Found Art: 9-23-10

Snowscape
by Kathy LaRocco.  Mixed Media and Collage on canvas board.

Today I left my little 4" x 4" collage at the Starbucks in McHenry, Illinois.  I had been trying to get it out since Monday but we have had iffy weather and some deluges.  I used a little duct tape to secure the plastic baggie to an outside chair (check my fan page on FaceBook and you can see the pictures) http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Artful-Musings-of-Kathy-LaRocco/134584443222432.  It was gale force winds (well may I am exaggerating a little but ya know...its my art and I want someone to find it.  I included a little flier for the ART OF THE LAND fundraiser along with my found art write up. I created this small piece with scraps from "Blue Moon 12/31/09."  Nothing goes to waste!   I am a happy camper. 

Oh and I sold my first art print today on Etsy.  Thank you Karen!  The print was one that was inspired from my kids performances in an annual Nutcracker.  Its titled "She Bowed for Clara," and Karen received number 1 in a series of 50 prints.  Karen, someday, after I am dead of course, that print may be worth something (ahhh wishful thinking on my part). The second print has been uploaded to my Etsy Store.  Being a mom who has teens in the ballet and who has teens that do a nutcracker every year, it is hard to find "Nutcracker gifts."  Flowers were never appreciated by my children, and so that left basically really junky stuff, or really, really expensive gifts (like Nutcrackers made in Germany for 300.00).  So why not a work of art, an original work of art or an art print?  I don't know...just a thought.  OK babbling now. 

Off to feed my greyhounds.  Art of the Land begins on Friday and I am so excited.  More to come.
k

Almost ready for Art of the Land: 9/16/10

I wish I could say that I have been more organized, more productive, more creative these last three or so months, but I can't.  I started this final piece for the Art of The Land benefit/gallery show well over a month ago and am just now drying the first coat of varnish on it.  Talk about procrastination.  I will put the second coat on tomorrow and then...yes it will be officially finished.  I have to figure out how to scan it (my photography skill is minimal especially with the cameras we own and I have never in all my years been able to take a decent photo of one of my collages).  Oh well, its the little challenges that make life interesting.  So this Sunday, I drop off my art work at the historic Starline Gallery in Harvard Illinois.  I participated in this show last year and no doubt posted pictures of it  http://artful-musings-of-kathyl.blogspot.com/2009/10/final-thought-on-art-of-land-gallery.html.  I reread that post from a year ago and indeed I have created several abstract landscapes of my memories from Santa Fe.  And indeed I have a small body of work done with this benefit in mind.  I guess I should go back in my archives more often, I now feel really good about what I will show next weekend. Here is the link to the benefit's information.  If you are in the area, this is a wonderful show with lots of great art, music (live), nibbles, and drinks.  http://conservemc.org/2010AOTL.htm 

Snow scape for found art Tuesday.

While I was watching Blue Moon dry, no just kidding, after I finished the first coat of varnish, I had a ton of scraps left over in luscious blues.  Out came a small 4 inch by 4 inch canvas that had a painting on it.  Of course, I sanded it and began a new collage.  I think it took me all of 20 minutes which is a record.  The piece needs to be sealed (don't think I will varnish it) and I am putting this out into the world for Found Art Tuesday next week along with an ad for Art of the Land.  I thought since the show is about art inspired from the land, why not?  So all you locals, I hope to get it out there on Tuesday but that depends on the weather.  I will post a photo of the location on my facebook fan page and I do hope a Facebook or blog reader will find it.  But you just never know with found art.
Hopefully before Sunday I will have a scan up of my "Blue Moon 12/31/09" work.  I want to make sure the varnish is good and hardened before I try scanning it.  Until then...
k

PS, I need to mention what a worthwhile benefit this is.  A portions of the proceeds from art sales will go directly to The Land Conservancy of Mchenry County... They are dedicated to protecting the Oak trees of this area and have been responsible for preserving over 1800 acres of McHenry COunty's wetlands, woodlands and prairies.  Your $20.00 ticket gets you into the gala evening of art, food, drink and music.  This is the art event you want to go to! 

Another Week, Almost over!

I first just wanted to welcome you wonderful new followers to my little piece of cyber space. I don't look at my statistics that often ( those types of things don't drive me anymore), but I do delight in seeing new faces on the follower list. So many of you are already accomplishes artists and that really humbles me to think that I might have something interesting to say to all of you. So welcome again!

