'Nique o' the Day - Cheap Strips of Silver

I'm seemingly "stuck" on metallic tape, but this one is good - when I was in Home Depot the other day, I saw this heavy silver tape that's used to wrap metal pipes. Well! It's bright silver, pliabe and strong, and can be cut into small strips on a paper cutter. Here are some pics of how I used it on my current e-reader cover project - you can see the finished one here. There must be a million uther ways to uses this great tape in collage and painting. Hmmmmmm. . . .

Art & Fear

I’m re-reading Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils and Rewards of Artmaking by David Bayles and Ted Orlando. It’s one of those books that I’m convinced was written just for me.
Examples:
“Your desire to make art – beautiful or meaningful or emotive art – is integral to your sense of who you are. Life and Art, once intertwined, can quickly become inseparable; at age ninety Frank Lloyd Wright was still designing, Imogen Cunningham still photographing, Stravinsky still composing, Picasso still painting. But if making art gives substance to your sense of self, the corresponding fear is that you’re not up to the task. . .making art precipitates self-doubt, stirring deep waters that lay between what you know you should be and what you fear you might be.”
And:
“Operating manual for not quitting: Make friends with others who make art, and share your in-progress work with each other and frequently.”
Finally:
To paraphrase a story from the book, a young pianist began studies with a Master. After a few months’ practice, he lamented to his teacher, “But I can hear the music so much better in my head than I can get it out of my fingers.” To which the Master replied, “What makes you think that ever changes.” The lesson – vision is always ahead of execution – and should be.

Good book, good advice - OK, back to the studio, fearlessly (I wish).

Collage Workshop, Part Two - Pat Semmes' Work

When my friend Pat Semmes attended the Epiphany collage and journaling workshop with me, she had not been involved in many hands-on art activities, but she had an instinctive feel for images and color, as you can see in her collage on the left. The original measures abour 12x21" and is mounted to stand like a tryptich screen on the desk in her office. She also wrote a poem, below, that impressed and moved the group as much as her images did. You can read more about the workshop in this previous post.

Every Bird has his Day
by Pat Semmes

The lilies form patterns like Monet
On the lake of happiness.

Penguin beak up to the sky
Asking God’s grace
Through the ice and snow of life.

Life’s pattern is a circle -
Figures go round and round
In perpetual motion
As sun rise and sun set.
Sliding, gliding
Under water comfort.

The tree of life
Giving and taking and stretching out
Over ground nestled in ferns near its felled self.
Upside down images flowing
Like incense from the glass vase.

Circle of shapes -
Protect us on life’s journey

A Water Lily Lives …

Struggling with Painting

I *think* I finished a collage painting today - it has a mind of its own. The sketch I did to start was of a simple landscape with perspective. I wanted to explore pure texture and color and remain fairly non-representational during the process. I used acrylic paint, metal leaf and inks on Arches watercolor paper.

First, it cooperated and wanted to be a landscape - then it totally stopped working. I bravely whacked a third of it off and turned it vertically like a book. That worked for a while, as well. But, again, it just wasn't coming together. I think I had been working with images for such a intense time that I was having trouble with simple color and design. Finally I turned it horizontally again and it became the landscape it was meant to be from the beginnning, but with a much darker feel. It is so difficult to explain in words the process of creating something like this painting - my brain's right side is *way* out of practice, but it feels like it's coming back. Here's the piece, tentatively called Dark Dawn -

'Nique o' the Day - Gilded Masking Tape

This is an accidental discovery - I was masking off an area to apply some gold leaf when I realized that the tape was cooler than the area the leaf stuck to. So I made some gold-leafed masking tape - it's a great collage embellishment. Here's how - tape strips of masking tape to waxed paper, spray it all lightly with 3M adhesive, apply the gold leaf, then let dry. You can strip it off cut it and trim it, and just stick it on any place. It ends up being a heck of a lot more expensive than regular masking tape, so don't wrap packages with it!

