Deer men are back ...

deerman

unusual growths

spider - man!
and they have brought some friends of Megan Bogonovich... Check 'em out here at the shop...
Have a wonderful weekend!

happy valentines day to you all!

happy valentines day to you all!, originally uploaded by artstreamstudios.

Here are three of seven valentines we made as a group.
add polkadot ribbon and voila!
Hearty Banners!
happy lovey day to you all dear readers!

Vinyl for your wall - by you!

Jan over that fabulous blog Poppytalk, posted a great link to Computer Arts. I had to share as I have been thinking of doing something largescale and hand drawn on one of the walls in my kitchen. (yes, the renovation drags on...) This might be a great solution for that wall. Check it out here.

Stingray Chair

Today is about love... so I am going to show you a few things - yes, things that i love.
I am loving this chair which won the Interior Innovation Award this year in Cologne!
More about that and the Danish Designer Thomas Pederson right here at Fredericia Furniture. So beautiful!

Snow day, shmoe day

flax bread, originally uploaded by artstreamstudios. final pics of bread
click through to see them!

Instead of my whining about the horrible weather .... Let's make bread!
Wisk:
3 eggs
1.5 cups of milk
1/4 cup safflower oil
1/3 cup honey
Add:
4 cups of King Arthur Bread Flour
1/2 cup King Arthur whole wheat Flour
1/4 cup Flax seed
1 Tablespoon seasalt
Knead it like mad. You will know when it is done when it feels as soft as a baby's behind. If it is dry where you are you might need less flour, if it is raining like hell or here, you might need a bit more.
Knead it for at least 15 minutes off and on to your favorite B-52's album.
Let it rise in a greased bowl - (the one you mixed it up in works)
Punch it down and gently knead it a bit. Make it into free form loaves, little breads - (broetchen) or nice baugettes. Heck you could braid them too!
Bake in a 350 oven until they are golden brown- tap on the bottom of a loaf to test the "thump". If it "thumps" it's done.
Enjoy!

February Love

tissueflowers, originally uploaded by artstreamstudios.
Here is a sweet little papervase (from our frieinds at Kirkwood printing) and some tissue flowers one of my little students brought in. I paired them up to cheer up the studio today. It's that week of L O V E. The week where people get all cozy and crazy about L O V E.

Actually, I am pretty crazy in love myself, so each day is a celebration, not just once a year!

barbe saint john

But I digress - I wanted to point you in the general direction via some pretty amazing "lovely hearts" we have here on exhibition at the gallery.

amber lavalley

I will let the photos do the "talking" but let your clickty click fingers do the walking to link through to their pages in our shop. Each piece sold will benefit The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. You can help make a difference. There is work from $10 up, from students, artists and crafts people from all over the world! We will gladly gift wrap it for free as well, just ask and we can send it to your own favorite "lovely heart"...

camilla stacey

Please spread the word and help us with the cause while spreading love this month!

cat baumgartner

More birds... more snow

Friday night was lots of fun over at Nahcotta. Lots of great tiny art and loads of artists and friends were flowing around in the gallery there. All but one of my tiny paintings sold at the opening (thank you ladies!) so I am sending over reinforcements. heh. Birds, birds, birds. I have this one above which I think is too large for the show, so it's hanging around with me still, so I thought I would share it with you. It's a blanket of snow coming down on them... or blanket of petals... you choose! (my Illustration Friday on Monday choice)
Inspired by the endless blankets of snow from this winter. Last night the wind howled and we experienced white outs in our drive up north. The sun is peeking through today so life is good. Good bye gray!

Alastair Heseltine Installations

I love a great installation and these by artist Alaistar Heseletine seemed like a great way to start off the week. More about him right here.