My husband and I have been trying our best to fit in some last minute day trips with our 3 teens. School starts Monday. I hate this time of year, really I do. I hate seeing them walk out the door and get on the bus. They are that much older, that much wiser, that much more grown up. My oldest will be 18 in February! My twins, turn 16 next April. They have their own opinions, want to be as independent as possible, have their own dreams and aspirations, and are either dating or on the verge of dating. I am happy for them and sad for me. As a parent, you revel in the fact that you have raised them to be good kids and that at this age, they have not strayed from the path just yet. At the same time you also know that as the apron strings are unraveled, there are many more perils they will face, more dangerous than falling off a bike or crashing head first on in line skates, or ...well the list could go on. Sigh....

To continue, we took the kids to the museum, the Field Museum in downtown Chicago. Since I was a little girl, that museum has been my favorite. It is now my Colin's favorite (so cool). We specifically went to see Lyuba, the perfectly preserved, one month old baby Mammoth. Gosh she was beautiful. I have never been so drawn into this period of Earth's history that is until, this exhibit. Simply fascinating. Picture taking was limited however I was able to use my iPhone to snap a few. Lyuba's (meaning love in Russian) story is very well documented in a National Geographic Special and here is the link:

http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/episode/waking-the-baby-mammoth-3630.
And here is the link from the Field Museum:
http://www.fieldmuseum.org/mammoths/allaboutmammoths_lyuba_1.asp

Kaitie,Claire,& Friend

Because this baby mammoth was so well preserved, they have DNA, DNA that can actually be cloned. So exciting. Who knows what may come out of this incredible find.

Baby Lyuba

We also joined in the museums 10 year anniversary celebration of Sue, the worlds most famous T-Rex. They had a sort of cheesy interactive experience with robot dinosaurs. I think it was probably more appropriate for 10 year olds but I enjoyed it.

Robo Dino

Shopping has also been a heavy part of our agenda. It is a tax holiday in Illinois (August 6-15th) and clothes and shoe supplies are state tax free. Yipee. With two teen girls, that helps the bank out quite a bit :) Today, shoes for my son and some basic wardrobe needs.

Art- I finally put out a found art piece. It felt good to let loose an "old" work for some strangers enjoyment. I have been meaning to jump back on the band wagon for sometime now but just never got around to it. I'm back baby! I am still working on a write up for a workshop, and wish I was more motivated right now. Tomorrow, my daughters want to hit the Russian Pointe Store in the city. Sigh...Art?

Found Art at Crystal Lake train station

k

A Week Summary 8-6-10

My week has been filled with teens, period.  Registering for school, annual doctor appointment, buying school supplies, transporting to drop in dance classes (August is Colin and Claire's month off, ha ha), and finally transporting for summer end sleep overs and pool parties. I have to shake my head...when does it get less hectic...when I ask myself ?  I did manage to cross a few art related items off my very long list. I also was able to cross off other items that had to get done this week (ordering Kaitie's senior pictures for one)  Art related items did not include studio time and I am in need of a fix.  I had started two works the week before but they sit on my table.  Perhaps the most rewarding art related task that I accomplished was starting a write up for a class I hope I will be able to teach.  It is turning into a small thesis.  I made a major dent in the write up and so I am happy.  I need to get into the studio to experiment with some methods for putting this project together. 

On the found art front, I began a write up for an explanation of what found art is, to be placed with a work (to be left in the community soon).  I have that work for sale now on etsy, you can see it here: 
http://www.etsy.com/listing/23196579/john-original-mixed-media-collage?ref=em     
but I decided once the listing expires, I will leave the piece for someone to find.  I will detail its location via a picture of where it has been place and a few clues and then post on face book.  So those of you who follow, well if you are in the area, you have the best chance to find the work.  I think it will be fun. This work is special in that the photo is from my collection, circa 1946.  It is a relative (I never knew his name) and I call him John.  To me he looked pretty dapper in that fedora, hence the verbage.  The work is framed.

