1-2-3 Grace in ANAC Travel Show

1-2-3 Grace

1-2-3- Grace is making it’s way around the state of Nebraska as part of the 2013 Association of Nebraska Art Clubs travel show.  I got to see it at the Noyes Gallery in Lincoln this week.  It will be in Falls City after Thanksgiving, and Fremont from December 11-28.  You can get the full schedule through June at nebraskaartclubs.org

So Much Inspiration in Eight Days!

Two weeks ago I was at Autumn Art Workshop, in the Nebraska National Forest near Halsey, for a 3 day mixed-media workshop with Kathleen Conover.  It's always fun to spend time there with artist friends from around the state.  We learned about using "gesso juice" on watercolor paper for interesting textured backgrounds, and practiced creating good compositions with value studies.  This was an indictment of how stuck one can get in a certain way of doing things.  I struggled with the watercolor, and "cheated" a lot with acrylics, but came away with a lot of great backgrounds and inspiration for new art.  The photo shows all my wonderful gesso juice starts from camp.

Glenwood Hot Springs Pool

The aspen were at their peak in Aspen! So, new art had to wait.  After two days at home, I headed west to visit my daughter in her new home, driving over Independence Pass into Aspen. We spent a day in nearby Glenwood Springs, where Megan changed her identity with a Colorado driver's license, and we celebrated the beautiful afternoon in the world's largest hot springs pool.  Right next to the pool is the Glenwood Springs Center for the Arts, where Terry Muldoon teaches mixed media classes in a small room with lots of supplies.  The facility includes a gift shop, a ceramic studio, and space for dance classes.

classroom, Glenwood Springs Art Center

On the way back to Aspen, we stopped at the Ramada Inn where the Glenwood Springs Art Guild was having their annual Fall Art Festival.  Of course, a huge percentage of art in this area involves images of the local scenery--mountains, rivers, and Aspen trees.  But, there were some mixed media pieces...maybe an entry for next year's show would be good reason for another visit!

Earlier in September,  the Aspen Times, where Megan is a copy editor, had a job listing for director of the Wyly Art Center in Basalt. This led to checking the Wyly website and noticing a free class offered on the night Megan was working while I was in town.   Mary Morrison, a working artist for Golden Acrylics had been at the Halsey workshop a few years ago, and at the ANAC convention in Alliance last summer.  I was thrilled to have this time to catch up with her in Basalt,  get paint samples, learn some new tricks, and meet other artists.  When I told them how I'd discovered the class, they asked if I wanted a job!  Ha...if only I lived closer.

Maroon Bells, White River National Forest

On Saturday, we took the RFTA bus (Roaring Fork Transit Authority).  We have laughed in awe of the advertising meeting that thought up the logo/campaign, Veloci-RFTA with velociraptors painted on the buses.  Someone must have been watching Jurassic Park the night before!  So, we rode RFTA into the White River National Forest to see the Maroon Bells--two 14,000+ peaks about 12 miles southwest of Aspen.  Their reflection in Maroon Lake makes this area the most photographed site in Colorado.  Professional photographers, with tripods, lined the lakeshore.  One from California told me he'd been there in late September each of the last ten years and this was the best he'd ever seen it.  There was no wind, making the reflections mirror-like.  Snow the night before made for great contrasts with the shadows and changing aspen colors.

Constantine's World

I was back in Nebraska late Saturday night and left on Sunday for Lincoln, to work at Noyes Gallery for two days, and spend some time with my son.  It was my favorite time to work: end-of-month change day, and prep time for First Friday.  Nearly every piece of art gets moved to a new location and I get to connect with lots of artists who bring in new work during this time.  My new painting, Constantine's World, is on display for the month of October.

More of my eight days of inspiration will be in another post.  Blessings!

Threshold

This painting will be included with the show in the Focus Room at the Noyes Gallery in Lincoln through the month of February.  In preparing work to take east, I was stymied by titling this piece.  Last night I was down to "Doorway", but not satisfied.  Today, listening to American Public Media's Being, I heard an interview with John O'Donohue, an Irish poet, philosopher, and Catholic priest.  One of his books, To Bless the Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings, is reviewed at Amazon by Kerry Walters, who quotes the introduction:

In our overly busy culture, he writes, we frequently race over the "crucial thresholds in our life" without pausing to take note of their significance. We no longer have "rituals to protect, encourage, and guide us as we cross over into the unknown" (p. xiv). A blessing is precisely one of those protecting, encouraging, and guiding rituals. It memorializes our transitions, connects us with a wider community (since none of us really ever travels alone), and strives to "present a minimal psychic portrait of the geography of change it names" (ibid).

I am struck by this spiritual use of the term "threshold"...so much more descriptive and less cliche than "doorway to the future".  This painting is one of my simplest collages.  The background is created using Citrisolv to alter the printed images on clay based magazine papers and create the ethereal pathways and bubble formations.  Black marker highlights some of the shapes.  The large rectangle and cross-hatched lines are from my favorite tissue, painted with black gesso and dry brushed with copper acrylic.  The texture of this tissue suggests tree roots, or blood vessels.  Serendipitous results of the experimental techniques used here could be symbolic of "crossing over into the unknown"...to a changing geography. 

It brings to mind a friend who is in treatment for cancer.  A month ago, she was afraid of the unknown, but now, 4 weeks into treatment, is realizing a wider community of others who are experiencing the same things, and others who are there to help her.  We should have created a blessing ceremony or party to recognize the threshold she had to cross as she started into this chapter of her life.  It's never too late to start a ritual.

Noyes Art Gallery/smArtist Career Blog

This mixed media painting is featured in the Imperial United Methodist Advent Devotional.  It's made with an unusual technique. Citrasolv, a cleaning solution, is poured on printed images, altering the ink on the page and creating the unusual backgrounds. More citrisolv is used to wipe out the facial features, and acrylic paint defines the details. 

In February, I will have art in the Focus Gallery of the Noyes Art Gallery in Lincoln, Nebraska. Hope you can get there. It’s a co-op gallery on 9^th Street, and a lot of my artist friends have work there.  First Fridays they are open until 9pm.  Otherwise, it’s 10-5 Monday-Saturday, with metered parking right out front.

I was notified today that I will be Friday’s Featured smARTist on the smARTist Career Blog!  Thanks to Arianne Goodwin—an awesome art-career coach.  Almost a year ago, my mother helped me win a session with the smARTist Telesummit.  I’ve done a lot of art since then.  It’s time to review the goals and get ready for 2012!

Many thanks to all who have encouraged and supported my art.  Bless you this Holiday Season.