Fire

Fire

The inspiration for this piece has been the fires in the western part of the United States.  Not only damage to the forests but destruction to peoples' homes has been immense.  Safety from the elements does not exist when fire is involved, no haven then.  It all seems so unpredictable and it is totally scary.  Mother Nature is the one in charge ultimately.

This piece is part of the barn series that Ingrid in Sweden and I are collaborating on.  Fire heads to Sweden soon but will eventually return to me and will become part of a three signature journal.

Christian

Christian

In June, during my Minnesota trip to see Terry Garrett, I was impressed by the lakes that dotted the geography of the state.  On an outting to Itasca State Park I was able to take a few barn photos.  This journal spread is honoring that trip and also the artist Andrew Wyeth.  I love his piece Christina and hence, to honor Mr. Wyeth, I have created this piece, Christian. 

I have lost count of the number of barn pieces that I have completed, but this one has a special place in those works.  I had mostly completed it with the exception of the final touch....one more thing to make it right.  It came to me yesterday when I accidently laid a transparency on top of the spread.  The tree!  Perfect to make it all come together!

Christian will be heading to Sweden in October as it is part of  my friend's, Ingrid, journal signature.  Luckily I have a scan of it.  My partner exclaimed, "Noooooooooooo!" when I told him it would be leaving us in a couple of months.  Letting go is part of the reality of the art world, is it not?

Four Crazy Guys

Four Crazy Guys

These guys are making their debut in a small journal that I made to accompany my new RR journal.  You might remember the crazy guy posting that I did months ago.  I particularly like the stamp I made from the moldable foam.  If you have not had a chance to use moldable foam run to the nearest online or pavement art store and get some.  It is so easy to use.  Just heat the foam with a heat gun and press something into the foam.  Pressing into the heated foam makes an indentation which is then printable.  I pressed beads that I got at a New Orleans mardi gras party to make this stamp.  You can reuse the foam over and over again.

Toward the Light

Toward the Light

I am involved in a new Round Robin group of five.  As I finish up my last RR, I am hosting a new RR group.  Susie LaFond was a great mentor and hostess in my last traveling journal group.  She kept us on our toes to complete spreads each month.  It was a lot of fun!  So I was ready to jump into a new RR right away.  Our new group members are mostly in Washington and one person lives in Texas.  Toward the Light is my first spread in this RR.

For this piece I adapted the idea of the Crazy Guy activity that my gentlemen's ATC group did months ago and  I used many techniques that I acquired while taking Orly Avineri's workshop on Whidbey Island a few weeks ago. 

Usually I do not start with an idea when thinking about a new piece.  I just jump in and see where it goes.  I did have the idea for this one and wanted to do it when I took Orly's class.  However, another piece Eye on the Forest took over and shoved this idea aside.  Not for long though as you can see.

A Passport Journal





Passport

Recently in an Orly Avineri workshop Orly displayed a journal example that I absolutely had to make.  Orly used an expired passport to create a journal with art on and in flips, pockets, folds, envelopes, add-ons, and who knows what all.  The completed journal looks like a "fat" book....a real journal term by the way.  Two weeks ago my new passport arrived and no better time than the present to use the expired one to create my own passport journal.  It is far from done and will be a work in progress for some time, but I have worked on it for six days and here is where I am at with it today.  Many people have been curious about this type of journal and so I share.

Freedom

Freedom

In Orly's class we were asked to name our journals.  I had already collaged the word Freedom into the piece as it represents how I felt in this class, free.  Orly was able to instill a sense of artistic freedom that I needed last week.  I am indebted to her for that.

Jack Sparrow

Jack Sparrow

I love Johnny Depp's character, Jack Sparrow, in Pirates of the Carribean.  The skeleton reminds me of the film and thus honors Johnny as his character Jack.  Placing a skeleton in a odd location next to the Trans-America building in San Francisco makes me smile.  I love disparate things brought together.

In Orly's class we were asked to make a closure for our journal.  Since I am making two more signatures and will bind three to make the total journal my clasp was temporary.  Hence the ripped white irregular shapes on this piece.  I may leave them alone or add more color to them sometime.