Friday

I have done so much stepping back is these last few weeks and really feel I have had a setback of sorts in my confidence as a painter. I haven't experienced this before and hope to use it to make me a better painter, a more creative artist. Some strange internal thing is going on and I wonder what God is telling me about my work. Painful, but redemptive.

My sister and nephew are coming up tomorrow, so a day of cleaning. My Ikea desk came in, and though I enjoy these sorts of projects, putting it together was a major feat in itself. Out with the ancient, massive antique taking up my studio and in with a smaller, sleeker desk. All the while, my tragic simian hero and the "memory stag" are staring at me.........

Oil Painting Research Day

I had coffee with a friend this morning and spent the afternoon researching color theory, tcehnique and my medium of choice. This is quite an overwhelming task as everyone who uses or has used oil considers themselves an expert with opinions on even the minutest of details falling anywhere on the spectrum. From brands, to mediums, to palettes colors, to suitable palettes, to brushes, to how you hold the brush, to...well, you get the idea.

I was afraid to use oil paint for a long time. In my mind, it is the Mother Superior of all mediums. The smell, the messiness, the technical aspects and careful treatment required had me paralyzed and stuck on acrylics. Even now, there is a lot of hit or miss and trial and error involved for me in working on oils. I probably do a lot of things the long way around.
Bill Martin's site has great vital info to refresh the experienced and inform the fledgling oil painter.

So, with my brain exploding from information overload........I look forward to "The Office" tonight.......... cheers.

Hope you all had a great creative day......

More Robot love

Referencing yesterdays post about Susan's robot piece, Cindy from Art Making in the North left a comment with a link to Fobot Found Object Robots by artist and creator Amy Flynn.

I love these! Amy makes these fantastic sculptures from vintage tins, toys and hardware, each one is unique with so much personality. Amy also has a blog so you can keep up with her latest creations and see where she is exhibiting.

A bit of fiber inspiration

Cool Mixed Media Felt art by Susan Hinckley.

I have mentioned Susan's work before, but if you haven't gone over to check out Susan's entertaining blog filled with great vintage advertising images that reflect her humor and outlook on life yet, you really should. Visit her website too, it features lots of her beautiful work.

Shepard Fairey

Did anyone see the Shepard Fairey story on CBS Sunday Morning this past Sunday? Thoughts or comments anyone?

Painting Update

"Liar"

Amazing how a name can totally change the message and feel of a painting. Throw in a few wasps and wow.

Today's Painting

5 X 7 oil on panel, available here.

Asheville, North Carolina

We drove up to Asheville again on the weekend. I had to get in a few of the requisite stops suggested to me, I wish I had time to see them all and sample more of the fabulous restaurants.

In downtown Asheville there is a beautiful historic building with restaurants and artisan shops called The Grove Arcade. Down the street we went into a wonderful craft supply store called Earth Guild, there was an excellent selection of textile paints and dyes, looms, leather working tools, etc. Next door we went into a fun clothing store with lots of things I would love to buy.

A little further down the sidewalk is Woolworth Walk, a renovated Woolworth's store, now home to 150 exhibiting artists and artisans making and selling jewelery, fine art, decorative art and crafts.

All around Asheville there is a lovely backdrop of mountains surrounding buildings from the 1920's and 30's. It is a very picturesque town with such friendly people, we felt so welcome there.The drive east going back down the mountain.

Ebay Auctions

Dyed Batting Pillows

I made these pillows from cotton batting for RIT to use in their booth at the CHA conference in Anaheim, CA.
Thanks for the pictures Jamie.
There's my quilt that was used in Quilting Arts TV episode 312 and for my article in the December 2008 issue of Quilting Arts magazine.

I also had a few things displayed in the Walnut Hollow booth. The CHA show looks like such an interesting convention, just imagine a whole convention filled with manufacturers of crafting products.

