Adaptations Series is Complete

 Greetings All

Wanted to share with you my final two pieces from a series of work I have called Adaptations. It is based on an issue that started two years ago with my eyes and has brought me to a new reality.

All five pieces are mounted on a 9 x 12" acrylic painted board and involve the use of mixed media materials along with more traditional fibers. The works are meant to be viewed in the order you see below and each deals with a particular adaptation I personally developed or acquired from another source. 

Eyes Shut

Infusion

Twist

Artificial Tears

Prism Sticker

Prism Sticker was the final adaptation that has led me to where I am today. Given the reality of this year and the adaptations we've had to make with the change we confront, I imagine there is more ahead for all of us.

Imagine That, Landscapes

Greetings to all that still have an urge to head to blogs. I've been struggling with motivation the past few months. I know I'm not alone, many talk about monotony, lethargy, motivation. There are up and down days, but hey, I'm living a life.

water soluble marker on text

Lately I'm not around many people so I've turned to landscapes. If you know my work you are no doubt surprised as I've focused on people for most of my life. I haven't deserted people, I'm just waiting for them to enter my life once again.

10 epi, 6 inches wide from above sketch

In the meantime birds and land have been my focus. Landscape is a daunting and I'm grateful for this new challenge. I'm looking more closely at my surroundings, listening to the songs the birds are singing each morning.

inspired by the view of my neighbors yard

Many good teachers before me have said, spend more time looking than doing and that has become important in my landscape investigations.

Who knows where it will lead?

Coronavirus Diaries

Well we all know what's been on our minds the past few months. No matter where you live.

In the corona spirit I offer a blog based on my sketchbook, images I've drawn for the past month based on my experience living a life at this time. I'll begin with some happy news, I had two sketches published in the New York Times.

Before Quarantine...

After Quarantine

And yes, I was in Spain.
Before I elaborate, the link for this article, entitled Coronavirus Diaries by Amelia Nierenberg is

nytimes.com/2020/03/30/style/coronavirus-diaries-social-history.html

The big idea is how people record their lives and there are a variety of examples, check it out! I'm excited.

I arrived in Spain on March 11 to visit my daughter for 3 weeks. Four days later a State of Emergency was declared and we were in quarantine. The vacation was not what I expected but offered me a unique opportunity to record my life at a very unusual time. And really, the fact I draw kept me going. It still does.

Take a look at a few of my sketches from this time period.

I take off from O'Hare, the virus has just begun to appear on people's radar

.

When the government declared the emergency - and they are still in quarantine as I write this - my sketching switched to what was inside.

I was lucky, my daughter has a nice terrace to expand the view

and of course the sink....

We all know how much I love laundry....

And then there was practicing perspective, oh so challenging on those streets.

And then it was time for all US citizens to go home. The airport was empty, there were 80 people grouped from several flights flying back to O'Hare.
What an unusual experience, ok, I don't need to repeat it, but still, it's all here in my sketchbook.

And now, back in Madison.

Last Panel, Hallway Transitions

It's hard for me to believe that this is my final piece I'm working on for my series Substitute Tales. I've just started the third and final panel for Hallway Transitions, part of this series. Earlier in the week I worked a day in a middle school and was pleased to think of my weaving as I moved through the sea of people in the halls.

I think I'm on the right track.

Now I just need to keep weaving to meet my self imposed March deadline.

This is the cartoon I sketched to size using a thick black crayon and marker. You also see panel 1 already woven and hanging below, panel 2 which you can't see, hangs below that one. All are pinned to a black foam core and used as reference as I weave.

10 epi warp, 8 inches wide

The tissue paper at the right is what I slip behind the work to make sure I'm on track and relating to the cartoon. Note that I like to work improvisationally as I weave yet I do want it to relate to the original sketches.

As of today I am midway through the second lens of the glasses heading toward person #2.

Stay tuned.