progression of a panel ~ a visual journey

'pencil mug 3' painting and collage of cradled 8x8 panel

It is that time of year again - time for the Fountain Street Fine Art's Members’ Group Show.  Each year the gallery gives its members a uniform sizes cradled panel on which to do whatever they want. The gallery then exhibits the panels and offers them at one set price.  This year the panels are 8x8 in size and $150. in price. See below for all details.

The panels were due this weekend and I am happy to say that mine is done and delivered!! However not before a few late nights and many different 'stages' ~ which I thought I'd share here ~

First, I experimented with my recent obsessive drawing, directly on the wood, adding the dress image,

 but I wasn't happy. 

pen on panel

obsessive drawing beats dress

pen on panel

dress image reemerges 

pen and collage on panel

still not happy so I 'play' with the collage; I sanded the piece

pen and collage on panel, sanded

 collage trumps drawing and dress

mixed media on panel

gesso over collage on panel

in comes the photo transfer

photograph of pencil mug

Story of the beloved pencil mug:

 This mug was given to me about 30 years ago by my college roommate.  During one of the breaks she had seen it in a dollar store and thought that I would love it - which I did and do! It survived spending the next 3 years dangling from my backpack as I crisscrossed the Kenyon campus and trudging along middle path to my studio.  It has also survived my nomadic existence.  Being one of my favorite possessions it has moved from Ohio, to Los Angeles, to Iowa, Chicago, New York, finally settling safely in Natick.  And once again it is out and about in the world, as I for some reason, don't like drinking from plastic travel mugs?!?! However this time it isn't hanging from a strap on my bag, it travels safely in a cup holder in my car, as I taxi carpools to school and head to work. 

photo being transferred with matte medium to panel

painting and collage on transfer on panel 

painting on panel (out of focus as it is most likely 2am)

As usual, it was very hard for me to stop, but I finally put the brush down and called this painting, done!! 

However it has inspired a series - but that is for another post  :)

instagram photo of panel

Hope you enjoyed this visual journey of my 8x8 panel.  If you can, make sure you go see the show. I have always been delighted to see how each artist has 'dealt' with their panel, and there are good deals to be had as well. ;)

~ peace.

8x8 All - Members’ Group Show

@ Fountain Street Fine Art

April 11 - May 19 

Each piece is 8" x 8" in size and $150 in price

Closing Reception May 19, 3-5pm

dose of talent: The Drawing Lab by Deborah Putnoi

At the beginning of this year I began a 'feature' on my Facebook Artist page that I call, "dose of talent'.  I realized that I know so many talented people; visual artists, writers, musicians, and I wanted more people to know about them!!  Also it is much easier to write and promote friends than oneself, so I posted a short write-up and an image or two from these talented folks' work, along with many links.

My first post was called "daily dose of talent" but i quickly dropped the daily.  I had found myself wanting to write more about each artist and that was not going to happen every day.  So now I do a 'dose of talent' when I can. I usually time them with an opening or a workshop, to help my friends promote these events.   And I am happy to say that people have told me that they enjoyed these little blurbs. However I realized that only people on FB could read the posts. Since I have this love/hate relationship with FB, I wanted to make sure that you didn't need to be on FB to learn about these talented souls, I wanted them on another venue, where you didn't have to belong.  I thought about having an exclusive 'dose of talent' blog but I am going to test it first on this blog, and se how it goes.

Even though these posts do take time to write (as I am not a speedy writer and need to proof read A LOT) I have really enjoyed looking at the different artist's websites and learning more about their work.  Even with artists that I know well I always seem to  learn an new aspect about their work. I hope you enjoy these glimpses of the works of my wonderful and talent colleagues and friends.

So for today, presenting dose of talent:
The Drawing Lab by Deborah Putnoi

For today’s dose of talent I am focusing on one part ofDeborah Putnoi Art's extraordinary body of work. There are many aspects of Putnoi’s work to celebrate but one aspect is her role as emissary of creativity. 