North Carolina

I have been checking out the sites of Western North Carolina for the last week, staying in Winston Salem and taking day trips to Charlotte, Greensboro and Asheville.

Across the street from where I am staying is a gallery space for The Associated Artists of Winston Salem. Last night I went to an opening for their latest juried show called Exposures. The prospectus for the show states:

Works entered should in some way incorporate photography. Mixed-media is strongly encouraged, though any artistic medium may be entered (photographs, painting, collage, mixed media, sculpture, etc.) as long as the finished artwork incorporates at least one photograph or photographic image.

There was a lot of really nice work including a few textile pieces and I had the pleasure to meet blogger friend Karen Newman Fridy who lives in the Winston Salem area and had two pieces in the show.
The first day I was in Winston Salem and walked around the corner of the gallery and recognized Karen's vessel in the window. I sent her an email and Karen told me about the opening.

I love blogs, they are such a wonderful way for us to meet friends from all over the world.

On Tuesday, my kids and I drove up to Asheville, it is about 2 1/2 hours west of Winston-Salem. We parked downtown and the first store we saw outside of the parking garage was a wonderful bead shop, Beads and Beyond my daughter immediately had a few purchases to make.
I have always heard such great things about Asheville and was so excited to finally have the opportunity to visit. When I saw the yarn shop right down the street I new this city was a great place to be.
How cool is this sculpture a little further down the street for all of us textile lovers. North Carolina was a huge textile industry state, sadly most of our fabric is now made overseas. Don't you think the Chicago School of Fusing needs to have one of these on their campus?

Such a fun place with a lot to explore and so beautiful. I can only imagine how breathtaking it must be in spring and fall. Hopefully I'll have the opportunity to see what that is like one day.

Today's Meeting

So, the meeting went great with the NVFAA. What a great space for a gallery. The building was built in 1851 and has a lot of cool history. You can read about it here if you like that sort of thing.

So, this board member is really excited about my work and is pulling for me to get a show some time in the future. How awesome is she? I love when you meet someone who just SEES the work and somehow on a gut level it just clicks with them. Apparently, the other two board members weren't sold on my proposal, so she is going to have me come in again when they can meet with me as well. We will see how it goes.

Hope everyone had a great day painting, or will tonight.... so thankful for you all.

Currently on the Easel and Update

We had really bad weather here yesterday, so this is the first opportunity to get an image of where I am on this.

Also, I had an idea for painting that I thought was already finished. This happens on occasion and the clear image came while I was running a few days ago. "Liar" resides on my bedroom wall, so I see it every morning. A wasp or two more to add and his story will be complete.

This afternoon, I am off to Alexandria for a meeting with the NVFAA about a future exhibit.

Today's Painting

Back to my simian friend today. I really have battled with my mind over the last week or so after such a set back on this painting, but I was damn determined to get to it this morning.

I have exchanged the sparrows for swallows which was the right fit all along. I remembered the pair that returns every summer to our breezeway. I wrote about it on The Helium Burden blog back in June. What a great lesson on perseverance they are and I needed that reminder while struggling with this painting. So, I have talked about the crap lighting in here, so I will unload a photo in the morning of work done today with my swallow lesson in mind and Marvin Gaye as my musical companion.

Thanks, all, for your kind words and encouragements regarding this painting.

Mixed Mania Apron

A year and a half ago Cheryl Prater and Debbi Crane asked my sister Deb and I to make a mixed media apron for the book they were writing, Mixed Mania. Since Deb lives in Maine and I live in Chicago, I started the apron and then mailed it to her for embellishing and finishing.

I was not sure what I was going to do, I just knew it needed to incorporate paper and fabric, so I pulled out the gel medium some images printed on paper, a sewing pattern, a phone book page and tore them up and glued them to some white fabric with the gel medium. I painted the fabric and paper images with textile paint then grabbed a sharpie marker and drew some branches and flowers. I took out the white pearl Lumiere paint and painted around the flowers and branches and added a few more details with a black pen.

