Bittersweet, Beginnings

This week is beginning on a bittersweet note.  I am loosing a coworker whom I really have enjoyed working with.  She is the awesomely talented Alex who designed my banner image.  Alex is moving on to Chicago with her boyfriend.  I wish them both much success.  Yes, I can keep in touch.  So, all is not lost there.  But, it isn't the same.  So, to honor our friendship, I made her this going away present.  I think I will know him by the name of Bittersweet.  He is a personal house monster.  His purpose is to keep all other unwanted monsters away.  To bring good luck and fortune to the household that hosts his presence is another bonus.  He is a polymer clay body and head with feather hair and fiber neck wrap.  It is based on a design I learned in Dayle Dorashow class a few years back.  The surface of the body is covered in cane slices.  I really like this process and may give a few more a try.

Hope you all have a wonderful start to your week.  I am beginning my new visualization process today.  We shall see how it works.

Ciao!

Kali in Motion

Greetings out there in blog land.  I have been under the weather this week so, Kali energy has taken hold of me and my studio.  The reason for this major upheaval is one of surrender.  You may be wondering what I am talking about.  Over the past few years I have been exploring what makes me truly passionate in my art.  That conversation with myself has lead me down a truly eye opening road of conclusion.

I have discovered that I am really a big kid at heart.  Last year I decided to explore the idea of my own mythic journey and begin to try and tell my personal story of my lifes journey through my art. I discovered that I really love fantasy and the fantasticness of it.  It is a fun and sometimes challenging way to tell stories about our world.

So, it is with this mind set that I have begun to explore a variety of ways to express my views of life and beyond.  The interesting thing is that when you take it out of the ordinary and into the realm of fantasy or make believe, people tend to look and listen to what you have to say.  I think that is what attracted me to doll making so many years ago.

My goal now is to really transition myself away from using the more realistic subject matter and using the human form realistically.  Through this process of play and trying out ideas, I began recycling works that were in process or just taking some old toys and other objects and transforming them into something fantastical.  I want to live in my world of make believe.  My monsters aren't all scary or bad creatures.  They just look menacing but really are great friends and can tell great stories.

As the title of this post suggests, I have been channeling the energy of Kali.  She is the destroyer goddess and this allows something new to emerge.  Thus allowing me to emerge with something closer to my heart and with a renewed passion for creating. I have posted a few pictures of my work tables in my home studio to show you the chaos of Kali energy.  In the next few weeks I can hopefully show you the regenerative results.

Thanks for following my roller coaster creative life.  Oh, and I have decided to test drive a new look for the blog.  My coworker who is a fabulous comic artist designed my banner image.  She is moving to Chicago and will be sorely missed.  Good luck Alex, may you find much success in the big city.

Until next time.

Ciao.

Sneak Peek Into the All Seeing Eye

Happy Monday to you all out there.  I am excited for several reasons.  One, I now have 183 followers.  The most ever for me since I started this blog thing.  Secondly, I was able to work on one of the characters for my story I am working on called Adventures In Codyland.  This particular character is called the All Seeing Eye.  He/She isn't finished yet.  I just thought I'd post a progress of sorts.  It is another assemblage or mixed media piece for me.  I still need to gussy up the head adornment a bit.  Then I need to find a throne or chair for him/her to sit upon.

I have some changes planned for the blog coming up in a few weeks.  Also, I am going to try and impose a daily exercise to keep me motivated in this year of enlightenment.  So I hope you will stay tuned.  Oh, and I haven't forgotten about the giveaway.  I am still thinking about the object of desire for the giveaway.  Have a beautifully creative week my friends.

Cio!

Tada He's Finished

As promised I am taking a quick minute to post Lohre from the Black Lagoon.  He is finally finished.

Here he is after his four step painting process.  I just need to put a varnish coat on to protect the paint and he is ready to roll.

This was a fun learning process which I plan on using again for other pieces I have plans to do.  So stay tuned.  Off to work now.  Have a great week everyone.  Thank you as always for stopping by.

Sneak Peek Into Codyland

I thought I'd give you a sneak peek into the world of Codyland today.  I have recently been obsessed with remaking toys into something very different than they once were intended .  Here you can see a small little baby doll that I had purchased in a set several years ago.  Believe it or not, these vinyl toys make great armatures for other creations.  As you can see I have covered the torso and legs with masking tape so the layer of Super Sculpey will stick to it.  These parts are also a different form of plastic so I wasn't sure how it would work.  I know the head and arms would be fine.

