Gina's Beautiful Handcrafted Journal

I sincerely hope that my son Rick doesn't read this post before Saturday - it's about his Christmas gift that I commissioned from my friend and fellow artist Gina Mitsdarfer. I always have trouble finding something special for him but when Gina showed me a journal she had made for her trip to Ireland this fall, I loved it and knew Rick would, too. See her Ireland journal here.
For his gift journal, she crafted a brown leather wrap cover that closes with a silver Celtic dragon ornament, and the inside paper is beautiful ivory. Gina includes touches like pockets and envelopes to hold notes and tickets, and her hand painted divider pages are amazing. It's a perfect blend of form and function - the thought and craftsmanship she puts into her work is inspiring. Thanks, Gina, this is a treasure.

Almost Finished?

I think it may be - this piece is interesting. It doesn't have a name yet, something about Venice and Doges and such probably.I knew I wanted to use a Tarot card and thought I knew which one, but found I was holding them against the work and "letting" them tell me which one to use. It turned out to be a different one, The Moon instead of the Page of Staves. Yikes, I'm losing it! But it was fun.

Raven Rocks

Cynthia Wenslow (aka the lovely Raven), talented artist and art advocate from Austin, included me in her series of Texas Artist Portraits and the results of the interview and her photographs taken in my studio were posted today:
Texas Artist Portrait Project: Lyn Belisle
I am so grateful to have been included in such a visionary project by a woman who does everything with grace and flair - thanks, Cynthia!

Godbye My Lady

My favorite of four new works was happily someone else's favorite at last night's opening of LaVida Gallery in Southtown. It's my new art venue, and the owner, Carole, has been wonderfully supportive. When I brought in four pieces at the last minute, she hung them in a great spot
And my collage, Lady of Anjou, sold! I even got to meet and talk to the buyer.
The opening itself, held on the established First Friday art night in San Antonio, featured musicians, food and wine and a lovely courtyard for visiting outside on the balmy evening.
It's nice to be a productive artist with a sale - Carole wants more work and I think I'm on a new creative track with this series, not too far from what I've been doing with the Kindle covers, but a bit more narrative.
Carole hung my work on a vivid green wall - I wondered about the contrast, but it worked! See for yourself.

Body of Work

My dear, beautiful and exotic long-time friend Ann Lyneah Curtis was in San Antonio this weekend for a show of her exquisite body sculptures and I got to see her after far too long between visits. Tall and regal, Ann personifies the free spirit that comes through in her work. See what I mean at her website, Masquerade Life Casting.
At her opening, her friend was wearing a paper cast body corset that laced down the back and was a replica of her own torso - it was adorned with funny, bawdy ceramic ornaments. She looked fabuous and was the subject of questions and photos.
Ann is passionate about her work - she's been doing this for over a quarter century. She's cast faces, big beautiful bellies of pregnant women, groups - and anything else you might imagine. We made plans to get together in the spring when I visit her studio in the Hill Country. Here are some pictures from the opening.

Companion Piece

Just finished the second collage of what appears to be a new series - I like the size, techniques and the materials (and the rather flexible self-imposed guidelines, such as they are). This one is called Lady of Anjou. These first two are 13"x15" unmatted and will be 20"x22" matted and framed.

Mercado de Paz

The Esperanza Center’s annual Mercado de Paz/Peace Market was the Friday and Saturday after Thanksgiving, as it is each year. It's my favorite holiday sales event - here's how it's described (see some photos of the sellers' wares at the end of the post):

"As an alternative to crowded malls filled with crazed consumers and mass-produced goods, the Esperanza’s Peace Market features unique, handmade gifts and artesania centered around themes of peace, social justice, cultural diversity, and ecological concerns.

Shoppers can wield their economic power by spending their time and money supporting individuals and groups that are fighting for a better world. A diverse array of gifts are offered each year from artists like: Oscar Alvarado, mosaic-tile artist and found-object furniture designer; Veronica Castillo, internationally-renowned ceramic artist from Izucar de Matamoros, Mexico; Martha Prentiss, silversmith and owner of Prentiss Jewelry; Barrio Beat/Alma de la Raza, a company that seeks to carry on Chicana/o culture through community-based business enterprise, and to reflect and include voices of the pueblo in its operations; and Colores del Pueblo (formerly Pueblo to People), a Houston-based nonprofit organization that buys merchandise from over 200 grassroots craft and agricultural co-ops throughout Latin America—paying much better prices than for-profit corporations—and then resells directly to consumers in the U.S., thereby eliminating unfair profit and providing artists in developing countries a larger market for their work."

