Artfest Day Three!

Everyone has been asking me what "trades" are. Artfest, with it's 500-600 attendees, has a tradition of bringing small works or art, small journals, artist trading cards, and charms to trade with others. It's fun.

Here's most of my haul. Everything was so creative and thoughtful: pins, tape to use in your journal, artist trading cards, packs of ephemera, or tiny packs of decorative paper, pins, and all different charms.


Look at the art! There's something delicious about teensy art, isn't there?


I brought 85 trades: printed bookmarks from a slice of artquilt I had made, my silk screened patches (like above) on linen, and a few of these wearable coffee cozies that I brought to give to my room mates and teachers.


Day Three class was Paperclay with Michelle Allen from Portland. We had good day learning how to turn tin foil (armature) and paperclay into fully formed little creatures full of life and personality. She brought tons of paint and materials for us to play with, and was fun and encouraging.

I was interested in taking the class because I haven't done any sort of sculpting in a long time, am drawn to paperclay, and wanted to learn how to make figures look old and rich with paint. Of course anything new I learn, I'm eager to share with my kids, and our friends. Paper clay is so much fun!



Here's my droll bunny figure. Interesting how working with clay, or in dollmaking, you just start working and the doll starts to form itself and tell stories. Mr Bunny has a hanging hook, a heart, and little tiny copper wings in back.

Oh! So how did we create the color? Layers of very thin acrylic paints. Layers and layers, slowly building up color and richness and letting dark browns fill into the cracks.

It was fascinating to learn Michelle's techniques, and I related to her great focus on the face of the creature. That's just everything. If the face doesn't look right, I have to keep working on it until it looks good to me, before I do the rest of the body, or there just isn't any soul in the wee thing.


Wonderful work from other students....... love this guy!


Here's our collection at the end of the afternoon. Look at all the awesomeness!


More paper clay friends!


Fabulous flying birds a classmate made, and plans to hang in her antique bird cages.


Here's one of Michelle's paper clay scenes, set in a box. Two figures on a swing. Completely charming and lovely. I recall her advising us "not to fall into trying to produce these to sell, as we'd never recoup the hours we'd put into them". I imagine so. This is a very slow, rewarding process, but not something that can be streamlined for sale.


My cutie wonderful room mates. First thing in the morning and we weren't really awake or fed yet. Sorry to post this one Girlz, but it's the only one I've got. Miss you!


A view of our bunk house from the commons.




Night walk on the beach. What a lovely setting.


And unexpected thing happened to me during Artfest. I begrudgingly developed a crush on art journaling. My resistance comes from being creative for a living. I keep a personal journal, and fill sketchbooks. I ask myself why would I want to pour time and art into a book that no one sees? After watching everyone art journal for four days, and asking questions I am intrigued.

I bought a fancy bound journal with fabulous paper, at the show, and I cut up a sheet of watercolor paper at the artstore and stitched up a very Teesha style collage journal. I've had a blast collaging and painting away in it. I maybe, just maybe, will scan and post my explorations.


Finished Green Angel Painting on canvas, with machine sewing, buttons, and fabric edge finish.