Art Parties for Fall 2014

I invite you to join me at an Art Party this fall...the new schedule is posted and there's plenty of creative inspiration...here's the details...

What is an Art Party?  

Its a creative opportunity to join with like-minded souls...to be inspired to cut, twist, paste, design, laugh, kvetch, paint, eat & drink, relax...while constructing a one of a kind project...with no worry of what supplies to bring nor any concern about clean-up...

Each art party will feature a different creative project as described below and will be held at my workshop art studio in Everett, WA. Seats are limited so early registration is encouraged.

Registered attendees will receive additional workshop information and directions to my studio with the email supplied by attendee via PayPal purchase. 

Credit card payments accepted and all payments are made through PayPal. Registration sales are final and non-refundable; however a registration may be transferable.




Have a question or special request?  Want your own private art party?  With a minimum of 4 and a maximum of 8, you and your friends can celebrate a birthday, enjoy a girl's day out or just have a ton of creative fun!  Feel free to email me at amy_duncan@yahoo.com



FALL 2014 WORKSHOPS

Rendezvous with Resin
Been curious about working with epoxy resin but a little hesitant to give it a try? Come and join the group while constructing mini 3-D collages, captured forever in a layer of resin.  We'll use bottle caps, jar lids, tart tins and tin can tops to make ornaments, magnets and decorative pins...adding in buttons, postage stamps, clock gears, ribbons...
the options are limitless...  

Date: Saturday September 20
Time: 1-4 pm
Workshop Fee: $45

Corrugated Cardboard Journals
Using the common material of corrugated cardboard, you'll create a one of a kind journal.  Peeling apart the layers of the cardboard or carving out an inset design will lend a textured effect to the personal story you tell within its pages. Collage designs crafted from magazine ads and junk mail will inspire you to see the potential in any sort of leftover paper scrap and set you loose on a whirlwind recycled tizzy!

Date: Saturday September 27
Time: 1-4 pm
Workshop Fee: $40

Altered Tins
Metal madness reigns in this workshop!  Starting with a simple tin box, you'll fashion your own miniature shrine or create a special memento for a friend. We'll cover transfer tape techniques that can be used to layer images for a collage effect.  There will be plenty of vintage photos so you can embellish your own "instant relatives" as part of your design...add a wire hanger and it can even be a holiday ornament...

Date: Sunday October 19
Time: 1-4 pm
Workshop Fee: $45

Petite Prints

New in my etsy shop...

Petite Prints!

High quality prints of my latest photographic collages...in a 6" x 9" print...
ready to be framed...
or just taped up on the wall for instant art...
or sent to a friend for a surprise greeting (envelope included)

(FYI - the print you receive will not have my watermark on the front)

Only $4 each plus shipping...

a sampling of the series...see the complete series at my etsy shop...

because who doesn't like a little art to look at...

Digging this vintage vibe...find more vintage inspiration over at Knick of Time
Vintage Inspiration Party...

lessons learned

This past weekend was the Fresh Paint Art Festival...

edited with kk texture awaken - soft light 60%

there was the threat of rain...its been dry all summer and of course had to rain the week of the show...but the clouds broke after the morning fog and the weather was great...being held at the Everett Marina, a beautiful day on the water...enjoying art...what could be better!

I want to thank everyone who stopped by my booth...
old friends, 
new acquaintances, 
a couple of cute dogs, 
several curious children...
it was all great...


























What sets Fresh Paint apart from other art shows is that the artist demonstrates their craft in their booth...I spent the weekend showing how the simplest of materials combined with an easy technique can create art...I wanted to impart the lesson that expensive supplies or an involved process is not necessary for inspiring images...all I used was a glue stick, a pair of scissors, a straight edge and a 8"x10" piece of mat board...my examples...

I call this my David Hockney inspired collage...magazine ads and a photo from the local electric company bill

the Friday NYTimes Art & Entertainment section, the outside envelope of an Audubon Society solicitation, 
magazine travel photo, magazine ad

the inside of four different envelopes from bills received in the mail, picture from a food magazine, 
wrapping from a Trader Joe's salami roll, image from an old postcard, more NYTimes copy

and finally the crowd favorite...more NYTimes (glad we renewed our subscription!), wine bottle labels 
and the cat from the cover of the Sunday paper insert, Parade Magazine, from a couple of weeks ago

The response from most people was laughter...and agreement that art is approachable...but more than one person responded that this would be a great activity for kids (which it would be - but why limit yourself) and that they wouldn't attempt it because  they aren't creative (everyone is...you just need a nudge)  At which time I would tell them about the art parties I hold...which are about fun, play, chocolate and art...all for adults...

But I had neglected to prepare the fall calendar to hand out at the show...and to let everyone know what's happening at the workshop studio this fall...

My lesson learned - be prepared!  
Working on the schedule this week...I promise to post the art party info before the end of the month...

And I'm hooking up with the group over at  kim  klassen's Texture Tuesday...
now there's some great art worth looking at...

Fresh Paint this weekend!

If you've been following along, you most likely know that my big art show of the summer is this weekend - 
Fresh Paint Art Festival held at the Everett Marina

I'll be in Booth 21 along the Promenade of the Marina...lots of new work to show...
One cool aspect of this show is that artists need to demonstrate their craft in their booth
so people get a feel of the artist's perspective...

