Encaustic Artist at the Hermitage Artist Retreat

TheFlorida Gulf at Sunset

Taken from the Hermitage website

Yesterday, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet up with artist and Hermitage Fellow, Barbara Ellman. She is here in beautiful Manasota key for her final days of residency at the Hermitage Artist retreat, just south of Sarasota.

I was invited by friend and artist Elizabeth Van Riper to meet Barbara, who also works in Encaustic. She has produced an extensive body of work which include many Public Art projects in NY. We had dinner with Barbara and Mimi Herman, a writer who is also in residency at the Hermitage.

We had a wonderful time talking and sharing stories and getting to know one another as we enjoyed the views and sounds of the Florida Gulf sunset from the outside deck.

We had an incredible treat of a reading of poems by Mimi as we enjoyed our dessert and then a visit to Barbara’s studio to see her latest work. It is so much fun to meet fellow encaustic artists and talk shop!

Thank you all for a memorable and inspiring evening.

Barbara Ellman

Barbara and Elizabeth Van Riper

New piece influenced by the glorious Florida light and color.

Works in progress.

April news/ End of semester

 

FULL MOON OVER MYAKKA

The semester is drawing to an end.
I have had an incredible teaching experience teaching Darkroom technique and alternative processes. 

I am so proud of my students! We have gone from developing B&W film to fine art printing and toning.

I am part of the WILD MYAKKA Show, a gathering of wonderful Florida artists still on view at the 

Art Center Sarasota. These are 2 of my sold pieces.

MYAKKA LONGWING

ONE OF MY PIECES FOR THE WILD MYAKKA SHOW

PHOTOGRAPHY/TRANSFER/WAX
 

 

RIVER OTTERS

PHOTOGRAPHY/ENCAUSTIC/TRANSFER/WAX

I will be traveling to Martha’s Vineyard where I will be teaching a Beeswax Collage Workshop at Featherstone and then on to one of my favorite places...

the 4th Annual Encaustic Conference @ 

Montserrat College of Art in Beverly, MA

 

Back in the darkroom and loving it!

There is a mystery and a sense of awe every time I work on a silver gelatin print.
Playing with cyanotypes, fabric and wax! 

Images of the week

Life keeps on changing in positive ways....

Life is full..

I am enjoying teaching and creating art.
My 1st year photo students are going into the darkroom for the 1st time and it still amazes me  ( and them!) to watch the power of a black tone coming out of a totally white surface.
Blows everybody’s mind.
Photography does mean: painting with light!

I am working on several shows coming up. Will let you know very soon.

Here are some images from of my week:

Barack: the main man

Red...Next in command

 

Paddling at the Rye Preserve

 

Chief and friends

 

CD Cover

Photo/Encaustic

Camille and Anais in  Trentino, Italy.

End of the year BUZZ

I have been working on new territory for the last 3 months, exploring sculptural and 3-D forms in new materials.

It has been an incredible learning experience as well as a way of seeing and working the medium in a different and more tactile way: metal, rust, fabric and wax.

I have met 2 talented sculptors who have given me the chance to explore working with the big tools: plasma cutters, sand blasters, grinders, brazing and soldering tools.
What fun!

On Steel

Vessel #1

Detail Vessel #1

Vessel # 2

Virginia sandblasting

Ryland and me

Seen at the Cisneros Fontanal Art Foundation... Striking!!

Shirin Neshat (born March 26, 1957 in Qazvin, Iran) is a contemporary visual artist who lives in New York. She is known primarily for her work in film, video and photography.

Shirin Neshat's first feature film Women without Men award Silver Lion at 66th (2009) Venice Film Festival in Italy. Women without Men chronicles the lives of four women from different walks of life against the backdrop of Irans foreign-backed CIA coup in 1953

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtYZKYgbjNU

 

Miami/ Art Basel/ Art

I went to the brunch at the Cisneros Fontanal Art Foundation. (CIFO)  flowing champagne… wonderful art, food and good music.

Just made my reservations for next year!.

Alirio Gutierrez, designer and Evelyn Valdirio, artist

Atomic Bazaar

Getting ready for the Atomic Bazaar on Sunday December 13th.

What a show!

It is Fun, Edgy, Contemporary and full of scrumptious crafts, art and people!

Put it in your calendar!

Check it out!

Atomic Holiday Bazaar celebrates its fourth Sunday show on December 13, 2009, Noon- 6 p.m., All Ages Show, $5 Admission, Children 12 and under get in free.  Atomic Holiday Bazaar's Sunday craft show features over 80 crafters who create amusing handmade DIY crafts.  Holiday shopping offerings include handbags, t-shirts, jewelry, body products, home décor, baby items, plushies, a smidge of art and even canned goods.  This is not your granny's craft show!

http://www.atomicholidaybazaar.com/

Thoughts on a Saturday morning

The light breaks, it bends, it moves

Reflections become opened doors

My hands in continuous circles

Each finger tracing a path

In circles and lines of unbroken dreams

Fluidity surrounds me

Rhythmic breathing

Salt

water

sun

air

I am

Working in the studio, taking inventory this week.

Here are some new pieces available.

Torso/ Earth

 

 Torso/ Sea

 

Torso/Water

"Art is never necessary. It is merely indispensable." -

Michael Kimmelman New York Times

Vessel No # 1

 

Vessel No #2 

  

Circles

Transparency # 1

Transparency # 2

 
As I now settle back in Old Myakka, enjoying the end of the summer, my thoughts turn to the wonderful changing weather, the start of a new semester at Ringling, teaching private workshops and creating new work in the studio.
So far, this summer has taken me on a new and more sculptural way of working. The small, hands on encaustic books have also found way onto the hanging vessels inscribed with words and meaning which now float from the ceiling. The studio has become, once again,  a “teller of tales”

I will be teaching Digital Photography, Macro photography, Collage and Encaustic courses, both basic and advanced. I am also getting together a roster of small, one-day workshops designed to help artists with the business of art.  They will focus on many aspects of the art application processes:  Working on presentation materials, Zapp applications, Image making, how to photograph your artwork, parameters for submitting, Photoshop image enhancement and written statements.  I will also introduce a workshop on understanding and learning to use networking sites.

Please write me if you are interested as I am putting together the roster right now.

A visit to the Boca Raton Museum of Art

This week I had the wonderful opportunity to finally visit the Boca Raton Museum of Art.

The 58th All Florida Annual show is still up until the 30th of the month and  I met up with Kelli Bodle of the curatorial staff who showed me around this spectacular show.

I loved the architecture and light.

Here are some images from that day:

 

aaa

 

Main room with my friend, Jean Blakburn's piece on the far left.

Jean Blackburn, Myakka series # 113

 

My 2 pieces, 

The Road Traveled and We are Burning.

Photo Encaustic

22" x 22"

Other artists I liked:

 

Miles Loventhall

The Wall 2007

Paper Resin on aged steel

41" x53""x4"

Jeff Olsen

Everglades Restoration
Digital Photograph
24" x 29"

The New Queen has arrived!

It has been a bee kind of week. I am now an official certified beekeeper and it was suggested by the bee inspector to re-queen one of my hives. I mailed ordered a Cordoban Queen and she arrived this morning.I inserted the small cage she came in to the bottom hive and let her worker bees smell her and get know her through her pheromones. Then they will liberate her by eating the candy that seals her cage.

She will then take her mating flight and then get busy laying eggs..

The smoker:

 Smoking the hive before we open it.

A top frame:
I hope to see the moment when she is cut loose by her bees
and she takes that first mating flight.
Will keep vigil for the next few days! I will keep you informed.