Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Here's what I've been up to ...

Work, work, work! Our semester ended right after the holiday and I ended up with over 1000 pages to read and grade. That kept me “Housebound” for several days.


Naturally when that chore was finished, I felt “Free”. Phew!




That’s the part of teaching that I really hate, except for the brilliant papers – they’re a joy to read. Actually the reading isn’t the issue, it’s the grading. I do wish we had an educational system that didn’t rely so heavily on letter grades!




As I mentioned in my new years blog, I want to do more “soul art.” So I am working mostly in a journal, with art just for me. “Emergence” is an example.









I’m also trying haiku ... which I know very little about. I wrote several for Emergence:

Sun shines on flower
symbol of beauty in life
beauty shines in me.

At dawn, the seeds grow
into blooms for the morning
to awaken to.

If we are lucky,
the early morning music
enters our being.

My morning journal
the seeds of ideas grow
creating my day

Working in a journal is very freeing. I don’t have to worry if the piece is “good” because it’s in a book for my eyes only (unless I choose to share.) I don’t have to think about it going up on the wall or if so-and-so will like it (or “get” it.) I can just play. I am enjoying playing with oil pastels – I love the way they blend. I don’t love how long they take to cure because I’m quite impatient. But it’s fun to work with this medium that I haven’t explored previously. I’m also enjoying working with collage again. Hunting through my stash of images and creating something … it’s good exercise and fun. And you never know what will emerge.

Now it is time to work with one of my favorite symbols, the heart. Here is a sampling of cards I am sending.



Superbowl Sunday was a day of art for me. It was rainy and we weren’t going anywhere. So I played around with some painted lutradur, fabric, paper, angelina fibers, beads, buttons and machine and hand stitches … I’m calling it “Night Blooms.” I’m not sure if it’s complete yet …


1 comment:

Nellie's Needles said...

I had been wondering where you were. It's great to see that you've been up to lot of "good". Seems like it would be a fast track to discovering your personal style.

As for pastel work on fabric, I set it into the fabric with heat using a medium-low setting on a little rod iron (the one with triangle shaped sole).