This cast bronze Octopus bottle stopper was created for a specific exhibition put on by the Wood Turning Center called "The Art of Opening: Bottles & Their Toppers". After receiving all the cork screws and stoppers, the Center teamed up with the Wheaton Arts Cultural Center in Millville, NJ and had local glass artists blow one-of-a-kind glass vessels for each piece. See the piece as shown in the exhibition below. Check out http://woodturningcenter.org/2009/exhibit4/index.html to see other pieces in the online gallery.
Frottage 1 - 24" x 36" Mixed Media Painting: Pastel, Acrylic, Gesso on Glassine
For this summer's program of continuing education (last summer I studied Architecture in Italy), I have embarked on a course in 'Mixed Media Painting Techniques' at Emily Carr University of Art. The course teaches the process of image-making on built surfaces and works with a range of materials such as gesso, plaster, paint, ink, charcoal, and various papers. I am learning to explore 'expression and emotion' through layering, drawing, brushwork, Frottage and Grattage following in the footsteps of the greats in mixed media painting like: Max Ernst, Mark Rothko, and Paul Klee. I particularly like my teacher, Diana Kubicek's style of teaching. She teaches us to explore the various techniques fearlessly and says repeatedly there are "no mistakes"in painting. As a matter of fact "mistakes can be the building block of a great masterpiece". I like that! I have always been interested in drawing and sketching since my days in Design School, but find that I never have the time to take a brush to paper and do larger abstract paintings and works of art. So this course is a perfect opportunity to allow myself the freedom to explore different mixed media painting techniques. The last class we spent exploring the technique of Frottage (from French frotter, "to rub") a surrealist and "automatic" method of creative production. Frottage was developed by Max Ernst.
Frottage 2 - 18" x 24" Mixed Media Painting: Ink, Acrylic & Pastel on Paper
In frottage painting the artist takes a pencil or other drawing tool and makes a "rubbing" over a textured surface. The frottage drawing can be left as is or used as the basis for further refinement (which we are supposed to do for homework with the pieces we created in this class). While this technique is superficially similar to brass rubbing and other forms of rubbing intended to reproduce an existing subject, frottage painting differs in being aleatoric and occurring by chance. Frottage was developed by Max Ernst in 1925. Ernst was inspired by an ancient wooden floor where the grain of the planks had been accentuated by many years of scrubbing. The patterns of the graining suggested strange images to him. He captured these by laying sheets of paper on the floor and then rubbing over them with a soft pencil. In my Frottage Paintings 1, 2 and 4 the textured surface that I used to make the Frottage rubbing was a bamboo mat, string, and screen. In Frottage Painting 3, I did the rubbing over a Gessoed canvas that was prepared with the free form focus on the bark of a tree. As I was doing Frottage Painting 3, rubbing on the Gessoed canvas, it slowly evolved to resemble a Japanese mountain landscape with a waterfall collecting into a pool at the base of the mountain. Our teacher guided us in exploring this technique in creating our Frottage paintings which is based on Surrealist automatism*.*Automatism is a surrealist technique in painting, practiced without conscious aesthetic or moral self-censorship. Automatism has taken on many forms: the automatic painting and drawing initially (and still to this day) practiced by surrealists can be compared to similar, or perhaps parallel phenomena, such as the non-idiomatic improvisation of free jazz.
Frottage Painting 3 - 18" x 24" Pastel on tracing paper
Frottage Painting 4 - 12" x 18" Mixed Media Painting: Acrylic & Gesso on paper
In the first class we explored the technique of mixed media painting starting with a base of Gesso
Study 1 - 11" x 14" Mixed Media Painting Technique: Gesso, Acrylic and Watercolor on Card Stock
Gesso is an art supply used as surface preparation or primer for painting and sculpting. Gesso is believed to have been developed in Italy, since the word gesso is Italian for 'chalk'. Preparation varies according to intended use, but usually consists of mixing glue with plaster, chalk, or gypsum. (Gesso is the perfect base for starting a mixed media painting.)
