Week two of my Dynamic Composition class with Jane Davies got me fired up. I was intrigued with the process and had such fun playing with the paper and paint. I was also away this past weekend on an art retreat with the Portland Art Collective at Menucha, so I used the opportunity to work in a series.
I don’t want to give too much away about the process, but I will say it involves working in layers – lots of layers. Gesso, paper, paint, more paint, then colorful paper, paint, more paint, and yet more paint. Since I like lines so much, I incorporated lots of dark lines to add even more interest. Come on along for a look at my weekend work.
I finished several pieces over the weekend, then came home and did the final touches, including adding a layer of cold wax to seal the canvas and make the color pop. All of these are on their way to Lunaria Gallery in Silverton.
I’m taking an on-line class, the second time I’ve done this. Although I love the in-person classroom experience, I must admit, these on-line classes are a pretty cool way to: 1) take an art class from anywhere, 2) experiment with new techniques and ideas, 3) connect with new members of the art community, and 4) build a new body of work.
The class I’m currently taking is from Jane Davies, an artist I have followed for a long time and last AprilI had the privilege of taking a class from at Art and Soul in Kansas City, Missouri (here’s a link to the blog post I did about Jane’s class – just click here). I’ve had friends take some of Jane’s on-line classes and they raved about the experience (and how much they learned). So I jumped in and registered for Keys to Dynamic Composition. I’ve completed week 1 (of six).Take a look at Jane’s website and blog to see her amazing work.
Our first lesson in creating a dynamic composition had to do with using variety of size and repetition with a limited color palette (yikes, that was difficult for me!) and only squares and rectangles. Here is my Pink Series from our first exercise.
For our second exercise, we had to again use a limited color palette, squares and rectangles, but we got to add one shape of our choice. I was much happier with being able to mix it up a bit. I give you my Blue Series.
I’ve already read Lesson 2 and watched the accompanying videos and I can’t wait to get started with a new series. Stay tuned for my next post about the process and my finished work.
About a year ago, I was on a big trip out of the country when I received an e-mail form Seth inviting me to be a Spotlight Artist in his new book that was in the works (check out his first book, The Pulse of Mixed Media). It didn’t take me long to say “yes.” The yes involved answering a series of art-related questions and creating two new pieces of art using specific prompts as my inspiration and direction. I was sworn to secrecy about the art and the questions. Until now.
“What Came Before” in response to the prompt “Below the Surface”
Seth is featuring all of the Spotlight Artists on his blog during the month of October, calling it 30 Artists/30 Days. Visit Seth’s blog at The Altered Page and go to his October 6th post to read what Seth wrote about me. Check in every day this month and you’ll get to meet 30 great artists. And the best part is that if you leave a comment on Seth’s blog, you have the opportunity to win a copy of Seth’s new book (three chances!).
But let me back up. I don’t even remember when I first became aware of Seth. I began reading his blog and leaving comments several years ago. I remember being impressed because Seth would often write back with a personal thank you for the comment I left. Then I entered a drawing fora copy of one of his early publications, The Pulse, and won!We became acquainted with this online give and go and I was always struck by how personable Seth was, not to mention I was attracted to his art because he incorporated lots of texture, layers, and rusty bits. All of which are my favorite things.
Then came the invitation to be part of his second book, The Mixed Media Artist. I answered the series of questions (there were a LOT), which wasfun. Here’s one example.
Name four things on your studio table:
1) My well-loved, paint spattered wooden handled awl; it is coveted by my art friends.
2) A soy latte.
3) Palette knife.
4) Black beautician’s gloves to protect my hands.
When I was working on the art for Seth’s book, I was in this studio, a separate little house I had turned into my studio:
Me at Alley Art Studio before I moved my studio home. I’m working on my piece for Seth’s book.
And then we moved and I moved my studio home to this new space:
My clean and tidy (and very lonely) new studio
Last December, around the time that everything for the book was becoming due, I went to New York for a week and made arrangements to meet up with Seth. It was such a thrill to finally meet my friend in person after so much online communication. We met up at a coffee shop and had fun chatting (and Seth shared a bit about the progress on the book). I took Seth an 8×8 piece of art as a little gift.
Meeting in person for the first time!