'Nique o' the Day - Masked Edge

I had forgotten how nifty this technique is - create a masked sharp painted edge against another painted area. This edge is black acrylic against a textured area on Arches watercolor paper - do remember to stick the tape to your jeans or other linty surface to de-stick it a bit.

Compelling Image, Series of Two

I rarely use the same image twice, but when I found a photograph of Jayavarman VII, King of Cambodia, I created two collaged covers using two versions of the photograph. The absolute serenity in his face radiates and glows. Here's a bit of information about this remarkable 13th century Asian ruler:
Born into the royal family of Angkor, Jayavarman settled in the Champa kingdom (present-day central Vietnam) in his young adulthood and engaged in military campaigns. In his late fifties he led his people in a struggle for independence after their subjugation by the Cham. He was crowned king of a reconstituted Khmer empire at 61. He ruled more than 30 years and brought the empire to its zenith in terms both of territorial extent and of royal architecture and construction. Champa, southern Laos, and portions of the Malay Peninsula and Myanmar (Burma) came under his control. He built temples, hospitals, and rest houses, and rebuilt the city of Angkor (now called Angkor Thom). His dedication to both the spiritual and physical needs of the people has made him a national hero to modern Cambodians.
I've included some photos of the two works in progress. You can see the finished journal/Kindle covers on my Etsy website.

'Nique o' the Day - Fake Moon

I thought of today's technique while I was out walking and enjoying the full pre-dawn moon. The craters looked like cells on a sponge, so when I got back to the studio, I made a stamped "moon" using an old cellulose sponge cut with a paper cutter to make a flat surface. I applied white stamp pad ink and stamped through a circular template - aha - a moon! Probably not original, but entertaining :) And it reminds me of the early morning moon.

Interesting Word

From A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg

ARTIFICER

PRONUNCIATION:
(ahr-TIF-uh-suhr)
MEANING:
noun:
1. An inventor.
2. A craftsperson.
3. A mechanic in the armed forces.
ETYMOLOGY:
From Latin artificium (craftsmanship, art), from art + facere (to make).

Collage and Journal Workshop at Mind Science Foundation

Collage has always been a comfortable process for me, so when I received email about a workshop on creating collages and writing about them interpretively, I thought it might get me out of my thoroughly enjoyable but somewhat technical approach to choosing images for my work. The workshop was led by Jennifer Martin and was held in the lovely studio room at the Mind Science Foundation. Jennifer had a son who was one of my dearest students - he died far too young, and she and I share a love for him, although it had been far too long since I had seen her - it was a "meant-to-be" reunion when I saw her at the workshop.

My friend Pat Semmes went with me. Pat is a math genius but professes not to be an artist, so it was interesting to watch her become totally absorbed in her collage, and then, at the end , express its meaning in an absolutely lyrical stream-of-consciousness poem. I'll post both her collage and the poem in the near future. She did amazing work.

My own collage was not as personal as I would have liked, and I don't know why, but I was pleased at the way it looked and I tried to do some different things. I rarely use photos from current magazines in my work, and did a bit of self-analysis while I chose the pictures. The main book on which the workshop premise was based is called "Collage for the Soul." I had just ordered it for myself, and later found out that another friend, an art therapist, is using it with her clients. That book is showing up everywhere! I like it especially because it is a good mix of philosophy and great technique.

At the top, you can see a portion of my own collage, and a photo of Pat listening to the interpretations of others in the workshop. It was an inspiring morning - and I think it's planted some ideas that may lead to future workshops and new work for me.

'Nique o' the Day - Pledge and Walnut Ink

Here's a place to post various collage and painting techniques that I happen to stumble on or think up - this one involves distressing Arches watercolor paper that I use for my Kindle cover interlinings. Spray on furniture polish, cover lightly with walnut ink, and blot. Nice aging effect - and it smells like a clean house :)

A Visit to the Studio of Sculptor Phil Evett

Philip John Evett was my art professor at Trinity when I was an undegraduate. The influence he has had on his students is far reaching and long lasting. His wife, Joann, is an old friend and colleague, and we had the pleasure today of driving up to their home and studio/gallery in Blanco, Texas. Whe I walked into the gallery attached to his woodsy hand-built Hill Country home, I was astounded once again at the beauty and the scale of his work. He continues to sculpt and show and is one of the most delightful men you will ever meet. His work speaks for itself - solid, lyrical and impeccible in its craftsmanship and vision.

