tomorrow, all that greenware (around 50 pieces, last I counted) is heading for a bisque firing. Think of me fondly as you eat your Thanksgiving dinner, chances are I'll be headed to the studio to unload that kiln. Will it be like Christmas morning or more like that time my brother ripped the heads off of my Barbie dolls and threw them in the pool? Your guess is as good as mine. Stay tuned...

Contemplating Mandy's Painting and Other Anecdotes

I was so excited to see how Mandy altered my Mosquito watercolor to finish it up in a way I would never have imagined. The story behind that painting and why it was left unfinished goes a little something like this:

My last boyfriend was a writer and had written a book that took place in a fictitious (?) town in florida called Mosquito Key. He had visions of his book cover consisting of a squashed mosquito, that looked more like a Rorschach Print than the pseudo realistic bugs I kept painting. Now, I have at least 20 renditions of this concept; in water color, colored pencil & acrylic lying around the house and no clue what to do with them all. So it was fun to see how Mandy approached it.

I did receive Mandy's painting several weeks ago and promptly placed it on the easel with the other two unfinished paintings, that sits in front of yet another almost completed canvas that hangs on the wall behind my closet door. At first I was nervous about working on it, so we've been engaged in a bit of a staring contest- stalemate sort of situation here.

There has been so much happening lately that I have felt creatively drained by the time I had time to work on my own projects: busy at work, new roommate, moving all the art crap back into my bedroom from my "studio" (aka Mike's new bedroom), oh and planning for the Art Sale! Whew! I am thrilled to report that I have taken the next week off from work and will be making art all week long.

My first creative mission of today? Get some of my own paint onto Mandy's painting. Here it is as she sent it to me.

Finished Nicole's Painting...

This was such a daunting task, taking someone Else's art and finishing it for them. A very cool concept, but hard as hell. What ever to do with an other's idea without offending them to much?  We sent paintings that we didn't really care what happened to, but I still felt weird adding to something someone else did. So, what happened? It sat taunting me for weeks before an idea hit me. During meditation I was thinking of webs, spirals and wormholes and I thought how cool would Nicole's bug be with a Yantra behind it! I forgot to take an extreme before pic, but here it is before paint..imagine it with just the bug and that is the "before".

Then I just kept adding paint,which I continued in watercolors to keep with the theme. This is a challenge for me anyway because I am not one with watercolor. Check out this pic and my Crayolas!

Then the final product..

What Ya think?

My Cherry is Now Gone...

First page of damn intimidating sketchbook done! My theme is "Taking flight" which is so appropriate to me and to the journey I have been on for a couple of years/my whole life. I have been waiting on my safe perch thinking about flying for awhile. Well, now, I am finally starting to take flight myself and I am going to try to capture that journey. That is what that scribble of handwriting is all about, and the perched bird is made of lots of paper cutouts.

"He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance' one cannot fly into flying"  ~ Nietzsche

Completed Coil Project

My coil project has been sitting here complete forever and I am just now posting the photos. While it is far from what I had in mind when I started it, I'm happy I followed through and finished it. The current question is... what to do with it now?

Inaugural Marks Made: Sketchbook Cherry Finally Popped!

After several consecutive days of internal false promises--- I'll start my Sketchbook today. Ok. No, really. I'll start it today. Ummm... today? Maybe tomorrow. It finally dawns on me. It is nearly mid-October! This thing is due in THREE months! And I have an awfully busy fall ahead of me.

After laying around recovering from another crazy, busy day, I finally forced myself to unearth The Sketchbook. Me and Basil, The Sketchbook Project, the daily sketchbook, and a bag full of pencils got into bed together with a glass of wine. There we sat. Why the hell am I so intimidated by this thing? Many minutes spent leafing through the blank pages and looking at the thumbnail sketches in the daily book, and I decided it didn't have to be a cohesive story. I've been getting hung up on that over and over again. I needed to dump some of my self imposed rules to free me up to just dig in. Start somewhere. Anywhere.

Deep breath.

I now have the foundations of three sketches. I will just go down the checklist of ideas I've made and make some sort of progress everyday. That is the only rule in place right now. EVERY Day.

I'm not totally thrilled with the results of those first sketches as they are now, but I am relieved to have the pressure of making that first mark alleviated. Here we go!

In other news, I've gotten together with my fellow artists from this past summer's Art Sale, and we're planning a bigger, better, Give Good Art Sale. We're moving out of the "McFerren-Curcio Mansion" and into a real live venue. A pretty amazing one at that. So effective immediately, I will be heads down, making a ton of pottery for our sale at Mississippi Studios on December 5th! So exciting. The creative juices are flowing again and I'm off to the studio to throw some clay around.

Excuses, Excuses

Where does the time go? So October 1st becomes October 8th... that's not terrible. Is it? Rather than list all of the reasons my project is late (and possibly incomplete), I thought I'd show you through sketches. I've become a bit obsessed with the Sketchbook Project. I carry my personal sketchbook with me everywhere to work out new ideas that I may have about it. I sketch random people for practice. Most of my subjects are sipping a beer, enjoying a meal or reading a book. Occasionally I get ambitious and attempt to sketch something non-human, like the Flat Iron Building pictured above.

