inspiration: jennifer maestre

What can I say? I love it. I want to know how she got it all to stick together and look so clean. More at : http://www.jennifermaestre.com/

reflection: exhibition

For those of you who have Facebook accounts and are interested in viewing photos from the "Call and Response" Exhibit, Rick has posted a series of pics. Thank you, Rick!

reflection: exhibition

The Call and Response exhibit at the Canvas is a great success. I don't think I (or anyone else at the Canvas) has seen so many people come through on a first Friday - the crowd never died down the entire evening and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive (no one tried to convince me I am secretly a lesbian this time around either!). It sounded like a lot of people were inspired by the project, and there were a lot of sales. Rick and I ended up with 71 joint pieces (about 80 pieces of art for me), so our expectations (as far as production for the show went) were met and all of the walls are filled to the brim (I'll post pictures as soon as I get around to emptying out my camera's memory card).

Aside from the exhibit coming out a success in the end, there were some glitches in final preparations. For one thing, preparing 150 individual frames for hanging can be a lot of work when most of the frames are not equipped with proper brackets for hanging. I wasn't prepared for the amount of time and expense that went into preparing them all. Also, measuring each piece to ensure it would line up to the proper wall height took forever and a half (having to subtract the distance of the hanger from the total height of the exhibit to ensure a straight line across the tops of all the frames took soooooo long). And then nailing in the 150 nails... oh how my arms hurt! I also think Rick didn't anticipate that writing his pieces out by hand would take so much time either; we ended up having to print out about a third of the writing pieces. But it was all worth it, and by the time 4:30pm hit for the opening, we were ready.

The large "call and response" abstract people I painted (with arrows following from one to the other) were possibly my favorite part of the entire exhibit; I liked how it evened out the wall coverage and provided relief for the eyes (the exhibit otherwise, I think, is a little overwhelming with all its small pieces).

Well, onto the next great adventure. Public Market. While not fine art oriented, the Public Market is a creative venue nonetheless. I plan to showcase some of my mad crazy sewing machine and book-making skillz. YEAH. I also want to sell bows and magnet sets: all my items for sale will all be made from recycled materials.

art: exhibition

art: drawings for october exhibit

I have been meaning to post more pictures for the exhibit, but never got around to it until now! So, here's another sampling of the art to soon be on exhibit at the Canvas:

art: drawings for october exhibit

More samples of art for the exhibit.

inspiration: da-ka-xeen mehner

A Fairbanks artist who is exhibiting at the Alaska State Museum: http://www.da-ka-xeen.com/

art: drawings for october exhibit

As promised, here below are some of the pieces that will be a part of the October 2009 exhibit. So far I have resolved that, with some rare exceptions, all pieces will be under 4x6 inches and all will all be pencil drawings. There will be over a hundred of these babies; enjoy a sampling of the first batch.

inspiration: arts project australia

Just today one of our new floor staff at the Canvas, Sarah (up from Australia), introduced me to a website for a similar organization near her hometown she just found out about: Arts Project Australia. http://www.artsproject.org.au/

art, travels and inspiration

I wanted this blog posting to feature some of the new art that I have been working on for the upcoming October exhibit (which will feature Rick’s writing and my drawings), but I have misplaced my camera, so I will need to scan in the art later this week and post it all sometime during the weekend. Though I have not posted a blog entry in some time, I have been busy creating and also out adventuring on vacation. I had a marvelous, inspiring holiday down south visiting family and friends, playing in the outdoors, sunning myself, working on art, and visiting new art galleries and museums.

Artistically speaking, the highlight of my trip south on holiday was my visit to the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria, BC. I saw my first Picasso and Matisse art pieces up close and in person (among many other famous artists and ancient relics), a myriad of exquisite native masks, and even a re-created late 19th century town. When I arrived back in Bellingham WA, I found out I had about 50 lbs. of plaster cast I had ordered eons ago ready for me to take back to Juneau, so I mailed it up to myself and have intentions of working on some sculpture projects after the October exhibit is hung.