New Work

I think I'm finished with a new collage and may even have overworked it a bit, but for the most part it seems to hang together well. There's a heavily textured background, some images of angels, a tarot card (the Four of Cups), a photo of eggs that I took last year - copper tape and walnut ink - some experimenting but mostly doing what I know. It's going to go to LaVida Gallery later this week once it's matted and framed - dark gray mat, I'm thinking, and thin chrome frame. That I can do myself since it's simple. I've already started a similar one - will see where it goes. Making art is so intense and serene at the same time!

Studio Update

Just in time for semester's end, the studio is becoming a workable space again after all if the construction. It was the "highway" between the driveway and equipment outside and the remodeling on the inside. But with the completion of the new pantry, the freezer has been moved and the freed-up space adds a lot of flat workspace to the room. I even have room to set up my light box. Now if I could magically create some extra time to work, I'd be set! But it's a comfortable space, deceptively organized and full of possibilities!

Surprise Inclusion

What a nice email I just received from a group of artists on Etsy - check it out and see the other artful pieces.

SUBJECT: Handcrafted E-Reader/Journal Cover - TAPESTRY, listing #57301003 Your beautiful work is here with the Fine Art Friday group - an ongoing treasury effort to promote fine art on Etsy. xVictoria http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4cdc9aeae75e6d918c016d46/holiday-gifts-of-fine-art Message sent on November 11, 2010

I Bow to the Goddess of Appliance Art

This is somewhat studio-related, even. As part of the ongoing (and . . . ongoing) half-bath addition next to the studio, the new adjacent pantry/laundry room is taking shape and my washer and dryer were delivered Friday.
I am in love. They are sculptural lipstick red icons, energy efficient, mindful of the environment, strong and beautiful, of epic design. They even sing a little song when their work is done. Who knew such major appliance wonders existed? Not me. Who could ask for anything more?? Not me. Swoon.

Great Article - Thanks to Wandering Educators!

Have you ever been interviewed? I rarely have, but have had the mixed blessing of coming up with some answers about myself and my work over the last few months. If there is such a thing as painful fun (oxymoron?) being interviewed may be just that. But it is worth it to see the results, posted yesterday by Jessie Voigts, honcho at Wandering Educators. Here's the Artist of the Month link, along with my gratitude for a wonderful introduction and a nifty layout that makes me look good!

An Outdoor Art Festival at Triinity U

Yesterday I did something that I haven't done in 25 years- participate in a "live" outdoor art show. There's always been a gallery or a web site or something else between me and the person looking at my art. It was a fun, instructive and humbling experience. Mostly fun!

The show was the annual Trinity Alumni invitational exhibit held in conjunction with alumni weekend. I am an alum, but not a very active one (probably because I teach there and feel more like faculty).

My fellow alumni artists exhibited all kinds of wonderful things, photography, fabulous jewelry, paintings, and screen prints. No other Kindle cover artists, thought - hmmmmm..... The show and sale (and alumni barbecue picnic) were held on the grounds of Trinity's Holt Conference Center and it was a blessedly beautiful day except for a few annoying wind gusts. I got to experience set-up and take-down and talked to lots of people in between. A lot of people had no idea what a Kindle was!

I learned a lot from fellow artists, some of whom have little credit card machines that they carry to all of their sales events. One of the best tips was from visiting artist/alum Liz Walker from Portland, OR whose business cards were fabulous - she got them at moo.com. Check them out!

