Artful Adventures

Shop to Remember Tracie Miser

 
Feel like shopping?  A lot of you may remember Tracie Miser, who was very active in altered art of all kinds, and also very good at it.  She was a good friend of mine that I met through the yahoo group for Altered Books where she was the first to volunteer to act as a mentor, and I was her first "mentee".  A friendship was born that I feel very lucky to have had in my life.  She did so much more than offer advice (which she freely offered up), but also introduced me to Valley Ridge Art Studio, insisting I go take some classes with her, something I can't thank her enough for.  That's where we first met in real life, sharing our lives, sitting up late chatting, trying to solve all our problems and had a lot of laughs, too.  If you knew Tracie, you know how much she liked to shop-unbelievable!  I swear she had every stamp, paper, tool, whatever that was out there for sale.  Keep reading, more about this coming up.  Sadly, Tracie passed away last fall, you can read about it here.  Since then, her sister Erika and husband Ron have left their home in WI and moved to Tracie's neighborhood, buying a house near Tracie's house so they could take in her her 3 boys and not disrupt their lives anymore than it already has been.  This will allow them to keep their old friends nearby, go to the same schools, stay in the same sports, etc.  A huge loving sacrifice on their part!  Ok, now to the shopping part, Memories & Beyond in Downer's Grove, IL has agreed to do a sale/benefit this coming weekend to liquidate all of Tracie's supplies-we're talking well over 3000 stamps alone, not to mention everything else she had!  100% of the proceeds are going directly to a trust fund for the boys, since the store is donating all their time, space & staff to this, they're asking to not use charge cards so no more expenses are incurred.  The store is located at 1400 C 75th St, Downer's Grove, Il and the phone# is 630-217-0610 if you have any questions.  Ron, Erika and the Boys will be there during the sale on Sat, 6/26 from 10-6 and again on Sunday 6/27 from 12-6 with a collection of pictures and a collection of Tracie's work.  If you're in the area & can make it, it's going to be amazing!  Sadly, I can't be there, but I will be sending a donation.  If you can manage to do so, all donations would be appreciated and can be sent directly to First Community Bank, 2728 West 75th St, Naperville, IL, 60564, attn: Tracie Miser Children Fund.  I've also got Erika's address if you'd like to send a note to the family, just let me know  I'll send you the address.  Tracie will be missed, but here's a unique chance to help the family, something I feel really good about.  So on this longest day of the year, I'm hoping you all strongly consider shopping or donating-you'll feel great either way!

Care to Join Me?

 

For a cup of coffee?

 
Or maybe some tea?  Who wouldn't be enticed when using this beautiful pottery made by the very talented Renee' Schwaller of Off the Wheel Pottery in Egg Harbor, up in Door County.  I met Renee' a few years ago, when I was invited to participate in a show there, what an honor!  And then last summer, I had my own show there, sharing space with Renee' in a wonderful converted barn, so much fun!  If you get the opportunity to visit Door County this summer, put this shop on your list of places to go.  If you can't get there, she'll gladly ship something to you that's caught your eye on her website or on facebook.   I'm fortunate enough to own a few of her pieces, and have added to my little collection, the coffee cups from the top picture.  It was actually a trade we made, her art for mine.  But when I look at the quality of her work, and the detail, it makes me wonder if I got the better end of the deal!  Whenever I look at art in a medium that I have no experience with and have never tried, I'm always in awe of what can result from 2 hands, learned skills, and a lot of creativity.  Do all artists feel that way?  Not that I don't have respect for artists in my own field and look at their art in awe, because I do,but at least I have a clue how (most of the time anyway!) how they did what they did.  Anyway, I'll leave you with a couple more images images of Renee's work, incuding a vessel sink that I'd love to own.  And hopefully will if we get the last of the addition touch ups done, the gardens done, a lot of clean up done, and then be able to do a little work in the bathroom-we'd better hurry up before it's gone!