Finally, I had a really pleasant surprise today when I found out, through a tweet (thank you Rosa) that my blog is on a list for the best blogs on found art.  http://www.guidetoartschools.com/tips-and-tools/found-art .  I bet I can thank google for that and of course the good folks at Guide to Art Schools.  I am really excited at having been recognized.  It is nice when your words resonate with others.

k

Found Art Tuesday 4-22-08: Kindness

I thought that I would make a high quality print of this newly finished work for the found art theme of kindness. This is the thrid in the Virtue in Rhyme Series: Goodwill Doth Impart. As I was getting close to finishing it on Tuesday, I thought this woudl do the trick for kindness. I plan on printing the image, signing it (my name will be barely legible) and then include a bit of an explanation of how the work evolved. That is quite a bit more than I do for most found art projects, but I could not resist making a nice print of it.

The work needs to be varnished and then it will be framed, final size is 8 by 10. This will be in my gallery show starting May 29th. I have one more work in this series and then my little poem will be completed. The Virtues I chose to represent were peace, hope, goodwill, and faith. Meanwhile, I hve started another ballet fairy, the Snow Queen from the Nutcracker. I hope to have her finished before mid May. It would be nice to have a few more works done. That gallery has three rather large walls!

K

Found Art TUesday for 4-8-08- Sending out a good message

A little late, but in before the next found art topic! Well I have had this sort of theme in my head for some time. You know that commercial for Target where they show clips of people doing thing together and just being together. There is a song playing with the words that repeat over and over: We're all in this together." Anyway I could not get those words out of my head. It is true on many levels, is it not...we are all here sharing this magnificent Earth. All races, all countries share the same planet. I had this picture of my Mom (on the left) and some of her friends. I thought it might be perfect for these words. This literally took seconds to do. I painted over an old ATC that I never liked much and gave it new life. As for where I will leave it...?????

On another note, I am just about finished with my soon to be donated piece. I used the words "We are in this together." So you see...the saying has been with me for a while and this just shows how persuasive advertising is....Although they did not get me to go shopping at Target :))))

k

PS. Thank you for your kind comments on the work below. I am pleased with the outcome and I am letting it sit for a day or two before I varnish it :)

Found Art 3-11-08: Fire

My 15 ear old just started reading Romeo and Juliet at school. With a theme of fire, there was no doubt where my inspiration would come from.... A quick and easy piece using watercolors, inks and just plain old paper., this work returned me to my rubber stamping roots. Enjoy "Passion on Fire."

Now back to the piece I started last week. If only there were more hours to the day.

K

Found Art Tuesday: 2-19-08 "History Repeats"

NIU- History has repeated itself once again in a terrible, terrible tragedy. My inner self was screaming as I watched the video clips of the shootings unfold. How could this happen yet again? Why don't we learn from the past? And then I thought, well why should we? Attrocities such as NIU have been happeneing since the Old Stone Age. Are we just naturally programmed to hate one another...to kill and maim in the name of God or in the name of $$$$. Just take a brief walk through time...What are the History books filled with? The Reconquista, King Philips War, The Holocost, Croatia, suicide bombers, more ethnic killings, Slave trade you name it... I am so sad and depressed. What are we? What drives the human race? I am overwhelmed and feel so helpless.

My piece is called: "History repeats." I did this out of anger and great sadness. MIxed media and Collage is the category of this work and I used a rather light weight piece of water color paper as the substrate. I am almost afraid to leave it because I would not get the chance to explain it. But I will never-the-less. Maybe it is better for the finder to feel my raw emotion. These killings are insurmountable...Even Freud can't explain them. Are we doomed to repeat the acts again? Our children are acting out these violent crimes...What are we teaching them?

k

PS. This took some time to post because we have all had turns with cold/flu like things. I just finished the piece today (3/1).

Found Art Tuesday: Simple 2-5-08

A little late is better than never. You can quote me on that! So with this little work, I tried to kill 3 birds with one stone. I belong to a mixed media group, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LatestTrendsCSWorkshop, that is currently doing some of the techniques/excercises from "Celebrate Your Creative Self " by Mary Todd Beam. http://www.amazon.com/Celebrate-Your-Creative-Self-Exercises/dp/1581801025. I love this format of doing an excercise every month because it forces me to revisit many of the techniques I may have done long ago. It also allows me or perhaps gives me permission to make big mistakes. The assignment for February was two basic techniques: lifting, and wax resist.

