Quiet

"quiet" old book papers.mixed media/ collage 6 x 8 inches
Quiet is what I think of when I think of my great uncle Fred. He was one of my favorite people ever. Kind, quiet, gentle and gentlemanly. I admired him greatly. He was really a dapper dresser and so this piece I made today as a memory piece from my childhood, going for a walk with him in my red hoodie. I am going to be making more of these memory pieces for the under 30 art section of the shop.
For more illustrations of the word Quiet go visit ... Illustration Friday
the word for the day is quiet ... A quiet, whisper, soft spoken, lovely friday to you all!

Bank Job ... no not that kind!

notice the Davis Studios work just above^
Ron Fountain Wall Sculptures below


notice the artwork above? Its from two fabulous teachers from the Art Dept. at Spaulding and bonus! they teach at artstream too! Jennifer Daly and Abra Andrews!


One of the jobs we just finished this September at artstream was designing a bank interior for Holy Rosary Credit Union. The interesting twist was that it is in the local High school which was being used as a small engine repair shop for the past 20 years. So imagine a large garage style cinderblock room with old cars, engines and a lot of tools in it. Pretty barren of anything but space.
This is what DH came up with ... the bank is thrilled with the bold colors and design of it and the students love it too. This branch is a teaching branch - being in the high school, so it had to have classroom space as well as customer needs/office space. These photos were taken just before it opened, with a couple of Ron Fountain's metal sculptures they purchased on the wall. Student artwork will be hung on the entry walls in a rotating collection.
We are thrilled to have worked with them and having them support original artwork included in their budget by some of our artists: Ron Fountain sculptures, Mary Ann Davis porcelain, John Zentner pottery, Tom Glover's paintings, my own paintings, Andrea Pratt's paintings, Phil Styles photographs and Judith Heller Cassell's woodcut prints included in their three branches. Original artwork ... in a bank. Nice!

Art to Wear II here it comes again ...

A great new show filled with crafty one of a kind things for you and yours
for one day ... October 21 at the gallery! A few items will be posted online in our shop for the day as well for those of you who can not make it ...
Previews coming next week! have a great day ... with the word ... SPUNKY! as in a person with a lot of get up and go...

Food as art

Over the years I have traveled a lot. For six years I travelled monthly with an expense account and had to wine and dine clients a lot. When you spend 18 to 20 days a month in a hotel room, no matter how nice it is, it gets old. But I did have a wonderful experiences which I would never go back and give up because they are filled with wonderful memories of interesting people, art museums, wonderful live music, and fabulous restaurants in all the major cities in the country and the UK.
None compare however with a dinner at home with my husband and children. I am going to gush now, so stop reading if you find this sort of thing offensive. As my husband sees the world through his years of being a designer, his motto in the kitchen is always, "The eye must eat too ..." Long ago he was coaxing youngest daughter to eat salad by creating a carved "tiki man" with a carrot. It worked. Tiki man has been rather absent lately and we did so miss biting his head off ceremoniously. Tiki man graced our table mid week last week along with the dish he created (he never uses a recipe) grey sole with vegetable confetti with rice timbales. On a Wednesday. I would never do that on a Wednesday. I love to cook too, and sometimes we have kitchen battles for the most exotic looking food and taste combinations. It is fun and we feel that life is short, strewn with chain restaurant food, full of copycat rehash (pardon the pun) and less than pretty, so the things we control should be as well designed as possible.
The word for the day is ... true ... as in the opposite of false, true blue and honest.

Pink Bathtub Designs

We just picked up a line of hand carved, block printed cards from the amazing Pink Bathtub. What makes these cards so special, in my opinion, is it takes so much work to make each and every one. Each block is hand carved and hand printed so no two are alike. We popped some in the shop here - and are getting ready to put together another order as they are very popular.
Also, I just posted a piece on making masks over at Whipup... more about masks later in the week as I finish one.

Have some fun today - make a scribble or a cupcake or a beautiful paper collage because the word for the day is ... enjoy ... you know how to do that!

Paper encaustic

Here is the beginning of a new series of work I am embarking on. Handmade paper and wax.
The possibilities are endless! You can form the pulp, color the pulp, emboss the paper, encase it in wax. I think this all comes from my facination lately with textiles which I saw here and here and here. Sans textile. What do you think? The wax is from bees and is quite yellow. I may go back to my regular encaustic medium to create more of a white face to the wax and let the inclusions of the paper show more. Ah well, it's a fun life.
The word for the day is ... soften ... your lines, your heart and your skin.

