Completely self-indulgent ramble on how I got started in art

I intended this post to tell you all about how I met Nick Bantock (my personal artistic hero - nay, deity, though he would no doubt be very amused to be deified) but I decided that first I'd have a self-indulgent ramble about me and art and how I wound up with the most absorbing and second-most expensive hobby (after horses but really, who has time or money for that in middle age with a full time job) of my life. If you're reading this, you're probably a like minded sort of person...and I love hearing how people found their art niche, or if they haven't trying to talk them into mine, so here goes. Sort of setting the stage as it were...

I'm a kid - I draw everything, all the time. I love drawing and coloring. Whether drawn well or poorly I don't know, but my cousin (a real professional artist) encourages me with very fancy Caran D'Ache art supplies, my grandmother's next door neighbor gives me her set of antique Reeves watercolors that she took with her to Egypt in the 1920's....I draw horses in the margins of my textbooks.

I get to junior high - I am convinced I'll be either an artist, and archaeologist, or a flight attendant when I grow up. (Stewardesses were much more glam back in the 1960's and 70's when I was young). I take art class. I am completely shattered as I don't really draw apples and their shading very well. The art teacher pays no attention to me whatsoever. I give up.

I take a crafts class in college - yes, as a liberal arts major I really did take Basketweaving. I loved it. I learned how to carve stamps from linoleum and make monoprints, but somehow didn't really pick things back up. Do suspect that there may be a bigger world than fine arts.

1991 - start to hear about a literary phenomenon. See a cool book at a little independent bookstore in town (no longer around, sigh) and lo and behold - it's this phenomenon book. Griffin and Sabine - it's an artful correspondence between two people separated by space, and depending on your theory (it's rather a mysterious story) time. Or maybe they aren't really two people at all (Sabine may just live in Griffin's mind) but they have an enigmatic correspondence in postcards and letters. Their story unfolds via one of the most intriguing ways - opening their letters (incredibly artful and highly illustrated) and reading their mail. It's like spying on someone else's life, and trying to decipher their art along the way. It's just surreal and mysterious and romantic and it totally captured my imagination. It was like the view from the inside of my head had been mapped out, not the one that was there formerly, but the one that wanted to be and the one that felt completely right.

Skip forward through the 1990's and I would occasionally see books and cards and random things whose artwork and sensibilities just drew me in and fired my imagination. Merchant of Marvels, and Paris Out of Hand, and random stuff that just appeared in offbeat gift shops and would call out to me (it called "buy!" incase you're wondering). I didn't know why I liked this strange and exotic look with a dash of humor - sort of a combo of Monty Python cartoons and sensibility, 17th century woodcuts, North African dancers, and the curtains of Marie Antoinette's salon in a kaleidoscopic haze of color. I just knew it when I saw it and wanted more.

Forward again to Spring 2003 - I see Legacy magazine at my local Borders and am intrigued. I saw all these amazing art projects that seemed somehow do-able, had no idea how to do them though. I am fascinated, and at this point....I still had money ;-)

Summer 2005 - after a few forays into jewelry making, the purchase of an occasional rubber stamp at Joann's (no real idea what to do with it though) I happen upon an entire rubber stamp show - I go thinking I'll spend an hour or so. Two hundred dollars and the rest of the day later - I'm hooked. And Nick Bantock appears in my world again (bet you wondered when I was getting back to him) - as one of the many tools in his art arsenal is - yep, mundane rubber stamps. (Sadly, Limited Edition Rubber Stamps who sold his personal line of stamps is no longer in business) Not cutesy bears that say "I heart you beary much" and remind you of the sappy stuff people wrote in your high school yearbook "2 sweet 2 B 4 gotten" etc. No, there were art stamps out there - Stamp Camp, and Lost Coast and Stampers Anonymous and well, a lot of other cool and surreal stuff that would probably scare your grandma. Not mine, she was rather progressive, but somebody's grandma.

