Working on the DIVA show

Well, I have been super busy getting ready for my show at DIVA. Here are a few pictures of the complicated process of making the first of two large installation pieces.

These are the "scales" with their underdrawings. I laid them out to see how much surface area they had and they pretty much covered my living room/studio. The underdrawing is gesso painted on the back sides of the scales to add subtle texture and shape to the vellum.




This picture shows the back side of some of the scales after being painted. I'm including it because I like the way the backs look, but they won't be visible on the finished installation.













Here are some scales after part of the oil painting has been done to them. In the closeup picture you can see some texture from the underdrawing.


There are 42 of these scales which will be built into a 3d structure in the corner of the room. They range from blue to red. Vellum is translucent and I used all transparent colors on them. So when held up to light they have a beautiful glow like a stained glass window. They have an interesting skin-like non-papery quality. I am not sure how archival oil on vellum is (not very I would guess), but I don't care because I really like the effect.

People have asked me what vellum is made of. Traditionally it was animal skin made into a writing surface. I have read several variations, but essentially modern vellum seems to be made from embossed or plasticized wood or cotton fibers.

Finding space to work, and a star is born!

Well, I must say that I am getting pretty good at finding ways to turn very little working space into a functional studio. I am currently working on my show for the DIVA for which I am building two large installation pieces. The first consists of many "scales" as I like to think of them of vellum paper which will be painted and then built into a 3d construction. The problem with oil painting 50 some pieces of paper in a one bedroom apartment is that there is nowhere to put them while they dry.


So! I set my brain to problem solving yet again and invented this drying rack made from dental floss, screws, paperclips, and tape. I must say it works pretty well too. It's not much to look at but it will help a lot! I'm going to have to write a book on making a studio out of a ten square foot space. (edit: The floss was slipping so I replaced it with floral-arrangement wire which is much stronger. It works great.)



Anyway, I have a ton of work to do for this show, but I still had time to star in some movies! My partner had to make some movies for a class and being the only free and available human nearby I am now a movie star. Here is a link to his movie of me working on a piece of art that is currently hanging at the WOW Hall.

And the winner is...!!!

Well, I wanted to take a picture of the voting office, but it was pouring rain. So, I quickly ducked into the office where there were many excited people bustling about and marched right up to the "vote here" slot to submit my ballot. Then I went to work and waited for tidbits of information from my co-workers who occasionally received text message updates on the election count. Once I got to sneak a peek of an election map from a library computer. On my way home from work there were people outside yelling in celebration, people setting off fireworks and literally playing trumpets and bullhorns in the streets. Oh, how I love Eugene.

I know, this is an ART blog. So here's the art: BARACK OBAMA AND JOE BIDEN: CHAMPIONS FOR ARTS AND CULTURE !!! Don't you just love the sound of an Artist Corps? It just brings a warm fuzzy feeling to all the art in my brain. It's so nice when politics makes you cry with joy rather than horror.

The art is hung, don't forget to vote!

Ok, there are two things I want to talk about. The first, very briefly, is that the art is now up at the WOW Hall. I have to make a few minor adjustments, but it is up. The reception is First Friday, November 7th from 5-7pm.




The second thing on my mind is: VOTING DAY!!!
Check out this photo article on Presidential Politics & the Street Art of New York.

I am really excited about this election. But I am amazed that in this "great land of democracy" our national voting methods are so haphazard and inefficient. I happen to have spent most of my voting years in Oregon, which I just heard is the only state with mail-in paper ballots. I've been watching the news showing early voters standing in lines for five or more hours just to vote. And there are these cities with only a few dysfunctional voting machines, electronic voting machines which can be so easily hacked, every kind of maddening voter suppression tactic, including the fact that working people, old people, sick people, parents with little kids, etc. etc. can not just spend an entire weekday fighting to get to rock their vote. What the hell? It's the 21st century! This is America!

Where I live in Eugene, Oregon, we got our paper ballots in the mail a week or two before voting day. Along with that we get "Voter's Pamphlets" which describe each candidate (they write up their own sales pitch for themselves) and each measure, along with editorials purchased by groups and individuals arguing their case for or against each measure. So from the comfort of your own home, you can go through your ballot reading abundant literature, looking up more information online, and discussing each vote with friends and family if you wish. Then you put the ballot in the mail or take it to the voting office. No lines, no stress, no taking time off from work. This leads to far more educated votes and happier healthier voters.

