This Bear, She Wants Her Woods, Now.

This Bear, She Wants Her Woods, Now.
2011
Thread painting
hand dyed silk
hand dyed felt, manipulated
wrapped with shibori indigo
pearls
silk thread

School and work

Next week, my classes with the children, begin again. I am looking forward to this school year, after all.
We are going to do the sketchbook project, too. The first part of the year we will be doing things like looking for something to do rubbings on, how to make a booklet to work with, folding paper with paint on it and try to get a butterfly, you know, things like this. Then later on, we will do shadow puppets. I have many many things planned.
The best part of the year is coming, the crispy golden days of September, taking long walks in the woods, and I usually have so much creative energy to use.

I am working on the Bear series, these days:

Out On A Limb

This is next, the last one is almost finished.

Let It Be

The Journey of the Bear - Another Stop Along Her Way

A stop in time

To Take A Breath

Thinking Little

My Cat is named Haiku

This is a tiny piece I am working on

It is just the start.

Have a merry Monday!

Copper - matter - THE END

Ok, I am tired of this story. I want to get  to my thread paintings. I have one week left before school starts.
This copper story is turning into a book form rather than a short story. See, that is what happens when you
do not edit and share the process.
Copper is on my mind because homes around here are being broken into and the thieves are ripping the copper wiring right out of the houses. I am very worried about some of the historical buildings around here that have copper roofs.
I see trucks, even pick-up trucks, filled to the brim with rubbish that is made of metal.
It is a good thing to have anyone gather up disposed of or dumped metal. But,  what motivates this?
Drugs.
I feel fearful like I did when I was a child with childlike thoughts. I feel vulnerable, too.
I have no answers, only questions about our society.
If anyone brings copper to these new places that buy metal I wish the Police or the DEA were standing behind the counter. Any person who sells copper should be on a watch list as a suspect for the crimes that are related.

Chat Lunatic is like a beware of dog sign only it warns of a crazy cat.

The End

Oh You Are Going To Know About Why Copper Matters

I am here in my bed thinking about this day, feeling badly that I disobeyed my parents. Sometimes, I struggle to do the right things. Sometimes, I am afraid that if I just think about something it will then happen. My sis is in her bed in our room fast asleep. I know that she would not do this if it were not for me. Being an older sister is hard sometimes. We are as different as night and day, except that we both love an adventure. My dad always says that we should create our own excitement. Boy what would he think if he really knew what we are up to these days.
My favorite place in the whole world is on Tom Sawyers Island at Disneyland. Mom and Dad could just leave me there, forever. Well, not forever I guess. I am always afraid of Indian Joe. He is not real, that I know, sort of.
If we had our bikes with us when we were on the island maybe we could be safe because they are boy bikes.He might not be very interested in girls. I think reverie is the same thing as daydreaming which is what I am always getting in trouble for at my school. When I can't sleep I just lay here and think.
I am thinking about disappearing ink. Maybe if that person had written those letters with that then I wouldn't be ready to step inside that gate. I found one today, it blew over the fence. Now I want to go into there so much it almost hurts. You know how curiosity killed the cat? You know what happened to Pandora's box? My teacher said that we should think about this story. So, here I am talking to you. The problem is is that you can not reciprocate.(That is a new word my mom taught me) What am I going to do? I still think that is such a pretty color of green on the roof of that old house. I wonder if you do, too? What is the big deal with copper? I know my dad always stoops over in the middle of anyplace to pick up a penny. He says all the time the same old thing:  A penny saved. . .
That reminds me. . .I say all the time that somebody runs around like a chicken with it's head cut off. When I stop to think about it, what does that mean? I never saw a chicken with it's head cut off except when Mom is fixing that for dinner. It is deader than a door nail, see here I go again, now what does that mean?
On the playground the other day I took all the marbles which I won playing, "Hit It You Get It", the boys will not let me play, anymore. Besides that, they have the games they play on the i-phone. It is hard to be a real person playing real games, these days. It is a very good thing that I have my little sister to talk to and to listen.
When I get home from school the last thing I want to do is homework on my laptop, Saturdays we always go to the movies and I spend most of my time worrying about my homework. Do you hear me?
Now I am thinking about Lucille and her ancient mother. She has cracks all over her legs and that just creeps me out. She is a very nice old lady, though. She is teaching my sis and I how to embroider. If we make a mistake she makes us rip it out. I did one stitch about one hundred times before she says it is OK.
Once, my grandmother came to visit from across the country, we took her to Tijuana. She bought a leather purse. It was hand tooled, she told me so. I saw copper there, too. Lots of copper stuff all smeared with a thick car lubricant. That stuff got on my hands. I did not like the smell. It was like riding a bus and breathing diesel fuel. Anyway, I feel nauseated thinking of the man with the banjo and the smell of monkey grease. Tomorrow is another day, they say. So good night for now.

