Neck and Nest

Neck and Nest 20x54 / ©St. Hilaire Nelson (click to enlarge)

This piece is the first of the Preparing for the Flood Series, a whimsical take on my Noah's Ark Series from a few years ago. Preparing for the Flood was inspired by the fish prints that I received from Chuck Seaman, and artist I met in Key West, FL two years ago. Chuck provided me with his cast-aways and experimental fish prints, the ones he cannot keep for perfect. 

Learn more about Chuck and his Gyotaku prints here

The Sketch on wood panel, in my studio (click to enlarge)

I start each collage with a sketch in pencil on my wood panel. 

I have been really enjoying the challenge of working oversized lately. For this series I will have to create all pretty large pieces because the fish prints are from ocean fish, and they are BIG. I do have another artist I work with who provides smaller, fresh water fish as well, but I'm out of stock. Do you hear that Raejean? :)

Sketch and gesso background effect (click to enlarge)

I prime my wood with a variety of acrylic gesso.

On this piece I primed with a combination of clear, white, and black gesso. in the background of the giraffe, I used multiple layers of white gesso to build up a texture than I then glazed over with multiple yellow and gold translucent paint layers. 

The completed underpainting (click to enlarge)

I under-paint with acrylic paints

I paint in an under-painting for my collage to be glued on top of, this painting serves as a road map for where I am going, what colors I am using, and what values give the illusion of volume in the piece. Here I have applied the Gyotaku prints along the bottom and have added effects with the paint to make them appear in the water rather than on top.

Detail of collage application on the nest (click to enlarge)

I collage on top with a variety of hand-painted papers.

I hand-paint all of my own collage papers, utilizing hand carved stamps, splattering, texture rubbing, dry brushing, layering, etc. The more layers of texture on the paper, the better. This part of the process is the most relaxing and therapeutic, I could paint papers all day long. 

Detail of collage application on the giraffe (click to enlarge)

A picture tells a thousand words, this detail (click to soon) is really what the collage is all about. The wide variety of colors, textures and patterns is due to my inventory of hand-painted papers. I love using handwriting in my work. 

Click here to learn more about writing me a letter to be used in my work!

See the Facebook album of all the in-progress photos here

thank you

for being a part of my 

Art Journey,

Elizabeth

Christmas in July!

Christmas Ornament Cards

The holidays are coming like a freight train, you officially have LESS thank six months to prepare.
Order your glossy A2 note cards with envelopes. Each set is boxed and contains 10 cards.

Get them while they are hot, I have limited quantities!

Flower Note Cards NEW!

My NEW note cards have arrived and they look GREAT! I could not be happier with the color and quality of the printing. These are glossy A2 note cards with envelopes. Each set contains two each of five images. Get them while they are hot, I have limited quantities!

Huxley, The Therapy Cat

The computer composite sketch that I worked from

My latest commissioned piece is very special. First off, because it's a secret Christmas gift, so if you know this person, sssshhhhh. And secondly, because it's just an amazing use of personal ephemera.

I met Nanette in my Atlanta collage workshop, where she attended the weekend class with her good friend Susan. Susan found me online and purchased an original by me as well as some prints. (Thank you, Susan) and she decided to meet me in Atlanta.

At the workshop, Susan and Nanette sat right up front, they were excellent students and really enjoyed their time together. On Sunday, Nanette asked me if she could commission me to collage a very special cat. Her son Zane had a Maine Coon cat that was very special to the family.

A "Maine Coon" what is that? Well I did a little digging and found out that they are the largest domestic cat (up to 30 lbs) and are quite interesting looking, with their pointed whispy ears and toes!

the original photo with background removed, he needed some fun color to make him more lighthearted

Nanette was super happy with the computer composite, so I moved forward in the process. The first step was to take all the personal ephemera she sent me (including original hospital bands for both her and baby), and to stain it with fluid acrylic paints. 

part sketch, part underpainting, on the easel

painting the personal papers Nanette sent from Zane's childhood

In my class, I talk about using the originals of things. The original birth certificate, the original hospital bracelet, the original pediatricians bill, the original report cards. This makes the finished collage extra special, and it gives you an opportunity to enjoy and appreciate these things every day as art, vs. once in a blue moon from that box under your bed. 

the completed underpainting, what I collage over the top of-- 20x30

I created a Facebook Album with all the images along the way of this piece for Nanette to view and to share with her friends and family. She was thrilled to be able to watch it come together. (You do not need a Facebook account to visit this album)

personal ephemera was included in both the background color fields and the body of the cat

paper whiskers, finishing touches

Now that the piece is finished (the finishing touches were adding the paper whiskers) Nanette says that she can't wait for Christmas to give this very special gift to her son. 

