.......LA LA LAND.......

Help in the Art Lair

2012-01-17T13:05:00.001-08:00

It IS true- good help is hard to find.

I entered the Art Lair this afternoon, all ready to start making a new shadowbox.

The above photo shows you what- who- I found on my desk.

And not far away, laying on the carpet, I found the shattered remains of the teacup that I had planned to use in a new piece entitled "Victory".

As an artist, I spend a lot of time 'percolating'. I assemble cool found object bits (like cool black teacups with swirls on the front), go away for awhile (sometimes weeks) and then come back with a plan.

Thanks to my furry assistant, Angus, I am now moving on to Plan B.

Which may take a few more weeks because I wasn't expecting "help".

Happy New Year from the Art Lair!

2011-12-31T12:58:00.000-08:00

My Art Lair desk.

The Art Lair Magic Cupboard.

Christmas has come and gone, allowing Betty Sager and I to find the time to chat with each other about our upcoming show at the WKP Kennedy Gallery and Thames Art Gallery. We decided that we liked the theme 'Life and Death'. We haven't decided on a title just yet, but I'm thinking "A Matter of Life and Death" might be a good choice.

Both Betty and I create found object art shadowboxes which I am gradually learning is a somewhat unique niche in art. I am quite excited about working with her, as I have never met another shadowbox artist. I'm sure we will have a lot to talk about.

In September, when the afterburners cooled off and The Exhibitchin' at ARTspace was behind me, I have to admit that I was ready to quit shadowboxing and work in found object sculpture.

I wanted to work outside the box.

Unfortunately, my frustration with trying to figure out how to attach larger items together overwhelmed me. In a shadowbox, I can take a bit of glue and make just about anything stick to anything. Minimal physical effort. But attaching a vanity table leg to a drawer to suggest a Furniture Woman, as I was planning, had me confused. I just don't work with items that big and stability is a huge factor. I had nightmares of my fabulous Furniture Women collapsing on unsuspecting art patrons in North Bay. I came to the conclusion that working with unfamiliar ingredients and preparing new (and probably precarious) sculpture pieces for an exhibition is NOT the time to experiment with drills, carpenter's glue, and sweating. Plus I would need a willing assistant, as I can't hold a drill.

So, my motto for 2012 is "Go with what you know". My artwork this year will be the same media (shadowboxes, photos, printmaking) but I am going to try and do it all a little differently.

In terms of the upcoming exhibition, Betty is choosing life. I am choosing death- as a theme, that is. I am going to create pieces that push the macabre theme I've been subtly sliding into for a few years now (an example is the photo "The Nightmare of Suzie-Q"). I'm gonna let it fly, and not care if people start avoiding me in public places. For 2012, I am going to let loose my inner Goth Warrior Queen.

Happy New Year to all my friends and Lone Wolves out there. We are all connected and are merely channelling some larger creative force.

Let's open our minds and let it fly.

In the Crosshairs at the Juried Show 2011

2011-12-07T17:51:00.000-08:00

And here I am, posing with my piece "In the Crosshairs"

at the Thames Art Gallery Juried Show 2011.

I think many people found my tryptic disturbing. I just want to explain that I have been featuring a doll named Muffy in my artwork for a few years now, and about three months ago, I decided I didn't want to utilize her image for awhile. Maybe never again.

"In the Crosshairs" is my way of 'killing her off', so to speak.

I am now embarking on my quest to create work for a show at the WKP Kennedy Gallery in North Bay and the Mezzanine Gallery in the Thames Art Gallery here in Chatham. And I do not want to use Muffy in any of my work. I think I have evolved somewhat. This is not to say that I will discard all doll images completely (they're always good for a laugh!) but I think I've reached a point where I can say what I need to say without using doll parts.

I think. Besides, I think I was getting type-cast.

Regardless, I was pleased to be selected for the Juried Show. It is my first 'paid' show as an artist, and being chosen gave me a real boost. It is especially interesting that I was selected, as I wasn't even going to enter. I ended up being one of only two artists selected from Chatham!

So there's today's lesson- you can't win if you don't participate. And apparently you can do just about anything you want if you present it right.

RIP Muffy. For now.

I Filmed My Drive to Work for the upcoming Community Arts Initiative

2011-10-10T10:28:00.000-07:00

The Mothership, just out of the driveway and on the road to work,
at 8:15am on any given weekday.

It's Thanksgiving Monday. After lunch. I'm still in my jammies. What bliss!

I have been working all morning on my entry for the lastest Community Arts Initiative, which is a film-based project that will be shown in the Mezzanine of the Thames Art Gallery. The opening is October 21st at 7pm.

Our group, about 12 of us, chose the topic of 'fear'. After much deliberation, I decided to film my drive to work. At first, I taped my camera to the dashboard of the Mothership and filmed my drive to work. Not only did the film capture me constantly changing radio stations, it also managed to record the sound of the tape on the camera unsticking and resticking to the dash as I drove over bumps in the road. While Boston is harmoniously wailing "don't look back", you can also hear "shtick, shtickity, tick, tickkk, shtick" as an irritating backbeat. It wasn't the effect I was initially planning, but I decided that it mimicked the general sound assault that my ears undergo on my ride to work during a time when I am still, really, waking up.

The next day, I wedged the camera between the top of the passenger seat and the headrest. No "shtick, tick, tickity'. Instead, because I couldn't see exactly what I was filming because the display screen was facing the back seat, I managed to film most of the Mothership dashboard and only a sliver of my drive to work.

The next day, I got it just about right. But then I forgot that my memory card only holds 1MB and my camera stopped filming about 2 minutes from my destination.

I filmed my drive to work a total of 5 times, and none of the clips were smooth, or complete, from start to finish.

I was not amused. I felt challenged but way out of my element. I thought about the project for a few more days. I haven't done any film-based work before. And my son, who was also in the group, was able to 'throw' his film together in about a day and it was really good. Clearly, my idea sucked.

Things in life aren't ever as complicated as you think they are. I decided that I refused to be intimidated by my less-than-perfect foray into film-making. I knew one thing- I didn't want to film anymore. So what exactly did I have to work with? A collection of film bits that needed to be 'glued' together! Suddenly, it all made sense. I am a found object and collage artist. If there's one thing I know, it's how to glue things together! Thanks to the wizardry of film editing software (and some pointers from my son), I was able to splice, dice, 'glue', and layer all the films together into an interesting 3-minute short.

I ended up with a very raw visual and auditory record of my drive to work, along the same route, at roughly the same time of day, in the same vehicle. I worked the footage from 5 days into one (somewhat) continuous stream, representing one morning drive to work. The drive to Tim Hortons, for example, is composed of the clips from Day 1 and Day 4. The turn into the drive-thru is from Day 3. The stretch down St. Clair is from Day 2, when it rained and I was playing the Ramones tune, "I Wanna Be Sedated". The film shows that the sounds are different every day. The cars ahead of me are different every day. The light is different every day. But I end up at the same place every day. Each minute of the drive, every day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, is stored in my memory, but I do not remember it. Sometimes I seem to drive on auto-pilot.

This was an interesting exercise for me on so many levels. I noticed the little things that I overlook on my drive to work. There is lots of trash in the alley. The line-up at Tim Horton's is never more than 5 minutes. I like accelerating down St. Clair Street. I always get stopped at the light at St. Clair and Grand Avenue. There's no graffiti on the Third Street Bridge. The mall blocks the morning sun, making King & Third look dreary at 8:25am. I have a short drive to work and yet I drive. I'm relaxed when I'm driving. A lot of people in Chatham wear sweatpants out in public.

Most importantly, I also learned that my approach to art can be translated to any medium. I know it sounds simple, but I never would have thought this before. If, as an artist, you think in 'pieces', then film/paint/(insert medium here) in 'pieces'.

I have reached acceptance. My name is Laurie, and I am a Deconstructionist. You can take the girl out of 'strange', but you cannot take the 'strange' out of the girl.

What does a 3-minute film about a drive to work have to do with fear?

Well, it illustrates one of my biggest fears. I have a lot, but this is a fear that I DO remember on my drive to work. From time to time.

I am afraid that, someday, I will just keep on driving.

Off to North Bay

2011-10-01T13:00:00.001-07:00

this is not North Bay, but a photo of THE cool intersection in Grand Rapids, Michigan

(that's a statue of Rosa Parks on the left)

I have been offered a joint show (with fellow shadowbox artist Betty Sager) at the Thames Art Gallery in the Mezzanine Gallery in 2012. Then it's off to the Kennedy Gallery in North Bay.

This exhibition requires an entirely new body of work. And it would seem that Betty and I have to produce this thought-provoking show before the end of March. The glue on my shadowboxes, The Saints Series, is barely dry and those boxes were just hung for The Exhibitchin' at ARTspace a few weeks ago. Now I need to bust out my A Game!

Although I was originally a little freaked out (as this is my first show outside of Chatham!), I know this opportunity is the next step in my art practice. A show of this magnitude gives me the impetus to take a step backward and figure out what I really want to say with my art. I need to start thinking about a simple, solid concept. One of my biggest downfalls, I think, is that I tend to overthink my projects. (And eat too many gummy bears in the process.)

I recently took a weekend video workshop taught by Toronto artist Grahame Lynch (who is exhibiting at the Thames Art Gallery later this month, with his show The Logic of Subduction) and it got me thinking in an entirely different way. I am a found object artist who is suddenly interested in movement and sound and memory. Whether this ends up becoming the basis for my upcoming show, I do not know.

But this is all exciting! Movement, sound, memory, found objects, shadowboxes..... stay tuned. I am going to search the dark recesses of my brain and create something very interesting.

The Exhibitchin' Opening is a Big Success!

2011-09-23T08:08:00.000-07:00

Here's me on The Exhibitchin' opening night, posing in front of two of my five "Saints Series" shadowboxes.

In The Crosshairs

2011-09-11T11:09:00.000-07:00

In The Crosshairs

Today I'm just playing with potential submissions for the Juried Show at the Thames Art Gallery. I've called this one In The Crosshairs.

In the photo, Muffy is hiding in the grass (in the backyard) like a wild animal. A hunter has discovered her and she is in the crosshairs of the rifle. This piece depicts the moment before Muffy comes into focus and gets shot.

Perfection is always on everyone's agenda- in everyone's crosshairs, if you will. If you really focus on the image of a beautiful woman in a magazine, however, you will find that the woman is heavily augmented by make-up, surgery, airbrushing, Photoshopping, etc. You're not really looking at a 'real' person, just an idealized version of a person. Lines are slightly blurred or even erased.

In the Crosshairs is the moment before the truth comes into focus. It is what we want to see. If we focus too intently, then the myth is shattered.

"Wait!"you ask. "What happened to that crazy clay vagina 'death' piece that you were planning to enter for the Juried Show?"

Well, believe it or not, the more I thought about it, the more it didn't interest me. I still stand by the write up that I did on the concept (previous posting), but after a few months of thinking about it, it just didn't think I wanted to make it anymore.

That happens when you're an artist, or at least with me. Sometimes, despite all the planning and gathering, when it comes time to create the piece, I will sit down and say, "Nope. I'm done with this. Don't wanna make it."

So, the vagina is out. In the Crosshairs is in. And I just decided that it's going to be a triptych.

Am I done with Muffy? Is this the piece where I kill her off?

Stay tuned.

St. Successa is done!

2011-08-15T16:34:00.001-07:00

St. Successa

Here she is, in all her back-stabbing glory.

And yes, the background IS purple, not blue as in my in-progressa shot in my last post.

The Saint Series is done!

On to the Exhibitchin'!

St. Successa

2011-07-31T11:28:00.001-07:00

St. Successa (in progress-a)

This is the last shadowbox in the Saints series. St. Successa is an actual saint, but as you can see I've reinterpreted her (as I've done for all the others in this series).

St. Successa has gotten ahead by stepping on others and sleeping her way to the top. This was inspired by a conversation I overheard recently between two women. One of their co-workers had been promoted to a position of power and they were convinced that it had nothing to do with brain capacity or experience. One of them wondered if only men were on the selection panel, as this successful woman was quite attractive. It was suggested that the successful woman must have worn a very short skirt the day of the interview. The successful woman's ability to delegate effectively was also discussed, and the conclusion between these two women was that she is a bitch. And she has balls!

Sigh.

I shouldn't go on a rant here and say that we should be happy for every woman's success and not be a source of negativity. But now that I've brought it up- we should be happy for every woman's success and not be a source of negativity.

I am currently working on St. Successa for my show in September, The Exhibitchin'. I'm thinking that I need some money in the box somehow. A Porsche 911. And maybe a crown.

We'll see what treasures can be found in the Art Lair.

Pink Haze

2011-07-31T11:17:00.001-07:00

Pink Haze 4

Pink Haze 3

Pink Haze 2

Pink Haze

More Cool Retrofest Photos

2011-07-30T17:02:00.000-07:00

X-ray

Shark Infested Water

This Way

Calla Lily

Little Wing

Frozen

Coming For You

Cardiovascular

Black Mamba

More cool shots taken at Retrofest.

The Exhibitchin'..... It's Official

2011-06-30T15:07:00.000-07:00

The Exhibitchin' poster went out this week.

So now it's official.

Like, for real.

Ain't no goin' back now.

Yup.

Our Lady of Perpetual Light- #4 in The Saints Series

2011-06-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

left side of box

right side of box

Our Lady of Perpetual Light

Ta da! After a year and a half of trying to pull this together, I present to you "Our Lady of Perpetual Light". It is my comment on women and education. I was particularly affected by the recent story in the Globe and Mail about the woman from Bangladesh who wanted to pursue her Master's Degree. Her husband did not agree with her and gouged her eyes out.

That information was exactly what I needed to finish this shadowbox.

As always with my shadowboxes, everything means something. Metaphors, symbols..... look closely and you'll start to "see" a narrative. The outlet cover on the right hand-side of the box has two Muffy faces. One has her mouth taped over to symbolize that, in countries where men don't condone education for women, women do not have a voice or are not allowed to have an opinion. The other Muffy face has her eyes taped over, to represent the woman who had her eyes gouged out because she wanted to further her education.

The switch plate on the left shows a woman's hand reaching out for knowledge or understanding. On both plates are glued the novel covers of "The Vindication of the Rights of Woman" by Mary Wollstonecraft. It is one of the earliest works of feminist philosophy. In it, Wollstonecraft responds to those educational and political theorists of the 18th century who did not believe that women should have an education.

The strings, fish hooks and male hands at the bottom of the box symbolize how women are held back, restrained from pursuing or denied education, or harmed because of their pursuit of education. ('Cause being uppity ain't right.)