For Moi? A surprise came in the mail

Sara and I have been friends for more years than I can remember.

A package came in the mail from her for no reason, at all.

You can imagine the delight I found in unwrapping each and every little thing.

Just when I needed some cheer-up this pops up.

She is the one who needs a package. Her summer has been beyond belief.

Thank you Sara for being so kind. I love love love each and every thing!

Recycled Material
Painted earrings

Handspun Yarn Saraz
Cute Bunny knitted

Saraz Quilted and embellished  wall piece
A Handwoven piece

Paper Handspun Yarn
Saraz from used tissue birthday paper

I just had to share with all of you.

I hope you have a super duper not stormy weekend.

xoxoxo hugs!

Seriously, It Is A Matter

The gate, it was rigged to always close with a mechanism attached which was; a heavy round rusty gear.  Iron, I thought, it did not work.  An enamel sign nailed to the wooden garden bench, read,  "Chat Lunatic."  I thought it was a place for crazy people to sit and chat. This bench, was barely visible; it gave me a case of shudders. That little voice that my Father likes to call  my conscience screamed  a warning,  just leave! My sis wanted to know if I could hear a banjo nearby?


"Don' t alter  my altar,
Don't desecrate my shrine,
My church is the water,
My home is underneath a shady pine,
Don't underestimate the spine of a poor mans back,
when its against a wall and his future is black,
one mans story, oh is another  mans shame,
I ain't bound for glory, no, no, I'm bound for flames,
so take to the woods boy, and cover up your tracks,
go away child,
go away,
and don't look back."*

Is what we heard! The voice sounded like it meant what it said.

The roof of the house was really a pretty green. I thought it must be of copper. I thought about that while I looked up at the point that met the sky. The sign, down here in front of me still said, "Keep Out."

The pine needles were piled up all around the bench, I wondered how long it had been? Just how long had this place been abandoned?

We still have not crossed that line.





*Song of the Blackbird, One Man's Shame
William Elliot Whitmore

(At this point, you need to know that this is off the top of my head, I am not editing. If I did that, this little story would never be told, so, you can edit it in your head for me, but I am intending to just keep on writing this down as fast as I can, so have at it) I am just trying to tell you a story.

The Digs

Image 1.
ancient textile found in a linen talisman bag

Image 2. ?
ancient textile Xing Dynasty

Image 3. V T Y
ancient textile found under a rock 

I am off riding my bike today, we found a little cave with artifacts must return as quickly as possible.

xoxo

Finding Beauty In Everything

You know the bear, already, right? That she wants to see the other side of the mountain, while trying to find something to relish, is her reason for living, to see what she can see. She does stick her nose in the air to get a whiff of honey, what a sweet feast. Even in broken down, worn out, or abandoned places, she can find the beauty in it all.
To embrace the things that can be troublesome is a way to change outcomes. I often wonder what is the tipping point for someone to lose their spirit. I see people all the time who have given up their zest for life and this makes me sad.
I am thinking that a canvas bag to fill with collections of found beauty would be nice, sort of a trick or treat bag,  the treat is a feast for the eyes.
I am off to find some beauty!

I hope you have a beauty filled day.

Copper Is A Serious Matter

My Aunty says that an empty home always dies. There in the section of town, where I was forbidden to enter, sat the most amazing place. My sis and I would get on our bicycles and head off to unexplored places swearing to complete secrecy and to watch the other's back. We knew what we were doing was against the wishes of those who cared deeply for us both, but we did it anyway, fully aware that if caught we would pay the price. Anyway, a black enamel ornate metal fence surrounded the place and through some very large untrimmed shrubbery we could see a small algae tinted body of water and the glint of a peachy iridescent shimmer of Koi. The house was obviously very empty. There were domestic items thrown round about the yards. There on the half opened gate was posted a sign that said, "Beware of Dogs"  and  " Keep Out!"

