Liberate your Art!

This is the first year that I am participating in the international postcard swap called "Liberate Your Art".  Created and coordinated by artist Kat Sloma, it's an opportunity to get your art out in the world and in return, get original art mailed back to you.

In Kat's own words, here's the idea behind it-

• To encourage artists to learn how to reproduce their artwork. Many people create original work, but don't take the next step to reproduce their work to share. I would like you to learn how easy it is to create the postcards if you haven't done this before.

• To encourage connection between artists of different mediums from around the world.  Regardless of the medium we create in, we are all artists! I believe we have more inspiration for creation as we explore diversity in art and culture. Personal connections between artists enhance our art.

• To encourage sharing of art with others. If you love to create but have a fear of sharing your work, this is a safe way to start. You can get your work out there in the swap, even without your name attached. Sometimes taking that little step is enough to push past long-held fears!

• To give you some fun, happy mail! There is nothing better than visiting the letter box to find some wonderful piece of mail, is there? For a few weeks, you will receive pieces of art and encouragement from your fellow swap participants in the mail. It's just plain fun!

Last Friday I got my postcards rounded up and mailed out to Kat...I even embellished the envelope with a little creative touch...

It's not too late to join in if you are interested...the deadline to get your art postcards to Kat is March 14...

get all the details on participating here...

Because really...don't you just love getting real mail...so much better than bills!

pursuing a dream...and a winner

a fresh start...a clean slate...a new beginning...

however you want to phrase it, the turn of the calendar page to a new year always brings promises and dreams...

I'm sure that several of you have made plans for the new year...wrote down a few resolutions, picked a word for the year (my words for the year are "dig deep")...and just as sure, as the year progresses, plans change, priorities shift, this year turns into next year... or maybe even "some day..."

I have two friends who have stuck to their dream...and have made "some day" to be now...they are packing up and moving to Bogota, Colombia...for real...as in "sold all of their stuff, learned Spanish, said goodbye to friends and family and bought one way tickets!"

Jane Ann and Jim Engel are off on their lifetime adventure...to experience life in the Southern Hemisphere.  I applaud their gumption...I have moved a fair amount in my life but this is big...this is starting over in a new place, where you not only don't know anyone but there is no firm footing of a place to call home nor a familiar routine...but oh, the experiences they will have which will enrich their lives...fantastic!

You can join me as I follow along with their adventure...not only do they have a website - Colombia2You but a Facebook page and an Instagram account, user name janeann_engel

I've always had a dream of visiting South America...now we have someplace to stay...I've mentioned to the Southern Man that we could drive the new RV down there...follow the Pan American highway...yes, maybe some day...



And now a little drum roll...

angi eharis

is the winner of the drawing for the autographed copy of Make It Vintage magazine which features my workshop studio...

angi - you have no email address attached to your profile - so please contact me at amy_duncan@yahoo.com with your postal address so I can mail the magazine to you...

Thanks to all who left a comment...and to all of you who read my blog...I appreciate your support so much!

color, texture, tone

these three attributes sum up my art...and my home...and really, me...

I like the subtle...the simple...

I've been working on a new series of collages...where its more about the tones and the textures...
with just a hint of color...

Likewise, me and my home and studio are about tones and textures...nothing jumping out at you or screaming "look at me!" They say that if you look around a person's home, you often get a good idea of what clothing they wear...people have a tendency to gravitate to the same colors time and again...

So it should be no surprise that I wear lots of natural colors...white, tan, gray, black...
and that its usually all natural - cotton, wool, linen...

ahhh... linen...how much do I love linen...the nubby texture, the nuance of color, the casual wrinkled look...

When I heard about Rough Linen...well...it was meant to be...

Thanks to Kim Klassen, I visited their site...all linen...bedsheets, tablecloths, napkins...and a pinafore...

Back in the 8th grade, I made a floral denim apron...and wore it over my jeans with a t-shirt...I don't remember where the inspiration for this came from...most likely Seventeen Magazine...it was the early 1970's...we thought we were being hippy...

Seeing this pinafore brought all those memories back...plus it was in my favorite fabric...in my favorite (non)color - natural...as soon as the Southern Man saw it, he said "you gotta get it - its Amy clothes..."

It arrived...I love it...wearing it as I work in the studio...the pockets hold my tools and my ever-present rag towel...and since it wraps around you, there's no constricting ties...

one less thing to hassle about...slip it on...and I can get back to creating...

Pay It Forward

Art is all about sharing as far as I'm concerned...sharing thoughts, ideas, viewpoints...and in this case, the actual art...check out this idea...

Pay It Forward Art-making Project for 2014

I'm participating in this art share project - I promise to make a small work of art for the first five people who comment on this post and say "YES, I want in".  A 'like' alone is not enough of a commitment, nor is a comment about thinking this is a great idea...you need to sign on completely to participate...and in the end, increase your stash of original art five-fold!