Thanks for supporting a working artist Nanette! Thanks for trusting me with your keepsakes. Thanks for meeting me in Atlanta and spending your weekend taking my class.

Finished, headed to varnish table, check back to Facebook for professional images of the finished piece

And thank YOU for being a part of my 

Art Journey

Elizabeth

The Permanent Art of Tattoo

Yours Truly and My Annie, London, UK, 1990

Annie and Yours Truly, 23 years later, Orlando, FL this week (that's one old hat!)

Personal Connections

If you have ever watched that show America's Worst Tattoos on TLC, you already know that if your ink is bad, tired, or if you find yourself with your X's name emblazoned on your chest, you can always get NEW ink to cover it up. And what's more fun than new ink?

I worked and lived in London for six months on a work permit in 1990. Upon arrival, all the students from BUNAC were looking for jobs and housing together. I had arrived from the great state of Massachusetts, and Annie had come from California. We got to know each other, ended up living together, and both secured jobs as chamber maids cleaning hotel rooms. Annie was supposed to live-in at her hotel, but the conditions were kind of cramped, so she stayed on my floor for months. We couldn't have been happier. 

One thing Annie and I realized early-on, was that despite her being born and raised in CA and me from MA, her father was originally from Boston. Not just any part of Boston, but from the very same neighborhood where my father grew up. Annie's Dad graduated high school with my Uncle Jim, the same high school my father attended. AND Annie's grandparents had a small market "Papplardo's Market" where my Nana used to send my Dad for break and milk. No kidding. This ink was Kismet!

Art Nouveau peafowl image 

To Get Inked or Not to Get Inked

By the time I met Annie, I already had my first tattoo, it was a peacock on my right shoulder. A lot of thought process and consideration went into my first ink. My favorite period of Art History is Art Nouveau, I love all the organic lines, swirling woman's hair, and curled tail feathers of exotic birds. The peacock was a recurring theme in the Art Nouveau style. My first tattoo was very special to me, I designed it and I was proud of it. 

At some point Annie, my roommate Dave, and I decided to commemorate our time in London, our friendship, and our experience living and working in a foreign land, by getting tattooed together. All three of us would get the same artwork, in the same place. That was the plan.

By the time the three of us made it to Marc Saint's Tattoo Studio on Portobello Road in London, Big Dave had chickened out––all 6-foot Ohio State rugby player of him! Annie and I were on our own in making this permanent artwork not only part of our bodies, but our hearts and souls.

Annie and the Man who chickened out

Marc Saints Tattoo Studio, with a name like Saint, how could we go wrong?

The art we decided to have permanently inked on us was drawn by Yours Truly. It was simple black line art (we were, after all, broke), a graphic dove outline with a peace sign in the middle. We were listening to a lot of The The's 1989 album "Mind Bomb" in our little flat those days, and I have to say that I think the back cover art kind of influenced our creativity. 

The back cover art from The The's "Mind Bomb" 

To Cover up or Embellish?

Annie and I had first played with the idea of adding to our tattoo when I went to visit her in CA this April. We loved that fact that 23-years later, we still had the story of that tattoo, to bring back so many wonderful memories of our time together. Any time in my life when someone asked me about that dove tattoo, I got to relive some pretty great stories. 

one of my initial sketches for adding to the existing art

After some discussion, Annie and I decided that the dove had lived a long 23-years and had probably run its course. We thought we'd cover it up with something more delicate and beautiful, all the while knowing that it would always be underneath. We were going to add to the art and the Story of Us. She would be in Florida in the months to come on business.

The Art of Tattoo Cover Up

I had to have my original peacock art covered up. That original ink from my senior year in college had faded and blurred and really was hard to discern. As much as I wanted to be a purist and keep it, I knew that I could not continue to answer the question "what is it?"

My sister, ever honest, pointed this out to me: "If anyone does the math on how OLD you have to be to get tattooed in the first place, and how LONG it takes for ink to get really worn down, is really going to get the idea how OLD you (we? she has inked art too) really are!" You need to get that re-done. 

And there it was.

I found an artist who was known for his cover up work here in Orlando, I interviewed him, I made an appointment, and I had him cover up my very first tattoo with new peacock art.

Rick Johnson of Orlando Brothers Tattoo is an artist, not only does he sketch out ideas for you by hand, but he's a great draftsman and very talented with the needle. Rick told me that he could always draw, he had that talent since he was young. It was his brother who first started tattooing in Daytona Beach, FL and taught him how to translate his artwork from paper to skin with the gun. 

