Friday, September 30, 2005

New work


This piece has been in the working for a while. It is monoprinted and then has a lot of handwork (not at much as some people's) and machine quilting via the satin stitching. This is very different for me but something I have enjoyed doing.
Of course, the picture is not good as it is a snap shot but the colors are pretty true.


This is fun piece that pops right out at you! It is really interesting to walk in the room with dimmed lights and see this as the green really shows out. It is hand dyed cotton fused on to painted cotton which has a lot of surface design stuff and then has machine quilting and, of course, my seemingly present satin stitching. I am having fun with those organic lines!


I really enjoy this piece! It is monoprinted cotton, surface design with graphite, fused discharged cotton, fused kimono silk and machine quilting. Again the picture is not very good...these all have to be signed and then off to the photographer. But I thought I would give you a quick peak.


I have sent several things off for the 2nd phase of ArtDoingGood and will also have a number of postcards at the American Cancer Society fundraiser along with my postcard that will be auctioned off.

I have finished several other things but will post those another time. I finish things in batches!

Wednesday, September 28, 2005

Returning work with a bonus

UPS just stopped by with another long package returning home (just in time because one of the pieces will go off again in a week or so).

I pulled out my two quilts, Distant Views 2 and Be Still the Evening, and, along with the printed info cards that go with them was another one that said Juror's Choice Award. Now that was nice to see but which one did it belong to?

So on the phone I go to Gallery 510 Arts Guild in Illinois where the show had been. It was for Be Still the Evening...the director said the juror was really taken with the subtlety of the piece...oh, and she will be sending a check for $100 shortly.

Well, that just made my day!

And the $100 now covers four show entries that I have sent off today...(I don't know if I will ever made a profit!)

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Busy, Busy, Busy

Sometimes I feel like everything is conspiring against me...I was checking out Gabrielle's blog and there was a discussion again about if everyone is an artist. I certainly do not feel that way and brought the subject up a while ago. However, when I tried to respond on the blog it wanted by user name and password and I'll be darned if the info I keep in my little password bookie thing would not work...oh well...here's what I was going to say:

I can't agree with you more Gabrielle! Everyone has the potential to be creative and I like to help people discover that. It does not mean, however, that they are artistic or artists. And, as you said, there is good art and then there is....whatever.
This all harkens to the belief that we are all equal in everything we do. I sure can't dance very well and I really don't think lots of instruction and practice would made a difference or make me an artist. I do enjoy moving to the music in my own way but not out in public where I would embarrass myself!
Some of our creativity needs to be kept private and some of our forms of creativity are great to share with the world.
But, not every one is an artist!


anyway...I have been really busy! Have almost finished the ten quilts I said I was going to do a long time ago (gee,only three weeks ago?), got postcards off to Carol Logan Newbill for fundraising on the Art2Mail site, have figured out a way to mount some of my smaller pieces on a background layer quilt for greater presence, got three show applications sent in, didn't get in to the SAQA at NOHO show (they only took 12 pieces out of the over 500 entered--bad odds), got through the first round of acceptance for the 12th biennial Artist as Quiltmaker (now have to send the piece in for further jurying...I've never done this before so don't know how my chances are...do most of them get accepted in?), send 10 more postcards to Houston for the American Cancer fundraiser (but still have to get my "special" one done for the auction), and I don't know what else I have been doing...but time sure is flying!

Hope to post some pictures of three brand new pieces tomorrow...larger than small but smaller than medium...

I am still thinking about the creativity thing. I firmly believe that our creativity is a gift from God and that we are responsible for finding it and using it. However, I don't believe that creativity is always in the form of art. It can be in how one does their job, how they parent their children, how they build bridges, etc. I give some workshops for my church on finding your creativity but mostly I help adults to allow themselves to play with paints and papers and collages and stuff without worrying about whether they are making art. Then they can relax, let the inner critic go away, and just enjoy themselves. One woman is having so much fun just putting paint on pages of her journal and then writing in it...she's being creative but she sure isn't an artist!

Monday, September 19, 2005

even more postcards


Peace $40 Monoprinted cotton, kimono silk,
machine embroidery


Red Canyon 7 $40 discharged cotton, commercial
cotton, machine embroidery


Red Canyon 10 $40 discharged cotton, commercial
cotton, machine embroidered


Oriental Moon 2 $40 hand painted cotton with
metallics, fused cotton lame, machine embroiered
with metallic thread


Oriental Canyon 5 $40 hand painted cotton with
metalic paints, kimono silk, machine embroidered
with metallic and other threads

More postcards



Orietal Sun 4 $40 monoprinted, handdyed, fused
cotton, machine embroidery


Red Canyon 6 $40 discharged cotton, commercial
cotton, fused, machine embroidered


Oriental Sun 9 $40 Monoprinted cotton, fused
hand dyed cotton, machine embroidery


Oriental Sun 7 $40 monoprinted cotton, fused
hand dyed cotton, machine embroidery


Oriental Sun 1 $40 Monoprinted cotton,
fused hand dyed cotton, machine embroidery

Saturday, September 17, 2005

Post card images


Urban Canyon 1 $40 photo printed on cotton,
monoprinted, machine embroidered



Slot Canyon 3 $40 Monoprinted satin, rubbings
with Neocolor I, Lonni Rossi fabric,
machine embroidered


Urban Landscape 5 $40 photo printed on cotton,
monoprinted, machine embroidered


Urban Landscape 4 $40 Photo printed on cotton,
monoprinted, machine embroidered


Urban Canyons 3 $40 photo printed on fabric,
monoprinted, machine embroiered

Friday, September 16, 2005

Postcards

I have been on a week long trip to Asilomar with a group of ladies from Sun City Lincoln and Sun City Roseville, along with some more ladies from the Over-the-Hill gang around Castro Valley and San Leandro. Quite a good time was had by all!

