Back to School - the end of first semester

Classes are done for this semester!

I am so busy catching up for Christmas that I haven't had a chance to miss it much yet, although I felt a pang last week.
I am taking next semester off so had to go back and clean out my locker and collect my brain cells (unfortunately only felted ones - I could certainly use more of the real ones). This installation "Creative Thought" was for my fiber class. One of the great things about ACAD is that you are really encouraged to be creative and do things that you would not normally do, especially in first year. This project had to be large, soft, and site specific - the rest was up to us. The stair wells at ACAD are great venues for display from multiple perspectives and I wanted to experiment with more creative felting techniques - brain cells seemed like an appropriate choice. It turned out to be more challenging than I thought (stretching my brain so to speak). I think they will be in a show in the spring and then they will move out to the forest next to my home for a short "showing" - I suspect the squirrels will have a nesting frenzy.

I hoped to have some other "professional" pics to wrap up the semester - one of the benefits is access to a professional studio for photographing your art. Unfortunately my files have been misplaced in virtual reality so I'll have to share them later if I can find them, but here are some final bits.

One of the most fun ceramics classes was a group project. We were divided into teams of three with the challenge of creating the tallest yet handsomest thing we could with limited clay and 5 hours to do it in. I am proud to report that our structure was the tallest at just under 5 feet!

In our final ceramics project, we had to pick our favorite food and design a large serving piece with four individual plates. The design had to work conceptually and functionally with the food it would serve yet look nothing like a traditional serving piece. Free association: chocolate, brownies, fairy cakes ... enchanted forest!












This semester has been an amazing journey and I have learned so much. For those of you thinking about making the leap to art school I thought I would close with a few answers to questions that I have been asked.

Did I get as much out of it as I hoped? Absolutely - probably ten times more. So glad I did it.
Will I continue? For sure I will take more classes next fall. I'm still not sure about whether I will finish the degree although I would like to. So far I have not had to take any courses that seem like a poor use of my time and I'll keep going as long as that continues.
Would I recommend it to other more-than-mature students? Absolutely, but research it well first and go hang out at the school to feel what it is like - preferably take a credit course to get a sense of what to expect. There is a definitely more work than I expected and I am an academic nerd. I hope I don't overstate this next point, but be prepared to be a "stranger in a strange land" - there is some culture shock which will either leave you laughing, totally confused, or SHOCKED. Personally I loved 99% of it but I can see that it might not be for everyone. Some of the things to expect:

• You would think with technological advances that the administrative side of attending post-secondary would be easier - not so - I could go on for pages about frustrating administrative silliness (and have to the Powers That Be). 
• Remember how annoying it felt to be a teenager that nobody treated as an adult ... although now as adults we know why? Be prepared to be dealing with people and an organization that are used to dealing with teenagers - you should expect to be lumped in with them - it is no less frustrating now although strangely charming. 
• Be prepared for at least a little age awkwardness. Be comforted in knowing that there are a few of us out there as well as some "moderately" mature students. Age has never been very important to me and I didn't encounter any serious challenges, but I was often conscious of generational differences. I certainly learned a lot about myself and human nature in general. Most days I could forget about it or ignore it, but not always. General knowledge is obviously very different on both parts - I could get lost in conversations about current culture and yet found myself explaining things that I assumed were common knowledge. I had to wrestle with myself a few times to stay out of what seemed to me to be some pretty naive discussions - but they were ones that would ultimately benefit no one. Be prepared for shocking language to mean absolutely nothing to everyone else - with one exception, my choice was to ignore it. Be prepared to revisit youthful angst in general conversation and art and try hard to remember how important it was at that age. There is often an urge to shift into knowledgeable, experienced adult mode with information to share - I recommend trying to be very selective about when to do this. 
• Art sensibilities can be quite different and it can be hard to get your head around - I bet there is a Master's thesis in this. I am convinced that shock art and exposure to very graphic images have made younger students perceive things differently. I occasionally found components of some of the other students' work to be quite jarring whereas nobody else noticed. For example, what is with skulls? I do see their organic beauty, but they are everywhere and certainly don't have the dark meaning that I associate with them - they seem to be this generation's butterfly. And there is this strange nostalgia about the 60s and 70s and a tendency to use images and colors associated with those times to symbolize social conscience, rebellion, and an interest in changing the establishment. Very interesting and surprising for someone from that time, especially since the images are sometimes hardly recognizable to me. We had some very interesting class discussions that I think we all learned from.
• Essentially, if you really want to do it and are prepared to learn, adapt, and be open minded and flexible, there is nothing insurmountable and a lot to be gained - go for it.

