Thankful

It's a few days since Thanksgiving and I finally finished the piece I was working on in honor of the day.  She started out as a drawing for the 40 portraits challenge that Gritty Jane had posted a month or so ago.  I was hoping that I would have had more faces done by now but it's the holiday season and I have returned back to work full time so not much creating has been done.
So, here she is the before and after. I really like how the color changed her mood on her face. Her face is softer and younger looking in the drawing and the color adds a big of age to her.  The five feathers represent what she is thankful for, family, life, love, friendship and hope.  Her journey in life hasn't always been easy but she is very thankful for the journey and all that has come her way because of it.

Creepy Cuties and Friends are going to Hollywood!

 I am very excited to announce that Claudia, the twins, Renee, Alice and Pun and some more of their friends will be up for sale at Agave Gardens in Burbank California!  I have mailed them out today and they should be arriving next week.  There are prints on wood as well as some originals.  If your in the neighborhood, hope you can go check them out.

Agave Gardens 

820 N. Hollywood Way

Burbank, CA 91505

Where did I get the love for those big eyed and a little creepy dolls?

I was in second or third grade, my sister and I shared a bedroom. My mom had our bedroom all fixed up pink and white for her little girls. Even though I was a tom boy growing up I really loved all the pink in that room.  Across the room from our beds hung two prints. They were by what I could remember the cutest but saddest looking doll faces. Every night before I went to sleep with the nightlights glow I would stare at them wondering what they were thinking and why they were so sad. I remember sometimes feeling that way too. Life with an alcoholic father and a co-dependent mother wasn't always the easiest.   Those doll faces were the last thing I would see every night before I went to sleep.  I loved looking at them.

I also loved these dolls that my mom or grandma had bought us. They were pretty cheap back then, the faces were painted on cloth and they wore big dresses with fancy hats. I remember holding them and moving their hair around to see the Styrofoam underneath.  I thought they were so fancy back then, I didn't know how much they cost but they were like a million bucks to me!  I didn't have many dolls, not because I couldn't have them, but cause I didn't want them but there were a few I treasured, like my new born doll that had this white christening dress on.  My grandma had bought me that one and I can still remember the day we brought it home from the toy store. I still have that one although her arm is torn and I don't think the dress survived. I gave it to my daughter Devon and she played with it when she was little too. 

Flash forward and I am now a grown up with a love to create doll faces.  I will venture off making other things but I always come back to my love of drawing a stylized face.  I had always loved those paintings and dolls when I was a kid but I didn't know much if anything about them.

Mike and I were away at Leavenworth for the weekend and I was telling him about the dolls and prints and how much I loved them as a kid.  We decided to go to the antique shops in Cashmere (didn't know it was the largest antique mall in our state, it was huge and Mike will tell you there was ton of stuff!).  Mike was a trooper following me around the mall.   To be honest it was quite overwhelming for me too but I was on a mission to see if I could find any of these dolls or prints and guess what, I did!  I found out that the dolls that I loved as a kid were called, "Bradley Dolls"  They were made in Korea or Japan and were sold at five and dime stores.  The first one I found was the smallest but it had a wooden base that said Bradley on it and I had to have it! I ended up bringing home three. I thought it was kind of cool how they used Styrofoam over wire as the armature  and covered it with fabric.  The dolls are now in my studio perched atop of the box shelf that holds my other dolls.  Here is a picture of the ladies. Fancy right! LOL. I know they are not everyone's cup of tea and are a little creepy but I love them so! I love pop culture and things from the past. I think my boys are happy that they are in the studio, they were a little freaked to see these dolls on the kitchen counter.

 

Here is some more information about Bradley dolls from the Trash Collector http://thetrashcollector.com/toysdollsbradley.html.  Do you remember these dolls? Did you have one?

