One of the Many Joes I know

Joe Kimmel's Studio Space is the corner I used to inhabit at the Evergreen.  He has a show opening Saturday, and the Source let me chat him up for a story...  

Bless this Tiny Alley

Rise Up's New Sign

It has been quiet the last few weeks over in Tin Pan Alley at the Rise Up office/studio... the RU gang has been busy doing "production," shipping out orders and the like, so it's mainly been me and Kelt holding down the fort.   

 

A week of stagnant creativity has lead to a flourish the last two days, however, mainly thanks to The Source.  They keep me busy. This morning I interviewed Maria Roberts (co-founder of Rise Up) for a Local Hero profile, and I am working on a peice about the artwork of Joe Kimmel who is having a show at the Evergreen in November.  These two people are inspiring to me, creatively and otherwise, so I am encouraged to get back to work on my collages.  Therefore-

There is debate going on about her face... hmmmm....

The Lion Tamer is getting closer and closer to completion.  Chicken Little just needs some final ink, and I am about to work on the Owl.  The narratives behind most of the pieces are feeling more resolved, and the craftsmanship, while slow going, is following suit.

Besides the art and the interviews, I am doing some serious yoga.  The Oregon Hatha Yoga Championships are November 23, and though I am not participating in the actual event  (I will be in Connecticut visiting the niece and nephew) I am pretending that I am competing to give myself a little focus and to hang out with pretzel-like people (also inspiring).  This means focusing on five of the twenty-six beginer poses from Bikram's Class, as well as two optional poses.  I am tackling Pigeon and Crow (birds, again, coincidence? perhaps) Practice is four times a week in addition to typical 90 minute classes that I attend five to six times a week in a 105 degree room.  It may sound like torture, but it provides a wonderful counter balance to thirty degree morning walks with the dogs... Namaste.

sneak peaks

Until I get everything completed for the Evergreen show, I more than likely will not have much to say... It's a good thing then, that a picture is worth a thousand words... I will say this- you can't tell from the photo- but the silhouette is composed of a pattern made of map and globe parts, of which, I have run out of... If anyone out there in cyberlandia has any outdated maps- I would surely love it if you would donate them to a good cause...

Steady as She goes

As per a conversation with my BFF Sarah this morning- I am posting again in order to keep her mildly entertained. That's what friends are for, right?

In all seriousness- I have a little over a month to prepare for the Evergreen Show, and while I have a rather large inventory of work at the moment (blank walls anyone?) I want to have some new work ready for the show. I have four pieces that are starting to feel on thier way, and have started a few more.

I logged a good four hours of constant work at the studio today, and plan on sketching most of the afternoon.
There, Sarah, Two down- one to go...

Upcoming Events:

April 4th- First Friday Art Walk, Bend
Opening with Artists Local 101 @ Thump Coffee

April 25th- Art, Walk, Explore
Opening at Evergreen Studio In Redmond
(new work! oh boy!)

Pretty soon I will need tweezers to hold on to the paper (I need a sign for how many days without a paper cut).

This morning, Lisa brought coffee and her yellow lab Remy to the studio to do some work before she had to go to the shop. We talked about the artistic process, and about the idea of fearlessness. My favorite undergrad professor, Mimi Kim, had a reputation for asking you what you liked about whatever you were working on, and then making you completely change whatever it was you pointed out to her. That concept struck fear in the hearts of many a student, but I think that is the only way to really figure things out. Figure out what works and what works better.

My process has taken on a puzzle like quality, fitting since I spent many a snow day working thousand piece puzzles with my sister and parents.

Another professor I had, who was not my favorite, once suggested to me that I need to learn to make a really ugly painting. He thought creating a truly ugly piece of art was the most challenging undertaking possible. I didn't try it when he suggested it, but I did a few years ago, and I couldn't do it. I turned it pretty. (of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, yada yada yada) I would really love to coordinate a show based on this idea, though. And I don't mean tacky art like the painting on velvet of Richard Petty that was auctioned at the Band of Horses concert I attended in NYC this summer. I would like to gather five or six artists and see how they would interpret it.

And then, after the show, we could paint over them.

I get Distracted.

The Studio

Teaser Spring is here, with blue blue skies and fifty degrees. I'm having trouble staying put in the studio, but not cause I don't want to be there. I drove out today with the intention of spending a good four to five hours there, but as soon as I walked in the door at Evergreen my insulin pump realized it needed to be changed and started beeping at me. Which means Kelty and I drove back home after taking a few photos. Which is fine, because I have pen and ink at home to keep fleshing out ideas, and I also need to think a little bit about where these three pieces are headed.

the cypress sketch is leading to a full blown collage. This is the top half. I've spent hours already on the sky, developing my scissor techniques on the curly q clouds.

I think this is the one that I am must puzzled about.



I cut out every rock, every blade of grass.

Thinking I will let these incubate a while, and go for a bike ride. Winter will be back again before too long. (what was that I said last week about procrastination? I guess it is only procrastinating if you have a due date...)

StuStuStudio.

I am packing up my studio. There is a change in location. I am trying to decide what stays and what goes. Do I really need five old sketchbooks, none of which are quite filled? Of course, there may be tidbits to mine. My uncle Les is a gemstone hound. He doesn't bother anymore with the chips and small carats. Should I fallow his advice? Of course, part of this whole move is to downsize and streamline.


I am also trying to decide if a blogger Blog makes more Sense than the blog I have attached to my artamiss.net site. On one hand I am independent of any organized faction, or I am tapped in to the masses.