The found art theme this past week: Simple. So I set out to do two techniques using the theme simple. I should have known from the start it would be anything but simple! Look at these colors...I seem to always choose this warm pallette. Anyway. In Mary Todd Beam's excercise, she has us using watercolors. OK so I currently prefer acrylics. When lifting, you have to move quickly for obvious reasons. Acrylics dry so fast. Illustration board was my support. Diacrylide yellow and yellow ochre were laid down first and lifted, I tried lifting with a foam brush and discovered that I did not like the foam brush at all so I used paper towels which is what I would normally use to lift paints. Then I laid down two collage elements. The skull was a third try transfer. I tried twice before and the transfer just was not working on this illustration board. I think that maybe it was too wet? I do transfers often and this was the first time in a long while that I could not get one to work. The wax resist technique is more subtle. I did not use the technique as a focal point but rather as a way to protect some of my elements before I painted over them with more colors. I used neutral shoe polish and some white crayon. Then I washed over the work with quincridone crimson, burnt umber light. Next I added the final collage element, shoe polish, and another couple layers of burnt umber light. The last wash was an irridescent bronze. Last but not least, I added some writing using Roas'a little find...the Kemper tool..

Although this is rather winded, I wanted to write this up for the mixed media group who are currently doing this excercise. As far as the found art theme...the work really is not very complex. If the transfer had worked the first time, it would have been "simple." So I included some writing that says "there is no simpler road". So there you have it.

K

Found Art Tuesday: 11/27/07- Woman

My Thanksgiving holiday was filled with familiar smells, relaxation, and being with my family. It was wonderful to have this precious time...the children did not have much homework nor did they have any dance. We just hung out.

On Saturday I had a once in a lifetime experience. My family and I went to see an art exhibit at the Milwaukee Museum of Art http://mam.org/ The feature exhibition was the work of Martin Ramirez http://www.mam.org/ramirez/. As an artist, I must say next to seeing Picasso's Guernica in Spain, this was the best exhibit I had been to in years. I was so incredibly moved by his work. His history is so sad, but the art he made brought a sort of sanity to his existence. Martin's home was Mexico where he had a wife and 4 children.. He came to America in the 1920s in search of work. For a time he worked on the railroad and then in the fields. Then in 1931 for reasons unknown, he became confused and despondent and was found on a roadside.. He was unable or unwilling to communicate in English so he was committed to a mental hospital. And there he remained for 30 years. Can you imagine, 30 years! To keep patients occupied, nurses and doctors would allow them to color and scribble. While I bet many did not take advantage of that, Martin did. He drew and he drew and he drew with anything he could get his hands on. His substrates included the papers that they used on hospital tables/bed, napkins, paper bags, etc.. His collage work was done using a homemade glue from his saliva and potatoes. He used graphite, crayons, watercolors, pastels to create his drawings. And if you look closely at his work, I swear the guy never erased anything! Tragically, many of his works were lost because the orderlies would throw them out at the end of the day (clutter you know). But many of his works did survive thanks to the psychiatrist that worked with him.

Now that brings me to my found art for this week. The topic was woman and I had planned on something very different. After seeing this exhibit I decided to do something in Martin's style. This is a blatant copy and blend of two of his drawings. There is no originality what so ever, but hopefully I can remedy that. I did a small note card and plan to include a brief explanation of Martin's work and maybe a little about him. I did the drawing in marker and used oil pastels to color. I really can't even begin to say I feel his style. As a native to Mexico, his work drew from his experiences and memories of his homeland, none of which I share. The style of his work is so foreign to me.... Anyway I call this Ode to M.R. and one day I hope to do something a little larger scale that has a little more of me in it. Please take a look at the link above...his work is so worth a look see.

k

Found Art Tuesday 11-13-07 : Voice

I worked into this piece through a back door. My mind works all the time and it seems, sometimes, that I am wired way different than many of my friends! I am working on a 11 by 14 stretched canvas. And I came across an alcohol reduction method in the current issue of Cloth Paper Scissors. The technique has certainly been around for some time, or at least versions of it. And I have happily been using rubbing alcohol with my acrylics for at least two years. So what makes this method a little different from what I am doing is that the author of the article (Patricia Eggebruch) paints her entire gessoboard with 7 to 10 layers of acrylic paints ,different colors, and then rubs areas of her board with rubbing alcohol to reveal rich colors beneath the top most layers. I thought her work was way cool so I really wanted to try it with my canvas. The canvas piece is in a painful stage right now. I am stuck from a composition view point. And I am nervous about covering up everything. So as I fretted about all this I thought that I should try out this technique on a scrap of Illustration board.

