feeling rusty

rust rocks.

cool paper artist in holland

this is "star fruit papyrus" made by a British artist, Andrea Cook . She lives and works in Tholen, NE. She also teaches for all you world travelers. Cal and I are going to her studio next time I visit him.

this one is called "beetroot papyrus"

red fish paper from nepal

everyone always asks me where i get the papers. this site is one of my favorite sources.
NepalesePaper.com Exquisite handmade Journals, Stationery, Photo Albums, Wedding Invitations and Wrapping Paper from Nepal. All products are Fair Trade and tree-free.
of course i got the fish, but they also have elephants, stars, stripes, and suns. also Tibetian prayer flags.
According to their site: This wrapping paper is handmade from the bark of a local mountain shrub. Proceeds from this wrapping paper benefit the Nepalese traditional craft industry as well as the environment.

how cool is that?

world peace

the dali lama:
I pray for all of us, oppressor and friend, that together we succeed in building a better world through human understanding and love, and that in doing so we may reduce the pain and suffering of all sentient beings.

sounds good to me.

i saw these guys when i was in death valley.

another prayer:
Seek visions always of world beauty, not violence not battlefields.
the hopi elders

big collages

i love working on this 3oo lb. watercolor paper!
you can do anything. glue, paint, scratch, (did i say glue?)
it comes 22 " x 30", i get it in a five pack at the local art store. Lenz Arts . such a deal. I used to work there about 20 years ago. Glad it's still around. Nice to be able to run out and find some obscure art product when you need it. Support your local art store!!!


my friend dale took these photos when he was here last week.
i took him to my studio at 17th ave.
we share a passion for great art materials.
we met over 20 years ago in Baileys Crossroads VA when I took a retail job at a local art store after art school.
this sign was made with my favorite brush that finally broke and some very old letraset.
anyone remember letraset?

the studio is getting cluttered.






more assemblages in progress.

encaustic class at cabrillo

day 3 of the wax painting class.
book spines: i feel like the
ripping apart every old book i own.
this was from an old copy of
the book of common prayer.



made this small object: wax pour and old computer part.
buffed it out.
how cool is this?

& we have our own blog:wax max.

ikea

ikea frame

finally made it back to ikea last friday. looking for a way to finish off the hundreds of small collages i did this winter. this is what i did: a fish collage in a handworked ikea frame.

i have been overwelmed with the remodel and summer visitors to do any posting.
boardwalk, santa cruz pier, moss landing, pescadero, china town....

work in progress

one of my boxes. not sure where to go from here. thinking of closing off the bottom with a piece of plexiglass & some funky screws. that is a row of glass marbles on the lid. and of course, you gotta have fish.



the current state of my worktable as of tonight. hard to believe i get anything done here.



maxx is critiquing collages in progress.




i bought these two small beautiful little encaustic works by daniella woolf on the splat tour today . found a home for them on this shelf with an old doll and a nice piece of pottery.

17th ave

this is my new collage studio. i just have to move all my stuff over there.
(big job).
it will be a change to work away from my house, but i think it is a good thing.
got into open studios again. guess i will be showing my work here.

the pups

maxx and i went on a road trip this winter, this is our stop at the grand canyon .






amber is my girl dog. they found her behind PETSMART on river street, she was less than 8 pounds when i adopted her, she loves to wag her tail, and wants all the attention.




little misha is a funny dude, he will be 4 soon, and seems to be mellowing out a bit. i had a tough time with him, we went to puppy school, but he did graduate, and he always makes me laugh.

my art table

this used to be my kitchen table. i got it at cost plus about 7 years ago. keep thinking i will sand it off and use it in the dining room again, but it hasn't happened yet.

maybe when i move to the new studio. or maybe i will take it with.
life is a mystery, after all.

time for sopranos.

my favorite glues

these are the adhesives i use on a daily basis. hot glue guns work, but can also burn your fingers! ouch!
my personal favorite is Liquitex Gloss Medium . it leaves a shine if you put it on the surface- we like that.
you can also make image transfers with it. i learned about this at the SEDONA ARTS CENTER while taking a workshop led by Gretchen Bierbaum, President and Founder of the National Collage Society.

sometimes i'll use a rolling pin to get the paper to lay flat on the panel. a printing press would also do the trick.

dreaming of caye caulker

didn't get back to the island yet this year. too many health issues.
i miss swimming with the sharks.

random thoughts

still here with no water. started gluing refrigerator magnets in my collages. thinking of these as design experiments.
basing each on a color. reminds me of crayons .

red



green


blue