 

So I found the dolls but I didn't find those prints or paintings. I did some research and found out who made those beautiful sad eyed girls.  Her name is Margaret Keane and her story is so interesting.  Walter and Margaret Keane were a husband and wife duo and they were  rising stars in the pop culture scene of the 50's and 60's, because of Margaret's kitsch big eyed paintings of children.  Walter and Margaret ended up getting a divorce and Walter claimed that he was the artist who made all the paintings. Margaret challenged him in a paint off in court and she won.  Margaret lives in San Francisco today and is still painting. I would love to meet her!  Here is a link to her site http://www.keane-eyes.com/ or Facebook https://www.facebook.com/KeaneEyesGallery.MargaretKeane.

 

Tim Burton is making a movie about Margaret and Walter called "Big Eyes" I can't wait to see it.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/04/tim-burton-big-eyes-new-movie-margaret-walter-keane-amy-adams-christoph-waltz_n_3013705.html.  It is said to be released sometime in 2014.

 

There are other artists from that time that painted big eyed children, Gig, Gogi, Igor and Lee to name a few. They all so much fun to look at. I am still hunting for those big eyed dolls that hung in my bedroom, I am hoping someday I will find them and I promised my boys they would be hung in my studio only. LOL. 

 

I'm not sure if those prints from my past were Keane, Lee or another artist from that time but I do know those big eyed girls with the sad expressions sent me off to dreamland many nights when I was a little girl and today they inspire me to create my own big eyed girls like my Creepy Cuties.

So did you have any of these prints in your bedroom growing up?  I would love to hear if you did so please comment.

Here is another link to big eyed artists.

http://besmirched.tripod.com/guide.html

 

 

You can find some of my art hanging in Cafe Louvre in Edmonds

This past weekend I took 8 pieces of my artwork to be displayed and up for sale at Cafe Louvre in Edmonds Washington https://www.facebook.com/Cafe.Louvre.US.  It was fun seeing my work up on the walls.  Edmonds has some great shops and galleries to explore so if your in the neighborhood I recommend checking it out.

CSA-Art Party this Sunday

I am pretty excited to be able to attend CSA's Art Party in Belltown this Sunday.  Have you heard of CSA?  Here is how it works. (taken from their website)
How CSA works:
Selected artists will create 10-50 “Art Shares” for the program. A typical share consists of art/object of artistic production – multiples are encouraged, however creative ideas that translate your practice into this format or connect to themes like sustainability, farm, or food are also welcome. For example a limited edition of vinyl 7”, a run of screen-prints, series of small tea cups, run of photographs, tickets to an upcoming performance or event, letterpress editions of a poem or short story, or even 10-50 small original paintings. Collaborations between artists or work by collectives are also welcome.
Interested consumers/collectors will purchase a share (aka a “membership” or a “subscription”) and in return receive 3 “farm boxes” of locally produced artwork at intervals this season. The pick-up evenings will be at local art sites and will feature music, food and entertainment.

Benefits of the CSA Program
- See more at: http://www.communitysupportedarts.com/

Pretty cool concept don't you think?  At the art party they are holding a silent auction benefitting Young Empowered Women  http://youngwomenempowered.org/. I have donated Peony 1 to the silent Auction.

Hope it brings in some cash for this worthy organization.
Check out  Audra Mulkern http://audramulkern.com a very sweet lady that creates some very beautiful and story telling photos. Audra is one of this years featured artists!  Congrats to Audra.

If you live in the Seattle area tickets are still available come check out CSA Art Party!

I think I will call it not so formal online art training!

I've been thinking a lot about my skills as an artist and how much I have grown. I think back about 7 years ago when I first took an online class from Suzi Blu. It was my first lesson on how to draw faces, real and stylized. I wasn't sitting in a classroom filled with other eager to learn students. I was at home in my sweats printing PDF's and watching online videos from Suzi.  I look at some of my first drawings and I can say there was definite room for improvement but I practiced and kept working at it. I worked really hard to get the eyes in the right place and the lips were a tough one for me those took me sometime to get them just right.  To be honest everything was hard but I loved practicing and I couldn't get enough of it. That's when the art bug bit me! I spent the next years taking online classes from abstract art to art journaling. I still practice almost every day and I love still take online classes.

