New Crayons

Thinking of being a kid and all the colors at Xmas.  It made me remember new crayons.  The array of colors, the ends sharpened instead of blunt, the little charge of excitement as you carefully choose which crayon to begin with.  And the fragrance, the perfume as you opened the box.....how nice that something this small is so warm and sweet.

   

Deep Thoughts

"I'm a feminist.

I've been a female for a long time now.

It'd be stupid not to be on my own side."

 

Maya Angelou

My Prince!

An old friend emailed this to me.  I made this for her years ago when she was having relationship difficulties and we discussed how men SHOULD be.

Three Wise Women

May they bring Love, Peace, and Kindness to our World.

 

Pilgrim Gothic

My daughter and her friend, Eddie, get in the Thanksgiving spirit!

 

And my contribution:

 

A Little Piece Of Work

Local Carbondale community artists have been asked to donate a piece of art on a 6" x 6" canvas.  These will all be hung together to create a "Creative Community Mosaic" when the new community arts space opens.  (I think to be auctioned later.)  My piece is made of yarns, ribbon, embroidery thread, and beads; these are woven and sewn together by hand and mounted on the canvas. 

 

 

For The Modern Witch -1927

I've always loved old illustrations and spent a lot of time trying to draw them.  Better yet, one would make me think of a story and the story dictated how I would draw the image.  As I write this, I realize this is basically how my art pieces emerge....

Birth Day For Taylor!

There is a wonderful young woman at my office who works the reception area, handles all the people who come for services,  AND all the providers who work there. She just had a new baby girl named Taylor.....This is her gift from me, made with a vintage handkerchief, and hand embroidered with vintage embroidery images.

Remembering Summer

The leaves left on the trees here are brown, the colors gone.  The world is greying into winter.  So one last glimpse of summer.

 

"Summer Tree"

 

Hand embroidered and appliqued.  The small leaves were individually cut out and sewn on by hand. 

Each leaf was also outlined with green, blue, or yellow fabric marker.

 

 

 

 

Ephemeral

I was invited to participated in an art exhibit at the SIU library for the "Day Of The Dead".  Tied into this is the disappearance of the Monarch butterfly.  The name of this piece is "Ephemeral" and it is
16  3/4"  x  17".

 

 

 

The natural order is birth...life...death...birth...life...death.  The evolutionary rhythm is eternal and unchangeable, even as it is the source of constant change.  Nature's dance is never personal.  It both creates and destroys, but life always emerges from death, and death from life. 

 

Generations have dismissed signs and warnings of global catastrophe and we are now watching our world die; not naturally, but from human greed, power, and narcissism.  As we have been taking and taking from our world, without gratitude and stewardship, we have been killing her. 

On this Day Of The Dead, we honor the natural life cycle

and we grieve what humans have wrought. 

 

 

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Coming And Going!

Well, I'm back.  My old business stuff is mostly settled.  Every time I think it's over, it shows up again.  I call it "The Thing That Wouldn't Die!"  It's kind of like a zombie dynamic.

However, I have finally begun to do my work again. So here goes.....!

Memorial Day 2013

This is part of a poem I learned in seventh grade, and which is always with me when I see those graves with the flags planted on them.

"....between the crosses, row on row,

  that mark our place....

  We are the dead, short days ago, 

  we lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

  loved and were loved, and now we lie

  In Flanders fields."

They gave everything...

MY Annie Oakley

This is a picture of my Annie Oakley from 1950's Saturday morning kid shows.  Once for Xmas, my mom made me a "cowgirl skirt" and vest with fringe on them; she used a stencil and painted a small horse on the front of the vest.  I also got my handy six-shooters and a cowgirl hat....and the hat had her ACTUAL signature on the hatband!  I was one happy little cowgirl!  I practiced my quick draw alone and with combinations of my sisters.  I also practiced drawing and shooting from different positions, creeping quietly and slowlyyyy  up behind people, jumping out of and off of trees, rocks,whatever.  I was especially good at dying.... melodramatic?....unexpected?....slow?....fast?....painful?  And, best of all, the one where you look dead and not moving.... and then....suddenly.....you stagger up and weave around shooting your gun while the others try shoot you actually dead. Which, of course, creates a deep need for "thespianism" from the future corpse.

I had a lot of fun and I absorbed a lot of power being Annie Oakley.  I never did learn to shoot while standing on my horse's back....however, I did destroy the arms of the couch while trying. And I've given myself credit for effort....Annie would want it that way!

Deep Thoughts

You may not control all the events

that happen to you,

but you can decide 

not to be reduced by them.

                                                     Maya Angelou

Cowgirls Are Better Than Cowboys!

I've been super busy today, but for me finally.  I've been able to get more done to close down my old business....and, oh, it feels so good.  It's hard to imagine how much more time and energy I'll have.  I was thinking today about my "hero" as a little girl, Annie Oakley.  I didn't know anything about the "real" one, but I loved the one on television.  She could stand up on a running horse, hit anything she aimed at, and was braver and smarter than all the males.  She was a good role model for me since the only others were housewives (who really seemed to like being in the kitchen). The following are some of my small cowgirl collages:

    AND, while not cowgirls, I think this fits here:

Happy Trails!