To Be or To Not Be

Shocked, last week, I realized I had split an

infinitive (oh the shame of it!).

I think diptychs are a visual depiction

of an infinitive verb.

Splitting them is just wrong.

Cast Your Vote!

                                                                                                    I'm not an abstract painter, but I enjoy abstract paintings nonetheless. It's like listening to someone speak a language that I don't understand, yet understanding what is said anyway.

I wondered if there was a particular style of abstract art that was more liked, or less liked, than others. Love 'em or hate 'em, most people do have an opinion about abstracts.

  

I decided to try a little experiment. On nine 7"x9" panels, I painted a variety of abstracts in 'typical' styles. Then on Facebook and in our little local gallery, I posted the panels and invited everyone to Cast Your Vote.

Take a look. Choose your favorite and the one you like least. Tell me your gender and age group too, for statistical purposes. I am curious if certain styles may be more or less liked by certain age groups. Write your vote in a Comment!

   Age groups are less than 20,
20 to 40, 41 to 60, and over 60.   Get in on the fun! Vote!

The work isn't that tough.

It is never too early to pass on our skills. We never know how much time we have.

All those years ago, my granddaughter was more help to me than she'll ever fully realize. It might take seven times as long to get things done, but the time spent together is timeless.

any moment now...

 

Sweetie-Pie-Love-of-My-Life scavenged a discarded filing cabinet. We are in the process of cleaning it and painting it bright red for my studio. Oh I can’t wait to sort through and file all the boxes of ephemera I’ve been collecting over the years. I have inklings of so many projects that just prickle on the verge of my consciousness…do you know what I mean? Do you ever have that too? Where you know there is an idea or important thought just on the edge of something in your mind, and you can’t quite read it yet, but you know that somehow it will suddenly materialize into a glorious AH hah  moment and you feel like you’ll land running.



a bit of rapsody

I fantasize about being a bohemian artist who sits in cafes all day with sketchpad/notebook in hand, and people walk by and look at you and just know that you are somehow special and have a gift to see that which they never can, and they want to come up to you and ask you something, anything, just to hear what you have to share about art, but at the same time they are intimidated so they just walk by pretending they never noticed you in the first place.

The Pursuit of Art is a Noble Thing # 1

“What do you mean we can’t have a moose head over our fireplace?” he asked with a grin. Clearly, Love-of-My-Life and I have differing ideas of beauty.

The phrase “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” (similar to “One man’s trash is another’s treasure”) may actually have less to do with preference and more to do with the eye’s physical ability to see.

Studies indicate that while, on average, one in 255 women suffers some form of color deficiency, as many as one in twelve men do. www.xrite.com/online-color-test-challenge  has a fun, free, online color challenge. The page opens to four strips of out-of-order color squares. You drag and drop the squares of color to correct the order to produce a smooth progression from one color to the next. Your score is calculated against others in your age and gender category.

While you are rearranging the colors, think about how you feel. We have all heard that blue calms and red can raise your blood pressure, but a new study revealed that green can boost your creativity.

Sue Shellenbarger reported in the Wall Street Journal that students were given creativity tests. 

Students who had green cover papers were consistently more creative in their answers than students who had white, red, blue, or grey cover papers.

Green paper aside, some of my most creative thoughts came when I left (the room).

Take a break. Leave the room. Imbibe liberally in a beverage of choice (mine is coffee).

Perhaps the most creative solution to the moose head is to braid green ribbons through the antlers and imbibe.

Cheers!  

first published in Big Country News,   13 March 2014.      

"e ... l " as in the prize

I always need to spell out my last name. Noble is common enough, but mine is spelled Nob-e-l. 'Like the prize' I often say when I get a puzzled look. For 30 years, the only 'Nobel' names in our city phone books belonged to Sweetie-Pie-Love-of-my-Life and me, and my in-laws.

Imagine our surprise and delight when Youngest-Son found this bag of candy in a specialty candy store! Our name is all over it! 'The Nobel's Times.' 'Nobel Super Shoga Candy.' I had to frame it.

ahh...the write life

A new weekly community paper opened in February this year. It seems that elsewhere there is much press about sports especially and also about music and drama, but very little is specific to visual art in the valley. In March, I approached Big Country News about the need for information about arts and the artists, and I offered to write columns to that end!