  
 

Another Celebration!

Turns out that my birthday last week end, was shared not only by my "birthday sistah", the one & only Annie Lockhart ,if you ever meet her, you'll love her, but be prepared for her practical jokes-I still owe her one!  The date also marked the 5th anniversary of MMCA, which started out as, and continues to be, a group of artists brought together to share their collective knowledge, exchange ideas and techniques, as well as mentor each other.  The group has grown over the years and branched out a bit, quite a bit!  It now offers a Marketplace so that anyone can set up shop to sell their art, and a blog that offers interviews for us to read, free images to use in our art, and everything in between.  The most recent interview was by Sheri Gaynor, it's a great interview, as they all are.  I've got Sheri's book, and recently posted about it, so I was pleasantly surprised to see her interview-made  it a good day for me:)  Now that I think about it, I should let you know that if you care to join us in the Marketplace, there's been some changes-the best one is that you have the option (there's several payment plans to choose from) of not spending any money up front!  Just apply (all the info is on the front page of the Marketplace), let Debbie build your shop page while you create, and not pay anything until you sell something-good deal with Christmas looming ahead!  The MMCA group itself, like any group, you can participate in as much or as little as you'd like-my favorite kind of group, life gets busy sometimes!  But pop in, check us out, meet some new friends, say "HI" to some old ones, and you just never know what's going on-like right now there's a drawing for a month long class, LK Ludwig's Point & Shoot Journaling class.  I'm in the class this month (and LOVE & it!) recently posted about it, you can find it here.  Hmmm, I got a lot chattier than planned, and threw out a lot of "linkie love"-so click away and enjoy:)

Art Now For Autism

 
Please go over to the Art Now for Autism site and take a look at all the art that's been donated, and 100% of the art sales will go to Autism Speaks through their National Walk Now for Autism Speaks event.  If you've followed my blog, you already know how I feel about Roy Bedward, an artist who happens to be autistic.  I'd do just about anything to help him, help find a cure, and most importantly-help those with autism find a voice, and let them be heard.  You can read more about Roy here &here &here, to get a glimpse of someone who has so much to say, but is non verbal.  Although with help, he can type, and his words will bring tears to your eyes.  So---that said, here's all the details of the Art Now for Autism event, and please do share it on your blogs-spread the word!  Today is still a preview day, but you can start shopping tomorrow.  And maybe even consider donating work for this cause for next year-I know I will be!! 

Cause Announcement from Art Now for Autism

We are pleased to announce the opening of Art Now for Autism 2009.

An online exhibit and reverse auction benefitting autism awareness and research.

October 1-10, 2009
http://www.artnowforautism.com

October 1-4 : Preview of Art.
Opens at 9am EST on October 1.
Art exhibit will be open online at www.artnowforautism.com.
All work will be viewable but not on sale.

October 5 & 6
Reverse Auction Opens AT 9AM EST.
All Art is $90

October 7 & 8
Unsold art drops to $60 at 9AM EST on Oct. 7.

October 9 & 10
Last two days.
Final price starts at 9AM EST on Oct. 9.
Any remaining art is $30

This year's exhibit includes the work of 89 artists from around the USA, Canada, France, Italy, Australia, Brazil, and the Netherlands. Included in this amazing list of artists are a number of artists with autism spectrum disorders. 160 pieces of fine art and craft are included in the exhibit. There is something for everyone!

Please help us spread the word about Art Now for Autism by forwarding, tweeting, posting, blogging, and talking about Art Now for Autism!

100% of art sales will go to Autism Speaks through their National Walk Now for Autism Speaks event.

We appreciate your support! Any questions? Please email Claudine Intner, the organizer of Art Now for Autism at [email protected]

THANK YOU!

