IF - Wrapped

My rubber band ball seemed like an appropriate object to represent WRAPPED in this week's Illustration Friday challenge. The ball is made from hundreds of rubber bands wrapped around each other and created over the course of several months. Most of the bands are the standard brown variety, but occasionally a colored or unusual one finds its way in there like the one with a size printed on it. Rubber band balls are fun to make and a good way to liven things up in the office. If you can't have fun at work then what's the point?

IF - Impatience

Here is my submission for this week's Illustration Friday theme of impatience. I used a religious icon as my inspiration to portray Saint Patience who is the patron saint of impatience. Actually, I just made that up. But it works for me.

Long Lost Mail Art Finally Returns Home

Today's mail brought the most marvelous surprise I've had in a very long time. A postcard that I dropped into the mail art stream back in 1997 finally came back to me. There was a time when the daily trip to the mail box was one of grand anticipation and adventure. That's when I was a regular participant in the wild, wacky, wonderful world of mail art. Nearly every day, amazing creations arrived from artists with names like Lunar Daughter, Pag-Hat the Rat-Girl, Photo Posto, Shmuel, CornPuff, Walt Evans, and more.

Collaboration was a big part of mail art and pieces were often altered or added to during a postal journey.

Each mailing brought postmarks, postage, wrinkles, marks, bends, tears, and scratches that added to the aura and ambiance of every piece.

The best part about getting this postcard back is knowing that it passed through the hands of two of my favorite mail artists--Lunar Daughter and Photo Posto. Even after all these years I still have a connection with these two talented women who I have never actually met in person. They continue to inspire me through their blogs which just may be the modern day version of mail art. Both blogging and mail art involve the sharing of creativity and a sense of community that artists seem to crave.

Apparently back in 1997 I offered to send something in return to anyone who included their address on the wayward postcard. It looks like I'll get to be a mail artist once again. Watch your mailboxes ladies...and you too Shmuel...whoever you are!

IF - Modify

For the Illustration Friday challenge this week I decided to post a watercolor sketch that I did a few years back of a darling little plant affectionately known as "my buddy spuddy." Spuddy started off as an ordinary, garden variety sweet potato that was MODIFIED into the happy-go-lucky character seen here. First he was placed in a pot of water until he sprouted greenery and one tiny hair on the top of his head. Then he just cried out for a pair of googly eyes to really develop his humorous persona. Additional modifications included an oh-so-sweet pair of sunglasses and a bright yellow hand which were both found objects that fit him perfectly. Spuddy was the ideal office mate until we were forced to part ways when he got old, shriveled, and started to stink.

Luckily I captured his spirit in a couple of photos and the sketch above before his unfortunate demise. I've included a photo here just to prove I'm not making this stuff up.

Does anyone else out there besides me feel the need to modify inanimate objects with googly eyes or other accoutrements?

August Sketchcrawl

The sketchcrawl location this month was "Open Air at Market Square" and it was another absolutely beautiful day in Cleveland. Market Square is a little park directly across from the West Side Market which was the location of the January sketchcrawl. Every Saturday during the summer they host an urban outdoor market with live music and tables of handmade art, crafts, and flea market items that vary each week.

I chose to sketch a structure in the park that has always interested me. It's a small group of columns that are covered with ceramic tiles made by local school children. The columns are topped off with a large concrete slab that serves as a roof. I've always loved the mosaic quality of the structure and the variety of colors and images on the tiles. I only captured the top portion of the structure since it's quite tall and my watercolor moleskine is horizontal. I still haven't learned how to sketch something from a greater distance and seem to prefer a more close up view of whatever I'm sketching. I'm guessing it has something to do with my eyesight (which isn't what it used to be) plus my utter fear of perspective which I still haven't mastered. I'm not sure I'm happy with the sketch--I think I like the lettering part better. But I do enjoy participating in the sketchcrawl with Cathy and attempting to improve my drawing skills.

IF - Idle

My hands were certainly not idle when I created the drawing above for Illustration Friday this week. Do your part to save world from evil and corruption--use your hands to paint something, grow something, bake something, play something, build something, sew something, write something--anything to keep the devil away and make the world a better place.

The saga of DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS

An artist never really finishes his work; he merely abandons it.
- Paul Ambroise Valery

This quote definitely describes my approach to art in general but is especially true of DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS. When I first became interested in altered books over a year ago, I picked up this little beauty of a book by Wilhelm Ruland at the local thrift store. I was immediately attracted to it's small size, yellowed pages, German text, and quaint line drawings scattered throughout. As a novice to the art of altered books, it didn't occur to me to inspect the overall condition of the book before buying it and diving straight into altering. I went home, ripped out a number of pages,, and started slapping on acrylic paint. It didn't take long to realize that the poor condition of the book and the nonstrategic way I had ripped out pages was going to be problematic. The book was falling apart and I had barely begun.


You can see from the inscription inside the cover that the book is over forty years old.

No wonder it's a little worse for wear and no wonder Bob Hamilton got rid of it.

I decided to abandon DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS and chalk it up to the first lesson in book altering--check the condition of the book before altering. I considered tossing the book in the trash so I wouldn't be reminded of my folly, but instead I set it aside with the rest of the art studio orphans. Months later I picked up DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS and thought that maybe I could "fix" it by collaging tissue paper across the spreads to hold the pages together. 

I got out my gel medium and bin of tissue paper scraps and went to work trying to revive this abandoned book. The theory worked and the pages were now intact but the process left them totally wonky and out of whack. DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS was abandoned again.
The next time I picked it up, the wonkiness didn't bother me nearly as much as it had earlier so I decided to stamp circular shapes on the pages using acrylic paint and various sized lids from household products.

I think I went a little too far with the stamping (a re-occurring problem for me) and decided I hated the results. DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS was abandoned again. 

The next time I picked up the book I was in a doodling state of mind and thought that maybe I could "fix" it this time by doodling with a white gel pen and maybe that would tone down the stamping which seemed a bit harsh.

This theory seemed to work and I had so much fun scribbling and doodling in white gel pen that I added blue, purple, pink, yellow, gold, and silver.

I finally started to like where this altered book journey was heading. Uh oh. Wait. I went overboard again and went from loving to hating the results. DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS was abandoned again. But not for long this time. I've been altering this little book on and off for well over a year and I'm determined to make it work. When in doubt I usually return to what I'm most comfortable with and that's a combination of collage and paint.

A little more tissue paper, a couple of washes of my favorite metallic gold paint and a little blue to match the cover, and I think I'm finally there. I like it! I like it!


Wait. The original problem is rearing its ugly head again and the book's spine is completely coming apart. How am I going to "fix" this? Stay tuned for the continuing saga of DIE SCHÖNSTEN SAGEN DES RHEINS.

Happier Than A Koala Up A Gum Tree

That's how my daughter feels now that she's finally in Australia! I hope she has the most amazing time of her life and records every detail on her blog so that her friends and family can share in her adventure. Have fun Kim!

IF - Hollow

The Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz is my inspiration for this week's theme of hollow. He said his chest was hollow because the tinsmith who made him forgot to give him a heart. No heart? No heart. All hollow. In the end he learned that a heart is not measured by how much you love, but how much you are loved by others. Yep, The Wizard of Oz will always be my favorite movie.

IF - Shaky

This achy shaky heart is my contribution to this week's Illustration Friday challenge. In just a week I will say farewell to my "baby" as she travels half way around the world to begin her Australian adventure. Although my heart is bursting with love and pride, there is a good dose of motherly jitters in there as well. Fare thee well my little one.