these are a couple of ATC's I made from scraps on my worktable, left overs from some Christmas treasures I am making, using music. WHEN I DO post them, you will have to be kind -it's my first attempt at soldering (oh, apart from a little go in Stephanie Lee's class last year) & they are a little 'rough' around the edges.
Any who - back to the ATC's....... A little while ago, my dear friend from Paper Traders, Connie Holso, RAKed me some watercoloured backgrounds, which are what I used as a base. First I collaged on some scraps of music, I then used a palette of acrylics to create some foliage & flowers & in the wet paint, used some watercolour pencil to ‘drizzle’ some black line work in. I added more paint to create ‘centres’ of flowers…..then added in the birds. I poured over them with ‘self levelling medium’ (Golden) then (perhaps a BIT kitch) – added ‘frinkles/micro beads’ & a little german scrap
WELCOME
- hi there, thanks for visiting .......greetings from my creative space to yours....... having been creative my whole life (whether I am cooking, planting a garden, sewing or painting) - thoughts & images here range from art & creativity, techniques, photography, show & tell to family & baby news & travel.. I am keen to share with you BOTH my art successes & failures because I am not putting myself forward as anyone special - just a work in progress - like most of us........
Grab yourself a cuppa, of whatever you like to drink & have a look around.
BELOW is a list of catagories which house archives, each of my previous posts, that have been allocated to one subject or another. So that's the place to click if you'd like to look at one particular type of work. 2008 was a year of 'curve balls' for our family & as a result my life has taken some unexpected turns. I am now 'accomodating' some physical challenges I hadn't anticipated this young & am studying Visual Arts in an attempt to regain my equilibrium.
I will retain this blog as my art blog & keep things here up to date with my art, however as my life is starting to head off on it's own 'altered journey', some places not suited to my audience or content of this blog - some my daily musings are on my new blog:
uRBan dRiFTwooD'
IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING THAT EVERYTHING THAT I POST ON THIS SITE IS COPYWRITED. I UNDERSTAND HOW YOU CAN BE INSPIRED BY EXPOSURE TO VARIOUS ARTISTS, & I certainly appreciate you commenting & us discussing various aspects of my work. This is why I photograph my processes & explain techniques I use - BUT PLEASE, FOR YOUR OWN ARTISTIC GROWTH & CREATIVITY DO NOT STEAL MY WORK.
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THE HOW'S & WHY'S OF SWAPPING ART
- WHY SWAP ART
Sometimes, the progression from percieving your self as some one who is a 'crafter' to someone who is an 'artist' is all about the process & the passage of time. Often times, regardless of the outcome, the process is the most important thing! Sometime toward the end of 2005 an online friend from another art group related a story from the book 'Art and Fear' to me (via the online group we were both a part of) & it has literally changed my approach to 'arting'. It goes something like this............. In one of my favorite books about the process of art (Art and Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland) there is a study cited that is interesting. A ceramics class is told by the professor that they can either be judged by the quantity of work turned in over the semester or the quality of one piece. The students who chose "quantity" would turn in their pieces at the end of the term. The pieces would be weighed and they would recieve a grade based on the total weight. The students who chose "quality" would turn in one piece, and be graded on that one piece. The students who chose "quality" spent most of their time planning, plodding, incubating, and designing their one perfect piece. The quantity students just kept turning stuff out. The surprising outcome was that the very best work came from the "quantity"students. moral of the story? Just do it! Skills, techniques & creativity is honed in the caudron of practise:- I have used it as an 'art ethos' ever since.................joining swaps & projects when the topic interests me, which stretches me, keeps me creating & gives me a starting point to create. I learn new things, discover & develop new processes and get help from my friends along the way. NOT every piece of art that you create will become a Mona Lisa HOWEVER, I do not believe that during the time that Leonardo Da Vinci was painting her, he realised what he was creating....He had to create the piece - then put it out there in the world to be critiqued - you need to work through the process everytime.... I believe this to be the single most valuable thing you can do to develop your art skills - take the Nike approach - JUST DO IT!!!!! My addition to that - JUST DO IT - everyday - no matter how minor or how busy you are, art a little everyday, even if it is only organizing your supplies, as it will keep you present with your art. - HOW DO I JOIN IN A SWAP?
The easiest way to join into a swap is to join one of the many online Yahoo groups, that regularly swap art. Paper Traders is a group that I am involved in (link below) & is one such group, but there are lots of others, each with their own flavour, some specializing in particular mediums or formats. Simply type in yahoo groups in your search engine & the home page will come up. You will need to register an 'identity' (it's best that this is a recognizable word & relevant to you as this is what all your messages come up as). IF you would like to do a 'blind' swap with me, ie you send me an ATC & I send you one back, send me an email using the link above. - ONLINE CHALLENGES
Another fun & perhaps a little less stressful way (because your art is for yourself, though you usually post pics of it to show others what you have created) of participating & giving yourself a little nudge is to participate in one of the many online challenge sites. I have a whole list of them here - check them out, I am sure that there will be something that will pique your interest..... Have fun!!!
I love to visit..........
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Recent Posts
Eye Candy
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Christmas & other festivities
Monday, 14 December 2009
a little birdsong
Monday, 05 January 2009
On the TWELFTH DAY of Christmas
Blessings to you and all those that come to your house during Christmas. I pray you
have had a safe and prosperous festive season, & are filled with memories that will endure a lifetime. On the 12th day of Christmas - my true love gave to me...... 12 drummers drumming..........
