I hope everyone had a great Christmas. Gene and I had a very nice one. We wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year for 2009.
I am looking forward to exploring art some more. Hoping now that the holidays are done I will be more motivated to work on stuff for me.
I have two exciting things coming up in January. On Jan 16th I am going to see Medium/Clairvoyant Lisa Williams at the Wilbur Theater in Boston. That should be a great event. My bestest friend in Ohio went to see her and said she is just awesome. I have enjoyed her shows on Lifetime and have one of her meditation CD's.
Then, on Jan 17th I have signed up for another workshop at The Art Complex in Duxbury. "Thinking Inside the Box"Create a personal shrine ('reliquary') in this fun and informative workshop! We will look at work from the Artists and Books show, as well as a presentation about artist Joseph Cornell, to inspire and instruct. Bring your own personal relics and objects; we will provide everything else. I am looking forward to this a lot. I love their workshops and like that they are a bit more affordable than some I have seen around.
I will be sure to post photos of whatever I create.
Happy New Year!
Been awhile since my last post... If I don't post often, it is just because nothing blog worthy is happening... don't want to post about the everyday stuff we all deal with....
After enjoying a lovely turkey dinner with the family we thought we would do some bird watching on Friday. We went out to Duxbury Beach in search of Snowy Owls. We had taken an Audubon excursion there looking for owls last winter but did not see any. Gene saw several posts on the massbird.org posts the last few weeks and people were reporting seeing owls out on the beach. So, we said 'what the heck, even if we don't see any, it's still a nice ride'. Well suffice it to say we were not dissappointed! We saw FOUR snowy owls. Such incredible, beautiful birds. Another one of those once in a lifetime experiences we won't forget. It was a good birding day all around. We also saw two flocks of Snow Buntings for the first time. Other birds we saw were a King Fisher, Northern Flicker, Gadwalls, Swans, Eiders and American Black Ducks and got excellent up close photos of a Great Blue Heron.... very good birding day indeed....
and of course here are some photos.
After enjoying a lovely turkey dinner with the family we thought we would do some bird watching on Friday. We went out to Duxbury Beach in search of Snowy Owls. We had taken an Audubon excursion there looking for owls last winter but did not see any. Gene saw several posts on the massbird.org posts the last few weeks and people were reporting seeing owls out on the beach. So, we said 'what the heck, even if we don't see any, it's still a nice ride'. Well suffice it to say we were not dissappointed! We saw FOUR snowy owls. Such incredible, beautiful birds. Another one of those once in a lifetime experiences we won't forget. It was a good birding day all around. We also saw two flocks of Snow Buntings for the first time. Other birds we saw were a King Fisher, Northern Flicker, Gadwalls, Swans, Eiders and American Black Ducks and got excellent up close photos of a Great Blue Heron.... very good birding day indeed....
and of course here are some photos.
a much quieter weekend. enjoyed the lovely, mild temps too. went for a nice trip to plymouth beach this am. it is so nice there. we love hearing the whoosh of the waves and see the people playing with their dogs. the tide was very high this am so no beach to really take a long walk on. we drove out as far as we can. saw quite a few birds. feeling relaxed and rested....
i think this is a Greater Yellow Legs
this is a Great Blue Heron hunting for his breakfast
i think this is a Greater Yellow Legs
this is a Great Blue Heron hunting for his breakfast
I had a busy weekend but it was all fun stuff. Saturday I volunteered with Mass Audubon at their Farm Day event at the Daniel Webster Sanctuary in Marshfield. The weather was great and lots of families came out to enjoy the activities. I especially wanted to do this event because my dad and his family had actually lived and worked the actual farm that used to be on this property. It felt great being someplace that had meaning to me. I know Dad would like that connection too.
Here are a few photos of the animals.
On Sunday I took my second workshop at The Art Complex in Duxbury. It was making an altered book. But what is an Altered Book you ask? It is any book, old or new that has been recycled by creative means into a work of art. They can be ... rebound, painted, cut, burned, folded, added to, collaged in, gold-leafed, rubber stamped, drilled or otherwise adorned ... and yes! It is legal!
I had a great time and it was lots of fun. I enjoy these workshops because it allows me lots of space to work, to use materials I don't have at home and the general feeling of creativity by a group of people coming together for the same reason... to just create. I will be looking for more workshops in the future.
Of course here are some photos of what I did to the book I am working on.
Here are a few photos of the animals.
On Sunday I took my second workshop at The Art Complex in Duxbury. It was making an altered book. But what is an Altered Book you ask? It is any book, old or new that has been recycled by creative means into a work of art. They can be ... rebound, painted, cut, burned, folded, added to, collaged in, gold-leafed, rubber stamped, drilled or otherwise adorned ... and yes! It is legal!
I had a great time and it was lots of fun. I enjoy these workshops because it allows me lots of space to work, to use materials I don't have at home and the general feeling of creativity by a group of people coming together for the same reason... to just create. I will be looking for more workshops in the future.
Of course here are some photos of what I did to the book I am working on.
Last Sunday I attended this great workshop at The Art Complex. It was a lovely fall day and a great way to enjoy a little nature and a little creativity.
We started out listening to the artist explain her works on her Spirit Books. She has created over 30 of these artist books over a 13 year period. It was interesting hearing about her process.