Friday fun

distance by maureen clancy over at swampgirl
Fridays are always fun for me, with family plans, weekend hopes and dreams. Today is filled with meeting friends and an opening tonight at another gallery with a few of my pieces... and lots of friends work too.
This week I received an old photo from one of my daughter's friends which reminded me of how living beautifully was apparent even 10 years ago. When daughter Grace was in elementary school she was in the jump rope club. For me, jumping rope is one of the most simple, beautiful forms of exercise. No fancy gear or props. Nothing special to prepare for. Just do it and enjoy. The photo also reminds me of that fearless time in a girl's life before restrictions are imposed
by self or peers or puberty. Such fearless times. In this photo - daughter Grace found beauty in her rope as well, fashioning it into a "belt". We all had a chuckle over that little detail when this photo surfaced. Living beautifully this week has included more reminiscing, but looking ahead as well. Two of three days were spent fully making two paintings, and that for me is living very fully and beautifully. I must add, much of their inspiration was drawn by the beautiful painting above by Maureen Clancy. When they are closer to being finished I will show and tell ...Here's to a simply wonderful weekend for all of you... and do tell... how did you live beautifully this week?

Seen and Unseen - in the news

amber lavalley self portrait

mary bullock moon cradle

adam pearson sculpture and kiosk behind on the left
A big thanks to local writer Bill Trotter for his review of our current exhibition "Seen and Unseen". Read all about it right here at The Wire.

Annika Svensson

Photo bottom: Claes G. Svantesson, top:Per Björn
Oh the weather continues to rage here.In our home we are renovating at the moment, my thoughts have been turning to woodstoves. I was always against them when I had one before, being dirty, sooty and dusty, but now with the real cold upon us they return to the forefront of my thoughts. Our first floor is quite open and in our entry/breezeway one little Vermont Castings or Jotul woodstove would fit quite nicely. Less efficiently, but much more beautiful would be one of these numbers from Annika Svensson - found via the beautiful blog by Bibbi. She was posting about Stockholm's furniture fair and this post dragged me right in. Thanks Bibbi for warming me up! Oh this rain (ice,snow) it will continue ...

Fragiles - Belgium!

with unusual growth -Megan Bogonovich
Well, we endured a wet snowstorm yesterday, with off and on electricity so no posting here at the blog. Catching up today with a new Lovely Hearts popped into the shop - do stop by and check out the goodness there!
I also wanted to point you lovely European readers towards the Belgium exhibition of Fragiles. February 15th to the 24th - Fragiles will be shown at Arne Quinze's Gallery 113 in Kortrijk, Belgium. This is the second showing and new work from the Miami exhibition will be included. Megan Bogonovich's pieces have traveled there with the show and we are thrilled to be a part of the journey. If you missed it in Miami, perhaps you will see it in Belgium!

retreat!

retreat, originally uploaded by artstreamstudios.

One of the new pieces I made for Nahcotta's Enormous Tiny Art Show iii.
Click through the photo to the others. In a set. At flickr. Just some little birdies.
Just had to get that snow shot off the top of the blog!

Lovely Hearts 2 wrap up

Our New England weather continues to mess with our parties but none the less, a few people braved the weather on Friday night to join us to kick off the month of Lovely Hearts 2. For the rest of you - please visit our online shop or stop by to really get a look at these beautiful pieces! Feel free to grab a badge from the side bar too to help with the cause.
Above is a photo of the evening right around 5 p.m. yeah, it was messy!
Thank you all too for the wonderful comments on Living Beautifully. I am looking forward to going ahead with this project. Lots of goodies to unfold this week, so check back. The folders are bursting at the seams here!

Living beautifully

a birthday party long ago in the back yard. three of my friends from elementary school...
Today marks our second Breast Cancer Research Foundation fundraiser- Lovely Hearts 2. I want to thank everyone for supporting this important cause by donating, creating, promoting and helping us out in getting it together. It's no little feat and without you it wouldn't happen. We hope to see you all tonight at the gallery, but if you can't make it - remember there is always the shop to check - it's all live now and going fast! Thank you so much!

**quick addition** another wonderful project going on today is "Bleeding Hearts" by Renee Garner over at her etsy shop. Renee has a piece in Lovely Hearts and is hosting through Wolfie and the Sneak a one day market to benefit the Sierra Club. Why? Right here is the reason. Good luck Renee!