A Conversation with an Architect: Corey Martin- lecture series I've been organizing at work. Just a few folks from the audience.

The Basement pub with the roommate (referred to here as "Zaugg"). He stated that the girl on the right was MUCH cuter than I drew her, not sure how this lead to the thought bubble commentary above her.

On the left, a poor rendition of a co-worker during an extremely painful marketing meeting. On the right, drinks with the roomie at Produce Row Cafe. It doesn't actually look like Mike, but more like Ron Perlman. I skillfully drew what I imagine the back of my head looks like.

As for The Sketchbook Project sketchbook... Ugh.

When we last "spoke", I was lamenting about that allusive first mark in the actual Sketchbook Project book. Well, I'm still afraid of that thing, damnit! I did make some marks... super lightly with pencil, but that is as far as I got. I have been working on it though as noted above. When I'm out and about, I chat up my friends about the project, sometimes we brainstorm ideas over drinks. I furiously scribble lists and make thumbnail sketches in the non-Sketchbook Project sketchbook. Here's where I'm at...

Originally my concept was to illustrate all the places your name could appear over the course of your life; from the cradle to the grave so to speak. In the last day or so, I began to envision a different way. It could be drawings of all kinds of people: ethnicity, sex, size, shape and profession. This would be more about diversity and that you could really be anyone. Your name could appear anywhere. Maybe it's a combination of both ideas. I think I have been contemplating the nature of people, their similarities and differences, too much lately. It's spilling over to my art projects.

So here we are. I vote we alter the project plan. Let's post pictures of the sketchbook progress weekly for a bit. What say you, Miss Mandy?

It's In the Mail

I have finally packaged up my unfinished painting to send to Mandy AND I even took it to the post office and mailed it. Have I started my sketchbook yet? Well... not exactly, but the painting is in the mail and that is a good start. I have been sketching fairly regularly and will try to get some of those drawings scanned and posted in the next few days.

Two Projects, One BLog Post

Now that summer is almost behind us, it should be easier to focus on indoor activities, like this whole art-making thing we keep talking about! So a while back we each ordered our Sketchbook from the Art House Co-op and I'm a little embarrassed to report that my book remains untouched. I have taken it to NYC and back with me, foolishly thinking I'd get started there. I did get some sketching in simply for the sake of sketching (in my other sketchbook), but making that allusive first mark in the project book...

So for this month, I demand that we both start work on our sketchbooks! I have concepts and ideas, just need to act. Draw! The fear comes from knowing that this book will be viewed all over the country, without me there to protect or defend it. The same thought also really excites me. So it seems I need a push towards focusing on the excitement. Here it goes- by October 1st, we will each post scans of ten pages. They do not have to be complete but they do have to at least capture the essence of what that page will represent. Maybe when we're done, we can both post them to the Sketchbook Projects' website, as I see other participants are doing already.

Simultaneously, I have another project to dig into: Art Swap! I think this is something that any creative person can relate to- unfinished projects. Whether you write, draw, paint, sculpt, take pictures or blog, I'm willing to bet that you've got at least a few unfinished projects laying around. Sometimes it's really hard to re-engage after taking some time (or lots of time) off. As I mentioned in the previous post, my new studio space is filled with unfinished paintings. Well, if I can't finish them, maybe someone else will!

Here's the plan: I will send Mandy one of my unfinished paintings and she'll send me one of hers. We'll post pictures of them once we receive them and then we will complete each others work. There are no rules, no boundaries or no directive from the original artist other that do what you have to do to make it complete in your eyes. Scary right? I'm actually really excited about this one!

We'll ship the originals out next week and determine the deadline once both paintings are in hand. One last thought- I think we should ship them back to one another before posting the final results. It's always nice to get mail, especially when it is surprise artwork!

The Art of Momentum

I've been wanting to get a move on so many different projects lately; so many ideas, yet so little motivation. My brain starts churning and I literally paralyze myself with this overwhelming need to be productive. I do nothing, and feel even more overwhelmed the next day. Rinse and repeat.

With this in mind, I found myself surfing Facebook, the little voice in my head chastising me for wasting my time doing something so pointless, when I stumbled upon this post- The Art of Momentum: Why Your Ideas Need Speed

So simple yet so true. So I logged off of Facebook and logged in here at the CWP to make this post. Before doing so, I moved my trusty laptop (aka Spendy) into the office/studio, so that all of my unfinished projects are staring me down; in some cases quite literally!

This painting of my grandmother was a 50th birthday gift for my uncle. He's turning 51 in a few weeks.

I will try to do something creative every day this week (yes, I realize it's already Thursday, but I'm talking the next seven days kind of week). Who's with me?

Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

Ready? GO!