The books stacked in the corners are novels and texts written by women who were considered feminists or on the cutting edge for their time, or both. I think I have actually read most of these books! Of course I included 'Valley of the Dolls'....... a tongue-in-cheek reference to my main subject, Muffy.

In the centre of the box, Muffy is wrapped in a cord that is supposed to hold lights (bulbs = light or enlightenment) but the bulbs have been taken out. Her face is covered and is only showing her eyes, a loose reference to the burqa which is worn by women in some countries where the education of women is not supported.

She is holding a Chatelaine magazine, that says "Eat Great, Lose Weight". That's a whole other reference to women and body image, and how we need to be educated to be more accepting of ourselves. The media often tries to sell us on the idea that we are never too thin, and that happiness is just the right self-help book away. Sometimes, fashion magazines are merely another medium within which women are told what to think.

The dog in the centre is my play on the word 'dogma', or God spelled backward, and he's wearing a rosary. He's also sitting on half an apple. Apples are associated with teachers and Eve (who ate an apple from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil). The dog's half apple represents only half of the truth, or a reference to only educating half of a country's population. It also refers to incidents both present and past when much of the violence against women was done in the name of God; half-assed, half-baked, and decisions made by half-wits.

The blocks at the bottom are my version of alphabet blocks, which of course are toys for kids learning to read. My blocks are covered with pages from a bible which, not that long ago, was often the only text women were allowed to read. I really like the headings I chose to glue on the blocks: Laws Regarding Slaves, Good and Bad Women, Snares of Evil Women, Marriage Laws, and Holofernes' Violent Anger. (When nasty General Holofernes was drunk, he was beheaded by a beautiful widow named Judith, and then the Hebrews were able to defeat the enemy. Judith was a smart girl. Yay, Judith!)

This box, #4, took me almost a year and a half to make, partly because of the setback I've had with my hand injury, and partly because I was waiting for the right bit of inspiration. I am glad that Our Lady of Perpetual Light is done, but I am sad to say that the whole box finally came together in my mind when I heard about the blinded woman from Bangladesh.

Blossom Baton Leads ARTcrawl

2011-06-19T16:51:00.000-07:00

Once again, ARTcrawl was great! We saw two talented artists (Ania and Cornelis) at their opening at ARTspace, ate lots of sushi at the almost-renovated William Street Cafe, sampled chocolate and Turkish Delight at Eve Chocolatier, and ended up at the Thames Art Gallery for another opening (Systems Check), Bob's Rockabilly Band and Dance Dance Revolution in Studio One.

The photo above is the Blossom Baton I made that led the ARTcrawlers from ARTspace to the Thames Art Gallery. At the top is a plastic figure of Blossom, one of the Powerpuff Girls. (She used to be a bubble bath bottle.) The theme of the summer ARTcrawl on June 18th was Manga, in honour of Mitsutaru Yokoyama, a Japanese Manga artist who was born on June 18th in 1934. Manga and anime are related, so the Powerpuff Girls reference was appropriate (and I just happened to have a Blossom bubble bath bottle kicking around, believe it or not). My favourite part of the baton is the old brass pin glued with the green army men- it says "Boy Scouts- Be Prepared". That's right boys. It's always a wise move to be prepared. You never know when a cute girl with a bow in her hair is going to surprise you with her super powers. Or kick your ass.

I had a great time! Many people, including me, went to ARTcrawl in costume inspired by anime. My friend Irene bought me an Alice-in-Wonderfland Harajuku Queen of Hearts costume from a secret source she had found, and she bought a similar outfit for herself that was inspired by the Mad Hatter. Angelina, who is an artist with very cool pink hair, won the best costume for her Sailor Moon outfit. Irene and I danced and danced. We were just two women in their 40's, dressed in inappropriately short little Alice costumes, having fun at an art gallery party.

Good fun was had by all, including my teenage son who watched me dance with a mixture of embarassment and pride.

Cool Shots from Retrofest 2011

2011-06-12T17:53:00.000-07:00

Gearhead

Blue Heaven

At the Capitol

Green Light

Arms to Hold You, My Dear

Full Sail

Dark Star

Condor

Blue Bird

Shield

Afterburners

One of my favourite things to do is take pictures of all the cool cars that line King Street during Retrofest. This year's outing produced some great shots. Of course, I couldn't resist pumping up the colour using Photoshop. It was a cloudy day and I find that the muted light on overcast days really makes images pop, especially when I'm photographing chrome and paint. (It can be quite difficult to get a good shot of a very shiny car.) Processing these images with Photoshop makes the colour and lines pop even more.

I think 'Gearhead' is my new self-portrait. I didn't 'see' me reflected in the chrome of the rear view mirror when I was taking the shot. It was a happy accident.

Behind Her- The Community Arts Initiative is Behind Me

2011-06-12T13:50:00.001-07:00

Behind Her

This is what happens when I try to do Non-Representational Art. It looks abstract (which is a totally different thing). And a little angry. But I think it turned out cool, nonetheless.

I ordered something from Etsy from my friend Brenda, and she sent the item carefully packed in shredded paper. As I unwrapped my item, I started to notice that the paper was from a vintage book, and the more I read the strips, the more intriguing they became. The story involved compromised virtue because of a stolen kiss..... or something equally hilarious. I thought the strips might be interesting in this piece, so I glued some of them on the canvas and painted over them in spots. The title of the piece comes from a few words on one of the strips.

I called the end result "Behind Her", and it is now on display in the Mezzanine of the Thames Art Gallery as part of a Non-Representational Show.

I like the spidery drippy parts best.

Adam Matak & Community Arts Initiatives

2011-05-15T12:48:00.000-07:00

The Physical Impossibility of the Death of Painting (Red), 2010

One of Adam Matak's works from his exhibition,

Maintaining Critical Distance

featuring Adam's pop-simplified version of John Singleton Copley's
Watson and The Shark (1778)

My Adam-Inspired Self-Portrait

working on Cutout Me with Adam Matak looking on

I recently participated in a Community Arts Initiative entitled "Stand Up, Stand Out!", guided by artist Adam Matak. About three times a year, the Thames Art Gallery issues a challenge to community artists, which often features an opportunity to learn a different technique.

"Adam's works comment on the distinction between 'high' and 'low' art as well and the making, buying, and selling of art. His works are characterized by their distinct appearance, and vivid use of colour and line which is achieved by using acrylic paints and graffiti markers."
- Thames Art Gallery website

I first saw Adam's work at his Thames Art Gallery show, Maintaining Critical Distance. It was one of my most favourite shows at the gallery to date. It was many things, including very funny critiques on the average person's response to masterworks of art.

Our "Stand Up, Stand Out!" Community Arts Initiative challenge was to create a version of ourselves in the style of Adam's work, and use it to respond to an existing artwork from the Thames Art Gallery's permanent collection. I was intrigued by the opportunity to try something new and, let's face it, cool. The process would involve using graffiti markers-need I say more?

I chose to respond to a large Fleming landscape (circa 1903?) that, to me, looked bare. It's a lovely moody European-style landscape, but completely devoid of any life. I think that landscapes of a certain period need cows or horses or a lonely shepherd.

Guided by Adam at a workshop he led to help us paint like him, I had my son Monty take a photograph of me (Monty participated in the CAI too!), copied it onto a transparency, projected the photo onto the provided MDF, and traced it. I then painted Cutout Me in the style of a cartoon character and used a graffiti marker to make thick black outlines (and resisted the urge to take the marker outside and write on the wall), had Cutout Me liberated from the slab by one of the ever-helpful and handsome maintenance staff at the Cultural Centre, and then glued a vintage 1960's Fisher Price cow in one Cutout Me hand and the matching horse in the other.

For a cheeky bit of fun, I had a spare hand brace floating around, which I put on the right hand of Cutout Me. Just in case you missed my ongoing Saga of the Sore Paw, as a result of a work injury, I am required to wear a brace on my right hand while doing computer work. With the brace as a finishing touch, I created the ultimate self-portrait, complete with fabulous hair.

I think it turned out quite well!

I am now participating in the recent Community Arts Initiative entitled 'Non-Representational Painting with Jordan Broadworth'.

And I say 'participating' somewhat loosely, because I haven't even tried to make a mark on the provided board. From the guidelines, it looks as if I'm supposed to throw some paint around and not have the results look like something. I'm just not good at reckless abandon.

What would Adam do?

Blossom Baton Being Born

2011-05-15T10:24:00.000-07:00

Well, I've decided that with the manga theme for the upcoming ARTcrawl on June 18th, we need a Powerpuff Girls-themed baton to lead the procession down King Street. The Powerpuff Girls remains one of my favourite cartoons, and the references it makes to pop culture from my era are very clever. The absurd adventures of the three pint-sized girl-power evil-fighters never fail to make me laugh.

The Powerpuff Baton is the fourth in series of ARTcrawl batons. To date, I've made The Goat Stick, The Croc Stick, and Sir Real.

So far, I have sweet sugary girly ideas for the baton, but the only item I have ready is the head of one of the Powerpuff Girls, Blossom (redhead, centre of the photo). Blossom's signature colour is pink. Buttercup and Bubbles are the other two Powerpuff Girls.

Blossom is "The Smart One" and the self-proclaimed "Commander and Leader" of the Powerpuff Girls. I absolutely love this show.

Some great quotations from the show:

"Um, well, I'm sure to the untrained eye, this drawing may seem like one of mine. But if you look closer, you'll see it's an obvious attempt in pseudo-impressionism, while I deal strictly in realism. Bye."
-Bubbles

"Bubbles! Put down that stupid octopus and help us with this stupid octopus."

- Buttercup

"Mayor, you could have mentioned the caveman and the mastodon
when you called before."

-Blossom

I'll post a photo of the Blossom Baton when it is done. This will be a fun project!

Altared States & Bridaled Ambition

2011-05-11T19:47:00.000-07:00

Altared States

Bridaled Ambition

I recently had some fun with a mangled Barbie doll and a circa-1980s tin newspaper printing plate featuring ads about weddings. I messed around with the sepia setting in Photoshop, pumped up some random colours, and voila- vintagey glam photos. Yes, that is a black bar across Barbie's mouth. No, she doesn't have any arms. Such is the state of many Barbie dolls in my Art Lair.

Having gone through this photo shoot, now I understand the tedium that Vogue editors experience when they're looking for the perfect shot for the next magazine cover. Each tilt of the model's head suggests a different mood, even in a Barbie doll. Eyes aimed up, she looks like she's dreaming. A slight tilt downward makes her look sad. Shadowy lighting can make a face look demonic (especially with a black bar over the mouth). When I checked my results for the photo Bridalled Ambition, for example, there were 15 shots of almost the same pose, but there was only one shot that captured the emotion I was going for: vacant yet jaunty.

The second photo was originally entitled "The New Gibson Girl" but my friend Sally Tubello suggested the title, "Altared States", utilizing a brilliant play on the words altar and alter. Following Sally's fabulous lead, I then renamed the first photo "Bridaled Ambition", making a play on the words bridal and bridle.

I love it when everything comes together. I am happy with my results. A special thank you to Sally for her linguistic prowess. The World is lucky that she's using her powers for good.

The Nightmare of Suzie-Q

2011-05-08T15:19:00.000-07:00

The Nightmare of Suzie Q

Nightmares.

I am plagued with them at times.

I've never been a sound sleeper.

I took this photo in the backyard.

It sums up how I feel sometimes.

Don't Let The Smile Fool You

2011-05-01T16:02:00.000-07:00

Smiley Squirrel in the Quince

I swear this has been the longest winter of my life.

Yesterday, when the sun was finally shining, I went outside and started cleaning up some of the debris that had collected over the winter. Found lots of Nerf bullets (my son just opened the back door one day in March and in frustration shot his Nerf gun at the snow) , tons of cigarette butts (from our not-so-ideal exchange student), half-chewed tulip bulbs (I think those were the nice orangey ones I planted last fall that seem to have become squirrel snacks), half a frisbee (I don't even want to know), and lots of leaves.

I didn't actually accomplish much, but it was great to be outside and hear the '50's tunes warbling from my neighbour's garage next door. Spring on my street means many things: Bring Out The 1970's Muscle Car, or Dust off the Harley, or Throw Out The Christmas Tree, or Take the Training Wheels off the Bicycle, or Pull The Snails off the Hosta Shoots, or Take Your New Shizhu For a Walk Down the Nice Dead-End Street, or Put a New Outfit on the Stone Goose, or Crank the Country and Western Tunes That No One Likes.

I uncovered Smiley Squirrel (above) who stands guard under my Quince. Now for those of you unfamiliar with greenery, a Quince is a vicious piece of shrubbery. It has nasty-ass thorns that seem to find your tender flesh, even if you walk two feet around it. And, in that strange juxtaposey twist that one often finds in Nature, the Quince also has beautiful scarlett blooms (which I believe are coloured by all the blood it has taken from you). To prune a Quince, you have to sneak up on it in early spring when it is still somewhat dormant and clip with stealth and speed. Sometime you have to say out loud, to no one in particular, "I'm just going to check on this cedar over here" and fake it out.

So here's the story of why Smiley Squirrel ended up living under the Quince. We had a concrete retaining wall built a few years ago, which involved having a Bobcat drive all over the backyard while it was digging a pretty impressive trench over 110 feet long and 4 feet deep. This Bobcat rolled over everything. Absolutely everything. At least 30 times. I cried. I had been forewarned and had moved my special plants to friends' gardens or given lots away. I cried anyway. When it came to the Quince, I had just left it where it was, hoping that it would die during the abuse it would sustain during construction. More to the point, I just didn't want to risk losing a pint of blood trying to dig it out. It wasn't worth it. My relationship with that Quince had been tenuous at best and I saw the annihilation of our backyard as a way of settling the score.

The following spring, I was absolutely shocked that the Quince sprung up, sassy and barbed as ever. Our backyard looked like the Bonneville Salt Flats and yet there was this defiant spring of Quince, thrusting its way up through the mud, ready to shred the pant leg of anyone who would get too close.

Smiley Squirrel has stood sentinel under that murderous shrubbery ever since. He's certainly an interesting alternative to the more mundane forms of garden sculpture, but he has a specific purpose. He reminds me that there are things in life you just can't fight. Things like needing reading glasses, finding that the bathroom tiles you really want are discontinued, losing stuff, admitting defeat and buying a not-cool minivan to transport all your crap, feeling guilty about not calling your mother enough, plastic-wrapped cucumbers turning to slime in the refrigerator before you can use the whole cucumber, the ever-increasing lines on your face, and losing a friend. And you can't kill a Quince if it doesn't want to die. You can't fight Nature or What Was Meant to Be.

