Paper mache

Tags

art, crafts, creativity, figurine, papermache, Sculpture

While I’m not done debating what to tell you first from my accidental blogging hiatus, I can see I wrote something last summer about the Alebrijes class I took. Alebrijes are specifically Mexican mythical creatures and I’m not really staying within the confines of that, but the technique I initially worked on comes from that tradition.

So why not round that off by creating a mini exhibition of my first pieces. I’m still working on the subject in fits and starts, multiple ideas on the back burner; but this summer was quite warm aka the past dries too fast and goes mouldy + we had people looking in the windows which I’m not super fond of I must admit. Most of these figures have already been aired on Instagram, so please excuse me if this is a recap for you.

I’m calling my entire collection of paper sculptures “Heart of Stone, Feet of Clay” because I weigh them down with either a rock in the belly (Found locally on my walks or on the property) or clay/plaster at the bottom, so you can put them anywhere and not have them topple by a gust of wind.

The topic of the class was “Does it fly?” and I latched on to the “?”

Next I felt like doing something with my empty weaving cones to reflect my interest in upcycling, and to keep it related, the Weaving C(r)ones were born, each with a name and a little story. Two of these have since relocated to England, but the rest are up for grabs should you fall in love. 😉

Staying within the confines of the cone base, I took to experimenting with faces, and created a bunch of gawky geezers. I’m not going to show you today however, because I had a bit of a brain fart and entered them in a juried art exhibition. But I promise a later installment of this post with more characters.

I want to work on more faces + animals, but I think perhaps I need to let loose and not make the cones compulsory – I have plenty though, so they may appear in another series at some point. There’s a horsey set that has been almost but not quite done for some time, so they are up next! I’ve been struggling with painting horses as well, while intending to for years, but I get thrown by my poor drawing skills. Abstractifying something like that AND make it look good takes skill too.

In my next papermache post I’ll talk a little about materials that I use, if anyone is interested in that!

Alebrijes

Tags

alebrije, crafts, creativity, inspiration, papier maché, papir, playdate, Sculpture

I’ve been asked to begin blogging again, but all the fiber stuff has been dormant (I put up some old handspun for sale and then forgot to tell anybody…) as I’ve focused on painting, which isn’t our usual focus here, so I’ve been reluctant to share. Today however I’ll tell you about another rabbit hole I fell into.

I joined an online school/community here in DK that feature a lot of different classes, and this month is something I never thought I’d be interested in: sculpture. More specifically the technique for making Mexican mythical beasts “alebrijes“. But the course was so well presented that I found myself rearing to go and full of ideas. Too many ideas in fact, that after just a couple of days into the project I’m beginning to wonder what to do with them when they’re done – I can’t imagine dusting off 20-30 figurines around the house, not to mention picking them off the floor constantly when the rowdy bunch have been through. (aka cats) Seems a shame to just fill up the hay loft with boxes, don’t you think?

The process is very simple, like something you might do in elementary school, except you begin with a wire frame/skeleton instead of using pulp. This adds stability, and I hope durability too. It’s a bit like going back to 3D computer graphics as well, where you also coat a mesh like these with a virtual surface.

I ran into a migraine weekend the second day, so instead of making one sculpture from start to finish I’ve decided to make a bunch of frames, then begin adding the paper-maché, since the glue is made from flour and goes bad after a few days. I’m also experimenting wildly with balance, because a challenge only makes it more fun, right?

The theme of the course is A: begin with a sphere, and B: “does it fly?” I’ve been taking the title quite seriously but focus on the “?”, such as a bull with tiny little wings and goats with propellers…. There’s also a turtle with balloons on the drawing board – they just keep lining up for my attention.

I’ve been wanting to get figures into my paintings, so I’n curious whether these sculptures will be a way in for more stories rather than just abstract or empty landscapes, as it often happens for me with cross polination between different crafts.

Hopefully by next week I can show you the coated figures, then I will paint them all together. Possibly there will be art yarn tails included, or is that a bit twee, what do you think?

Sculptures by Else Frøsig, teacher of the class

 

Paraphernalia

Tags

crafts, creativity, DIY, inspiration, papermaking, tools

Didn’t get ready today to show you a full version of my pigment experiment as planned, as I’ve had other things to attend to. So I thought I’d show you my latest finding, a book press which I thought could help me get water out of new paper sheets, rather than stacking cinderblocks on the floor. One way of tackling multiple projects could be doing so as efficiently as possible!

Constant focus change

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art, creativity, determination, inspiration, intention, procrastination, reading, res

Wax on Wood

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Last week I mentioned the absurdity of a health challenged person embarking on time consuming physical tasks such as gathering natural malerials, making paper, prepping and studying new branches of the art tree, and it surprised me that nobody mentioned “productive procrastination” aka Resistance. (dah-dah-DAAAAA)

Micro foraging for art supplies

Tags

close to home, country life, creativity, inner conviction, inspiration, intention, life, seasons, summer, weather

It hasn’t rained here in 3 months and has been unusually hot too, so most blooming things are over and done with if they have even survived. I’m glad I didn’t make a dye garden this year, as the cost of watering would have been massive.

Summer briefing

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blogging, country life, crafts, creativity, exercise, fatigue, garden, gardening, health, intention, life, summer, weather, weight loss

While I’m cooking up that promised weaving post, I’m going to drag you through a bit of a general status update of life at the cottage.

Loosen up your painting style

Tags

creativity, inspiration, link love, relax, video

New class by Tara Leaver – check it out if you want to get more playful with your art.

I’ve participated in another of her courses and keep returning for inspiration, as you have unlimited access once you buy it. The Charcoal class is on my list too! Well, right now I’m just waffling through life, but eventually I hope/expect to find a way back to myself and the studio.

WIP Wednesday 2

Tags

colour, creativity, studio

If you’re watching this is some blog reader – please click through to the original post to see images etc! 🙂

https://piapaints.wordpress.com/2018/02/28/wip-wednesday-2/

Whazzup?

Tags

art, creativity, health, intention, knitting, Painting, relax, seasons, video, weather, winter

Hey there. Once again my sincere apologies for lack of content – I do in fact have some linky things lined up, but thought it would be nicer to spread them out a little in between actual posts.

Is anybody out there?

Tags

blogging, creativity, life, winter

…or are you all too busy preparing for the holidays to visit Blogland? As for me I think I’ve got my back under control once more, my sleep cycle has readjusted to waking up at 6 without an alarm. Now I just have to shed the habit of dillydallying about and use my time more efficiently while I have it. No cookie baking or hanging of ornaments, I just want to do my thing.