July 3, 2009
· Filed under Books · Tagged American art, Art, artists, biography, Books, Man Ray, Man Ray: American Artist, painters, photography, sculptors
I first came across some of Man Ray’s sculptures in an art book I own called History of Modern Art : Painting, Sculpture, Architecture by H.H. Arnason. This is a wonderful book, and has several editions. I couldn’t afford the new one so 4 years ago I bought an older edition online, and it’s one of the best books in my collection.
I also came across him in some of the history of photography books that I have been reading as I find them over the last five years. I finally ordered this biography via inter-library loan and received it today. I am so excited, and it kind of ties in with my current read of Ulysses by James Joyce. I still think Edward Steichen was a better photographer of women than Man Ray, but I am so interested in the period of art before and after World War I, so I was delighted to get this book.
Man Ray: American Artist by Neal Baldwin
ISBN 030681014X
Blurb from back cover:
“Man Ray is the quintessential modernist figure – Painter, sculptor, photographer, filmmaker, poet, and philosopher. One of the most fascinating of the Surrealists who transformed the Paris art world during the 1920s, Man Ray was an enigma – a Dadaist who revered the Old Masters, an anarchist pursued by wealthy patrons. Driven to make his mark in as many art forms as possible, he struggled bitterly to win acceptance as a painter even as his skill as a photographer brought him worldwide fame. Man Ray came to know personalities such as Gertrude Stein, James Joyce, Salvador Dali, Jean Cocteau, Max Ernst, and Coco Chanel, and he photographed virtually every important figure in the arts on both sides of the Atlantic.”
I also have a book on order from the library called The Lives of the Muses: Nine Women and the Artists They Inspired by Francine Prose
ISBN 0060555254, which covers several interesting people including Lee Miller, who was Man Ray’s lover and apprentice at one time. Or his muse and a talented photographer in her own right who influenced him, depending on what you read.
I shall find out!
July 1, 2009
· Filed under Uncategorized · Tagged bicycle, buy handmade, exercise, free, health, Heart-Smart, jewellery for sale, journals for sale, one of a kind, original art, premium incentive, raising money for bicycle, tarot bags for sale
My old bike was ruined when I had a bad fall four years ago, but I put about 3600 kms on that bike. I don’t drive a car and there is no public transport in my area, so a bike is important to get around. I need a bicycle now so that I can exercise properly and regain my health. I am having a bit of trouble walking, and for years I rode a bike, so this would be a good solution.
I need a bicycle with bent handlebars, not the mountain bike type, because the straight handlebars exacerbate my tendinitis, and I’ve priced them out (with tax of course); I need nothing fancy, just a plain old bike with 3 to 10 gears, so that’s the goal.
I am self-employed and have some lovely handmade jewellery on my web site, including one-of-a-kind necklaces and earrings. For orders over $25 CAD I am offering one pair of earrings (your choice) for free. I also have some art journals and tarot bags for sale, and you can get a free pair of earrings if you buy one of those too. I use high-quality materials and enjoy working with colour, and my merchandise shows this attention to detail.
If you see something you like, buy it and support the Great Bike Imperative!
Handmade Jewellery
Handmade Journals and Tarot Bags
June 27, 2009
· Filed under Books, sewing · Tagged bookbinding, Cottage Tulips quilt block, hand piecing, Keith Smith, New York Beauty quilt block, quilt block patterns, quilting, quilts, scrap quilts
I’ve finished several unfinished blocks that are now ready to be incorporated into new quilts. I was fortunate to find an online group devoted to hand piecing who generously gave me some New York Beauty patterns to do up. I’ve always wanted to do this in scraps and they are great for using up tiny bits of fabric. Here are the four I’ve completed for my Red Sampler.
Someone on this hand piecing list who has great skill with the vector drawing facility in the Electric Quilt program, redrew the Cottage Tulips block for me as the two patterns I had were not at all accurate. I am currently sewing it by hand on my sun porch and expect to finish it in a couple of days. I have wanted to sew this for years and I’ll do at least one more in a different colourway once this is done. (Update to show it finished!)