She encourages all to do art. She created a school in her studios, Artheads Studio, as well as written books about silencing your inner critic and releasing your creative spirit. She has also created a space in which people can practice what Putnoi preaches, The Drawing Lab.

I was introduced to Deb Putnoi and her Drawing Lab at the New Art Center in the spring of 2008, at the exhibit, On Drawing, which showcased different artists’ interpretations of drawing.

It was a beautiful show, and to enhance the magic of this already enchanting chapel-turned-gallery, Putnoi and fellow curator, Jessica Burko, added a soundtrack. As you walked through the show you were accompanied by the sounds of ‘drawing’ – the scratching of pencil, the scuffing of charcoal and more. It was bewitching; yet, there was another element of this exhibit that fascinated me even more, and got me to return with friends and my girls ~ Putnoi’s Drawing Lab!!

In the middle of the gallery, Putnoi had created this amazing and encouraging environment which encouraged all to explore drawing. The inviting space was supplied with a myriad of drawing materials, different papers, drawing prompts, inspirations and so much more.

I, myself, was in heaven, and those I brought, who weren’t as comfortable with drawing, also enjoyed themselves. I remember it was hard to get my girls and their friends to leave!!

Putnoi ‘s Drawing Lab was thoroughly satisfying and illuminating experience then and one that Deb has brought to many communities and venues since I first experience it in 2008.

Now, in 2013, Putnoi’s Drawing Lab is at the DeCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, in Lincoln, MA. The lab will be there from March 30 – May 19, 2013, however this coming Saturday, April 6 from 3-5, is opening reception and Deb will be there drawing and signing copies of her book, The Drawing Mind & Deborah Putnoi. The Drawing Mind. I highly recommend experiencing this interactive installation.






link to drawing Lab:http://www.thedrawingmind.com/the-drawing-lab
 link to ArtHeads: http://www.thedrawingmind.com/classes
Deb's website:http://www.thedrawingmind.com/

an obsession progression

CARD#8

transfer on CARD#8 onto BFK cream paper and then worked on, with pen and whiteout pen

use gesso on transfer

work over gesso with pens, gold pen,...

reworking more . . . . (yuck)

added collage elements, then worked in with pen, gesso . . .

Not sure if it is completely done BUT I am happy with where it is - I am feeling just a bit more emphasis of some of the lines but NOT much!!! 

any thoughts?!?!?!

The dresstag story, installment #2

the dresstag story continues . . .

the first official dresstag, made at Me & Ollie's cafe, Portsmouth, NH

from my daily dress journal
click here to see more

first dresstag placed

4. when did you start dresstagging?

it was Labor Day of 2011. I was in Portsmouth, NJ with my daughter, Maya when we had stumbled upon a package of charming origami paper. In the past months I had mastered the act of making an origami dress, using the folded dresses in collages.   I was also had been intensely working with different size origami dresses with my daily dress journals.  It seemed a natural step to start leaving them in different places!!

as i folded a dress Maya made this lovely cicada

some i hide in books . . .

When I started ‘the dress project’ back in 2006, I saw the dress as the mark of Virginia, like the mark of Zorro.  I built dresses to celebrate something beauty or protest an injustice. Years later the origami dress was a smaller, more manageable dress to leave behind.  But as i played with the origami paper in Portsmouth I liked the idea of using the dresstag as a vehicle of good fortune.

i made this dress in protest
for  the crazy amount of fencing
and 'stay down' signs

while visiting my hometown I came across an old path thru a ravine that I took many times as a kid, to get to the beach.

the idea that they needed to put up this many fences, creating such an eye sore, really irked me. 

5. why are they called ‘dresstag’s??