Ancient Egyptians Did It: Coil That Is

I was in NYC recently on a business trip but managed to squeeze in some fun time too. My uncle has always loved Egyptian history, art and artifacts so we found ourselves at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to check out Tutankhamun's Funeral exhibit. While I'm fascinated by the relics and culture of these ancient people, I usually prefer more modern and painterly art for inspiration. This time around I thought I'd look at the decorative patterns used on the surfaces of vessels and funerary items to use in future ceramic endeavors.

As I was passing through a section of ancient pottery dating back to 3,500 B.C., I was pleasantly surprised to see two vessels that looked very similar to the coil projects Mandy and I just completed. Nothing like a little ancient validation. Check it out. Perhaps we're on to something after all? We can call it Egyptian Revival...

Coils Away!

Well, I lost a little momentum on this project. I just couldn't translate the shape in my mind to the real, live, clay version of itself. While I’ll admit (and have already admitted) that I really didn’t care for this project initially, it did grow on me once I got going and committed to finishing it. The shape I cut from paper, that was supposed to evolve into a three dimensional form may have been a little too complicated for a coil novice like myself. I made a few attempts to make the shape I crafted in my mind so easily, but translating that shape from paper to clay just didn’t pan out. I was surprised to find that I did really come to enjoy the process by the time I'd finished building. Not the coil as much as the manipulating the shape it produced. Smoothing it with my fingers- blindly searching for the right shape to be formed.

It became more about the process. I finished coiling it- creating a shape that is … interesting for sure. Certainly out of character for me and my “style”. Definitely abstract. And I couldn’t help myself but to turn it into a vase; evidence of my uncontrollable need to have functionality & purpose in all of my endeavors. I'm a creature of habit, what can I say?

Like Mandy's project, I am still in the greenware phase, but we are long overdue on this one, so I thought best to post it as-is and re-visit it once it's been fired. So here we go...

Green Coil Project

This was the shape that I began with, don't really know what inspired it

I have that song "Apologize"  by One Republic going through my head right now. I feel real crappy about the delay on the Coil Project, I have only myself to blame. I don't know what I was thinking giving myself a deadline right at the beginning of school. I have the piece done and at the studio to be fired I just have not gotten over there to glaze it yet. TO DO list for this week! Promise! So, just to whet your appetite...here is a picture of the creation of my monster....

Adding Coils

Finished! It has another neck growing out of the other side, just did these pics with my phone. I wanted to smooth out the whole thing so bad, but my instincts kept telling me to calm down and keep the coil texture. You can see where I did have to end up smoothing some though.

My process started with the funky shape, building up the coils and letting them slowly start to sink back on themselves. This is tricky because if you add to many to fast it will collapse, so you have to do some, let it get a little leathery and then add more. The "necks" I had to add a day later after more drying by using slip and mucho patience.

Don't really know what kind of glaze I am going to go for yet, just going to let the choices inspire me. I really do want something very organic and natural though, because I see this piece going in the garden and letting some vines start to grow in and out of it.

 Whatcha think?

*on a side note, just read back over the post and realized there is a heart shape that was unmentioned. This is my daughter's take on the project. She made a cute heart shaped bowl, will post her finished project as well.

Inspiration and Explanation: Josef Albers

I never much cared for Albers' work, but after a little explanation I'm more open minded. Take a peek at this clip from Dwell about his work and motivation called The Full Spectrum: Josef Albers

Coil project post coming soon...

Re-Coil: Do-Over

I did start this project whenever I made my last post. I sat in the yard, soaking up the sun and coiling away. I covered the off-kilter, lumpy pieces of clay in plastic, believing I'd come back to them soon and complete the project. Really, I just left them for dead in the garage. After a week they were too dry to continue building upon.

This last Monday, I forced myself to go to LoneSomeVille and start over. Having my tools and an environment devoted to clay really helped. I simplified my design. The clay still took me down an unexpected path, but this time I embraced it. I've blocked out time Saturday morning to go back and finish the last bit of it. Hopefully it will dry quickly with the pending heat wave and be fired this week. I could very possibly make the deadline!

In other news, I've been thinking about art a ton lately. Making it. Marketing it. Selling it. The current obsession: turning my spare bedroom into a painting studio and just going for it. I'll be broke, but I'm thinking it will be worth it. Another post with details coming soon. Stay tuned for photos of the coil project in progress...

Pot Update + Recent Paintings

I thought that while we are waiting on the Coil-Project due date I would update you on my recent paintings as well as a fun photo of me "pottting".  Photo by Lily (age 8) I dropped it off to be fired and will hopefully glaze it at some point this week. Since I do all of my work at home, I have to fire elsewhere which leaves it to the fates on how fast it will be. So, fingers crossed it will be ready by deadline!!!!!!

For my Pregnant friends I have been doing a number of baby room oriented paintings

This has been a very productive couple of months for me, and I have finally started to really love making art just for the journey instead of the destination. Once I started doing this, I noticed my attention to detail becoming more pronounced (up from none at all) and that I actually crave time alone uninterupted to create. Which, drumroll please.....Will be next Tuesday when I take BOTH kids to school for the first time!!!!!!! Next up on the agenda is starting the Sketchbook project...Must start soon! My theme: In Flight!