I took the plunge and ordered one of Keith Smith’s excellent books on bookbinding. I don’t have the money, but I have a project in mind for my Dad’s 90th birthday gift: I wanted to do some fancy sewing on the spine, and Volume II of Keith’s series covers the sort of patterns I am looking for. Now I just have to find some leather or suede in a thrift shop and I can start designing.
Aren’t these marvelous? This image is modified from Keith’s web site–I hope it’s okay to post it here as I have no other way of showing the technique.
June 17, 2009
· Filed under sewing · Tagged hand piecing, Nosegay, piecing quilts, quilt block patterns, sampler quilts, scrap quilts
I cut this out yesterday and sewed it by hand today. Another one for the red sampler quilt I am doing with old blocks I have recently taken out of storage and completed.
If anyone is interested in sewing this block by hand or machine, I found that the pattern and templates from this site went together beautifully for a 12-inch Nosegay or Bride’s Bouquet quilt block as it is sometimes called.
June 17, 2009
· Filed under sewing · Tagged appliqué, Celtic knot, scrap quilts
I finally finished the last of my unfinished blocks that had been stored away. I think I started this Celtic pattern with appliquéd bias strips some time around 1997 or a bit later.
I like doing patterns with bias strips but they are a bit tedious, you have to be in a mood to do careful hand work and small stitches.
So now I’ve got some hand piecing templates made and ready to cut out some more sample blocks for this red scrap quilt.
I am first doing the Nosegay or Bride’s Bouquet block, and then I have some variations of the New York Beauty block to do up. I’ve always wanted to do that and someone has sent me files for the various templates.
June 10, 2009
· Filed under Card Collection, Jewellery, sewing · Tagged art inspiration, fabric scraps, hand piecing, jewellery inspired by card decks, piecing quilts, quilting, Rumi Tarot, scrap quilts, tarot cards
A few months ago I got the urge to finish some quilt blocks that had been languishing for twelve years. If they had been completed tops or quilts I wouldn’t have worried so much, but no one else but me would have bothered to fiddle and finish them, so I thought some energy to complete them was needed.
They are all done except for one Celtic themed block made with bias strips that I’m working on this week, and I’m going to make two quilt tops from them after sewing new blocks. It’s a plan. It’s a plan I’ve had for at least twelve years and one of these days I’m going to finish everything and pull it all together. Sweet.
It sometimes bothers me to go back and pick up old projects, the spectre of regret and unfinished business does have a touch of sadness at the beginning. As I work and make newer memories with these pieces, they become part of the present and new plans, and the sadness dissipates.
Here’s a picture of a group of red-themed blocks that are going to go in a sampler quilt I have planned to go with a red Adirondack chair I have. My Mom sat in it when she was pregnant with me, and my brother took it apart and refurbished it after she died. I’m doing a lot of hand piecing and appliqué for this.
Rumi Tarot
I just received the Rumi Tarot by Nigel Jackson this week and I am already planning a necklace with bead embroidery for it. I’ve taken a snap of it with some of my bead stash.I love the deep cobalt, lavender, fuchsia, red, and green colours. I saw one reviewer complaining about the vivid green but for me it’s magic. I love green and this particular green is many shades of emerald. I bought some beads in a galvanized kiwi green to match the lighter green in the borders.
The only largish cabochon I have is the blue lace agate, but the perfect match is the malachite and lapis lazuli combination in a smaller cabochon. I’ve got a lot of green aventurine which is a nice match to the subtler greens. I would love to have the money to buy a huge malachite or lapis cabochon for this but I don’t. I also found four small lampwork beads that fit the colour theme too.
This one’s for me, I am going to be messing around and studying Rumi and Sufism with this deck, so what better than an art project to go with it? If I ever get around to it I have a small watercolour painting I was supposed to do about four years ago related to Rumi and Persian manuscripts mixed in with a snippet of rue from my garden with a sketch of a walnut. I am determined that the Rumi Tarot shall provide impetus for finishing this illustration.