Switch to the found art topic of Voice. I could not get the phrase out of my mind.."And a voice cried out in the dark." Don't know where I heard that or if I read it, or made it up..but that darn phase would not get out of my head. I pictured darkness with words being voiced. So in between waiting for collaged items on my canvas to dry, I picked up a scrap of illustration board and went at it. I now understand why gessoboard or ampersand board is used. You have to have a firm surface to be able to work through the multiple layers of paint. I am still going to try this with my canvas but I am still a little leery because the stretched canvas is flimsy. Oh well at least I am not going into it blind. So my piece is called "Help Me," and it is my "voice" in the dark. Weird huh? The image is about 3 3/4 inches by 6 inches. Acrylics, inks and words from a book were used.

k

Found Art Tuesday 11-6-07: Book

Better late than never...that is my motto for today. My Found Art this week has to do with a "Book." I settled on a bookmark with a reading theme. The background has torn pages from a variety of books that I keep for art purposes. The art was done on watercolor paper and is mixed media and collage.

For these little projects, I like to start on Tuesday and finish up on Tuesday. When I am doing collage work, I try to let my layers air dry. So this will usually take 3-4 hours to complete even the simplest collage for found art work. I had thought about making a book or altering a small kids board book but unfortunately, I tend to take a long time doing those sorts of projects. It would be hard for me to part with an altered book.

Another Tuesday...come and gone..November marches on...

k

Found Art Tuesday: Line 10-23-07

I just purchased another technique book called Collage Techniques. You would think that I had them all by now..Ha not quite! This one is by Nita Leland and Virginia Williams, http://www.amazon.ca/Creative-Collage-Techniques-Nita-Leland/dp/digital-features/1581800983. It has been around for a while, published in I believe 1994. I can't believe I did not have this one in my library! I have been playing with the acrylics book (Acrylic Revolution) purchased just recently and I decided to combine some techniques from this book with what I already have been doing.

This work was an experiment in monoprinting. I used both watercolor paints and acrylics to make the background print. And added cut out forms for mountains. All else is hand drawn using oil pastels markers and acrylics. The piece is called TIMBERLINE. OK so I could not think of anything more profound. I used 140 lb watercolor paper as the substrate. Now I can get a bit more ambitious with the next little project. I plan on monoprinting a background for a project my daughter has at school. This one has to be done by Friday so I will have another example up of monoprinting. I think I will use acrylics this time around.. There will be no need to "fix" the background so it won't smear when I ad polymer medium for collage items.

K

Found Art Tuesday: 10-16-07 SEED

I am finally back in the saddle. This past week two really wonderful events happened, Rosa returned to her blog with a new found art theme: seed. And I will be have a gallery show at the Raue Center for the Performing Arts http://www.rauecenter.org/ in May of 2008.

I simply can't believe that my work was accepted. I found myself reflecting on the fact that I am no different than many of you...I have self doubts...Am I good enough, why would anyone like my art, oh sure, it does give me pleasure and that is what counts right? And then I went to the Raue on this past Saturday and saw the work of two local artists. The work blew me away. Check out the websites of Nancy Reid http://www.nancyreid.com/ and Johanna Gullick http://www.johannagullick.com/. How can I even hang my work in the same gallery? These are award winning artists, professional artists. Then I found myself questioning the Raue's criteria for selection. I just keep shaking my head... I know my husband is very proud of me.... I guess I should be thrilled. At least I am back in the studio. So I have some work to do, goals to make, and dreams to achieve. This is a big one for me. The Raus is one of the few fine galleries in McHenry County. I am still in shock!

Now for the found art theme. I created a little abstract design and collage focused around the seed of life. Hence the title.."Seed of Life." Life is so precious...we are all stars. To make the decision to have children should not be taken lightly, it is a privilege. This work is done on one of my favorite substrates- a drink coaster, this one from a Chili's restaurant. I used tissues, acrylics, inks, and some doodling by yours truly.

I am so happy to resume my cyber space friendship with Rosa..although I may not participate as much as I like in the project, I know it is there for me when I need a quick release. Rosa...thank God for you!