Post-game score: I sold four Kindle covers, traded one for a friend Tina Barajas' recycled paper earrings, and bought exactly enough jewelry to equal what I made. What a perfect show!
Here's a look:

The 2010 Texas Gourd Festival

I don't know what I expected at the Texas Gourd Festival when we drove up to Fredricksburg yesterday, but when I paid the $5 entry fee, the volunteer said,"You won't see any birdhouses!" No kidding - there was an astonishing array of Things to Do with a Gourd. Some were quite beautiful, some were . . .not, but weirdly intriguing. There was also a huge display of tools with which to do these things - you can make quite an investment in gourd tools. Some of my favorite gourds involved the use of a simple tool - a sharpie pen (see the video) I purchased this gourd, above, from Jimmy Sublett from Wimberley and I think it's one of the beautiful ones.

Saved by Tim's Oriental Grocery and joss paper

I'd been in a creative slump, probably because my studio is so disrupted by construction outside (and a busy mid-term schedule at school) - until I remembered that my friend Jessie Voigts of Wandering Educators told me to find an Asian market and check out their joss paper. Then another friend I saw at the herb Market today mentioned Tim's Oriental Grocery just outside of the city and said they had lots of such paper, so off I went. Well! In the far back corner of the store I found an amazing selection of packets of all kinds of joss paper with lovely prints, foils, incense and candles - beautifully printed and reverently put together in bundles. I brought home an armful of these lovely materials for less than $15. It's inspiration time again!

And then there was the food - just the packages made me swoon. Tim's was a great discovery - just when you think you know everything about your city, someone helps you discover something new!
Here's an online review of Tim's from one visitor:
Probably the only place in San Antonio for Asian groceries.. well, the biggest and most well known anyways. I love going here. On weekends, they have bbq pork, roast duck, and roast pork hanging for you to select and buy. Never tried the duck, but the bbq pork and esp roast pork is DELICIOUS! So crunchy. They have frozen dumplings that I would literally die if I could not buy every week. And of course the spicy dumpling sauce to go with it! They have fresh veggies not available at HEB such as Chinese brocolli and Hollow vegetable. Lots of candies and sweets and chips from all over Asia. Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, etc. Some days I just go in there and not buy anything. It's just that fun.

Agreed.

Workshop on silk scarves and transformation

I'm giving a workshop tomorrow on personal transformation for a group of teachers at a great school where I used to teach. One of the things we're doing is dyeing silk scarves and talking about silkworms as a symbol for transformation, etc. I had to practice the technique myself today since it's not really in my "art repertoire" - it was fun and I think it will work as a metaphor for the group activity. First, we'll write some favorite quotations on the silk about transformation, then do the dyeing project. Here are pictures from my experimenting this afternoon. I like doing workshops and am looking forward to this one, especially since it's hard to make a mistake with abstract silk painting!

Studio space temporarily hard hat zone

Just as I got the studio reclaimed and organized, I had the bright idea to enhance it with a new artist-friendly half-bath off the front wall where the laundry room was. I'm sure the end results will be more than worth the current construction chaos, but at the moment, I'm sharing the space with plumbing devices, various incoming and outgoing appliances, and other assorted construction necessities. Target date for completion is around the first of November. I'm excited about the changes - stay tuned for progress report and occasional whiney comments when I don't have a lot of room to work. The outside studio wall is in the top picture, and the toilet pump and I are sharing the inside space, below.

Autumn's in the air . . . and in the studio

The first cool front in South Texas is always welcome, and it slowly filtered in yesterday evening. This morning when I went out for an early walk, there were stars, clear skies, and a temperature of 61F instead of the summertime low 80's. Fall is definitely in the air, and i realized that I had been subconsciously picking up on that in the collage covers I finished yesterday - the palette is definitely autumnal.


Artists have probably always been influenced by the changing seasons - it's nice to share that communal creative instinct!
I'm posting more photos of the new work this morning on my Etsy gallery site.

Japanese Stab Binding - Video

Simple but packed with informatiion - I need this kind of visual explanation! This is a You Tube vanillajoy tutorial, nicely done.
Part One: Cutting and Measuring

Part Two: Sewing the Book

Reminder to self to mark this technique a keeper

Mulberry paper with glazing medium over a picture and metallic PearlEx pigment powder rubbed into glaze with fingers - nice depth and texture.

I have no idea where the pigment powder set with lots of little jars came from - probably from my the old art teacher days, but I never knew what to do with it before. This is nice! - and the acrylic glaze on the paper strengthens it and gives it transparency at the same time. I may cover up the picture!