Over the years I have watched countless videos from amazing artist all over the world. I have learned how to draw, paint, make marks and even how to start selling my art. Each of the teachers that I spent hours watching their video's have made such a huge impact on me and I bet if you are someone who has taken some class from these same teachers you might see a little of them here and there in my work.

 I think the online workshops, classes and the teachers from all over the world influenced me so much.  It has taken me some time to figure out how to use those influences and not copy them but use them to create my own style. 

It has taken me some time to figure out my style too.  It changes often and I don't ever seem to be very happy doing the same thing over and over. I've decided that I will embrace this and go with it. Instead of trying to make the same style or piece over and over again I will make series. Who says you have to do the same things over and over again right!

While I can't say I have a degree in fine arts, I don't think I would call me a self taught artist. I think I will say that I have been formally trained online!  I have yet to take a live class and maybe someday I will but what I have learned online has been life changing for me.  So today I say thank you to all those amazing teachers for helping me a long the way in this journey through the artland. 

Next step for me is to work towards getting my art out there in the local sense.  I will be putting my work up at Louvre in Edmonds WA. It's a cute coffee shop surrounded by art galleries. Maybe I will get into a gallery or two myself. I am also thinking about creating my own online art video. I'm ready to turn this corner in my journey with the hopes to someday become a working artist! Wish me luck!

Thank you to the following and check them out sometime:

Suzi Blu- You were my first online teacher and I loved so much watching you paint and draw.
http://suziblu.ning.com/

Julie Prichard and Cris Cozen (Land of the lost luggage) Thank you ladies for showing me how to make some amazing backgrounds as well as some fun substrates to work on. Can anyone say vinyl!
 http://thelandoflostluggage.com/

Tam and all the amazing artists from Lifebook!  This is year two in the amazing LB and I will for sure be joining 2014. It is worth every penny.
http://willowing.ning.com/

Jane Davenport- Your "I heart drawing" class really helped me create body portions that don't look all wonky. 
http://janedavenport.com

Martiel, Ilysa and Kira from Things Crafty and Amazing Success Academy(formally known as DYS).  These ladies are awesome! I have learned so much from them on how to start an art business. I am so grateful to them for the time and energy they put into this class. If you are looking for some help and support on growing your art business Martiel is a great person to turn to.  Check out http://www.amazingsuccessacademy.com/. To see what Ilysa and Kira are up to in the world of polymer clay go to. http://thingscrafty.com/

Here are my two newest creations.  My favorite flower is a peony and so I created my girls with peony flowers for their hair. Broken Puppet is a tattoo artist I found on youtube that has some really good tutorials on how to draw a peony new school style. I also watched his video on drawing an owl.  Perfect example of me using what I learned from watching a video online and using the skills to create my own piece in my style. Check out Broken Puppet on youtube he has some mad skills!

Peony1

She is painted on a 5'by7'wood canvas. The canvas is distressed to look worn. Acrylic, pen, pencil, marker and inks were used to make her.

 Peony2

She is painted on a 11'by14' watercolor paper.

I used pen, pencil, water color, ink sprays, acrylics markers, stencils and a gelli plate to create here.

Dia de los Muertos and Sugar Skulls what do they mean?

So I have this fascination with sugar skulls and masks. For some, they are creepy and scary but for me I see beautiful colors, shapes and designs.   I think there is something beautifully mysterious about them. 

It's October and that means it's the time of year when sugar skulls can be seen all over the internet, grocery stores and everywhere in between.  I decided to look into why we are so fascinated with sugar skulls and what is their meaning as well as the history behind Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). 

Doing some research I found some interesting articles about Dia de los Muertos. 
I already knew that this was traditionally a Mexican holiday and that sugar skulls are used decorate grave sites or altars but why? Does Dia de los Muertos have anything to do with Halloween? Why are sugar skulls designs rising in popularity? What does the Mexican and Latino community think of this commercialization?

Here is what I found.  These excerpts where taken from articles that I found on the internet.