Smiley Squirrel reminds me that you may have thorns sticking in your back, but you have to keep on smiling. That's just the way it is.

And yes, there IS such a thing as getting too close.

-----------The Exhibitchin' ------------

2011-04-10T16:11:00.000-07:00

me, trying to make a clay vagina

I am preparing for my upcoming found object art exhibition at ARTspace, which also features the work of my friends and artists Becky Fixter-Vagners & Kelly Ridley. The three of us met in January, drank some wine, ate lots of gummy bears (okay, that was just me) and started the percolating process. We tossed around some ideas for specific themes, but I think we came to the conclusion that no matter what each of us produced for the show, each piece would work with the other. We are all on the same page. So far, we've come up with a name: The Exhibitchin'.

Yes, it is a show by women, about women. The above picture documents me creating the first stage of a massive shadowbox that I'm creating. Inside, various items will be painted black. Dead centre will be a vagina.

Creating this vagina proved to be a very interesting experience for me. I sat down, ready to create a vagina out of clay, and stopped. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I wasn't exactly sure what a vagina looks like. I know, I know. You'd think I'd have a better handle on this sort of thing, seeing as I own one and all, but I seriously didn't know where to begin. So, I did what any curious person would do.

I Googled 'vagina'.

And lo and behold, I was faced with a plethora of images that made me blush. As I scrolled down, I saw every 'come hither' pose known to mankind. I saw positions that made me turn my head sideways and say "WTF?" I saw household objects used in creative ways I never thought possible. I saw such an onslaught of porn that I began to wonder.... if I were a 12 year-old girl, and I wondered if my parts were 'normal', and I Googled 'vagina', what message would I be getting through all these images?

I won't go on a rant here, but suffice it to say, I was a little disturbed. What does this say about our society? Actually, I KNOW what it says about our society. Women As Objects would be the tip of the iceberg. (And did you know that vaginas are all different? I didn't. Stands to reason, I guess, but I guess I never really thought about it.) I did eventually, however, find an anatomically-correct drawing and, having recovered my Calvinistic sense of propriety, began to fabricate my clay vagina. I smoothed and honed and adjusted. I levelled and added and joined. And I made a vagina.

And I think I am emotionally scarred.

This will probably unleash a litany of protests, but I decided that vaginas are not very attractive. They're so.... mollusc-like. Despite my new-found UNappreciation, front and centre of my piece for The Exhibitchin' will be this big clay vagina. Always the one for a slight bit of humour, I did leave a space in the centre of the vagina for some interesting little trinket I have yet to decide upon.... a doll's head? A spider? A friend of mine suggested Darth Vader, which wasn't such a bad idea.

So now I have to spray paint little blocks and keys and bottle caps and bones and weird little bits and assemble them around the clay vagina within a massive gold frame (which I was saving for something monumental like this). Everything inside the box will be black- flat black, gloss black, soft black, blue black, and just black.

I'm calling it The Black Box. It's about how, when you reach a certain age as a woman, you start to feel invisible. You're almost past child-bearing age, there are lines on your face, and parts of you have settled during shipping and handling. When you walk down the street, guys in cars don't turn their heads anymore. It seems as if your loins are no longer desirable or needed and you feel as if your primary role in life has been fulfilled or passed you by. Younger women are getting all the cat-calls and wolf-whistles. Perhaps it is a relief to some women. Personally, I'm not enjoying the transition.

It is a stage in life that every woman goes through, and it is a small death. The Black Box is about loss of fertility and youthfulness. At the bottom of the box will be a silver Victorian plaque that was taken off a child's coffin (I found it in an antique shop). It says "Our Darling". I thought this was appropriate.

The Black Box also makes reference to the word 'box' which is a slang term for a woman's vagina. A Black Box is also what officials look for after a plane crash, in order to determine what happened in the final moments before lives were blown to bits. I thought that if a vagina were to keep record of a woman's life, it would document loves and youthful flings and longing and perhaps children - the very things that make life worth living. It would also document the final throes of a woman's biological purpose. In The Black Box, the very organ that is the essence of being female is no longer needed.

Heavy stuff, indeed.

So. Now I have a somewhat stylized clay vagina, hidden under plastic wrap in my Art Lair until I send it to the kiln to be fired (and that will be a whole other story- wait for it). I'm a little afraid to look at it again. It looked strangely omnivorous when it was wrapped up.

'Tis the stuff of nightmares. Really. And it is going to be art.

"American Beauty" or Fun in Grocery Stores in the States

2011-03-13T14:53:00.000-07:00

Muffy's in A Bit of A Jam

Nice Buns

Bottle Blonde

American Beauty

American grocery stores are so much fun when you have a Muffy doll and a camera. There are so many brands and different things that we don't ever see in Canada, such as a fully-stocked wine section. I recently took Muffy along with me to a Publix store in Key West. It became an entertaining quest to find funny poses for her.

Added to the fun were the responses from the shoppers ("Is that picture for the family album?"). And, of course, there was the sub-quest, which was grocery shopping. I didn't find the cereal I wanted and I completely forgot the milk, but I ended up with a box of Crispy Cremes, a bag of Chips Ahoy Chunky cookies, and some Sun Chips, thanks to my eager 10 year-old "helper".

It wasn't a complete fiasco, however, as I also got a case of Corona Light and some Key limes.

And yes, I did get some great Muffy shots.

florafaunalogical - the Guest Curator Rides Again!

2011-02-23T14:25:00.000-08:00

Artist's Canoe by Jon-Erik Kroon

Guest curating printmaker Marshall Heaton's show Bombs & Babes at ARTspace was so much fun, I decided to guest curate again!

Jon-Erik Kroon is an artist from Wallaceburg who is well-known for his unique printmaking style. Recently, his work has gone off on an interesting tangent, and he's created a whole body of work featuring the flora and fauna of Southwestern Ontario. His paint is actually different kinds of mud mixed with water from the Snye River. Objects like seeds and leaves, which he affixes to his canvas, are from his woodland property. He incorporates feathers and bones from dead animals he finds in his area. His works are like a visual archaeological dig. Jon-Erik's approach reminds me of Anselm Kiefer's show Palmsonntag, which I saw at the AGO a few months ago.

I know there is extended verbiage on the ARTspace Chatham-Kent website, discussing Jon-Erik's use of flora and fauna in an authentic way. (He is adamant on the 'validation' of artwork.) And as much as I love words and I drink in every subtle nuance of a good paragraph, the fact remains that I think his work is just plain cool. Jon-Erik's work is the ultimate marriage of found object and traditional painting.

As someone who works within boxes, I can honestly say that I admire him for the fact that he thinks completely outside the box not only in the way he lives but in the way he makes art.

florafaunalogical is the title of the show, and it will be at ARTspace from April 6 - May 14, 2011.

Squish A Fish....Inspiration from the Expired and Discarded

2011-02-06T11:21:00.000-08:00

this is not my fish

I recently took a different kind of printmaking class at the Thames Art Gallery. I have taken many, but this time, the class was structured around gyotaku.

"Gyotaku is the ancient Japanese folk art of painting fish. The first gyotaku were created to preserve the true record and size of species caught by Japanese anglers as far back as 1862."

-official internet blurb.

That's the official blurb. What I called it was "Squish A Fish". And it's a cool process. You take a flattened and dried fish, carefully rub paint over the surface, wipe off the excess, and run it through the press. Once teacher Jon-Erik Kroon explained the history and technique, I was off to the races. I printed the obligatory fish. It looked kind of cool. I could even see the little teeth in the mouth. Cooler still, however, were the treats that Jon-Erik brought in an old leather suitcase.

Having been an artist all his life, Jon-Erik has collected a ridiculous amount of things that always come in handy for an art project. Like a dried bat. Dead birds. Licence plates. Old coins from a shipwreck. Eviscerated frogs. Feathers. Shoe leather from an 1850's era shoe. Alligator skin from an old purse. The top part of a metal spatula. Half of a Spock doll head. And, of course, many different kinds of fish.

Suddenly, I couldn't soak paper fast enough. "Run three prints," he said. "You always get better impressions when you run three prints". I put the Spock head on the dried bat. I ran three of the Spockbats and was thrilled with the results.

"More," I said. I felt like some ravenous beastie.

He cranked the press wheel and smiled. "Try some metal bits", he suggested. "But find some for next class."

I went home and suddenly I saw everything in a different light. Mmmmm. A piece of metal strapping......Could I run it through the press? Hell, yes! I immediately thought of running one of my Muffy dolls through the press, but came to the conclusion that she wouldn't look quite right. More like a bad accident, really. But there were a myriad of possibilities. Squishable items were everywhere, from the Mothership keys to feta cheese.

On the day of my next squishing class, I gathered up the bag of metal scraps I had picked up on the ground at a local wrecking yard, and trotted off to show my treasure to Jon-Erik.

"Good!" he said. "You'll get some interesting prints with those."

And that encouragement was all I needed. Well, actually, that's not true. I still needed Jon-Erik to turn the press for me because my hand hasn't completely recovered (long story, if you don't already know it). But for the next 4 classes, I squished to my heart's content. I had a lot of fun. One of my fellow Squishers had brought in a small octopus she got from Chinatown in Toronto. (One important rule of Squish A Fishing- make sure your item isn't 'juicy'. Sometimes you get unexpected and unpleasantly fragrant results.) It made a wickedly cool print, especially since she added red into the standard black ink. Another Squisher used the alligator skin over and over and over again, enthralled with the ink from previous printings that kept coming through in different patterns.

I now have a stack of interesting prints. One of my favourites features two lizards with their stiff little dead tails curled together into a heart. Any of my prints will make a great background for a collage.

Inspiration from dead fish and scrap metal? You just never know where the next great idea will come from.

Speaking of which, my hand x-rays have me thinking......

ARTcrawl - A Surreal Success!

2011-01-23T17:14:00.000-08:00

photo: Monty, Chaz, and me- getting some sustenance before the ARTcrawl.

(taken with Monty's phone)

The Winter Surreal ARTcrawl was a little late getting started. A group of us decided to have dinner at a restaurant across the street beforehand. Anyone who says that arts &culture does not contribute to the economy should have stood in that restaurant as the harried waitresses tried to serve regular patrons, a birthday party, theatre-goers bound for the Capitol, and the ARTcrawl crowd. The hostess had to turn people away at the door at 5:45pm because the restaurant was at total capacity. I pulled artist Marshall Heaton away from waiting for his dinner so that he could cross the street and address a waiting crowd at ARTspace. My two boys, aged 10 & 15, were anxious to show off their outrageous fake moustaches and see the exhibition that mom put together with Marshall’s artwork.

Just a little background information for you. In 2010, I presented the ARTspace Executive with an idea to guest curate a show. In this case, I wanted to delve into the printmaking of Marshall Heaton, who is from Leamington. Marshall was instrumental in getting the printmaking program up and running at the Thames Art Gallery a few years ago, and after taking a few of his classes, I became hooked on not only the process, but on the possibilities. Although I am not known for my printmaking, I had my first show at ARTspace in 2009 with a body of work I produced in Marshall’s classes. From learning printmaking to having a solo show, the whole process was an incredible growth experience for me.

Armed with my newfound confidence, I asked Marshall if he’d be interested in letting me curate a show for him. He is an old pro at the exhibition thing, and I think he was curious to see what I’d come up with. He agreed. I culled Marshall’s extensive printmaking stash and Bombs & Babes was born.

And thus it began. Bombs & Babes at ARTspace was the first stop on the 2011 Winter ARTcrawl. With my fake moustache worn proudly in honour of the ARTcrawl’s surreal theme, I introduced Marshall to the roughly 70 ARTcrawlers in attendance. Marshall talked about how his grandparents were survivors of war, and how they passed their stories down to him. He talked about his healthy appreciation for the female form, and how the juxtaposition of the two topics in his art seemed natural to him. The result is a humourous yet darkly interesting group of prints. I was proud of us.

ARTcrawl attracts all kinds of people that we don’t normally see at art openings. And that is the whole point. This year, after picking the date of January 15^th, we settled on the theme of the surreal. Surreal painter Yves Tanguy died on January 15, 1955, and celebrating the surreal seemed as good a reason as any to assemble eager partiers on a freezing winter night. The goal: to take in two art openings in the darkness of a January night and have fun. Moustaches and berets optional, and encouraged.

After Marshall (without a moustache) grinned his way through a short chat, Curator Carl Lavoy (with his own moustache) quickly got the crowd roused and ready to go by asking for a volunteer to carry the traditional ARTbaton. For each ARTcrawl, I create an art baton. This year, I found a bizarre puppet head that I thought should be named Sir Real, and perched him on top of a wooden stick. He holds a rubber cockroach in one hand and a wine glass in the other. A clock and disco ball form his body. Of course, he has a Dali-esque moustache, feathers, a fish, and a marionette brooch. Simply carrying this stick is a surreal experience, or an excuse to get beat up- depending on your company, of course.

Uncle Dave, our wandering minstrel for the evening, began to play his accordion. A brave Culture Vulture named Wayne Perdue came forth, accepted the challenge to lead the revellers, and thrust Sir Real high into the air. The official 2011 Winter ARTcrawl had begun.

It was cold. I won’t lie. I learned from the first Winter ARTcrawl that artsy fashion is the fastest way to numb toes and render fingers non-responsive. Even the adhesive tape for my moustache lost the will to stick. But we were a determined group of ARTcrawlers with the next destinations in mind: Eve Chocolatier and the William Street Cafe. We knew that warmth, goodies and hot chocolate were waiting for us.

For the last Winter ARTcrawl, we had a bagpiper and a drummer lined up to lead us. The day of ARTcrawl, it was so cold that the bagpiper declined to participate, saying that his bag would freeze. I kid you not. But it is never, NEVER, too cold for an accordion! Accordion music makes one think of Paris no matter what the song. Uncle Dave played a rip-roaring version of “You Are My Sunshine” that practically made us dream of baguettes and the Eiffel Tower.

After garnering stares from passers-by, and making traffic stop as we marched across King, we had come to a fork in the road with a difficult choice to make. Where to go first? Eve Chocolatier or William Street Café? Luckily, there was enough time to peruse both. I meandered around Eve Chocolatier for a bit, sampling all the free goodies that were laid out. Everything at Eve Chocolatier is arranged in such a delectable way. I filled my mouth with some Turkish Delight, and my two boys bought chocolate covered marshmallow snowmen. People talked, got a sugar fix, ordered hot chocolate, and chatted with people they knew. Just around the corner at the William Street Café, Susan Jeffries and crew had created a beautiful outdoor Winter Wonderland patio. And there were two doors- one which led to an impromptu art installation by Grahame Lynch, Mark Jeffries, and Josh Avery, and one which led to the café. The art installation included an axe with flapping duck wings, which fascinated Marshall Heaton. I went to the café, got a warm coffee, came back and he was still standing there, mesmerized by the mechanics of the piece.

