Creative Explorer: 2015

7/7/15

mail art

Making some long overdue postcards - they'll be sent out soon. Sorry I've been slow responding, but don't give up on me. Watch your mailboxes! :)

7/1/15

#139-145 - finally a new page in one of my art journals using a photo of grapes I took, followed by some painty/stencily/stampy background starts for mail art. I'm overdue on returning mail again, so made a start on getting some backgrounds started.

Continuing my sketches from "Learn to Draw in 30 Days" by Mark Kistler. Seeing some improvement though I'm still definitely just copying. The lessons seem to be sinking in since the basic cubes are getting easier & more intuitive. These didn't make it to ICAD cards, just in my sketchbook......
#146 & 147

So, I'm about a month behind in my 365 project - I need to double up on a few days to get back on track. And, my Denver trip (see the previous wedding post) threw me off my ICAD progress. So I need to get back on track there. Sheesh. There is a long weekend coming up where I could really make some arty progress, but it's supposed to be record breaking heat and my art room is upstairs & faces west - HOT! Maybe I'll just move some supplies downstairs.....

Hope you're finding time to escape the heat (or whatever weather) and be creative!

6/30/15

a wedding

No, neither of my sons is close to getting married (as far as I can tell), but my niece got married last weekend in Golden, CO (suburb of Denver) and we all went. It was such a beautiful wedding - outside in the morning on a summer Colorado day - it was gorgeous. By the time it was time to eat, it was a bit toasty and even the addition of lots of umbrellas did little to dispel the heat. Everyone was jockeying for the shady, breezy places. :)

Here are a couple pics of the lovely bride, Marcie, and her cousins (my boys!).

Whatever story she was telling got them all laughing!

She opted for a pretty tea length dress since it was a morning, outdoor wedding and she looked so fresh and stylish and beautiful.

We took a short walk through the redrock area but didn't stay long - the amphitheater was closed for a concert and it was HOT. So, just a couple pics.

A wedding, dinner and lots of hugs with family - all in all, a fun, happy weekend. Hope yours was as good.

6/21/15

365/3 and ICAD continues

I was a florist years ago and miss using those skills. So I love holidays when I make arrangements for the house and I really like it when a friend has a party and asks for some flowers. My 365 project gained a little variety this week as I made some arrangements for a friend's wedding shower.

#131-133
A centerpiece for the buffet table - 2 arrangements connected or 'married' (ha!)

A great big, overflowing vase of flowers that was used as an accessory in the 'photo booth' at the shower. We had all sorts of bridal accessories to choose from and everyone vamped for the camera (I played photographer)

Closeup of the gorgeous flowers - costco roses & mums, and lisianthus, one of my fave garden flowers.

I made 4 small arrangements like this in my $1 store plastic wine glass vases - they went on the tables and kitchen counter, etc. I used greens from my yard to fill in around the flowers.

Then, of course, ICAD continues (thru July) so my ICAD efforts #18-21 (365/3 #134-138)

Hope you have a very creative week!

6/17/15

ICAD and 365 and just general catch up

There's a lot of pics to share so should probably split this up, but won't. Skim, peruse, linger, whatever your time allows, or just check in to see what I've been up to.

I've been keeping up with the ICAD daily challenge - you can see my efforts showing up on instagram (tpurk13), and on flickr when I remember to put it there, and, of course, here. Here we go - lots of pics,.....

ICAD #8-13, 365/#121-126

ICAD #14-17; 365/#127-130

I picked up a book at the library: You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler. I thought I'd try working through the lessons for a bit and see what I can learn. I'm exploring each idea more in a sketchbook but doing a quickie on my index cards.....

6/13/15

pinterest love: architectural details

When I was browsing my Pinterest boards for inspiration this morning, it occurred to me that I haven't done a Pinterest share in a while.

I have an ongoing fascination with architecture, especially the up close details. So, I created a board to collect some great images. You can see the whole board here: Architectural Details

Htel de Sze, Paris, 2014 - Peyroux & Thisy

Htel de Sze, Paris, 2014 - Peyroux & Thisy

Hotel in Paris

painted door (Burano)

Painted door in Burano, Italy

Another view of the gorgeous textured columns at the Natural History Museum. London

Natural History museum, London

Tile roof

Gate detail By Daniel Schwabe Geometric patterns in a gate in Vienna.

Gate detail, Vienna

Can't you just see all sorts of artistic inspiration in these closeups? Have a fabulous summer weekend and a creative week ahead!

6/5/15

ICAD merges with 365 project

This will do it - this will get me back in the saddle - this will get my creative juices flowing again! It's June, so it must be time for ICAD (index card a day). Sponsored/hosted by Tammy at Daisy Yellow This is my 4th year participating and I love it because it's so easy, so low stress, such a great way to keep a toe (or painty finger) in art but without a big time commitment since it is summer after all.

The idea is to make something, anything, on an index card. I happen to prefer the 4x6 size but many use the standard 3x5. I like the bigger size and some of them eventually become mail art. I buy them by the stack at the dollar store and have found that I use them all year long to experiment and play on, not just at ICAD time. As Tammy says, " Don't worry about catching up. The important thing is to start."

Mine are doing double duty as my 365 project creative pieces AND ICAD pieces - here I go:

ICAD 1, 2