View Announcement on Facebook

Let's Pretend it's Yesterday--

 ----And Think Pink!!  We all know that October is dedicated to finding a cure for breast cancer, right?  Is there anyone out there who hasn't been personally affected by this disease, either by losing a loved one, knowing someone who's fighting for their life, or maybe it's even you that's doing battle against Breast Cancer.  For me, I've lost my maternal grandmother and one of her daughters to breast cancer, and there's a couple of my online friends with it, and they're kicking it's butt!!  If we each do a little something, that power in numbers can beat this disease down someday, and I hope I'm around to see that day come and celebrate!  I'm going to do my part-for the entire month of October, I'll be donating 20% of all sales made in my shop (just click on that shop link & it'll take you straight there) that I have at  MMCA Marketplace, to the Susan G Komen for the Cure Foundation.  Make sure to check the shop often, as I'll be adding new art, all sorts of things, throughout the month.  So lets have some fun, do some shopping and make a donation to fight breast cancer all at once!

  

More Show Report

Several of you have asked for more of what's become known as "the Show Report", so here goes:)  The show runs until Aug. 22, at Off the Wheel Pottery in Egg Harbor, up in Door County.  The gallery itself is one end of an old barn that's been converted for gallery use, but not in the traditional sense of the word.  There's this one white wall that's been installed to section off the gallery space from the rest of the barn.  The other walls are still the old barn boards, complete with the open spaces between the barnboards that let the natural light come streaming in.  I was in such a panic getting ready, that I remembered that wall being endless, and was worried I'd never have enough to fill it, and actually ended up bringing too much!  Bet that'll never happen again:) 

When you walk in the door to the gallery, "The Girls" are straight ahead, front & center!  Those are each 2'x3' , just to give you an idea of the size of the walls, and they're hung quite high  with displays of Renee's pottery beneath them-worked out perfectly. 

It's hard to see on here, but Gary built a jewelry display case that's hanging just to the left of the door.  He made it out of an old window that he hinged for the front and built a box type structure on the back to attach it to.  Not the best description, but you get the idea.  There's more jewelry in Renee's studio, and if you happen to get up there, make sure to go into her studio to see her work-you'll fall in love with it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Besides wall art & jewelry (now why is this text all underlined?) I brought along some journals that I made out of the pages of nature prints that I did last year after reading LK Ludwig's book, Mixed Media Nature Journals.  If you don't already own this book, treat yourself and get a copy, it's a great one!  No blank white pages in these books-these 6"x12" books are loaded with color & various leaf prints from foliage around the yard.  Time consuming, but well worth it!  Try it, you'll be hooked!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back to the opening (and apparently the underling is here to stay also!) it went just fine!  A steady flow of people that were all so nice, and I was a nervous wreck for no reason! I knew I had done work that I felt good about, so it was all fine, really.  Funny part though, I had ordered some clothes to wear from Oh My Guaze, wanting something to wear that was a little funkier.  I waited til the last minute to order, and as a result I got them at the last minute-just a few hours before we left for the show!  Someone was looking over me on that one-they fit, were comfortable, and was just the look that I wanted-whew!  There's actually more to this story about the show and how it all came about, but that'll be for another day.  Starting tomorrow there's another blog event you won't want to miss out on!  Seth Apter of The Altered Page is hosting an event that he's calling Buried Treasure.  All participants are asked to repost at least one of their favorite posts from their blogs, a way for bloggers to get to know each other better, and read something special in the process.  Something you won't want to miss!  Since I'll be participating, I'll see you all tomorrow!

A few things for the show

Photos are a tad crooked, but you'll get the idea-here are a few of things hanging-will give you all the "show report" complete with photos this week end-wish me luck!

It 's a Show & you're invited!

