Cay Denise

I'm reading Mary Oliver's 'A Poetry Handbook'.  As part of doing so, marginalia (making notes in the margin) is a practice by some readers that I'm finding very helpful.  There are many new-to-me words that definitions on the same page are very useful to have (e.g. prosody, enjambment).  Then there is her chapter about metrical lines that is a whole new world to me, although master poets and/or writers may view it as common knowledge.  Using marginalia is also providing me the opportunity to make related observations based on my experience as a former musician.   In music, a learner is taught that there is a specific number of beats in each measure based on a time signature.  That is what I find resonating for me as I read about the metrical line of prose that Ms. Oliver writes about.  She presents a very nice legend of metrical lines in poetry (five-foot, four-foot, three-foot, etc.), their names (pentameter, tetrameter, trimeter, respectively and etc.), and how ea

Have you ever been asked or asked yourself a question that you answered through the creation of a piece of art, sculpture, poem, story, song or other creative form? In a recent post, Nick Cave wrote this about Joy (Post #299) and closed with a question: "I have a full life.  A privileged life.  An unendangered life.  But sometimes the simple joys escape me.  Joy is not always a feeling that is freely bestowed upon us, often it is something we must actively seek.  In a way, joy is a decision, an action, even a practised method of being.  It is an earned thing brought into focus by what we have lost -- at least, it can seem that way.   My question is, where or how do you find your joy?" His question is one I found powerful and important to answer for myself.  However, even before I started my exploration, Nick had received over 2,000 replies with a range of answers.      In reading through many of those (that he posted on his site), there were far more answers to the 'where

Creating zines is one of my ways of 'stealing' a great idea...from Austin Kleon, author of the book titled 'Steal Like an Artist'.  As he would say, imitation is flattery, and I certainly got the zine bug from him (that he, in turn, got from someone else)! Those pictured below are examples of the zines I've made from white copy paper...yes, the kind you buy in reams at the office supply store.  Some are theme-related (e.g. 5 Senses, Reconnection), others are book notes (e.g. about Jo Van-Gogh Bonger and her role in Vincent's rise to art fame), still others are inward-looking (The Wintering of Seeds, Goals, etc.).  The sky's the limit.  They can be anything you can imagine!   I really enjoy making zines including the internet research I may do about particular subjects.  But zines don't have to take long to make, and absolutely no research is needed to create one.  Plus they make clever gifts for holidays or as thoughtful messages of 'I'm thinking

A dear couple to me recently held a weekend filled with fun events and great food for their friends -- to celebrate a combined birthday and anniversary with them.  I was privileged to be among those who attended the delightful weekend! To reminisce after returning home, I cut out letters and phrases from two magazines (Tate etc. and Oprah Daily) to create this word collage as a memento of our wonderful and joyful times.  

A recent article from a Tate Etc. publication introduced me to an artist that I really like -- unknonwn to me before.  She is Beatriz Milhazes from Brazil.  Currently, there is a retrospective of her work on display at the Tate St. Ives  museum located in Porthmeor Beach, St. Ives, Cornwall, Great Britain -- through September 29th.   The Exhibition Guide (at the link below) has some other wonderful examples of Ms. Milhazes' portfolio.  It reminds me of the work of American graphic designer/collage artist Rex Ray.  Both have approached their art using geometric forms, bright colors, and have included collage elements as part of their creations. https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-st-ives/beatriz-milhazes-maresias Ms. Milhazes is also on Instagram where you can see many more works including this modern/abstract stained glass window done for Turner Contemporary's Sunley Gallery window. Here is her Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cs3g32iOxN8/

It's that time of year for the Studio Art Quilt Associates' (SAQA) benefit auction!  This is an auction of art quilts made by SAQA members that are 12" x 12" in size.   As part of the auction, viewers of the quilts can create their own Dream Collection (favorites or selections based on a theme of interest).  If you would like to create one, go to the website below, look through the art quilts while recording the titles of those you like best along with the artist.  There is a form to complete, and you'll need the title to search for your selections.  In a few cases, the artist name may be helpful, since multiple pieces can have the same or similar name. Bidding for the quilts begins September 13th and runs through October 6th, and there will be more than 440 art quilts to choose from.  More information is available at the link below. Studio Art Quilt Associates - 2024 Benefit Auction Here is my Dream Collection (4 design-related and 4 texture-related favorites).  