Just as we were assembling for the final jaunt to the Thames Art Gallery, it started to snow. It was almost magical. Wayne resumed his command by hoisting the Sir Real baton, and the ARTcrawlers made the final pilgrimage. My friend Phyllis ran into a Windsor couple looking for the opening at the art gallery. “You’re in luck!” she said. “I just happen to be going that way!”

Art takes many forms, which is something that the Thames Art Gallery strives to illustrate through its exhibitions. Waiting for us at the gallery was Comp Ose, an exhibition by Saskatoon artist Ellen Moffat. There were even more people at the Gallery, some with moustaches drawn on with black eyeliner, standing up on the mezzanine and filling the main floor. Ellen began to speak. In order to do her exhibition justice, I will quote from the publication.

"Rather than providing viewers with objects or a narrative to guide interpretation, promote reflection or create wonderment, she presents two instruments – twicescore and vBox- and invites viewers to use them to co-create visual poetry and sound scores- both with the artist and with one another. Consoles studded with knobs, buttons, switches, and slides allow participants to interact playfully through direct manipulation of writing and software: with twicescore, colourful letters are projected onto the floor, rippling out in a centrifugal pattern inspired by the work of concrete poet Ferdinand Kriwet; with vBox, it is sounds that are cast into the room- pre-recorded phonemes modulated by participants who shape the score by altering frequency, volume and rhythm." – written by Annie Gerin

My oldest son was on the twicescore, typing the words that she was speaking. Leave it to kids to figure out how to work technology without instruction. Some people on the mezzanine chuckled when his spelling wasn’t accurate. Afterward, people flocked to the instruments and started playing with the dials. Who needs an invitation to turn dials? And if you could choose some words to be projected onto the floor, what would they be? It was interesting to watch people think for a moment, and then start typing. You can see some of the results at www.twicescore.ellenmoffat.ca/gallery

As always, there is entertainment in Studio One at the end of an ARTcrawl. I am continually amazed how Studio One seems to morph into the perfect venue for so many different things. The night of ARTcrawl, Studio One became a small nightclub in Toronto, featuring Bob’s Band. Bob Hiltz grinned as he started strumming the opening licks to what turned out to be a rockin’ set. The buffet was piled high, a Surreal Cocktail (club soda, Perdon, a twist of red licorice, with ice) was being offered at the bar, and people settled in for a surreal good time. Marshall Heaton and his wife Kimberley were nodding to the beat in appreciation- ARTcrawl was a rare night out for them and they were enjoying the ambiance. Moustache-adorned Art Bunnies Vanessa and Sonya were speaking in a fake French accent as they served spanakopita, profiteroles, and chocolate truffles.

Winter ARTcrawl 2011 was a great success. I counted about 150 people at ARTcrawl. They were laughing, drinking, eating, and hanging out in a cultural venue on a cold, dark night in January. I know that my two boys enjoyed themselves, and thought it was really cool that mom said they could wear fake moustaches out in public. They have attended almost every ARTspace opening, walked with me on every ARTcrawl, and are two of my biggest fans. It was not a late night, but it was a lot of fun. It really WAS a surreal good time!

P.S. Sir Real the 2011 Winter ARTcrawl baton has settled in nicely at ARTspace, and stands alongside the Croc Stick (that was created for the 2009 Summer ARTcrawl, which featured the burial of Old Man Winter, New Orleans-style).

Sir Real is Ready to ARTcrawl!

2011-01-15T11:49:00.001-08:00

Cockroach and wine glass in hand, Sir Real is ready for the Surreal ARTcrawl tonight. It has been blowing snow all day, and the temperature is now at -15. I don't know if that's Canadian Celsius or American Fahrenheit (because I sometimes end up inadvertently listening to American radio stations as we are so close to Detroit).... but I DO know it is damn cold.

I will be writing a piece for the Cultural Centre and the Chatham-Kent Daily Post about ARTcrawl, which I will also post here in a few days.

I have my fake mustache ready and am practising my fake French accent. I sound like Pepe LePew and, with my beaver fur coat that I'm wearing tonight, I may be mistaken for the ghost of Edward Gorey. A strange combination, yes, and totally appropriate for this evening's festivities. I'm sure all ARTcrawlers are taking stock right this minute, checking their inventory of weird, surreal items they'll be toting tonight. One of my friends was looking for a stuffed anteater to put on a leash, a la Salvador Dali.

The Thames Art Gallery's Winter Surreal ARTcrawl begins in a few hours, and the first stop is the show I curated, entitled 'Bombs & Babes'. Mustache affixed, I will be introducing Marshall Heaton, who will discuss why he chose to superimpose pin-up girls upon images of war. He brings a heterosexual appreciation for the female form to a body of work that has Riot Grrrl written all over it.

This will definitely be a surreal evening!

Bits and Pieces

2011-01-01T17:39:00.001-08:00

A detail shot from my shadowbox "Good & Evil". There were a lot of pulp fiction novel covers in this one! The covers I used were Murder of the Clergyman's Mistress, Pay for Her Passion, Boy Chaser, Shanty Boat Girl, and No Letters for the Dead. They're so interesting that I think they're actually artworks unto themselves. This photo is from the "evil" side of the shadowbox.

Happy New Year!

Shoot What Makes You Happy

2010-12-28T09:05:00.000-08:00

Someone in the kitchen at Wendy's decided to make that crispy chicken combo EXTRA crispy! The famous Wendy's fire happened here in Chatham about 5 years ago, and the irony of the sign was the talk of the town (at least amongst people who notice details like this).

Detail from the shadowbox I named "Control". I love the blank, almost haunted faces of these dolls. This shadowbox was my comment on the fashion industry and how it tries to brainwash women into thinking that they're too fat, no matter what size they are. I have actually heard that men like a little 'junk in the trunk'... so I think that women need to stop being so hard on themselves.

This is a gift tag I made out of an oyster shell I found on the beach in PEI. It features a starfish I bought in Key West. I love shells, and alphabet letters. Especially together. And when the ingredients for a good art tag are found while on vacation on an island.... oooh! Double score.

I took this shot while playing in the garden with my sons and their superhero figures. This tiger makes me smile every time I see it. It also reminds me of a simpler time when I actually had time to garden.... and when my kids still liked posing superheroes in the grass.

One of my cool car shots. Horsepower makes me happy. So does red. This shot makes me feel like I need to go racing at Mosport again. The day I spent at Mosport, screaming around the corners in an F2000 was the most liberating experience of my life. To date.

Detail from a shadowbox I called "Good & Evil". This old comic frame was on the 'evil' side of the shadowbox because women wanting to have careers over the ever-fulfilling combo of children & matching potholders are evil. Right? :)

A truly dead end in the Key West cemetery. Yes, this is the also the cemetery where you'll find the famous tombstone that says, "I told you I was sick." I did a whole series of shots from this cemetery- there are some stunning statues that look awesome against the blue, blue sky.

As the last few days of 2010 tick by, I wish all my art friends many happy snapshot moments that make them smile. Happy and creative 2011, everyone! Shoot what makes you happy!

Making a Surreal Stick

2010-12-20T18:29:00.000-08:00

The above picture is giving me flashbacks of how I felt after the annual family dinner yesterday... but I digress.

The Thames Art Gallery is having its annual Winter ARTcrawl on January 15, 2011 starting at 6pm. Once again, I have been entrusted to create the ceremonial baton that leads the masses down King Street from ARTspace to the William Street Cafe to the Thames Art Gallery. The theme this year is the Surreal- we are celebrating the life and times of Yves Tanguy, who died on January 15, 1955. On the right side of this page somewhere is a picture my last baton, the Croc Stick, that led the summer ARTcrawl down King Street in a New Orleans Funeral procession.

So now I need to make a surreal baton. And I'm all set. I have time over Christmas vacation. I have a pole. I have lots of plastic fruit. I have a toy train. I have a clock. Like most people, I equate surrealism with Salvador Dali, so I can't get the thought out of my head that I need to find a blowtorch and melt the clock.

At this point, you should scream. While it is true that I am a wicked gunslinger with glue bottles, puttin' a torch in my hand would require dexterity I do not possess at the moment and would put the Chatham-Kent Fire Department on high alert. It is frustrating when, as an artist, you realize that your super cool idea requires skills or equipment that you don't have. I may have to enlist the help of a friend or neighbour who won't keep asking me, "are you SURE you want me to do this?" (On that note, I'm still afraid to ask the building supervisor at work to run a Barbie doll through the circular saw so that she's in slices. People get reputations for things like that. And people talk- oh yes, they truly do. Mind you, with a sliced Barbie in a shadowbox, people would stop asking me why I put bird skulls on Barbie bodies. Actually, no they wouldn't.)

This Christmas, I'll try to make art responsibly. I will make a surreal baton that will shake the very foundations of the art world, just by slinging glue bottles. If I haven't gotten frustrated, taken matters into my own hands, found a blowtorch, and melted my own face off in the making of this surreal baton, I'll post a photo. Surreally.

Laurie's Gingerbread House- Really. What Did You Expect?

2010-12-07T13:12:00.000-08:00

Laurie's Festive "Go Away" Gingerbread House

Recently, I decided to attend an adult gingerbread workshop with my friend Phyllis. Brilliant concept, really... pre-cut gingerbread slabs, 20 bowls of candy for decorating, a well-stocked bar, and no kids.

I had a glass of red wine to assist with my creativity.

The evening began rather innocently. I followed the usual procedure: lay out the gingerbread slabs, use white icing to glue the slabs together, lick your fingers, hold slabs together, lick your fingers again, grab a slurp of wine, lick your fingers again, taste-test a sugary spearmint leaf (yuck) and wash it down with red wine, hold slabs together, chat with your friend as she puts gumdrop breasts on her gingerbread man, drink some more.

The organizer brought me some black icing. Nobody else got black icing. (I suppose I have a bit of a reputation as not being totally enthralled with the whole Christmas thing. I think she thought it might help me get into the Spirit of the Season in my own special way.)

And... well... it seems I was feeling somewhat Tim Burtonesque.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Looking at a Problem from a Different Angle

2010-11-26T15:13:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of Muffy, looking at the world from a different angle. I think everyone should do this every now and again.

Well, I WAS scheduled for a solo exhibition at ARTspace in 2011. Due to technical difficulties (a chronically sore paw and a matching sucky attitude), I decided not to proceed. I did three shadowboxes in my Saints Series (see below) as part of the exhibition, and then I hit the wall. And it was not for lack of ideas- oh, I had a myriad of possibilities lined up! Aforementioned suckiness gripped my Art Mojo with the Tentacles of Doom.

Enter the ARTspace committee. I informed them of my plight and begged to be reconsidered for an exhibition in 2012. But no. Nay, they said. Nay, Laurie. You WILL keep your spot (September) and you will like it.

Actually, it didn't go down like that. The ARTspace committee was very supportive. They suggested that I look at it from a different angle- keep the date but share the exhibition with other found object artists. As soon as that alternative was mentioned, I had one of those "AHA!" moments.

They say 'when one door closes, another one opens'. (Or something like that. If you're like my friend Phyllis, then you might unwittingly combine two adages and say "When one door opens, there's two in the bush." She once commented on the departure of a boyfriend by saying, "Oh, well. There's plenty of fish on the beach.") Because I am an oldest child, I am very good at sharing. Why I hoard bird skulls is another issue entirely, but I digress.

As co-conspirators for this exhibition, I immediately thought of my two friends, Becky Fixter Vagners and Kelly Ridley. Neither of these women are really known for their found object creations. Becky is a fabulous painter. Kelly is a fabric artist who also makes SteamPunk corsets. She once sat in the ARTspace window and, over the course of a month, knit herself into an 'egg'. Every now and again, however, both women have created found object artworks that I thought were pretty cool. And strangely enough, my sore paw had become the catalyst in creating the very opportunity for me to work with them.

Art Grrls unite! Both Becky and Kelly are intrigued with the shared exhibition idea. We're meeting next week to discuss a theme to which we will all respond in our own ways. Becky's piece will probably hang from the ceiling in a tangle of rusted metal, stripped wires, and nasty but cool salvaged stuff that could give you tetanus. Kelly's piece will be softer and will probably incorporate hand-spun wool (dyed with Cool-Aid) from her own sheep, the odd insect carapace, and doll heads that she's hoarded for years. And a small skull. Mine, of course, will be nicely contained in a box with a frame. My work will probably be the most pedestrian of the three, but it will be interesting nonetheless.

Of course, this is merely speculation at this point. We might end up doing a collaboration that's 29 feet long by 11 feet high, involves video screens and large, pointy spikes.

What I DO know is that the show in September at ARTspace will feature three found object artists, all women, who will have had a lot of fun putting an exhibition together.

I honestly thought my exhibition was toast. But all it took was looking at the problem from a different angle. My original idea for a solo show was pretty cool.

The Laurie, Becky & Kelly Show is going to be even cooler.

Reckless Abandon & Freakout- Finding the Creative Balance

2010-11-20T16:54:00.000-08:00

Reckless Abandon at the Disco

This is me (and my son Chaz) enjoying a moment of Reckless Abandon at a disco party at the Thames Art Gallery. No cares, no worries. I think at this moment I was realizing that, despite being into punk rock throughout high school, I knew all the words to a K.C. & The Sunshine Band song. AND I DIDN'T CARE. A bohemian moment, if you will. Throwing caution to the wind. Gettin' down with my bad self. Just lettin' it ride.

Pre-Show Freak Out!

And now, for something completely different.

Taken last year, this is me, moments before my illuminating talk at ARTspace for my opening, Guys & Dolls. (Yes, that's Muffy in my hand, star of many beach and backyard photo shoots.) This photo documents the Freakout moment of which I speak. That's Carl Lavoy, Curator of the Thames Art Gallery, behind me. He's trying to keep me from running away. And I really did feel like running away. The morning of the opening, I stormed into his office and told him to cancel the opening. I told him that he shouldn't have let me have a show. That my work was sub-standard. That I had no right posing as an artist and should be branded as a dilettante for all to mock. (Do not be alarmed- I hear this is standard self-flagellation for artists before a show. We strive to be individuals and yet we all behave the same way before our own openings.)

Why are these two photos relevant, you ask? It's about energy. More specifically, creative energy. I have been without my Art Mojo for a few months now and this has led me to re-visit some of my work to see what I think worked and what didn't. And I have come to the conclusion that optimum creative energy is a combination of the energies illustrated in these two photographs.

