Encaustic Workshop in Girdwood

This last weekend I attended an other encaustic workshop in Girdwood, Ak. It was taught by Danielle B. Correia from R&F Paints check it out for some varied encaustic art and workshop info. The class was small so we had a good time swapping each others photo copies, equipment and ideas
There was Sylvia Benson from Mantomedi, Minnesota, she made one fantastic piece after another, I was jealous of her talent and how fast she could make art. Sheary Clough Suiter from Anchorage, AK she has an upcoming show the First Friday in September check out her images incredible!
Phillis Lasche from Livermore, CA (my old stomping grounds) she was California Cool, Linda C. Vollertsen from Anchorage runs a coffee shop "Organic Oasis" and makes the most beautiful jewelry, busy lady and tons of energy good artist.



Kenneth Hatch and Jennifer Esterl who is the acting president of G.C.V.A. since Jewels Wolfe resigned after two years of dedicated service. Dot Tideman was my working partner what a nut! I won't repeat the funny story about how she flushed her cell phone down Mary's toilet or helped me start my art on fire. We all thought it was quite haralious!
I'll post some photos soon. My big computer crashed and my little lap top just can't handle the job.

Rain, rain go away come again some other day.

This is the latest and improved RAVEN AND SALMON it's at the Alaska State Fair.

It rained everyday for over two weeks and when it hailed the lake looked like it was boiling.
The Little Sue River over ran its banks and took some homes and cabins with it, there is some flooding people are reporting salmon swimming in their yard. Everything is so soggy, my son played football in the torrential rains regardless. He is so athletic and I'm so proud.
My birthday was on August 20th, school started August 22, my beautiful granddaughter Rhaya's birthday is today August 23rd, Rhayas mom my beautiful daughter Charmaine is being transferred to London, England, so there is a trip to England in my future.

I have been working a graveyard shift 8:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. I stay up all night and sleep half the day (I love it) nighttime is when I feel most creative, so not much time or energy to blog.

On the artistic front my encaustic wax class is starting Friday in Girdwood and next week is the State Fair where I will be demonstrating. I've got to get my supplies and ideas organized and together. Five of my pieces are already at the Fair. I hope I get a blue ribbon. Here are a couple of salmon from the Salmon on Parade which I will be sharing space with during my demonstration.

Nuts and Bolts Salmon

Sweater Salmon

The days are getting shorter and I've started taking my Prozac to keep Cabin Fever at bay.
Ok maybe that's a little too personal but as far as I can tell my blog is quite anonymous. It's a good exercise in journaling none the less.

Life Keeps ON Life-ing

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Rational Artist Bryan Larsen

My visiting teacher Ginger P. told me the other day about an artist that her married kids know Bryan Larsen someone from my hometown Salt Lake City he is a well known painter. So I googled (ohh that tickles) him. I simply love the hyper realism and the excellent craftmanship of his work. His site is filled with valuable information so I've decided to add him to my blog and check in with him often, his blog fills a need to take a sentemintal journey home occasionally and remember why I ran away.

When it's time to stop !

Well here I was working on my latest Raven and Salmon painted with encaustic wax.
This painting has always been my bread and butter so I've done it before but always in oil paints using the indirect method on the salmon and acrylic gel medium on the raven.

I was not satisfied with the top part so I gave the raven more dimension and texture, carved the swirls, added gold leaf it was going well the art looked much more refined and finished and I'm feeling satisfied with the work.

Its getting late after midnight and I get the bright idea to melt some pharmaceutical grade bees wax about 1 pound and I add some damar resin for hardness and heat it up to abouut 280 degrees. Then I made a trough out of duct tape around the salmon and when the wax was hot enough I just poured it all over my hours and hours of work. WoW. The idea was the wax will dry clear and it would be as if you are looking through the water at a salmon swimming by giving it a more aquatic effect. Oh my God! what a mistake its all white and dosen't look like it's going to dry clear, so I go to bed fretting about the mess I made out of my work.Yes when I get up it was covered in white wax and not transparent like I'd planned. No it was all murky and cloudy. Now I've been scrapping with a razor tool for hours trying to reveal the salmon and the beautiul water effects I had created. Before the salmon had some wonderful interesting texture now its smooth as glass.

What a bother, the problem is I was attempting to create a masterpiece to enter in the Anchorage Museum annual show ......

EARTH FIRE AND FIBER XXVI

Anchorage Museum

This is what it looks like after hours of scrapping somewhat of a watery effect but not all that cool either. The feelings that I want to portray with the Raven and Salmon is as above so below, yin and yang, conscious,subconscious, chaos and calm the dualisizm in nature those kind of thoughts.

I am in the process of making a nice box frame out of oak.

The deadline for the entry's are August 31st they will first judge the digital entries so I must finish in time and then take a professional photograph for the judging. My camera is getting old and needs duct tape, I will need a better camera. An overcast day etc. These photographs are too dark and do not show the depth and texture of this encaustic wax painting. I will post my best pictures as soon as I take them. I've got alot of work to do on Raven and Salmon before it's ready to enter in the exhibition. There is not a catergory for encaustic wax but I'm hoping they will overlook that since encaustic embodies the theme. Earth fire and Fibre

The catergories are:

• Bone/Ivory Fibre.
• Glass
• Stone
• Metal
• Skin/Gut
• Wood
• Metal
• Plasitc

Is being a recluse a bad thing?