I was off and reading every book and magazine I could get my hands on on this wonderful world of mixed media art - with its rabbit holes of all sorts of stuff to do - paper and paint, assemblage, rusty metal, fairy dolls, postage stamps on top of old photos of silly Victorians in paper hats, polymer clay and those stamps - well, it's all a bit endless and if you want to see more - try Somerset Studio magazine...expensive, but worth it.

And I kept buying art technique books, and going to classes and educating myself - and learning to solder, and carve, and emboss, and paint, and journal - and well, as you read in my last post, I'm getting some art published in the aforementioned magazine. Forty years, and I'm finally feeling like an artist. And all because I found out there was a wide world of art out there that didn't rely on being able to draw a good apple. And if I hadn't seen that book, all those years back, by Nick Bantock, then I wonder if I would have discovered this world at all.

So, what's your story? Who is your inspiration? and incase you're wondering - did you ever get to meet yours? Well, that's a story for next week (yes, I know I told you that last August, but didn't somehow get to writing it. Sometimes it takes a while...)Wishing you artful dreams...

Somerset Studio is going to publish my art!

Hear ye, hear ye! Queen Isabella of Dachsonia has made a rare visit to the frost fair on the frozen Thames river in London. As you may know, London has received more snow this year than it usually does, and the good citizens of that city have decided to raise spirits and glasses by holding a frost fair! Queen Isabella has caused a royal pavilion to be established and is currently dancing and enjoying the plays of the great playwrite William Shakesdachshund. The Queen's much younger sister, Lili the Infanta, has been indulging in throwing snowballs behind the tent and inquiring about frozen lizard pops...

In rather wonderful news, Somerset Studio, the journal of the world of mixed media art, is actually going to be featuring this momentous occasion in their upcoming (Nov. 09) special magazine "Somerset Black and White."

And now a note from the scribe of Dachsonia: I'm so excited about this! I've never submitted any of my art to Somerset Studio before, much less actually get published. As you can imagine, my mind is quite filled with all sorts of other pieces that I could make.... Truly, publication in Somerset Studio is one of my artistic dreams come true. Between this and meeting Nick Bantock last summer, I feel very blessed to have found a hobby that continues to inspire and intrigue. Now I think I had better start to dream a little more, maybe a whole article next? I hope this inspires you, fellow artists and readers, to try sending in something - you never know!!

PS - can't wait to see how they photograph it also - this isn't the greatest photo as there is a lot more detail to be seen.

Repurposed ink and paint holders, or how to make ugly household items quite fun

These are actually some projects I did last year ("That is sooooo 2008...") but since I never did get around to posting it here, I'm going to claim it's part of my "simplify" campaign of 2009. Self-deception is getting me everywhere - tee hee!

I had been coveting our wall-mounted spice rack for ages and ages (at least six months) because I'd realized it would the perfect thing for keeping all my cheapie acrylic paints where I can see them. And presumably, use them. I have my Golden paints (hardly cheapies) in there as well, for a bit of class, but as you can see, it's mostly the 50c jars from JoAnn's. I love em actually. Being a visual person (and what artist isn't) it definitely helps to have your stuff out where you can remember you have it. It took a bit of convincing the husband that I could put the spice rack to better use than he could, and the purchase of an expensive new spice rack (they don't make this design anymore that I could find, which is sad. Now you have to go much more expensive.) When he finally relented and said I could have it, I whipped it off the wall in the kitchen (there are still bare nail holes) and screwed it into place (it's a bit heavy) before he changed his mind. He marvelled that I had actually hung it myself. I marvelled that I had hung it straight.

Along the same lines I also went to a local thrift store (now sadly going out of business - not sure what it says for the economy when even the grungiest thrift store is closing - does that mean nobody's buying cheap? or that nobody's even spending for junk?) to find the above item. What is it, you say? I can't take credit for this idea, but I had read a few years ago that a great way to store your inkpads (for rubber stamping) is to keep them in an old cassette tape holder. A few of you may remember these ;-) They're generally made from pressboard, you probably threw yours out in a "simplify" campaign of your own at least a decade ago. I did - which is why I had to go to a thrift store to buy another one! Thankfully I found one, classed it up with my favorite Basic Grey Motifica paper and some artful applications of "aging" dark brown chalk ink and paint. Et voila - an inkpad holder!