Back to School - two weeks to go in my first semester

I have mixed emotions about almost being finished my first semester. I have decided to take next semester off for travel and will return to school next fall. The creative part of my brain is definitely ready for a break, but I can't imagine what it will be like without a constant bombardment of new, weird tasks coming at me all the time.

Here is my first felt hat and matching scarf attempt. I wanted to experiment with different surface techniques and contrasting colours so it got a bit flamboyant, but I like it ... mostly.
I made a second hat to reassure myself that I had not gone over the edge quite yet - this one I will definitely wear

 My mountain cup and pouring pot set made it through the kiln unscathed! This coming week is "crit week" so I haven't had a chance to use it yet, but I am thinking it will be perfect to christen it with a very strong blueberry tea.

I am pleased with my dream catcher vest that I made for a recycled garment project for fibre class. The body of the vest is made from beautiful old pillow cases passed down from my grandparents and ties in conceptually with the dreamcatchers made from vintage doilies and crocheted pieces.

Our painting instructor had us take photos to and from school for a week. From these we were to produce  four landscapes that push the concept of traditional landscape. We had quite the discussion about what to do with the edges of unframed canvases and I decided to play with integrating the supporting canvas into the piece as well as trying different techniques including pallet knife painting, and contrasting translucent and opaque applications. These have a very interesting impact and I think I will try to integrate some of them into my work in the future.

In drawing we were challenged to create a piece that contrasted order and chaos and used two point perspective and different techniques to enhance the comparison. My concept was an ordered cottage garden being taken over by a primeval jungle. I wish I had a picture of what it looked like before I tried going wild on the jungle technique as prompted by my instructor. I tried spraying the water soluble ink with water and it literally blossomed in a way that I am not too happy with - too bad no edit undo option, but Hobbes seems to like it. 

Our in-class drawing project was to capture motion by using mylar to create overlaid images and one of the images had to be done blind (no looking at your drawing while doing it). It was interesting to move each image around relative to the others and see the impact on the total piece. I ended up overlaying them in quite a different configuration than I originally planned.

 We have been figure drawing in the last few classes with varying techniques and length of pose. Fun, fun, fun and less weird than you would think. Interestingly the models were from my generation.

And lastly, thought I would share one of the most important things that I have learned - keep watching for and building on happy accidents. In ceramics we have been experimenting with different slips and glazes on practice pieces. The bottom bowl is my first attempt at a bowl thrown on the wheel - everything was going great until it got too thin and started cracking. I mistakenly put it away rather than throwing it out and then decided to try cutting and manipulating it and finally to try some glaze colours that had been on the bottom of my list and ... behold my favorite piece so far this year - the picture does not really do it justice - it even caught the eye of my instructor as being something special.

Back to School Update: Phew, made it through midterms

So much to catch up on since my last post - school has been crazy busy. Midterms for studio classes are definitely different than writing mid-term exams for traditional academic courses. Tense none-the-less because you find out your mark to date and get feedback on how you are doing. I am happy to say that everything is going well so far - phew.

Ceramics continues to be as much fun as playing in the mud. Yesterday I finished glazing my mountain cups and teapot and I am anxious to see how they turned out once the kiln is opened - very nerve wracking. Our next project is "Thinking outside the pot." We have to pick our favourite food and create a unique serving piece and four individual whatevers to eat from. The big challenge is that it can't look anything like a normal serving piece. My mind immediately went to chocolate and then to Brownies and Fairy Cakes. I am busy trying to figure out how to make an enchanted  tree into a serving dish.

Fibre has been very interesting. Our assignment was to make a non-representational sculpture out of paper. What started out to be "Exploding Geometry" ended up with wild moments of Collapsing Geometry. It's about a foot shorter than it started out. Things I learned: paper weighs more than you think and avoid anything dynamic if at all possible.

