Eastside Artist Show in Progress

A lot of nice people are buying local this year! Thanks for the support and thank you Patti Zwick for being our resident photographer as usual and documenting our booths, including mine this year.

Woodland Salon Style

I've framed a few small prints for the show Friday. I love how they look in a group as I've been organizing them. Foxes and owls and tree and butterflies, gathered for the moment like a little woodland community! Each one is ecomonically sized, with a frame to match image personality. They would look good as singletons, especially in a smaller room (nursery or study), but also in multiples, hung salon-style. Pick up one or six this weekend!

Regard the card!

One of my favorite parts of getting ready for the Eastside Artists show is sorting through a folder of "goofs" I've collected all year; prints that were off-centered, art marked with muddy kitty paw prints [Bad Kitty!], paper flaws, etc. Instead of filling up the recycling bin with them, I work around the blunders and turn these images into greeting cards. I match each piece with lusciously colored envelopes and cut cards to appropriate sizes. Some have rather "creative" gate folds and unusual dimensions to get the best composition, but it's what makes them unique. I then sort them into packages of four, usually themed around a season or location or mood. I call them "Artist's Choice" collections. And though they may seem random, I do think about how I put them together to sum up a whole from many parts. I like reviewing my old work with one eye on that graphic design sense of color and size. And I also like the idea that a goof becomes an opportunity.

Cardinal Confessions

I've been fixated on a small item for the upcoming show- I've loved making these little paper cardinal ornaments this year. At two bucks each, dollar for dollar, they will not make me rich. It's knowing that this flock will fly out to people's houses that makes me happy. I've made a few owls, too. I think the three dimensional aspect is a nice break from my usual flat art world. If you come to the show, mention that you read this on my blog and I'll give you one if I'm working at the time!

Eastside Artist Show- this week!

I'll be again one of the the twenty-two artists at the downtown Iowa City Eastside Artist show this coming weekend.

As I package and price new items, it seems a blink ago I was doing this for last year's gig. Kind of like that movie "Ground Hog's Day", where the characters wake up each day to the repeat of the same day before! Participating in this annual event has a way of warping time.

Please drop by if you're in the neighborhood. I'll be sharing some new art that will be at the show soon.