But perhaps before the plaster projects, I ought to give some thought to the Juneau Public Market at Centennial Hall! Olga, Josh, Rick and I are applying for a booth in November to sell our creative goods (books, soaps, cards, knitted things, etc etc). Rick and I will be creating books from the art and writings generated for the October exhibit, which I know will launch me into a book making frenzy around the end of September. v. exciting. More to come soon!

art: photo collage

Even better than the Silverbow, Rick and I have secured the Canvas for exhibition in October of this year! Very exciting! Already I have several sketches of scenes for our around the clock comic adventure and Rick has already started writing. I am thinking that a fun way to unite the disparate sections of the gallery space would be to use red tape from floor to ceiling that divides the space into 24 hour segments. This would also help move the viewer around the room with less confusion. I also envision the comic “strip” segments as individually and uniquely framed and maybe 4 or 5 of them to go with each hour-segment. This would leave a lot of white wall space above and below the pictures... maybe the words to the comic could be giant-lettered and take up several feet of wall space, as seen in large exhibits (ex. the bodies). Any thoughts?

In other news, and as briefly mentioned in my previous post, I have been working on more art photo album pages as a way to reduce the copious piles of photographs, personal mementos, and magazine clippings that I can’t bring myself to throw away. As might be expected, the theme has revolved around Danel and the annihilation of our life together. I like to think the process is therapeutic (but I can also recognize that sometimes its hard to see the full picture when your so close up to and in the middle of things). The pictures in this post are just a sampling; I realize some are largely egocentric and perhaps angry also, but I hope you can enjoy nonetheless.

process: theme

Rick and I have been plotting madly at a prospective art/writing exhibit at the Silverbow (or elsewhere) for this fall. We are thinking comic strips (that could also stand alone as art segments) about a person (or a couple) going about their daily (maybe yearly) business in Juneau Alaska. And we would like to turn it into a small book also. Maybe the best could be made into playing cards?

I have been fascinated lately with miniature frames (probably due to the fact that I have been trying to fit my most precious belongings into the small space of 6 flat rate boxes), and I love the idea of fitting the comic art sections into eclectic frames I find around town. Now I have a great excuse to find and buy more! As many already know, my work tends to be small anyway, and I have been more interested in drawing than painting recently. I have even been thinking about doing a comic series for the day habilitation art class I teach and Rick has been thinking about creating a web comic for a long time now. The ideas are all fitting nicely, if a bit scattered at times!

Making the theme something that applies to Juneau life and something a little less emotional than my October “Evensong” exhibit will likely appeal to a larger audience and will be a relieving break for me. As I will likely post later this weekend, most of my artistic endeavors of late have been creating collages involving more personal photographs (the last 2 years or so), an emotional process for me to be sure.

Stay tuned as the evolution of the exhibit progresses. More thoughts and details soon to come.

sketch: sermon notes

inspiration: constance b. hartle

Constance's work (alongside Barbara Craver) is currently exhibiting at the Canvas for the month of April. I had great admiration for her exhibit of landscapes in Nov. 2007 (also at the Canvas), but this time around she is exhibiting more portraiture, which I find infinitely more captivating. Part of what I love so much about Constance's work are the red undertones that she often lets appear through her layers, particularly as a lining between objects in her paintings. In this exhibit, she primarily paints with acrylics, which can be very hard to do when blending layers and she does it masterfully. In her Nov. 2007 exhibit it was almost impossible to tell the oil paintings from the acrylic paintings. http://www.constancebhartle.typepad.com/

inspiration: advertising and art

Because I have worked so much around advertising (direct and indirect) at UAS and also at the Canvas, I continue to find myself interested in the intersection between advertising and art. I also like the idea (in general) of art as attention-getting, since I like to think of art as a reflection on and a tool for social change.

I came across several thought provoking articles/webpages that address the relationships of art and advertising and their impacts:

Is it Art or Advertising?: http://inventorspot.com/articles/it_art_or_advertising_12022

Advertising & Art A Modern-Day Marriage: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HMU/is_4_28/ai_73063938/

Art and Advertising: http://www.mediamatic.net/page/5728/en

We Make Money Not Art: Advertising: http://www.we-make-money-not-art.com/archives/advertising/

sketch: sermon notes

art: observance

So this piece I am more happy with. For one thing, it is one of the largest pieces I have ever done. I also like that the canvas is made out of bedsheets and that the canvas extends beyond the frame. This one is called "observance". Also for the AWARE/Canvas show at the Silverbow for sexual assault awareness month.