I cut some paper leaves and used gel medium to glue them to the painted fabric. I stitched around the flowers, leaves and branches then sewed the fabric into an apron shape adding blue rick rack trim.
Then I mailed it to my sister.

Deb added birds cut from fabric, paper butterflies and eggs, french knots on the flowers, stitched details on the leaves and white on white swirling stamped designs.
It was a really fun project to do, and it was the inspiration for the technique I have used in many other projects like these.

Gallery Opening and Tag

Silk painting artist Deborah Younglao tagged me in a post today. This a third tag for me, but you can read my own tag post from back in November here. Many thanks Deborah.

Craig and I went to the Touchstone Gallery last night for the Double Vision opening. The gallery is a co-op and for this show members of the gallery invite another artist friend to exhibit a piece along with one of their own. What a great idea for a show. I don't get the opportunity to connect with other artists face to face often, so chatting with Michele Cormier and Charles St. Charles was a treat. Both were engaging, friendly and even interested in my work (my husand tells everyone.) It has been some time since I went to an opening and have in mind to go regularly this year. The district and surrounding cities have great art walks monthly, so there is no lack of art to see and other artists to connect with.

Birds Eye View

I had so much fun making I Beelieve for Virgina Spiegel's Fiber art for a Cause that I had to make another one.

I wish things weren't so busy right now, I suppose that is not about to change any time soon, because I would love to make a bunch more.

I really like the combination of hard metal with soft fabric and I have always loved religious icon paintings that have the metal work over them with the little glimpses of painted surface.

Thanks all....

Thanks to all for such great and helpful comments on my revised artist statement. How amazing are you guys?!

I just learned that my mom and dad are coming tomorrow, so on a cleaning and cooking frenzy today. I have had a string on introspective days lately mulling over "that painting" and another in the wings. I am not sure I will be able to paint again until Monday.

I was invited to meet a local museum director next week to talk about the possibility of a future exhibit of my work. So, though my proposal was not accepted, I still may have the opportunity to exhibit at some time in the future.

Hope you all are making good progress on your amazing works of art this week. We all struggle along together.

Music and Painting

Music is such a huge catalyst for my own creativity. I was reminded of that Sunday night watching Radiohead and Coldplay on the Grammy's. I have heard every possible mantra about listening to music (or not) when doing creative work. One guy insists that artists should listen exclusively to classical music because of the lack of words which he believes interferes with right brain waves. Another claims silence is the ultimate companion. Even musicians follow the same lines of thought, many feeling that listening to a lot of music contributes to their work, others feel it is intrusive and go on musical fasts at various times.

I have been almost exclusively listening to Shearwater with a few slices of Bon Iver in between for many months. For me abstract words and non-linear lyrical structure really stir the creative pot. The lot of paintings that have come out of my recent musical companions has been really strong. There is something in the meshing of the music, particularly Shearwater, and words that expands my creativity in a manner that is difficult to articulate, but I feel and see the result.

Revised Artist Statement

Write an artist statement is hard, right? You have to put words to all the intuitive ways you move in your work. I worked on mine today after getting a proposal rejection.
Here it is. I covet any thoughts or feedback from my artist family (i.e. is it coherent? does it seem complete? good opening and closing?..you get the idea.)

"As a child my three ring binder full of drawings of horses was a prized possession. To me, horses had a mystical almost phantom-like quality I was drawn to from an early age. I became transfixed just seeing one in an open field from the car window. Today, I recognize this mark in all animals as the fingerprint of the infinite imagination of the Creator. In my experience, there is a creative communion that takes place between me and God when painting or in the presence of animals.

With animals as my subjects, I discover great freedom in employing my own imagination as a catalyst for new mythology. My paintings pair dramatic images and short narratives to set the stage with a surreal and timeless atmosphere as inspiration for this new mythology. I invite the viewer to continue the journey by finding a story in their own imagination.