From the first dress that I left behind I was hooked. I felt that this new endeavor needed a name.   

may this dress bring u a smile

hope this dress keeps you warm ~ put on a car with the bumper sticker saying, "hate is not a family value"

may this dress bring u ur dreams come true ~ placed in an ice cream shop in the bershires

There was a street art/ graffiti aspect to this act of dropping dresses, even though they were small and carried good fortune.  Looking to the jargon from the graffiti world I considered dressbombs/ dressbombing. However I didn’t like a violent, destructive word attached to these dresses.  There is much literature about how using violent language adds to the negativity and violence in our lives.  My aim was to add positive energy, so with the aid of many friends I decided on dresstag.  This name alluded to street art as well as to the dresses that are made, sold and worn. 

dresstagging makes it to the MOMA!!!!

 6. how do you come up with the ‘fortune’??

I usually don’t have any preconceived idea about what I am going to write.  By the time I finish folding the dress I have an idea of what fortunes I will write.  I have noticed that many times I make a dress with the intention that I myself might need at that moment., like courage, clarity, strength.  Interestingly those dresstags usually get the most responses on FB?!?!?  maybe on those day there is a more universal need for a certain intention?!?!?

may this dress bring u satisfaction 

Next installment will be about the places that the dresstags have gone and the directions that these treasures have lead me.  Also if you have any questions about this practice , or any questions about my art either leave them below in the comment area, or on facebook or email me . . .

thanks for reading!! 

peace

The dresstag story, first installment

The dresstag story 

(a blog post that has been a long time coming)  

a dresstag recently given to a friend on her way to NJ.
She put on the intention and left it somewhere in NJ :)

Many people have asked me about the whys and hows behind my dresstags, so I felt the best approach to the dresstag's story would be in an answer and question format.

There is a lot to the story of the dresstag, so I have broken it down into a few installments – with LOTS of visuals!!!!

let's begin . . .

 1. what is a dresstag???

A dresstag is a small origami dress, onto which I write a fortune, sentiment, intention or wish.  I then place them in random public places ~ such as on  a bus seat, in a payphone or at a Starbucks.  

Then I walk away.

My hope is that someone will see this little dress and pick it up, read it and either replace it for someone else to find or take it home.  Dresstagging is a way for me to spread some good vibes and positive energy in this sometimes cynical world.

the back of one of the first dresstags

2. do you know what happens to your dresstags??

No, I don’t know what happens to the dresstag after I leave it.  Every so often I see that the dress is gone from the place I put it, but I have never seen a dresstag picked up.  In fact there is a bit of a sociological study in this dresstag practice – what causes people to pick something up or to just leave it???

may this dress bring u on a magical, mysterious journey
(the dresstag from the book reading)

Example: I was at a book reading at a  local library and I left a dresstag on the chairs of two girls who had gone up to get their book signed.  I did a quick pass by their chairs once the girls returned to their get their coats and then left and the dress was still there?!?!?  

There is a lot of fear around unknown objects, ‘you don’t know where that has been’?!?!? 'Report any thing suspicious to the police' There is the fear of germs or of getting involved, even though my dresstags are small, colorful and basically benign.

encouraging people to take the dresstag

dresstag at the Fort Point Arts Community Gallery

3. would you like to know where the dresstags go??

YES!! but I don’t know how ~  I experimented with putting on my name or my website/email on the dresstags, but adding my information never fit the spirit of the project.  I would LOVE to know if someone finds the dress, however adding my email seemed to add a commercial element to my dresstags, which belied my original intention.

experimenting with tagging the dresstag . . .

i love instragram!

However, thanks to cell phones with cameras, many times I am able to photograph the dresstag in its public locale and post it on FB, Twitter and especially Instragram, along with the dress’s fortune.  These postings have surprisingly become a significant element to my dresstag practice.  

Although I have no idea the fate of the physical dress, via these social media sites I learn that many of my dresstags have reached people.  I get ‘likes’ and even comments on different dress, some people saying that the photo brightened their day, which is my intent – be it in person or online.