art: behind the scenes

Here is the finished piece (one of them) for the AWARE/Canvas Sexual Assault Awareness art show at the Silverbow for the month of April; entitled "Behind the Scenes". I am not particularly thrilled about how this one turned out. As strange as it sounds, I wanted to hang little babies or fetuses from strings off of the windows, but didn't have the time to make them and I couldn't find any pre-made tiny "babies" at the stores in the toy sections. alas. I wish the windows looked more valance-d, but at least I finished it in time!

sketches: march 2009

sermon notes from today, march 29, 2009


hot dog man originating january 2009


fruit basket randomness


"can I have some" sketch


random other sketch

process: creation

the next layer...

process: creation

Another piece (in the under-painting stages) for the AWARE-Canvas collaborative exhibit.

process: exhibition

A random photo of me with my latest finished piece "local anesthetic" on display at The Canvas as a part of the PULSE exhibit for the month of March 2009.

process: creation

The AWARE shelter in Juneau is sponsoring an art exhibit for the month of April 2009 at the Silverbow in observation of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. I have been asked to facilitate some classes this month to help artists in creating work for this show and in the process of preparing for these classes have been preparing a piece of my own. As soon as I finish the mixed media piece, I will post a picture; in the meantime, here is the work in progress:

inspiration: figurines

I’ve been collecting little figurines ever since my grandmother started giving me the little glass animals that came with her red rose teas when I was a young child. For some reason, these little trinkets have captured my affections up through the present and I now have a whole shelf full of them and more scattered throughout my home. For as much as I love collecting them, I love to give them away, too. Ever see those little buddhas in some eastern shops? I get such pleasure at their fat round bellies poking out from the drapery. Just today I purchased a little buddha who looks like he is on a journey for a little care package I’m putting together for some friends who are moving. The shopkeeper at our Nepal store said he was a symbol of good luck; I’ve been rubbing his little belly (and having others rub his belly) all day...

So back to the broader subject at hand, I wonder what place these figurines have in art? I have tried incorporating them into assemblage art, but with little success (I have never made an assemblage art piece I’ve ever been happy with, though). I have tried creating little figurines of people and animated creatures on my own, but they seem to lack the context needed to qualify as art (in my opinion). But surely they have a place! Is it just me that finds these things so distractingly attractive? And now, some pictures...

inspiration: sculpture

Chewing Gum Sculptures
Fashioning sculptures out of everyday objects has been a fascination of mine, despite the fact that I have never successfully created one (not that I've tried all that hard at it).

Book Autopsies
When it comes to creating sculpture, though, I would much prefer to work with books over chewing gum. I also like the idea of subtraction or "taking away" as a form of creation as opposed to the more typical conglomeration of elements to make a whole.

art: local anesthetic

an asseveration of art

I’ve been creating sketches and works of art ever since I was a child. The sketchbooks I worked in have lived with me since their conception and are laden with images from my childhood. The art reflects images from my daily life, dreams I had, and struggles I was working through.

The reflective intrapersonal nature of my art continues to this day. Art is a way for me to synthesize complex experiences and feelings into visual forms. The works I create are meditation tools for me, often expressing irony by incorporating bright colors and contradictory images into (what is often) darker subject material. As a lover of words, I also tend to integrate writing into or alongside my work.

Over time, my depiction of the human being (my favorite subject) has become distorted and cartoon like, a reflection of the idea that we are ever changing and ever imperfect. I tend to personify inanimate objects and abstracted animals in my art as well; everything I see or touch has vitality to it and I try to convey that.

Art for me is not precious in and of itself; it is the process that is most important to me. Whenever I exhibit my art, it is my intention for the viewer to do more than just see... I want for people to be able to touch, write, and otherwise interact with my art and express their own responses. I love dialogue, especially on topics that matter to me and that I have been working through.

Recently, I have been working through the departure of my husband and my own response to it. How relationships change. What it is like to be in love again. I’ve been exploring what I really want to leave with the world with via my short life (I am at the biggest decision making point in my life). I’ve also been working through recent discoveries about the American penal system and some of its major failings.

As I create more art and work through these themes, I would like to also be thinking (in advance) about how I could most effectively produce an exhibition that will cause people to re-evaluate something I feel is ineffective about the way(s) in which we live. This includes new mediums, words to incorporate, ways to have an audience participate, location, etc. I would like for my next exhibit to be one that I can show at a couple different locations (Juneau AK, Bellingham WA, and Park City UT).

I will post some recent art as soon as I can get it scanned in. -Donna