00016 - Western White Clematis

Introducing my 16th piece of my series, Standard Movement.

00016 - Western White Clematis – Click here or image above to purchase a print

To begin with, the oval frame. My thoughtful Godparents found it at an antique store. They are so sweet. As many of you know, I love bubbled glass. Who doesn't? I love how it enhances my imaginative 2-D world. Next, something new this time around. I usually use vintage paper for the main background, in this case I used fresh, crisp ledger paper. I wanted this work to be much simpler than the last, so I left a lot of white space and added fewer textile pieces which represent orbs. I incorporated a white flowering plant that I discovered on a walk to Portland's striking St. Johns bridge. The plant caught my eye with it's showy seedheads.

I searched high and low. Alas I found the name of the white flowering plant, it's called Western White Clematis. I read that it is a perennial vine and a member of the Buttercup family. It also goes by names such as Virgin’s Bower, Traveler’s Joy, and Leather flower. It sounds like a terrible idea to get in contact with, its oils are extremely irritating to the skin. It can also cause internal bleeding of the digestive tract if digested in large amounts. Eek! However, Native Americans would use it for headaches and nervous disorders, in small doses, of course.

If you would like to purchase a print of this original artwork of mine, they are available in my online shop, here. The prints are a limited edition of 30, printed on a heavy cardstock paper, backed with matboard, and slipped into a cellophane envelope. Whew! Did you get all that? I will also sign each print and ship them in a bendproof mailer. Live near Portland and wanna save on shipping? I will also be selling these guys at Crafty Wonderland and Skating with Scissors Craft Bazaar. I'm so jazzed to participate in my first two craft shows!

00014 of Standard Movement

After three attempts, my 14th work of the Standard Movement series, titled 00014 is finished! I am more than happy to share this bundle of joy with you on this sunny afternoon.

Bike riding down the Eastbank Esplanade, I discovered a magnificent Weeping Willow. A willow with catkins, might I add. These cylindrical flower clusters are why it took me three tries to make this artwork, I was being a lil' picky of how they were drawn on a page torn from a bookkeeping & accounting study guide, which was once in the hands of a lady named Ava. The drawn raindrops and globe-like orbs faintly blend onto the page.

Within this 5" x 7" filigree frame, on the bottom left-hand corner, I included a snippet of a 1980's Kansas City, Missouri map, once owned by my mother & father. On the top right I included a snippet of a fellow’s charming message that was written in a young lady’s 1976 yearbook, which is also prominent in my 13th work.

You can vaguely see catkins drawn on top of the yearbook signature. They hide around a torn piece of a black and white photograph. I plan on using more remnants of this photo in future pieces. A b&w photograph of what you ask?

It's of an elementary class, adhered pretty darn well to a piece of worn matte board, with no date present. I purchased this photograph along with some report cards from a flea market. I love the idea of using bits of something that was once together, that has created something historical visually, that once had an impact on more than one individual. I like to compare these bits to pixels, which I also love drawing with brown ink sporadically in my artwork.

I also worked in a piece from a hard cover book about astrology that's full of tables. One thing that I think is thrilling about using used books is that at one time in it's life it was owned by someone else and it had a particular purpose. Years later it's now having a new purpose, a purpose that it was not intended to be used. I love flipping open the cover of old books and finding the previous owners name and address written by their hand. I question if they are still alive; do they still live at this address; did they read this book all the way through; did they read this book more than once? I don't believe too many people write their name in their books in this day and age. In today's culture it seems that we go through so much information, that it's easier for us to do away with books after a short period of time. Websites like half.com and Amazon have encouraged this. I find this interesting.

I'll stop there with that thought, I could go on and on but I need to continue working on some graphic design projects! I hope everyone is enjoying their Friday. Also I hope you have a swell weekend and get around to doing something creative! I'm really giddy about tomorrow & Sunday, I'm going to be spending many hours working on a new batch of miniature artworks for new pendant necklaces! Weeeeeeeeeeee!