The studio awaits me once again. I have a work in progress that I should post soon. It is about half done. It is a fairy from my Sleeping Beauty series (now of 3 paintings). She is one of the many faeries from the ballet Sleeping Beauty. Although she is not wearing a tutu nor pointe shoes, she is very real to me. I promise to share her soon.

k

Found Art 9-11-07- Small

I am glad to be working on this found art piece today. It has taken my mind off this grim anniversary. I remember being at the computer on this day in 2001 when I saw a "news" flash on AOL. I went down to my TV set and watched in horror...live footage of the second plane hitting the second tower. My brain became numb and then I received a call from from my husband saying that they were told to go home. My husband, at that time, worked in the Sears Tower. It was thought to be a target as well. There was mass hysteria in the city. I did not relax until Marc walked in the back door. That was a very long and sad day......

My piece is entitled "Autumn Herald." It is a reminder how one "small" leaf begins this season each year in northern Illinois. Our leaves are just beginning to turn. And soon the environment here will be awash with color and swirling leaves. I love Autumn..the crisp air, the harvest moons, the clear skies, the colors, the apples to pick.... I love it all.

So let me explain this mixed media piece. I have this book, "Acrylic Revolution." I decided that since I am not very artistically motivated right now that I would use the found art themes to practice a few of the basic techniques in the book (found here http://www.amazon.com/Acrylic-Revolution-Techniques-Working-Versatile/dp/1581808046 .) My found art pieces are generally pretty small and I like the idea of experimenting in this venue, much less threatening. This work was done on a piece of gesso prepared cardboard. I used a dry brush to create the background effect. I laid down some interesting stamped images which barely peek through the brush strokes and then collaged a single small leaf. The swirls were drawn with a Stabilo white pencil. I really liked the way the color and movement in the background really gave the work its "feel." Fun... I use dry brush painting now and again but never thought of doing an entire background from the "technique." Can't wait to try something else.

k

Found art Tuesday: 9-4-07 Changes

Last week I did not feel like doing much of anything. I was plagued again by cluster headaches. On and off all week I just need to shut my eyes. I think the strain of getting back into the school year combined with the headaches and the labor day holiday did me in. I am also waiting to hear from the Raue Center in Crystal Lake IL.
http://www.rauecenter.org/,
hoping that I will have a gallery show this year with them. I submitted the application in mid August. Strangely though, I just have not been motivated to do art....

This weeks offering is a piece I call "inevitable." Our theme was Changes. I did a quick acrylic painting of trees to illustrate the seasons. As I though about this piece I realized that I am in the Autumn of my life and it will be inevitable that I will one day soon be in the Winter. Sigh..... Anyway this is a mixed media piece using acrylics and inks on water color paper.

I guess I never mentioned the show that I had in late July...Gallery in the Garden. That was a rough day with no sales. I watched as my worked slowly began to "warp" under glass. The humidity in the garden was incredible. There was a canopy of trees and ferns and all sorts of foliage, much like a rain forest! All the moisture from the previous days rain was held in that garden. At any rate, nothing sold. Items that were selling were jewelry and smaller hand made crafts. Not to many paintings sold. I guess I was pretty OK with that. But I probably will not enter again. The day was so stressful because of the high humidity, and the running around I did to see my children perform in their summer recital. Live and Learn. I can't do it all.

k

Found Art Tuesday: Favorite 8-21-07

This is the week before school begins at our home. We are running around, finding that perfect back pack, note books, getting hair done, dentist appointments...well those of you with school age children know the routine. There is something soothing and comforting about this annual activity. My children are so excited to start back, mostly because of their friends. While summer has been refreshing, the new school year heralds in Autumn. Which brings me to this weeks topic...Favorite. Autumn is my favorite season and I included a little drawing in this weeks offering.

Sound of Music...Rain Drops on Roses.. was all I could hear in my mind when Rosa posted the theme. I was not sure how to depict that song because I have a lot of favorites. So I took a subset of favorites to include in the work. I had this scrap piece of canvas and used that as the base for the piece. I used collage elements as well as my own drawing. There are a few stamped images as well. Mixed media would be a good way to classify the work. So I have my two favorite years, my favorite season, and my favorite holiday. The canvas was washed with gesso and then tissue paper (dress pattern) was adhered on top. Colored washed were use to achieve the look.

Now I am off to a high school orientation. Kaitie is a freshman. Where has the time gone?

k

Found Art Tuesday: 8/7/07-Candy

This is just a silly piece for me. My immediate thought when Rosa posted the topic of candy was Eye Candy... So I decided to list some current favorite eye candy sites...ones that I really enjoy each week, if not day. The rest just sort of fell into place. The work is acrylics and oil pastels on water color paper and the candy is really good! The title is none other than Eye Candy.

