classic cowboy paint-by-number

I got this painting as part of a box lot at an auction (already painted by someone else). Initially, I had no plans to use it for collage. But the image has really grown on me and it looks great coated with acrylic medium. Now I'm really excited about starting to play with placement of various elements onto (into?) the scene. This is something different for me and I'm psyched! I'll post a finished product soon. Enjoy!

another flight

Here's the third flight holder I have collaged for The Green Onion in Utica, NY. Enjoy!

holiday treat

Here's one I'm entitling "In the Fishbowl" (5 x 7"). It's a bit more colorful than my pieces tend to be; but I like it. It seems to have a holiday feel to it, I think. I have included some of my intermediary "thoughts" to give those of you who are interested some insight into the process. It's pretty typical of my work (and of others I presume) as we collagists make our way to a final product. Enjoy!

smallest

Have I mentioned how nice it is to be back in the studio? I love it! Ideas seem to be flowing freely. The "problem" is that I now have about 6 actual projects "in the works". That can sometimes be a bit distracting for a monkeybrain like me. Last night while I was juggling the ongoing projects, I put together a few remnants that I had laying around. I used a small aperture mat and "found" the germ for lovely this composition. I tacked it down this morning and will frame it. Although I made a couple of lapel pins a while ago, this is the smallest of my "real" collages yet. I tend to like the small format collages. It's only 2.75 x 2.75 inches (7 X 7 cm). Enjoy!

collage pilot?

I'm not exactly sure why they call them "flights", but some bars serve a sampling of 5 or 6 small glasses of beer. My favorite bar in the Utica area is called The Green Onion (located near the Uptown Theater in South Utica). It's one of very few bars that does not have a television in it (yay!). Anyway, a couple months ago, I collaged one of their flight holders. On Monday I finished a second one. They certainly are unique and fit in well with the quirkiness of the bar. It was amazing for me to see the similarity of this one with the previous one. I hadn't looked at the first one while I was doing this one. Interesting. So this was my second "flight". Maybe I should now refer to myself as the collage pilot? Enjoy!

ephemera and history

Good morning all! One of the reasons why I love to do collage is that I learn so much (weird stuff) as I search for elements to include in my collages. When I look through old books and magazines, I get warm feelings of nostalgia, mixed with piqued interests in retro science, mixed with an appreciation for historical context, mixed with the excitement of creative potential. Who could ask for anything more in an artistic endeavor? I was recently paging through a 1903 Cosmopolitan magazine which I purchased at an auction a couple years ago. I LOVE looking at the old advertisements especially. I used to teach a course entitled "Drugs & Behavior" when I was at Lebanon Valley College and covered the historical/chronological aspects of drug regulations. Many students are surprised to learn that the opiates and cocaine were not illegal in this country until 1914. So you could get patent medications with cocaine and opiates from mail-order catalogs like Sears & Robuck. Of course, free access meant that many individuals would become addicted to such substances. Anyway, here's two pages of advertisements which include no less than 6 ads for help with opiate addiction (but two ads which are for a syrup which contains cocaine). Notice as well the two ads to help women gain weight. The times, they are a changin' (or they have changed and are changin' still). Enjoy!

Susan and Philip Morgan

Just wanted to express my gratitude to Philip and Susan Morgan for patronizing my creative efforts. Here, Susan is shown with the piece she purchased at the recent charity auction for the Heritage House in Elizabethtown, PA. They now own a watercolor painting I did years ago and this recent collage. The piece is entitled "Perhaps you should think about writing down your good ideas". Thank you for your continued love and support! Enjoy!

old friend

As I wrote in an earlier post, I have not been working on art regularly lately. Mostly the hiatus was self-imposed as I have been working on my sabbatical writing and I felt I was at a natural break point from my major art goals. On Sunday evening, I "returned" to my workspace (studio?). Wow, I didn't even realize how much I had missed being in "art space"! It was great! Last night I returned again and began working on some stuff. I probably shouldn't post until I have a piece finished, but I just can't help sharing something representing "my return". It feels like I'm seeing (and being?) and old friend again after a couple months. I'm looking forward to getting back into the thick of creating art again. The woman over south side NYC is a work-in-progress. Who knows if the finished product will even look anything like this ;-) The trachea/blood vessel image is beautiful enough to show unmanipulated, I think. I'm excited to see what becomes of it. Enjoy!