"In those days I was a roofer, in Florida. That was a nasty job, hot, dirty and lots of hours." he said, "When my brother showed me how much better I could do in Daytona at bike week in his shop, I was hooked."

what is it? 

The master of cover up at work

um yeah, it hurts. 

Last Summer

Last Summer I got inked with my Dad, He wanted to honor his parents and he wanted to do it with me. He came to visit from MA and we went to see Rick. My Dad's birthday was what we were celebrating, so I decided to have tattoo art on my right ankle in honor of someone very special to me too. 

Dad and I had a great time that afternoon, laughing and talking about his old Navy tattoo and my peacock cover-up artwork from the summer before. I bought my Dad's ink for him, I told him it was my birthday gift to him. I gave Al a gift he will have forever, not only the tattoo, but the experience. He will always be able to tell the story of how the art honors his parents, how his daughter bought if for his birthday, and how we both got tattoos together that day. That's sentimental.

My Dad down from MA, Rick Johnson, Yours Truly

My Dad got art and ink in memory of his parents. My Grandpa was French Canadian and my Nana was Irish.

I got a pink rose, the flower that was planted in Lockerbie in memory of my friend Suzanne 25-years ago when she died in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. A little Art Nouveau flare in my design.

This Week

Annie and I made our way to Rick's new space on Lee Road in Orlando. On the way there, we still had not worked out a good sketch. We had faith in each other and in Rick that we would come up with an idea. Since I had suggested and drawn the Dove art back in 1990, I was really glad when Annie came up with the idea of cherry blossoms as our art. "Think about it" she said, "they are short lived, beautiful blooms. For the Japanese the represent the frailty and fragility of life. World War II pilots had them painted on their planes."  And there it was. 

Rick quickly sketched out this cherry blossom shape to not only with perfect petals to envelope the Dove, but also to represent. He listened closely to our story, and he took it all into account before he went to sketch. 

"Two blooms, for two friends, " he said "and one blossom to represent new life, future experiences together." It was perfect. 

Rick Johnson's sketch for our cover-up work

Annie and Yours Truly have added a chapter to the Story of Us

From the Heart

Tattoos are artwork that you can take with you everywhere you go. When someone asks you about your ink, you can smile and remember a story, a loved one, an experience. This artwork is always with you, it's a part of you. Whether you get tattooed with your friend from college for the first time ever, with someone you met in a far away land who became one of the best friends you've ever had, your beloved father, or even your fun loving sister (yeah, she's coming next month! but she's going to Rick with my moral support only). It's art that evokes memories.

Annie put it really well that afternoon at Orlando Brothers Tattoo. She said, "For me it's about the experience and the underlying meaning of the image we choose. I am not an artist, so I cannot make a drawing, or art direct the design, I put that in the capable hands of the tattoo artist. I'll always have a very special place in my heart for the connections we have to each other, to the Peace Dove and to the idea that you have to cherish every moment you have in life, because the bloom of the Cherry Blossom is short." 

And we looked at the flowers and agreed, "it's so pretty!"

Thank you for being a part of my Art Journey,

Elizabeth

Unplugged and Engaged

My first shot, I asked him if I could take his pic and he smiled and said "sure." Then I was inspired

Today I ran 9 miles of the Atlantic City Boardwalk. When I am running, biking, or swimming, my mind wanders creatively and often times artistic ideas come to me. This morning, about five miles in, I had an idea. 

What would it be like to take a series of portraits of these interesting people I was passing by on the boardwalk? Not just snapping them from a distance, or when they were not looking, but engaging them, talking to them, asking them to pose for a portrait and look into the lens of a stranger on the boardwalk.

Setting up tables for the day, She was more than happy to pose

Sure, you can shoot a person from across the street with a big lens, but this is up close and personal. This morning I was shooting with an iPhone from three feet away, engaging strangers in conversation. Maybe I'll paint them, maybe I'll just keep them and enjoy them as photos. Whatever I end up doing with them, it was a great social experiment to see what folks would say when you ran up to them and asked them out of the blue to say cheese!

So often we are "plugged in" and don't notice the amazing and individual people around us. We used to be more engaged, chatting with folks in line at the post office, commenting on a hairstyle we liked on the check-out girl, waving to our neighbors in traffic. These days, everyone has their headphones in, their blue-tooth on, and their smart phone out. I wondered if it would startle people to have someone come up and talk to them instead of bump into them while text-walking. The responses I got made my morning, even the people who so graciously declined my request. 

Interacting with people on a personal level, running with the sun on my shoulders and a smile on my face, what a great way to start the day.