 Then came felt hats - this is the test model with Hobbes doing his Napoleon interpretation. The final products are on display so no pics unfortunately. Now we are making a garment out of something recycled with the object having to reflect the source material. I have some beautiful old pillow cases from my grandparents which are being transformed into a dream catcher vest as we speak - pics to follow! A great way to use old linens and doilies.





We have been doing some very different things in Drawing. First we created a collage and then drew it thinking about 2D versus 3D representation.

 

Another class involved drawing lit folded paper in a very dark room - tough on elder eyes that don't like to adjust to light changes well. This is a composite of four students work - mine is in the bottom left.

Our last assignment was to draw big things very small. "Reality Stranger than Myth" depicts various current and historic images from the Greek Island of Santorini in a volcanic cloud. As I put in the last image, I realized that it was starting to look like some kind of demented ice cream cone.

In Painting class, the instructor added a collaborative twist to a collage/painting project. After some discussion, my partner and I discovered a common interest in Star Trek (albeit lapsed on my part) and we went crazy from there. It was interesting to reflect on how this quirky series has played a part in the lives of several generations. 

Our most recent assignment was to bring and wrap an object to serve as a subject - the wrapping was meant to add meaning. Curiously, this is Barry's trumpet wrapped in my shawl and his tie. Without trying, it took on a very feminine form - I'll say no more. I really pushed myself to experiment with complementary colours and cool and warm colours as well as different techniques - it is gradually sinking in (I think).

Back to School Update: One Month Under My Belt!

Well, it has been exactly one month since first day of class - what a fabulous experience it has been. Everyone has been very welcoming and great to work with - definitely caused me to meet and get to know different folks than would normally cross my path, which has been very good. I forget the generation gap most of the time although not sure how easy it is for everyone else. One day, while working with nib pen drawings, the instructor commented that I must have had some experience with them. I went on to tell her that when I was a child, we had to use nib fountain pens until grade 5 to make sure we developed good penmanship. As I watched her and another student's response, I recognized the same look on my face when my father-in-law told me that he took a horse and buggy to school - started to feel pretty old, but only lasted for a moment.

I've been working on lots of stuff since my last post. In ceramics we experimented with different ways to build cups and then had to design a set of cups based on a theme. Here is my version of cups as Mountain landscape. They are not fired yet - hopefully the colours will change and they will stay in one piece during that process. Will post the final product.

In fibre class, we finished off our cardboard furniture piece - here he is - just over 6 ft tall. My instructor suggested that I build some cardboard figures to illustrate the purpose of the piece (she wouldn't go for using the felt creatures that it is intended for) so I ended up making cardboard gnomes too.

Drawing class was a very interesting challenge in working with grey-scale. This self portrait is 40X55 inches made up of 94 squares of different marks to achieve the tone needed. It is based on a bottom lit black and white picture (scary - have not done the bottom lit thing since telling ghost stories under a blanket as a kid). To top it off, it had to be drawn upside down. I can tell you that multi-focals and old joints are a whole different challenge when working on a piece this tall.

Painting was another interesting challenge - doing a still life to work on colour theory and blending of paints. We were limited to one warm and cool hue in each of red, green, and blue and had to block in colours - no glazing which is my natural tendency. I have never experimented so much with colour mixing and learned huge amounts although still feel shaky. I managed to make a perfect black - something I have never achieved before and may never again.

Our painting home work this week was to make an abstract about a cultural or personal interest and choose a title and sound bite to accompany it. I came up with "See Sea" which will be accompanied by Whale song. I was so excited about the colour blending thing that I wanted to experiment with mixing blues and greens as well as testing out the impact of complementary colours.

Next week promises to be even more fun!

Back to School Update - Week Two

Another week of classes under my belt and still having way too much fun. I got to try the potter's wheel in ceramics and came away with a very healthy respect for how difficult it is to do. I haven't given up yet but by the end of the day, "throwing" pots was starting to sound like a very apt description of what I wanted to do with them. However, I did manage to make a few cylindrical pots without them careening off the wheel like the proverbial drunken sailor on a merry-go-round. Fibre Arts was great and I am almost finished my Tree house. 

