Making this art piece was an intense experience. It came at a time when I was needing to move. I had a big wish list and a tiny budget. Everyone said to give up and just take whatever I could find for the price.. Impossible.....I was told. I did a lot of Shamanic work on this issue.
Then one day I woke up early with the impulse to make an art piece. Could not talk myself out of it. “Had” to make it NOW! I knew it had something to do with my search for a place to live. So I gathered the elements that I was shown to get and got to work. Did not even want to rest at all. Had to keep going. First of all, I was shown various pieces of maps of the United States that was to be the background. I was shown places to paint a lot of blue for the inspiration to know where to look for a place to live. Placed a smiling sun at the top that would smile on me as I searched. Then I found a vintage piece of sheet music that represented the Music Of the Spheres that would help guide me. Pieces of that music went on the top and sides of the maps. Then came this large electric cord that had a plug that plugged into something at one end and an open plug for something to plug into at the other. I was shown to attach it over the maps in a large circle. well....fine...now what? Oh could not believe it... I was shown a real bird’s nest ...WOW...just “happened” to have one! This went in the center of the piece and the plug “in” from the cord went to the nest. OH! Then I found a figurine of a bird that I painted blue. The end of the cord circles down to ME where my energy plugs in! Sometime later I DID find a place to live and it DID meet all the essential wish list that I had!
This fabricated sunburst surrounds a poem that I wrote some time ago. It is a “puzzle” of sorts and the person looking at the piece needs to decipher what it says. (Not difficult really). This poem was part of a series of “picture poems” that had come to me some time ago and I finally did put them all together into a book I called “EVOLV”. (For sale on Amazon).
A grotto is a small, shallow cave that sometimes has a spring over it, or in it such as the Grotto of Lourdes is known for the apparition of the Virgin Mary.
Often I go to Estate sales, garage sales and thrift shops as I never know what I may find and be able to use in my art. At one such Estate sale I was attracted to a strange long box with metal like bead things attached by heavy metal wire. What? DAH...then I looked at the box top that had in faded words...... something about SNOW CHAINS. Really? I came from New England and never saw any snow chains like these!..... Had to have them! Off they went into my art room stash.
Over time in various ways I acquired a nice antique wooden angel, a beautiful tile with the Virgin Mary on it , an “ugly” decorated bowl and a nicely lacquered oddly shaped board.
That particular day, I “happened” to be moving things around and “happened” to have these elements near each other. WHAM! Looks like they belong together. So I went to work. Although I had decided to cut away strings of the snow tires into pieces I was lost as to how to get them into the bowl that I had spray painted gold. Then I just decided to use the special glue I use to glue odd things and so I glued the heck out of them and hoped it would hold. They made the greatest waterfall for the grotto! The whole piece was topped off with a “Mother Of Pearl” cross I found at an antique shop. DONE! The picture shows this art piece on an easel at an art show where it was being displayed but not for sale. Lots of favorable comments!
The smaller pig skull presented much more of a question as to what to do with it. I tried different ideas but didn’t like any of them. It was in a dream I saw the doll with a skull head. Voila! Problem solved! I knew I wanted the doll to have a bright red dress but I didn’t have a sewing machine and was not able to hand sew. Suddenly I got inspired to cut up the sparkling red material and wrap it around the doll. It worked beautifully! I envisioned the doll with a little purse and wearing shiny black shoes. I had to order the shoes but when it was done, I truly loved the finished piece!
I was recently given two pig skulls so I ended up making two assemblages with them. The first, "When Pigs Fly" I knew almost immediately when I saw the skull what it wanted to be. The challenge was to find the right wings for the piece. It took a while along with a few failed attempts but I finally ended up with this piece which I really like and it came out quite nice.
Measuring roughly 18” X 24” comprised of a wooden plank, acrylic paint, and a metal grid piece. I was inspired by a video tutorial I had seen and decided to try this new swirl-painting technique on my next project. The opportunity came very soon afterwards. Later that day, I went to the lumber yard and picked up a beautiful piece of wood. Next was a visit to the local salvage yard in which I found an interesting plastic piece. I attached the pieces to a frame that I already had in my collection and applied the swirling paint technique with the acrylics. It was fun and I ended up with paint everywhere... some even found its way on me! After everything was dry, I attached the "grid" in the center of the piece and declared it a success.
15”X12” fabric covered background with wood sun and doll body. Bottles of lotion and shampoo from a spare at the doll 's feet. I had found a broken doll and it sat around for years. I had also collected a few spa samples of shampoo and hand lotions. One day I was looking at these items and somehow they all came into an idea for the piece.
This piece has a two foot round shaped plastic circle with a metal "frame" insert and light fixture center all over a sturdy cloth material. During a trip to the scrap metal yard, I found an interesting large plastic circle along with a smaller oddly shaped metal piece. These pieces made an impression on me and I knew immediately that I wanted to make something out of them so I obtained both of them. Later, durning a yard sale trip, I came across a light socket that was combined with the earlier findings and finished when I added the hardware cloth behind the socket. I ended up loving this piece!
18”X24" constructed with wood frame, hardware cloth, masonite wood panels, book covers, heavy watercolor paper, images, and acrylic paint. Got some old book covers to which I added heacy watercolor paper cut outs of my hands.
Did intricate collage and images on them and placed on the book covers paced on hardware cloth on a frame..
2 feet by 2 feet backed by wooden base. An Amazon Prime box "framed" with a pizza box. Also included are metal pieces. I was inspired by a video on youtube of the famous artist, Robert Rauschenberg who works with cardboard. I decided to construct various designs with the print and colors on the boxes.
2 feet by 2 feet a vintage family picture covered with rusty screening and rusted barbed wire backed by painted fabric and wooden base. Shows the lifestyle and thinking of the time as so held down and suppressed.