Some folks were more confident in with a partner, these guys were great

Most folks said yes. Some folks look bewildered, said nothing, but looked into the lens. Some folks said no, mostly women who I assumed felt that they did not look good enough to pose for a photo at 8 am. Thank you to everyone who said yes and spent a minute or more of their time talking to me this morning. 

"Why?" he asked. "Because you look pretty cool." I replied

To see the entire group of Boardwalk Portraits, please visit my Facebook Page Album.

Thanks for being a part of my art journey, 

Elizabeth

Asheville' NC's River Arts District

Cotton Mill Studios

Every city I visit to teach, I like to check out the local art. I love seeing new work and what other artists are working on. This weekend I spent some time at the River Arts District. 

Emilie and I took in several galleries, spent some time with Jane and Connie, some good friends, and had White Duck Tacos for lunch. The nice thing about RAD is that you are touring working artists studios, so you get the chance to meet the artist and talk to them about their work. It's a wonderful way to connect with the person who's created the work.

Honey Pots just of the wheel by Eileen

Big Thanks to my friend Constance who introduced us to the Eileen and Marty at The Potters Mark. We got a tour of the studio where the magic happens, and even got to peek inside the kiln at some wonderful red glazed pottery that was cooling.

Eileen at the wheel

Julia Fosson was nice enough to take the time to show us how the encaustic process works in her studio which is just above the White Duck Taco in the Hatchery Building. Her space is so light and bright with her wonderful works on the walls, it was just very inviting.

Julia showing us how to melt wax with a blow torch

Julia's pots of encaustic color

We also appreciated Akira Satake Ceramics while in the Cotton Mill. Akira Satake was born in Osaka, Japan, his pottery is fired in both a wood-fired kin and a gas kiln for different effects and finishes on his work. I really enjoyed the rough natural shapes of his wood-fired work. 

Akira Satake pottery

Yuzu Patisserie is where we enjoyed the view of the pottery and the taste of homemade popsicles

Jane, Connie, Emilie, and Yours Truly enjoyed our popsicles and our texture rubbing. I have learned to travel with rice paper and crayons in my purse, so I was prepared for some of the brick work at the RAD. These rubbings I took back to class and painted on Friday. 

rubbing with crayons on textured bricks

White Duck Taco offered some amazing tacos and great local beer. We stopped to refuel before moving on to more working artist studios. I had the fish tacos and oh boy were they good!

We stopped in on Brad Stroman, who's thick gessoed backgrounds really intrigued me. We talked about fluid acrylic vs. full bodied colors and I told him he would probably LOVE my favorite fluids for the technique he was doing. He inquired about my work and said he'd come to the opening reception. It was great to see him and his wife on Saturday night at my show! "I told you I would come," he said as he introduced me to his wife. Thank you Brad!

Brad Stroman

And now I must share with you the absolute BEST work I saw all day! Daniel McClendon's animal paintings. Wow. After speaking with Daniel about being classically trained artist with a BFA that focused on realism, we both agreed on how much effort it took to loosen up and move toward a less structured style of work. Daniel and his wife were so nice to tell us about how they remodeled their 5,000 sq. ft. gallery and studio space called the Lift Studios, such a stunning space. 

As it turns out Daniel graduated from Western Michigan University and hung his work in Grand Rapids as part of Art Prize last year, as did I. I was lucky enough to see his Art Prize work at the studio which was entitled "Herd" and was a multi panel piece depicting a large moving group of animals.

Daniel's work is dynamic and exciting, it's got a movement and spontaneity about it which I love. When I viewed his work I wanted to head into my studio and be more loose! Gallery hopping always inspires me, but studio visits are 10x even more inspiring!

Tuna, I loved the fact that the multi panel approach was not symmetrical

Turtle, I really was admiring how he scratched through the  paint to draw the face and how each leg is handled in a different manner. 

I was totally inspired to be more loose with my backgrounds when I looked at these animal paintings. I loved that you could see the white gesso ground and the black splattered under painting pattern showing through into the final work. So much splatter and fast-paced brushwork that the animals seem to be moving right off the wood panel.

If you have a minute to check out his work and his website, or his Facebook Page. I think you might just see why stopping at The Lift Studios was awesome. How did we happen to go in? Emilie looked at a piece in the window and said "Wow, that's disturbing." It was a wide open mouth full of teeth, growling at us. "What?!" I exclaimed, "We have to check it out." 

After touring The Lift, Emilie agreed that it was her favorite stop of the day too. 

Thank you for being a part of my art journey.

Elizabeth