Transformation Starts Within...

Transformation

Have you noticed certain words coming to your attention lately? For me, it has all been about new beginnings...with words like transformation, change, renovation, transfiguration, and the one I like most of all Metamorphosis, showing themselves to me in conversations and the printed word.

With this is mind, I welcomed the next Gecko Galz challenge, Butterflies and Lace. And if you peek below you will find a free Digi Stamp, compliments of the Gecko Galz to use in your work.

I started with the beautiful image of Paule Morley from the Gecko Galz collage sheets. Although not much is known about her life, we do know she was a French danseuse best known for her version of the Mattchiche, an Afro-Brazilian dance. I loved her pose in the card and couldn't wait to start work on it.  The butterflies and lacy background are from both the Gecko Galz and my own collection.  I also added a doily in the middle of the nebula circling Paule's wonderful headdress.

Sometimes life gives you a nudge in the right direction...with a word casually mentioned here or there. And sometimes life really gives you a strong shove moving you where you need to be. As long as we are listening, we can transform ourselves, like the metamorphosis of the butterfly.  But the transformation starts within. Are you listening?

Old Time is still a-flying...

CREATE - Mail Art

I love Pre-Raphaelite Art. I love the compositions rich with detail, colour, and realism. I love the poetic line and form. I love their intertwining romance and rebellion. After all, what is Art without rebellion?

My second envelope for the Mail Art swap drew from the poem 'To The Virgins, To Make Much of Time" by Robert Herrick and painting "Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May" by John William Waterhouse.

I see the leaves whisking past my studio window on this blustery day. And Time is flying. As we enter the fourth quarter of 2014, I have to ask...where did this year go?

The substrate is a craft envelope. In addition to the woman from the Waterhouse painting I added art and handmade paper, and joss paper. I finished the envelope by adding rubber stamped and stencilled acrylic metallic paint. It was then sent on its way...

So...gather your rosebuds today. And share them with the people you cherish in your life.

Don't Be Tamed!

Born To Be Wild - Collage

Colour surrounds us. It defines our world in so many ways. It enhances the environment in which we surround ourselves...from the way we decorate our homes to the clothes we wear...and even the colour of our hair! How often do we, without even thinking about it, use colour in our speech? We could be a true blue friend, or get the green light on a project, or still be caught in a grey area. We react instantaneously. We love or hate certain colours. I like the quote by Murasaki Shikibu: "Beauty without colour seems somehow to belong to another world."  How fortunate we are to live in a world that embraces colour!

The remains of Autumn in Pennsylvania today are quietly covered in snow. It is on days like today that I appreciate colour even more. The deep browns and blacks of the limbs of the trees and the odd yellow or orange leaf peeking out from the snow, the vibrant reds and blues of the cardinals and blue jays as they search for the bird seed I have out for them all remind me of the romance we have with colour.

Which leads me to my collage. I came across a quote by the celebrated dancer Isadora Duncan: "You were wild once, don't let them tame you." Considered a Muse, she inspired those around her to step outside the conventional social mores of the day. You could say she led a colourful life on and off the stage.

The photo of the high kicking women from my vintage photo collection intrigued me. Where were they? I wonder what brought them to such wild abandon! What a perfect way to compliment the quote. Exploring the symbolism of colour the reds, pinks, and golds...the high energy pallet complimented with colour on the wing...called to me.

The substrate is a canvas panel. I stencilled and rubber stamped the background with various shades of acrylic paint and Distress Inks. The high kicking women, type from an old dictionary, and butterflies completed the work.

Colour is a Muse, always there to guide us. We can follow her and live a life filled with all spectrum of colour if we never tame our authentic Dreams.

Summer Is Just A Sigh Away...

"Four Seasons Suite - Summer" 5" x 7" COLLAGE

The collage is an homage to one of the best times of the year and is part of the "Four Seasons Suite" I have been working on.

I used a 5" x 7" canvas substrate. The handmade papers were altered using acrylic paint, alcohol, water, Ranger inks, and Perfect Pearls Mist. Tea dyed gauze crosses the canvas at the woman's eye level. Mulberry paper completes the top portion of the design.

I am crazy about Victoriana. The images from Dover books. In my opinion they have the best selection of all.

To quote Henry James: "Summer afternoon — summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language."

And Summer will be here before we know it!

Earth Day...Forever Free

Forever Free

As it is Earth Day I thought I would post a collage with a nature theme. As the saying goes..."Earth without Art is Just "Eh". The Arts are what stirs our souls, makes us who we are, encourages us to follow our own Muse.

I started the piece with sewing pattern paper. I love the translucence and texture. It has a feeling of something not yet finished...the anticipation of what will be created.

The Substrate is canvas. Using the Tao format I felt would lend itself nicely to a visual breaking free.  The collage incorporates vintage ephemera, flower petals, handmade paper, sewing pattern paper, found objects, art paper, inks, dyes, and gauze.

And what better way to celebrate Earth Day? Collage is the ultimate in recycling And I think the Muse would approve...especially on Earth Day!