Bursting out

Tumultuous waves of paper... I've been intrigued this winter with the walls of tissue-texture that form the background for the window displays at the Anthropologie store and finally got around to snapping a few photos. They may be snowflake references, or blossoms. Whatever, they are beautiful forms and make a surprisingly elegant and tactile background. On close inspection, the components remind me of the bright tissue paper flowers we made as kids, although the range of neutrals to white colors used and the sophistication of the cut designs is very different. Just gorgeous.

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." — Anais Nin

A new year begins

 "A new year begins.
Every morning this morning.
Every day begins today.
Another year passed.
Sunlight. Clouds. Birds on the wing.
Only this moment. At last."
-Basho

Here's to 2010!

Collage above is "Perspective," 6 x 4", composed of recycled imagery on watercolor paper.

Do what you love

I wanted to share this commentary about ongoing creative endeavors and our "new year" mentality... I was amazed to read about the artist Carmen Herrera in the New York Times last week. However, it was this column that really put her tenacity into perspective: 

Portrait of an artist as an old woman: Do what you love - The Boston Globe by Beverly Beckham, December 27, 2009. Worth reading! "If the world had never known her, would her life and her work have meant less? Not to her." 

So many of us have creative pursuits of one sort or another. Let's keep at it in 2010 -- and beyond -- no regrets!

My collage below, titled "Time flies," was created in 2004 (proving, for me at least, that time does fly...) and measures 12 x 12 x 1," composed of contemporary papers and recycled imagery on wood panel.

 

Nostalgic holiday ephemera

In mid-December I spent some time at my sister's home in California where she's collected our family's most well-worn antique ornaments, along with other well-loved ornaments rescued from thrift shops, and used them to decorate a special tree. The sight of this tree really took me back to thoughts of our childhood, particularly the influence of my Grandmother Dorothy and her love of all things victorian and decorative. 

Dorothy's presents were always designed to be admired over the long days before we were allowed to open them... and then, we almost hated to ruin the effect by tearing them apart. Even when we were very young, these gifts were always opened with awe and reverence! She used parts of old cards, ribbons, sequins, doilies, and gilded gold trimmings to create special decorative scenes for the fronts of packages, her own gift tags, and holiday cards. Some portions of her decorations still reside in my Christmas wrapping box and are recycled each year onto special packages. In my studio I have a box of her "ingredients." Looking back now, I can see that she used the elements of collage in all of her decorative endeavors and I am even more grateful for her influences on my life, artistic and otherwise. And somehow I also love to wrap packages! Photo below is of "Dottie's" ephemera collection. I'm honored to have it... It's so nostalgic to rummage through.