While playing around with different color bubbles I did this guy in yellow bubbles and ink. I need to do a rainbow one.
happy dog- yellow bubbles
30" x 22" on Stonehenge
ink And color bubbles
Ponds and unleashing my creative side.
Two summers ago to celebrate Sage and Laura Burdine's college graduation my friend Linda and I took our daughters to France. Top on our list was a bike ride to Giverney to see Monet's a Gardens. It was fun and worth dedicating the day. Linda and I have gone on the water garden tour in Houston and are both pond people. As a pond person Giverney was on my bucket list.
Monet's garden
Monet's garden
My water garden.
Lillie leaves come in many colors of green and purple.
Goose, Tobi and Sparrow love to help feed the fish.
I officially became a pond person in 2007 when we converted our 15,000 gallon pool to a water garden. Griffin was a senior and pretty persistent that we needed a pond. He was right. It is full of water lilies, bull frogs, goldfish and koi. It is one of the joys of my day and great for unleashing my creative side.
I have recently drawn my own version of a water garden - murmur of the water. But that is another post.
First kiss
This Saturday afternoon I had one last errand to run and was running late. I dashed into the interspace exhibit area at MFAH Glassell studio school and ........
“Victoria Aside”
Bronze and gold leaf sculpture
30" W x 20" D x 10" T
seeartist statement below.
.......there it was - my sculpture "Victoria Aside" on exhibit. I knew it was accepted in the SAO exhibit but I was not expecting it to be installed yet. I was taken by surprise - I just stopped in my tracks - and absorbed the moment. I can't describe the feeling. Later in the day while sitting in traffic I kept thinking about that feeling. It was not your everyday emotion or sensation. The only thing that came to mind that describes how I felt - is the surprise of "a first kiss".
"Victoria Aside"
Artist statement
This is one of my favorite pieces from my 2014 work. It first resonated with me purely from an aesthetic point of view, as I knew the aged leather would reproduce beautifully in bronze. What I did not realize, however, was that this sculpture would represent more than a stereotypical Texas western symbol.
With the woman controlling the horse by only the reins and one foot in the stirrup, riding sidesaddle for hunting, jumping or herding cattle on the plains of Texas required a tremendous core strength and athletic ability. This strength in a generation of women primarily known for their refined sensibilities and social values is inspiring.
The extremely weathered Victorian leather rendered in bronze reveals a rich Texas history in fragile relief. The white patina reflects the emphasis on chastity and the gold leaf detail was inspired by the rich ornamentation of the Victorian period.
I hope my artistic interpretation of this Texas western Victorian sidesaddle will have meaning and be inspirational for all who view it.
Polka - dot poetry Collage
polka -dot poetry
24" X 19"
wax, graphite and ink
headstand of a different nature
abstracted headstand
24" X 19'
charcoal, ink and pastel
.....and sometimes you just need to draw..........
"life line"
19"x24" Charcoal, ink and pastel
...... And when you do the marks come to life.
Title for fallen headstand sculpture. Any suggestions?
holler holler
(or would it be)
hollar hollar
broken but not finished
broken but not defeated
Sometimes the wrong train takes you to the right station.
any thoughts or suggestions?
The fallen headstand Piece
"holler holler"
The wax stage is almost finished.
Front
Side
I like her flat head and I will keep her face primitive.
Headstand sculpture - post #3 -accidents happen.
Time to start building the other two parts to this sculpture so that they will all work together.
#2 headstand armature and first sculpture.
Estimating how tall to make the 3rd sculptures armature.
All three together.
Playing with the positions of each piece. They will be mounted on one or maybe three concrete cushions. I will make the cushions like the happy dog sculptures dog bed (See my website under sculptures in the portfolio). They will be made after these are cast in bronze.
-while experimenting with the three armatures the first one fell to the ground.
It landed on it's stomach. This is how I found her.
Front view.
With just a little work this may be a stand alone sculpture.
I think she is a keeper.
Headstand sculpture post #2 armature
I will build the armature with these Sprues.
Sprues
Sprues are red wax sticks used when casting in bronze. Typically you use sprues to build the channels to get bronze in the cavity of a mold. They also function well for building armatures when you want to go from the wax directly to the shell and skip sculpting in clay and then making a mold.
I use a soldering iron to melt the sprues together.
The brown wax is hard so I put it in a plastic bag and lay it on a hot pad to make it pliable. The difficult part is keeping the warmed wax from making the wax armature loose it's shape.
Above I am building up the armature by pressing small balls of warm wax on to the armature one piece at a time.
Taking shape but not capturing the playfulness I am hoping to express.
The other side.
More post to come.
Drawing with my eyes closed.
Drawing assignment - study an artist and make a drawing in their style.
