I'm working on some pieces that will be part of my Sketchbook Project.
I've successfully deconstructed the book that I was sent and I am having fun incorporating my digital images into the newly formed pages of the book. Some transfers, some direct prints onto other papers.
I think the finished book will be a little bit "lumpy" and interesting. I hope.
I hope you all had a fabulous Mother's Day and if that does not apply - well, a lovely weekend anyway.
DH and I tripped into NYC this weekend and REALLY enjoyed the Affordable Art Fair. There was a wealth of realistic and interesting art there - much stuff that you could actually contemplate hanging on the walls of your home. I came away with a long wish list and perhaps in the Fall we will indulge!
We then went to the Museum of Arts and Design and spent a wonderful number of hours with some friends from Texas and enjoyed the "art candy" that was on offer there.
Today I chatted with my boys, planted more plants, snapped garden pics - see above, and then DH and I took refuge from the pollen and walked for an hour or so on the beach. "Head Cleaning" as we call it in our Family!
Perfect really!
Tomorrow I am hosting one of my Long Island Photography buds here in my Studio. It's not an offer I make very often but this particular lass had the same cheeky glint in her eye as I did when we took our class together and I am guessing she might be a fair fun kindred spirit!
With the first day of temps over the 55F mark, DH and I headed into the City today to get a little fresh air and check out the Art Scene.
First we stopped by a few galleries around 10th Ave and 19th - 23rd Streets. One building we stopped at was full of artist studios and during our exploration of the building we had the chance to meet with Mark Weiner and had a great conversation with him about his abstract art.
Then we tripped along to visit the Armory Art Show.
There was quite a long line to wait to get inside and I'm darned glad it was in the 60f's and not much chillier, otherwise the outcome of our adventure would have been significantly different.
Anyway, having waited out the line and fought our way inside we were treated to the usual display of mind boggling creations. Some that were "eyecatching" and others that were totally "baffling".
This year there was a definite upswing in the amount of artwork that required complex manufacturing, aside from the artistic process - she said, somewhat tongue in cheek!
No false teeth in glasses of water this year, but certainly many other pieces that begged a question.... or two...
I guess that's the whole point though!
I made a great find the other day - the most wonderful exhibition of Indigenous Art Sculptures being presented by the Western Australian Museum.
Menagerie features contemporary works by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander’s from every State and Territory in Australia.
The exhibition features thirty three artists who have have created representations of animals informed by their connections to ancestors, family, ceremony and the animals found in the Australian landscape.
The artists have used a wide variety of materials to create their sculptures, ranging from the more traditional western sources to local materials and found objects. The barbed wire emu (not pictured) was, I think, my favourite.
The artists featured in the exhibition include Badger Bates, Yvonne Koolmatrio, Craig Koomeeta, Dennis Nona, Garth Lena and Janine McAullay Bott.
Photos from the Australian Museum. Photos copyright of the Australian Museum.
This exhibition was an absolute visual delight. The inscriptions accompanying each exhibit were incredibly informative and gave great insight as to the how and why each artist constructed the sculpture that he/she did. This is one of the most interesting and engaging exhibitions of visual art that I have seen in a LONG time! 11 out of 10!
My only regret is that taking pictures was not allowed but the few samples I have garnered off the web might serve to whet your appetite if you are in the vicinity and able to visit!
Menagerie is presented by the Western Australian Museum in conjunction with the Object Gallery.
Well they are done! 13 lovely 8x10 collages are winging their way to New Zealand! I just hope the "postie" has his running shoes on and gets them there in a hurry!
I've put the finished pieces into a Photo Album in the sidebar if you are interested in having a look.
I'm hoping that the coming week sees a cessation in the rain and would it be too much to hope for a little sunshine? Even though my "To Do List" offers plenty of opportunities for hiding out indoors, I'd LOVE to get outside for a bit and enjoy some fresh air without coming back in looking like a drenched cat (of which we have plenty!)!!!!
53F + Sunny = Roadtrip!!!!! Yay!
We headed off the the NY Armory Art Show today to enjoy some 1000 differing view points on what might be considered "ART" and what might be perceived as something else entirely! The show is always an 'eye opener' and the $30 admission per person ensures that DH and I have something to talk about for at least a few days!
This year the 'noir' clad crowd was no less thin, the sotto voce conversation abundant as everyone meandered around thousands of square feet of artistic expression that varied in genre from the traditional to the revolting (depending on your own taste) to those that were simply 'perplexing' - which I suppose MUST be the point - "dahling"
The most astonishing conclusions of this year's excursion to the Armory would have to be that Color Theory is obviously no longer taught, that messy gray is very much in vogue, that Art Dealers must have some other source of income and that there really is a LOT of very pleasing eye candy out there on the Internet!
Don't get me wrong, its a fabulous experience to see all these 'avant garde"? creations and realising that there are NO boundaries in the Art world, which is, I think, a good thing....
however if you go to shop for a visually appealing little doodad to put on your living room wall, you are probably better off going to Pier 1!
Here's a small sampling! What do you think about the COW sculpture? And the Pink Bunny?????
This is the view from my Studio window this morning - more snow than I care to shovel and makes me wish I had not given away my cross country skis some several years ago!
This is a snap of some HOPE that I captured on our trip into New York City on Sunday when we went to the MOMA to see the Tim Burton exhibition. The exhibition was great, but even with our member's tickets, way too crowded and less than enjoyable because of the 'crush'. It would be nice to see all of his wonderful drawings with (almost) no-one else in the room.......
Not much time for art at the moment as all my attention is focused on making the most of the days that I have with the boys and getting them ready for the next leg of their "Summer" vacation in the northern hemisphere.
I have several pieces that I need to get ready for gallery submissions and exhibitions for next year, the Angel, being one of them, has evolved over several days and a few late night minutes snatched when I can.
Not my usual work habit, but that's OK as being "Mom" is more important than anything else right now!
For many of us who potter happily amongst our paints, papers (or pixels) creating works of ART? ....there often comes the point where you want to know if what you create is any GOOD!
And how might that be determined? Is it just the approbation of your family and friends, is it when you successfully get a piece published in a magazine or is it when your artwork is accepted into a gallery exhibition?
I don't know and I suspect for each and every artist the yardstick of approval is different.
In my case I am tickled to death to have had a number of pieces accepted into different gallery shows over the last 8 months, both locally on Long Island, in Brooklyn and also across the way in California.
For me, the acceptance of my artwork into shows, juried by people who know me not at all, is a particularly important tick in the right box!
That's not to say that the 'scrunched husband face' test does not remain a valid personal indicator of whether or not a piece is any good but sometimes it's nice to know that others who are not near and dear and hold no personal bias share the same opinion about what you do!
Just my thoughts on a quiet sunny morning before I head to the beach......
And if you are so inclined, feel free to comment and share your thoughts on 'validation' and where it comes from for you!
The Firelight Series - inspired by the recent bushfires in Australia is due to hang as part of an exhibition in May at the Long Island Art League.