The first step in the class was to go outside and pick up natural items to use in our books. I brought back leaves, sticks, seed pods, pine cones and tree bark. We then learned how to make the pages of the book using handmade paper called daphne paper.It was really neat using handmade paper. The texture was so different from regular papers and there were lots of fibers etc from the plants that made interesting patterns. After putting together the pages of the books, we then used the natural materials we gathered along with rubber stamps, beads, shells and other craft materials to adorn the pages.
I have more to add to my book. That is one of my favorite things about classes like this...the enjoyment isn't over when the class is.
I have some birch bark I am planning on using to make a cover for the book. I will probably do that last as the bark can be fragile. I am curious to see how the book will change as the leaves etc dry and age.
Looking forward to my next class coming up on Nov 2nd. In that class we will be taking an old book and altering it. Much fun.
Here are photos of the pages I did so far.
We started out listening to the artist explain her works on her Spirit Books. She has created over 30 of these artist books over a 13 year period. It was interesting hearing about her process.
The first step in the class was to go outside and pick up natural items to use in our books. I brought back leaves, sticks, seed pods, pine cones and tree bark. We then learned how to make the pages of the book using handmade paper called daphne paper.It was really neat using handmade paper. The texture was so different from regular papers and there were lots of fibers etc from the plants that made interesting patterns. After putting together the pages of the books, we then used the natural materials we gathered along with rubber stamps, beads, shells and other craft materials to adorn the pages.
I have more to add to my book. That is one of my favorite things about classes like this...the enjoyment isn't over when the class is.
I have some birch bark I am planning on using to make a cover for the book. I will probably do that last as the bark can be fragile. I am curious to see how the book will change as the leaves etc dry and age.
Looking forward to my next class coming up on Nov 2nd. In that class we will be taking an old book and altering it. Much fun.
Here are photos of the pages I did so far.
At times I find a need to do something calming for my spirit. I sometimes do meditation. Other times I like to be outside for this. I love the idea of the labyrinth.
"We are all on the path... exactly where we need to be. The labyrinth is a model of that path.
A labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness. It combines the imagery of the circle and the spiral into a meandering but purposeful path. The Labyrinth represents a journey to our own center and back again out into the world. Labyrinths have long been used as meditation and prayer tools.
A labyrinth is an archetype with which we can have a direct experience. We can walk it. It is a metaphor for life's journey. It is a symbol that creates a sacred space and place and takes us out of our ego to "That Which Is Within."
Labyrinths and mazes have often been confused. When most people hear of a labyrinth they think of a maze. A labyrinth is not a maze. A maze is like a puzzle to be solved. It has twists, turns, and blind alleys. It is a left brain task that requires logical, sequential, analytical activity to find the correct path into the maze and out.
A labyrinth has only one path. It is unicursal. The way in is the way out. There are no blind alleys. The path leads you on a circuitous path to the center and out again.
A labyrinth is a right brain task. It involves intuition, creativity, and imagery. With a maze many choices must be made and an active mind is needed to solve the problem of finding the center. With a labyrinth there is only one choice to be made. The choice is to enter or not. A more passive, receptive mindset is needed. The choice is whether or not to walk a spiritual path.
At its most basic level the labyrinth is a metaphor for the journey to the center of your deepest self and back out into the world with a broadened understanding of who you are." from http://www.lessons4living.com/labyrinth.htm
I found out that a local church has a labyrinth and I have walked it several times. I find it calms me and helps me put my focus back on the right path.
"We are all on the path... exactly where we need to be. The labyrinth is a model of that path.
A labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness. It combines the imagery of the circle and the spiral into a meandering but purposeful path. The Labyrinth represents a journey to our own center and back again out into the world. Labyrinths have long been used as meditation and prayer tools.
A labyrinth is an archetype with which we can have a direct experience. We can walk it. It is a metaphor for life's journey. It is a symbol that creates a sacred space and place and takes us out of our ego to "That Which Is Within."
Labyrinths and mazes have often been confused. When most people hear of a labyrinth they think of a maze. A labyrinth is not a maze. A maze is like a puzzle to be solved. It has twists, turns, and blind alleys. It is a left brain task that requires logical, sequential, analytical activity to find the correct path into the maze and out.
A labyrinth has only one path. It is unicursal. The way in is the way out. There are no blind alleys. The path leads you on a circuitous path to the center and out again.
A labyrinth is a right brain task. It involves intuition, creativity, and imagery. With a maze many choices must be made and an active mind is needed to solve the problem of finding the center. With a labyrinth there is only one choice to be made. The choice is to enter or not. A more passive, receptive mindset is needed. The choice is whether or not to walk a spiritual path.
At its most basic level the labyrinth is a metaphor for the journey to the center of your deepest self and back out into the world with a broadened understanding of who you are." from http://www.lessons4living.com/labyrinth.htm
I found out that a local church has a labyrinth and I have walked it several times. I find it calms me and helps me put my focus back on the right path.
Gene and I went out wandering today to get away from the roofers. We wound up at a nice audubon sanctuary. We had a great stroll and did something incredible... we hand fed birds in the woods... it was amazingly cool. Someone had trained the birds and all you have to do is hold your handout with some sunflower seeds and they come right to you.... I am still thrilled by the whole thing! I want to train our birds that come to our feeders now.
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