You must in turn post the rules and make something for the first five who comment on your post...

The rules are simple:

– It has to be your work, made by you, and the recipient must receive it before 2014 ends.
– It can be anything art-based: a drawing/illustration or a conceptual work of art, a photograph, a knitted item, cross-stitch, paper maché – or anything in-between.

I'm paying this forward thanks to John Arbuckle.  I've admired John's collage work and now I'm excited that I'll be getting a piece of original art from him...

PS. It doesn't matter if you aren't an artist, just want to try something out, google/ YouTube how to make stuff, step out of those boundaries...the sky's the limit...

Step 1  

Copy & Paste this as your latest entry on your favorite social website (in my case, it’s this blog).
 
Step 2   

For the first five people who comment on this blog post saying they want to participate, you will do an art trade with them that must be completed by December 31, 2014.  I would count as the first person so technically you only need another four. If you find your friends are keen you can do as many as you want.

Step 3   All forms of art count including creative writing, photography, digital -- anything goes!

so the First Five...GO!

The Lady of the forest

Every year I try to think up a new idea for our "christmas tree"...

I use the broadest definition for this term "christmas tree"...I want something that will be center of attention for the holiday
decorations... something out of the ordinary...a little out of this world...
























While trolling my favorite blogs a while back, I came across this idea from pentimento...
I knew then that I had a plan...

I introduce to you, The Lady of the forest...

A swath of tulle wraps her body and forms a small bustle in the back... a garland of pine boughs, white lights and rusty chain encircle her form, while a finishing touch of silver glass ornaments hang from her hemline...

 

 

 

 

 

A pendant of vintage clock faces demonstrates that she is timeless...

while a nesting bird is the crowning touch...

She is the epitome of nature, art and junk at its finest...she is the highlight of our holiday décor...

and a dream to behold...

joining the holiday junk party at Funky Junk Interiors...so inspiring...

This I believe...

I'm into the second year of my creative on-line class with Kim Klassen, Beyond beyond...its an opportunity to meld photography with art... with words... with inspiration...

This week's assignment had us create our own manifesto...as defined by Merriam-Webster: A written statement declaring publicly the intentions, motives or views of its issuer.  I'm sure a few of you are familiar with the Holstee Manifesto...its been making its rounds on the internet and I wrote about it here...

I put my thinking cap on...and created my own manifesto...it didn't take as long as I thought it would...mostly because I had started this discussion with family members a number of years ago...The Southern Man's youngest daughter was visiting for the summer...we were watching one of the first seasons of The Amazing Race...one team of two young women hopped into their vehicle to take off...and neither one of them knew how to drive stick-shift!  I looked at the daughter and told her in no uncertain terms, she should learn to drive stick...you don't want to be left behind...

Over the years there's been other declarations made...
always have a current passport...
use the good china every day...

Here it is...what I believe...

Do you have a personal manifesto?  care to share?

A package deal

Its down to the wire now...almost ready to hit the road to Farm Chicks...all of the art/cards/projects/junk has been packed and priced...there's just a few more details to finish up...

And those details pertain to the rest of the package...from what you view when you approach my booth - to the goodies you see inside - to what you take away - even if its only a business card...I have planned for all of it... those of you who know me understand that little happens by accident...but when everything flows together, there's a cohesiveness...and you and your product are recognized and remembered.

Since this is an indoor show, I wanted a different display for my artwork...I didn't want to use my outdoor canopy frame...so I decided to construct a basic frame out of galvanized pipe, from which I will hang my display panels which hold my artwork...the metal pipe fits in perfectly with the junk vibe of my work.  I enlisted the help of two of my cohorts at Lowe's...Dennis and Ron in the plumbing department...they were godsends!  I came to them with my initial idea...they helped me figured out the details...and then cut and threaded all of the pipe...and they didn't think I was crazy...especially when Dennis told me he used to work at the Reno Lowe's and would always know when Burning Man was close at hand by the odd requests for building things that were a bit out of the ordinary...

When all the pipe was cut, threaded and assembled in sections, Dennis drew me a diagram of the display, color coded nonetheless...

I can't thank the two of them enough for their expertise, time and patience...

The other project that required expertise assistance were the aprons I made for myself and the Southern Man to wear during the show...I wanted to have at hand all of the necessities for transacting business...an apron seemed the logical answer...I looked around my studio for materials...and came across several director chair covers that I picked up for pennies a couple of years ago...I liked the colors and the fabric and thought they might be useful some day...that day arrived...I went to work...

I took the completed aprons to Kate of Full Circle Studio...and she applied my logo onto the front of each apron, using her hot iron press...its the crowning touch!

There are certainly a thousand and one details to remember...good thing I'm a list maker...
can one ever be too organized?

my new love

aahhh...my new love...recently discovered...came to the rescue when others had fallen by the wayside...
others that were not up to the challenge...but my new love did not disappoint...

