Monday, February 29, 2016

Day 1313: The Teabag 7!





"bold",  graphite drawing, collage & digital














Maybe you've heard of the movie, The Hateful 8?









Well now meet "The Teabag 7!"





Terry, Charleen, Leslie, Josie, Irene & Lisa



We are a fun group.









 It all started with Irene, our teabag guru!




photos by IreneRafael


An amazing artist in many media, mentioned here and here
Lately Irene has been obsessed with teabag painting.




photos by Irene Rafael


And we, her admirers, wanted to learn.



photo by Charlene Reed

  
So Lisa opened her beautiful home ... and we started.
Brewing, draining & drying a variety of tea bags in advance.
 



Taped onto a background, the tea bags were receptive to



by Charleen



gesso, watercolors, inks and all kinds of experimentation.



by Leslie


Often using a reference image as a starting point,




by Lisa

or free handing an image.







Our studio mascot, Fred, is contemplating the merits of tea bags.



by Terry


Then a break for lunch outdoors  ...








followed by Irene's lemon curd and berries for dessert.
I was so busy eating & forgot to take more pictures.




by Lisa




by jacki




by Josie




by Leslie



So grateful for such a great day & fun group!





Thank you Irene for your guidance.
 Thank you Lisa for lunch & your lovely home.











A smile for Monday ...
 







Sunday, February 28, 2016

Day 1312: Do you know Josie?





"Josie", collage, photos & digital

















I got to visit Josie's art studio and ...







immediately asked it I could take pictures?






It's a virtual celebration of Josie's love of art.



 

Supplies galore! 






All essential.




Contributing to Josie's inspiration ...





which is both organized ...





and boundless ...






just like Josie!







Thank you Josie!








A smile for Sunday ...





Saturday, February 27, 2016

Day 1311: I love books, I love art ... win, win!






"Millie",  collage, photo & digital















Just nine miles from home,







I took Portola Parkway to the Great Park in Irvine.











 The Great Park is 13,000 acres! 
Nearly twice the size of New York City's Central Park.
It is the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro. It is being transformed into what they are calling ...








Located in the middle of Orange County,
halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego, it offers
a huge sports & art complex, recreation and family venues, 
farmers market, residential communities and more. 
I came for the Arts ...






I had heard of Mike Stilkey so came to see his work in person.




The Lady of Arlington, 2013



Anthology is a retrospective of international artist Mike Stilkey 
and his reclaimed book installation work. 








Using a mix of ink, colored pencil, paint and lacquer, 
Stilkey depicts a whimsical cast of characters inhabiting 
ambiguous spaces and narratives of fantasy and fairy tales. 







Great Park Gallery Hours
Thursdays & Fridays: noon–4 p.m.
Saturdays & Sundays: 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Free admission





  
His large-scale projects have been built all over the United States






 and in Turin, Italy; Bern, Switzerland; Manila, Philippines; and






 Hong Kong and Beijing, China.


















All unusual and fascinating to the eye,




 one of my favorites was ...


"Waiting for my Horse"


a wall that had a shelf where the book figures involved






featured books standing, and hanging off the shelf. 

 





Another favorite were the painted individual books.





Using individual books as canvas.










                  Exhibition runs February 6, 2016 - April 10, 2016
 And, can you guess how many books were displayed?





 What do you think?


. . .


Wishing you a wonderful weekend!








In the mood for art?
A quick commercial: in case you're near & free?
Tomorrow, Sunday's class is acrylic & collage on canvas.





Mixed Media Series with Jacki Long
Sundays, February 7, 14 and 28, 2016 -- 12:00PM to 3:00PM
Please note that the last class originally scheduled for the 21st has been moved to the 28th.
Each class delve into a different mixed media project. Artist Jacki Long known for beautiful collages will go over a variety of techniques she uses. One class will be focused on creating stamp people, one on making mini collages and mail art, and the last acrylic and collage on canvas. All materials will be provided.
REGISTRATION: $45 per class -OR- $120 for the series. Ages 15+. Skill Level: All.
Limited seats are available for these classes, so sign up today!











A bonus: two smiles for Saturday ...