Like this one...
http://columbianewsservice.com/2013/02/sugar-skulls-popularity-not-so-sweet-to-some/masks

 Día de los Muertos, Day of the Dead, celebrated in Mexico and parts of Central America, and the tradition of making colorful skulls out of sugar to honor deceased loved ones. In the celebration, sugar skulls typically represent a departed soul, whose name is often written in icing on the forehead, and are placed on home altars or gravestones to honor that person and the return of their spirit.

The sugar skull’s rising popularity in mainstream culture isn’t so sweet, though, for many in the Mexican and Latino community who celebrate the holiday and feel that the symbol is being stripped of its spiritual and cultural heritage as it is commercialized for other uses, often unrelated to the celebration.

Not all who celebrate Día de los Muertos see the sugar skull’s rising popularity as a problem. Cesáreo Moreno, chief curator and visual arts director for the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago, likes seeing reminders – in any form – of his heritage in pop culture.

“I love that they are being used more and becoming more popular, but every time it spreads it does lose some of its original meaning,” Moreno said. “This happens with a lot of different popular icons. A few years ago, many people were upset that images of the Virgin of Guadalupe were appearing everywhere. It’s the same thing with sugar skulls. As the Mexican community in the U.S. continues to grow, a lot more of our culture will permeate U.S. culture and it will be transformed by it and become something different.”

Because of the image’s evocative mix of levity, dark humor, and death the sugar skull is likely to remain popular.

or this taken from mexicansugarskull.com....

Day of the Dead is an interesting holiday celebrated in central and southern Mexico during the chilly days of November 1 & 2. Even though this coincides with the Catholic holiday called All Soul's & All Saint’s Day, the indigenous people have combined this with their own ancient beliefs of honoring their deceased loved ones.

They believe that the gates of heaven are opened at midnight on October 31, and the spirits of all deceased children (angelitos) are allowed to reunite with their families for 24 hours. On November 2, the spirits of the adults come down to enjoy the festivities that are prepared for them.

and this from about.com sugar skull history...

How are Sugar Skulls used during Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) today?
Sugar Skulls are often used to decorate the ofrendas on Dia de los Muertos which is November 1st and 2nd. Smaller skulls are placed on the ofrenda on November 1st to represent the children who have deceased. On November 2nd they are replaced by larger, more ornate skulls which represent the adults. These decorative skulls have the name of the deceased on the forehead and are decorated with stripes, dots and swirls of icing to enhance the features of the skulls. These designs are usually whimsical and brightly colored, not morbid or scary. Feathers, beads or colored foils are "glued" on with the icing to create highly ornate skulls. Some companies manufacturer small, edible skulls to be eaten during the holiday and many artists sculpt, paint or create beautiful and ornate skulls to be used as decorations, jewelry and cloth design.

What I found out is that  Dia de los Muertos is meant to welcome spirits of our ancestors.  It’s a day for you to reconnect with your ancestors, not something you mourn and instead, celebrate.  It's not Halloween in Mexico, or something meant to be scary or creepy.  

Like anything that goes mainstream or becomes popular with the masses, it's design and use might change but it's roots will forever stay the same.  They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery and I think as long as you understand and respect it's meaning, using it in your art isn't necessarily a bad thing.  

As for me I am glad I took the time to do a little research on sugar skulls and Dia de los Muertos. While originally I was fascinated by the colors and designs, I am happy to have a greater understanding of their meaning and appreciate what they stand for.  To me it is an interesting part of the hispanic culture and that culture also happens to be part of my heritage which I know very little about.  You see, my Grandmother (my Dad's Mom) was a Hispanic American and I was never able to meet her or learn of her culture since she died before I was born.  

The next time I use the sugar skull design I will not only appreciate the colors and design I will appreciate the meaning behind it and think of my Father and Grandmother who are no longer with me here on earth.

Oh, and check out this California artist that I found while doing my research.  What amazing work!  Artist Rob O http://ilovesugarskulls.com/

Here is my Dia de los Muertos Doll...

Dia de los Muertos Doll