And what might you ask is my new love...why its first aid tape...the kind of tape you use to wrap around a piece of sterile gauze to dress a wound (which unfortunately I had to do recently for the Southern Man...but he'll be fine...)

Let me fill you in on the back story...

I have been working on my 10 piece collage series...where I designed the scientific inspired images to complement the botanical prints...I wanted a way to attach the transparency images to the canvas...but wanted to convey a "this work is in progress" vibe.  So I thought it would work to use artist's tape...rip off a piece, stick it on...

I did a little research on the web...not really finding what I want...thought I would just drive down to the local Staples and pick up some Scotch brand artist tape (its so sad that the local art supply store closed here in our smaller town...now I have to go to Seattle if I want serious art supplies...)  Run into Staples...not only do they not have artist's tape...but they have one roll of masking tape (a borderline substitute...) and its $8.00 a roll!  As I'm leaving empty-handed...figure I might as well pop into the Dollar Store which is next door.  I'm going through the aisles - get to the "hardware" section - they have white masking tape (even better than the tan stuff!) so I pick up a roll...on my way to the cash register, I meander down the "first aid" aisle...and there I see it...first aid paper tape...its a dollar...I grab a package...

When I get home, I open up the package...this is not the old first aid adhesive tape from my youth...the one that came in the metal snap container...and the tape that ripped the hair off your arm when you removed the bandage...

I see that its in English and French...made me love it more...









I get to work on my collages...its perfect...secures the transparencies, gives that nice torn edge that I wanted...
and its semi-transparent...so it blends in instead of standing out like a big white blob...

I like that I can see the type underneath...its all about the layering...

So like any new relationship...I wanted to test the limits...since it was paper-like...maybe I could print on it...I ran it through my ink jet printer...it worked...but I was afraid it might get stuck...and create a problem that I didn't want...so I got out my rubber stamps...worked great...you can design your own personal washi tape...for only $1 a roll...I think I'm in love...

I have to give a shout-out to Amy Thayer Photography...picked up a couple of easy photography tips from her FB page earlier in the week...she's great...
stop over at her page and give her a "like"...

Metal mania

If you've been following my blog, you know that I have a fondness for metal...and not just any metal...rusted, corroded, dilapidated...is really the best.  Falling in line right behind rusted metal...beaten up wire...its all steel...just in a more malleable form!

In January I was being so good about getting organized...I went through a mountain of magazines to pull out pics/recipes/ideas and toss the rest in the recycling bin...this picture caught my eye...

and got me thinking...I could make a wire cloche...I got to work...






















In my basement, I had a large piece of steel fencing...I don't even remember where this came from since I know that its sold in BIG rolls and I don't have the rest of the 100' roll...but this piece would be perfect for this project...

First I had to cut it down to a managable size...this is heavy gauge steel...my lineman's pliers would be too tedious for this job...time to get out the Dremel drill...













I cut out a section that would work for the wire cloche...

and then began the task of eliminating the wire pieces I didn't need...
my Dremel with the cut-off disc attachment was a lifesaver...

I have all of these smaller wire pieces I removed...of course I'm saving them...they could be useful some day!

Next it was time to shape the wire...you'll notice that I left the wire extending on one end, while on the other end, I cut the wire flush...I bent hooks in the extended wire end, that would connect and wrap around the flush end and hold the cloche together.

Next I had to deal with the top portion...after eliminating the horizontal wire from the top tier, I was able to bend the wire to meet at an apex...giving a slight angle to each end ensured that the pieces fit nicely together...and see all those sharp nubs...where I cut off the cross wires...I used my Dremel, this time with the grinding tool attachment, to smooth the wire surface...

Using a rubber band to bind the ends together worked well...and acted as a rubber gasket to firmly hold the finishing knob in place...

Finding some sort of knob to finish off the top was a challenge...the bound wires were too large in diameter to fit inside of the opening of an old doorknob, my first choice of a suitable top...

Scrounging around my studio, I found these metal knobs that were mostly likely a machine part...the diameter was perfect to slip over the top and the rubber band held the knob firmly in place...






But there was a gaping hole on the top...initially I thought of finding a large button to cover the hole...








I happened to pick up a metal bottle cap from my junk pile...not only did it fit the hole perfectly...but it snapped into place as snug as could be...





And with a little spray paint, it was ideal!

Luckily, there was a sunny day this week...which makes it so much easier to take pictures...

its about this time of year that I get very itchy for spring...which I have nothing to complain about since we've had minimal snow this year...but plenty of gray...

eggs and feathers...the promise of spring and life re-awakening...

Also high on my metal love list...along with tarnished silverplate...metal knitting needles...all the jewel tones...they make great plant stakes...and sign holders...I guess someday I could even learn to knit...

Linking up to Funky Junk Interiors SNS...what else can I find to inspire me...