That there are moments of Reckless Abandon in some of my pieces, in which I've somehow stepped outside the confines of my usual reference points and I see a glimmer of New Territory. It is fresh. It is very interesting. And I have absolutely no idea how I got there.

But then there are moments of Freakout. I have created pieces where I started out on a promising narrative path and then I Freaked Out and pulled back as if I had gotten spooked. Self-censorship. Actually, I think this is my major problem. The idea is good but the final version falls short of telling a cohesive story. Similarly, sometimes I think my work gives the impression that I Freaked Out and threw a whole bunch of crap together, hoping that a narrative would materialize. Hey, if one bird skull is a symbol of the death of freedom, then a whole bunch of bird skulls will really drive the point home! If some is good, then more is better! I'm a found object artist- I have lots of crap to throw around.

So I have come to realize that the ultimate Art Mojo exists within a combination of these two energies- Reckless Abandon and Freakout. The trick is to let my creative mind go, and then carefully pull back. It's about pushing an idea as far as you possibly can: brainstorming and even going into the absurd (don't discount the zany ideas!), then pulling back just a bit, applying some intellect, and honing the message.

Creating a good piece of art is like dancing the Flamenco with a man who has really dreamy dark brown eyes that you totally get lost in, but you still remember the complicated dance steps.

Don't stop- don't stop the dance.

Prepare for A Rough Ride- What Laurie Does With Those Photos

2010-11-17T13:33:00.000-08:00

Sometimes, when I need to take a break from making shadowboxes (which is an intense process, even by my standards), I grab my Canon Rebel and head to the backyard. There is SO much you can do with action figures and a little imagination!

When the models cooperate and I've created a few good images (like the one in the middle), I take the photos into the printmaking studio and, through a really cool photo-sensitive process, I turn them into prints. Sometimes I take a headline from the Globe & Mail and add it to the print (Prepare For A Rough Ride- above). I might run off two or three prints and I tend to favour red, blue, or green.

Sometimes I feel that the finished print needs more than a headline- it needs a story. Then the print might become part of a collage, like the one at the top (Her Lips Remember). Each collage is one-of-a-kind, and features old luggage tags, vintage stamps, maps, interesting beverage labels, 1950's paper dolls, tickets, etc. I am constantly asking friends to save me their paper bits when they go on holidays, which is how I get some of my ephemera collection.

My first show at ARTspace ("Guys & Dolls") featured prints and collages that were made from some of my backyard exploits. I had a LOT of fun with that show! And it made a lot of people smile, which was the intention.

This is what I do with action figure photos. Then if I'm feeling particularly creative, I will take the actual action figure, and put him (or her) in an altered form in a shadowbox. Then I create a three-dimensional world (like the shadowboxes "Forgiveness" and "St. Catherine the Astonishing"- see both in the bank of images to the right). And it is an intense process. Then when I need a break from making shadowboxes, I take photos.

And the cycle begins again.

Memories of Childhood

2010-11-17T13:10:00.000-08:00

Suzy is Smokin'

Last year, a friend of mine commented that I was good at taking pictures of dolls. True enough. She asked me if I would do a photo shoot of her favourite childhood doll, Suzy.

It was a beautiful day at McGeachie's Pond. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, Suzy was cooperating and working with the camera. And then, without warning, my mind went on a mischievious bent (some might argue that I was just being myself). It wasn't hard to find a cigarette butt on the ground (that's a whole other topic for discussion), and Suzy had one of those mouths that used to take a baby bottle... well, the above photo speaks for itself.

I am very grateful that my friend has a sense of humour. I think that Suzy looks contemplative.

Bombs and Babes at ARTspace

2010-11-13T16:04:00.000-08:00

one of Marshall's really cool prints

I'm curating a show at ARTspace in January called Bombs and Babes, featuring the art of printmaker Marshall Heaton. Marshall taught me printmaking a few years ago, and his work has always intrigued me. He covers many different subject matters, including war and women. The above image will be one of the featured works in the show.

We are working on a way to use barbed or razor wire as part of the exhibition.
Marshall will speak about nosecone art, blonde bombshells, and the contrast of war and women (hard and soft, death and life, etc). I love how he juxtaposes the two subjects and creates a darkly humourous bent. He insists that people should not take art too seriously and that art essay "gobbledy gook" drives him crazy.

His work has some similarities with mine, which is why this show resonates with me so much. The opening night will be January 15th at 6pm, as the first stop in the annual Winter ARTcrawl (this time, with a 'surrealist' theme to celebrate the life of Yves Tanguy who died on that date in 1955). Gotta love the marketing tag....."have a surreal good time!"

Now THAT'S A Big Fish

2010-11-03T15:55:00.000-07:00

Landing A Bluefin in P.E.I.

I was going through some files a few days ago and found this shot I took while on vacation in P.E.I. I was eating lunch at a little wharf-side seafood restaurant near Cabot Park when I heard the cook in the back say "There's a big one coming in!" When the waitress delivered my mussels, she said that a big bluefin tuna was coming into the harbour and that it would be a pretty interesting thing to see. If I was interested.

I was.

Landing large bluefin tuna doesn't happen that much anymore, especially on P.E.I., and a crowd had already gathered on the wharf by the time I got there. The tuna went up on a huge hook, got weighed (over 700 pounds) and then was lowered onto the wharf.

I forgot that tuna bleed.

I took a bunch of photos.

Fifteen minutes had passed and the tuna was already sold for sushi to Japan, and the dockhands were preparing to put it on ice.

And I went back to my mussels.

It was a really interesting day... one of those days when you're reminded of the Man vs. Nature struggle and how it can be sad and profound, but delicious.

The Queen of Hearts at Eye for Art!

2010-11-03T12:52:00.000-07:00

Laurie says, "Off With Their Heads!"

You can't go to a costume party without a costume.

Here I am at Eye for Art, just before I grabbed the camera and documented the evening for the Curator. Let me tell you, this costume requires a LOT of crinoline. And nobody knew who I was!

If you'd like to read a blog I wrote about the evening, access www.theculturalcentre.com

The photos will be posted there as well.

So now that I'm done the big art blitz that was required for Eye for Art, I am going to journal for a few months until creativity returns. Still no mojo for the Queen of Hearts.

Maybe I'll take up painting.

The Saints Have Arrived at Eye for Art!

2010-10-12T16:11:00.000-07:00

Our Lady of Perpetual Help

St. Margaret the Barefoot

St. Catherine the Astonishing

Sad but true- I've lost my mojo. Maybe my hand injury is blocking my creative flow. Who knows. Today, I entered these three shadowboxes into Eye for Art. The titles are: Our Lady of Perpetual Help, St. Margaret the Barefoot, and St. Catherine the Astonishing. They were part of a larger body of work I was creating for a solo show in 2011 but, as I said, I lost my mojo.

I am currently working on Our Lady of Perpetual Light (and have been for almost 10 months- see? Mojo's missing.) in which I've used some Tim Hortons coffee cups. I can't wait to see how that one turns out. That is one of those projects for which I don't know the outcome. It is just going to happen as it happens.

Hallowe'en is right around the corner. That usually cheers me up! Maybe the Great Pumpkin will bring back my mojo. Eye for Art is a costume party this year, so that might cheer me up, too. Boo!

Getting Ready - Eye for Art

2010-09-08T11:09:00.000-07:00

Here is a preview of "St. Catherine the Astonishing"- my submission for the upcoming Eye for Art. St. Catherine is the ultimate Catholic woman- she doesn't have a mouth. She can't argue and therefore cannot have an opinion.

Return from Chinatown!

2010-08-30T11:30:00.000-07:00

blingy stuff in a window in Chinatown

Oh, boy! I got to go to Toronto for the last weekend of the summer! This time, my oldest boy Monty and I checked out Chinatown and Kensington Market. You never know where inspiration will come from. These bejewelled critters were in a window display and I thought they created an interesting scene. There are days I feel all bright and sparkly, filled with ideas and brimming with plans to create. And then there are days when I wonder what it is I was trying to say. I had a great conversation with a friend on the weekend about his upcoming exhibition. He was telling me all about the concept, and how he arrived at it, and what he was doing in his studio, and it was all so engrossing and serious, and I was nodding and taking it all in, and then he said "and then I thought it was a load of crap so I threw it all out."

I laughed.

I love talking with fellow artists. It makes me feel that I am not alone in my trials and tribulations and self-censorship.

This picture of sparkly animals in the window reminded me of a gallery opening, where artists are all lit up and talking to each other about ideas and inspiration.

Shine on!

I Love A Man in Uniform

2010-08-12T11:52:00.000-07:00

"I Love a Man in Uniform" (collage)

I have been working VERY slowly on a series of shadowboxes that are my versions of Catholic Saints. I injured my hand back in May and have been progressing at a snail's pace. I can't wait until I am back in the saddle again.

So far, I have 4 Barbies that have been altered into my versions of actual saints St. Margaret the Barefooted, Our Lady of Perpetual Light, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, and St. Catherine the Astonishing. I am working on St. Successa right now. My goal is to have 8-10 shadowboxes. I guess I am still playing with dolls after all!

The Saints will be part of my 2011 show at ARTspace, hopefully in the late Spring.

I Love Riding The Subway!

2010-07-29T11:16:00.000-07:00

Jumping On the TTC

Subways are awesome. There are so many unanswered questions on the subway. The girl on the right- what is she texting? The girl stepping onto the train- where is she going? The red-haired lady on the left- is she dreaming of a boy she kissed in grade school? You could make up an entire story for each of these women, none of which would be true, but you could have fun guessing. What was I doing? I was visiting Toronto for the weekend, dining at C5 at the ROM, taking in a lecture at the AGO on Victorian photocollage, and breathing the electric air of the big city that I was born in.

A Nice Day

2010-05-24T13:22:00.000-07:00

fresh tub o' margarine

There is poetry in the smallest, unlikely things.... I have these moments where I am stopped dead in my tracks and then find myself searching for my camera. The above image is of a margarine container, newly opened. Such delectable promise! Worthy of a photo.

Today is a beautiful sunny day and, although the Art Siren called me at around 11am, I ignored her. I watched an epic movie, Spartacus... and then I threw a load of laundry in the machine, cracked open a cold Corona, and went outside to survey my flowers. My peonies are in various states of blooming- some brazenly socializing and others, party-hesitant. Irises are blooming loudly. The mock orange is ready to flash me some bright white (although definitely not in surrender, as it is twice as big as it was last year at this time). I am waiting patiently for the weigela, which seems to be taunting me with its promises of pink trumpets. Colour can be noisy.

I am a bit disappointed with my roses, though, as trespassing worms seem to be helping themselves to delicate buds. I have picked them off by hand and thrown them happily out into the grass where I hope they'll feel as lost and vulnerable as a tourist in Rome. I know they have to eat. I just wish they'd find another diner with a rose bud special.

I am still working on lighting my series of "Saints" shadowboxes... and not getting too far. I'm now hopelessly behind on my goal of one shadowbox a month and hope to fire up the afterburners soon. But this weather isn't helping. I am torn. Should I hide myself away in the Art Lair, without any windows, or do I bask in the sun and survey the riot of colour that my garden dishes out?

Tough choice.

Maybe it's just a simple case of needing vitamins C (lime in the Corona) and D (sun).

In that case, the vitamin deficiency won today.

Her Lips Remember & Pretty Swirls

2010-05-04T16:34:00.000-07:00

Her Lips Remember (collage)

This is a collage about fond memories and fabulous kisses! This collage is created over a print I made called "3-Faced". I seem to be on a swirly-bits kick right now.

I'm not sure where this is coming from. I did notice that my tampon wrappers are covered in swirls, too. They're kinda pretty. I'm thinking that the wrappers are designed to momentarily distract women from a monthly evil mindset in which they feel like gnawing on porcelain. Are swirls now part of the marketing collective unconscious?

I dunno. Swirls are kinda pretty.

I Love A Man With Big Ideas

2010-04-20T17:27:00.000-07:00

One of the collages I just finished.

Beautiful Things

2010-04-20T08:33:00.000-07:00

A monumental slug. Nay, a Herculean slug.

A really really pretty and breathtaking view

This was the spectacular view after hiking through mossy paths in Victoria...... If I could, I'd park an Airstream right on this spot and learn to paint.

The top image is of a slug.... isn't it cool? (There's a toonie there for size reference.)

I AM working on some art, not just distracting you with photos of my trip out West.

I finished three collages on the weekend and will post them shortly.

Back from the West Coast and Inspired by Emily Carr's Work!!

2010-04-01T17:57:00.000-07:00

I just spent a week in Victoria and I'm all rested and ready to create!

I saw Emily Carr's work at the Art Gallery of Victoria and was inspired. Not sure how that relates to shadowboxes and pictures of Ken and Barbie, but I'll figure it out. I picked up a copy of Emily Carr's journals and I am finding her entries very interesting. I loved it when she wrote about trying to paint a mountain and not being able to capture its true nature, then getting frustrated after a few months and painting over it. (All we know is the famous Emily and we tend to forget that she was an artist who had failures and frustrations, too.) She had 4 dogs, a monkey, and a rat, which I find amusing. I had a five-hour wait at the Calgary airport and being immersed in Emily made the time go faster. And she wrote books, too! I did not know that.

Now, back to 'Our Lady of Perpetual Illumination', and "St. Catherine the Barefoot'- two shadowboxes I'm working on in my new Saint Series. Maybe I'll do a west-coast themed piece- St. Penelope of the Precipice? St. Margaret of the Mountain? St. Gertrude of the Grotto? You never know.

Ah, Spring!

2010-03-19T13:57:00.000-07:00

"untitled" because I can't think of anything that isn't rude

I'm posting this just because it is spring and.... um..... just because. Actually, I was looking over the shots from this session and thinking that they might be good submissions for the Desmond Juried Art Show.... is that photo REALLY focussed on rural life, you ask? Well, it features home-grown produce! Of COURSE it makes reference to rural life.

At least, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Art Zombie

2010-03-13T07:50:00.000-08:00

It was a rainy Saturday. She wondered what project to start- there were so many swirling around in her head. Finish the shadowbox? Start a new one? Work on a collage? Write in her journal? As she pondered her choices and made her way to the basement door, she heard an unearthly growl coming from the Art Room.

"Hmmm...", she thought. "The cat is prowling around outside. The kids are playing Xbox. The washing machine buzzer doesn't sound like that and the doorbell has been working better in the past month.... What on earth could that BE??"

She opened the door and came face to face with...... the Art Zombie.

