prepping for Thoughtsgiving 2025

 If you have followed this blog long enough, you might remember "Thoughtsgiving" -- a "holiday" that I created with a couple of friends from the pub, in 2010. It's the name that we gave Thanksgiving Eve. We gather at The Green Onion pub on that day and reflect on what we are thankful for. I made a tradition out of creating small collage lapel pins for the event. COVID put a damper on all of that (if you look back at Thoughtsgivings before 2020, you can see some of them). But last year, my friend Maisie made some crocheted Thoughtsgiving pins and we tried to resurrect the event. It was small, but very meaningful last year. This year, we hope to re-invigorate the tradition. And I am very excited to say that Maisie and I are going to do a collaboration on the lapel pins. Here are some of the bases for the pins, on which Maisie will be adding an embroidery element. I can't wait to share pictures of the finished pieces!

Remember to paint the edges ;-)

Still Life

My intention to focus on my artwork this weekend has paid off so far. Not only did I finish the piece that I show in the previous post, but I also finished this one. This piece was inspired by a recent call for artwork for a still life themed exhibit, to be held at Rome Arts and Community Center in January. I don't typically consider my work to be "still life", but when I read the call for this exhibit, it reminded me of an element that I knew I had in one of my piles. It was a still life, of sorts, of a bunch of Diamond walnuts from a vintage advertisement. I absolutely loved the saturation of colors that they used. So I searched for that element Friday night (and found it quickly). After I found that element, I started experimenting with other elements to use with it. I also recently acquired a couple of decorative ovals frames, and put one of them over some of the sketches I was doing with the walnut element. I think the oval frame is perfect for a still life piece -- it's kind of typical for a still life. I actually consider the frame to be one of the collage elements in this composition. One of the common questions folks ask me when I do a presentation is "How long does it take you to do one of your collages"? I couldn't possibly answer that question in general, because completion time is SO variable. But I must say, this piece came together VERY quickly -- from inception to completion in less that 48 hours!

Entitled: "Still Life with candle stick and moon 

(...and walnuts, and an orange... and some withered grapes, and a galaxy)"

 

Update and title

I finished this piece this morning. I ended-up going with kind of a hybrid placement for the flower in the upper portion of this composition. I have a working title for this piece which I actually consider part of the composition, in a way (like many of my titles). It's a three-part title... "1. It's really none of your business; 2. And you wouldn't understand, anyway; 3. Fuck off"

 

Art weekend

 Well, golf season is over. So it's time to focus on art and music. And I have "cleared my calendar" this weekend, so I can spend a sustained period of time in the studio. I have been going down at night for short stints of exploration and experimentation. Here is one sketch that I am pretty excited about. I am hoping to complete this piece over the weekend. I think I have decided to put the floral component "behind" the cavern walls. And I think (but am not sure) I am going to go with a rectangular frame... but I have the option of the weird oval frame as well. I also have an interesting idea for the title for this piece -- which I will share, once the work is completed.

Exhibition opening in Syracuse

In a world where it seems like every day brings new stress and controversy, it was such a welcome respite to be immersed in the art world for a while last night. I wish more people would experience and embrace the positive power of art and creativity, and the folks who create. The exhibit at The Atrium, in Syracuse (NY) was VERY impressive! It was nice to see so many folks out enjoying it too.

a couple ideas

This week I've been playing more golf. I don't ever remember having this many consecutive beautiful, sunny days in central New York. But I have spent some time in my studio in the evenings, enjoying experimenting with various elements. Here are two preliminary sketches from the week. I'm excited to incorporate an actual vintage Christmas lightbulb into a collage. The other sketch is a bit of a departure from my typical composition style... and I like how it's progressing.

Golf waggle and collage

Like many golfers, when I play golf, I waggle. You may have seen this if you watch golf on television. Some golfers waggle more than others. What's the point of a golf waggle? Well, when you're a decent player, golf becomes a game of precision -- small things can affect the quality of a golf shot. So golfers will waggle, until their stance and their body feels "just right". Then they swing. I feel that in some ways, my collage efforts involve some "waggling" -- especially at the finishing stages of a piece. I was very excited to share an image on this blog back on August 14th. I had been experimenting with some elements in the studio, and really liked this potential composition... 

But I did not finalize the composition; and had actually used some of the same elements in others "sketches". This week, I returned to the initial skecth and worked on finalizing it. Here's the finished piece...

