Long time

It has been a long time since I have updated this blog. Three weeks ago I was busy providing child care for my two grandsons, along with my husband...and then the following week the babysitter's son was sick so this went into the second week. And then I was very behind in just about everything and all this past week I have been really busy creating Pentecost paraments for church. I dyed yards and yards of silk into multicolored red fabric...it is really not pink but the way the flash took the picture makes it look like that. Our professional photographer took a really nice picture with available lighting and it looks great, it also shows our priest with the stole on and the veil that goes with it. I was pleased with it although there were a few problems that I need to corrent but since it is up for only one day, it can wait!

I got tons of work shipped off to Galesburg and they sent me pictures of the opening and my work looks very nice hung in the gallery. You can go here to see the pictures on their website.

And then I have been working hard trying to get postcards done for Open Studios which are this weekend and next. Nothing has been easy for me lately...it always seems to be that way when time is tight!

I spent a lot of time doing hand stitching on the long banners for Pentecost. That time was used for reflection on a number of things, some of which were about the Holy Spirit, which Pentecost is all about, but other thoughts were about my art. I have been working with collage type work for almost a year, both with commercial fabric and also with my silk screened fabric. The "In the Woods" series has been very busy and I am feeling the need for simplicity. So my thoughts are returning to things like my red boxes and other relatively simple work, just working with design elements, especially lines.

I have one last piece to finish for the Alameda County Arts Commission and after open studios this weekend I should be able to start painting the fabric for the piece, another landscape. Once that is done I can do the paper work, turn in the work and submit an invoice! Whee...I have enjoyed this and have not felt rushed but I have had so many deadlines lately that I am looking forward to getting rid of another one.

I had an ephipany...I used to tell people I had retired but now I realized I never did retire, I just changed careers. I am now working on a career that I really want to have and am working toward making it successful, but I am still trying to decide just what success will look like. I do know that I would like to get my work in several more galleries that sell my work periodically so I can just keep doing the work and shipping it off to them.

The hardest part about this career is the business side of it. I know well the many things I need to do to market my art but just seem to run out of energy. One thing I must do is to be more consistent with this blog and say something interesting so people will want to come by! And especially show art work!

I watch younger artists doing all the right things and I applaude them for their hard work. I do put in a lot of hours on my work and the business side. I have found, tho' that sometimes doing the public art seems to take so much time...going to meetings, filling out paperwork, etc but it is a good thing to get the art work out and about.

So, rev up the engines and get going!