Okay, I'm bored. It really IS raining and I want to go outside. Ah, the Afflictions of March! Not even the new version of Photoshop is keeping my mind from wandering.

I have become...... an Art Zombie.

Show me some mercy.

Percolating

2010-03-10T15:45:00.000-08:00

Burn, Baby, Burn

Through Women's Hands went well. I attended the show and brought one example of each of the things that I do: printmaking, collage, photography, and shadowboxes.

I am currently finishing a shadowbox called "Our Lady of Perpetual Illumination". It involves a Barbie wrapped in vintage '50's Christmas lights. It WILL light up. I had some other ideas for a series based on Saints. I'm rather partial to "St. Seraphina of the Immaculate Suspension". And believe it or not, there really IS a saint called "St. Christina the Astonishing"- I've got some ideas for that as well.

I'm glad it is getting warmer because that means Garage Sale Season is getting closer. I need some more stash! Friends give me things, but I still need more. More, more!

For now, just sitting and percolating.... sketching and pondering.... still eating gummy bears... thinking about Eye for Art 2010...

Smiley Squirrel in the Backyard & LOOK 2010

2010-02-21T10:26:00.000-08:00

It is a beautiful spring-like day today! I feel like taking the dolls outside and posing them for a whole new series. Here's Smiley Squirrell with two Muffys from a photo shoot last summer.
I got accepted to the LOOK 2010 show in Sarnia- for round 1. Now I bring the work (He Pushed All Her Buttons) in and they look at it a second time to make sure they really like it. I'm dropping my work off sometime this week. Road trip! I am excited.

Haven't done any shadowboxes since 'The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary'...... I was briefly without a handyman to build the boxes for me. But now I'm back in the saddle. And I just need some time to create! Balancing work and home and art and life can be really complicated.

Throw in a bout of the flu and you can see how I might not be reaching my art goals. One shadowbox a month- that was my goal. So far, February hasn't been fruitful. Maybe I'll make two in March! I am heading out to Victoria at the end of March, so I'm hoping to have one done before I go, and hoping to get inspiration (and maybe some new stash!) while I'm there.
But in the meantime, the opening for LOOK 2010 is March 5th. If I make it through round 2, I will be exhibiting at my first out-of-town juried art show. Progress!

Winter is almost done. I'm feeling squirrelly......I can't wait to get outside and dig.

The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is done!

2010-02-02T16:37:00.000-08:00

The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

This Fish is Cooked

2010-01-31T12:36:00.000-08:00

The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary- fish detail

I'm just about done the shadowbox I've created for the LOOK Juried Show in Sarnia. The glue is drying, and I have to attach the frame. Here's a sneak peek. The Virgin Mary has just cooked a fish, and the angels are looking at it, forks and spoons in hand.

This would not be a miraculous occasion in the day and times of a good woman in, say, 14BC. It would be a miraculous occasion in my house, however, no matter what year it is. That is not to say that I am not a good woman- I am what I like to call Domestically Challenged.

I like the shiny silver fish. And, of course, the fish is also a symbol of Christ/Jesus/Christianity. It all works. I'll post the whole shot when it is ready.

I think I'll be driving my entry to Sarnia later this week, as the deadline is February 5th and I don't trust the mail. But my entry is almost done.

It's a miracle!

I Need Some Sun!

2010-01-26T16:07:00.000-08:00

Miss Thang

I am trying to get an entry together for the LOOK juried exhibition in Sarnia.....but all I can think about is getting some sun. We were supposed to be in Key West this week, but it is the first year of high school exams for my oldest boy and rather than leave him behind, we did the responsible thing and stayed home to help him through the ordeal. Which is turning out to be no big deal.

Next year, I'll make him study by the pool in Key West. It is cold and dark and either snowing or raining here and I don't feel very creative. I watched Anna Karenina on the weekend and I don't think that helped my mood any!!

So far, the title of the new shadowbox has morphed into 'in fragrante delicio'. Oh, 'tis complicated (and muddled!) to trace the steps to this point but I think it is going to work. I'm doing things I haven't done before- sawed the handles off forks, stuck a big metal fish to the bottom of the box and prayed that it will stay put, and considered chopping angels in half. All in the name of art!
So, off I go down to my Art Lair... hoping for inspiration and that a bag of gummy bears will mysteriously surface on my desk.

And dreaming of the sun. And Corona with Key lime.

Done!- He Pushed All Her Buttons

2009-12-29T13:45:00.000-08:00

Here it is- He Pushed All Her Buttons. Now if I can only resist the urge to take it down to ARTspace and offer it for sale! This is the first shadowbox in my series of 10 or more that I'm making for a potential show in 2011.

Thanks to my friend Jon-Erik for the photos and to Ken for the set of vintage buzzers- you are enabling a found object artist and I greatly appreciate it!

He Pushed All Her Buttons

2009-12-26T13:17:00.000-08:00

The latest shadowbox- "He Pushed All Her Buttons".

Lighting isn't great on this shot- will post a better one once the frame is attached and it is complete. Haven't finalized the lower right-hand corner yet.....

There are words above the buzzers- zoom in to read!

This is what has been keeping me sane over the past few Yuletide days. That and gummy bears galore. Happy holidays and happy creating to all my artist friends. May 2010 bring us all the best ideas yet!

The LA LA LAND Studio!

2009-11-29T08:06:00.000-08:00

The Art Lair a.k.a The Art Hole

Mother guilt be damned! I kicked the boys out of the Snit Room and let them move all their Xbox crap upstairs (which I may live to regret). And I took the room for my studio. I had been thinking about getting a studio downtown, but the more I thought about the odd hours I'd be keeping, the more I got a little freaked about running into unsavoury characters. The idea was a good one- I just was getting scared with the possibilities. I knew that would affect my creative time.

So, a studio at home seemed the next best thing. Plus the fridge is close. So is the computer. After spending $5000 at Future Shop to buy a 52" tv and complete home-theatre surround sound, the boys will be happy upstairs. And I can close the door to my studio downstairs, light the candles, look at my flying Bird Muffies, and relax.

I feel this is a step in the right direction. My goal is to produce 10 very cool shadowboxes by the end of 2010 so that I can have a show in 2011. My working title is "The Far End of Something".
No, I don't have a window, but with all my cool stuff around me, I won't even notice.

Bring on the ideas! Where's my Muse? Now I need a Muse.

The Kiss

2009-11-16T16:14:00.000-08:00

Well, I didn't get accepted to the Juried Show. But I am not taking it personally. Some curators are going to like what I do; others won't.

In the meantime, I've started my first art journal at the urging of two of my artistic friends (one of whom DID get accepted to the Juried Show) and it is coming along nicely. That's actually been fun!

And while I compose my new shadowbox, which so far consists of the Virgin Mary and some oven mitts, here's a picture of Muffy and a fish, entitled "The Kiss", which I rather like.

Blind Faith is Done!

2009-10-14T13:08:00.000-07:00

Done! I present to you Blind Faith. All it needed was a little broken glass. Now to attach the frame and submit my Juried Show application. I hope I'm accepted!

Blind Faith

2009-10-03T16:39:00.000-07:00

I went to Sarnia last night for First Friday, and had a great time! It was surreal-the place was lousy with artists and I didn't want to come back home. I jealously suspect that there's a Hedonism North in one of the art gallery basements, filled with inebriated creators that feed off each other's ideas. While seated in vintage modern furniture, of course. But come home I did, and I worked on my Juried Art Exhibition submission all day today... just me, the radio, and what's left of my sanity.

As you can see, I've used some vintage paper doll wedding dresses and bridesmaid dresses in a rather unorthodox way (surprise). You know there are skulls. I must have skulls. Zoom in on the print in the background for a laugh.

An artist that I admire alot told me that I need an art journal. Isn't that just old-school blogging? Regardless, putting my thoughts to paper might somehow funnel the swirl of ideas into workable bits. So, I think I'm going to get out of my art shirt right now and see what I can scrounge up at Winners. Usually they have some neato leather-bound journals and hopefully one will inspire me. I WILL have to check out the shoe section first, though.

In my ideal world, there is lots of art, lots of shoes, and lots of evenings spent with artists.

Sounds like a new shadowbox, doesn't it?

In Progress.... a doll head with bird wings?

2009-09-27T16:06:00.000-07:00

This is the little doll baby that is being 'birthed' from a gaping hole in a word-covered male torso. Which is wrapped with barbed wire. And the words all over the torso are all about violence, hurt, and anger. The shadowbox is being made so now I must wait and resist the urge to play with what is done.

The doll doesn't have any eyes- instead, she has two words on her eyelids: blind faith
What you can't see are the three hands holding the wound open- a doll hand at the end of a gun, a doll hand at the end of an operating instrument, and a doll hand at the end of a snake.

I don't know what this shadowbox is going to be called. It is going to be my submission for the 2009 Juried Show.

Pawing Some Ideas About But Not Really Getting Anywhere

2009-09-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

Angus the Cat 'playing' with Flatsy

OMG!!! I have a creative block!!!

I spent a few hours looking at Henrik Drescher's website, hoping for some inspiration.

I sawed a mannequin in half- seemed like a good idea at the time- so now what?

ARRRRGH!!!

I'm trying to get ready for the Juried Show at the Thames Art Gallery. I'm stuck.

Maybe I need a bag of Gummy Bears- they seem to get me thinking.

I could probably use a new pair of shoes while I'm out, too......

Maybe I'll just go shopping.

Pride Evening at ARTspace

2009-08-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

Master of the Universe

untitled

Easy Rider

As part of Mark Reinhart's show, Colour Drunk, at ARTspace this month, ARTspace is hosting an evening to celebrate the local gay/lesbian/transgendered (and more) community. Sadly, we aren't having a Gay Pride Parade in Chatham-Kent.

But we can still celebrate with an evening of art!

Here are three of the photographs I'll be exhibiting that evening. I have made prints with my photographs (as in my recent show) but this will be the first time that I've actually shown the photographs I take. Should be interesting!

I can't wait!

Zombie Muffy at the Beach!

2009-07-23T16:58:00.000-07:00

It's Zombie Muiffy! She's at the beach! She's wearing a seaweed and shell necklace because even a Zombie loves to be accessorized.

Muffy's Got a Shiny New Gun...

2009-07-19T13:31:00.000-07:00

Yes, Muffy has a shiny, new gun. Because Ken has a new man.

A Room at the Merrill Hotel #2

2009-07-18T12:55:00.000-07:00

Well, here it is! Finally, the completed version of "A Room at the Merrill Hotel". I had originally done this piece in a more minimalistic fashion (see post from last year), and it was decided that it would look better if it was more 'stuffed'.

So... voila! It's definitely stuffed. There are lots of things going on in this one- a poker game, postcard writing, smoking, drinking, reminiscing over lost loves and some jail time.... definitely some violent overtones with the gun front and centre. Notice the Trojans tin on the left side! I HAD to buy that tin, even if it was $30- for a shadowbox, that is a very expensive addition, but it definitely sets a tone and was worth every penny. There's one lady's earring, too. Looks like there was a lot of fun going on in this room. Everything is dated from the late 1940's - late 1950's. I have no idea how old the gun is, but it is real.

I really hope that the owner likes this new version. I'll have the glass cut and the frame fitted later this week.

Dimensions: BIG. It is over 54" long and roughly 7" thick and somewhere around 28" tall. And heavy as all get-out, as the background is the actual top of a wooden dresser I hacked up. This is definitely the biggest, most elaborate box I've ever done.

Rock the Croc Stick

2009-06-15T16:52:00.000-07:00

The Croc Stick

ARTspace is having its First Annual Summer ARTcrawl this Thursday. Back in January when they had their First Annual Winter ARTcrawl, I made a baton for the parade leader to carry while leading the group down King Street to the William Street Cafe and on to the Thames Art Gallery. That baton had the head of a goat, and came to be known as "The Goat Stick".

For the summer ARTcrawl, I made this baton: The Croc Stick. It has a decidedly more New Orleans/voodoo flavour to it, as we are having a New Orleans-style funeral procession (with real casket and fake skeleton inside!) down King Street to the Cafe and on to the Thames Art Gallery. We will blast the appropriate New Orleans-style jazz from a boom box, and dance our way along the street. Yes, while carrying a casket. We're going to bury Old Man Winter.

About three weeks ago, I was approached by a lady who wanted to buy the Goat Stick. The curator of the Art Gallery, Carl, didn't want to part with it. We'll see what happens when I show him the Croc Stick! Now we have two sticks- the lady can pick one, as she'll be in attendance for ARTcrawl, and Carl (for ARTspace) can have the other.

Maybe I've hit upon a new sideline.....

Hey Cowboy... Need a Ride?

2009-06-07T16:48:00.000-07:00

Hey Cowboy...Need A Ride?

It is done! You'll have to click on this image and zoom in. I'm submitting this tomorrow for the latest Community Arts Initiative at the Thames Art Gallery, called Call & Response.

I chose a black and white image of a cowboy as the 'call'. In the image, he is looking off to the right, with a saddle hoisted onto his shoulder. It is a simple image. I didn't choose the image I liked (that one was a photograph of dolls with human heads)- I chose the image that gave me the strongest feeling. I don't like cowboys. I don't like the way the cowboy was drawn. It is too flat and too bland.

This is my 'response': I gave the black and white cowboy a three-dimensional horse. A colourful horse. And lots of other things. Bullets, a cracked robin's egg, a gun, a bird skull, and a syringe. While I was doing this piece, I remembered that 'horse' is also a slang term for heroin. By saying, "Hey Cowboy... Need a Ride?", I am actually saying two things. The man needs a horse because he's a cowboy. And if that man is an addict, he needs a hit. The horse represents the wild ride that heroin brings.

"Hey Cowboy...Need a Ride?" is also a pick-up line of sorts, perhaps one that a lucky guy might hear from a cowboy boot-wearin' tart in a country and western bar.

She's a cute horse, isn't she? Check out the 'baby' in her stomach. And her nice boots!

Muffy Says Hello

2009-05-17T11:07:00.000-07:00

She's back.... and she's pissed.
Just another Sunday afternoon with Muffy. Long weekends get the creative juice flowing!

Hey, Cowboy- Need a Ride?

2009-05-15T17:24:00.000-07:00

This is the head of a horse. I just made it.

Well, I didn't actually MAKE the horse- I altered a rubber horse that I found at a thrift store. It is part of a shadowbox I'm working on for the Thames Art Gallery's newest Community Arts Initiative, called Call & Response. I'm responding to a sketch of a cowboy who is holding a saddle (that work is in the permanent collection at the Thames Art Gallery). This horse is part of my response.

