Hodge Podge and Thank You

Donna Watson, Acrylic and collage

I am leaving for NYC very soon... my son is graduating from Columbia University with his Masters of Fine Art degree.   He has been living in NYC for several years and is in the Davidson Contemporary Gallery in Manhattan.  You can go to the gallery link here to see more of his work.

Matthew Watson, oil on copper, 6"x6"

I have been very fortunate lately to receive a number of wonderful gifts in the mail... and in person... from artists I have met in person or through my blog.  I want to share some of the creative artistic gifts here.  I have met some very generous friends and I want to thank them for their support and generosity.

  First up is Elizabeth Bunsen.  She is into circles and dots like I am and she sent me the most fabulous packet in the mail.. filled with all sorts of fabric and papers stamped with circles and dots.

Elizabeth also included some of her wonderful rocks... she knows I love rocks and collect them.

Her warm colorful dot and circle filled blog can be found here. 

Lynne Perrella sent me the most creative envelope above...  a large envelope inside a plastic sleeve with the stamps placed outside in the most amazing way.   I had a lot of fun opening up such a wonderful envelope.  Her website can be found here. 

Leslie Avon Miller is a good friend of mine.  She recently gifted me with one of her beautiful hand made tags...  and a clay Asian coin made by a friend of hers ... which she knew I coveted.   You can find more of Leslie's tags and collages and art work at her blog here. 

Cathy Hegman sent me a bird's nest some time ago.  Thank you Cathy for such a wonderful gift.

Her blog can be found here.    Mary Ann Burke lives on the east coast.  We met online through my blog and when she came to Seattle for a ceramic/clay event she came to visit me.  She gifted me with these large clay 'eggs' because she knew how much I admired them.  

Seth Apter came to the Seattle area (Bellevue WA) for one of his wonderful book signings for his book THE PULSE OF MIXED MEDIA.  He gave me one of his wonderful art works above.  

  

Seth also gave a short demo of one of his collage works.  You can find out more about his book, his book tour and travels and his art at his blog here.  

What we make, why it is made, how we draw a dog, who it is we are drawn to, why we cannot forget.

Everything is collage, even genetics.

There is hidden pleasure of others in us, even those we have known briefly.

We contain them for the rest of our lives, at every border we cross.

--- Michael Ondaatje

Essence and a Book Signing

self portrait by Donna Watson, collage

(this is not my self portrait in the book)

BOOK SIGNING!!

The Pulse of Mixed Media:

Secrets and Passions of 100 Artists Revealed 

by Seth Apter

local artists Leslie Avon Miller and myself

will also be there doing demos

Bellevue Art and Frame, Bellevue WA

May 5th, 12-2

20% off of all books purchased during signing and DOOR PRIZES

 Seth Apter invited 31 artists to create self -portraits for his book.  Below are 5 artists who submitted their self-portraits.   "We are not free when we are doing just what we like.  We are only free when we are doing what the deepest self likes.  And there is getting down to the deepest self!  It takes some diving."  D.H. Lawrence

Alicia Caudel lives in the Pacific NW.  She says her inspiration for her self-portrait is simply all that she treasures.  "I am a quirky girl with many loves and adoration, and as such I wished to represent as many of these affinities as possible."  website here and blog here

Your handwriting.  The way you walk.  Which china pattern you choose.  It's all giving you away.  Everything you do is a self-portrait.  Everything is a diary.  --Chuck Palahniuk, Diary

Jen Crossley lives in Australia.  "Reflections" shows the many layers of mica over the image which represents the many layers of Jen's life as a mother, wife, best friend and artist.  blog here.  

Art is not making a beautiful surface, or drawing a realistic apple.  Art is getting to an essence, reaching the senses.  -- Shoichi Ida

Robyn Gordon lives in South Africa.  Her wood carving has become a form of meditation.  "I decided to portray one of the most important facets of my life, and that is the serenity that I feel while creating art."  her blog ArtPropelled here  

What we make, why it is made,  how we draw a dog, who it is we are drawn to, why we cannot forget.  Everything is a collage,  even genetics.  There is the hidden presence of others in us,  even those we have known briefly.  We contain them for the rest of our lives,  at every border we cross.

Michael Ondaatje

  

Bridgette Guerzon Mills is a mixed media artist who currently has two young children.  Her self portrait is a female figure who conveys motherhood and fertility but also a gatherer, and nurturer.
website here  and blog here

There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find ways in which you yourself have altered.   --- Nelson Mandela

Don Madden works with clay.  He was not an artist all his life.. coming from the corporate world so he is now busy working with new techniques and creating unique wonderful pieces.  He also has a very funny sense of humor which you will find at his blog here.  

