Day 164 - 365/2014

Day One Hundred Sixty-Four

This morning started off with Bootsy modelling my Keeper of Secrets plaster cloth snake guy.

Then I made a run to Detroit -- Detroit Artists Market is having an open call for art called "If You Build It, They Will Come" -- you get to choose five pieces of wood and then decide what you'd like to do with it...2D, 3D, incorporate it into a painting, collage, etc...make a sculpture...as long as it is no larger than 24" x 24" it is up to you how you use the wood.

Arriving at the back entrance to DAM.

The area where you choose your five pieces of wood.

I brought a bag for my five pieces of wood...I had no idea what sizes would be available.

Here are the five pieces I brought home.

I feel very lucky to have found two matching sections (although they are not the same length) of wood that have a deep split in them...all I need to do is pull them apart -- instant arms/legs for a creature -- no sawing needed!

Then I checked my email late today and was absolutely thrilled and delighted to get the jury selected results for the 2014 Members Biennial Exhibition at Paint Creek Center for the Arts.  I am so excited -- I submitted 5 pieces for consideration --  one 3D piece (Djubi) and two 2D pieces (Time for a Nap, Creatura Lupus Ursus) were accepted!   

Now I need to figure out how to finish the frame for Creatura Lupus Ursus.  It is fairly chewed up so I am planning on covering it in nice paper(s) and then sealing it with matte varnish.

Creatura Lupus Ursus -- and the frame that came with the canvas.

The frame is pretty chewed up all the way around.

I was thinking one of these papers might work...

...but then they seemed a little too stark...this paper is used in the collage...maybe I can continue it onto the frame and darken it a bit with ink or paint or chalks or something.

This will take a day or so to think about...or maybe I will just "have" to make a trip to Ann Arbor to Hollanders in Ann Arbor for some new papers -- hmmm...

Day 162 - 365/2014

Day One Hundred Sixty-Two

Gah -- yet another non-creative blog post.  Today was rainy and humid and full of allergens.  It was also about errands and doing the dilation portion of my eye exam.  Tomorrow is 2nd Thursday and I somehow managed to put off all of my household chores so that means tonight I am doing some crash course clean up around here.

This morning I couldn't locate Bootsy anywhere...then I checked my bedroom and yes indeed, Bootsy put himself back to bed...under the covers with one paw stretched out.

A bit later in the late morning/early afternoon my sister Sue came over for some 3-way phone stuff with the company that will be painting my house and then lunch and a few errands.  Bootsy adores his Aunt Sue.

And then this is how my eyes looked when I got home from my eye exam...whoa -- pretty dilated I'd say!  Ha -- they look like eyes for one of my plaster cloth guys.

Well, at least tomorrow will be better blog-wise because I will be able to report about 2nd Thursday!

365/2013 - Day 132

to frame or not to frame...and moving art around again

I had some errands to run today and while I was out I decided to go to Michaels and see what they had available in the way of open back frames.  I have three delightful paintings by Jeff Hughart that I have been debating whether or not to leave as-is or put them into simple frames.  I went ahead and purchased three frames and I figured if I didn't use them for this project I could always use them later.

my audience  -- Bootsy and Twink

frame?

no frame  (24"x30")

frame?

no frame  (9"x12")

Well...after much switching back and forth between frame/no frame (and making myself nuts about it) I decided to go with the no frame look.  The edges are painted black and the paintings look just great without frames.  The larger one was the one I was really waffling about but I decided in the end to just put a wire on the back.  Maybe these "inexpensive" Michaels open back frames were just not the right ones...maybe I will find a nicer one sometime and snatch it up.  There is nothing wrong with the frames I bought...they are just not right for these paintings.

Bootsy checking out the new arrangement.

The right side of the wall is temporary -- I have one more painting that should be arriving soon -- more shuffling and rearranging to come.

This is where the William Hessian buffalo ended up.

I really REALLY like it on this wall.

The other day when I was wrapping up the "buy 5/get 1 random free" Art-o-mat artpacks I decided I needed to get some nicer green wrapping paper -- the white paper and green tissue paper were not really what I had in mind.

There...that is MUCH better...regular green wrapping paper, one of my business cards and green ribbon.  The image on the business card has absolutely nothing to do with the artpack inside...it is just my contact info for the blog, etc.

365/2013 - Day 126

hanging/rehanging art

This afternoon I finally got out the tools and hardware to put some art up on the walls.  I was going to wait for Joshua to do the pounding and banging and reaching (and measuring) for me but I decided I needed to see them more than I needed to wait.  I did some rearranging, too.  I tend to start out well with the level and a yardstick but that gets old quickly (for someone who is numbers-challenged).  

I even drilled pilot holes first

I scooched the bear underneath "Time for a Nap" and added "Foxish Thoughts"

in this area the lovely Peggy Kerwan birds are new and the Jeff Hughart beast is now underneath the William Hessian buffalo

I added/repositioned the two Kate Paul pieces on the left, moved the Ruth Calacci small collage over to the right of the Leann Meixner voodoo piece, added the Carla Morabito crane next to her giraffe, and I put the John Soukup octopus underneath the Juana Moore Marc Bolan piece.