This is a photo of six, two-page spreads in a Concertina sketchbook that I just finished.  The actual size is about 6.5" high by 36" wide.  The lovely Concertina sketchbook is a product of Seawhite, a U.K. company.  It can easily be worked on both sides.  The two-page spreads were colored in with Sharpie markers plus Posca, Sakura PenTouch and Micron pens.  My only intention was to have continuity from one spread to the next.  Overall, it definitely changes in 'feel' when looking from left to right.  That includes the shapes (from sharp to rounded), the design (more free further right), color palette (from warmer to cooler colors) and busyness.   Each spread took me about 4 hours.  The next step is to finish the other side - which will take some time especially if the work is as detailed.  Question:  Do you use your visual art as a prompt for writing?   I'm thinking of looking at this as if it were a scroll and for the story it could inspire or tell.

This book is about the flourishing of an artist who started the art oeuvre she is known for -- at age 72 -- and continued this work for nearly a decade.  She lived in the 1700s, was born into a fairly well-to-do family, was raised/trained in propriety and the social graces (for a potential court position), had a friend in Handel (yes, the composer) and in a Duchess, and would eventually befriend a King and Queen in her elder years.   The writing is well done.  That said, the author includes personal reflections at the end of each chapter about how the botanical image chosen to start each chapter and/or the narrative -- triggers certain recall of her life experiences that she believes are similar or relate in some way.  That part of each chapter could have been eliminated, in my estimation, without affecting the overall biographical portrait of her subject. That said, of the 14 chapters in this book -- I loved #1, #12, #13 and #14.  You may notice that this means there was a large porti

If you don't know what a Concertina Sketchbook is, it is folded paper (back and forth) that looks like the bellows of an accordion when done.  Concertinas can be home-made or purchased, and they are fun to work in.     The photos above are of three continuous two-page spreads from my own Concertina (the one on the right - the latest). The mark-making was done with Sharpie markers, Posca pens, Micron pens and Sakura PenTouch markers.   All the shapes and color choices in the images above were spontaneous as well as the details.  There was no plan.  What I like about these is that each two-page spread collaborates with the next one and so on (as the designs spill over from one spread to the next). As new ones are created, they  add to the wonderful visual feast. One of the things I love doing with these also -- is to crop sections and digitally mirror them to form symmetrical designs. The results are occasionally delightful.  In fact, this one was made from such a process and has a n

In a recent weekly message from Austin Kleon, he mentioned doing 100 days of blind contours in a zine format.  This week I've finished a second sketchbook of blind contours - for a total of 182 images between them.  Riffing on Austin's idea, I created a zine with eight (8) selected blind contours labeling each with a term that, to me, conveys the expression captured.  As you look at the images in the zine below, would you describe any of them differently?   

When you make lines with a pen...you're committed, as they say.  Pen is the medium I chose for a recent drawing from a reference photo.   In the first version of the photo of a sculpture (below), the image was outlined with pen, the features/details were done with pen, and the shading was done with pencil (using 120 lb. Sketchbook paper).  Overall, I'm very happy with the body.  That said, the drawing of the face/hair is underwhelming.  The actual sculpture's face is looking upward with the viewer seemingly looking up to it.  It also has a slight tilt and the eyes look upward toward the baton.  This first face definitely doesn't convey any of those things in its expression.   Taking a sheet of copy paper, I traced the outline of the face and hair above, and then did another version (see below).  You can see there is some improvement -- in that the eyes are looking upward though the tilt and general sense of the face shape are skewed. Meriting another try, I again used c

This is such a charming book -- from the set-up introductory page to the three steps at the end! It is meant for young readers, but I think there is a lot to be said in recommending it for creatives young and older alike.  It is inventive, upbeat, clever and has a good message about rising above one's fears.

