A Pig in the Parlor

Its been an uneventful week at school. My kiddies are diligently working along on their projects and don't need much help from me at the moment, so I've had time to work on my own art. I did the majority of the the work on this new piece at school. Its so nice to have daylight hours to do art!

"A Pig in the Parlor" started off like any other piece in my comfy chair series. As the composition evolved, the bottom third felt too sparse. I quickly flipped through an old Domino magazine and came upon the ceramic pig. It just seemed to fit. There is an old Irish tradition that it is good luck to keep a "pig in your parlor".......at least that's what my mom has always told me. I'm pretty sure that its also a lyric in a folk song. I tried to do some research online about this tradition, but couldn't find any information. Is there anyone out there who could fill me in on this?

In other news, my interview on the Copper Leaf Studios Blog went live yesterday. Christen Zielski does a great series of interviews with part time artists like myself entitled Balancing Act. I enjoy reading about other artists like myself who hold down full time jobs. I'm glad to see I'm not alone in my struggles to keep my art career and teaching career afloat.

Don't forget to enter the giveaway!

New Art and a Giveaway!

Well Hi!

I finished a new piece over the weekend. After hours of stippling its time to show it off. "Come Sit Next to Me" measures 8" x 8" and it was created on cradled hardboard. Though I have made many chairs, this is my first couch, and I'm quite pleased with the results. This piece is made entirely of magazine (I usually put some plain paper in these pieces) and was finished off with a little black Prismacolor technical pen and a while gel pen. I can't help but stipple.....It adds that little bit of character and dimension.

The "Come Sit Next to Me" original is not yet for sale, but it is available as an 8" x 8" archival print in my Etsy shop. I've also decided to give away one of these prints! Yahoo! Freebie!

HOW DO YOU ENTER?

Just leave me a comment on this post and make sure I have a way to get a hold of you.

EARN ADDITIONAL ENTRIES BY:

1. Following my blog.
2. Twittering about this giveaway.
3. Blogging about this contest, linking to this post.

* Make sure you let me know you've done these things so I can give you the extra entries.

THE DRAWING WILL TAKE PLACE:

• Sunday, 7:00 central time.
• Winner will be announced Monday morning.

The Rockford Midwestern Biennial

This weekend the Rockford Midwestern Biennial show opens at the Rockford Art Museum. I'm pretty excited for this one.....Matt has a piece in the show, and its hung in the most prominent spot in the museum. "Golden Calf" is the first thing visible as you enter the main gallery. Matt and I got a sneak peak of the show the other day and he snapped this picture on his IPhone. "Golden Calf" was also featured in the Biennial promotional material. Its on the RAM website and promotional poster and even made an appearance in the Rockford Register Star Go section. Hopefully all of this publicity means that its an award winner. Fingers are crossed!

The Midwestern is a juried exhibition that features work from nine Midwestern states including Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. Besides Matt, there are several other artists I know that have work in the show. Megan Klazura, a 2004 graduate of Boylan and a student in my first ever Art 4 class created "Two Face" the red and brown piece on right of the photo collage above. The work to the left of Matt's cow, entitled "All That's Left" was created by Amy Sacksteder who was my brother's girlfriend at Boylan!!! Rockford is such a small little world.

Katie Bell, has 2 huge mixed media pieces in the show. "Sink", seen above, is also featured on the website and in RAM print material. Katie was also in my first ever Art 4 class. Its so neat to see mature work from former students.

I could go on....There are several other artists I know in this show. That's what happens when you grow up and live in Rockford. I really recommend check out this show while its up. The work is current, thoughtful and engaging. The show opens to the public on Saturday, January 23 and runs until April 25. Go! Now! And tell me what you think.

I Wanna Hold Your Hand

The sun is pouring into my house today and I'm just eating it up! We don't get too many sunny days during the Illinois winter, so one must savor the time that the warm yellow thing is out and shining.

I've got some new Valentine cards in my shop. "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" is part of my series featuring lovey-dovey Beatles song lyrics. I made the original collage with notebook paper, magazine letters and masking tape. The cards are printed with my fancy Epson printer and look superb. The prints are then adhered to white 4" x 5.5" card blanks and come with a matching white envelopes.

Though I tend to sell the most of these Beatles cards around Valentines day, I keep them in my shop year round. Its always time to hold a hand and need some love!

My Valentines are available individually in my Etsy shop for $3.00 each. If your are interested in a set, I'd be happy make one up for you.

Scoutie Girl Blog Feature

Happy Monday friends. With a week of final exams ahead of me, this particular Monday doesn't feel as daunting as usual. All I have to do is proctor and grade. Its a nice way to ease back into school after the winter break.

I'm thrilled to be featured on the Scoutie Girl blog today. This is a big, cool deal! Scoutie girl is a has a huge readership in the handmade art community. I'm hoping it is a boon for my etsy shop. Three of my pieces are featured in the article. I also talk a bit about my collage process and how my passion for collage emerged back in 2006.

On the Etsy front, I have listed my new Valentiny cards. These tiny cards exude cuteness! Since they are so tiny, (just 3.5" x 2.5" when folded) they cannot be mailed, but they are great for gift enclosure cares, a child's Valentine party at school, scrapbooking, or even framing. If you are interested in larger, mailable versions of these cards, just drop me a line and I'll be happy to oblige.

Until next time. Ta Ta.

Happy New Year

Happy 2010 friends! I hope that this new year brings many good things to all.

Sadly, I've reached the end of my 2 week vacation and I am reluctantly thinking about going back to work tomorrow. Its been a glorious 2 weeks and I've relished all of my free time!

During the break I made some new art for the shop and further experimented with oil painting. I am working on a small oil painting of my own and Matt and I collaborated once again on a larger piece. Both are close to finished. I'll be sure to post when they are complete. I created the cute little "Valentiny" ACEO, which is for sale on Etsy. It will also be available as a card in the near future for all your Valentine needs. I'm also cooking up some tiny ACEO sized (2.5" x 3.5") valentines with matching tiny little envelopes.

Happily, I said goodbye to two large original mixed media pieces during the holiday season. "Petals and Postage" (above) sold at the Wallblank holiday show and "Necessity Breeds Invention" (below) was sold via Etsy to an old friend of mine. These are the first mixed media pieces of this size (8" x 10") that I've sold. I'm happy to see that going big is finally paying off and it motivates me to make more in this size.

I'm looking forward to 2010 and there are already some big plans in the works. I am hoping to enter and show at 2 local juried art shows AND......go to Italy!!! I'm working on a passport at the moment and am trying to sock away all of the money I can to make the trip happen. Wish me luck.

Off to enjoy the last few hours of freedom. Ta Ta!