The paintbrush holder is the bottom of a cannister that held a whisky bottle - sawed in half, covered in paper, rubber stamped on (stamp is fro m Stampers Anonymous Michael de Meng collection), painted on, doodled on. I am quite fond of it!

So, we're reusing, reducing, recycling and simplifying here. Now if only I could think of something to hold all my little tiny "cats eye" shaped inkpads...the quest continues.

Weaving our Dreams

Dreamweaver...la da da...something..morning liiihhhtt...
Well, actually this post has nothing to do with a song from the 70's that I can only remember part of the chorus of (it just amused me) - it has instead to do with this week's exercise from the Soul Journal group on weaving our dreams.

Rather than intentions, and resolutions, and all that stuff that falls by the wayside two weeks after new year, this is about focusing on our dreams. Maybe they'll happen, maybe they won't, maybe you wouldn't really want to do them but the idea is lovely. This little project gives all of them a place of honor.

Also, I felt this went well with the "use what you got" part of the whole simplify thing - my word for the new year. So, I cut 16 strips of paper (you can make yours whatever size and however many strips of paper you want) from my scrapbook paper stash, my leftover bits of art journal backgrounds, etc then wrote some dreams of mine on them. The writing uses my almost-never-used group of letter rubber stamps (oh goodie-using my stuff!) , different colors of ink, and some are just handwritten.

My favorite strip of paper is the green and orange one (my own handmade background - it's cool) - it says "Study art with Nick Bantock", and then there's "Go to Art and Soul retreat" and "Raise lavender on a herb farm in North Carolina" and "Travel to Turkey, Morocco, Thailand, and Indonesia..." - actually I have no idea where Indonesia came from...I want to see the temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia, not Indonesia. Huh..what am I supposed to see in Indonesia?

Oh yeah, then there's the big one - be an artist!

What are your dreams, maybe for this year, maybe for sometime, maybe just for silly but fun? Write them down!

Soul Journaling homepage art!

Just a quick post to say thank you to Christy and my Soul Journaling companions for selecting the posting below (the picture with the lavender in gesso) for the group's homepage! I am very thrilled to be a part of this fine group, and I thank you all very sincerely for the honor :-)

I am also truly touched to be the recipient of a remarkable piece of assemblage art (and a Teesha Moore print) from the inspired and genius hands of my friend the truly talented BNA (big name artist) Cindy. Seriously readers, you need to go look at her blog and see this awesome piece! Go check it out :-) You'll want to have one yourself, I promise. She is now accepting commisions...

Soul Journal #13 - Textured Background

I live in a place that hasn't received snow since 1977, which of course renders the idea of snow in a romantic, peaceful, and worth-a-12-hour-drive to experience it kind of way.

My Soul Journaling sisters had a prompt on textured backgrounds I decided to stay with the theme and keep mine in the winter whites. The idea is to use gesso to coat and glue down items on your journal page. This creates textures that appear almost fossil-like in the background of your page. The plaster element of gesso kind of binds it all together, and it actually comes out quite beautiful.

The picture below is of my grandmother taken back in the early 1980's, with lavender from last summer now encased in a blanket of snow and ice (courtesy of gesso). In my grandmother's letters, she would always enclose a few sprigs of lavender from her garden and smell being what it is, it would transport me back to the summer before. When I was drying the gesso, the heat tool brought up the sweet and slightly spicy smell of the lavender as though it had time travelled me back 30 years...

I hope that you have an art-filled New Year full of possibilities and joyous flights of delicious fancy!

