winter textures

We have been thoroughly snowed in and iced over here in the New York tri-state area. Some of my outdoor Christmas decorations are now staying probably till the end of March as I would need a sledge hammer to get them out any earlier....

Despite the severe weather now, I love winter and am always photographing all the stunning scenery that nature provides us. And even though my usual art fodder is architecture, nature still inspires me and if nothing else gives me a reason to play around in one of my favorite mediums - Photoshop.

The following photos were all taken on the fly with my phone and then played with in Photoshop. I can't even begin to keep track of all the different filters, saturations, transformations and layers that these photos have gone through. But I can tell you that I had fun playing!

icy lichen before the snow

icy lichen after I was done with it

snow patterns on outdoor furniture

snow patterns photoshopped

beautiful snow capped trees

snow capped trees digitized

icicles into snow

icicles maximized

So what should I do with these now? The thinking cap is on. Perhaps one day you might recognize one of these in my future artwork. Or not.

PS in March I'll be teaching a Photoshop based 5 day workshop at the Hudson River Valley Art Workshops. Come play with me!

fooled myself

Happy New Year! There is nothing like starting the new year with a realization that I have managed to fool myself yet again.. Natalya here and here's the story:

Back in 2007, inspired by Jeanne Williamson I started a weekly journaling project in which I explored different techniques, experimented with recycled materials and generally didn't give myself any rules except for size. I kept this going for two years and then got bored and decided to do a daily sketch journal. Sketching turned into experimenting with collage and painting and printing and doodling all on the pages of the said journal. Then in 2010 I got all fancy and did monthly diptychs based on my sketches from the year before. The following year I embarked on a very ambitious project of daily journaling on fabric. I had it all figured out: monthly prompts, experiments, binding into monthly books and then....I fizzled out and quit. Yup, quit. I thought that was the end of my journaling. Got it all out of my system, no need for more.

What I didn't even realize was that I hadn't really quit, I had just changed my media. You see, back in the beginning of  2009 I started something silly and frivolous on my blog called Wordless Wednesdays. It was really just blog fodder for when I couldn't think of anything else to blog about. I copied the idea from a bunch of other bloggers, sort of fell into a trend. Without even realizing it became a habit. Somewhere in 2012 the Wordless Wednesdays became more and more architecture based, only natural as my artwork was concentrating more and more on architecture. And they became not so wordless too somehow... In 2013 I gave myself a real challenge of making Wordless Wednesday an experiment in Photoshop using photos of NYC only.

So call me slow...but it was only this week as I planned out my Wordless Wednesday challenge for 2014 that I realized that I had never quit journaling! I just changed my journaling media... Isn't hindsight great?

So what's your journaling story? Weekly, monthly, everyday? Textile, paper or computer? And how has it morphed over time?

Monumental Art

As some might have noticed.. I am attracted to huge recycled artworks. Natalya here, reporting this time from MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA. I have heard about this old factory turned museum for years now and finally made the trek to see what's it all about. What enticed me to make the drive? The Phoenix by Xu Bing. Was it worth it? But of course.

The museum itself is a wonderful collection of old factory buildings interconnected to form huge gallery spaces, a fun museum shop and a restaurant. It would be interesting just to wander through even without all the great art. There is a Sol LeWitt retrospective there that I didn't get a chance to see, but no worries, it's there till 2033!

But the Phoenix, actually there are two Phoenixes and they are breathtaking. My pictures do not do them justice, but here's a taste. You can see them at MASS MoCA until October 27th, after which they travel to Cathedral of St. John the Divine in NYC. I am so looking forward to seeing how they will be displayed in such a different space.

to judge the scale look at the tiny 5"2" person in the right corner taking a picture

tail end of the second Phoenix with people for scale

talons of the Phoenix

tail feathers

paper model was so delicate

and made cool reflections in the glass case in a black room

A nice surprise was discovering another installation by Xu Bing, 1st Class. We haven't had a smoker in the family in decades, but boy, was the smell of cigarettes familiar, and I knew what was going to be at the top of the stairs immediately, while my daughters wanted to know what that smell was. The surprise for me was seeing the cigarettes arranged on the floor to form a huge tiger skin that changed shades as you walked around it. It's part of the Tobacco Project exhibit which explores some very interesting ideas.

there is the person for scale and the shades changing in the light

Reduce reuse recycle!!

finding inspiration

Natalya here. I am currently in a bit of a slump. Nothing to worry about, just sort of stuck on how to begin a piece. I know where I want it to go, just having trouble starting. So I am procrastinating. One of the ways I like to procrastinate, besides organizing some pile (did that yesterday!), is by looking through my photos. I consider that inspiration in disguise.

Every now and then I find some forgotten gems, like these below from a visit to the Met this past spring. I went to see the Matisse exhibit and on the way out or in stumbled upon these wonderful textures that I just had to photograph.

Alquimia XIII, detail of a wall hanging by Olga De Amaral

Alquimia XIII, detail of a wall hanging by Olga De Amaral

Gorgeous wisps of thread drew me to this huge piece. I just adore the delicacy of it and the gentle yet vibrant color. And am fascinated by the materials: linen, rice paper, gesso, indigo red and gold leaf. What is "indigo red"? I'll have to investigate, and where on the piece is it?

Between Earth and Heaven, detail of a piece by El Anatsui

El Anansui's work has attracted me for years. To make trash look so gorgeous is a gift! I must not miss his exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum this summer.