So far, the working title is "Hey, Cowboy- need a ride?" Yes, Miss Horse has a Medusa thing going, which was deliberate.

I cut a hole in her side, which you can't see. Inside, I placed a little naked doll. Her two front hoofs are standing in Barbie cowboy boots, and she has a crow foot for a tail.

I'll post more pictures when I'm done.

How Much is that Muffy in the Window?

2009-04-30T16:07:00.000-07:00

A few of the Muffys in the window, as part of my first solo show at ARTspace, entitled Guys & Dolls.

The Front Window at ARTspace

2009-04-30T15:52:00.000-07:00

Well, it has been a very short month! In 4 days, I take down my ARTspace exhibit. The front window (above) has generated a LOT of discussion. It has been funny watching people walk by, then back up and point to one of the altered Muffys in the window. And laugh.

Exactly what I wanted!

So where does my art go from here? I'm not sure. My printmaking instructor said he'd like to see the Gallery offer waterless lithography. Maybe I'd like that. I have no idea what it is, but it sounds like there's lots of chemicals involved- COOL.

I might take basketweaving. Seriously. There's a basketweaving guild that meets at the Cultural Centre once a month and it sounds like they do some interesting things. But how will I incorporate Muffy, you ask? I won't know until I try.

I'll still do shadowboxes, but I think it might be time for me to branch out and try something different! Having a show was a very good experience for me- printmaking was the springboard.

Now I need a plan. I'm gonna make a plan. Yup- I'll get planning.

ARTspace opening is a success!

2009-04-11T14:27:00.000-07:00

That's me, freaking out just before I made my speech. It went well! Somehow, all the thoughts I had swirling around in my head at 2am came out in a coherent fashion when I spoke to the 60+ people in attendance. I sold 3 prints! Yippee! So now, I'm the Flavour of the Month at ARTspace. That ain't so bad. Happy Easter!

All Eyes Will Be Upon Me

2009-04-04T17:09:00.000-07:00

All eyes will be upon me this Thursday night! It's the opening for my first solo show at ARTspace- Laurie Langford: Guys & Dolls.

Am I ready? Absolutely not! I still have some bird skulls to glue to Barbie bodies- yes, the front window of ARTspace will be quite different for one month. I am excited! Lots of friends and family will be in attendance- I hope I can come up with some interesting dialogue.

I know that one of the questions will be "why?"

Why do I pose my son's action figures around the backyard and photograph them and turn them into prints? Why do I take dollar store dolls, call them Muffy, and pose them naked on the beach? Because I enjoy it, that's why. And the results make me laugh. And maybe, just maybe, there's a social commentary in there somewhere about stereotypes and the idea body. I am at a point in my life where NOT looking older involves surgical procedures, so the' ideal body' issue is on my mind. And one of the ideal bodies in our society is Barbie. Big boobs, no thighs, and impossibly smooth plastic skin. What's wrong with the way we look naturally? I know, this is coming from a woman who has been dyeing her hair for decades.

The next post will be about the show. For now, it may interest you to know that the 'eyes' in the above print are Audrey Hepburn's.

Sneak Peek of a Print

2009-03-14T07:10:00.000-07:00

This is one of the prints that will be in my show, starting April 8th. It is called 'Nevermore'.

And the show is almost put together! There are 16 prints & collages, 2 shadowboxes, and a myriad of dismembered Barbies specifically for the front window. I think I'll make a few more items for the window.

The show date is fast approaching! What to wear, what to wear......

Enchantment

2009-02-22T11:25:00.000-08:00

This is my newest shadowbox, entitled 'Enchantment'.

It is a fun, romantic topic- the opposite of 'Forgiveness', which was my last one. The two shadowboxes depict both extremes of a relationship. 'Forgiveness' is about the end of a relationship and 'Enchantment' is about the beginning. I will be featuring this one in my show at ARTspace in April, along with a whole bunch of prints and some Muffy dolls altered as birds, hanging from the ceiling.

Only 46 days to go. There will be a full moon the night of my opening- wooooo!!!!

Muffy- My Alter Ego?

2009-01-30T14:14:00.000-08:00

It has been suggested that Muffy is my alter ego. This is an interesting thought. Maybe it is what drives me in my latest phase- taking Muffy pictures and inverting them through Photoshop so that they look haunted and demon-esque.

So what does that mean, exactly? I'm not sure. I've only been at this for 2 years and I'm still trying to figure out what my 'message' is. One thing is for sure, though- it is fun making creepy Muffy shots.

Muffy in this incarnation may or may not make it to my show at ARTspace in April.......

Happy New Year! Go Play in the Snow!

2009-01-01T13:02:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

The First Two Dolls of the Exhibition

2008-12-21T13:30:00.000-08:00

Hmmmm..... maybe I was a little more hungry than I thought! Actually, I'm exploring the metaphor of women as items of consumption. I love the 'grab and go' line on the Pringles can. And the Chunky Soup is Prime Rib- maybe I should put a little necklace on the doll that says 'Eve'. I have run out of dolls to alter, though. (I'll have to make a trek to Value Village soon.) I also made two more dolls that have salt and pepper shakers for heads- the shakers are in the shape of chickens. Here, Chicky! (Click on the image for the super-sized view!)

So here we go. I'm starting to create the dolls for my art show. I have to do the front window AND the exhibiting wall at ARTspace. The front window will be all the altered dolls, with pictures in the background of a naked doll posing on the beach.

I make a very interesting party guest.

Where You'd Least Expect It

2008-12-19T13:57:00.000-08:00

This is another one of the prints I have produced. Hopefully, with another session of printmaking classes coming up in January, I will create lots more for my ARTspace opening in April. I'm really enjoying the way that photo collage looks when it is turned into a print. And, with the gang I take printmaking with, I am also having fun!

Holy Hot Peppers- Laurie is Going to Have Her Own Show at ARTspace!

2008-12-12T14:03:00.000-08:00

Ah, yes, the rumours you may have heard are true! I am going to have my own show at ARTspace.

It will feature photos like the one above, plus some prints I've made in printmaking class, and probably a video installation of Muffy! Muffy is a doll who has featured in many of my photographs. She had her own naked model shoot down at the beach last summer, and some of her shots will also be in the show. Now she's going to star in a video. Oh yes.

The date? Thursday, April 9th, 2009 at 7pm. Mark the date on your calendars and prepare to be amazed!

You'll never think the same way again about your kids' action figures.

Sold at Eye For Art!

2008-12-08T14:21:00.001-08:00

Laurie and art friend Linda at Eye for Art

Yippee! I decided to submit "Adventures in Growing Up" to Eye for Art.

And it sold!

I'm going to be experimenting with the collage/print thing more, as I am liking where it is going. The shadowbox that I also submitted, "Forgiveness", got a lot of comments.....like, 'what were you thinking when you made THAT?' Well, at least it generated discussion.

Here's an unauthorized photo of me and a fellow artist at Eye For Art. We are discussing the finer points of colour theory. It was a very long and involved discussion.

So, my goal over the Christmas holidays (which, for me, consists of about 3 days) is to create more collage/print combos. I am hoping to have my own show at the gallery ARTspace in 2009 and I am going to start preparing.

Adventures in Growing Up

2008-11-16T16:22:00.000-08:00

Adventures in Growing Up

The prints that I've made in printmaking class aren't all fabulous- as a matter of fact, I seem to have more 'rejects' than 'keepers'. Grrr.

But I did not despair! I've been creative with one of the rejects here. The print in the background of 'Adventures in growing up' is the mirror image of 'Believed he had a chance'. I'm in the process of using some of the other rejects in the same way- as backgrounds for a collage.
I'm not sure if this will be entered into Eye For Art. I'll have to sleep on that.

Anyway, this collage/print combo speaks to the ambiguity of sexuality. Some women have male attributes, some men have female tendencies, some people are distinctly heterosexual..... and sometimes we are attracted to people for interesting reasons. Some people are inexperienced (symbolized by the 'Green Potatoes' label from lovely pastoral rural P.E.I.), and some people are very experienced (symbolized by the strategically placed 'take-a'number' tab from my local butcher.

It takes all kinds to make the world go 'round, but when we are growing up, it can take time to find out where we fit. Sexual confusion is common when we are young. We experiment and learn.

There are many 'Adventures in growing up".

Off With Their Heads!

2008-11-01T07:34:00.000-07:00

Off With Their Heads!

This is my submission for the ARTspace fundraiser, The 12 Inches of Christmas.

Yes, The 12 Inches of Christmas.

Funnier still because the artwork has to be 12 inches by 12 inches, but can only be 5 inches deep.

No comment.

The Queen is angry because both her son, the Jack, and her husband, the King, are interested in Muffy! So she says, "Off With Their Heads!" The little Jones soda cap above her head reads "Rely on your own good judgement to lead you to success."

I think of all the Queens in history who were married off for strategic power and land and wealth (represented by the coins, glued in the 'heads' position on the canvas here) , and how they had to turn a blind eye while their husbands took mistress after mistress (thinking of the whole Anne Boleyn and King Henry thing). Maybe they actually care d about their husbands. Maybe they didn't. Regardless, this work is about one Queen who got tired of the whole thing and exercised some power.

With the surgical instruments, there is reference to plastic surgery here, too, as the Queen is older than Alice and could opt for surgery in the quest for eternal youth. Maybe her husband would stay interested in her. My friend Phyllis could write something poetic here about women competing against each other for men, and the age-old quest for eternal youth, and fertility, and society's rules, and many more ideas that I think about but am never able to verbalize.

"Off With Their Heads!" is also a reference to one of my favourite stories, Alice in Wonderland. Blonde Muffy in this work looks a lot like innocent Alice, and the King, Queen, and Jack are from a deck of cards.

Someday I'll do a bigger shadowbox about Alice in Wonderland.

Printmaking!

2008-10-25T16:02:00.000-07:00

Believed He Had A Chance

And I've taken up printmaking! This is my best one so far. The image is from a series of photos I took of my son Chas' 'Max Steel' doll, which I posed around the backyard. The doll on the right in the print was posed with the cherry tomatoes around his neck.

Click on the image and you can see it LARGE!!!

I plan to do more in this series, starring Max Steel, an action figure I 'borrowed' from my son.

Printmaking resumes in November- yay!

Forgiveness

2008-10-25T14:44:00.000-07:00

Forgiveness

This idea came to me when I was falling asleep one night.

It is called "Forgiveness", and I think it has a "War of the Roses" feel to it.

There are signs of violence everywhere. She's hacked off his arm (note the cleaver behind her, with bits of his neck feathers still sticking to the bottom). Maybe she's cut off his leg, too. But that arm had put her in a cage and was pulling her backward. There are broken bits of china in the background, a symbol of marital discord. He has taken two feathers out of her plume, and they're propped up behind him. The dial on his back is set to 'broil'.

The newspapers are old and discoloured, as are the bones, signifying that the battle has been going on forever. The date on one newspaper is 'Wednesday, April 14, 1920'. She was young and beautiful once (note the fishnet stockings!) and he was handsome and virile. Now she has a dried out skull face. There is a crushed baby bird skull at her feet. He has dried-out seed pods by his knees.

There is an awkward space between them. Even the shadowbox frame is battered and peeling.
He's offering her a butterfly, which is a symbol of change and transformation. He is on his knees. He is speaking flowery language, which is symbolized by the curly wire and letter 'R' coming out of the top of his head. She is not responding, but there is a hand coming out of the sky, with the same flowery language and the same letter 'R'. He is asking forgiveness, and the hand in the sky is suggesting that she speak the same language. It is a reference to the old biblical saying 'turn the other cheek'. But she doesn't have any cheeks to turn anymore- she's old and decayed.

Does she accept? Who knows. This shadowbox depicts the tense moment before the decision.

The Titan of Industry

2008-10-08T17:31:00.001-07:00

The Titan of Industry

Well, Strange Fruit has not yet materialized. It is still stuck somewhere in my head.

In the meantime, I created The Titan of Industry, above. In the background is an old photo of King Street West in Chatham. The items inside the box make reference to the native population that was here, the Black population, the many theatres, the car industry, and the fur trade. Perhaps this piece should be subtitled "The Chatham That Once Was".

I am working on another piece for Eye For Art, which is the bi-annual art exhibition that got me started on all this two years ago. The piece will be called Forgiveness. The Curator at the Art Gallery said I should be pushing the envelope a bit more with my work, so I decided to see just how far I could push myself. I think that Forgiveness is a step down that path. How far have I gotten? Let's just say that I had fun with a saw and a Ken doll. And yes, there are bird skulls involved. It should be interesting.

This Saturday, I'm returing to the Retro Suites Hotel to install theatre-style curtains around the piece I created for the lobby. After talking with the owner a few months ago, we both agreed that the piece didn't look quite finished. He loves the theatre-style curtains that I have used on shadowboxes, including the one that he bought last year called The Wedding Circus. We'll see how the installation goes, as I can't drill into the wood trim that frames the space around the piece. So far I've come up with a tension curtain rod, some velcro, and lots of dressmaker's pins!

Work is getting in the way of my art, but I AM creating some pieces.

Sisters

2008-07-12T14:08:00.001-07:00

Sisters

Three months has passed since my last entry- time flies when you get a job! I have been pretty busy lately, but I was able to finish a commission I did for a lady named Gerri.

In about a week, Gerri's sister Franki is going to visit her from England. They are very close. Gerri is going to surprise Franki with this shadowbox I made. It is called "Sisters". One of the cuter things in the box is the bunch of jellybeans in the teacup, bottom right. Apparently Franki couldn't say 'Geraldine' when she was little, so she called her older sister 'Jellybean'.

It was a fun box to make. I had to keep in mind that Franki is going to be taking this box back on the airplane, so it is a little smaller than my usual work. As you can see, though, it is no less detailed.

My next shadowbox project will be for the bi-annual Eye for Art Exhibition, which is what got me started when it was held two years ago. I have a neat store mannequin, a male torso, that modelled shirts. I'd like to use that somehow, and put it in a really big and elaborate gold frame.

I'll keep you posted.

A Room at the Merrill Hotel

2008-04-16T14:58:00.000-07:00

A Room at the Merrill Hotel

Here's the finished product for the Retro Suites, which I've called "A Room at the Merrill Hotel".

I'll try to get a photo of it hanging up at the Retro Suites. I took the items I was given and added a few more: a '50's cigarette pack, an old pen, an old set of Ford car keys, a dollar bill that someone would have used during the '50's, and some Chatham postcards.

I think it turned out quite well!