Whoo-hoo! They loved the idea. Since then I've been busy writing for the 2nd and 4th week of every month. On the 2nd week, I write about a tidbit of interest about art in general, and I showcase a local artist on the 4th. (I'll include my tidbits in this blog from time to time.)

 

Writing for the paper is a fabulous activity. I have decided to look again at books I had written years ago. Back then, I even went so far as to send some off to publishers and have grown a very healthy pile of rejection letters! I've read that many well-known authors began their career by accumulating hundreds of rejection letters. I'm in good company.

run on with canada post

When I heard that postage might be raised to a dollar, I wondered if Canada Post might reinstate a practice they offered about 20 years ago: reduced rate Christmas stamps for Christmas cards, because if postage is so high, no one will send cards any more...then Hallmark and Carlton won't profit and a box of cards will then cost $40, which no one will buy, so the paper producers will not profit, which forces them to increase the price of school loose-leaf packs which will sky rocket from 79 cents to $5, which moms won't pay, so children will not be able to complete schoolwork and will suffer failing grades, which means they will drop out of school, causing a shortage of skilled labor, which will create havoc on the economy, and families will have no choice but to curtail vacation trips to far and remote lands which is probably for the best since no one can afford to send a post card anyway!

 

(Stamps were later actually only (only!!) raised to 85 cents from 63. I wonder if it was never intended to be raised to a dollar, but that figure was tossed about so there would be relief rather than shock at the 22 cent jump.)

felinus hilarium

Who knew nearly two years could whiz by so quickly? Well...since I'm here, it should be obvious that I eventually did get set up with a new computer...a tablet actually. Fun. Portable. Now I can be one of those people who go out, and do work in pleasant surroundings: coffee shops, cafes, the park...

 

I have realized that too much time was frittered away, cloistered in my home studio, isolated.

On the other hand, it can be so cozy and snug at home. For most days the cat is all the company I need.

Ah, the cat. One can go bonkers.

 

One day, staring at a blank canvas, waiting for great things to come to mind, I was aimlessly twirling a wad of cat hair (yes...it can get that bad) when I noticed that it was 'spinning' into lengths of yarn-like string.

Well! The neurons were firing THEN, I'll tell you! I pulled the ends. It held. Unbelievable. Cat-hair yarn is strong. I proceeded to chase the cat, brush in hand, to gather as much fur as I could. In time I was quite pleased with the size of my bundle. She wasn't.

Could I knit with this? Oh the fun! Everyone should be so inspired! With my No. 6 needles, I actually knit a little mat. Will wonders never cease?

 

I offered to knit cat-sweaters for family members. Honestly...I had expected whoops of delight at the idea. They shrieked NO!

 

Solomon once said that there is nothing new under the sun. I thought my discovery was marvelously unique, until I found a book devoted to  Crafting With Cat Hair.

 

Who knew?

 

 

sorry....

My computer....click..whirrr...clikbeeep
i coax it to life for
one more time...just one more
       time
outmoded, obsolete, must update, must update
it burps
"looking for virtual memory" but it slumbers

no space...oh look! i hear the pipe
band, predictable
click...whirrr
the old chair with the striped cushion
rages against the storm,
holds fast, but i must update
replace, replace*


*sorry, my browser and computer apparently make updates to my blog nearly impossible.

the beat goes on...

I've been busy. Too busy, it seems to keep this blog updated. Ah well...better late than not at all.

I have plans for a project requiring hardcover books that I intend to alter. The libraries in Calgary offer used hardcover books for a mere 50 cents each so I greedily grabbed what I could from one near my home. My only considerations for these books were the dimensions and thickness. Subject matter didn't matter, as little would be recognizable once I was through with these books.

Well, Sweetie-Pie-Love-of-My-Life and I were about to embark on an R & R holiday, so I decided to take these books along to read--why waste a good book?

And what a coincidence! The main character in each book I had read had some connection to the arts! One was an art historian, another an art therapist. One involved a playwrite and actors. A most interesting one involved a woman who had fallen in love with a psychopathic, murderous artist who was confined in an asylum owned her psychiatrist husband.