Drawing class was fun with several hours of drawing a still-life tangle of chairs, mannequin parts and paper ribbons - very humbling exercise. Our homework was to draw a knotted  mess of something, staying true to what we saw, and then adding other details from our imagination inspired by the drawing. What was I thinking ??? - I chose a tangled mess of wool rovings and yarn. It looked like a root to me which led me to create "Root Ball" - this is a large piece about 40 inches tall.

Then came painting and another task that is definitely outside the box for me. We each quickly painted 10 large sheets of black to white gradients using different techniques and textures. We pooled all of these and cut them into pieces to create a collage based on a black and white photo. Another big piece on board that is 48 inches tall. This was a very interesting exercise and I learned a lot about how to deal with contrast - mainly what I would do differently next time, but there are some things that I really like about this piece including the impact of the tiny church even though it is dominated by the tower.

Notice the recurring theme that everything in painting, drawing, and fibre is BIG? This relates to another general observation about art school that I hadn't thought about - it is very physically challenging for us more than mature students. Between hauling massive supplies up and down stair cases and fighting with clay, I am feeling like I have had quite the work out this last week. I am very thankful I did not opt for sculpture - I can only imagine how heavy that stuff must be. On one trek up the stairs, I commented to another student that there would be a market for art Sherpas - I felt pretty bad because he insisted on carrying my portfolio to class. On top of that, each studio class is 6 hours long and usually involves standing on a cement floor or contorting yourself to make things - and then there is another 3-6 hours of homework. I am pleased to say that I feel stronger, more flexible, and no back pain - very pleasant surprise!

Time to go pack up my supplies for next week!

Back to School Update

Phewwww, made it through the first week of classes! The classes have been amazing while the administrative side has been a nightmare - but, oh well - don't get me started.
As usual I'm doing things a bit differently. I have four studio courses (ceramics, drawing, fibre arts, and painting) rather that the typical three plus Art History and a Humanities. It is fabulous being in studios all the time. We have already jumped into projects in most of the classes and have lots of homework. Very busy - but kind of like Kindergarten on steroids. I mean this in the best possible way. Not that it is easy, but it is about creativity and getting up to your neck in stuff and making something out of it. Fun, fun, fun.

First came ceramics - I've always wanted to try working with clay. These pieces are not fired yet. We were experimenting with different techniques like wax and paper resists and laminating. I am excited to see what they turn out like.










3D Fibre Arts is going to be great. Our first project is making a life-size piece of furniture out of card-board. I decided to try making a "Tree-house" display shelf for the felt creatures. This is the small scale model - poor Hobbes is skeptical.














Then there is Drawing with an assignment to draw two scenes with lots of objects and starting with the closest objects. What was I thinking? By the time I was finished with trying to nail the perspective, I just wanted to crash in the chair with my cooler.
Homework is done for this week and I am all packed up and ready for tomorrow - yahoo!

Back to School as a More than Mature Student

Well, today was orientation day at ACAD (Alberta College of Art and Design) for first year students - including me! I decided in the new year that I needed some structure in my life as well as motivation to take a quantum leap out of my artistic comfort zone ... so I applied to Art School. Much to my surprise I got in and have started an amazing journey! My friends and family are very supportive although the honest ones can't keep themselves from making amusing comments - my husband has promised to get me a Dora lunch box and my friend wanted to be assured that I was not planning to dye my hair pink or get any tattoos or piercings.
For an addicted analytical thinker like me, I am enjoying the generational culture shock almost as much as the artistic experience. I am loving the young folks who are my peers - I am simultaneously surprised at how similar and different we are. I am really impressed with how receptive they have been although I think I managed to embarrass one of the student ambassadors today who was handing out free stuff - it was condoms and lubricants - he did very well until I asked what it was - must have been like handing birth control to your grandmother. Things have definitely changed since my first trek through student life in the 70s and 80s.
It is all bringing back fond memories of a future full of potential and unknown adventure and I have some pangs of nostalgia watching it in these young folks. However, I don't think I would trade places - been there done that and I am very pleased to be unstressed and approaching the whole experience on my own terms. Best go for now so I can get up early to stand in line for a parking pass in the morning! Fun, fun, fun.