In this day and age -- of social media, AI, boundaries (that seem to be indiscriminately pushed), people who don't seem to know right from wrong/respect from disrespect, people who don't regard others' authorship/ownership (of material, products, services, and information, etc. posted online) -- understanding privacy settings and using them appropriately in the digital environment are vital.  I just learned quite a lesson. Earlier in the year, I had a consultation with an artist I respect for his/her retail and design talents.   Our dialogue was captured on video by the consultant to share with me privately via YouTube.  The uploaded video had a privacy setting of 'Private'.  This setting prevents accessing a video through the platform except for those the owner invites/designates.  Unfortunately, I couldn't access it at the 'Private' setting, so the setting was changed to 'Unlisted'.  This setting did allow me to access the video, but little di

Using plastic shape stencils, the top image is my interpretation of a stained glass window panel photographed while recently traveling.   To begin, the design had to be adjusted because of the paper size used (5.5" x 8.5").  You can see this in comparing the two photos (bottom is the actual panel photograph).  In terms of 'essence', they ailgn very well in color, shape and elements.   This is a Sharpie painting and took hours to complete.  It has touches of Posca Pen and Sakura PenTouch for decoration.  The paper used was white cardstock that has been fully covered with color.

Update :  I've finished reading the book now as well.  It was a lengthy and interesting read.  There were times when I felt like a ping pong ball due to section topics where events included those that were in earlier, and sometimes unrelated, sections.  It made envisioning the timeline challenging.  The bibliography is excellent and takes more than 100 pages of the book.  That said, I learned a lot!  It makes my recent visit to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam all the richer knowing more of the family's background and understanding just how vital a force Jo van Gogh-Bonger was in creating the level of appreciation for Vincent's work that is renown today -- across the globe.  Original Post : The zine is done, but not the book.  I'm halfway through it and expect to have many more notes. So I've started writing on the back of this single sheet of paper used to create the zine.  It's already a treasure trove of key points about her life through the point of Vincent&

Seeing new sites and experiencing new places, customs, languages, and events can all trigger inspiration for creatives regardless of the creative discipline.   While abroad recently, my plan was to sketch and draw a great deal more than what I did...which ended up being almost nil.  Instead, I took lots of photos to capture the local life, tourist attractions visited, and charming scenery discovered.  After returning and downloading hundreds of photos, I've started sketching and drawing images inspired by some of them.   In the work below, my intention has been to capture a scene.  Accuracy isn't a priority....capturing the essence is. Sometimes, the more fluid and/or less accurate or wonky a drawing is...can lead to more whimsical and delightful pieces.  FYI - A blind contour, of which there are three below, is done by only looking at the subject--not the paper you're drawing on or while one is drawing.  As much as possible, the pen should never leave the paper until the a

Her name is Jo van Gogh-Bonger.  She was the wife of Theo van Gogh and sister-in-law to his brother, Vincent van Gogh--the artist. I saw a book about Jo while recently visiting the Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam, The Netherlands).  It is nearly 2" thick, quite heavy and contains 535 pages of which 171 are a combination of notes/footnotes, abbreviations, bibliography and an index.  The book itself is written in six sections.  The first section is about Jo's life to the point when she marries Theo.  That is as far as I've gotten.   What I'm looking forward to reading in the remaining sections is how she grew into the ambitious, determined and undeterred advocate of Vincent's art after his and Theo's deaths, especially since she was left to raise a son on her own.   Below is the book's cover with Jo's photograph.  As part of reading it, I've started a zine to act like SparksNotes to keep track of the key points to me about her journey.  Below the book cove