It's a sign.

I'm too surrounded by art to give it up.

Okotoks Art Gallery

My manila SASE was returned to me today*. Yup. Rejected. The form letter stated that they had received 40 submissions and required only 12. I'm OK. It was a last minute submission, and I know that they were more inclined towards paintings rather than drawings...small ones at that. I was glad for the opportunity to update my files.

Dear-Eldest-Son told me he had a friend who had recently submitted a poem to a contest wherein the winners would have their work published. He was very excited when he received a rejection letter. He had great plans to frame, hang, and display proudly this letter. What he received, though, was a sheet that simply listed the names of the winners. That's it. No thank you for submitting; no statement of the number of submissions; no condolence at his loss. Just the list of winners. He was quite upset over this. "Don't worry," said his friends, "Maybe next time you'll get a real rejection letter!"

I suppose I could send him one of mine. I have a considerable stack of them, and I sure don't mind to share the wealth. Yeah, I know....rejection shouldn't be experienced second hand. He'll have to accumulate his own pile.

My favorite rejections are the personal ones--not the standard form letters with my own name slyly inserted in the greeting, but an actual personalized letter that mentions my project by name and states why it has been rejected. And sometimes, some letters even suggest where else I might like to send it.

Yeah, it is good to be rejected like that.

*see post: 17 May 2011

cricket

Ever notice how the "uncomfortable silences" are portrayed on cartoons? There is a scene with a crowd of people, and it is silent except for the cricket in the distance and somebody coughs. That was the response to my paintings at the fundraiser auction.*

I know....I know.....


My reserve bid was much too high. It was actually rather amusing. When the auctioneer stated my opening bid, I heard someone laugh--as in, "Yeah right. Who in their right mind would ever pay.....?"

I learned that small town art auctions are different from large city art auctions.

Perhaps I should rediscover the  miniature. Expand and try my hand at smaller (a.k.a. 'more affordable') art pieces. Suddenly my mind swells with images of grand and wonderful small things ranging from kitch to oh-how-interesting to oh-that's-lovely.

*see previous post

the reply is still in the mail

I haven't yet received a reply from the gallery about my drawing submission. I'm sure the strike at Canada Post isn't helping.*

In the meantime, the Drumheller Health Services is having a fundraiser/art auction into which I have submitted three pieces. The auction is tomorrow. Funds will be directed to the purchase of a Pediatrics Vital Signs monitor. I look forward to attending and meeting more people in this very fine town.

 

Whether my drawings do become an exhibit or not, whether any of my paintings sell at the fundraiser or not, I am and always will be an artist. Whoo-hoo for paint!

*see May 17

do as I say

Hello, Friends,

Did you catch that? "Hello COMMA Friends comma"

My librarian friend pointed out to me that proper English demands that a proper name must be set apart with commas before and after. :-)

Who knew?

Anyway, have a good day.....or, er....cheers!

Ellen (or should I say ,Ellen,)

reply is in the mail

Things worked against me, but I prevailed. Our gallery members were invited to submit show proposals to another gallery--due on May 15.

Moving here has been very disruptive to my art in that I'm still surrounded by towers of boxes in my studio. There seem to be too many things that have superseded the priority of unpacking. We suffered and grieved through three immediate-family deaths since we've moved here, these came on the heels of the deaths of my parents. This also meant closing down the two households of our parents. In the midst of all that, we had two (not our fault) auto accidents.

It's time to redirect energies.

Now is as good a time as any to 'get my feet wet' again and submit. But what? My things are in boxes, so painting up a storm is not likely. But I have drawings: a series of anapormorphic drawings in which the viewer must look through a device (here, a reflective sphere) to reconstitute the image. I seriously doubt the gallery is looking for drawings--that must lay on a table no less--but I wanted to submit anyway.

Hey, at least it forced me to update my CV (which I was certain I had saved on my PC, but apparently didn't--fortunately I remembered I had wrapped plates for our move with my old CV pages, so I had a good reference to rewrite from....once I found that box of plates!). I had to learn how to edit and transfer photos to CD from our new camera, go out and buy large envelopes and presentation folders, and write a project proposal. I then mailed it out in plenty of time; I've done all I can for this right now. Honestly, I'm not expecting anything....but you never know.