If you carefull compare the details in the two pieces, you can probably understand why I thought it was comparable to a golfer waggling. There are a couple minor changes from the original idea -- "artistic waggles". I often agonize over very minor changes in a composition until I get it "just right" (at least, "just right" for me). Then I "put down" (i.e., adhere the elements together... irreversibly). Sometimes it takes several days for me to feel like I have it exactly the way I want it. I'm typically satisfied, precisely because I'm so picky about my waggles.

Seasons

I could be doing more art these days; but I am kind of obsessed with golf for right now. The weather in central NY has been the most beautiful stretch of weather I've ever experienced here (although we are flirting with drought conditions). But I am already anticipating (and feeling) that the fall and winter will be a tremendously productive season for collage. Although I haven't been in the studio much, when I'm down there these days, I feel like lots of good experiments (sketches) are emerging. And I'm really enjoying it (which is always helpful for creativity). Here are some experiments from last night (it's difficult to decide which I like the most)...

Here's the original "base" element...

 

Stella Scarano

 I spoke at a fundraiser for 4 Elements Studio (Utica, NY) last night. While I was checking out new artwork on the wall, I saw this mixed media/collage piece, entitled "Yum Yum", by the late Stella Scarano. I find this piece quite compelling for a number of reasons. First, I LOVE the color palette and the saturation (of the piece, and the framing). I also love the style. Quite unlike my own style. I have attempted to do work in this mixed media style, and I have a difficult time "making t work". I also love how "Schwitter-esque" the piece is. Kurt Schwitters (1887-1948) has always been an inspiration for me and I appreciate his "Merz" approach to collage. When I saw this piece by Stella Scarano, it felt like I was looking at a Schwitters collage. This piece is very moderately priced. I am thinking about acquiring it (but I already have SO much artwork in my house... too much to display).

Mohawk Valley Center for the Arts (MVCA)

 Another great art opening this week. On Saturday evening, the Mohawk Valley Center for the Arts (Little Falls, NY) hosted its annual regional juried exhibit which included work from my friends and fellow artists Tom Nettle, Doug Whitfield, Eric Whitfield, Andrea Vedder, John Paul Gardner, Erin Gardner, Terry McCarthy, and Jeff Miller, among others. Very impressive group of work, and worth the visit to another arts gem in the Mohawk Valley (NY). Wish that I had entered a piece :-(

Exploration fun!

When folks ask me about my "creative process", I often say that I am "an explorer", and "an experimenter", and "a recognizer". I rarely (if ever) start my creative endeavors with some preconceived composition idea in my mind, which I then try to create. Rather, my process starts with foraging/exploration of images from various magazines or books (often vintage, but sometimes contemporary). Once I have found interesting images, I then experiment with juxtapositioning. I refer to these experimental combinations as my collage "sketches" -- and I like to post these intermediate sketches to share the process with anyone who is interested. I continue to experiment, until I "recognize" a collage composition that I think will really "work" as a final product. Although I did some prep work last night in the studio coating a box I will be using for another assemblage work, I spent most of my time exploring and "harvesting" images from the "Illustrated London News" magazines from 1893. It was SO much fun! Interestingly (I think), this publication, as well as many publication that are from this era, includes two types of images -- some are based on drawings; some are based on etchings. I rarely use the images based on drawings, but am compelled by the higher quality of the images based on etchings. Here are some examples of the images based on drawings:

Although the images are often interesting, they lack the quality and resolution that etching affords. You can really see the detail and high contrast in the images based on etchings, so that it enhances the quality of any collage composition in which they are integrated. Here are some examples of images (from the same publication) that are etching-based:

Frosting

Creating collages is one of my passions. I love my time in the studio, exploring, experimenting and creating. Even if I never had the chance to exhibit my work, I would still embrace the process. But I do enjoy opportunities to exhibit my work. It's like frosting on the cake. And I can't think of a much better evening out, than to go to an art exhibit, and then go out to dinner with friends and fellow artists. Last night was one of those nights. The "Mixed-Up" exhibition of mixed media artwork at the Rome Arts and Community Center (Rome, NY) was last night. It's a VERY nice collection of work from a number of very talented artists from central New York. Afterward, we went to "Sugarbeets", a wonderful restaurant just blocks away from the RACC. A spiritually-uplifting evening!