I'm very excited to have started this piece. There's still lots to do, but I wanted to post an initial sketch. The etching of this woman is SO beautiful, I was a bit anxious to cut anything from the element. But I really like the juxtaposition of the etching with the strong colors of the rest of this piece. Can't wait to see what happens with the rest of it!
As I said in my last post, my Mother-in-Law Margaret "Peg" Durr passed away last month unexpectedly after a short bout with cancer. I really enjoyed having Peg as a Mother-in-Law a lot; and I think she was proud to have me as a Son-in-Law -- the "professor", and an artist too! She was always interested in my art life and would come out to openings that I had locally. She bought the piece pictured below, for her boyfriend in Long Island. She also bought a very early piece of mine from my first solo exhibition in Little Falls, NY (reception picture shown below). We also had a great time when my wife MC and I, took the two mothers on a trip to Italy. Peg's creative artistry came in the form of being quite a chef. Grazie di tutto Peg! RIP...
After two and a half years of carefully avoiding COVID, both at school and in the general public, I finally contracting it earlier this month. I was fully vaccinated, so I think that prevented me from getting it too badly. I also went on anti-viral medication immediately. SO I had just a couple of pretty bad days, and then about two weeks of tiredness and low stamina. I back to feeling mostly better, but still have some lingering symptoms like a dry cough. I also had other life stuff get in the way of being able to spend time in my studio. School politics have been very bad lately. I resigned from my position on the Tenure & Promotion Committee. I loved serving on that committee and felt like I did a good job; but the politics got to be too much. I also went to Denver last month for my niece Jessica's wedding. THAT was a great time! And, unfortunately and sadly, my mother-in-law Peg, died unexpectedly after a short bout (mercifully) with cancer. Sometimes we need to put aside our creative work to deal with the other things that life throws at us. I am looking forward to getting back in the studio soon and cranking out some new works. I was able to do this small piece recently...
When I had my solo exhibition at 4 Elements Studio in 2021, I gave an artist's talk about my collage work. A couple days after that presentation, I got an e-mail from Kayla Spivey, who was a resident artist at 4 Elements at the time. She told me that she enjoyed my talk and was interested in talking to me more about art and creativity. Since then, we have spent lots of time texting and talking about the creative process and art-making. This fall, Kayla had her first solo exhibition, at 4 Elements Studio. It was a wonderful exhibit featuring an impressive and ambitious project for which she made hundreds of ceramic tiles which she pressed with fabric (before firing) and meticulously hand-painted. She used her background in chemistry (she has a bachelor's and master's degree in chemistry-related areas) to work on paint composition, and to work on developing the correct composition of materials so that she could incorporate her mother's ashes into the work. The results were beautiful and powerfully emotional/psychological. I had the honor of introducing her at the opening. But unfortunately and sadly, Kayla contracted COVID, and missed the opening. The many folks in attendance loved the work, of course.