Her bike

My bike

OK, (I left my camera underneath the passenger seat so that means that for right now I can not show you anything more) You know how many photo's you can store on one card. . .

A Serious Matter

Carry safe inside your heart where it lives in peace, being safe is quite another matter. 

There are many things I know for sure, 

that everything begins with a word/thought, 

that deep inside the little girl that lives inside me is the fear, 

that around campfires with the family my uncle always begins his stories 

the same way and always ends with, "Now, this is a true story." 

I know not to take anything, at all, very seriously 

until it becomes 

a serious matter. . .

Bear Went Over The Mountain Series #1 fini

To See What She Can See 2011
Mixed Media Thread Painting

Detail of felted be-ribbon-ed beaded  section left side 

right corner

To See What She Can See

Bear Went Over the Mountain Series #1

Thread Painting

2011

From the previous posts on technique

this piece is almost finished.

I dyed silk a red color and 

am in the process of sewing this around edges,

as the back. There is some ribbon wrapped felt

as part of the piece, also.

I will show this when I am finished 

Have a wonderful Weekend!

A Bit Unclear

Last year I was told that they could not correct my vision anymore than it is.

Because I have a cataract on one eye.

You can imagine that I wanted it removed right away.

But no. . .

I must wait until it ripens?

What a funny word to use.

I bought a new camera and a macro lens.

When I want to know what something looks like 

up close with all of the magnificent detail

I hold my breath and shoot.. .

download  photo's onto my computer screen. . .

then I can see it...

every detail.

I spend much time being thankful for my eyesight.

The camera catches a moment in time

like when butterfly's flutter their wings

I see that with my eyes

my eyes do not capture that stop

in time.

How very strange the world can appear,

blending and breaking, far and near: 

friendly, a little bit unclear.

How good.

Rilke

Creative Whack Pack?

snaps of some things I have done in the process

Do you know about the Creative Whack Pack? One day a long time ago, on the streets of Palo Alto, California, about a mile or two from Stanford University, I entered one of my favorite bookstores to find this funny little tool. God knows, one thing I do not need is something to help my creativity, however, it sparked my curiosity.
As you already know, I am always one to want to see what is over the next hill, or now, exactly how does that work, or why would anyone want such a thing as this, what does this have to do with that? So, naturally I bought this deck and brought it to my studio to investigate.What has this got to do with anything? Yesterday, I described how I come up with some images for the thread paintings.. What I did not say is that along with the images I shared are the wonderful things that come as I go through what seems like a lot to do to get to where I am,  such as, paper sculptures, my unique origami paper, handmade books, an idea for a pattern for a shrug to knit, the construction of a jacket, the colors for a silk shibori scarf all pleated with amazing design. etc.
My life is a creative whack pack.
Why do I write about this? I guess I just want to share the process. I know how much I enjoy reading and seeing what other artists do in their creative processes. Sometimes I find a new card to add to the deck of my creative whack pack. Oh yes, back to the creative whack pack, it is a deck of cards; you deal them out and or pick out one that tells you what to do, as in: turn something upside down, consider something from a different point of view, etc. Each card has something else to try. We do not need a creative whack pack, now do we?
But, it is interesting to me that some people do.

To BE

It begins with a traditional painting which I scan into the computer.

Then Origami or folded pieces of paper are first

printed with the painting which is manipulated on the computer.

Cardboard is cut then covered after deciding the shape of the box and fabricating it.

Colored sticks hand made are placed inside the handcrafted boxes.

Then this is photographed and again manipulated,

printed on transfer paper,

then heat set onto fabric,

then backed with layers of materials

until it feels right.

Then I choose the thread colors according to original painting

to proceed to the thread painting which is done with a sewing machine.

Each piece has a time of it's own. Some take days,

some take weeks. It depends on how large the piece is and

how intricate is the painting.

This is how I work.

There is never-ending possibilities,

this is what keeps me interested,

to see what it will be.

Below is a mid point in the process

But I like these

as they are, too.

Sometimes, I add elements such as hand embroidery to my pieces

or objects.

They speak to me

to inform my intuition

of what

they

be.