News Flush - er, Flash

A Belisle original now hangs in a San Antonio museum - yep, the Toilet Seat Museum. It all started when some of my friends who walk together on Wednesday morning wanted a logo for our group , including the doggie mascot, Trixie. Trixie has her own blog and you can read a fine description of the art, er, opening there. Mr. Barney Smith who conceived and runs the museum from his garage, is a Texas original and a gift to our community with his friendly philosophy, great sense of humor and acceptance of all who want to be immortalized in the Toilet Seat Museum. His creation has been featured on the Today Show and listed as one of Texas’s ten best offbeat museums and proudly displays more than 900 decorated toilet seats, one of which is a Belisle Designs logo.

Rick Rocks!

My son, author Rick Riordan, has always been a good guy and a great writer, but he's surpassed himself by blogging about my recent collage and journal work:
http://rickriordan.blogspot.com/2010/07/you-can-judge-ebook-by-its-cover.html

BelisleDesigns brand new webshop on Etsy jumped from 60 hits to almost 1000 when his post came out this week - wow. Thanks, Rick - you are the best - your mommy loves you!

Creativity, Collage and Copyright

This morning I found an interesting post from my academic blog at Trinity in 2008 which reminds me that I've been thinking about collage and art on a lot of levels for quite a while:
http://lynbelisle.blogspot.com/2008/04/collage-art-or-theft.html
Intellectual property is a complicated issue but one that is vital to anyone involved in enriching society through creative production. If you don't know about Creative Commons, check it out - here's another entry from the same blog about CC:
http://lynbelisle.blogspot.com/2010/02/creative-commons.html

OK, back to the studio!

Studio Stuff

I rediscovered something fun about the mundane stuff lying around in my studio - everything there is a collage. Not all of them are art, or even good, but as I was cleaning up last night, sweeping away a zillion bit of paper and matboard and just leftover stuff, little vignettes caught my eye. I even picked up a strip of paper from the floor and stuck it in the "to be used tomorrow" pile. It may show up in my next collage! Photos of some of the stuff at top.

My Mythologie - a new chapter

"Bel Isle Designs" on Etsy became a reality on June 18, 2010 - I knew very little about this community art and craft site site, but my own "shop" now has a small collection of my collage art that's been a long time coming. Six years ago I made a transition from 35 years of teaching art and technology to at-risk high school students in a special public school to teaching in the Computer Science Department at Trinity University in San Antonio. To say I was out of my depth is putting it mildly - every second of spare time went toward staying one step ahead of the students. There was no time for art, and I missed it, although I loved my new career and my delightful, super-smart students and colleagues.

After some personal challenges over the past two years, however, I knew that I had to get back to the studio for my own soul-health and happiness. I've always been a collage artist (you can see my large origami constructions and graphic designs on my personal website), but now I've combined my love of technology with the love of art and I'm designing and constructing hand-made covers for iPads and e-readers which can also be used for paper journal notebooks.

It is so much fun! These smaller pieces are allowing me to get back into the creativity I love without the added dimension of galleries, agents and all those things that I used to deal with. That may again be in the future, but right now, the journal covers and the associated collage cards that seemed begging to be created are making life pretty joyous.

I've called this blog "My Mythologie" because it combines connections with art past and present and with stories and personal creativity. Everyone has a personal myth that explains the influences that helped them become what they have been and are becoming.

These posts will deal mostly with process, technique and content as I get back into the studio to discover new techniques and practice old ones. I'm looking forward to adding another layer to my own mythologie.

You can see my Etsy Art Shop, Bel Isle Designs, at www.etsy.com/shop/belisledesigns

What I'm reading right now:
A Deeper Blue -
The Life and Music of Townes Van Zandt by Robert Earl Hardy

My favorite author of all time:
Rick Riordan, my son and often my role model :)