Color array: public art dichroic glass sculpture

I was very pleasantly surprised by the appearance of Osman Akan's "Albedo" artwork when I last stopped by the Denver Botanic Gardens. It enlivens the two-story atrium area of a new parking structure, even on an overcast evening.Created of dichroic glass, the color palette of the sculpture changes with the light and as the viewer walks through the space. It has a nice arching form and is an engaging and wonderful addition to the building. Landscaping was not complete when I took these photos, so I imagine it will look even better next time I visit.The dichroic glass panels remind me of an array of color chips (like my old Pantone® color specifier!), except that they keep modulating with the elements and your position.

Galvanized for Day of the Dead

I've been wanting to try out some different supports for collage and had some small pieces of galvanized metal in the studio... So I used a 6 x 4" piece to create a collage ofrenda to donate to A Book About Death's Day of the Dead exhibition at the Fort Worth Community Arts Center in Fort Worth, Texas, sponsored by the FluxMuseum.

"Retablo 2010" (above) has acrylic paint applied to the metal, with collage added, and was coated with a UV varnish. The collage elements seemed to adhere well to the galvanized metal and I like the very understated, industrial, sparkle. I will definitely experiment further with using metal in my work. The composition is intended to be somber, thought-provoking, and uplifting all at the same time... hope I've accomplished that in some small way!

Passionate people profile: who, me?!

I'm honored to be featured in life coach Ruth Davis' blog about Passionate People this month. Check it out... an interview including all kinds of things you may not know about me, especially how I acquired and maintain my collage habit! (Thanks, Ruth!) 

The accompanying portrait was taken in front of one of my large and early works, "Yellow Rising,"  a 36 x 24" contemporary paper collage on wood panel, a piece I considered pivotal and kept as part of my personal collection. 

The collage work that illustrates the article is representative of several different series, plus commissioned work -- more of all is available to view on my website.

Blue and white sketchbook collage explorations

I've always loved the color blue, in all its variations, and been attracted to nearly any patterned blue and white pattern/motif (as evidenced above in a quick stroll with camera through my home.) In culling materials for collage, I rarely find blue and white patterns that are large enough in scale to use in my work... but I rip them out anyway, just in case! 

I recently decided to play with the blue and white bits in my sketchbook. I painted rough swatches of black gesso across a spread and am beginning my small-scale explorations in blue and white there. The process is already giving me new ideas and directions for future, larger, pieces. I'm especially enjoying responding to the rough-edged black patches by adding collage elements and have already started another series on paper that experiments with large gessoed areas of black as a basis for further collages.