So, I seriously believe that we need to fix this voting system. I'm thinking mail-in paper ballots for everyone and VOTING DAY SHOULD BE A NATIONAL HOLIDAY!

I think I will take a picture of our city voting office today to illustrate the complete lack of people standing in line. I suspect everyone will be smiling as well.

More art for the WOW Hall

Well, I'll be hanging this show in six days. Here are a few more shots of the art in progress.


One has to stay inspired and feed the head. So, I had a great time over the weekend visiting the studio of my illustrious illustrator friend Katura Reynolds. She was all set up for the DIVA's Open Studio Art Tour and I got to see many beautiful watercolor and ink drawings of plants, animals, insects, bones, etc. It is so cool to see an artist in their natural habitat. She even put me in her sketch-blog!

Inspiration is pretty easy to find in the fall, below is a picture of some leaves I collected on a "nature walk" down 12th Ave.

Busy little artist, and artistic memory

Fwew, just found out that the publicity info for my November show at the WOW Hall was due today, right before going to the Eugene Uketoberfest Ukulele Festival to see my friend Jay perform (He was great, yay Jay!). So I went, ate pizza, came home and wrote and sent the publicity statement, now I'm so very tired. So tired that I am writing a blog entry!

This month is going too fast! I only have one piece completed! But I am having fun with my new pinstriping brushes.

You know, I always found it interesting that I could look back at my drawings and paintings and remember what I was thinking or listening to or what was happening around me when I was working on each area of the artwork. Even work from years and years ago. Like when I inked this one line I was listening to a presidential stump speech, and not one that I particularly liked...hmm too bad for that line. Ah, but for these dots over here I was watching the Daily Show, that was pretty funny. Does that happen to anyone else? I wonder if there's a name for it.

Ok, I'm way too tired now and I have too much to do in the morn'. Here's a peek at one of the pieces for my show. It's shot at an odd angle, but who can tell anyway? It's about 3x5 ft.

Wow, my favorite artist of the moment

I just checked out this newish book from the library about renowned artist Alexander Calder (1898-1976). It's called Calder Jewelry (Yale University Press c2007). He is probably best known for inventing the mobile. His sculpture, lithographs, and paintings are of course wonderful, but this book is jam-packed (and huge, maybe ten pounds) with pictures of his jewelry and jewelry-like sculpture that just make me want to cry with adoration. Every piece is unique and so ingeniously constructed. They range from powerfully simple to deceptively simple. They are mostly built with hammer flattened wire, some with odd bits of pottery, stones, wood, or glass. They are so playful and animated, and being primarily wire, they are all about the lines. But not sharp mechanical lines, more like a pencil sketch come to life. They seem to vibrate with levity.

Let me be clear, I am not a fancy-jewelry girl, but I am an abstract artist obsessed with lines. This man was a genius. A lot of the pieces were gifts to his wife (lucky lady!) I really need to get some metal to hammer on.

Well, anyway, this book is worth a trip to the library. It's probably pretty expensive so I'm going to try not to cry and drool all over my library's copy.

Summer is over, but I like fall anyway.

Fall is my favorite season. I've lived on a school schedule for so much of my life that to me fall is a time of new beginnings. It's when I try to add a few new (new-to-me that is) items to my wardrobe, and a time to get started on new projects that I will work on through the winter. Also, I was born on September 30th, so this really is when things began for me.

I am trying to get my head together again after a psychological summer vacation (I still had to go to work, but otherwise I mostly played video games). So now that I have had a couple days to cry about turning 30 I have to refocus.

One thing that was focusing and helpful was that I just emailed a super-cool Eugene artist Jud Turner to ask for some advice. I saw his show at the DIVA Center a few months ago and it got me really hyped up about working in metal. He promptly replied with very useful information about learning to weld. I did some smithing and welding at Eastern Oregon University when I lived out there in the boonies, and let me tell you there is nothing quite like pulling red hot metal out of the forge and banging on it with a hammer. Very elemental and empowering. A little dangerous too, one time I burnt all the hair off my arm and half of my face taking too long to light the gas forge. Hah, good times.

Anyway...umm...oh yeah OOOooommmmmmm....focus!