A painting begins in my mind with a word, a string of words or a clear image that appears like a dream. I am an oil painter."

Kindle 2!

I have drooled over the Kindle ever since I first learned about it. I read every review and description of this piece of technology and was convinced I needed one. At the time it was impossible to get one because they sold out so fast. With time to think about it, I decided like all new devices there would be bugs in the system or things to improve upon, so I decided to wait for Kindle 2.

For a year, I have Googled for updates trying to find out when it would be released but never found any thing to tell me how long I would have to wait. Now it is finally here, the pre-orders can be made and it looks like there are some great improvements!

New Features & Enhancements

• Slim & Lightweight: Just over 1/3 inch and 10.2 ounces
• Books in under 60 seconds: Get books delivered in less than 60 seconds; no PC required
• Improved Display: Reads like real paper; now boasts 16 shades of gray for crisp images and text; even reads well in bright sunlight
• Longer Battery Life: 25% longer battery life; read for days without recharging
• More Storage: Take your library with you; holds over 1,500 books
• Faster Page Turns: 20% faster page turns
• Read-to-Me: Text-to-Speech feature means Kindle can read every book, blog, magazine, and newspaper out loud.
• No Wireless Bills: No monthly wireless bills, data plans, or commitments. Amazon pays for Kindle’s wireless connectivity so you won’t see a monthly wireless bill.
• Large Selection: Over 230,000 books, plus U.S. and international newspapers, magazines and blogs available
• Low Book Prices: New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise

It is set to ship on February 24th on a first come basis. I think this might be one of those things I will consider my own personal stimulus package and contribution to the economy.

Currently on the easel: Painting that is Threatening My Sanity

Having to face the current painting this morning and still be in a battle this late in the day is disheartening. I am not even going to post a photo, but you can see it as it was before today by looking at previous posts. The reworked background is still unsatisfactory. A break for lunch (and for my sanity) before going back.
I may have to put this one aside for the week and move on to another painting looming in the wings. There is a point where you have worked and reworked until the medium laden canvas needs to rest. I look at my lovely subject and feel like I am abandoning him there is some watery dream without his friends, who have been painted over.

North Suburban Needle Arts Guild

This week I gave a lecture and taught two workshops for the North Suburban Needle Arts Guild. What a great guild, there are quilters, doll makers, beaders, knitters, etc., basically all kinds fiber artists. I taught Painting Fabric for Whole Cloth Quilts the first day and using Tsukineko Inks the second day.

Because I consider these technique classes where I am teaching people how to use these mediums I do not want them to stress out about coming up with an image or needing to be creative, they can do that after they have learned the techniques, so I provide images that I have drawn for students to work from.

I love seeing the different ways people paint the images. There were so many beautiful paintings, I wish we had time to take these through being quilted too. I would love to see the stitching bring out the details.

For the Tsukineko inks class I have students work from old copyright free engravings of flowers, vegetables, birds and insects. I like using these images because the lights and darks are very clear, helping with the shading. I teach two different techniques for applying the inks and I have students begin the class working on white fabric and then progress to more complex images on light hand dyed fabric (dyed with RIT in the microwave).
Such a fun group, we covered a lot of techniques, everyone was relaxed and did wonderful work.

I will be teaching these same two classes in April at the International Quilt Festival in Chicago, if you are interested in learning these techniques I would love to have you in my classes.

I need a laugh....so do you.

I have had such a painful painting experience today. That is all I have to say about that.

Douglas Hoover posted a photo of his hair band days. I just loved it and decided to look through some photos of my own for my punk days. That was my "work" shirt. I know because it has a collar and wasn't black with a band name on it. If you have a Facebook page, find me for more amusement.
I need a little humility today. So....