I have dropped MANY dresstags in the past year and a half, and some of the photos of these dresstags I have collected in an album on FB.  Here is a link to this album that can be used by anyone!! no need to belong to Facebook and I quote'

"You can use this link to share this photo album with anyone, even if they don't have a Facebook account. Anyone with the link will be able to see your photo album." Facebook

\https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4348174912506.179601.1531585372&type=1&l=1c2c3f3300

(if you are not on FB and try this  link ,  please let me know if it works - I am so hot-wired into FB I am not sure I can really test the link:)

In this album you can see the many versions of my dresstags as well as the variety of places that they end up.

may this dress bring you peace . . 

So this was a beginning of the story, more to come . . .

metamorphosis, phase ll

This project is flying along and i am thrilled with the progress so far.  My last update was after I had cut the 400+ butterflies and sent them off in big yellow envelopes. They went to each advisory group so that each Dana Hall student could write on their butterfly and be part of the piece.  Below is a copy of the email instructions that each advisor received.

the big yellow envelopes holding the butterflies

I must confess I was very anxious Monday night.  I love collaborative projects but there are some pluses and minuses to leading such a project.  A down side is that you have no idea how the participants will respond or contribute.  The up side of a collaborative project is that you have NO idea how the participants are going to respond or contribute!!! :)

the butterflies from the envelopes

Monday night I wondered how the students would react to my instructions and how would my butterflies return to me?!?!? But when i arrived on Tuesday morning I was greeted with pile of inspiring and beautiful butterflies!!! A wonderful snapshot of middle-school and high-school ~ many with inspirational quotes; some with dreams for the future; some with basic everyday desires ~ to pass a test, a good lunch; references to pop culture and the fears and sadnesses ~ spiders, squirrels and missing home.
With such a quantity, I was constantly seeing new and interesting contributions ~ some students expressed themselves with words, some in their native language and some with pictures.  All my anxieties vanished and as the middle school art classes came to help me, the vision of the dress became clearer and clearer. Now how to get there is still a challenge.

one of the desires/dreams that went into a cocoon

some finished cocoons

I have worked with many art classes over the week telling them about my thought behind the dress and sharing the process.  I had the students using india ink to outline each butterfly.  I also asked them to write more thoughts or/and intentions on the dress as a method to create a pattern.  And I also had each student create their own cocoon.  Here they could write a secret or true desire that would be wrapped up and dipped in wax, so that dream or intention could ferment in its safe and sealed cocoon. All of these treasure will be incorporated into and on the dress?!?!?

still needed to personalize the dress - this time I used paint & dye.  I believe my current subscription card obsession might have had something to do with my choice of pattren

dress detail

butterflies after being outlined

cocoons of desires/dreams written on thin pattern paper, rolled and wrapped with different materials then sealed with hot wax

the dress after more writing and painting

these butterflies are soooooo inspiring 

my set-up in the Dana Gallery

Yesterday I decided to painted the veins of a butterfly wing on to the top of the dress with india ink

Here is the instructions that were sent out the morning that the students got their butterflies:

As part of a collaborative project for the Dana Art Gallery, Artist-in-Residence Virginia Fitzgerald has been working with students and invites you to contribute this morning to the creation of a sculptural dress which will be worn in the Spring Fashion Show and exhibited afterwards in the Library. Each advisor group has a packet containing cut paper butterflies and Sharpie markers.  Each student is asked to simply write a word, phrase or short sentence, or simple image reflecting a wish, a dream, an inspiration, a memory, or fear on one of the pieces of paper. This can be written in any language, in any style, on any subject (personal, family, school related, etc.); these should be anonymous and there is no wrong way to express yourself. When finished please return the pieces of paper and markers to the envelope and have a member or the advisory drop them off to the gallery. Thanks so much for you participation. Stop by the gallery throughout the week and after the Break to see how your words and images will be incorporated into the sculpture, or stop by and work with Ms. Fitzgerald directly. All are invited. Thank you for supporting the arts.

and stay tune, much more to come on the project . . .