Gesso Resist Challenge #25 - GPP Street Team

I completely missed the deadline for posting to Michelle Ward's Green Pepper Press Street Team - November challenge (11/30/08) but it's never too late to show your results - definitely some interesting backgrounds that are great for my favorite artistic endeavor - visual journaling! For instructions on how these were made (if you're interested) please click the hyperlink above and look for "Crusade 25."

The point of the exercise was to use gesso (normally used to prep paper and canvas to hold paint) for "resists" meaning that you create a background with gesso, then paint over it. The gesso remains somewhat visible in the background and creates special effects. This is definitely a mixed media approach - I don't think that a classical painter would ever quite venture that far out of the box with gesso.

This page was done by stamping with black gesso (not the usual color, but Golden paints makes it) on the left onto pages torn from an old book, and using the same stamp, with white gesso. I then used cheapie acrylics over the gesso, and made all the blue swirlies by painting with blue interference paint (Lumiere HiLite Blue) over the stamped lines. I sat with this page for weeks until I needed something to journal on, and well, this page came in handy. After all, backgrounds are just that - backgrounds.

You can also use gesso on rubber stamps as I used above (note: wash the gesso off the rubber quickly, or the plaster that is part of the gesso's makeup will stick like glue. I wish some of my glues held this well.)

The best example of the resist with gesso is now my new banner for my blog (see above.) Cool, huh? I definitely got some Teesha Moore inspiration on that one too.

My favorite use for gesso though is still for clearing my mind and warming up for art. I love to just paint a coat of it on everything I do from canvas to paper to assemblage. I'd say thats what I use it for most. Just slapping it on paper and clearing my head.

Thank you Michelle for another inspirational crusade - sorry I missed it!

After an almost two month hiatus, Sepia and Glitter is back

Hello readers,
I've been a crap blogger. It's true. I was fortunate enough to win an award, and I haven't posted anything since then. I have been creating some artwork, not enough, but I've just been so busy with "real life" that I haven't been keeping up much with actually documenting it (i.e. here.)

I had one of those waking up things that you get at 4:30 in the morning the other night - the kind where you wake up obsessed with some idea, and it just won't let you get back to sleep until you've processed it. The word "Simplify." I'm not sure what this means (in relationship to me, I mean), and what I'm supposed to do with it. Was it about my art? My life? My ongoing addiction to buying every mixed media book that's printed (am running out of shelf space)? Maybe I'm supposed to use my wads of expensive scrapbooking paper (not used, but impeccably sorted.) My bead stash (not used, but also impeccably sorted.) Maybe I'm supposed to concentrate on one type of media at a time and learn more about it instead of making things harder on myself by dabbling in so many art forms. I don't know.

Or maybe it just means "post to your blog more often, they don't have to be highly complex posts with eight hours of art behind each of them...."

I'll be the first to let you know when I do...

Arte Y Pico blog award!

Wow - I have won a blog award! I am really excited that people actually read my stuff and are kind enough to comment, but I'm especially thrilled to actually receive an award, so sincerest thanks to Mary at http://maryshunt.blogspot.com/ for passing along the love.

A little info about this for you: "Arte y Pico" is phrase that roughly translates in English to: "The Maximum. Wow! The best art. Over the top."

Although the words "over the top" have been applied to me before, I'm not sure it is entirely always intended with the kindness that Mary has given...;-)

Anyway, the "rules" for the Arte y Pico award are:
1. If you are an award winner, show the award, the name of the person who gave it to you, and link back to his or her blog.
2. Pick 5 blogs you think deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and for contributing to the blogging community.
3. List the author's name and link to his or her blog.
4. Leave a message on the blogs of those you've selected.
5. Link back to the original Arte y Pico blog, so all will know the origin of the award.

Park your broomsticks - welcome to the party!

My sincerest apologies for the slight....unpleasantness....with the punch. The pixies have been sorted out, and it's time to come in! Welcome, welcome...please park your brooms by the rusty gate and help yourself to a velvet robe, a cauldron of the newly magical punch, and a wafer of moonbeams. I'm very glad to see you here!