A person is never as quiet or unrestrained as they seem,

or as bad or good, 

as vulnerable or as strong, 

as sweet or as feisty;

we are thickly layered, 

page upon page, 

behind simple covers.

-- Deb Caletti

The Pulse and Seth Apter

THE PULSE OF MIXED MEDIA: Secrets and Passions of 100 Artists Revealed by Seth Apter has ARRIVED! Through a series of questions that Seth Apter asked artists, artists revealed their thoughts, insights and confessions. They shared ideas, secrets and frustrations. This book reveals their artistic souls, hence the pulse of mixed media. The book is available at Barnes & Noble and the link to Amazon.com is here.

One of the tasks Seth asked artists was to create a self portrait. Below is Seth's self portrait in the book.

When I look at Seth's self portrait... one of the words that come to me is BUSY. Seth Apter is a mixed media artist in New York City who works in collage, book arts and assemblage. But Seth also has a day job as a psychologist. So he divides his time between his professional office, his studio and his computer office. His work has been published in numerous books, magazines as well as his blog, THE ALTERED PAGE found here, and his online zine, THE PULSE. So Seth is very busy juggling so many aspects of his life and art and I for one am extremely impressed. Below are some glimpses into his studio.

"Putting this book together has been an adventure that I will always remember. My hope was that questions and prompts that form the basis of this book would uncover information that truly revealed the deeper issues and concerns of all artists. Would the artists in the book be honest and open in how they responded? The answer was a resounding YES." Seth Apter

"My second discovery came as I sorted through all the literally thousands of responses I received. As unique as each artist is and as distinct as their artwork looks, there are many things that connect us all. We each have a very personal reason why we become artists. We each put ourselves on the line every time we share our art with others." Seth Apter

"Reading through all these responses and seeing the artwork created by the artists has had a tremendous impact on me. As I answered the very same questions along the way, I learned so much about myself as an artist and as a person." Seth Apter
As I look at part of Seth's studio above with that word, I know that Seth approaches his art, his world of art, and his life with a resounding YES.

I have been fortunate to be included in this book. Seth is highlighting 31 artists from the book for the month of March. Today, March 4th is my day and if you go to this link at Seth Apter's blog THE ALTERED PAGE here, you will see what he has written.

Below is the self portrait I created for Seth's book. I think a self portrait can reveal a lot about an artist, especially for themselves.

My self portrait does not have my actual image. I used a 'blank' head instead, which could be anyone. This is because I am still trying to figure out who I am. I am on this inner journey, seeking balance in my art and in my life. I am also a private person who may not want to reveal too much. There is a mystery.

One of the questions Seth asked was: If your artwork could talk, what would it say? My answer is: Be still. Be quiet, tranquil and balanced where places in your heart and mind are found, and where the moment is present, and then past memories come. dw

GIVEAWAY!!

If you go to Seth Apter's blog THE ALTERED PAGE and leave a comment your name will be put into a drawing for a free copy of his book THE PULSE OF MIXED MEDIA. He is giving away 3 copies and you can leave a comment every day for the month of March. Plus you will get to see his posts on 31 artists who are featured in the book. blog here.

Histories Past and Present

A scroll is a roll of parchment or paper which has been written, drawn or painted upon for the purpose of transmitting information or using as a decoration. Scrolls were the first form of record keeping. They were also used in recording history and literature before the bound book.

Come said the muse,
Sing me a song no poet has yet chanted;
Sing me the universal. Walt Whitman

Photo by Werner Bischof, from JAPAN photography by Werner Bischof 1951-52.

Without memories, there is nothing to account for our lives. With memories, we develop a language, drawing from universal concepts.

"Leaning against the wall were rows of ancient, tattered Chinese screens. I peeked between torn corners to see layers of paper, some yellowed with age but covered with exquisite calligraphy. A new body of work had begun." Roberta Marks, A Place Between

I found the above image at Seth Apter's tumblr page which you can find here. It is titled Four Play. He has beautiful images there as well as at his wonderful blog, which you can find here.

I draw these letters
as the day draws its images
and blows over them
and does not return. -- Octavio Paz

Four ancient scrolls from China.

A detail of the seals and chops used in the above scrolls.

A scroll made of bamboo
Man is but a part of the fabric of life -- dependent on the whole fabric for his very existence.
--- Gary Snyder

The above is titled LETTER FROM THE OLD WORLD by Lissa Hunter. Her book is LISSA HUNTER: Histories Real and Imagined. She also has a wonderful website which you can find here.

"Any process , whether it is washing dishes or making art, is begun to fulfill a function, is formed by appropriate techniques and materials, and if affected by cultural and historical influences." --Lissa Hunter