When artists join forces

I love it when artists mesh minds and styles on collaborative projects.  The results are always so exciting and fresh.  It's like eating an assortment of jelly beans.  The different and unpredictable blend of flavors can produce such a delightful mix.  In recent months, I've come across a number of artist collaborations.  Below are just a few of my findings.   

Tom Moglu and Julie Dru

Julie Dru and Cendrine Rovini

Kozue Schwartz and Mia Christopher

Mia Christopher and Ryan De La Hoz



Last summer, a few of my favorite Portland artists created 53(!) collaborative works for a show at the Together Gallery.  The participating artists were Jill Bliss, Yellena James, Betsy Walton, and Apak (Aaron and Ayumi Piland).  Can you point out all the different artist styles in each piece?

You never promised me a rose garden

You never promised me a rose garden is my latest embroidery project.  It's still a work in progress.  I just finished the design this week and printed a test run a few days ago.  My plan is to make a limited edition of five, but a lot of this will depend on how detailed I go with the embroidery work.  I actual like how the design looks right now, so I may just embroider the title in the middle and some accent features.   



The new design is nearly twice as big as my previous embroidery works.  Since it's long in shape, I was thinking that the finished pieces would look nice as wall hangings. Once I complete the embroidery part, I'll back each work with muslin and create sleeves at the ends for dowels. 



. . . easier said than done, I realize.

ART SALE- my Etsy shop turns one!

Away is the newest addition to my Esty shop.  



My Etsy shop turns one today, so I'm throwing an art sale!  Everything in the shop is 25% off, including all original art.  All you have to do is enter GOBBLE25 at checkout.  (Sale runs through this Sunday.)  Click here to start shopping.



With every purchase, I'll also throw in some handpainted magnets. 

Thanks for all of your support the last year and for all of the Etsy hearts!  It's been an incredible journey, and I look forward to year two of making and selling my art.



Happy Thanksgiving!

Helping kids draw animals

As a child, I loved Ed Emberley's drawing books.  His easy-to-follow drawings of chipper animals have made millions of kids feel like artists.  Our girls have one of his classic books called Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Animals.  My 7 year-old daughter was going through the book the other day and drew some characters, including this lion. 

Emberley's approach to drawing is quite simple.  If you know how to draw different lines and basic shapes, then you can learn how to draw all sorts of things.  This is the foundation of any beginning drawing class, really.



Emberley's drawing books are wonderful for young learners (and parents!), but having been an art teacher for many years, I also know that students as young as 5 and 6 years of age can be challenged with more advanced drawing techniques.  Once my daughter finished some sketches from the first book, I handed her Illustrating Nature: How to Paint and Draw Plants and Animals. 

I found this book last year, and I was so excited to find another great drawing book.  If you have ever shopped for books on drawing, then you are fully aware of the lack of good instructional drawing books out there.  When I taught high school art, I used to have an in-class library of art books for students to check out, and I was always looking for more drawing books.  I wish that I had found this book by Dorothea and Sy Barlowe when I was teaching. The 100+ page book is chock full of drawing tips and information on plant and animal life. 

Here are a couple of pages from the book.  On the left are some illustrations showing animals in action, which is a wonderful resource for beginning and advanced artists.  The page on the right walks through some techniques on how to render fur textures. 



When I handed the book to my daughter, I told her to flip through the pages and find an animal drawing that she would want to replicate.  When using a picture as a drawing resource, many kids make the mistake of choosing a subject that lacks detail.  They figure that the lack of details would make their drawing experience easier, when in actuality, it makes it a lot more difficult.  My daughter came upon a peacock picture, and I told her that that would be perfect to draw- so much texture, contrast, and interesting lines.  About 20 minutes later, this is what she drew. . .

It actually helps when a child isn't as familiar with the subject she is drawing because it forces her to look at the details of the subject.   If the subject had been a cat, for example, the drawing would not have been as detailed. 



Again, I'm always on the lookout for great drawing books, for my kids and myself.  Do you have any favorites?

My Week

twentieth century pattern design, my latest bedside book

this 200+ page book is a survey of textile and wallpaper designs from the last century

lots of great information and images for the pattern enthusiast

a trip to the portland art museum with the kiddos

the youngest took her sketchbook along; there were actually a number of people sketching that day

a beautiful day at pacific city, oregon

took a walk on the beach and found a heart-shaped rock

what i’m working on today

When drawing on walls with permanent marker is okay

I love these installations by German artist Heike Weber.  Equipped with only a permanent marker, Heike creates a sea of flowing lines on walls and floors of hotels, galleries, and historical buildings.



Heike also creates amazing kilim rug designs using only silicone.  See her latest installation works here.

Three new works

Remember this box of aged note cards I found at an estate sale a couple months back?  I thought they would make perfect little envelopes for my new magnets.  Then I actually tried folding one into an envelope and discovered that the paper was just too brittle.  Bummer.



I was determined to use the note cards in some way, so I glued a few to birch panels and made these:

The index cards catalog different plant types, which I thought was fitting for my nature-themed art.  I like the fact that some of the cards are typed and others are handwritten.  Based on the classic handwriting and the yellowing of the paper, my guess is that these cards are at least 50 years old.



The top piece is called the way home.  Some of the details of the work remind me of a topographical map, and the red trees are in a path-like formation.  The second work, first snow, features similar design elements, however, the yellow shapes are not trees but floating dandelion petals.  They are mixed in with tiny white dots representing a delicate sprinkling of snow. 



I also finished a third work, which is a new print in my Etsy shop.  It's called Wonderland.

I must have been in a really happy mood when drawing this.  Rainbows, hearts, and roses- so cheery!  And I couldn't find a yellow marker that was bright enough, so I used a neon yellow highlighter!