Then in May of this year, Seth was on a whirlwind teaching trip in the northwest and landed in Portland. We made arrangements to get together again for a meal, but also for some junking and antiquing at some of my favorite places in Portland. My husband joined us for the afternoon, and Howard commented several times what a wonderful guy Seth is – so personable, so warm, such a great conversationalist (and he likes baseball).
Seth and Dayna at The Rebuilding Center in PortlandSeth at Paxton Gate on N. MIssissippi in PortlandSeth and Howard outside Portland Hardware.
If you’ve read this far, I’d like to share some photos of recent pieces of art I have created. All of these are 8×8, plaster, oil and cold wax on a cradled wood substrate.
“You Wander Far and Return”“A More Powerful Language”“The Silence of the Morning”“Ancient Wisdom”“In the Open Field”
Finally, I’ll share my self-portrait. This was created for Seth’s book when we were asked to create a twist on a self-portrait; I chose the prompt: My Shadow Side.
Thanks, Seth, for being so generous, honest, creative, inspiring, and for bringing like-minded artists together. I am honored to be a member of your tribe.
PS: The Mix Media Artist comes out this month! You can have a peek inside and pre-order by going to Amazon.
I’ve written this blog post in my head a dozen times over the past couple of days. I’ve titled it (“They Call Me Lefty”), re-titled it (“Brokenhearted”), and settled on something entirely different. I’ve started the post with the events of the past week, then decided to begin with my show at Guardino Gallery last March because that show was inspired by him. Now that I am actually writing this post, I’ve decided to begin somewhere else entirely.
Note: This is a bit more of a personal post than my usual art post, although art is included, it is about my dad’s battle with Alzheimer’s.
My mom and dad soon after moving into a retirement facility at the beginning of the year.
My dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2009, and as expected, he has slowly dissolved into the disease. It’s been a painful progression of lost and scrambled words, memory loss, and unfortunately, flares of anger. A couple of years ago when my dad was earlier in his disease, I made a small visual journal as a way to acknowledge the beginning of his long journey home.
Last March I had the privilege of a solo show at Guardino Gallery in Portland. The title, Beneath the Surface: Searching For Memory, was dedicated to my dad and chronicled his fading memory. The pieces were titled to reflect his mental decline. Here are a couple of photos of my dad looking at the old black and white family photos I had scattered in the window display and a few pieces of the art I created for the show.
Creating Memories That Won’t Be RememberedWhat Came BeforeFlashes of ClarityWe Laughed TogetherCollecting ThoughtsGathering Bits of Broken MosaicsTracing the Map of MemorySeeking Refuge
Over the past six months my dad has significantly declined. He lost his driver’s license and my parents moved into a retirement community. I took my dad for drives during the summer and he always smiled and laughed during our country drives or stops for frozen yogurt.
A week ago, everything changed. My dad’s outbursts of rage escalated to the point that my mom became fearful. An event occurred that required that my family intervene. We had a family meeting with my mom and told her it was time we put dad in a memory care unit – it was the only way we could guarantee her safety. She agreed and made arrangements at the retirement community where they lived. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t have a bed in the memory care available for about 30 days. The retirement facility put an emergency alarm bracelet on my mom and said they could do some respite care with my dad – a few hours at a time in the memory care unit. She made arrangements on Friday to give it a try. That’s when it all fell apart. 9-1-1 was called, the police came, an ambulance arrived and my dad was taken to the emergency room. While there, my dad decided he had waited long enough. He unhooked his monitors, got up, put on his shoes, and started to leave. It took four security guards, two nurses, and a tech to put him back in the bed, this time with restraints. During this time, the hospital’s social services located a bed for my dad in a memory care unit across the river where my dad could stay until a bed opens up where my mom lives. On Friday night I rode in the medical transport with my dad as he was taken to memory care. He was silent the whole way. He was reluctant to go in, but he finally did. He pleaded in garbled and disconnected words to go home. I had to say good-bye and leave him. My heart broke. I hate this disease.
I’ve just returned from spending four days with my Salem Art Group at a cabin in the woods along the Metolius River. We left on Thursday morning — I took a small suitcase with clothes, a big suitcase with art supplies, my espresso machine, some food, my art journal, and a half case of kombucha.
Arrived. A sweet cabin located on US Forest Service land.