I have the swans, dogs, muskrats, loons, squirrels, ducks, eagles even bats to keep me company.

Its a rainey day in Alaska the temperature is 56 degrees. I need to do some errands but am feeling ambivalent about leaving the house again. That is why I didn't leave yesterday because I felt so undecided, maybe I am becoming a hermit or a recluse ( a person who lives a secluded solitary life apart from the world, seclusion from society). Sometimes I get so unwilling to go out in public, grocery stores are the worst for me I have actually waited until late at night to go shopping to avoid the people. The truth is I moved to Alaska because of my desire for solitude and just to get in touch with myself. I don't feel that I am socially retarded or anything I have run a gas station, sold cars and talked to thousands of people so I just don't get it. Why this desire to be alone (I've got my dogs and husband who is a workaholic and my son who is living his own life) so not totally alone all the time but lately I really prefer it.

So right now I'll roll up in my blanket get a book relax for a few hours. Maby I have social anxiety disorder SAD has the same letters as seasonal affect disorder SAD. Well I'm not SAD, I'm MAD! that everything gets a label and a pill to make it all better, maby it's just life, maby it's just the way things are today. Its just a feeling and this too will pass so I will hang with myself just a little longer and perhaps more will be revealed .

Today, I'll enjoy an argument with myself. I'll write it without one eye on the outside world. I'll see what I discover.

The Yin and Yang of Housecleaning

Yesterday, I started a cleaning frenzy which usually means sorting and shoving and stowing away. The day before I visited my packrat friend Cheryl"s yard sale she has several sheds just to store the overflow of her collecting next to her and my sister Patty, my packratism is tame.
This is my friends shed NOT MY LIVING ROOM honest
I collected some booty of my own from her yard sale including a neet little Feng Shui kit. My husband is having a golf tournament on Saturday and is having some of his freinds over later so I must make a good impression .... well my shabby chic decoratiang makes me very happy and I know that I should'nt care what others think but I do! I will indroduce a little Feng Shui - ie balance into our lives. Opps this corner is a little too YIN dead things and such

I need to create a little more YANG energy perhaps a vase of freshly cut wild flowers.

OH NO! my bookcase is bad feng shui they act like blades cutting at residents YIKES! the solution to hang a wind chime to soften the shar chi emimating from the shelves (but that would look stupid).

I put a big mirror toward the window and the lake. I don't know if its good or bad but it opens the room and makes seem even bigger. It should draw in prosperity and good luck Now I've avoided housework long enough so I will open the doors and windows, vacumme the corners, find the cobwebs sweep the air, get a bucket of warm sudsy water and begin scrubbing everything down. Then when everything is clean I will start collecting and getting canvasas made for my encaustic workshop a little birthday present to myself. Oh the satisfaction of a clean orderly home at least for a little while.

Pioneer Peak In Late July

This is only the second painting I've done Plenn Air and I don't usually paint landscapes or paint outside. Being a self taught artist, I told myself its a good idea to try everything so my skills as an artist can increase. I'm taking it to a show at the Bagel Deli that is featuring plenn air and florals. This is also my first frame, it's just a simple box frame but does wonders for the painting.

My Sanctuary

It's an incredible day in South Central Alaska today sunny, warm and I'm going to yard sale it as soon as the clothes dry. But first here are some pictures of my sanctuary by the lake, as you can see I'm really not much of a gardner and tend to just let things grow wild. This is were I sit and meditate and occasionally read.


The swans are back visiting can you see then through the trees?

Dog Days in Houston, Alaska

It’s just another beautiful day in paradise.

But yesterday my daughters dog Mila got attacked by two dogs from one street over. Nikki is in the kitchen getting her kids some breakfast when she hears a blood curdling yelp, she looks out and sees two dogs sniffing around looking nonchalant like nothing has happened, when she opened the front door her dog just fell into the house mortally wounded.
They took her to the vet for stitches but it was much worse than that they had thought the dogs had ripped into her gut she needed an operation to stitch everything up, she stayed overnight. We are going to pick her up in a few minutes.

There is an upside to this story Nick (my son-in-law) and Brother Mike went over to talk to the owner of these dogs and he was a stand up guy and gave them a check for $300.00 to help with the vet bills. Mila is 11 years old and still thinks she is tough but she will definitely be laid up for awhile.



Here is her belly she is doing pretty good considering some dogs tried to gut her just like an antelope. The Vet said that that is the way most injuries look when two or more dogs attack they go for the belly. Other peoples Dogs, what a pain in the ass and it begs the question what would happen if the got it into their doggy brains to attack a child. Cancel, cancel, cancel. Thats what I say whenever I want to retract anything that the universe might overhear. Oh, and that guys check is not good.