Rust, Bleach, Burn, and Stain

 Over Labor Day weekend I took my last Morgan workshop of the season. It was a two day class taught by artist Clare Murray Adams, who instructed the class on using rusting, bleaching, burning, and staining as a means to mark-making. The nice thing about the workshop was how accessible and common all of the materials we used were, and how easily the techniques Clare taught us were applied. I madly experimented during the two days the workshop took place, and went home with a ton of samples and so many new ideas.

This was actually the perfect workshop to take right now because I just started a surface design class this semester with Rebecca Cross. We're mainly learning fabric dyeing techniques, but the things I learned in Clare's workshop can be applied to the work I'm doing in school, and I look forward to exploring the similarities and differences between paper and fabric as I further explore surface design.

Time Off

I had some days off this past weekend, Friday and Saturday, which were my first days off in five weeks. My first instinct was to stay home in my pajamas and lie around on the couch the whole time, but I ventured out instead.

I headed out to 78th Street Studios to check out some local art on Friday night. There were lots of great pieces there and I bumped into some friends and got to catch up with them. After that I went to the movies to see Monuments Men. The movie was entertaining, if a little cheesy at some points. Nevertheless, I enjoyed myself and stuffed my face with massive amounts of popcorn.

Mansfield Art Center

I slept in on Saturday morning and then grabbed some lunch at the West Side Market before heading out to Mansfield to see Rebecca Cross' show at the Mansfield Art Center. The show, called 'Liaisons' is a two-woman show, with Rebecca's pieces hanging alongside of painter Annette Poitau's canvases. Rebecca's pieces were amazing, as usual, and they looked good with Annette's paintings. It was nice to see them in such a great, open space.

Sunday it was back to business as usual and I don't anticipate any more time off until the end of March, when I'll have a brief respite for Spring break. While I'm grateful for the time off, sometimes I think I'm better off without a break. The more time off I have, the more I want. I guess I'll just have to keep going...

A Rebecca Cross piece from the Mansfield show 'Liaisons'