Since late March, I've been planning an international solo trip that included meeting up with friends.   The planning is what makes a trip an adventure, and it was definitely fabulous -- now that it is in the rearview mirror -- so to speak.   During my two weeks abroad, the sights visited included the: Mauritshuis, a lovely art museum (The Hague, Netherlands) Binnenhof (The Hague, Netherlands) Delft (Netherlands) Kasteel de Haar, a castle (Haarzuilens, Netherlands) Museum Speelklok (Utrecht, Netherlands) Walking Tour of Amsterdam (Netherlands) Rijksmuseum (Amsterdam, Netherlands) Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam, Netherlands) Dutch Resistance Museum (Amsterdam, Netherlands) De Oude and Nieuwe Kerks aka old and new churches (Amsterdam, Netherlands) Anne Frank House (Amsterdam, Netherlands) Sainte Chapelle/Conciergerie (Paris, France) Giverny - Monet's residence at one time (outside Paris) Versailles (outside Paris) Musee d'Orsay/VR Event titled 1874 Impressionists First Exhibition

Over the years, I've loved the artistic, creative, and magical shows of Cirque du Soleil that feature such talented and skilled performers.  If you've seen one of the company's shows, you understand. The troupe, originally under the leadership of Guy Laliberté and Gilles Ste-Croix, got its start when hired by the Quebec government (for a series of celebration performances) in which its first show was created and performed in 1984. Within two years, the troupe was performing for international audiences.  Laliberté remained involved financially until about 2015 when he sold a major stake in the company to an investment firm.  From there, company leadership focused on media acquisitions and expanding Cirque's shows portfolio--that focused on growth. In February 2020, as the pandemic was raging, Laliberté sold his remaining minority stake.  That March, the company cut 4,700 employees and 44 shows because of a drop in revenues to near $0 due to Covid-19.  Highly indebted, fr

Do you ever have the experience of a project (or many of them) that seem to come up and distract you from your habit or intention of art-making? That has been the last month for me.  Rather than give up because of a lack of time and focus, I've shaken things up.  My interim way of working has been to do at least three blind contour drawings (5 minutes each) daily to the extent possible. I now have one full sketchbook with 100 blind contour drawings and I've just started a second.  What I like most about doing them is the freedom to be imperfect.  For example, the eyes may be outside the face shape, or the face is too thin or too squat.  Even as these kinds of things happen, my interest is whether the sketch captures an essence of the source image.  When looking at the sketches, I make notes about what I like and dislike.  Yes, there are  those I don't like.  That said, knowing and being able to describe both my likes and dislikes is good information.   Doing blind contours

This is such an interesting video that shows through images what Vincent Van Gogh learned from Japanese painters.  His 'Almond Blossoms', painted for the arrival of his nephew (named after him), was created using some of the Japanese methods.

Update (9/22/2024):  Iris Apfel's last book was gratefully received and gently read shortly after reaching my hands.  If you have the book but haven't read it already or are thinking about getting it, be ready...the book is COLORFUL -- literally!   Reading it is like visiting with a bright and sassy spirit.  Iris was an adventurer, a woman who charted her own path and lived life her own way.  Along that way, she and her husband, Carl, developed an amazing textile fabrication company (Old World Weavers) that focused on replicating designs of 17th through early 20th century textiles.  In particular, the book has lovely photos of their company's works.   In addition to this interior design work, she grew a collection of apparel and accessories that were unmatched -- so much so, there have been exhibits of selected outfits from her collections.  What can be said is that they range in textures, patterning, colors and sometimes even verge on ostentatiousness.  I think only she co

This recent piece is based on a painting by W.H. Egleton of Philippa of Hainault, consort of King Edward III of England.  It was painted sometime between the 1830s and 1860s.  She lived from the early 1300s to 1369. I took the liberty of modifying Egleton's source image by upturning the lips so she seems more approachable as opposed to the somewhat deadpan expression in his painting.  That said, his work is very nice. What I particularly like in the above -- is the pencil shading done below the top hand so that the arm looks a bit raised from the body and the 3-D sense of that hand shape.  I also like the shading around the throat that gives it a more realistic appearance.  