Don't forget - if you'd like to see any of the pictures more closely, just click on the picture and it'll magically get larger!

Now that you're here, why don't meet some of our guests? Please come right this way. We'll be going through the magical gardens to reach the party. Be careful of the fountain, he doesn't bite of course, but sometimes he's been known to climb down and splash rather a lot of magic water onto our friends. You know why it's magic water, don't you? Because it disappears whenever you sit down in a puddle of it!

Aren't the gardens lovely at this time of year? If you look closely, you'll see the rare Peacock Bats rising next to the bench - they like to come over and nestle on your shoulders, so I hope you don't mind them. They're very gentle and I assure you they don't bite.

No time to smell the moonbeams and lavender - walk over the blue bridge where the urns are now, the rest of the party is dying to meet you! I have it on very reliable account that a contingent of Steampunks has made an appearance. Their locomotive is hovering somewhere near the horse-drawn hearses, so I sincerely hope their steam doesn't make everyone dewy.

Oh yes, there they are, over on the left. They're behaving themselves, guess they're not feeling quite punkish. In fact, ah, I see they're watching our Gypsy Dancer! Madame Zaza has appeared, clearly the Gypsy King doesn't know what he's missing out on....I see some Victorian Explorers are searching for the source of the Nile - no no, I assure you it's not in the fountain. Looook out! Ah, splash......I knew it. Never mind, they seem quite envigorated from their magic water dousing. Where is our Enchantress when we need her? Oh, really? She's off to sort out the Pixies again...yes, there she is walking out of the picture on the right.

I must say, things are going swimmingly at the First Annual Soul Journalers Halloween Bash!

Now what are you costumed as? I like the Faerie wings - they are fairie wings aren't they? No, they're part of your Renaissance attire. I must say, I didn't think that Queen Elizabeth generally wore wings, but right you are ma'am - and a lovely interpretation it is! Do enjoy mingling with our other guests now....I have to see about the broomsticks.

A busy hostess is never done - just as I thought, the Steampunkers Locomotive seems to have gone off on a ramble over the nearby fields, so I must fly myself. Please do enjoy the refreshments, and I'll see you all very soon in the Land of Blog Comments. After I catch that runaway locomotive, I think I'll stop by the other blog parties going on tonight - I hear there are some beautiful and festive parties to attend! Thank you Kathryn Antyr and the Soul Journalers group for sponsoring this fabulous event!

Thank you so much for joining me! I'll see you at your house!

One moment please :-) We're almost ready!

Slight delay in the party plans - yes, party will definitely be here in a very few minutes, but there is a slight....incident with the punch.....a couple of pixies spiked it! So if you can just circle around the block on your broomstick a couple more times, then come back to my door, we'll be ready to greet you. Can't wait to see your costumes!

What are you going to be for Halloween?

Are you a pirate - swept along by the tides of fortune from the blazing cannons of the Spanish Main to the secret blue grottoes filled with treasure on uncharted Caribbean islands? Does the moon ride the dark seas as a galleon with you at the helm?

Or perhaps you're an enchantress, mixing herbs and magical potions kept in your Book of Secrets - lavender, moondust, mist from an enchanted pond caught in the light of the stars?

An explorer? Seeking the lost tribes of the Amazonian basin, rafting up crocodile infested waters in search of the source of the Nile somewhere in the Mountains of the Moon?

A gypsy Queen, silk veils dance before your dark eyes in the fires of the camp. You feel the earth's pulse through your bare feet as you perform the ancient dance to capture the heart of the King of the Gypsies?

Well, whoever you are (not your mundane self, your true self, the gypsy, the mystic, the dancer) come one, come all to the Soul Journal Blog Party - one of your stops is here! On October 26, by the light of the waning moon, visit my blog and see what my art journal has unearthed.

As you can see, I've decorated spookily, uh, I mean, specially for the event.

Remember, my blog, Oct. 26 - we're dying to meet you.