The view from my corner bedroom.
Everyone worked on their own projects. Tory won the award for most versatile, especially when she whipped out her harmonica and started playing a blues tune.
The rest of the gang: Nancy, Katy (it was her cabin), and Kathy in the photos below (and Joanna, who was inside the cabin with her sewing machine). A lot of oil and cold wax was being spread . . . . and even a little gelli plate action.
We had a visit from a Forest Service Ranger who was looking for a water line using a water witching technique with two pieces of a wire coat hanger. Of course, we had to give it a try.
I worked on several projects: oil and cold wax on 8×8 and 6×6 cradled wood boards and I also did some acrylics on watercolor paper for making cards. (I finished the cards, but not the boards.)
It wasn’t all art all the time. On Saturday, we walked to the headwaters of the Metolius River and then to Jack Creek.
Just what I needed. Several days of making art, laughing, eating healthy, going on daily walks, and getting plenty of sleep.
I’m home from a five-day intensive workshop with Robert Burridge. The workshop, Abstract Acrylic Painting and Collage, was held in Bend and as Bob so aptly said: We will be covering five years of art school in five days. We sort of did, at least the Cliff’s Notes version.
Over the course of the five days, I took 22 pages of notes and Bob gave us multiple handouts. During the first two days of class when Bob was delivering oodles and oodles of general information, I felt conflicted with wanting to get going with painting. We painted a bit on the first day, but I figured we would be painting more on the second day. Well, we did paint more, but still not all that much. I was torn between wanting to sit at the feet of Bob and absorb all that he was so generously sharing about his 22 years of daily painting, and wanting to get my hands dirty. I finally came to the conclusion that what Bob was giving us was invaluable information and I would have plenty of time to paint when I got home. Of course, we did paint during the week and more as the week went on, but the information I collected is priceless. I’ve already gone over my notes twice, circling, marking them up, and making notes for artists to investigate, books to read, and changes I want to make in my studio. Did I mention that Bob is funny? Hilarious. I was continually writing down Bobisms –pithy little sayings. No topic was off limits, making it an entertaining and rich week. For sure you’ll want to check out his website: Robert Burridge Studio
I won’t share the details of what we learned because that’s Bob’s information to share. But I will skim the surface with a listing of some of the many topics he covered just to give you an idea of the magnitude of this class. The following list is in order and then again, in no particular order, because sometimes he circled back.
Risk-taking/working in series/learning to paint our own stuff/painting materials-traditional and irreverent/gessoes/paints/glues/varnishes/Citra-Solv/rubbing alcohol/paper/substrates/panels-mats-frames/copyright/color theory/developing concepts/structure-composition/warm-ups/texture/contrast/production/gray scales/value/drawing/figures/negative space painting/inspiration/artists & writers/landscape styles/naming and signing paintings/marketing/creating a body of work/galleries and festivals/themes/concepts/shape-size-color/pros & cons of making prints/commissions/photographing art work/inventory/resume-bios-artist statements/drip trees/pricing/shadows/travelling with art supplies.
We did paint and I’ll share photos from my week. In order and not in order. Bob gave us warm-up exercises and assignments during the first few days, then left us to do whatever we wanted while he circulated or worked on paintings himself. We could paint, we could watch him paint. It was all pretty great. One of my best painting classes ever – and I’ve had some great teachers.
We started with black and white then graduated to color.
I finished a few, and I’m still dabbling with several. Here’s a teeny tiny taste of the workI did during the week, some finished, some in process.
I was working on some new concepts and ideas and it was great fun to experiment.
Week two of my Dynamic Composition class with Jane Davies got me fired up. I was intrigued with the process and had such fun playing with the paper and paint. I was also away this past weekend on an art retreat with the Portland Art Collective at Menucha, so I used the opportunity to work in a series.
I don’t want to give too much away about the process, but I will say it involves working in layers – lots of layers. Gesso, paper, paint, more paint, then colorful paper, paint, more paint, and yet more paint. Since I like lines so much, I incorporated lots of dark lines to add even more interest. Come on along for a look at my weekend work.
I finished several pieces over the weekend, then came home and did the final touches, including adding a layer of cold wax to seal the canvas and make the color pop. All of these are on their way to Lunaria Gallery in Silverton.