Meet the next incarnation of the little doll.  He will eventually become a baby creature from the black lagoon.

The outer skin is a layer of Super Sculpey.  His eyes are made from a blue and green speckled glass bead. His fin like structures are made from translucent Sculpey.

So the next step is the painting process which is always such fun.  I am playing around with adding a bit of texture to the skin to make it more amphibian like.  He will be in colors of blues, greens and yellows.  Of course he will also have hints of iridescence.

I will post the final version of Lohre when he is finished.  I am also in the process of freshening up my blog. So, don't be surprised by the changes.  I have decided to revert back to the original title as it is also the name of my artistic creative business now.  Stay tuned my friends and thank you as always for your visits.  I am honored.

Cio.

Artist Horoscope for 2012

Just popping to share my art horoscope as provided by CCA or California College of the Arts' Heather Lohmann.


Pisces
February 19-March 20
Look out, Pisces, because great things are on the way. The upcoming weeks and months will bring a sense of serenity and peace, and this easygoing mentality might pull you out of touch with reality a bit. But it’s all for the best -- this new perspective will be very helpful in your creative visions and endeavors, and inspire you to take chances you might not have before. This state of mind may make you easily distracted, but force your focus and be sure to finish what you start. However, this dreamy mindset also means that you might want to put any big, life-changing decisions on the back burner for a while. Just replace those notions of home or career changes with new art or writing projects, for the time being. Inheritance plays a part in your near future, too, so get ready to acquire some new possessions that may just push your ongoing creative evolution up a notch or two.

You can get your here http://www.cca.edu/news/2011/12/15/your-art-horoscope-what-does-2012-hold-store have fun y'all and may this year be all you hope for.

Cio

Another Work Challenge

You are probably wondering why there is a picture of this mini Munny doll on here.  Well, Plaza Art where I work decided to make this our December challenge.  Our store was selling these little guys during the holidays.  So, the staff decided it would be fun to get one and alter it.  The one pictured above is what I decided upon.  As the cute name implies,, he is a baby giraffe.  So, not wanting to stick within the norm, I decided that mine would transform into something a bit more mythical.

As you can see, he has become a baby dragon.  At least that is what my intentions were at the time.  Even though I still contend he is indeed a baby dragon.  He kind of looks like a Pokemon.

This was actually a bit of a challenge at first.  Because one of my coworkers said to me, you know he needs to have scales.  Sure he does, he's a dragon.  I told everyone at work what I was hoping to create out of my blank doll.  The question for me was how would I pull this feat off.  I have never attempted to transform or alter one of these vinyl dolls before.  So, the big question was what materials would I incorporate into the design that would allow me to make the scale like texture.

I pondered the use of Apoxy Sculpt but, I really hate the working time issue and also, it is too fussy for me.  I like that stuff for joining or making an inner skin structure but, I like polymer clay better for sculpting.  So, I decided that Super Sculpey would be the best choice for my sculpting process.  But, and it was a big BUT.  Can the vinyl toy be baked in the oven at the temperature that the Sculpey needs to cure?  On to the internet to do some research.  Lo and behold, I found many references to people saying that they had heard of artists doing that baking thing with Sculpey but, were too afraid to try it themselves.  Most of the people who had used Sculpey boiled their pieces.  Boiled?  Not me, I thought, well the whole thing will be covered with the clay.  If it does get soft, it should still hold together.  As you can see, it did indeed hold together.

I guess you can say I am a bit fearless when it comes to trying out something new.  Yes, I was a wee bit worried about ruining my little doll.  As there would be no easy replacement for him.  But, nothing ventured nothing gained as they say.  So, he was entirely covered with Super Sculpey then painted with a number of layers of acrylic paints and stain glazes.  The final coat being a satin varnish to seal the deal.  It was a fun and worthwhile experiment.  One which I am eager to try again so the search is on for interesting blank vinyl toys to play around with.

I do hope the new year is treating you well so far.  It is so great to see you all visit from time to time.  I know I haven't been posting much work of late.  Lots of things in various stages at this point.  But, I am feeling more energized so, there should be some new things up soon.  Thank you for staying with me over the years.  Oh, keep an eye out here.  I am planning a little blog giveaway just for you all.

Cio!