Category Archives: Ramblings

Clear work tables

Posted on by July 3, 2017

At last I have actually completely cleared the two big work tables in my studio.

The computer corner looks pretty good, due to the need to install a new larger sturdy standup desk with my larger tablet.  And even my lounging corner is tidy now.

The sewing table is not clear, but it is presentable.

There is still a ghastly but small pile of “stuff” on the floor, with several items that need to be returned to the loft, the RV, or Goodwill.

There are only two unwieldy & problematic piles of papers, art, etc. that I have not sorted through, and they are smaller than they were! This is fairly amazing progress!

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Tricking Myself

Posted on by July 1, 2017

Cleaning up / organizing the studio is always difficult, and particularly so in summer sunshine.  Usually June in the PNW is a fine time for indoor cleaning (i.e. cool and gray outside), but not this year.  And making things for various family & friend events has contributed extra projects this year:  from sewing to printing photos, and more… so for whatever reason, the stuff in my studio has become a foot deep on every surface, and is piling up on the floor!  Unacceptable!

I finally have time to myself, and I have managed to catch up in the yard and in the house, but I found myself still postponing the studio cleanup! So I manufactured an art project crisis:  I needed a particular tool (the need was not manufactured) to scrape and clean an uncured plaster cast just out of the mold.  And I could not find it!

It is a recently acquired tool, for which I have not settled on a permanent storage spot:  does it go in the general shallow tool drawer?  in the small drawer of specialized carving knives and rotarty cutter and ___?  Or does go in a cup with a pair of scissors, along with a few sharpies & pencils?  Or does it go on a carry case for art class and art while traveling?

So many places to look for this, and it was not in the first several locations. So I thought chances are it lying on one of three work surfaces, just buried under the piles of “stuff”!  Or even on the floor behind one work area, where all kinds of paper, foil, cloth etc. gets pushed aside, then off the table!

Now the studio is much cleaner!  I can see the work surface between the remaining items on my tables, and even the floor is looking a bit clearer.

And I did find the tool. Not hidden under all that stuff I put away or through out, but safely tucked into that art travel box that I take with me each week to Wednesday evening Art!   I postponed looking there until I managed to put in almost two hours clearing away that “stuff”. My studio is still a mess, but it is much much better now!

Here is the fruit of my most recent procrastination, which is also the project that initiated the cleanup (when I really needed that small Blick snap-off knife). This is a clay sculpture created by Michael, and cast & reproduced by me.

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Creative Avoidance

Posted on by June 30, 2017

 

My current avoidance: my studio is a mess and I really need to clear space on my work surfaces.  It may even be time to get rid of some of the wonderful “stuff” that never quite seems to work out in my art projects. Not to mention that fimo clay and pasta maker that I really do not plan to ever use again!

But …  when I start to tidy/organize/clean my studio, I quickly run across such tempting incomplete projects that call for my immediate attention!

Here I added a delicate touch of color to a three plate black ink print “Three Flowers” that is from 2015.

Another distraction yesterday & today was to make molds and cast a clay “doodle” made by my partner, Michael.

I like this small sculptural doodle very much, and a friend who visited admired it also.  It is a fairly simple shape to mold & cast (vs. the complex and so far intractable problem of casting my oil based clay baby). No idea yet how I will manage that!  So for practice and to get quick satisfaction (I hope), I  made a construction silicone inner mold with a 2-part plaster mother mold, sealed it with shellac, and just poured lightly tinted plaster just now.  Call it casual casting :-)

This was much more fun than clearing the studio, and it will be even more fun to open up the mold tomorrow morning, if I can wait that long…

 

And now it is 6pm on Friday:   half past a beer, and I think we have chips & dip handy, so … that will certainly take care of cleaning for today!

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In concrete

Posted on by June 3, 2017

This sculpture thing is a lot of work:  original, mold making (torture!) then casting (not trivial!). Then finish work, detailing, painting (if desired) and mounting.  Notice the listener above is not just listening, but listing a bit… I thought I had him firmly secured and set just right … but he was intended to be an upright character, not slightly off-kilter as if he had one to many at happy hour!!!  Oh well, next time!

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What Dreams May Come

Posted on by May 9, 2017

This phrase sounds most benign, almost cozy, removed from the context of Hamlet’s soliloquy.  But within the context, it alludes to a huge fear that indeed there may be “something after death” that will not be pleasant!

This fear is surely closely tied to the fact that none of us can conceive of the “nothingness” that so many of us believe will be our ending.  It is that inability to imagine nonexistence that creates the stories that many religions perpetrate.

And of course this fear of what comes after death goes hand in hand with our fear of what we will experience leading into our deaths.  Most of us wish for what may be a contradiction:  we hope to be well prepared for our death (somehow), but also that death will come quickly, painlessly, too suddenly to even surprise us!

We are only able to speculate on what might constitute a “good death”.  So best not dwell on these thoughts for too long :-), but it is difficult when friends or family die.

Burials the Drawing, framed

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Q. & A.

Posted on by October 7, 2016

Q.   Is there room for public art in a consensus based community?

A.   Possibly.

But only with much persistence from one or more enthusiasts!
 
And only for artists outside the community, dead, or with very thick skins!
 
It is very unlikely that there will be unanimous enthusiasm for any one artwork. And while the consensus process does not require unanimity, there does need to be agreement first that any artwork is desirable for long term display, and then there needs to be agreement on the specific piece of art.
 
So an artist in the community must be willing to persevere in the face of a clear lack of enthusiasm, or even clear dislike of the work. This may be especially difficult when these people are the neighbors & community members you spend time with, and have committed to socialize & work with regularly.
 
Note that it is statistically very unlikely that there will be a champion for an “in house” artist also within the cohousing community: a cohousing artist will probably need to be her own promoter.

Public art is always difficult, and selection by committee often comes to a majority vote.  Achieving consensus for public art will generally take even longer, and may never happen at all :-)!

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Two Days

Posted on by June 30, 2016

Two days “off” from concrete & sculpture  =  Two days of printmaking.  At the very last minute I decided to honor my commitment to produce a set of prints for the Corvidae 2016 Print Exchange.  Only 13 prints required this year, 8″ x 10″ or smaller plates, using two passes / two processes (any processes but each artists should use the same two processes for all prints, but the prints need not be identical).

So the printing is done, the prints are almost dry, and now I need to sign, number, and select 13 from the edition of 15 to put in the Exchange.

I was wildly enamored of them at first, now I am at the fault finding stage, and find them sloppy, crude, and inadequate.  I think I may like them again tomorrow!

And NOT in the Print Exchange:

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