Studio organizing

I don't think a studio, at least not my space, is ever really organized like an office, but it's good to know where to find things - last night it rained (hooray) and so I spent the evening in, re-ordering stuff and getting ideas for future projects. Here are the results of the re-ordering, mostly for me to see what the place looks like when it's not covered in paper and glue. I should put up photos of those times, too, because that's what it loooks like normally.

Nique o' the Day - Surface and texture redux

I went back to some old techiques for surface decoration on paper yesterday - one technique is to apply metallic liquid acrylic onto paper through a squirt bottle, then spray it with gold paint while it is still wet and let it dry.

I also ran a sheet of joss paper through a crimper - we used to use real paint tube crimpers, but since this technique was discovered, manufacturers are making "corrugators" on purpose. The effect is nice, though. I'll use these both on the new covers I'm starting tonight.

Help! My creativity is stuck in neutral . . .

I've thought that too often, and this morning happened to run across a COPYBLOGGER post that helps unstick - Do You Recognize These 10 Mental Blocks to Creative Thinking?
The first one is something I am always nagging my students about when we talk about design:
"One of the worst aspects of formal education is the focus on the correct answer to a particular question or problem. While this approach helps us function in society, it hurts creative thinking because real-life issues are ambiguous. There’s often more than one “correct” answer, and the second one you come up with might be better than the first."

I think I'm going to make the whole article required reading - for me, especially.

New clay beads - following the directions

I am learning more than I wanted to (almost) about polymer clay. I thought you just rolled it out and baked it, which may be why, after my first attempt, my beads were pretty but not very strong. The clay needs to be "conditioned" first, which means rolling it through a flattening machine a bunch of times. I got one of those, and that part was pretty easy. It's a lot easier than wedging "real" clay for the potter's wheel. In the photo, it looks strangely like bacon, and it IS pretty thin. You can stick it back together, though, to make it thicker.

Then you need a dedicated oven to bake the stuff in. I got one of those, too. Actually, neither was expensive, especially with a Jo-Ann's coupon! This was Sculpy day in the studio, and the beads came out well, if a little bizarre looking with the squashed faces on some. They seem a lot stronger. More work than I thought, but the results are promising.

Nique o' the Day - Binder clips

This tip is probably known by most everyone, but I had need of it today for holding just the corners and one edge of a cover while the glue was drying. These binder clips come in different sizes and really hold tight, tighter than a clamp for small jobs. I like the way the look, too - simple and efficient. Too bad other little day-to-day things in life aren't that way!

Also, I discovered a new material (see pic) that improved even on the diagonal stretch cord (in my last post) for holding iPads - am still trying it out but it looks good so far. More soon.

Engineering Eureka

It came to me in a dream - actually, I did think of it just as I was waking up Sunday morning. I had worried about the iPad slipping out of the covers from the bottom. I was attaching the bands horizontally on both those covers and the Kindle covers. It worked fine on ereaders, but I "saw" that I should be putting them diagonally on the corners for iPads to keep them from slipping. It worked great. I retrofitted one of the covers that had sold but not shipped,and I think that the buyer will be a lot more pleased with the secure fit of his iPad! See the old version and the new, below:

Jessie Voigts, Photographer and Friend

I'm lucky enough to know Dr. Jessie Voigts, one of my Girlfriends in Art, who recently sent me some of her spectacular photos, a few of which you can enjoy below. When she's not exploring and visually celebrating Lake Michigan, she heads the organization Wandering Educators. You don't have to be an educator to appreciate the treasure trove of resources on this site. Check out her blog, and read about her personal take on travel, learning, and the citizens of the world at large.

Many thanks, Jessie!

Nique o' the day: domino closure/clasp

It's one of those mornings with unexpected time to play around in the studio, and this is a small but useful discovery. I have some little wooden dominoes that I planned to use for closures on the journals and covers. I turned one over, sanded off some of the black finish, drilled some holes with an awl, and applied a paste of copper powder mixed with neutral shoe polish. It really came out well, much better than the photo (which was taken in a hurry on my iPhone). I think this has possibilities.