Needle-felt Trolls

It came to my attention that a local library was looking for a Library Troll. Cyril is very interested in this position and has written the following letter of application.

I hope that you will agree to me becoming your resident library troll. Up until recently I held the position of Bragg Creek bridge troll, but with the recent floods, I have come to the conclusion that this position is no longer a viable option. Besides there hasn't been a goat over the bridge in years and the deer are just too wily.

 In exchange for room, board, and onsite use of your library materials, I can offer my services to address delinquent returns. My only condition is that any offsite retrieval missions occur between midnight and sunrise - I do not do well in sunlight. Besides, I think you will find my persuasive techniques are most effective after dark. I can also guarantee that I will not cause any loss of limb or life while on the property unless permission is provided in writing. Offsite I will use only those tactics necessary to achieve successful retrieval of your materials from members. We can negotiate the terms of this condition (for example, I suggest one finger per each month after notification of overdue materials).

Yours sincerely.

 Cyril A. Troll

While making Cyril, I was amazed at how much detail and character you can get into faces, so... I could not stop at one troll. 

Here is Cedric... 

He is still recovering from watching his bridge wash away down the Elbow River. He is submitting a proposal to the government to fund bridge reconstruction by establishing "Troll Bridges." After dark, the resident troll collects a user fee - there should be no issues with non-compliance.

Alberta Flood Rose Project - Please check it out!

For one more example of great community spirit, check out the Alberta Flood Rose Project. My thanks to those who thought up this fundraiser and are making it happen. It is wonderful to have another way to help out.

Shortly after the flood, a call was fanned out to local artists to submit 4X4" paintings of wild roses that will be combined into larger groups for auction. Last I heard, 440 Artists are participating. Here's my take on a wild rose. I strongly recommend taking a browse through the gallery on the site above - the variation and creativity is lovely to see.

Local Flooding: Motivation and Escape

After the Rain

It is hard to believe that it is just over a month since the Floods in Alberta. I was personally very fortunate - our home escaped flood damage. We were stranded for a few days and did not have power or telephone which was an interesting experience, although tense at the time. It has been a time of sadness - seeing the loss in our community - but also a time for renewed faith in human nature - the volunteerism and community resilience has been staggering. 

A Flood of Sunflowers # 2

A cancelled trip and need to stay close to home got me into my studio. String gel painting seemed most appropriate; drizzling the paint forces you to let go of the things you can't control - a lot like everything else that is going on. I had been planning to work on some more pieces and had the supplies. As Poirot would say: means, motive, and opportunity! 

Here are some of the flood inspired pieces that have kept me sane over the last month.

A Flood of Poppies # 2

A Flood of Sunflowers # 1

Needle-felt Stampede

YAHOO!!! A few of the Creektures and I headed down to the Calgary Stampede on the 14th of July. We went to demonstrate some interesting uses of wool for the Sheep Creek Weavers, a very fun guild that I recently joined. Here are Cyril and Edmund taking a well deserved rest outside the "Celebrate the Guilds" Cabin in the Western Showcase. There was a lot of grumbling coming from my backpack travelling on the C-train and going into the grounds, but fortunately nobody stopped us and we were all able to sneak in with one pass.

I am still totally amazed that the show went on come Hell or High Water. What resilience this city has. The grounds looked wonderful given they were under water not long ago. 

Needle-felt Kitty

A while back my brother had a great idea - that my niece might appreciate an "easier to care for" version of her kitty that did not leave home when she did. So came to be Bandit II. It was quite the challenge keeping him realistic and not letting myself go with doing goofy things like a large nose or enormous feet. However, the original is odd enough. He is one of those polydactyl cats with extra toes and claws - as if he couldn't do enough harm without them. It seems to me that he could easily be a reincarnated boxer or gangster type ... if I believed in such things!

Most Unusual Needle-felt Request Ever

Apologies for the pause since the last post - it has been an interesting time dealing with local flooding but more on that at another time.