I happened to be going through a series of images to decide what to draw today and found a colorful photograph of Iris that fit the bill.  Using Muji pen, pencil, watercolor and markers, the drawing below isn't perfect but it does capture the sense of Iris as female fashion maven of bohemian elegance and style.  Interestingly, it wasn't until later today AFTER the image was drawn and dry, I learned of her passing.  What synchronicity! In thinking more about her, it was Iris Apfel's ability to mix distinctly different and, at times, clashing garments with a range of embellishments (sometimes gaudy, sometimes architectural, sometimes cultural, sometimes flea market finds) that resulted in amazing ensembles that only she could wear!   Her personal/career story is amazing too and when you'd expect she would have retired, she was drawn into a second career in fashion in her 80s.  Having lived to 102, Iris embraced an identity that transcended her roots that she would charact

The February theme for Louise Fletcher's Art Tribe flip-book of art from members has just been issued!  I'm so excited because this is the big reveal for those of you who are not members of Art Tribe.  The month's theme was Re-imagining a Masterpiece in whatever medium of our choosing.  So here is my re-imagined self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh and my newest Sharpie painting!  Van Gogh's Self-Portrait Reimagined Vincent Van Gogh - his self-portrait (one of many) Van Gogh painted his self-portrait above in 1889.  What drew me in to want to use it as my source image was primarily the swirly background.  My interpretation is more an inversion of the calm/quiet colors in Van Gogh's work.  Mine is loud and busy yet maintains a dignified and sullen air to his image -- just as Van Gogh did of himself.    This was a such a great challenge idea...thank you Art Tribe! Materials for my Re-imagined Masterpiece:  Bristol Paper, Sharpie Markers, Micron Pen and white Posca pen.

The 'Grown-Ups Table' (or GUT as it is fondly called) is Wendy MacNaughton's brainchild on Substack.  As a practicing artist, she led her subscribers through January with daily themed art prompts that included great information about techniques, artists, and art genres among other topics.  It was a super experience and work too.  Part of participation involved reading others' posts and commenting on as many as you could.  With 700-1,000 posts per day, I'm sure some were missed, but I learned a ton from others.  I saw innovative interpretations of the prompts, learned about what people were intending with their work, and what memories they may have chosen to represent visually -- all sprinkled with some laughs along the way.  Thank you Wendy and the GUT community! Photos of some of my favorite work that I did (aside from the blind contour drawing posted in January) are below.  The materials I used throughout the month were colored pens and markers plus watercolor on

As part of Wendy MacNaughton's 30 Days of Drawing (in January), one day was a lesson on drawn journaling.  In it, she provided examples of authors/illustrators who have used this form in their books.  One of those books that caught my eye was 'Radioactive: Pierre and Marie Curie' by Lauren Redniss.  So, I ordered a copy. After receiving the book and reading through the first couple pages, I realized I needed to create a mind-map/flow-chart to keep track of the information.  This would be my way of summarizing the story in visual form.  With clipboard, cardstock and pens in place, I began reading the book and creating my visual notes -- and finished all in one sitting. As for the book, it is very well-written, interesting and informative, and the artful pages make it additionally engaging.  No wonder it was a finalist for the National Book Award!  As for me, I loved it!  Also, I really like my visual notes because they capture the main points/relationships/events, etc.  I wo

Bay Area artist and illustrator, Wendy MacNaughton, mixes drawing, social work and storytelling into rich and fun exercises for children, through her 'Drawing Together' program, and for adults, through the Grown-ups Table (aka GUT) program.  She is a visual columnist for the New York Times and the California Sunday Magazine. To start 2024, Wendy has put together a daily lesson with prompt for each day of January for the GUT group (made up of many hundred to even possibly 1,000+ adult members).  Each lesson has a bit of narrative followed by an exercise to take a suggested 10 minutes.  Her intention -- to help members build an ongoing practice and deliver basic drawing knowledge.   For this month, I broke out an older sketchbook with a lot of blank pages of which many have been filled since January 1st.  I was especially tickled with a recent blind contour drawing (looking only at a source image while moving my pen over the paper in conjunction with my eyes moving around the sou