I picked Willem de Kooning (I love his sculptures) who sometimes drew with his eyes closed. That sounded interesting to me and worth a try. The truth is my eyes kept sneeking open I could not keep them shut, I needed a blind fold. De Kooning also drew lots of women. His portrayal of these women was not particularly attractive. Let's just call them Bert athletic. Below is my first attempt of a de Kooningish sketch with my eyes mostly (but not totally) closed. I did several but this is my favorite of the charcoal and ink drawings.
kneeling woman with two dogs.
This photo was my inspiration for these drawings. It is not really in the de Kooning vein but it is of a female (me) and I did not have to worry about hurting my own feelings. Goose is on my right he is my happy dog model, however he is still mourning the lost of his best friend and has not been happy all summer. In my arms is Toby and she is very happy and full of puppy energy .
#2
I think #2 did the best job of capturing Toby's feelings. That is probably when I opened my eyes however it is not very de Kooning ish.
#3 needs layers
#3 still needs work. Notice the de Kooning squiggle arm
I understand that de Kooning drew over old drawings or paintings many times before he finished.
The he following two photos inspired the additions to my #3 de Kooning ish drawing.
U.S. Open 2015 AETNA vs Vinci. iPhone photo of my tv screen.
What about me? I am here trying too.
Vinci trying to win some support from the Seren's U.S. Open fans. Photo of my tv screen.
#3 still needs more work, more layers. The sauce is still weak.
Vinci- "I am here too, what about me? I am trying too. "
The sauce is almost done. I think I will let this one simmer a bit before I touch it again.
FYI- Serena is my tennis hero And I would never want to disrespect her. That said you do have to love the spirit and the fight of Vinci.
John warren travis
Journeys and Destinations Opens tonight in San Francisco
Break a leg Uncle Warren. Check out the below link to read about John Warren Travis a Texas born artist who not only left his mark on the west coast theater and costume design but in his 80's is still painting daily and creating some of his best works. Could not be more proud of him.
http://www.scene4.com/archivesqv6/2014/may-2014/0514/lissatylerrenaud0514.html
And another headstand sketch
Yet another headstand sketch
Another headstand sketch
New sculpture idea.
Normally I start sculpting - no sketches just sculpt. For example The happy dog sculpture came first then the drawings. I know it sounds backwards and it might be. Thursday I did some loose sketches of kids standing on their heads and yes! I think they might be a fun series of sculptures. The body types, and endless balancing techniques Or lack there of are interesting, playful and will be great cast in bronze.
The inspiration for the series - vintage klement home movies- Curtis, and his sisters doing headstands for the movie camera. Early 1960's
This is one of many screen shots I took from Curtis' mom's home movies.
My sketches
Sadly I did not have the above picture with me when I was drawing.
We shall see if sketching before sculpting works for me.
A strange "Twist" during my first confession -
Tommy's Gregory's art exhibition "Unloading" at Redbud Gallery opened Saturday evening. We knew it was going to be fun. "Unloading" features an interactive "confessional", where the viewer interacts with the artist and the "Twist"- the confessions can be made from either side. When in it was my turn "Father" Tommy confessed to me why he found the need to build a confessional. I think he should do the party circuit as it was fun to exchange confessions.
"Father Tommy" - so serious
The person to person confession was in contrast to today's Facebook interactions.
Check it out at http://www.redbudgallery.com
my powder room- functional art
I Just read in the Tuesday Houston Chronicle, Alyson Wards article
regarding tiny under-stairwell powder rooms
"Creating a 'jewel box' ". I treasure mine and consider it functional art - a installation if you will...
Here it is.
Such a tiny jewel it is near impossible to photograph.
The space under the stairs is tight. Not able to find a sink that would fit I salvaged an old copper bucket and made it my sink. I mounted it on 3 claw and ball legs on top of a circular piece of royal oyster marble. My plumbing is hidden with a skirt of beaded fabric (perfect for a jewel box) I found in the evening wear section of High Fashion. My splash of color is a tiny antique oriental rug from The Pride of Persia. Two walls and the angled cieling are mirrored head to toe creating a bit of a fun house. Above the sink is an antique guilded mirror (mirror on mirror). The surprise treat in my jewel box is the patina inside the copper sink. I love checking it out when I wash my hands.
Curtis and I were like little kids.
I am trying to see more local art so last week I volunteered Curtis and myself to help out at the Lawndale opening. That way I knew for sure I would see the exhibit. Before our shift started we found tucked away on the second floor a fabulous installation, "Prismatic" by Melissa Borell. We were like little kids walking through the installation the light plays with translucent colors and geometric shapes that are suspended from the cieling. It is like a room full of beautiful ultra modern rainbows. "Prismatic" was a visual treat for this kid.
Chocolate shake? I could not for get the chocolates.
Chocolate shake shake shake I
Chocolate shake shake shake II
A few more to come.
30" X 22" walnut ink and soap bubbles