Janet Bolton

images from Janet Bolton's website

While strolling around JuJu's blog today I found a link to Janet Bolton. Her work is so simple and touching without a hint of being twee. I wish I could hop over to the exhibition - ORIGINS - the London Craft Fair, which seems to be overfilled with very special contemporary art. Click away here to see more of Janet Bolton's beautiful images and read her statement. She gives workshops as well, which if I were in the UK, would most definitely take!
The word for the day is ... whisper ... as in quietly speak, just a bit of this or that and a tone which I appreciate in my studio.

Elling

digtial photo I took in Wein click to enlarge and read the text ...
Finally! The beautiful restfulness of the weekend is washing over me here on this glorious September Sunday ... so here are a few little tidbits. First - it is official now, I have gone insane and added writing at the fabulous Whip up to my list. I am honored and happy to do so. It has been a daily read for me since Kathreen began it and it is a wonderful resource of sharing ideas and beauty of the handmade. Second - I found some beautiful things to see here and here and here and here which I had to share. Third bit - if you haven't seen the movie "Elling" - you must. It was charming and delicate and funny. Perhaps I am a bit of a quirky - whimp when it comes to movies but this one was just so perfect in every way - for me - that it made me want to learn Norwegian just to understand it all in the native toungue. OK, I am still working hard on my German so there really isn't any time to start yet another language...

The word for the day is ... tiny ... as in small, wee or extra little.

Tiny scribblings

"clover sproing!" ink/watercolor 5.5"x7.5"
This week was incredibly stressful in some ways. Luckily, I have a wonderful loving partner, patient children and a creative outlet. No great magic here, just some scribblings for IF.
"Phobia" This little bird is afraid of heights. Just like me. But he is over coming his fear just in time to be launched into the air.

waiting ink/watercolor/acrylic 5.5" x 7"
I worked a bit on four little original illustrations for fun. Here are the three I like. I am not crazy about the fourth, but if you want it sight unseen, sort of wundertuete, or grab-bag goodie sort of thing - feel free to email me with your mailing address and I will send it to you free - just so!
The other three are in our new Art under 30 category at the shop.
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I intend to!

nesting collage 6"x7.5" on foamcore
The word for the day is ... reflect ... like a mirror, on yourself or taking just an extra moment to think it through...

Italy and fall ... continued

Another treat from Tom Glover and the Tuscany show. I still can't believe I painted (ok Mattie did the actual painting labor ... ) this wall "ZEST" but I just adore the color on our folding wall to create our special window. People come in and say "Wow, I could see this glowing from across the street". I think, ah, it will never be white again! It IS rather seasonal in color ... which brings me to this snap from last night ... a trip to the fair ... the birds and the beasts were there ...

Here are a couple of NH raised Alpacas which captured our hearts and made me feel planted more firmly in my quest to become a weekend knitter. Their yarn was the definition of soft and hand spun and hand dyed. Sorry the photos didn't come out of that gorgeous stuff. If I could knit, it is the only yarn I would use. It was incredible. Softer than anything on earth. I only wish they had named one of these guys Tina.

If I were as talented as Jennifer White and could knit, I could make a fun knitted/felted bag like this one she dropped off at the gallery last week ... isn't it a great change of season/attitude bag? The little art button closure is lovely too! If you click the image, it should show a bit more detail.

Jennifer White felted stripe bag
Finally, as they defy explanation via words ... a final shot from the fair - amazing pumpkins grown for their sheer size ... the weirdest looking vegetables on earth. I am convinced they came from outer space and landed here to win a prize and to just oogle us. The pumpkins. My German husband just can not get over these beasts. Actually, neither can I. I know they MUST do this sort of thing all over the USA, but I just haven't seen it ... tell me about your pumpkin story ...

The word for the day is ... grasp ... a new bag, a new concept or "at straws".

Autumn in NH

Why does it seem so ... exciting?
ok, autumn in New York is a lot more exciting, but we are doing our best here up in the hills of NH to keep the autumn splendor going. We have all kinds of fairs and apple picking going on. We have last days at the beach or lakes to dabble our toes. We have gardens to turnover and mulch before the snow flies. Ack! Did I actually utter the s word already? OK, give me my promised trip back to Brooklyn. I need that beautiful table from Hasker on Smith to make it through this wretched winter. I am so completely off topic here, I am going to show you a photo from this morning of my front stoop. Is this a stoop? I always call it that.
Here is my prize "tag sale" find of the century from three years ago. I bought this Hungarian baby bath for $30. At the time, I thought it was steep, (but I loved the shape) until I saw it for sale at Garnet Hill for over $200. What? My German inlaws saw a photo of it and thought, why is she planting flowers in a baby bath? Well, I like it for 30, but that was my personal limit! Added bonus, mine is complete with an all rusted patina color for the legs. GH painted their legs up all slick in green or blue I think. Ick. (Give me rusty metal and a tetanus shot please.)
Anyway, way off topic. Here is a mini feast of some beautiful art and fine craft work we are living with at the gallery at the moment. Click images to enlarge or titles to go shop... and have a wonder-filled day..