Gesso resembles paint, but is thinner and dries hard. Gesso is applied with a brush and must dry before the surface can be painted. This technique of applying Gesso was first created for use in painting, in order to give the surface the right properties to receive paint. In Gothic and Renaissance panel painting, the technique of applying gesso over a panel of wood was used in order to give the paint something to adhere to. It created a slightly rough surface and prevented the paint from seeping into the wood. We were taught to apply the Gesso to our surface of our mixed media painting with a palette knife using broad strokes to building up the surface. Then various tools are used to create the textures. In Study 1 I used a metal clay sculpting tool with a comb like ridge to scrape across the wet Gesso. I then used the edge of my pallet knife to scrape in the diagonal ridges, then finished off with blotting areas with a sponge. I let the piece dry and then applied watercolor and acrylic in layers to the painting, while at the same time using a roller to take off the excess wet color on the surface so that the paint pigment settled into the crevices of the Gesso. I used the side of my palette knife to scrape off the raised portions of the diagonal lines to reveal the white Gesso below - a technique called Grattage*. Also the Gesso doesn't extend to the edge of the paper and gives it an interesting border. *Grattage is a surrealist technique in mixed media painting in which (usually dry) paint is scraped off the canvas. It was employed by Max Ernst and Joan Miró
Detail of Mixed Media Painting Technique: Study 1 above.
Study 2 - 10" x 10" Mixed Media Painting Technique: Masking Tape, Gesso and Watercolor on Glass
Study 3 - 7" x 10" Mixed Media Painting Technique: Gesso and Watercolor on Paper
Have you had any experience with Mixed Media Painting, Frottage or Grattage or other Mixed Media techniques? Please let me know by leaving a Comment.
This is the time of the year, summer, glorious summer to spend time outdoors. Renew, refresh, get inspired. Visit your favorite garden or park, or dream about making your garden a little more special. I love gardens with pathways that invite exploration. Gardens that make you want to meander, to spend time and to contemplate the finer things of life. I love all the different colors of green in gardens. You don't necessarily have to have color in flowers to make a garden pop. Try different textures, shapes, and colors of greens. A well placed statue or urn gives the eye a place to focus and center on. A water feature can add a cooling element, and a splashing fountain can be a calming and soothing to the soul. Well designed gardens with meandering pathways with well placed plantings and focal points are truly works of art using nature as the canvas.
Garden Pathways
Lavender Garden Pathway Smell the lavender as you walk down the gravel path to the fountain with lily pads awaiting you. I imagine that this pool is filled with Koi and that there is a bench or comfortable seating on the other side to sit and contemplate.
Garden Pathway What a feat of design this elliptical planting between the slate pavers is. A well placed statue draws you to the end of this pathway.
Garden Pathway Still there are moments when the shadows fall And the low sea of flowers, wave on wave, spreads to the pathway from the rosy wall Saying in coloured silence, "Take our all; You gave to us, and back to you we gave. Vita Sackville-West
This beautiful arbor (above)is supported by a brick wall. It reminds me of the gardens that English poet and novelist, Vita Sackville-West created at Sissinghurst Castle Garden. In April 1930 Vita Sackville-West and her son, Nigel, were looking for an old house where she could make a new garden. Vita fell in love with Sissinghurst Castle and bought it, along with 400 acres of farmland. She spent the next 30 years planting and designing the layout of the garden using the walls & buildings already in place. She was also the first to plant an "all-white garden" because she wanted the color of the flowers and foliage to act as an illuminating factor to prolong the daylight hours and hence to be able to extend the time she could spend in the garden. I spent a delightful summer, several years ago, reading her book: Garden. The gardens at Sissinghurst that Vita so lovingly created, are now part of the National trust and are open for public viewing.
Garden Pathway Villa San Michele, Capri The house was small, the rooms were few but there were loggias, terraces, and pergolas all around it to watch the sun, the sea and the clouds -- the soul needs more space than the body.
Reading this poem just makes me sigh and relax. It is so true that "the soul needs more space than the body" and how wonderful to recharge by spending time strolling under this pergola and hearing the soft crunch of the pea gravel under your feet - A thing of beauty is a joy forever! Excerpt by Axel Munthe from La Strada della Dolce Vita
Garden Pathway
Garden Pathway Photograph David Duncan Livingston
Garden Pathway
Garden Pathway The best garden pathways can be the simplest, like this cut grass pathway above.
Garden Courtyard Pathway Pea Gravel Pathway Bulgari Hotel Milan I love the use of old brick for garden pathways. Old brick has a character and charm that is hard to duplicate with new materials.
