Teapots/Petals & Palettes

Yesteryears 9x12"

During the lovely month of May Cambria's Allied Arts Gallery is hosting a show called Teapots/Petals & Palettes. This springtime juried exhibit is dedicated to flowers, tea parties and all things Spring. I had two pieces accepted - Yesteryears - a collage of vintage doll clothes, bookcovers, a frozen Charlotte, silk and velvet blooms and petals and an illustration from an 80 year old children's book printed on linen. This piece won honorable mention and sold the opening weekend!

Les souvenirs d'Ete 5.5x10"

And Les souvenirs d'Ete, a vintage tin flower cone filled with velvet leaves, silk flowers and curly willow and a fleur di lys mounted on a weathered spring green board.
The show runs through June 5 at the Cambria Center for the Arts Gallery, 1350 Main Street. Come enjoy the springtime!

Cigar Box Wednesday

Rubber bands - but not the kind that come wrapped around the daily news. These are big thick, juicy journal rubber bands. Some are from 7 Gypsies, some from The ARTbar, a few from bunches of broccoli or asparagus. Use them when that journal gets so full of ephemera it just won't close on its own!

My favourite is the Book Bra (from 7 Gypsies) -
made of elastic with two
hook and eye closures in the back.

Pulp Fashion

Today we're off to the Legion of Honor Museum here in San Francisco to see Pulp Fashion the paper art of Isabelle de Borchgrave -

Belgian artist Isabelle de Borchgrave is a painter by training, but textile and costume are her muses. Working in collaboration with leading costume historians and young fashion designers, de Borchgrave crafts a world of splendor from the simplest rag paper. Painting and manipulating the paper, she forms trompe l’oeil masterpieces of elaborate dresses inspired by rich depictions in early European painting or by iconic costumes in museum collections around the world. The Legion of Honor is the first American museum to dedicate an entire exhibition to the work of Isabelle de Borchgrave, although her creations have been widely displayed in Europe.

Pulp Fashion draws on several themes and presents quintessential examples in the history of costume—from Renaissance finery of the Medici family and gowns worn by Elizabeth I and Marie-Antoinette to the creations of the grand couturiers Frederick Worth, Paul Poiret, Christian Dior, and Coco Chanel. Special attention is given to the creations and studio of Mariano Fortuny, the eccentric early-20th-century artist who is both a major source of inspiration to de Borchgrave and a kindred spirit.

The show runs through June 12.

Happy Anniversary!

Our cake topper

Seven years ago today Margot and I had our first wedding ( the legal one was three years ago this June). It has been exciting, joyful, fun, amazing, peaceful, surprising, contented, full of love and seven of the happiest years of my life. And when the federal government finally catches up to reality, we'll be able to have a third wedding!

Life on the Coast - Tiburon

photo courtesy of thisbounlessworld.com

Spending the day here, after a lovely ferry ride across the bay. Lots of time to sit back, enjoy a latte and journal, journal, journal!

Anniversary Weekend in San Francisco

We're off to spend a few days in San Francisco, celebrating our seventh anniversary. Well, seven years of domesticly partnered bliss (three years this June of legal married bliss!). We'll be taking the ferry to Tiburon, attending the Pulp Fashion exhibit at the Legion of Honor and visiting both a huge scrap metal yard and a place that sells tumbled glass by the pound! Can we say diversity?

From the Bookshelf

This lovely book is a delight for the eye. Ms. Koch's sketches are beautifully rendered, unerringly accurate and full of joy. Many different birds are featured in the four sections and descriptions are done in an artful calligraphy. One of a series that includes; Seed, Leaf, Flower, Fruit and Pond, Lake, River, Sea. Sit out on the deck in the warm spring sunshine with a glass of lemonade and take a lazy hour to leaf through this. Be sure to listen for the birdsong.

Morro Bay in Cayucos

Water & Stone 16x20"

Water & Stone, my rendition of Morro Rock, will be on display at the Cayucos Library during May and June as part of the Cayucos Art Association's Art in the Library show. The piece is a riot of textures - cheesecloth, garnet gel, even silk ribbon. Cayucos Library is located at 310 B Street, across from Hardie Park and at the back of the school. Library hours are Tuesdays and Thursdays 12-5 and Wednesdays 12-7. Drop by and see the art!

Saints & Crosses 24x36"

And this piece, Saints & Crosses, which was on exhibit in San Luis Obsipo at the Beacon 4 Art Show, sold last weekend!

Cigar Box Wednesday

Remember when we all covered our
vests and purses with buttons?

These have been collected over the last 50 years or so, some I found in my mother's desk after she passed, some I had in college, others have come more recently.

My favourite (since my wonderful wife Margot is an author!)

Portland Pages Too

It was fun to add postcards, brochures,
street detritus and business cards.

My travel journal kit of glue stick, paper tape, scissors (blunt-nosed for the plane), Staz-On ink pad and a few rubber stamps proved yet again, that, at times, you can to more with less.

It was great having the manila envelope page
to hold maps and things.

I will definitely be getting more of these Karen Katz
board books to use for short journals.