My shadowboxing has ground to a halt because I have a new full-time job in marketing at our local Cultural Centre. I still plan to work on some boxes but, for now, I'm getting my sea-legs. Adjusting to full-time hours and the pace of a workplace is taking some time. No more working all morning on a shadowbox, eating lunch while watching Law & Order, and then working on the box again until the kids get home at 3:30pm! I am enjoying my new job and the people that I work with. Honestly, I don't really have time to miss my artwork. But I haven't forgotten.

Next box: a custom order from a lady who wants to give her sister something special.

Retro Suites shadowbox- in progress

2008-03-20T15:48:00.000-07:00

This is the appearance of my work desk at the moment. The Retro Suites Lobby shadowbox is almost done. I'm just waiting for a few more pieces to complete the theme. My idea is to present items that a man might throw on a desktop (in a hotel) before retiring to bed. This way, the gun, wallet, hotel room key, and matchbook I was asked to use will all make sense- how else would you explain all these items in one pile?

For the background, I sawed the top off a 1930's-style walnut veneer desk. Once all the bits and pieces (gun, etc) are glued onto it, the desktop will mount to the brick wall, leaving brick exposed around the edges because the desktop is smaller than the shadowbox space. The fedora (bottom left corner of photo) will angle off the desktop and rest partly on the shelf of the shadowbox area. I may also put a glass on that shelf, complete with lipstick mark. Maybe my hotel guy had a late-night visitor!

I am excited about this project! I am waiting for a 1950's vintage cigarette pack.... everyone smoked in the 1950's, didn't they?

What you can't see are the words in the letter that is resting under the gun. It begins, "Well, Eddie, I guess you played me for a sucker." The words get more angry.... the scorned lady who wrote the letter actually says that if she can't have him, she will have to kill him. If you're ever at the Retro Suites Hotel in Chatham, check out this shadowbox. If you get close enough, you'll be able to read this letter with those very words.

Let this be a lesson to you. Be careful what you write- that hate letter you wrote to your ex might be found between a baseboard and the wall during a building renovation, and it might catch someone's attention and end up front and centre in a piece of art.

'1944' - The Sequel to '1914' & Retro Suites project

2008-02-15T10:47:00.000-08:00

1944

After the success of '1914', I decided that someday I would do a sequel. Here it is: '1944'. And yes, it is a shadowbox about World War II. There are a lot of references to events in here, of course, but mainly I wanted to create a box with an interesting twist.

At first glance, it looks like a nice box with flowers and pretty things. But looking closer, you see a sash around the centre lamb that reads 'Hitlerjugend' and the unsettling story unfolds from there. Anne Frank is on the left with a bittersweet quote from her diary: "Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy." Anne was taken from her hiding spot in 1944.

In the right corner is a framed photo of Adele Bloch-Bauer, painted by Klimpt, which was looted by the Nazis in World War II. The three monkeys in front of Anne (hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil) refer to how nations like the U.S. didn't believe the reports about the gassing going on in the concentration camps because the details seemed too extreme. The lamb represents the German children that were literally brainwashed and pressed into service for the Hitlerjugend, not knowing of the atrocities that the Nazis were committing. The native necklace represents the Navajo Code Talkers; the spool of thread speaks of the women left at home; the surgical instrument refers to the horrible medical experiments performed by Mengele; I hand-made a piece of barbed wire that's stretched across the front; the foot represents the soul and mourning and I wrote "sleep my pretty" on it (with the poppies, it represents another really scary thing- the Wicked Witch of the West); there's a map of the D-Day operations; and there are lots of propaganda posters throughout the box. And much, much more!

Finally, the buttons in the background. When the people were sent to the gas chambers, their clothes were placed in a huge pile. The clothes eventually rotted, but left behind were the buttons. You can see buttons in the dirt when you walk around Auschwitz.

It is amazing that the events of 1944 took place only 64 years ago.

the hole in the wall at the Retro Suites, at the bottom of the stairs

On a more upbeat note, this is a photo of a project I am now working on.

There is an indentation in the brick wall at the bottom of the staircase at the Retro Suites Hotel.

I have been asked to fill this hole with a shadowbox featuring items that were discovered in the renovation. So far I have a parole certificate, a steamy love letter from a woman ("If I can't have you, I might have to kill you"), a pearl-handled gun, and a matchbook that says 'Merrill Hotel'.

This is going to be a fun project...... can't you see it? It almost screams a Raymond Chandler approach- the hard-drinking gumshoe looking for a dame: "She gave me a smile I could feel in my hip pocket."

We'll see what happens!

Wicked Pink Shoe Shadowbox- Flower Dance

2008-01-07T08:01:00.001-08:00

Flower Dance

click on the image for supersized pink shoes!

I found this very cool pair of pink shoes at a thrift shop. You have to understand that I am not a pink person. But these shoes- they were calling me. I had to buy them. I worked retail in the '80's and knew by the label (Charles Jourdan) that they had been quite expensive shoes in their time. Sadly, by the time I got home from the store, I realized that I was never going to wear these shoes. I garden, I paint, I glue, I walk through salvage yards.....rubber boots or my green high-top Converse are part of my daily uniform. These pink shoes, I thought, still needed to be seen. They needed a second chance.

And now we have "Flower Dance". "Flower Dance" came from the title of the vintage 1910 sheet music in the background. The plastic cherubs are vintage '60's Christmas decorations and, on their own, I have to admit they're quite gaudy. But they work in this vignette.

This shadowbox now makes me think of the other shoes that I have that are absolute beauties- my wedding shoes. They are handmade Peter Fox white silk Edwardian pumps, and they are going to find their way into a shadowbox. Someday.

I'm in Art & Life magazine!

2008-01-03T09:02:00.000-08:00

Here's what PaPaYa! (another cool website) had to say about Teesha Moore and Art & Life:

Art & Life is a quarterly, inde magazine celebrating the mixed media & journal arts movement. This creative forum is compiled by Teesha Moore featuring tips for artists, full color features, and community info. Teesha Moore's publications are an underground phenomenon.

Teesha Moore has been one of the forerunners of the world of altered art and visual journaling for the past 20 years. SHe has been publishing her unique magazines for 10 years. Some of the first issues she printed have fetched over $300.00 on E-bay! She has been published in countless books, magazines and gallery shows. Teesha is also the founder and coordinator for the internationally acclaimed, 500-person, annual artist retreat outside Seattle, WA. (Every place is filled within 2 days of opening registration!) She is both an icon and an inspiration to thousands of people. Teesha lives with her husband, Tracy Moore close to Seattle where they are constantly dreaming up new ways to help others find their own creative voice.

This is the background info I should have included in my previous blog entry!

Read on, McDuff!

Laurie's Gone Global

2008-01-03T08:28:00.000-08:00

Wow- my artwork was published in the December (#10) issue of Art and Life magazine!!

I was pretty pleased with myself when Teesha Moore sent me my copy. She even sent a copy to my mom! I may have had my 15 minutes of Fame!

Teesha Moore is an artist based outside of Seattle and, in addition to hosting bi-annual art workshops (which I NEED to attend someday soon), she publishes a fabulous magazine called Art and Life. I've been a subscriber for a few years, ever since I found her through a link on Elizabeth McGrath's website. I LOVE the art of Elizabeth McGrath- gothic assemblage at its best.

Teesha's journalling is eye candy and her use of colours is nothing short of inspiring. In December's issue, she journals about her trip to Japan. In addition to her journalling pages, she features work from other artists in her magazine. I am honoured to have been included. She also has a website from which she and her husband Tracy (another cool artist) sell extremely funky stamps and papers and more.

If you like journalling, Teesha Moore is the door to Mecca.

Check out her website: www.teeshamoore.com

What pieces of my artwork did she feature? 1914, Good and Evil, Take a Gamble, Hello Dollface, and Wedding Circus.

And she chose a quotation to go with my images, which I thought was interesting....

"The character we exhibit in the latter half of our life need not necessarily be, though it often is, our original character, developed further, dried up, exaggerated, or diminished: it can be its exact opposite, like a suit worn inside out." - Marcel Proust

I was just talking about this very idea with my friend Phyllis. We decided that people tend to get lost on their way through Life, and if you were to go back and find what you wanted to do when you were a kid, and try to find a path in that vein that you could follow, that you could reconnect with yourself. For example, I wanted to be an artist until I was 8, and then I wanted to be a lawyer. I started with the artist first. So I entered an art exhibition in December of 2006 that ended up leading to this blog. I am teaching art classes at the Cultural Centre. It is a part of me that I have reclaimed, and it feels good. It is something I am doing for ME.

I did not have this conversation with Teesha, and yet, there's the quotation she chose to go with my artwork. Phyllis would say this is a sign of validation. I just know that it feels right, and I'm sticking with it.

Coming soon: a new shadowbox called 'Flower Dance', featuring a pair of pink Charles Jourdan shoes that ROCK.

Commission- Lisa's Helping Hands

2007-12-20T16:10:00.001-08:00

Lisa, who is a massage therapist, commissioned me to make a shadowbox featuring a plaster cast of her hands. She gave me a list of the things she liked, and I went to work. She likes teapots, flowers, cats, Mary Magdelene, chakras, dragonflies, Day of the Dead, jewelry, her two boys, Buddha.....

Below is the end result. The phrase I put in the book at the bottom centre of the box reads: "As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands. One for helping yourself, the other for helping others." -Audrey Hepburn

Lisa likes it!

Making Boxes for Christmas

2007-12-17T13:10:00.002-08:00

For the past few Christmasses, I have been making gifts for my friends. At this point in our lives, my friends and I have just about everything we need. To truly give something different and meaningful, I have found that hand-made gifts are the way to go. And some of my friends have made me some cool things, too! My friend Phyllis made me some Christmas bats (wearing Santa hats!) a few years ago, and they have become my all-time favourite ornaments for the tree. Yes, Christmas bats- now there's something you don't see in stores. My friend Ronni has knit me some awesome slippers in the past and I hope I get more this year. I feel the love.

This year, I made some quick little shadowboxes for my two sisters and two sisters-in-law. I know they'll be too busy shopping and working to check this website before Christmas, so I'm going to post photos of the boxes right now.

I found this awesome stash of vintage matchbooks at a garage sale this summer, and was just waiting for the perfect application. I decided to incorporate a few of the more interesting ones into the Christmas boxes. The boxes themselves I got at Value Village. I gutted them of their bad flowers and painted them. I added some old buttons, Made in Japan Cracker Jacks metal toys and charms, and other neat stuff. I am quite pleased with the results! You can click on each image to 'zoom in'.

Happy Holidays to everyone. I hope that 2008 brings you excellent ideas and nice, long, uninterrupted stretches of time to execute them!

old BIRD HEAVEN

2007-11-29T08:13:00.001-08:00

This is the original 'Bird Heaven'.
The new and improved 'Bird Heaven' is below.

*** You can see details of all my shadowboxes at: photobucket.com *****
user name: laurielangford guest password: shadowbox

new and improved BIRD HEAVEN

2007-11-29T07:26:00.001-08:00

Bird Heaven

I just re-read my Elizabeth McGrath book called 'Everything That Creeps'. I LOVE her work. It takes shadowboxes and art to a macabre level that I'd love to see in my own work. (The fact that she did a community service stint in a morgue is evident in her approach.) Anyway, after re-reading her book, I knew that I had to attack 'Bird Heaven' from my own viewpoint. Elizabeth's work is consistently about what she wants to say, and she never tones it down because she thinks she might offend someone.

I completed 'Bird Heaven' in August of this year (2007), but as soon as I was done, I wasn't happy with it. It was on display at the local cafe for two months. But a week ago, after re-reading 'Everything that Creeps', I drove over to the cafe, took 'Bird Heaven' off the wall, took it home, took it apart, added some more details, took out the word stand ('oh Death, where is thy sting?') and stuffed the box with more birds.

'Bird Heaven' was originally a commission for an undertaker. When I worked on it, I tried to think about what the undertaker might want. As a result, I wasn't happy with it. And guess what? The person who commissioned it liked 'Good and Evil' much better and bought that instead. So I learned my lesson. I should always make the shadowboxes the way I want. They tell a better story when I go with my gut.

I should have that tattooed on my forehead- GO WITH YOUR GUT, in some gangsta script.

So here it is- the new and improved 'Bird Heaven'.

'Bird Heaven' was inspired by a bird that my cat brought to the back door. My cat, Angus, had had his fun torturing the poor bird and left him dying. I can't hate him- he's just being a cat. Angus brings me lots of birds and mice but they're usually dead. I bury them in the garden and then later use the skulls in my shadowboxes. But this bird was different. I was gardening that day, and every time I walked near the back door where the bird was dying, the bird would cry out. He was really mangled and I knew he only had a few hours to live. It was very disturbing. I felt so helpless and all I could think was, "You'll feel better soon, little bird. You'll be in Bird Heaven and there won't be any cats."

'Bird Heaven' has lots of bird skulls on the left and right side of the box. In the centre is a garden with a big tree, lots of flowers, and a two nice bird baths. The scroll above the tree says 'Honor Roll'. There's a little girl with bird wings who is talking to the bird in the birdbath.

That's me. The man, also with wings, is the undertaker who is guiding the dead birds toward the garden.

Thank you Elizabeth McGrath for reminding me to Go with Your Gut.

So now I think I'll try a shadowbox on a completely different subject- women of the Wild West. Annie Oakley, Belle Starr......... hmmmm. Women and guns and horses. I'll let that idea percolate for awhile.

Control

2007-11-21T14:29:00.001-08:00

Control

What is it about? Well, you'll notice the gray General Electric Canada Control box says '36 24 36' on the front. These are considered 'perfect' measurements for a woman (even the Commodores in the song 'Brick House' say, "36 24 36- what a winning hand!") .

The girls in the shadowbox (and the gray Control box represents tv and the media) are being programmed to believe that they should all look the same and think the same. The wires that are going into their heads end with little flowers, which is my way of saying that these messages seem harmless to the girls. The thought bubbles above their heads also have a flower. They seem to be willing to accept this seemingly harmless programming. They absorb these 'look the same- think the same' messages as they stare straight ahead with sparkling eyes.

Their heads are the same size. Their dresses are the same size. Their shoes are the same size.

In the background, however, are a bunch of vintage bingo cards. There are lots of numbers. This is my way of saying that your body numbers are a crap shoot- you might measure 61 33 25 or even 40 32 37 because of heredity or medical conditions or you like to eat like a real person. Just as there are many numbers, there are many women and many ways to dress.

The centre of the flower at the bottom is a Jones Soda cap that reads, 'Try Again'.

You think that women can be so easily programmed? You think that women buy into the 'only one size is perfect' game? Most of us don't. So I say guess what, Media? Try again.