I forgot my box of accessories for my machine. I had a walking foot on the machine and had put my big foot into another box that went with me but forgot the ankle for the feet and all the rest of the feet. So, I was dependent upon other Janome users to share parts of their machines when they weren't sewing. What a deal that was! Did I ever feel stupid. I also forgot my light and power strip but fortunately I could stop off at Ace Hardware for that!

So, I worked on one piece and got it just about finished except for the binding, and did part of the lay out for another medium size piece and then I started working on post cards....and more postcards....and more postcards....until I had 50 finished before I left Friday morning! Felt really good about that...sold one (these ladies are all pretty traditional so I am kind of different!), and gave three away...one to the very kind lady, Pam, who is my new best friend as she let me use her machine ankle and foot all day Thursday so I could get these finished. Two went to my older best friends.

I'm trying to upload pictures of my new postcards but I seem to be having problems...Oh well, will get it up eventually!

Wednesday, September 07, 2005

Work Sold

The website for Red Cross art sales, www.artdoinggood.com opened up today. Even though they are having some problems with it (had to download foxfire to see the site) work is selling quite well. I spent my $100 on one of Joanie's pieces and I am very excited!

My two pieces sold very quickly. It really amazes me that they sell quickly...my postcards for the American Cancer Society also sold quickly...is it only because it's for a cause? All my other sales have been pretty slow lately.

So, I have decided that I will go ahead and up load some new postcards on my website under small works (in a day or so) and sell them without the mat for $40...maybe I can actually make some money for me! What a concept! Since I don't do much of the lecture and teacher circuit, maybe it's time for me to do some focusing on smaller, more sale-able works.

We will see...

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

Donation Efforts


I have sent two small pieces to Laura Cater-Woods for the Phase One of Open Hearts/Helping Hands. These are both donated and all the money will go to the Red Cross.


This piece is called Spring Green and is hand dyed cotton with hand dyed raw silk which has been fused, along with commercial cotton batiks and a few beads with sequins. I believe it will go for $50 as it falls in their medium category.
The piece is 6 x 8 mounted on 11x14 matt board.





The next piece is called Autumn at Lake Tahoe...fall colors with the beautiful color of the Lake. (It also seems somewhat southwest, too)

Again, it is hand dyed cotton, hand dyed raw silk fused and commercial cotton batik. It has small turquoise nuggets on the yellow squares. Again, this pieces falls in the medium category and should sell for $50.

You can go on line to http://www.artdoinggood.com.
Things are not currently up but they have received quite a few pieces of art work and all should be on line shortly so keep checking.

I have also been working on ten twin and just a little bit smaller quits to donate for shelter use. All ten tops are completed and I am in the process of cutting batting and backing to go with them. Then they will get put together and then some down and dirty machine quilting to hold it all together. I had come up with an totally undoable deadline to have them in the mail tomorrow but that just isn't going to happen. Instead, as I was getting very tired (which leaves me vulnerable to my depression) I opted to slow down. The need will be there for a long time and me getting too depressed to do anything at all just won't work! (for any of us)

Gerrie Congdon at posted a nice picture of my quilt, Summer Fun, with it's big, fat second place ribbon on it. My other small piece received an honorable mention. Picked them up Sunday evening and then got Summer Fun shipped off to the Mancuso's for the PA Quilt Fest coming up.

Still doing postcards and trying to get some real work done which seems to have been set to the side while I commit to doing a number of fundraisers. I will have postcards at Houston for the American Cancer Society, a special one for auction, and a piece or two for phase two of the Open Hearts; Open Hands sale at Houston. Also do have to get my piece for Tactile Architecture sent off too.

Oh well, too much time on the computer!

Saturday, September 03, 2005

Katrina

I have so many feelings about Katrina and the devastation. I have not been happy with the way CNN has been covering this...too many questions about when the bodies will be picked up...how about after the live people are picked up? Too many questions about where are the National Guard and FEMA...they can't been everywhere.

I don't feel that people really understand the totality of the devastation and how massive it is. The Red Cross can't come in if they can't set up somewhere. Staging everything takes time.

CNN interviewed a woman from WI who was "trapped" at the Ritz Carlton. They were starting to run short of food and were rationing it and the plumbing was backing up. CNN asked if she had seen any National Guard or Fema at that point and she hadn't. Now, really, why would either be there? She had a roof over her head, a bed to sleep in, food and water although it needed to be rationed, and security. Why would FEMA need to be there when there is so much else to be done.

What doesn't get discussed is all the work that is taking place. We saw some of the photos early on about rescues but they are still going on in massive amounts but we only focus on the looting, the dead bodies, and the large amounts of people stranded at the Convention Center. There are lots of people stranded in lots of other places but they aren't acting like fools. CNN cut off one person who was interviewed after he had been brought from the football stadium in New Orleans to the Astrodome...he was talking bout how people were volunteering and helping each other out while they were waiting for evacuation...but that wasn't interesting.

I do believe we could have done a better job at getting started. Those agencies that aren't government have been able to get started quietly and are working from the outside in, since there is where they can get to. But I have to stop listening to CNN and also reading much of the QuiltArt listings because of the negativity.

So what am I doing? I am working furiously on ten quilts to get sent off this week to Houston. I have made my donation to the Salvation Army, my choice for charitable agencies. I have committed to Laura Cater-Woods auction. I will donate postcards to the Art2Mail sale. Am I pray a lot for all of those who are going through such difficult times.

May we all keep our heads, focus on what needs to be done right now, not expect government to always bail us out, and help each other the best we can.