I started out just moving the Kill Taupe robot to this wall above the Art-o-mat pieces but then I decided to group all of my smaller Kill Taupe pieces there...I didn't move the robot and just eyeballed the other pieces.

My Mike Kelly collage is now in my studio by the door above my favorite switchplate.

And here is Twink modelling Peggy's "Chickadee-do-dah".

...can't leave Bootsy out of the action

365/2013 - Day 77

Hey, Bootsy -- I made a toy for you!

I finally needed to toss out my last two pairs of old, old, OLD (like see-through-the-fabric-old) pajama bottoms and then I got the idea to make a cat toy for Bootsy.  A week or so ago he taught himself to fetch a really flat worn out mousey.  He carries it around and chases it and brings it back to wherever the pillow is located in the family room.  Two days ago he started jumping onto the Sass chair with the retrieved mousey (when the pillow was in use).

It is hard to get a photo of him trotting back with the homemade mousey.  I will try to get a better one tomorrow when there is more light...but for now -- I think he likes it!

Hey -- Bootsy -- I made you this!

365/2013 - Day 71

a day of cats

Today has been a delightfully cat-filled day.  Twink and Bootsy were arranging themselves for photos all over both of the cat trees...all...day...long.  You'd think they were super star cat models or something -- they were entertaining and just beautiful.  This is my favorite photo of the day -- reflects both of their personalities pretty well.

 

Aside from this, I am not going to write a whole lot tonight.  I want to do some serious research about something I am going to start working on.  It involves deconstructing a papier mache cat (same artist as the unfortunate black sheep that my cats busted up and that is now becoming the camel-like creature.)  I haven't been able to find any information about the artist online.  Today I found a photocopy sort of bio/info sheet that must have come with one of the pieces I bought way back then.  I want to see what else I can find out before I talk any more about it.

But I will say that part of my "punishment" for deconstructing this current piece is that I inhaled an awful lot of paper dust and the saw cuts turned the sawed edges into paper fluff (almost like blown-in insulation material) -- I was covered with it...I needed to change my clothes and leave the room there was so much dust.  I'm not complaining...just sayin'...I probably should have been wearing a respirator mask -- I really ought to invest in one I suppose.

365/2013 - Day 27

Sunday afternoon (and evening) stuff...and lots of printing

I got down to work early this morning by printing out all of the various labels I use for packaging up my Tookies finger puppets for Art-o-mat.  This time around I will be hand gluing all of them with a glue stick.  I am out of Xyron supplies.  I do a label for the top of the box, the two ends of the box (not knowing which end will show up in a column in a machine), a caution note for the side of the box (warning that the finger puppets are not meant for young kids or pets), an info insert (which will be glued to a small MDF block this time), and a new little label that says the block is added as weight for vending).  But all of that comes later...this morning I just did the printing.

In the afternoon I wanted to get to work on plaster cloth...little did I know how long I'd be at it!  I had an idea for legs and a body for the bear-ish creature.  I taped three empty prescription bottles together for each leg.  I added one more bottle to the bottom of the creature's torso.  

Then I took the pieces into the temporary plaster cloth studio and got to work on wrapping the legs and attaching the bottle to the torso.  Next I started to assemble the parts together, filling in the gaps with plaster cloth.

I eventually started to add used paper towels that I had been mopping up dripped plaster cloth water with.  That made a couple of the gaps go more quickly and gave me some form to work with.  THEN I remembered using discarded gloves with the manikin to give it a round belly.  I tried it today with this guy in places where I wanted a rounded look.  It worked great...and now those gloves won't be in a land fill.  (I just re-read this part and it really isn't as gross as it sounds...the "used" paper towels and gloves are just in a bag right where I am working on this stuff and are from the day before.  It's not like I am pulling them out of the icky kitchen trash can.)

It gets a little tricky working with the gloves sections underneath the plaster cloth...you really have to keep working the area and get it pretty wet and smooth it down and add more plaster cloth and keep smoothing and shaping because there is always a small bit of trapped air in the glove parts and I think that is what helps to make the roundy look. 

Then I started alternating between paper towels and glove parts until I got to the point that I thought I could stop for that session.  I am really happy with the bear-ish creature.  He is a lot cuter in person than he is in the photos.  I hope I can come up with a good method of finishing him.

When I got up to dump out the plaster cloth water and clean up the space a little I noticed I didn't see either cat and couldn't hear them.  Quick panicky feeling...did Twink get the door to the basement open?  Did they go outside somehow?  Nope...whew!  Twink and Bootsy both went back to bed -- my bed.

I just had to go back and look at the bear-ish guy one more time...did I mention I am pretty happy with today's results?

Okay...it turned out I was working with the plaster cloth for a little over three and a half hours straight.  Time really does fly when you are having a good time!  I needed to medicate, elevate, and cold-pack myself in my recliner in front of television for a little while.  Then I got down to cutting the labels that I printed this morning.

Some of the labels (like the Tookies picture for the top of the box) need to be cut by hand because I just can't gauge really close cuts with the paper cutter.  After feeding the cats and making my dinner I got set up in front of television again and cut the remainder of the labels.  I think I am done for tonight...unless I get a head start on some of the gluing tonight...but I most likely won't.

All in all, a good day's work -- yay!