Continuing with our story of the 12 Days of Christmas...... we have arrived at the last feast day..... the 12th day ...... The 12th night, often included feasting & the removal of all the decorations & French & English celebrations of Twelfth Night often included a King's Cake, remembering the visit of the Three Magi (Three Wise Men). For myself - we used to always have up on 1st December & down on New Year's Eve - so we greeted the new year fresh - however now that we don't have any children at home, we usually go away on 27th, so I like to at least get the tree down before we go away, otherwise, it is pretty messy by the time we get back mid January - all dried out & dropping nettles everywhere.
WELL - this is the last day of images - DON'T FORGET - Please leave a comment and a link on the day with the image of any of them you use and on January 14th I will draw a winner - to recieve one of my original pieces of artwork.
Sunday, 04 January 2009
Saturday, 03 January 2009
on the TENTH day of Christmas
my true love gave to me.....10 lords a-leaping........IF I had a lord - I'd definitely want him leaping! LOL!! Not alot to say today..........I hope you are having some fun in the sun (for those in the Southern hemisphere) and the you in the Northern Hemisphere are keeping warm & snuggled by the fire with a good book.
The "ten lords a-leaping" represents the Ten Commandments this first image is from a manuscript dated approx 840ad & ascribed to the Dutch artist Karolingischer Buchmaler. The second is by Rembrandt.
DON'T FORGET - Please leave a comment and a link on the day with the image of any of them you use and on January 14th I will draw a winner - to recieve one of my original pieces of artwork.
Friday, 02 January 2009
on the NINTH day of Christmas
gave to me - 9 ladies dancing. We have SO many NON-Dancing stories in our family that it's a bit of a tradition - we don't dance....... like paying for weekly dancing lessons for ONE YEAR leading up to our son's wedding & not even being able to do a waltz! Or like our Son & his Bride having a song choreographed for their 'dance song' at their wedding and him not able to get around her dress & kept tripping her up....... or the one when my DH just about broke something vital falling in a 'conga line' Our family has 'team' shirts - that say...........'DON'T DANCE' LOL!!!
The "nine ladies dancing" were representative of the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit found in Galatians 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.
DON'T FORGET - Please leave a comment and a link on the day with the image of any of them you use and on January 14th I will draw a winner - to recieve one of my original pieces of artwork.
Thursday, 01 January 2009
on the EIGHTH day of Christmas
eight maids milking of course! Who'd be without their milking maids???? Especially on New Year's Day........did you drink too much last night??? Hopefully it was milk & nothing stronger & you are feeling ok today!
Our 8 milking maids were reminders of the Beattitudes from the Sermon on the Mount.
DON'T FORGET - Please leave a comment and a link on the day with the image of any of them you use and on January 14th I will draw a winner - to recieve one of my original pieces of artwork.
Wednesday, 31 December 2008
On the SEVENTH day of Christmas
My TRUE love gave to me - seven swans a swimming - look at them here - they are not just swimming - they are flying as well!! LOL!!! This is rather like what I imagine the 'travelling court' of a dignitory or a monarch would be........fascinating!
The small image, is SO small, you might wonder why I bothered - but I love the woman's expression and I thought you still might be able to use it for SOMETHING (a postage stamp? an inchie??? LOL!!!)
the B&W is a very early (c. 1885?) pic from the Russian Ballet production of Swan Lake (ok - there's much more around about 'ladies dancing' than 'Swans Swimming' - so this is a bit of artistic licence!)
The seventh day is to remind us of the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit
1. Prophecy
2. Ministry
3. Teaching
4. Exhortation
5. Giving
6. Leading
7. Compassion
You can read about them here and here
DON'T FORGET - Please leave a comment and a link on the day with the image of any of them you use and on January 14th I will draw a winner - to recieve one of my original pieces of artwork.
Tuesday, 30 December 2008
On the SIXTH Day of Christmas
On the SIXTH Day of Christmas - my true love gave to me - SIX geese a-laying.... what a wonderful sight - have you ever cooked or made cakes with goose eggs? They are SOOOOOO luxurious - you can make 6" high sponges with these babies! They have such huge yolks - in fact a place in Melbourne uses them on 'gorment' hamburgers - the hamburger is $30AUD though! (they are about $5AUD from a take away shop and about $3AUD from McDonalds)
Traditionally - the 6th day is to remind us of the six days of creation - although this is a sticking point with some people there is much wonder in these verses about creation..........have you ever read them? As important as that - we also need to remember in our busy world - that God commanded a day of REST - something we find difficult to achieve in our fast paced 21st century lives! Take some time today to be alone - to be separate to embrace bordom and let your mind wander a little on to 'The Road Less Travelled'
DON'T FORGET - Please leave a comment and a link on the day with the image of any of them you use and on January 14th I will draw a winner - to recieve one of my original pieces of artwork.
Monday, 29 December 2008
On the FIFTH Day of Christmas
I had a lot of trouble finding some 'gold rings' to mark this, the FIFTH Day of Christmas, in an interesting image - let alone FIVE of them! SO I have taken the liberty of using 'love scenes' instead of the rings themselves for todays images. Feel free to save them & print them
DON'T FORGET TO POST A LINK TO YOUR ARTWORK MADE WITH THESE IMAGES. A GIFT OF MY ORIGINAL ARTWORK WILL BE DRAWN ON JANUARY 14TH.
The 5th day is the Day to remind us of the first 5 books of the Old Testament - it's not uncommon for people who are not familiar with the Bible to begin here - on a bit of a crusade to find out what it's all about - and to have ditched it by the third or fourth chapter of Genesis- 'cos it's pretty heavy reading...... it's as complex and as sordid as any Jacky Collins novel - full of murder, betrayal & intrigue - clearly demonstrating the depths of humanity's sinful nature and the benevolence of God - over and over again...... if you ARE interested - I suggest a lighter translation like the Living Bible or The Message Bible., but if you are reading for the first time - a good place to start is the Gospel of John in the New Testament.
