Photo Collage

It seems as though in the last number of months that I've had a perfect storm of sorts in my creative likes and dislikes, boredom of certain materials, and an intuitive calling that I can't quite put my finger on, that has pushed me in a new direction. Metal has been my first love, yet the pull of photography, collage, a larger scale, and experimenting with new mediums has me off on another tangent for the time being.

Graciously, Patricia Rovzar (of the Patricia Rovzar Gallery in downtown Seattle), has been very open to taking these new pieces on. I'm a worrier, so, well, I was worried. But she said that she still sees me and my thinking clearly even in this new work.

The dress icon is a way of trying on concepts and emotions that occupy my head and heart - things that seem beyond me most days, yet also at the same time I understand how they are possible and probable. Like the idea that we are all born already knowing inside what our life purpose is, but have to go through the process of awakening it. Or the concept that we all carry the Universe inside us and therefore have unlimited knowledge and possibility.

Along with the photo collage is a coating of acrylic polymer that creates a depth I love, and then I coat the surface with waxes and demar resin. It's a way of getting a dream like murkiness that I am also attracted to.

"Some Say It Is Already Written, We Must Only Remember"
Photo collage, acrylic polymer, waxes, demar resin.
24 x 24"

"The Universe Inside Her"
Photo collage, acrylic polymer, waxes, demar resin.
24 x 24"

Upcoming Show

I've been working over the past number of months to finish up pieces for this next show. It's only a week away now (!). It never fails to sneak up on me no matter how prepared I think I am. Opening night is Thursday, February 2nd at the Patricia Rovzar Gallery in downtown Seattle, 6:00 - 8:00 pm. You are invited and I hope to see you there!

This show will have a blend of the type of work I've been exploring recently. Some shadowboxes, some photo collage imagery, and some of my found object conglomerates. Here are a few examples.

"She Came to Cherish Her Creative Life"
Copper, etched brass, enamel, silver leaf, mixed media.
12x9x4"

"Following His Instincts Into a Brand New World"
Copper, enamel, etched brass, mixed media.
12x24"

"Good Under Pressure"
Copper, enamel, gauge, lens, mixed media.
20x6x4"

More Shadowboxes

I just finished a couple more shadowboxes recently that have been shipped to the Visions West Gallery out in Denver for the holiday season. I'm very much still enjoying the process and this format. Perhaps a good place to hang out for a while.

"Imagine, She Said, If I Allowed This Temple to Bloom"
Copper, enamel, etched brass, mixed media.
12 x 8"

"Brewing"
Copper, enamel, etched brass, vacuum tube, magnifying glass, mixed media.
11 x8"

Shadow Boxes

I've been using Ampersand cradled panels lately for my work as a base, the ones with the 2" sides. The other day I realized that the back of these panels seemed WAY more interesting to me than the front. I suspect there are many others that feel this way too, but it was the first time my own brain went there. I really enjoyed working with the dimensional quality. Here are my first two and I'm thinking there will be quite few more...

"She Started to See This Whole Vast Mystery Is Greater Than the Sum of the Parts"
Etched nickel silver, copper, enamel, glass, mixed media. 8x8"

"This Small Temple She Calls Home"
Etched brass, copper, enamel, glass, mixed media. 12x6"

Photo Tiles

More exploration with the photos transfered to enameled copper tiles that have been torch fired. I am thoroughly enjoying the Photoshop work - it all seems so magical to me still. The creative process hasn't changed however. I tend to layout all sorts of images and sketches first, and then just keep trying to mix it all in some different way. I see it as a collage with Photoshop verses a collage of found objects. I am always amazed how my subconscious can bubble up through it all and give it meaning to me. Something is working behind the curtain. I love that part.

"Below the Surface Swims an Answer or Two"
Copper, etched brass, enamel, mixed media

"Listen Said the Voice, Time to Fly"
Copper, enamel, etched brass, mixed media

Gail Severn Gallery Opening

This last weekend was the opening for my show at the Gail Severn Gallery out in Ketchum, Idaho. I thought I'd post a few images of the work there. I've been working more and more with antique photographs lately. Using them as a starting point and making many layers of additions and changes to them, then outputting the images onto enameled copper 'tiles'. This transfer method allows the rough quality of the fired enamel to show through the finished image. I'll attach the tiles to a fabricated copper background or a wood panel, then create a dimensional "frame" of copper  tubing with figures, vines, boats, awnings, etc on top of that.

Feels like it's right where I'm supposed to be - at least for now.

His Personal Circus

Copper, enamel, etched brass, acrylic, mixed media, 25x27x4"

She Aspires to a Life of the Imagination

Copper, etched brass, enamel, mixed media, 17x15x4"

One Day She Stopped Numbering & Counting & Let the Small Voice Love What It Loves

Copper, enamel, etched brass, acrylic, mixed media, 27x16x4"

When Fear Says Hello

Copper, enamel, etched brass, mixed media, 19x11x4"

Brewing

Copper, enamel, vacuum tube, mixed media, 10x6"

Kiln Fired Glass

Back in January I did some research on how to transfer black and white imagery onto glass, something that I've been intrigued by and wanting to experiment with for sometime. Turns out there's a pretty simple method using a film that is run through an old style lazer printer (not ink jet). It is a decal that then can be soaked off the paper backing and attached to (very) clean glass. After that it is kiln-fired. The iron in the lazer printer toner cartridges is the "active ingredient" fusing itself into the glass and coming out as a sepia photo image. Pretty amazing stuff.

Since then I've made some pieces that have the kiln-fired glass attached.

"One Day Clarity Appeared With the Greatest of Ease"

"She Is the Yin to His Yang"

It's a little hard to see in the photo of this one, but there is a dancer in front of the kiln-fired glass section.

"Holding It Inside as If It Belonged"

This piece has wall mounts on the back (which you can barely see in this photo) that push it out from the wall about 1.25 inches. And unless one clicks on the image to enlarge it, it's a bit of a challenge to see the shark image within the skirt area.

I don't own a kiln, so I want to give a big "thank you" to Brian Brenno here on this island who generously offered to fire these experiments for me. I dare say all the Photoshop work (I'm such a beginner still) that I did just to get these images out seems to be calling me in a new direction.