abominate grapple angel

 "Every artist who evolves a style does so from elusive elements that 

inhabit his or her visual storehouse." Mary Carol Nelson

Note:  First thing this morning I got an email that my two quilts I had so much trouble sending yesterday were safely delivered to the gallery for 'Southern Accents'.  Now, THAT was fast!  Of course it's only a few hours up the road but still, usually it sits in a truck en route for a couple of days!  

Last time I was home I rummaged through some old photos we had.  I have this idea that I am collecting all the old beach photos I can find and printing them bigger to fit in small frames for a stair wall.  Anyway, this is a 1970 photo that was 1 1/2" x 2" taken with one of those old snapshot cameras.  The two 'girls' are Ralph's relatives at their beach house up in MA.  The two Gone Girls are people I don't remember enough to keep their picture, so I was removing them and got to this point and now I love it!  Now these two girls are also gone but I am convinced they would get a good laugh.

The Girls, Some Gone

(coming to your nearest quilt show as soon as I get some t-i-m-e again.)

Since I started out with some of my 'ahrt' today I will continue with some of my encaustics.  probably you've seen them before but again is never enough, right?

Part of the dumpster ongoing series-  I take photos of things on dumpsters around here, in this case the chains.  Some of these were maybe 1/2" chains, others were huge big things I think they use for hauling away.  I just couldn't stop because I liked every image so much!  One day I will find a place to hang them.  I've never shown them anywhere.  Each is on a 12" board and they can go singly or in smaller groups or all together.

The Coleus in my courtyard have given me endless inspiration.  Again, this is from two of my photographs, one whole, the other punched into dots with my Martha Stewart Big Punch (think she will send me a whole set?  Nah...)  This one has color that won't stop, love it.

My flying saucer diagram that comes to life with the iridescent wax I used for the exhaust fumes.  My son said he wanted it, but never heard another word so it sits here and I get it out now and then and polish it up.  Here I used a smaller Martha Stewart paper punch with maps-  the day I went to Michael's I think they closed after I left because they had made quotas.

And that one reminds me of 'Oh Yes, That's the Night I was Abducted by Aliens'!  With this one we are talking' ancient history, one of the first wave of ridiculous quilts, circa 1980.

Bedtime Stories for my kids.  Hmmm.  No wonder they are through with me!  This was when photo imaging was in it's infancy-  I used little images from a Life magazine of aliens from all different time periods, including one carrying me off across the swamps.

And that is the quilt that begat the Story Quilts I've been making for 45 years.  

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I know, you're not interested in RE-seeing my stuff, but occasionally I get somebody new here.  So, for you old timers, here is a guy who makes teensy dioramas out of little velvet jewelry boxes!

Working out of his studio in Toronto, Canada, Canadian-Trinidadian artist TALWST creates mixed media and performance arts that explore art history and cultural contrast. These dioramas, though tiny, carry big messages as well as political commentary. Check his site for large versions.

This will be me when I grow up