Today also marks the beginning of a personal project I am calling living beautifully. Somehow the shortest month of the year helps remind me how fleeting life really is. So, at the end of each week for a time, I will post a special photograph. A snippet of time, of a piece of a day, a moment. Tell me, how do you live beautifully?

More Lovely Hearts 2 beauty!

jessica gonacha

abigail halprin

sandy gordon
Just a quick post here to show and tell some more of the beauty here at the gallery. Mixed media by Jessica Gonacha, watercolor painting by Abigail Halprin, jewelry beaded broach by Sandy Gordon - Even more to see - all here at the shop.

Sylvie Godel

Over at the fabulous Happy Cavalier I was introduced to Sylvie Godel's work. All I can say is WOW! I am speechless and in love with yet another lovely piece of ceramic work. The fiber additions are simply perfection. Investigate her beautiful site here.

Albina McPhail + flossy-p

flossy-p tiger hug watercolor 8x10 inches

albina mcphail mixed media maybe sweet 10x10 inches
Two days to go and the gallery is filling up with lots of "lovely hearts" for our second annual charity exhibition to benefit The Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Here are two entries - Albina McPhail's "Maybe Sweet" mixed media painting and flossy-p's TigerHug. Go see some more - all previewed at the shop. More to be added today!

Paris Marais Bakery

Paris Marais Bakery, originally uploaded by threelayercake.
Just click on over through the photo to see a flickr full of beauty from Kristina from Three Layer Cake. This makes me want to hop a flight and enjoy a baugette and bowl of cafe au lait!

Lovely Hearts 2

momento card from Cally, originally uploaded by artstreamstudios.

Cally sent over a packet of lovely hearts cards she made and included this beautiful cut paper card for me. I have been marveling at her work for sometime and it's a thrill to have her beautiful work in my hand.
More work going up into the shop today for the event on Friday night.
Click through to flickr to see this card of Cally's open a bit so the light comes through the cuttings. Thank you Cally!

Monday bread day!

enlarge to view spices... heh
A little diversion from traditional visual art this morning - the art of baking bread!
My husband Rainer is quite into bread making. In fact, he has been so prolific that we are a little overloaded - so I made some apple bread pudding this morning for a treat this afternoon.
Here's the recipe - it's so easy:
Take a half a loaf of crusty white bread - (challah is my home made choice)
Cube it into small 1/2 inch pieces. Butter a 9 inch deep pie plate or cake pan well and place the cubes in layers up to the rim. In a bowl beat 4 eggs and a cup and a half of milk until frothy. Add a 1/2 cup of sugar, three tablespoons of cinnamon and generous gratings of fresh nutmeg. (I also add cardamom as I love that!) Into the mixture add a cup of chunky applesauce. Stir until blended and pour over the bread in the pan. Lightly fold together and bake for 35 minutes at 350F.
Enjoy!

Tales

bluebird visit 12x18 watercolor on arches #140
A painting from last summer...the tale has already been told. Over at IF there are more stories to hear. Or in my earlier post today which includes a podcast interview with Megan Bogonovich.
Happy weekend friends. Stay warm!

Podcast with Megan Bogonovich

Last Sunday, on the way back from returning our daughter to college, we stopped by Megan's studio to record this little podcast, complete with a slideshow - photos courtesy of Chloe and Rainer So here it is without further ado. Enjoy!
[Link to MP3]

rss feed

feed it to itunes

Winter White

down the street, originally uploaded by artstreamstudios.

Following in the footsteps of Cally's white posts and Shari's winter whites I thought I would show you a photo of our street from this winter. It has snowed four more times since this shot on 28 Dec. Yesterday there was a flock of robins - yes robins - outside the window. Global warming is here my friends. Tonight is going to be -15, where do they go?
Still editing the giggly podcast with Megan. Bear with me. It's good one.