1986, Hollywood, FL, Vibrations Records

It is time you all see the true madness that is Tracey Clarke when it comes to oil painting.
So, way back, losing several days work here at the end of the week. It has been a rather frustrating day. I went for a run after throwing a few things this morning (don't tell me you guys don't do that, too) and came back fearful of confronting my mess. In hindsight (why can't it ever be foresight?) I failed to listen to my gut and not only painted the birds too large but also chose the wrong birds.

In painting over the birds I have to repaint the background, so all the transitions have to be reworked from left to right. I am only fairly certain I have completed the left side. It will have to wait until tomorrow to be sure. Because of the crap afternoon light, the right side is way off in color.

Man, do you ever just have one of those days?..... I give myself a headache.

Painting Update

More fun at Michael's today after a morning coffee with a friend. I haven't been in some time and needed a can of picture varnish. It wasn't until I got home that I realized I picked up retouch varnish. After the long check out line of little elderly ladies buying fake greenery, I am terribly resistant to returning for an exchange and repeat. I do have a few cans of Soluvar around , so will have to use that in a pinch. "Chosen" is going to its new owner this weekend and needs varnish. It is about 30 degrees out today, so this will be an interesting project.

I felt the necessity to walk away from my current painting today. I feel rather frustrated and see that I must take a few steps back in the process. Throughout the afternoon I have walked into the studio for one thing or another and glanced over at the easel. My response is an emotional one, first of awe at what I see coming to life on the canvas, the second is dread over the elements that have to go or be reworked. Can I pull it off?......

Another issue pressing me is the studio lighting, which is poor. A string of headaches in the afternoon alert me to this problem. I understand that this can be easily remedied. If anyone in my artist family has any ideas or would like to share their own lighting situation I am sure I would be greatly helped.

Painting Pain

All I going to say is my left brain won the war today (see below.)
I let out an "Arrrghh.!!".....and retreat a few steps on this painting today.

Yesterday's Painting

Now we're rolling......I wasn't quite sure of the size of the birds yesterday. This obsessive thought created an unsettled mood most of last evening.

My left brain states in this manner: "Shouldn't the birds be the appropriate size in relation to the actual size of the baboon? You need to take out your ruler, measure and adjust accordingly." Blah, blah, blah. Somebody shut that thing up!

Being an equally left and right brained person, this surely is the source of my madness. This morning on first viewing my right brain cheerfully answered the annoying question with:
"Its called make believe, Tracey! All of it! Not any of it is really real! How 'bout that?!"
So, as of Wednesday morning the birds remain as they are.

Every day in the studio....

In the middle of painting this morning I look over to my left to see this scene which presents itself daily. Each weekday morning I get up, have breakfast, take Reuben out for a walk, feed everyone, have quiet time and then on to the second bedroom/studio, coffee in hand followed shortly by Reuben, Shane and Eli. The studio doubles as a dog and cat lounge. I can't count the times I have stepped on tails and paws. But it is a comfort to have my babies with me. While I do my thing, they do their thing.

Painting Update:Yesterday's work

I painted another layer of blacks and glazed a few elements on the face yesterday. As well, I started to put in the birds....More of the same today. Craig made me put the distant islands of grass back in.

Needle felted dyed batting

I spent the weekend with some friends and one of them had a needle felting machine. I have never worked with one before but I knew the Rit dyed batting I brought was going to be perfect. I cut 9 squares and 9 circles from warm and cool colors and layered them alternating warm circles on cool squares and cool circles on warm squares on top of a piece of buckram.

I filled in little gaps with strips of different colors and added roving to the circles for highlights and shadows. It was SOOOO much fun. I love the painterly quality.

I had to keep playing and made another simple composition. Now I see why people want a needle felting machine after they try one out. I do not think I need to add one to my collection of tools just yet, but I would love to work on one again sometime.

In the morning I head off to do a lecture at the North Suburban Needle Arts Guild, north of Chicago. On Wednesday and Thursday I am also teaching two workshops for the guild; painting fabric for whole cloth quilts and using Tsukineko inks.