The sites I listed, one of which is mine, are really like a shot in the arm for me. I enjoy reading other artists thought processes. One site , Misty Mawn's- http://www.mistymawn.typepad.com/, always gives so much to reflect upon. She is just a wonderful artist and an incredible writer. . I will find myself smiling or saddened, happy or nodding in agreement with her reflections on moments from her life. I hope you will visit her blog. It inspires me to be a better artist and person.

Rosa's site offers a look into her thought processes as she creates a piece. When she was completing a piece called Maria, I felt I was peering into her studio weekly, to see the progress on the work. I love that sort of intimacy and Rosa does that really well. Her link is on my side bar as is Claudine Hellmuth's.

Claudine has been a favorite collage artist of mine like for the past 5 years. I have learned so many techniques from her books and DVD's. She is an excellent teacher and has a wonderful sense of humor. Her style is really unique and has a signature that many mixed media artists just can't miss.

I included Pacha's blog as a found artist. Her work is really fun and I enjoy reading her many comments on each work http://pacha-foundart.blogspot.com/index.html.

Laura Lein-Svencnver http://lauralein-svencner.com/ is an excellent collage artist with many awards to her name. Her work flows, direct and to the point. Her style is a little reminiscent of J. Talbot and Kurt Schwitters, both of whom I adore as artists. I love to look through her work often...it opens up feelings and emotions from deep within me. She is also the former president of the Midwest Collage Society, of which I am a member. I wish I loved just a little closer to where the meetings take place. I would love to experience her joy of collage.

I mentioned my own site mainly because it is my therapy and my record of who I was and am.

k

PS- This scan did not work really well because the candy is "popped-up" from the actual work with foam double sided tape. So it is really hard to read the websites. That is why I listed them in my text.

Found Art Tuesday: 7-31-07 CIRCLE

The found art topic this week was circle. Actually that was the topic last week but some of us were too busy reading the final Harry Potter book. I took this fun picture of my daughter Claire at her field day (one of the last days of school). They had games and snow cones and all that fun stuff. So here she is in a big plastic bubble, thus the title Bubble Girl. I had no particular idea for the theme so just went with the shape.

Right after I started the Harry Potter book I purchased this great new acrylic book entitled "Acrylic Revolution. You can see reviews and stuff here:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1581808046/bookstorenow99-20. It is filled with techniques and good information on the physical and chemical properties of acrylics. Since I use this medium a lot, I thought the book would be a good addition to my library. It was. It is funny though because in my mixed media adventures, I had been using a lot of the techniques in the book already. Now I have rediscovered some of them and will try to incorporate them in new works. Here in this found art piece I am using a crayon resist with ordinary kids crayons (any brand will do) or you can use oil pastels or wax pencils. So my circled themed work evolved. It is done on a piece of cardboard, 5 x5 inches in size. The photo was copied and then transferred to the gesso prepared cardboard. Crayons were used to draw circles and then color washes were over layed, fun and simple.

Below you will find my Tagged entry.

K

Found Art Tuesday 7-17-07: JUMP

Killing two birds with one stone is often how I operate. This weeks found art project was no exception. The mini collage project for Claire's art class became my found art for this week. I demonstrated the project in stages and when I was finished, I had my found art piece. I wanted to accomplish several things with this project: 1. to introduce the kids to collage and mixed media,

2. to encourage the kids to have fun with this art form at any time,

3. to give them a small project that they can finish and actually use.

So altered coasters came to mind. I detailed the steps for them by demonstrating each phase. Gesso the coaster, add some paint and scribbles, overlay with a telephone book page, age that page by removing some of it with masking tape, paint the page, use a rubber stamp to stamp a letter of the alphabet, look through magazines or old books for something that begins with that letter, adhere that cut out image. I decided to use modge podge for the glue (recommendation of the kids art teacher) and it worked fine when I did it a home. The modge podge will seal the work and they can use it as a coaster if they want to. So here is my "J" coaster. The title is of course...JUMP. Simple but it accomplished several goals that I had for myself this Tuesday :)

The kids had a blast getting all messy. I promise to scan Claire's soon. I ran out of coasters nd she used a small piece of matte board. I love the colors she used.

k