Homage to Bodies

It's been one of those days when.....well, you know.....when it feels like your face is stuck to your skull.

I have a cold, and it makes my whole face feel tight.


This reminds me that I went to see the exhibit "Bodies." It was truly amazing. You should go if you haven't seen one yet. They are all over the world.


Thus my Homage to Bodies.

Come have tea with Sam.

checking out the neighborhood

This evening I'm heading out to the local Badlands Gallery here in little Dinosaur-capital-of-Canada. It's a co-op of about 25-30 artists; ranging from self-taught-at-the-kitchen-table to having a FA degree and earning a living from their art; ranging from painter to sculptor to photographer, etc. They meet every third Wednesday evening. It will be my first visit to the group. I think I'll join. Fees are only $50/year (prorated to $25 this late in the year). Membership responsibilities include taking time to "man the gallery" a few times each month. I think that would be fun.

Considering the small size of this town, and the small size of the gallery, and the small size of the pieces of art, they generate quite a respectable amount of business throughout the course of the year. Apparently there is even an Art Walk in September in the arts district. Oh....I may have already missed that....but I haven't heard anything about that. I guess I'll find out tonight.

Hmmm.

Could be fun.

she knew it was easy to find

Remember that one day art fair* during the blizzard in December 2009? Well, will wonders never cease? I received an email from one of the guests that stopped by that day. Some had glanced through my portfolio and took a b'card. I don't usually expect anyone to contact me again--but she did! She wrote to say that one painting, the one with the gem stones, wouldn't leave her. She asked if she could "meet it in person." She was trying to decide if she needed to purchase He Said It Would Be Easy To Find or not. We made an appointment. She came in and was smitten. That's all I can say about her reaction. She could barely take her eyes off of the painting and wanted to know everything about it--why did I paint it, what does it all mean, is there a hidden reference, what are all the stones, etc.

Eagerly she made the purchase and took this beauty home right away.

I was astounded.

Just like that, she bought my work.

Just like that, I sold art. It's been a long time.

*See posts: Nov 28, Jan 5.

down in the dinosaur dump

So....nearly half a year since my last blog. We have settled nicely in Dinosaur-capital-of-Canada, in our new home (Well--we are still surrounded by towers of boxes, though. How could we possibly have accumulated so much?). We finally made the move here at the end of June. Our house in our City-of-1.2million hasn't sold yet, and it continues to be a concern. Life here is amazing. I wonder why everyone doesn't move to a little town? City-of-1.2million (though I've heard that it has diminished somewhat) has news headings about local shootings and torture victims. A recent front page report here was a two car pile-up to which EMS and police were sent, but it was happily reported that no one was seriously injured.

Sweetie-pie-love-of-my-life and I pruned our hedge. The top reached the eaves of our house. We felt we lived in a shrub box. Four feet (1.1m) less later, we filled the truck and headed to the dump to dispose of the branches.
Well....
Who would have expected that we would be overwhelmed with a sight of incredible beauty at the local dump yard? I had never seen such a thing! As we drove in, we passed an area of level ground FULL of hundreds of gulls squished together, all facing the same direction, as if waiting for further instruction from their master. Then we rounded a mound to the area we could dump. At the end of this lane was the wall of dirt and trash to which we headed. Gulls! Hundreds! No...a thousand or more! All were flying in a circle over the lane. As we neared the back dirt wall, hundreds of gulls flew off the wall, right over our truck, only about 4-5 feet (1.5 m) overhead.
It was stunning. All these birds flying right over us, so close, so in unison with each other. It was magic to behold. Oh, where is a camera when you need one?
I was moved by this gift of unexpected beauty in a place where most would not think to look. Indeed, next to us a mother hollered at her daughter to help unload the trash so they could hurry out.
Both of us were present at this same event, yet she was totally oblivious to the wonder that circled above us both.
I don't ever want to become so complacent or jaded or even just too busy that I fail to see the wonder and majesty that is all around us every day in even the littlest things.
P.S. The above photo was taken at a later date. I hoped for a repeat scene, but the gulls just weren't there in the same numbers. This picture only gives a taste.

left turn at the next exit

You know how sometimes, you just go through the motions of life--generally being not particularly aware of time passing, and then suddenly out of nowhere a curve ball (no...an asteroid!) hits and your life takes on a new course?