She Had A Sugar Coated Dream Sandwich

Remember yesterday I took off of my mountain for adventure?
I found it everywhere. . .
life.
The best sandwich  I have ever tasted!
Fried Green Tomato with brown sugar coated bacon
lettuce and other wonderful things.
Really, I am serious. The chef at "The" Corner Drug Store told me
this came from a dream she had.. The Millionaires who at the turn of the
century sat in this very place could never have with all of their money tasted
anything better.

The drugstore is a meeting place, now, for young and old.

The funny thing about this life I live now is it is a huge SURPRISE to me.
I notice every little teeny tiny thing.
As a contemporary American artist living in this trendy time
who is everyone's computer helper
who has taken more computers apart than I care to think
who uses it as a tool for the artwork I do now
who can live in isolation because of this technology
in this life I find LOVE
I find TIME
and I look at every teeny tiny thing!

Live Well Love Well

"Hey, Giraffe. . .THAT is not my rose."  said The Little Prince, his hand placed firmly on his hip.


No, No, No, I am not off to find camels today.
I am searching for that one perfect rose at Farmers Market and then to the County Fair.
Then to our newly restored Drug Store with Fountain for a Lime Rickey.

You know, I am living fully each day.  I hope you are doing this, too!
Hugs to all of you

My very first love died this morning.
He lived well.

I am loving loving loving my last love!

See The Bear

Drawing for Thread Painting

When I post one of these

it means I am committed.

It means I am ready to begin.

(Kim Klaussen Texture over my original photo)

Have a wonderful Friday!

Will I see the baby bear and the mom?

A new fence is going up but do I really think it will keep a bear away?

The hills in Tazewell, Virginia are hiding pyramids. . .
(at least that is what I think)  :   )
XO

Well, You Do Know How I Get SO-O-OH Wrapped Up In . . .

I just can not help myself

I always jump in

To See If things really do just go round and round

Trust me on this

they do

I do

Some pretty grass grows but not under my feet

I hear a turkey and her babies right this minute

I hear wind chimes

I hear a morning dove cooing like the one at Tail of the Yak

I am back from Asheville, obviously!

Today I painted my porch. I tried a Tom Sawer thing

Now, that just did not get me anywhere.

All Pretty and pristine white.

The whole time I am thinking about the Debbie Bliss short

little garter lt tank

I bought the yarn at paradise

along with new sock yarn, YUM

I can not wait!

You know I can not help myself. . .

got it started

YES

I did.

I need to water my flower boxes, next.

My friend Sara sent me a link

for the camel question. . .Camp Verde, Texas

At least I was able to sleep last night.

I want a camel coat?

I want fleece of alpaca?

Felting. . .

Oh yes ......one more thing

I was driving down my road the other day and a baby black bear decided

It really likes the new road all nice and neat and ready for WINTER

The sumac is red already. . .hmmm

I am thinking about you and wondering why you will not help me paint??

That is O K I love you all anyway!

In Search of Camels

All from a few potato peelings dropped inside God's Thumbprint, now known as Burke's Garden, was it formed. This sounds a lot like a creation myth, to me.
If you can imagine a ring of mountains, verdant valley enclosed and isolated, like a crater of a volcano only very large, then you can believe this is this.
Now, consider that this fertile land in the mountains of Virginia, USA, is the home to camels and Llamas. Of course, for cattle and horses and many other type of domestic and wild animals, it is home. as well.

Why?

This marks THE spot.

Town Hall?

Many gorgeous farms live in this valley. Once, it was the home of Amish Farms.

There are many historical and original homes to see in this valley, but. . .look what I found!
So perfectly simple and elegant. This is my favorite home. It is tiny and you can see right
through it. The conscious choice of form and function in the front flower garden makes a lot of
sense to me. Check out the contemporary take on the porch chairs. 

Of course, Corn for as far as you can see.

Pristine water wanders throughout the valley. Fields of wildflowers are everywhere.

I found the Lost World! This is the home of Camels and Llamas.
If you click the photographs you can see a larger image.
I did not turn down this road. Should I have?
Over this hill is where the camels are hiding?

They are teasing me from over the hill.

I will return on a fair day very soon.

I hope this sparks curiosity for you, too?

To see what I could see. . .

Hugs