urbanrosary

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Nothing to show

In light of our present situation....our Country's present financial situation....I struggle to hold on to what I have been doing.  I wonder why bother?  And can I afford to take the time?  Today after many bad days, I decided to buy a notebook and once again start on my journey through a book called the "Artist Way".  To give up on my creativity, which is what I have abandoned on many occassions in my life, for many long periods as well.... is to give up on a part of "me".  A big part.  

There are those that do not believe that I am an artist.  That to call yourself an artist has to fall into some criteria or box.  There are those that want to box you in. It makes them feel safe.  Being an artist isn't always about being safe, it is about being adventurous.  Creating art might be about being extreme in expression or maybe crafty and calculating in expression.  Expressing oneself creatively is always risky, risky, risky.  You become exposed on many levels. 

JoAnnA at Mosshill Studios is teaching a great class on making "Art Dolls".  She is loving her new "position" as a teacher.  Teaching and participating in a class is appropriate for some of us at this time.  Because creating art connects us to something inside of us.  Something that needs to be expressed....whatever that is.  There is a story to tell and it creates a magic.  Magic that some us need right now.

Some of us need to be prodded along.  Artist need to keep creating.  It is their calling.  I see people including myself going back to the "land" or the "hand" so to speak.  For instance, a dear friend Gina who works in labor and delivery at a hospital decided to crochet her three grown children blankets this holiday season.  Her children can wrap themselves in her love.  Something from her own hand.  

Another friend tore up part of his lawn and is now growing a "victory garden".  The seed is planted, nurtured, watered.  The plant grows providing extra food for his family.  There is a joy that comes from that, that can not be replaced. 

JoAnnA's classes are leading people to make something with their own hands, creating a connection to themselves.  In the "Artist Way" there are some basic principles to creativity that I am going to share....because presently I have nothing to "show". This is a good place to be, because out of the ashes comes????  I am taking the time to think on these things....

1.  Creativity is the natural order in life.  Life is energy: pure creative energy.

2.  There is an underlying, in dwelling creative force infusing all life....including       ourselves.

3.  When we open ourselves to our creativity, we open ourselves to the creator's           creativity within us and our lives.

That all I have to say for now....

Love, Peace and Hope

Make a Smilebox postcard

Hearts on Fire

I found these red mercury hearts and had them in a little container.  I wasn't sure what would become of them.  I was just waiting for some little spark of creativity.  Sometimes my creative ideas come fragmented and other times I know exactly what I am going to do.  This was a fragmented process.  Like JoAnna from Mosshill Studios I love mercury glass, and to utilize these hearts in altar devotional pieces was something I was wanting to do in some way.  I decided I would do something that spoke of passion, love, expression.  Using the red coral, I felt that it could symbolize fire, energy and movement.  The crystals are the light.  So with all the elements in motion, I created the series I call...HEARTS ON FIRE.

 

 

Editing my Typepad Photos and Posts....Awrrrghh!

Yesterday, while I was finally posting new photos and adding to my blog, my computer crashed several times.  SO....here my photos sit on my site...stretched and deformed (they didn't look that way when I previewed the blog...)and I am not able to edit anything here because the computer crashes everytime!  Getting through the type errors and bad english might be painful....:-(

JoAnna at Mosshill Studio's give away creation

 

Joanna Pierotti has this great give away on her site.  Just tell her your wish or prayer for 2009 and see if this is angel could be yours.  JoAnnA has amazing creations and her creative expression is endless.  I believe her site has a new look as well.  Thanks JoAnnA for being such a great friend, mentor and patient teacher!

My Grandmother's Altar has a new home

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone here!   I took some time off from my blog because we moved to the downtown area of Boise in this great historical area.  The house is 100 years old.  Initially, we didn't think it needed that much work, but it turned into a little more of "a project" than we thought.  Also, moving just when the cold weather was beginning was a little challenging while holiday festivities were in full force taking most of my time.  We are now seeing light at the end of the tunnel....

My boyfriend Scott

 (this is him in his holiday outfit...notice the holiday tee shirt?)  This how both of us looked most of the time this past month.  In the midst of all the painting and organizing.... he managed to make, finish, and paint one of the built-ins in the bedroom area for my "budding" altar.  

Finally, I was able to unwrap and unpack the items I inherited from my grandmother's altar.  It was such a great gift to put her favorite pieces with the devotional art I have made.  

With the mirror behind the pieces, the reflected light makes it much more beautiful than the photo indicates.

Broken pieces put back together.....

This beautiful vase was given to me by Linda, aka "Copper's Mom".  Linda is a friend from Ojai, CA.  who asked me to made a devotional piece with this vase.  

When I received it, it was broken in two pieces.  Most would have thrown it away, but Linda saw the beauty and the possibilities.  She asked me to put it back together symbolizing the healing of broken things and lives.   Actually, she is a creative/artistic person herself.  

When I saw the vase, I knew immediately what I would do with it.  I glued it back together, and to heal the cracks I took cooper foil and created a vine with the eternity symbol which was put on the front and back of the vase.

I completed the vase with a flower mandala.  Using the amber droplets coming out from the center of the flower, it give a lot of motion to the piece.

   

Bruce's Fishing Altar

My boyfriend, Scott, has a wonderful Altar that he made in memory of his good friend Bruce that died last year.  Together they had been colleagues and fishing buddies for over 25 years.  Scott never had a brother, so he considered Bruce a brother and mentor.  Many stories have been told about him, but sadly I never had the opportunity to meet him. 

Recently, Scott took an annual trip to Yellowstone to flyfish with a couple of friends who also knew Bruce.  In the memory of many fishing expeditions together, Scott took the altar with him.  Usually it hangs in his office along with some fishing photos from the past and a few Altar Bottles I created.  

In Yellowstone, he put the Altar on the cabin mantel and leaned Bruce's fishing rod right where Bruce would place it at the end of a long day fishing. 

Together they remembered his influence on all of them professionally, and as an incredible sportsman and writer.

 

Thinking about blogging, my site and Mena Trott

Who is Mena Trott?

Let me start with this little story.....I was speaking with JoAnna at Moss Hill Studios last night about her blog.  

She was trying to encourage me to blog and to connect more to the people "out there".   I am not one to share "my life".  I did that on another blog several years ago. It was a very personal journey.  That blog came about during a time of discovery and recovery, and eventually became a healing for me.   However, it was that blogging process that brought me to this "place" creatively. 

One of my favorite websites is TED.Com.  I meander there to stimulate my mind. Most people might watch TV to wind down the day, but I usually find myself at TED.    I think it keeps me connected in a different way to our changing world.  

So last night, while on TED.com,  I stumbled onto a presentation created by a woman named Mena Trott.   I had no idea who she was prior,  nor did I really know what her presentation was really going to be about.

She and her husband are the founders/creators of Typepad!  When you have the time, go to TED.com and search for Mena Trott and listen to what she says about blogging. In her presentation, she speaks about creating legacy through blogging. 

It was very insightful, and expressed for me where my heart and mind are about family heritage, and discovering your core self.