Well....so it is. I suddenly (yes, it was that quick) find that the Lord God has decided that Sweetie-pie-love-of-my-life and I should leave the city we've raised our sons in and lived in for most of our lives to move to the Dinosaur capital of Canada.

I'm soooo excited! I can't wait. We move from a community with a population of 1.2 million to one of 6,000. I called the post office there and immediately got a human being on the phone. Wow. I expected to be greeted by a recorded message  that would guide me through way-too-many options only to be frustrated because there is no 'change your address' option.
The biggest news on the town paper's front page was whether the main street should stay with diagonal parking or change to parallel parking. I can't wait.

The Lord God provided a job for Sweetie-pie-love-of-my-life, and we found a great house that has--gasp--a studio for me that is more than twice the size of my current studio! If anything will jump start my art career, it is having room to move!

The only thing is that we still have to do is sell our house here. We're trusting that that will happen too.

Soon, I hope.

let your yes be yes, and your no be no

I saw The Interpreter the other day. The main character stated that she became an interpreter because too many wars were fought based on words that were misinterpreted.

Years ago, Best-in-Laws wanted to know what I would like to receive from them for my birthday gift.

"Oh, I would love to have a wall clock in my studio," I replied. "I want one with a clear face so that it's easy to read at a glance!"

My birthday arrived, and they were very pleased to present me their gift. "We looked everywhere for this, but we finally found it!"

I was a bit confused at it being such a difficult task. Their faces beamed with delight at the success of the venture. I was so surprised when I saw the clock. The clock was transparent!

Wow....

When I asked for 'clear' I meant 'unobstructed' as in no design clutter among the numbers and hands like flowers, or fruit, or dots, or checks, or texture, or....

They heard 'transparent' when I said 'clear.'

No wonder it was difficult to find! I hadn't the heart to say 'transparent' wasn't what I meant.

The trouble with the transparency, though, is that I've had to put paper behind the clock so I could read it!

yellow and blue make pink

About 15-20 years ago I worked part time with a design company. They'd hand me swatches of fabric, and I had to copy, exactly, the color and pattern onto accessories such as picture frames or plant pots--in acrylic paint. This meant that I had to mix paint colors lighter than the actual color required and anticipate how much the acrylic would darken as it dried--and yet match precisely.

Friend-who-encourages asked how do I know what colors I need to mix the color I want? She often ended up with a muddied version of her desired hue.

I replied,"I dunno. I just look at it."
"But how do you know?"

I shrugged,"I just see it."

"But what's your method?"

"I just look at it and know." How in the world to I explain something I know so well intuitively, but have absolutely no idea how to explain in words!

Last week I discovered how. While perusing my local library, I stumbled upon this gem of a book: Blue and Yellow Don't Make Green by Michael Wilcox. This book clearly explains in words what I've intuitively known all along. Thank you Michael! Highly recommended.

what a day!

What a day the art fair was! There was a blizzard the night before. The roads were loaded with an average of 8-10 inches(25cm) of snow with drifts up to 4 feet(1-1.5m) high. And it kept on snowing. Few roads were plowed. As soon as one main road was cleared, it had to be plowed again immediately. The snow was relentless. It accumulated faster than it could be cleared. Those who did venture out inevitably came head on with an oncoming car. The problem was that there was only one set of tracks, so one car had to plow into a 2 foot snow bank to allow the other to pass through. Buses were sliding sideways down streets. Semi trucks were left stranded in drifts. The news later showed photos of people who were kneeling beside the roofs of their cars, trying to dig them out!

And we had an art fair today.

Man......

Who would go out on a day like THIS to visit an art fair?

I live quite close by, so Sweetie-pie-love-of-my-life and I loaded up the 4 wheel drive and headed out. It was a journey alright, but I made it. I tip my hat to my fellow artists who had to travel much farther and yet braved the elements to uphold their commitment. Yes, we artists are a tenacious bunch.