Even though I had a grat excuse to not be spending so much time on the computer, I shouldn't have just vanished as I did-for that I apologize.  But----please do celebrate my very first show with me!  The very talented potter, Renee' Schwaller of Off the Wheel Pottery invited me to be her featured artist this summer, showing my art along with her fabulous pottery in her gallery which is a renovated barn.  I really haven't said a whole lot about it to many people for all these months because, well, I quess because I had to see it to believe it.  We hung the work yesterday, I saw, and I believe!  The opening reception is this Friday, the 19th-and for some reason I'm not even freaking out about it, odd for me.  After that, it's quick get ready for that hip replacement on the 24th, see if I have any better luck this time around than I did in
December!  What would the odds be, really, of finding another blood clot or something else to postphone it again?   So, it's going to happen this time!  And hopefully, by the time of surgery, I'll still be grinning about what a fun reception I had:)

An invitation----

As I've mentioned before, I have art for sale on my own shop page, within the cyber walls of MMCA Marketplace, a very cool online business set up to help us artists get as much exposure as we possibly can. The Marketplace is accepting new applications, so if you're thinking of looking into a new & different online venue, read on, go check it out, and see what you think!

 Invitation to Join the MMCA Marketplace

You've been hearing all the buzz lately about the up & coming MMCA Marketplace, and now we'd like to extend an invitation for you to join in on this exciting online marketing venue. If you are an artist who is committed to producing quality, original art, we welcome you to apply for membership now while we're doing an open enrollment.

Applicants are judged on quality, style and value to ensure that our Marketplace can effectively represent you, and so that we can offer "something for everyone" who comes to the Marketplace to shop. We strive to represent those artists who are devoted to their work and are constantly refining their skills. Artists accepted into the Marketplace will be coming together with the current members, adding to the already widely varied background of styles, mediums, and pricing, making it possible to offer our clients quality art in the medium of their choice.

While our standards are high, our membership costs are not. Benefits of belonging to the MMCA Marketplace include:
•Your own shop page including your branding logo and short bio
•Local, Regional and National Press Campaign
•Website, blog and contact links listed on shop page
•20 images with short product descriptions with Buy Now buttons
•Featured Artist rotation on Marketplace Blog

Some of our more recent promotions are:
•We made headlines in local, regional and national publications
•Our artists participated in a gallery exhibit in Central Pennsylvania
•We advertised in a nationally published magazine

To accommodate various budgets, we have three membership options. If you believe you belong with us, please consider submitting an application.
Marketplace Application

New Jewels

 

After what seems like forever, there's finally some new art to share.  Six new necklaces to be exact, that are listed over in my shop at the MMCA Marketplace online shop.  I was going to wait for my new DVD from Sharilyn Miller to see if I could quick learn some new techniques to incorporate into these, but it got hung up somewhere in Minnesota, most likely due to a snowstorm.  But it was fine, I used a few new to me techniques from this DVD instead, and now I can concentrate on learning more for the next round.  But first I need to get away from the jewelry for a little while and get back in the studio & sling more paint.  I hadn't worked in that room for a week or so, and when I walked in there the other day, it actually felt welcoming, I'm hoping this is a sign of good things coming! 

 

These past couple of months I've had such a hard time concentrating on making art, at first because I was worried about this blood clot, but I can't control it, so I'm trying hard to not think about it, whatever happens, happens.  But being blasted non stop by the media about this recession makes it difficult to think about anything else.  Yes, there's the option of turning off the TV, not watching the news or reading a paper, but it's not enough.  A good friend of mine is losing her business, and foreclosure proceedings have started against both her business property & her home.  Another friend's husband lost his job before Christmas and neither one of them has been able to find full time jobs.  And we just sit & watch our hard earned 401k shrink at an alarming rate.  And I'm sure that you all have similar stories & experiences, and it breaks my heart to see these bad things happening to good people.  So what do we do?  I say we try our best to keep a positive attitude, hope & pray that this starts to turn around and keep people in their homes.  The good news is that most of us have such a stash of art supplies, that we can keep working, creating beauty if for no other reason than hoping it'll bring a smile to someone's face.  We can keep working to get better at what we do, move forward, and someday soon look back & say we did it-we survived!  So lets have some fun, create, share, learn, and hang on for dear life.