Pattern and meditation...

I'm taking a break from collage for a few days to work with clay - and glaze.

Today I completed a sketch of a labyrinth in pencil in tiles.  I did a first layer of glaze.  It will be part of an outdoor sign for the labyrinth at St Aidan's.  

The process is a bit tedious but I'm enjoying the meditative nature of following a familiar pattern and trying it with new materials.  The meditation will continue with building up more layers in the coming days and then firing. 

Letting the process speak

I completed this collage late last night with the intention of adding a photo transfer today...

Once the transfer was over top I missed the abstract shapes and colors so it seemed fortuitous when scrubbing the paper off the transfer removed a good deal of the image too.  

I'm not sure what's next for this one but I like the way the colors seem to emerge from the image rather than the image covering the colors...

Back in a routine...

It took me a while to settle back into a routine of daily making...mini collages were a good way to start...

...with the added bonus that today's set let me complete another 50.  I've ordered boxes and these will be packaged and mailed to art-o-may soon.

My clay labyrinth stamp was one of the pieces fired yesterday so I got to try it out this evening.  I created a set of labyrinth touchstones for a possible new art-o-mat series.

The one in the lower right corner is the original - I used it to make a clay stamp before I glazed it - the stamp created the impression in the other stones.

Housekeeping and making space...

Today was our first day home after a family trip.  The kids had an extra day home and we spent time doing laundry, grocery shopping and washing dogs.

Being settled at home and ready for the week will make space for me to create this week.  

Today was mostly about making space for more making.  I spent studio time firing the kiln and using a paper cutter to cut new bases for mini collages from scraps of matt board.  This cutting involves a precision that requires focus combined with repetition that invites s meditative quality to the act.

Here are my boards ready to hold new work...

More traveling collages

Mini collages created in the car today - I'm up to 45 for this most recent series that will soon be ready for packaging for Art-o-mat

Headed home

So I'm ready to get back to a routine of creating at home - for today a small collage inspired by red dirt and blooming trees driving through Kentucky...

Making...inspired by a new landscape

A long day of outdoor adventures here in Kentucky.  We hiked, explored caves and enjoyed speeding down a hill on zip lines and alpine slides.

Winding down at the end of the day, I created this small collage inspired by the purple seen in the green fields and the red buds in bloom...

Art while traveling

Keeping up with my commitment to making while traveling - new mini collages created on the road on our spring break road trip.

On the road...

Mini collages created from the front seat of the car while traveling west for a spring break road trip...

Spring trees

Playing with colors for mini collages for Art-o-mat...

Mini collages

Two new mini collages for Art-o-mat - inspired by spring colors...

Creating space and preparing photos

Today I created a space for others to create.  It was a lively group that gathered to make clay labyrinths...

This afternoon I worked on the computer getting new images ready for transfers - scenes from our evening walk at Huntley Meadows on Friday.

Organizing...

Today I challenged myself to make use of some of the accumulated smaller bits left over from larger collages.  These became six new mini collages for an art-o-mat series.

I'm also very lucky to have a studio assistant, my son, Kevin who organized my colorful paper for me this afternoon.

Not only did he sort, he prevented the invading pup from eating my supplies.

Seasonal changes

So the warm weather of spring brings me back to working with clay out on my porch.

Today I made this labyrinth ball...

This evening Chad and I walked at Huntley Meadows and I enjoyed seeing the different colors in the light on the trees and water near dusk.

Snapshot...

I found a stack of photos today and chose this image from National Arboretum last fall for a new collage...

Playing with color...

This evening my focus was on making a space, a chance for a group to gather around materials and making in the sanctuary at St Aidan's.

My exploration for the evening focused on playing with colors...

...a continuation of a theme and format I began last week.

The element of surprise...

What I love most about combining image transfer and collage is the element of surprise.  I'm never exactly sure how the image and color will come together.

Here's today's latest reflection image from Huntley Meadows on yesterday's collage.

Small changes...

So I began tonight by making small changes to the background of an existing collage...the orangish brown behind the reeds is new...

Sitting with this small task helped me to get into being present to the process enough to want to continue and begin a new collage.  Here's that beginning...

The photo transfer for this one is a reflection so I put a layer of pearlescent medium over the regular acrylic.  

Thinking about how tonight the act of sitting to just do something small helped me to move into a flow with materials.  Sometimes the hardest thing to make is the time - my practice is less about making some thing every day and more about making the time to play with materials and see what emerges.

Making a plan...

My making today was with a great group of kids.  We created a labyrinth from recycled CDs laid out on a dark blue carpet.

To begin we had to measure the space and then use tape to mark out a plan for the design.  The planning was key - it allowed us to then fill in the pieces and fit the design to the floor of the room.  

Branches

I'm noticing branches more than I ever have before as I work in this project.  In just the last week I see how the spots of buds appear on the silhouettes of some of the black branches against the sky.

Here's today's photo transfer...a few more winter branches...

And here's a photo from a walk at Huntley Meadows yesterday, the reddish colors of the buds on the branches in the distance almost seem to be an echo of the colorful leaves last fall...

Sunset colors

A beginning of a collage inspired by sunset colors...

I've been fighting off a nasty cold this week and it makes it harder to motivate myself to make things.  At the same time I can tell this commitment has helped me form a habit as a day just doesn't feel complete if I don't make something.

Sometimes in the hour before sleep it's best just to set small expectations and let a beginning be enough.

Sky and reflection...

Here's yesterday's collage with the photo transfer branches added - I'm pleased with how the lighting on the bits of reflection worked out...

Ocean or creek?

A new collage inspired by the evening sky over the creek behind our house - looks sort of ocean-like right now - will be fun to see how it changes with the addition of the photo transfer tomorrow.

Bits and pieces

Today was a day to work on something smaller - a couple new collages for an art-o-mat series...

Adding layers...

This collage from yesterday continued in two steps today - first a photo transfer over the whole thing and then more collage papers on top to add textures to the reeds...

Bedtime

I was having fun with trying new techniques and images Thursday and Friday.  And then it was a busy weekend.  Today included a six mile run - the farthest I've run in a year - and I'm exhausted.

This commitment to making something felt like the one thing standing between me and sleep.

So here it is - a collage for the day...

Creating a space...

Today I created a space for others to join me in exploring materials.

We spent a lovely morning enjoying the beautiful light of the sanctuary st St Aidans.

My own explorations included play with watercolors which will become part of a future collage...

Images in reflections...

Today I added photo transfers to two collages - both feature reflections.

In this second one I particularly love all the shapes created by the little pieces of plants peeking above the water's surface.