My First Encaustic Painting

I've been wanting to try my hand at encaustic for a while, so finally took some holiday time and tried my hand. This is the result, and I'm intrigued by the textural possibilities. FUN! Will do again. This is entitled "The Obelisk"

Backyard Archaeology

I went out way early this morning to pull weeds. I unearthed about 18 inches of brickwork at the edge of our patio, that has been buried long enough for me to forget it was there. Some rose canes were growing between them and had to be removed. Just a few years ago, I was unable to get down on hands and knees to do something like this. I'm grateful on multiple levels.

This Piece IS Finished! (or not!)

It has taken me a while to come to terms with this piece. It began as a 4-page accordion book which is shown in the post directly under this one. I wasn't satisfied so I kept working it. Thanks to those who viewed and commented! Two of the pages eventually pleased me, but the remaining ones seemed overworked. I mounted my favorites on black card stock. The leaves on the front cover were originally masks for inking the pages. The colored circles were cut from an unused page. The turquoise rawhide ties it together.
I am finally satisfied. PS 12/21/13 Looking at this again, I'm going to add some paint splatters to the leaves on the cover. They are pretty, but need a little something else. I'll post when it's done.

This piece took a long time to evolve, but that happens!

This Piece Is Not Finished

Did you ever know what you want, but aren't sure how to get there? That's happening with this little mini-book. I like the blue and the monoprints with the leaves. I like the art paper on the cover. I used paper tracings of the leaves as a mask when I inked in the blue

 and I like how they contrast with the cover. I'd like to finish the edges and add some rust color to those.

The inside isn't really what I want. I want layers. I want mystery. I'd like a darker tone. I'm wondering whether to collage some botanicals over it, or maybe cover it partially and redo it.

Ideas?

I'll keep you posted with its progress......

So true!

Do not imitate; do not follow others--you will always be behind them.                     Corot

Paper Transformed

I just bought Julia Andrus' book, Paper Transformed. She says something in there that I really like:
Such is the power of art. It is about relationships. What begins as an act of self-expression becomes a revealing connection when shared with others.

The Wye Oak

The Wye Oak was the oldest white oak tree in the United States, and was more than 500 years old. Sadly, it fell during a thunderstorm. It was 96 feet tall and its branches spanned almost 120 feet across.

The state of Maryland took the wood to a nearby park, and invited Maryland artists to come and take a piece or two. I was lucky enough to obtain 3 pieces along with certificates of authenticity from the state.

This fiber sculpture is made from one of those. I didn't want to alter the wood, so I embellished it with these "tree ears."

I also made a larger sculpture from another piece, which will post soon.