Catching Butterflies - Paper Cut

I started this piece over 3 weeks ago and had to stop working on it because of my sprained wrist.  I finally got to finish it yesterday!  This piece also fits in with my ecocide series.

 It is called "Catching Butterflies" and measures 19 1/2" x 9 1/2".

I like using little girls as the subject for these dark little narratives.  The little girl is not only an ironic bad-guy (which I think adds interest and intrigue) but it also represents the twisted perspectives our culture teaches to children.  At such a young age, before we understand it, we use and abuse the natural world for any little thing we please, no matter how trivial.

I believe it is our responsibility to reverse that line of thinking and teach a new way to our children.  Teach them that the Earth is not there for us to decide what lives and what dies, but as an amazing and beautiful thing to be in awe of.

Speaking of, this bloomed in my front yard today.  This flower will only be open for one day.

Are you in awe?

Rice Paper Cut - Little Dress

In progress

With my wrist still on its way back to full strength, but my ever-growing impatience to get back to paper-cutting, I tried to find an easier way to cut paper.  I found rice paper.  Previously, I was cutting into thick watercolor paper, which is no easy task.  I thought rice paper would be so easy to cut that it would hardly strain my hand and wrist at all.  While that proved to be true, the tissue-thin paper also proved to have other difficulties.  It's as thin and delicate as tissue paper!  It rips, it ripples, and heck, it will even fly away at the slightest breeze.  I'm not sure if I'll be working with it again in the future, but I am still pleased with the results of this piece.

It's called, "Little Dress" and is framed to 9"x7."

Do you like it?  What does it make you think of?  What are your thoughts on this piece?  I'd love to hear your thoughts so comment away!

You will also notice that I've added some tabs to the top of the blog.  Feel free to check them out!

Sketchbook Comeback

Anybody who has known me for a while knows that for many years I wouldn't leave the house without a sketchbook.  I would draw in my sketchbooks all the time; at the house, outside, hanging out with friends, at a restaurant... I often like my sketchbook work more than my "final" pieces.  My senior thesis at MICA even had four hand-bound sketchbooks as the main feature.  The past couple of years I haven't been drawing in my sketchbooks as often.  I think I hit a sketchbook rut where I would draw the same things in the same style.  Somewhere along the line I stopped exploring and experimenting as much so the sketchbooks became stagnant.  Well I've decided to bring the sketchbook back into my daily life.  This decision partially coincided with the fact that I can't do any "final" art at the moment, especially not paper cutting, because of my sprained wrist.  But I can still doodle!

It feels so good to be involved in my sketchbook again.

Last Saturday I taught an all day figure drawing workshop at Studio b.  We had a good turn-out and after some intensive anatomy concentrations I think the students did wonderfully!

As glad as I am that this sprained wrist helped me to rediscover my sketchbook, I am so ready for it to heal so I can get back to paper cutting!  And life!

Sprained Wrist = No Art!

My dominant wrist is sprained slightly... again.  I've seriously sprained it 3 or 4 times.  I've semi-sprained it another 2 or 3 times.  Why?  I fall a lot.  Apparently only my right hand can stop a fall.  This time I didn't even fall, I just went into downward dog yoga pose a little too enthusiastically.  My wrist is very weak from the multiple sprains so it really doesn't take much for it to get hurt again.  Which is obviously very annoying for an artist.  I sure can't make cut paper with a hurt wrist.

I am in the middle of a piece of art I started last week but it may be a while before I can work on it again.  So I have no new art to post.  But the blog must go on!  So here is a semi-pointless video of my studio!

 

I hope you enjoyed that!  (Maybe even just a tiny bit?)  Thanks for reading/looking/and now watching!