What truly amazed me, though, was the reasonably significant volume of people that came to this little, out-of-the-way, off-the-beaten-track (literally!) fair.

It was a good day. Connections were made. I sold a few art cards. More took my b'card. I met another artist whom I had known years ago when we both were members of the FCA. This venue was fun. I may come back for a show of my own at some point.

But I think I'll plan for a warmer season!

lemonart

So the little studio show was fun. If nothing else, I updated my portfolio and met new people. A few took my card and said they may call me....later, depending on tax returns!

Now I am preparing for the little one day art fair at Chroma Colour. It will be next week, Saturday December 5, 2009; 10:00 am-5:00 pm.

There's an older song that says, "Lemon tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet, but fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat." We, in our studio show, have each had a rough year with much to grieve. Thus the title of our show. Yeah art!

great tip!

NOTICE!! Don't toss those nifty 'canning jar lidded' applesauce jars from Sunrype! I can't believe it took me so long to recognize their value. I always have a litre can of latex urethane on the go. The trouble is that it can take a couple years before I use up the can. In the meantime, the lid looks like a demolition field and won't hold a good seal after several openings. I tried to keep the can sealed in a ziptype baggie that sometimes worked and sometimes didn't. I was whining about my recurring loss in dried up urethane to Sweetie-pie-love-of-my-life and wondering how I could more conveniently store this airtight. He suggested storing the urethane in a canning jar....

Well....why did I never think of such a thing? And as providence would have it, we had just emptied an applesauce jar, and he said, "What about this?"

Of course, time will be the test, but anything is better than my usual mess of crunched can in plastic.

----Tomorrow is the first day of the studio show&sale. I wish I could be confident of success, but I'm not. I know Friend-with-good-ideas has a significant network of clients; I can count mine on one hand. Regardless, I will go forth and conquer! Yeah art...I go armed with coffee, cookies and lunch. I also have several tiny stretched canvases and my box of paints. It may be a surprisingly productive day yet.

finally...baby steps

Well, here goes. I've been busy. Next week, Nov 25-27, Friend-with-good-ideas and I are hosting a studio show&sale in her studio. I have my little box full of small art pieces (framed sketches, matted pen&ink, small paintings, art cards, etc.) and am ready to trundle off to set up with her. The real fun will be spending the days painting together while we host the show. (Note to self: don't forget to bring supplies!) What I paint there, I will include in my art fair in December.

I'm looking into possibilites to connect with an art co-op. I've been out of the loop and sequestered too long. Coffee with my art friends is great, but I need to connect outside my comfort zone.

Anyway....time for my own coffee. I have a couple art theory magazines (SEEN: the Journal of CIVA) waiting to be devoured!

.....

It is better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.

--quote from Criminal Minds

so cool...

a-mor'-phism n. 1. has no determinate form; of irregular shape. 2. of no particular kind.

Amorphic art was a very popular form of entertainment during the 1500s -1600s. I think it was the precursor to CG and all those special effects that make people say, "Ooohh! How did they do that?"

I had fun trying this: to draw an image so distorted that it looks 'normal' on a reflective sphere.

Believe me!!! There was much trial and error!

all is not lost

Though the venue for the one-day show fell through, I will join my artist friend, Friend-with-good-ideas*, for a three-day in-studio show&sale at the end of November. Then we'll both participate in an art fair hosted by an art studies studio in December. (details to follow......)

I know...I know. These are hardly 'serious' art shows. But when you haven't been very active at all for a long time, you just need the right nudge to get the ol' juices flowing. These shows are a non-threatening spring-board back into business.

Now I suddenly feel the need to get busy. I need product!! This is truly the hard part for me. I have a difficult time making small-art-for-quick-sale. My most successful work has always been those with which I labor emotionally. If the act of painting is emotionally void for me, the end result lacks that 'something' and it looks only like an object with paint smeared across it. But maybe I should just try to churn out a volume of small works for no other reason than to produce plenty--not worry about 'content' or significance. I think I just need to practice painting and drawing again--simply for the love of the act of creation, for myself. If others love them enough to buy them--bonus!

*first introduced on coffeepaint.blogspot Nove 26,2008.