Sorry for the delay, I know I promised. Here they are, almost a week late- photos of our Burton Employee art hop- with many thanks Tomas Ruprecht, for the great pix. The show this year was a great success, and many thanks goes out to all the artists and sponsors who helped make it happen! We had a great party with food from local eateries, ice cream courtesy of Ben and Jerry's, a live dance performance by the girls of Cheeks Dance company ( all I can say about them is WOWSERS!) music by Joshua Panda, and of course Magic Hat on tap.
So many people came out to support art in the South End of Burlington. I am blessed to have such wonderful friends and colleagues! Thanks everyone for your hard work and dedication to this project!
yes, i am a space cadet. for some BIZARRE reason, i thought the deadline for the Sailor's Valentine challenge for CPS, was on the 15th. i was so excited, i had mapped out my hectic life, first i would get the art hop up on Friday, then spend all day Saturday and Sunday making my submission and send in my photos just in time. but as my luck would have it, i had the submission date wrong (yes, i am a space cadet.) it was on the 8th.
the finished pieces is still drying and i am peeling glue from my fingers as i type. and i am really happy with what i created. too bad for CPS, because, i really created a unique, haunting piece. oh, well, so much for best made plans.
i felt so inspired this weekend. it was great to work with my colleagues to put up a great show at Burton and then spend all day saturday checking out all sorts of amazing work up and down pine street.
i met an incredibly talented woman, Beth Robinson, who makes eerie steam punk inspired dolls. they are so haunting and strange.i really enjoyed seeing them in person. and got to see my neighbor and friend jackie mangione in her new studio at the soda plant. by the end of the day i was exhausted by so jonesing to get my materials out and make something.
so, i've been painting background pages and prepping a set of trays for another group of assemblages. i hope i can keep my muse in my heart this week. it's been a while since i have had this sort of spark. and it feel pretty dang good!
Creative souls is a social network on Ning that I belong to. The amazing Izabella Pierce started this wonderful site for creative people to connect and share their art and ideas. There's a lot of "outsider" art and steam punk inspired artists on Creative souls. The part that I love the most is that it's not limited to mixed media, but open to all creative types to quote the site (it's) a diverse gathering of creative souls, a place to help promote each other. Discover new & interesting people."
I am so excited to share that I have been selected to be the featured artist on the site. Previous features have been about some of my favorite artist- so I am a little awe-struck that she would consider me for the spot. So, many thanks to you Isabella and the members of Creative Souls- I am humbled by this opportunity to share my work with you. Thanks!
When it comes to transfers my specialty is gel medium transfers. I make little "skins" as I have dubbed them. Basically you take a color or b/w copy and apply several layers of gel medium to the face. Then you moisten the paper and rub it off to reveal a thin layer of plastic (the dried gel medium) with the image from the paper embedded into the dried medium. Sounds easy, right? In theory it is. But it takes patience, practice and a steady hand. I have experimented with this process for several years, and it's some what of a signature of my work, that and the transparencies that I use.
People are always asking me how I do what I do, so I had put together a little tutorial and blogged about it. In light of the Melange transfer challenge, I have reposted the blog entries I've done about transfers. The first one is about gel medium transfers and the second one is about paint stripper transfers. The finished project to the left (Eve) above is one of my favorite transfer projects and the one I submitted to the Melange transfer challenge.
It's been great fun reading about the different methods the other members of Melange have tried- Outside of acetone transfers, and transfers from (yes) paint stripper. I am pretty stuck on the skins.... I guess when you get comfortable with something you just stick with it.
REPOST of Gel Medium Transfers :
When I'm working on collages, I like to use a lot of layers. It adds to the overall mood of the piece. One way to add layers is using elements that are transparent or semi transparent so the pieces underneath come through- You can do this is many different ways and there are tons of books out there with different techniques. This is what works well for me- It took me a while to master this process for my own habits, so you want to tackle this, you may have to make adjustments to suite your needs.
Gel medium transfers are not the easiest things to make- but for the ghostly, skin like look I want, nothing else comes close.
Start with a fresh copy of a favorite image- color or black and white-copies straight off the laser printer work best for this technique.