May 26, 2009
· Filed under sewing · Tagged Arctic Bamboo, bamboo quilt batting, Crazy Shortcut Quilts, piecing quilts, quilt as you go, quilting, quilts, scrap quilts
I finished them yesterday and they are definitely scrappy, but they have a quiet charm. Here is a photograph of six of the thirty blocks. You can see it’s going to be challenging to lay it out. I live in a very small house and have pets, so the other challenge is going to be to sweep and wash the living room floor and then keep the pets away while I fiddle and move and turn these blocks into a suitable arrangement.
I managed to get the spouse to take me out on the weekend and I bought the new Arctic Bamboo quilt batting that people are raving about, to use in the quilt-as-you-go method for these. It is 45% natural bamboo fibre, 45% cotton fibre, and 10% polypropylene as a scrim to hold it together. It cost me less to buy this off the bolt than a pre-packaged bag of batting so I saved about $10, which is important since the reason I’m making this quilt is because I don’t have money to spend and I’m trying to use up lengths of older fabric.
I can’t wait to see this in a full quilt with the joining strips and backing, but that’s going to take months. I haven’t quite decided what quilting motif to do. I will probably draw up a vaguely circular leaf design and go with that. I don’t want to fuss with marking, and I’m not doing the machine embroidery on the seams as described in the book.
This is really going to be a nice puttering project over the summer, and who knows, maybe I’ll zoom along and get it done in a couple of months?
May 26, 2009
· Filed under Books, Card Collection, Creativity · Tagged Creativity, J.R.R. Tolkien, Literature, Lord of the Rings, Poetic Edda, Prose Edda, The Lord of the Rings Tarot, Tolkien mythology
I started a new study on my other blog, for which I sewed myself a custom tarot bag, and I’m learning different things and making digital wreaths. I’m having a ball, going with what comes up and exploring the Edda and Tolkien’s mythology.
Proof that one can combine great literature, history, art, mythology, and a card deck. This particular tarot is considered pretty lame by outraged Tolkien fans, but I am not finding it so, I find it delightful and beautifully painted. I started reading Tolkien when I was 11 years-old so he was a major influence on my imagination and love of mythology.
I also gave Boromir his due and printed a paper doll of him to go with the custom bag I made for the deck.
May 26, 2009
· Filed under Card Collection, Jewellery · Tagged Antique Engravings Playing Cards, black and white necklace, botanical art, botanical jewellery, handmade paper beads, jewellery inspired by card decks, lampwork beads, playing cards
This is the necklace and earrings set I made when I was inspired by the Antique Engravings Playing Cards I made in the Quick Cards software a few weeks ago, as described in this post
The handmade beads have botanical engravings on them mixed with black crystal bicones, snowflake obsidian, Picasso stone, matte black glass beads and some funky looking lampwork beads. The handmade beads take me about 24 hours to make as I use paint and four coats of varnish on them for hardness and UV light protection.
This feels wonderfully elegant on, nice and summery for wearing with a white blouse or t-shirt or wearing with a sundress. Mmmm, if this is what I get from playing cards, I want some more.
May 20, 2009
· Filed under sewing · Tagged Crazy Shortcut Quilts, piecing quilts, quilting, quilts, scrap quilts
Today I am sewing together my third cut on these Crazy Shortcut blocks.
I admit to being disappointed, but I think this is generally what happens when you’re part of the way through a project, whether it be a drawing, a necklace, or a quilt. The final result pulls all the colours together, and the sashing will be important to the overall finished look too. I saw an example on the Internet of some nice striped sashing on a quilt as you go project, but I’m not buying any more fabric, I’ve got some medium purple fabrics for the sashing. At this point I’m sorry I didn’t use regular pieced blocks though.
It might look all a-jumble but I’ll keep trying as I think this is a fine method. The trick is pulling it together, which is a classic challenge in quilting. Years ago people didn’t go out and buy a bundle of coordinated fabric or pre-cut squares from one fabric manufacturer. That’s no fun!