Since I'm all about using materials that usually get thrown away...and letting people know that it doesn't take expensive supplies or elaborate techniques to create, I'll be demonstrating collage made from junk...namely, junk mail, magazines and the daily newspaper...and encouraging others that you can do it too...everybody's creative...sometimes you just need a little nudge...

While on our recent Southern journey, I challenged myself to create, 
using only aforementioned junk as my inspiration...one such example...

I hope you stop by...see what I'm creating...soak in the atmosphere...leave inspired!

metal lust

source - curious sofa

three components...a galvanized flower pot, a metal duct cap and a bit of museum putty...all of which I already had in my possession...couldn't be simpler...a perfect peach of a project...satisfies my metal lust...

these two photos edited with kk texture dollard soft and gentle...
















and then the final photograph inspired me to play...its all just one continuous creative circle...

"scientific study of a peach while contemplating the sky"

Joining the group over at kim klassen's Texture Tuesday...
and Knick of Time's Vintage Inspiration Party...

at a moment's notice

sometimes the most improbable moment becomes the most memorable...

It seemed ironic to me that the exercise for my bestill52 class this week deals with the "unstaged" photo shoot...focusing on more of a realistic approach...as opposed to arranging the composed vignette and then capturing the opportune setting in a perfect shot...rather its about the moment at hand...and all the potential it holds...

I've been following other creatives on Instagram with different inspirational prompts...it pushes me to think in different directions which is good exercise for exploring alternatives and revealing new avenues in my work...one of the prompts this week was "craft"...and as I sat at my desk, I was a tad stumped...so I just reached up on the shelf behind my computer screen and pulled off a couple of items...threw them on the desk top...and took a photo with my phone...I love that you can see the dog hair in the upper left hand corner...that makes it real...Calvin's hair is everywhere...

Here's another shot...sitting in my office at the computer...the evening sun shining in...I notice immediately to my left, the sun reflecting off the antique scale...grab my phone...take a shot...

not more than 10 minutes later, the sun is gone...
the moment lost...










Capturing this photo...something more was needed...sitting on the floor at my feet...a dried leaf that Calvin dragged in...goldens with their long fur...unbelievable amount of debris in the house...especially during summer when the back door to the garden is left open...I pick up the leaf - throw it into the shot...

So back to the original thought...this week's assignment for bestill52...the unstaged photo...washing the slipcovers on the living room furniture...fresh from the dryer, I plopped them down on the ottoman...the pillows from the couch and the bottles from the side table were easily in reach...

I have to admit that I've become quite enamored of my phone camera (and its not an iphone...I'm one of the Android users...have a Samsung Galaxy) Even though I took my Canon with me on our recent trip, I used my phone most of the time...it was so quick, immediate, seemed to capture "real life" at a moment's notice...

Joining the group over at kim klassen's Friday Finds...where my find is realizing that the potential for creative inspiration is right in front of me...totally unstaged...

layer upon layer

I've been busy getting ready for Fresh Paint, held August 16-17 at the Everett Marina...
its a juried art show sponsored by the Schack Art Center here in town...

I've taken a new direction with my art this year...combining paper collage...with digital photographs... and then adding dimensional vintage elements as a finishing touch.

Though any one step by itself is not very involved or time consuming...when placed in the context of a completed piece, the time and effort can take months...

I thought I would share a condensed version of what goes into such a creation...to both inspire you as well as cultivate an understanding of my process...











The germ of an idea for the main collage of my highlighted piece started here...

Above are two scanned images of original paper collages from a commissioned art journal I constructed in October 2013...With techniques I acquired through the Photoshop Grunge class that I started in January 2014 (and I haven't even completed all the lessons yet) I found a way to merge these two images together while adding two more photographs of mine...so that's 4 images that went into this montage...with additional layers of textures and grunge...the resulting collage looks like this...

I then produced a high quality print...and started creating the larger multi-media assemblage...

At this point, the print sat on my studio table...for many moons (you can't rush inspiration...it sometimes takes its own sweet time)...











I often use old drawers as the foundation for my larger collages...but this print was an odd size - 10" x 16" ...and was confounding me...until I was cleaning out the basement...and found an old typeset drawer that was falling apart...it was perfect...

From there things came together quickly...wanting to pick up the blue tones of the collage, I covered the surface of the typeset drawer with a sheet of blueprint diagram (friends of mine had to scrape a remodel project and I happily snatched up a set of plans that were going to the trash) The white background of the paper was a little too bright...so my favorite patina to the rescue...

Several coffee washes later, I'm ready to put the photo print in place...finishing with a light sanding and a wax buff, this process of waiting for each layer to dry before proceeding takes about a week...

Wanting to keep with the original intention of the typeset drawer, I pull out my wooden type...and cobble together two words that express my message...

running short of traditional letters...you've got to use "poetic licence"... that number 3 is now an "E"

The inside edges still needed something...so it sat another couple of days...until I decided to add a length of metal measuring tape...secured in each corner with the letters n, s, e and w (for north, south, east and west)

At this stage, I leave the collage at a place where I can look at it each day - in this case, the dining room table - deciding whether or not it is complete or if something else is needed...once I'm happy with it, hanging hardware is attached then signed, labeled, ready for the show...

Come visit me at the show...I'll be in booth 21...and you can see this piece up close and personal...