monday morning....

recovering from a really bad art day. i worked on my green paste paper on fabric with quilting wall hanging. i am not an experienced quilter, nor am i a patient and meticulous person. so i just tried to blaze away on my sewing machine (i did pin everything together!). alas, i used lots of stuffing and created a sort of a puckery piece. i just kept sewing away hoping to tame the folds, but gave up when i became totally frustrated. always a good idea to step away when things go bad...

this is a potential problem with this 52 weeks project: i tend to need to step away from projects for awhile when they don't go as planned, or the plan hasn't revealed itself to me. this is a good disciplin for me. so difficult to be consistent and keep it moving. today i will return to the scene of the crime and investigate.

after the green collage fiasco, i attempted some atcs and they just weren't coming together.
i decided to avoid the studio for the rest of the day!

today is going to be another scorcher - 100 degrees or so... so, i will take zoe (my dog) to the park to play, then head to the studio to work. i did receive an exceptionally inspirational set of atcs from my friend phyllis. on one she sewing a photo fragment "Papiers" (pictured to the right.) i like the idea of embellishing with sewing paper, photos, tags, etc. perhaps i will head in this direction. thanks phyllis! you rock!

on a path

well, i have decided to create a year long project for myself to find a direction! i find myself wandering around different materials and dabbling, but it all feels so disconnected and purposeless. i don't usually have a problem playing in the studio, but i am in need of structure! i will be experimenting and learning about new techniques using paper, fabric, felting, metal, yarn, string, clay... one new technique a week. i will create materials for use in other projects and create small projects each week. i am hoping to have fun and to also have some sort of artistic epiphanies! i must keep my work; well, at least, show it.

i began with an altered book: it is a book from 1898- a textbook. i had mixed feelings about cutting, tearing, etc. this lovely old book, however, it has just been on a shelf and of no interest to anyone. So, i fearfully began to fold, cut, rip, tie pages at random. i just wanted to manipulate the pages without adding color or outside images. it is a bit strange, but a new thing for me. i still have some additions to make.

my altered book in progress...
it looks so tortured, folded , cut, tied....