Clean your work surface and lay down waxed paper, freezer paper or plastic. You can go commando- but the gel medium inevitably ends up on the table and I hate to clean it up. The wax paper will keep it from sticking to your kitchen counter or dining room table. Apply a thin, end coat of gel medium to the image. I only use sponge brushes and Golden Regular Gel ( Matte). You can use heavy and glossy, it takes longer to dry, it will appear thicker, more plastic and shiny. ( not the look I'm going for, but it might work for you.)
Apply several layers (how many depends on how thick you put it on.) Usually I do three or four. Remember the coats need to be even- otherwise when you start peeling off the paper- you will get stretching and tearing.
Let the layers dry COMPLETELY before you apply another layer. After you have applied the gel medium- and the final layer is completely dry - you are ready to start peeling paper. This process usually takes me several nights. I lay out the copies and apply a layer or two every night while I'm working on some other project. Remember this whole thing takes patience.
When you are ready to peel the paper, fill your sink, small basin or shallow dish with lukewarm water. Be careful not to make the warm too hot- lay in some of your dried gel covered papers into the bath. let them sit a while- mine go in for anywhere from 5-15 minutes for the first run.
Take out your images out of the water work one at a time on a clean flat surface (i have a clear piece of plexi, i put on the counter, but you can work directly on your work surface as long as it is clean and flat)
Starting in the center of the image- I roll the paper with my fingers in circular motions till it starts to peel away. Slowly the paper will ball up and roll away and your image will appear. Keep working at it till all the paper is removed. You may have to stop and brush off the paper curls regularly. Dip the image back into the wash as needed to re-wet the paper. As the paper dries in the air it will become harder to remove.
When you are all done removing the paper- your transfer is ready to apply to your collage- I cover the area that I want to adhere it to with a light coat of gel medium, lay my image down and use the sponge brush to work out air bubbles.
I wish you luck with this technique and don't give up if you fail the first time- I still tear transfers from time to time- like this one that I ended up using in my journal.
REPOST OF A BLOG ENTRY from my old Blog: Between the Worlds about transfers from paint stripper:
...I want to create a overlay effect with some of the photos and am working on different transfer methods. Other methods I tried, like acetone and gel medium did not work as well as this. I had EXCELLENT results with the citrus based paint stripper.
Apply the paint stripper to the image, place the image face down on the piece you want to transfer to and burnish. I used the back of an old spoon and rubbed lighty in circular motion. Then peel the image paper from the text paper and voila! the image is transfered.
My ventilation wasn't so great. Make sure you open windows if you try this. Samples of Jennifer and Heather are attached.. ..
every year, the week after labor day, businesses in the south end of burlington, open their doors to showcase art from all over the state. the event is run by SEABA (south end arts and business association) and this year the art hop falls on friday september 11 and saturday 12.
i am extremely honored to be curating a group show at burton snowboards corporate offices @ 80 industrial parkway. over 20 artists will exhibit their talents in a show called "off the clock." a collection of art created by burton employees when they are not at work.
so, get yourself out of the cube and support local vermont artist by checking out the art hop. if you've never experienced this Burlington tradition you are in for a feast for your senses. there is art that suits every taste. there's tons of gallery receptions, live music, a juried show, activities for the kiddies and a live fashion show.
Everything in my ETSY shop is on sale this weekend as park of the The ETSY street team "Melange" WEEKEND DEAL sale. Take of 15% off everything, excluding shipping. If you don't know about Melange it's a group of Mixed Media Artists on ETSY, many of who have been published. Each shop may also have additional sales of their own. I am still offering free shipping on orders over $50.
The following is a list of active, participating Melange members who are participating in the WEEKEND DEAL from August 7th, through the 9th.
After the item is purchased and paid for, a refund will be issued for the total discount via Pay Pal or other methods in which the payment was made. It is currently not possible to make the adjustments at payment time.
Every shop, as individual as their artwork, has their own set of policies in place, so please make yourself familiar with each new shop. Check out all the fantastic deals and support the handmade nation!
Sorry for the delay, I know I promised. Here they are, almost a week late- photos of our Burton Employee art hop- with many thanks Tomas Ruprecht, for the great pix. The show this year was a great success, and many thanks goes out to all the artists and sponsors who helped make it happen! We had a great party with food from local eateries, ice cream courtesy of Ben and Jerry's, a live dance performance by the girls of Cheeks Dance company ( all I can say about them is WOWSERS!) music by Joshua Panda, and of course Magic Hat on tap.