Garden Pathway Garden on Turtle Creek, Dallas TX, (above and below) was designed by renowned Landscape Architects, Michael van Valkenburgh. The backbone of the garden is a continuous path of varied walking surfaces and garden pathways that flow from the house down the slope. The meandering stainless steel planks are hollow underfoot altering the pace of the walk through the garden. A brilliant juxtaposition of materials!
Garden Pathway Garden Pathway Versailles And who is not in love with the beautiful gardens at Versailles. The French really take their strolling in garden pathways seriously! Some of my most memorable and refreshing times have been spent in gardens walking their beautiful pathways while taking in the sights and smells around me.
What makes a perfect garden pathway for you? Please leave a comment and let me know.
If you like the idea of coming up with your own home Interior design,you are not alone. Lots of folks these days are planning out and then executing their own interior designs. But how do you come up with great home interior design ideas? Here are a few suggestions to get you started.
Probably one of the easiest ways to get home decoration ideas is to simply watch television these days. There are several shows that are dedicated to the subject of completely redesigning an entire house room by room. The biggest problem with watching these television shows is having something in front of you as documentation. So a couple of ideas that may help out is to have a pencil and paper available to take notes as you go, and also to record the program for viewing later on.
Even though you may get some great home interior design ideas from these television shows, ask yourself whether or not they will fit well in your particular home. Just because they look great on television in someone else's home does not mean that it will fit in well in your home. So try to visualize the whole project from beginning to end in your house. And plan, plan, plan. By taking extra precaution in the planning stages, you can ensure a more problem free application.
However, television is not the only source for home decoration information and ideas on Interior design. There are several great books on the subject that are able to help designers of almost any background and experience level. The advantage of books is that the documentation is already done for you. It usually has a very well thought out plan for implementing any kind of home interior design on its pages. And usually you'll be able to have more than enough photos and pictures to help get a good mental picture of the process as it goes.
Another way to get excellent ideas for interior design is to look through magazines on the subject. There is no shortage of magazines that are devoted to home decoration and interior design. Believe it or not, even many professional interior designers collect large quantities of magazine articles and pictures and store them in a way that will help them have a larger pool of ideas to draw from in the future. Not being a professional yourself, it may be a good idea to start your own scrapbook of home interior design articles and photos that you can separate according to a specific theme or room type. Sometimes, the best decoration ideas are a combination of things that are brought together from several different sources to form a unique, one-of-a-kind design.
As you become more comfortable with your own level of creativity, you will be able to combine aspects of one design with another more adeptly. However, as you start out it may be best to stick to the overall themes and suggestions given in the magazine for achieving the look that is desired.
The best white kitchen interior design with modern furniture style. Microwave, warmer drawer, oven, kitchen sink and faucet, cooker, extractor and stools by IKEA.
Minimalist Natural Kitchen interior design inspiration - Green and Orange Kitchen . Desk/cleanup area of this bold-colored kitchen packs a wealth of spaces savers in its scant dimensions. Wall cabinets open not only toward the dishwasher and sink so that clean dishes can be immediately stacked away, but also toward the dining area on the other side of the wall, for quick table setting.
This is the kitchen of a Vermont farmhouse build back in the 1800's. Location: Cambridge, Vermont (VT), USA. Best interior design - Vermont Country Kitchen classic style
Best kitchen interior design - Vintage Kitchen Stove chambers c model. This is a brand new house, and we brought the stove with us and had the kitchen built to fit it. The countertops were perfectly plain formica, but they were taking a beating with cratt projects and general wear and tear.
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2008
This is the time of the year, summer, glorious summer to spend time outdoors. Renew, refresh, get inspired. Visit your favorite garden or park, or dream about making your garden a little more special. I love gardens with pathways that invite exploration. Gardens that make you want to meander, to spend time and to contemplate the finer things of life. I love all the different colors of green in gardens. You don't necessarily have to have color in flowers to make a garden pop. Try different textures, shapes, and colors of greens. A well placed statue or urn gives the eye a place to focus and center on. A water feature can add a cooling element, and a splashing fountain can be a calming and soothing to the soul. Well designed gardens with meandering pathways with well placed plantings and focal points are truly works of art using nature as the canvas. 
