Reveling in the changes

After returning from a inspiring business retreat last week, I have been reveling in the unusually warm weather and the gorgeous bright colors in our neighborhood. Yesterday was probably the last day of walking the dog without the need for a cozy sweater (or considerably more layers) for quite a long time. So we made it a good long trek!

Thought you might enjoy seeing some of the colors and textures that I'm finding inspiring as the seasons change. Soon my surroundings will become much more delineated and stark... I believe snow is in the forecast for tonight!

Nature is providing interesting parallels to some of the changes I'm considering making in my work as well. More on that as it becomes clear.

National Collage Show debuts online

Fun and inspiring to peruse if you are a collage fan... the 26th Annual National Collage Society Show is now available for viewing online.

I'm happy to have my work, "Potential," included in the exhibition this year. (Detail from "Potential" shown below.)

To read a related post, and see full view of "Potential," click here. Further details on my website.

Halloween: boo-tifully creative monster masks

Let me preface this post by saying that we live in a neighborhood that takes Halloween VERY seriously... On a typical Halloween we will have 300-400 costumed kids stopping by between 5:30 and 7:30pm, the official end of trick-or-treating. (After which, the adults on our block usually have a party!)

Thought it would be fun to show you the extra-large monster masks that Jim and I made way back in 2003...

I notice that the book we used as a papier/cloth-mache construction reference, Simple Screamer by Dan Reeder, is now out of print. It's a good instruction manual for such a project, if you can find a copy. (Note that I designed my mask to accommodate potential eating/drinking while Jim opted for architecturally ornamental teeth! To each his own.)

Construction of the masks took several evenings, plus quite a bit of drying time, not to mention more time for details like making and baking clay teeth, then painting the masks. It was a great, fun, messy project! Hard to believe we were doing all this in our teeny-tiny kitchen (a truly amazing auxiliary creative space)! I think I'd better go up to the attic and pull them out for an encore appearance this year...

Here are some of the stages... double click to see more details. And here's to a wildly creative Halloween!

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.