I just had to share the most unusual request for needle-felt EVER! A gallery owner who carries my art asked me if I would help her out by repairing a needle felt piece by another artist. Apparently the owner's dog was "tempted" by her felted Nativity Scene last Christmas and chewed Baby Jesus into an unrecognizable tangle of wool (Very Bad Dog! - an art history buff could have a field day with the symbolic interpretation). 

Having had an iconoclastic religious upbringing (long lapsed), it felt oddly bizarre to stick needles in an image of Baby Jesus - kind of a mix of sacrilege and voodoo roiled into one. Regardless, I figure the pooch is at far more risk of immortal retribution; I was just doing restoration! However, I am very happy this came after the floods, otherwise I might have started to wonder. Here is Baby Jesus resting peacefully once again!

2D Felt Paintings?

I am having so much fun with felting! Here are a few more pieces.

Mountain Sunset

 There are always pleasant surprises and a few unexpected challenges, but that's the really fun part.

I have to admit that the stitching part is not my favourite thing to do until it is done.  However it is very worthwhile. Stitching helps to define boundaries, adds texture, and changes the character of the piece. Here is a detail picture from the above piece to illustrate.

Tuscan Hills

This piece is one of the largest ones I've done so far (38X24 inches). Felt shrinks quite a bit so it started out quite a bit bigger - I need a bigger table!

Soft Sunflowers in Vase

I did this piece a few months ago and experimented with blending black and blue wool that is quite spongy. I was using antique carders for the first time and I think the wool won this round. The type of wool that you use adds all new challenges and opportunities because each one acts differently.

I am planning to have these at the Painters sale on the weekend and have one more that I am working on so best get back to it!

Upcoming Show and Gallery

 

The Bragg Creek Painters Annual Show and Sale is coming up and I am busy getting ready for it!

 I hope to have some of my 2D felt there as well as paintings and stone pictographs.































Also, I now have some of my work at a gallery in Olds, Alberta. If you are interested in a nice day trip from Calgary, you might want to check it out. It is a quaint little shop called
Different Strokes. Olds, Alberta is a lovely foothills "Western Town." I made the treck up there today through four seasons of weather - ya gotta love Spring in Alberta. I highly recommend the Highway 22 route for beautiful views of the foothills and mountains. I had to stop many times to take photos that I hope turn out - the beautiful wispy, watery clouds got me inspired to make more felt!

2D Felt - a New Obsession

I've been experimenting with wet felting and have found a new passion! Originally I was put off by the amount of physical labour and control issues. No kidding - my biceps, triceps, and back were singing. I started playing with landscape stuff on my own but it didn't click for a few years until I started browsing for ideas and techniques and voila!

Birds in Paradise

I've put together a few techniques to come up with one that works for me! I start with a composition and colours in mind, lay out a background supporting layer, lay dyed wool into the composition, do a first partial felting, dry and add detail with needle felting, refelt, (repeat as needed) and then embellish with stitching by hand or machine. I am not an enthusiastic sewer although have tackled some clothing and curtains over the years. My sewing machine and I had an uneasy relationship with more than one type of tension issue, so ended up buying a new machine along the way. I also had to learn to card wool go figure. Figuring out how to artistically support the final product so that it doesn't look like a blob of wool thrown on the wall is part of the challenge. In "Cardinals in Winter" I felted it with a folded edge backing so that a supporting board could be enclosed. 

Cardinals in Winter

 

I have two more pieces waiting to be stitched so best get back to it.

 

By the way, the Calyx Sale was awesome as always - thanks to those who dropped by!

 

Calyx Sale and other News

The countdown is on for the Calyx sale! My art and I will be there on Sunday April 21st. If you would like to see some examples of Needle-felt pieces and slate pictographs that will be at the sale, click on these two categories under "Labels" on the right hand side of your screen (you may need to scroll down a bit).

Hope to see you there!

Other big news - after taking some courses over the past few years at ACAD (Alberta College of Art and Design), I decided that I should apply to their degree program and give the student life a second go. I was thrilled and flattered to be accepted at this very prestigious school and will be getting my lunch bucket and school bag in order for the Fall. Maybe I'm dating myself a bit - Starbucks coffee mug and laptop are perhaps more fitting.