sarah burns tiny jar/vase 5 inches high


both sides of diana fayt's deep bowl (chocolate brown glaze inside)

eve corey "tiny italian postcard 8"x8" gold frame

cilla's burgundybutterfly 8"x 9"

Beautiful Spy

I can't help myself. You just can not miss all this beauty. Ulla the magnificent has posted the most incredible objects from her spy in Paris. You must click! Now!
Hope you are all enjoying your day today - I am heading out to enjoy the sunshine until class time later!

The word for the day is ... beam ... as being actually "on the beam", a ray of light, and how one beams when they are happy!

Shibori and more

Whew, what a busy day...
A huge thanks to the lovely Grace at design*sponge for her post today about our new online shop.She spotted Kimberly Lyford's beautifully made Shibori Clutch bag. We've been hopping about since then! It was a thrill for us to have our gallery shop to be recognized by the top design blogger! If for some reason you have not seen her blog or heard one of her podcasts, run, don't walk right over there now! Her taste is impeccable, her writing style clean, consise and charming and she is the original on the design blog train. Now she has guest bloggers like the amazing Lena Corwin and Maria from port2port writing with her too. It just doesn't get better than that!

In house, there was a lot of action around the gallery today too - with beautiful blue skies here in NH everyone was out and about and thinking about Tuscan trips and Italian ices. Everyone seems happy when the weather is so . I guess there are many happy memories too associated with trips to Italy. I know that I store a few in my mind about Lake Como and Milan. I keep hearing them murmured in the front gallery while they choose which piece will bring back the most of that special trip to Tuscany. Both Tom Glover and Eve Corey have struck a soothing chord for many in this less than calm world.

The word for the day is ... sleepy ... because that is what I am.

Scenes from the gallery ...

Here are some shots from before/during/after of the Two Views of Tuscany show opening on Friday night. More on each of the artists work in the week to come. Today is one heck of a beauty here in my little corner of the world so I am going to leave you with images only... (phew! what a relief you all say...) For those of you who inquired about purchasing the monotype I showed on Friday click here. Thanks for all the kind words! More to be added ...

Monotype

"old garden" monotype 18" x 24"
Here is one of my monotypes - a print made on a slab of gelatin with printmaking ink - one of a kind print. It is my favorite way of working through ideas for my paintings later. This one is part of a series called "Gardens" This old garden with it's iron gate fencing is representative of this time of year in New Hampshire. Yarrow growing pink finally and the roses giving up the go ... Change in the garden seemed like a good topic for Illustration Friday. Go see more change at Penelope Dullaghan's site. Change is good. Speaking of change ...
Tonight is our new opening - Two Views of Tuscany and Flora and Fauna. Lots of bustling around yesterday, painting a wall or two a fabulous shade of pumpkin, and setting up a window display which we are just thrilled about. Will show photos this weekend of the opening!

The word for the day is ... compost ... as in well, you know, "Compost Happens!" -- direct qoute from professional artist and semipro composter/gardener/lover of all things which grow green: Mary Ellen McKeen.

Art Class

student artist stil life with pussywillows and window 28 by 30 inches
Just to give you a peek into some budding artists work which has been made at the studio this week. We worked from still life on large red paper with ink and sumi brushes, adding oil pastels later. Why red paper you ask? Two reasons: it was on sale for an incredible deal and it is a great challenge to start with a colored ground. Each work the children made were all keepers. Can't wait to see what the Thursday classes come up with. I love any art adventure which does not involve erasers.
Want to do some art with your children or an inner child? Go to Whipup. I posted a piece on handmade paper. (go on, you know you want to try it....)

The word for the day is ... bold ... as in knowing how to make your OWN mark in the world, daring and brave, and that just so color which sets it all aflame.

Albina McPhail

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Just a quicky update here on work that we will be hanging tomorrow ... Albina McPhail sent 11 lovely 8 x 10 drawings yesterday - relating to the series of paintings we are showing. Here is #2. Love them! We will most likely be popping a select few into the shop. They are so reasonable
Busy here with classes begining this week and lots of students. Here is a shot from one of our classes yesterday ...

The word for the day is ... relax ... as in take some time, unflex your muscles and stretch it out!