Koi lamps

Oh I have a BIG thing for Koi fish. Big I tell you. So when I saw these koi lamp lovelies over at Ullabenulla's site, well, I just had to share. Click here for more info on the artist Elaine Hanowell.
Her fish are simply swimmy

Artist Interviews + podcasts

I have been working on getting a few fun interviews together this week, and tomorrow we will kick them off with a podcast interview with Megan Bogonovich! Sunday night I stopped by her
Concord, NH studio and we had a little chat. Above are a few sneak peek photos from her newest WIP and tomorrow we will post the fully edited podcast from that visit. Meanwhile, Lovely Hearts poured in yesterday and I am busy getting them up into the shop this week, and over at my flickr. Check them out, there are some beautiful love related works with more to come!

Lovely Hearts 2 preview

1. Camilla Stacey "Hope", 2. Darryl Berger - cool cool love, 3. Camilla Stacey "Heart", 4. Stephanie Hilvitz A rose by any name, 5. Camilla Stacey "Wish", 6. Stephanie Hilvitz Quiet Bloom of Love, 7. Tisra Fadely Bond of Perfection, 8. Susan Lenz -Mother and child, 9. Susan Lenz The Harp, 10. Susan Lenz Home Sweet Home, 11. Annica Lindsten First Love-For B, 12. Abbie Halpin Precipitation, 13. Bonnie Halpin Queen of Hearts, 14. Christelle Lachapelle - Devoted, 15. Christelle Lachapelle - love, 16. Christelle Lachapelle - Harmony, 17. Jess Gonacha - let go of your tears, 18. Kris Porter Mod Girl, 19. Kris Porter Date Night, 20. Marci Senders -- Toasty Love, 21. Marci Senders - Windy Lovers, 22. Marci Senders -Run-run, 23. Larry Reynolds All you need is..., 24. Jaison Cianelli -- Coconut Heart

Siren Song by Megan Bogonovich

Siren Song detail by Megan Bogonovich, originally uploaded by artstreamstudios.

Megan Bogonovich's work was a huge hit at Art Miami's special exhibition - Fragiles. It is going further though- it's in Europe now, starting with Belgium - on display at Gallery 113:

With the success of the Fragiles exhibition at Design Miami 07, we're happy to announce that the inspiring collection travels to Belgium for it’s first European show hosted by Quinze & Milan’s Gallery 113 in Kortrijk. For those of you who didn't make it over to Miami, we hope to see you in Belgium!

February 15 – 24, 2008
Gallery 113, Walle 113, 8500 Kortrijk, Belgium
Vernissage: February 15, 19:00 – 22:00
Opening Hours:
Monday – Friday, 10:00 – 17:00,
Saturday – Sunday, 14:00 – 18:00

Wouldn't it be nice to quaff a nice heavy Belgian brew and take in the sights?

Plain

the mysterious cell 6x6 inches mixed media on cradled board
It has snowed so much here in the past month, everything (as beautiful as it is in snow), looks plain. Which fits the IF prompt today. With the addition of rain today, came this artwork. A bit more later this afternoon too... Remember, there is still time to get your art work in for Lovely Hearts! Click the heart in the sidebar for more info.

Collages

Collages are always part of my repertoire when working with children or on my own. Here are a couple of links to making some special ones with your favorite child or yourself - one I found over at Bloesom and a post I wrote today at whip up. Happy cutting!

Unfinished and Unpublished

Marta from Studio Matador from Melbourne, Australia contacted me with this project/product which i find beguiling! (see definition #3 of Websters : to while away especially by some agreeable occupation - meet Unfinished and Unpublished
Yes, a diversion folks, a beautiful diversion! These collaborations between artists of limited edition notebooks are simply wonderful. Their collection is inspired by the philosophy of Wabi Sabi and - the best part - the impermanent and incomplete nature of the notebooks allows the end user to instill their own aesthetic and inspiration to finish what has remained unfinished.
Meticulously sewn bindings on hand made books are a true weakness of mine and these bindings are just that. Simply beautiful. I can see these being used in so many different applications. Want to see more? Just visit their studio site right here. Thanks Marta!