Ceremonial wrapper from Indonesia, 19th or early 20th century (detail)

Indigo dye at its best, no? That delicate wisping of color....sigh...

Ceremonial wrapper from Indonesia, 19th or early 20th century (detail)

Same wrapper, just the other end of it with gold leaf doodles. If you look carefully at the reflection (this was behind glass) you can see the huge panels on the opposite wall and that'll give you a good idea of the size of this wrapper. What or whom did they wrap in this beauty?

Dartahal (1995) by Gedewon (Ethiopian 1939-2000)

Now these are doodles to impress! Ball point pen, lead pencil, graphite and ink on paper. Absolutely stunning detailed drawing... And what's wonderful to me about this, is that this is "talismanic art", meaning it's considered healing and is drawn for individual patients. A fascinating tradition of Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

So I have found these photos in my photo stash, now what? Well, just the act of looking at them and preparing this blog post has energized me. I feel inspired, I am itching to get my hands on some art materials and get to work! Off to the studio, I know what to do now!

Art in other forms

I've been so drawn lately to explore the boundaries of my art in other forms. I'm intrigued with the idea of applying the defining (for me) aspects of "fiber art" or "quilt art" to unexpected surfaces, shapes and materials. 

This fiber house book is an example of this idea - each page is technically a quilt with three layers held together with stitching, but in an unexpected shape and with an unexpected purpose.

These Spirit Flags use stitching, painting and printing techniques on a fabric (canvas) with a strong textural, woven presence.

A combination of etching and block printing on paper, printed on a press, celebrates the type of patterning that is typically seen in commercial fabric. And I stitched around the perimeter of the color field to bring another stitching/quilting reference to the piece.

And finally a couple of small collages that reflect the patterning found in commercial fabrics and with hand-inked stitches mounted on painted and stenciled canvas board.

Some of the pieces shown here are brand new and some are not as new, but all represent the direction I currently feel pulled in. Have you ever re-examined your medium to isolate its defining qualities and then applied those qualities in unexpected ways?

A Wild Hair

Hi, it's Kristin. I have a bit of a split personality when it comes to my creativity. Sometimes I'm more crafty, particularly when the blogosphere conjures up something excruciatingly cute, or clever, or mushroom themed. Sometimes I'm a quilter. I really, really, like scrappy quilts with simple geometric shapes and feel the urge to make one every so often -- especially when my scrap bin starts overflowing.  Most of the time I consider myself an artist and have been working diligently on creating a cohesive body of work, which right now centers mainly around houses with roots and facets of military spouse-ness.

But last week I got a wild hair. An idea I thought too good to pass up, but not at all in the line of what I had been creating. I've been worrying that I have no context for this. I can't show it with my other work because it is so different. I don't know where to exhibit it, or how to properly share it with the world. I could ignore the idea, and move on, but where's the fun in that? I slept on it and was still jazzed in the morning. It's consumed me all week!

 

What does one do when excited about something that doesn't fit into their usual sphere? It's a quilt, and my family plans to use it on the sofa -- it's craft. It's social commentary inspired by an internet meme, and references a historical artist -- it's art. It's quirky. It's not about being an Army Wife, or the dream house I wish for. It's an artistic conundrum for me.

 

Now, having written this post, I see that rather than being a complete anomaly, this quilt may actually be a perfect amalgam of ALL my maker personalities -- artist, crafter, nerd. I'm still not sure what to do with it though.

Brainstorming Ideas

Jamie Fingal checking in.  I often do a lot of research before embarking on a new project.  The thought of empty spaces intrigues me.  There are so many ways that I could go with this idea.  But, where I am right now, is in an emotional state of turmoil.  My dad passed away suddenly in late November, and it has forever changed my life and left an 'empty space' in my heart.  I've been drawing hearts, of all things, and this symbol never reaches the radar in my brain when I am attempting to create a new piece of art.  The fact that this heart wrenching emotion has totally taken over my thought process lately, and for obvious reasons.  This is just the beginning of looking at some of the empty spaces in my life.



I sat down and started drawing, everything that I was feeling, with my heart on my sleeve, or on the sketchbook page.

 



Then I decided that I should create one of those drawings into a painting on canvas to get a larger visual understanding of what I was doing.  I like the colors, but don't really like the heart or the writing.  It seems to trite to me.  I feel that more should be left to the viewer.  This is in your face art, and I am not sure if this is what I want to convey in an art quilt.  And let's be real, it's just a little on the depressing side.  I need to think some more on what I can create with this theme.



So, enter the camera - and we have a button jar that is partially empty  that might have some potential.  Words swirling on the inside perhaps...or a story of the antique buttons.  Thinking out loud here.  Are you enjoying my design process?



and then there is this.  Spaces between the openings.  Might be too literal, or perhaps to easy, but I do love the lime green.



and then I've been making red backgrounds, which could be hearts or something else.  It seems I am really drawn to this right now.  It's easy and I can wrap my mind around it, as opposed to other work that I can't seem to focus on right now.



and then I started thinking about what I do best, my roots so to speak in my art.  The art of the house.  The empty spaces could be negative space.  It would all depend on how it is designed and what kind of fabric I would choose, but it could work, and be something interesting, happy and it could invite the viewer in to see more.  Maybe or maybe not.  Stay tuned.