Where Have Your Steps Take You?

CREATE - Mail Art

Working on Mail Art feeds my soul. I have always been the person who eagerly awaited the arrival of the mail every day. Holding an envelope in my hands gave permission to my imagination to meander. Who wrote the letter? How far did it travel? Where did it stop along the way? Did anyone else wonder about this letter as I did?

So being a part of a Mail Art Challenge was exciting for me. I enjoyed producing and giving away the Art as well as experiencing the anticipation of receiving beautiful Art in my mailbox.

I found this quote torn from a magazine:

"Art is a Journey. Embrace Each Step."

It was perfect for the Challenge. I thought of how Art has shaped my life. From childhood to the present, Art and Life have intermingled...so much so that I can't separate one from the other. Nor would I want to. Art has opened door to possibilities I never dreamed were available to me. Art has welcomed so many wonderful people, with so many distinctive points of view, into my life. It has made it richer, more enjoyable, and at times, incredibly challenging. But Art has, most of all, allowed me to be my authentic self...to accept each step along the way to becoming the Artist I am today.

Again, the substrate is a craft envelope. I surrounded the image of the woman with art and handmade paper, wax infused paper which I rubber stamped, postage stamp, clippings from magazines, and joss paper. I finished the envelope by rubber stamping and stenciling with acrylic metallic paint. Then off to the Post Office it went with my hopes that the recipient would be intrigued when it landed in her mailbox.

Are you like me...putting one foot in front of the other passionately following the steps wherever they may lead? Where have your steps taken you?

Sunflowers...Sunshine in an envelope

Seven Sunflowers

I love sunflowers. I love to plant the seeds and see them grow. I love to drive past fields filled with their golden yellow brilliance. I love the way their heads follow the sun. I love to collect pictures and photos of sunflowers. Vincent van Gogh's Sunflower series has always been an inspiration to me.

But most of all I love to draw sunflowers.

It's been a while since I've sat down to do any drawing. When I was a commercial screen printer, I drew every day. I drew anything from a customer's product to a cat for my mail order catalogue. It was production of the highest degree.

Of course, before those years there was Art School at the York Academy of Arts. Drawing was our foundation. Your work was only as good as the drawing beneath it...whether the finished piece be a painting, a sculpture, a print. This now applies to digital work. A lack of drawing skills is amplified a hundred fold in the digital realm.

And before that I drew because I loved it.

So in a sense, The Doodle Swap Project has brought me full circle.

The Project is similar to trading ATC's but the main focus is doodling/drawing/illustration. The size requirement is the same as an ATC. After registration and the cards are complete, you send them off to the list of names and addresses provided. Mine are ready to go to Alabama, Maryland, Utah, Massachusetts, Washington, and Pennsylvania.

The substrate is a standard ATC card. I used a Ranger's Inkssentials manila card. I drew in pencil. I then used chalk pastels to colour the drawing. The center of the sunflower is Tim Holtz Distress Ink stamped with a piece of fibrefill I found.

As I have had years of production work under my belt, I did each card at the same time...building up the drawings on each card, layer by layer.

I am looking forward to getting my Sunflowers in the mail. I am also looking forward to receiving art in the mail.

Thanks again, Doodle Swap Project. You reminded me how much I really love to draw.