Art and mortality

On December 31, 2014, I posted an entry for this blog about the concept that every artist will create a "last piece" before they pass away. It was prompted by the sudden passing of an artist friend of mine from a massive heart attack on Thanksgiving day while making dinner for his family. I was reminded of that post again this week, because there was an estate sale of an artist acquaintance of mine -- Sandra DeVisser -- who had passed away last year. Her house was absolutely FULL of beautiful artwork -- mostly hers, but others' art as well. Sandra was such a prolific art creator. I had previously bought a piece of hers, and was always impressed with her beautiful mixed media work. She was SO talented and had a beautiful artistic "voice". She touched many lives as a community art teacher at Munson (formerly Munson Williams Proctor Art Museum). Today was the second day of the estate sale, and there were still hundreds of her pieces hanging on the walls and stacked in various rooms. It is sad to think of what will become of all these creations. Here's just a small sample of what was in the house...

In addition to purchasing a number of metal frames, I ended up buying a small piece of hers, and another piece by John Loy, who also recently passed away. John always came to my openings, and he was always encouraging of my artistic efforts. May both Sandra and John rest in peace... knowing that they both had such a positive and beautiful impact on me, and the entire artistic community in central New York.

Sandra DeVisser

John Loy

Heartfelt "thank you"!

 I started this blog in 2010, after learning the "glueless" collage technique from my art mentor and friend, Jonathan Talbot. I have enjoyed posting my works-in-progress, as well as my finished pieces. And I hope that my writing has provided some of the viewers some form of entertainment or instruction. This year, my views have gone from a couple dozen a day, to hundreds (and sometimes thousands) per day. I realize that some of the views may be the result of bot activity; but I also sense that more people are showing genuine interest. Yesterday, the lifetime views of this blog surpassed half a million. I am grateful for the fact that some folks are interested. So I want to express a simply, heartfelt "thank you"!

Finishing and starting

Well... I finished what had been another ongoing project the other night. I was not going to post an image of it until it was in the frame (because the frame is an important part of it). But I am waiting to get a mat cut (I don't do my own matting); so I thought I would post the image now...

Yes, this composition is a bit of a departure from what I typically do. The base image is from a book about steam power from the early 1900s. I love the intricate mechanical detail, and the clarity of the image.

So, since this was the last project that was "in the works"; it was a great time to clean-up my work area a little bit and start playing with other elements that I have been collecting. These are some of the combinations I was having fun with last night...

And I was also playing a little with these elements, and took a photograph. I LOVE the way the shadows are adding to this "composition". It is not literally a collage (and I can't capture anything physical with the shadows), but I love the image...

And this begins, the start of more potential projects in my studio! Who knows if anything I was experimenting with last night, will materialize into a finished product. But I love the exploration! Here a shot of the studio table from last night's activities...

Finished pieces

I had posted this image previously. I had been working on it for a while. I thought that it needed another element on the right side; but was kind of stuck on what it should be. I experimented with a number of elements, but nothing seemed to be working. It was actually weighing heavy on my mind. 

Yesterday, after finishing this piece (as a way to "move forward")...

... I finally found an element that seemed to work. So I finished it! I feel good about the way it worked out. Great color "pop", I think.

The working totle for it, is "Envisioning Beauty" (11" x 14" framed). The other one is entitled, "An Eye for an Eye, for an Eye" (8" x 10" framed).

  

Re-discovery

A coupkle days ago, I was going through a bunch of materials I had put in a map drawer years ago. I ended-up re-discovering this little gem...

It's titled, "The Orphan"... although the clothes that this young girl (or boy) is wearing certainly doesn't look like anything an "orphan" would be wearing (not to mention having a dog). Because I am still struggling with what to do with the main project I am working on right now, I decided to "play" with this image, and some of the scraps that I have laying around my primary work space. I started with this addition...

Then, I added a couple "accents"...

I felt that the semi-circle on the right was a bit too bright, so I tried some other reds. I finally found another piece that came from the same source as the red area on the left. I also shifted the vertical element slightly. I think shifting it has made it more compelling because of the interaction of the eye of the orphan, and because it "opens up" the dog's face a bit more. Not sure if this will be the final composition, but it's getting close to being done.

Fruits of our labor

It's always nice when a piece of my work gets accepted into an exhibition. The annual arts festival at Munson Museum of Art features many of the best local artists in the Utica area. The festival coincides with the annual 15K Boilermaker Road Race -- which is probably the biggest community event of the year. The art event used to be the "Annual Sidewalk Show" and they would have the artwork hung outside. I had a watercolor painting in that event years ago. But having collage work out in the hot summer weather, doesn't really work. They now have the event inside the museum; so I have submitted and gotten accepted in the last two years.

Visual beauty -- golf and collage

Golf season is in full swing (pun intended), and the weather has been splendid. So what does this have to do with collage? Well, I am spending more time on golf courses lately, than in the studio (that's why I haven't posted in a while). But what I find interesting, is that I think there is a connection between golf and collage, at least for me, personally. Both activities involve an appreciation of visual beauty. And both involve dedication and problem-solving skills. Last week, several of my long-time friends treated me to a week-long golf and kayaking vacation in northwest Maine. I am profoundly grateful. It was beautiful (and challenging)! I do have two ongoing projects in the studio, with others waiting to emerge. But for now, I thought I would share the visual beauty that I experienced in Maine.