Giving Form to Idea with Blurb

((This is a sponsored post. But rest assured, I only work with companies that I really like and would absolutely recommend even if it wasn’t sponsored. Happy reading! ))

Have you ever had an idea that just circles in your periphery, pops up occasionally to say “hey! I’m still here! Work with me!” but you haven’t found the right way to give it form?

That was me for a few years with this one tiny, but exciting thought that I just couldn’t shake.

I was on a plane that was heading towards Santiago, Chile. The pale gray fog laid heavy over the Andes as we descended, burning into vapor in the sunlight and obscuring the land in the shadows.

Undulating color and pattern stole my breath and I took a gratuitous amount of photos out of the teeny window. In addition to it’s raw, abstract beauty- I was struck by how much it looked like my desk, covered in balled up paintings.

That was 2015 and I’ve been collecting balled up paintings ever since.

It took me three more years of thinking about this moment, this spark that I found looking out the airplane window to finally find the form it needed.

I made a book!

I’ve worked with Blurb before on past book-making projects and I loved the process, so once it became apparent what this project needed to be - using Blurb for the creation was my go-to answer.

If you haven’t used Blurb yet, they are an independent book-making / self-publishing platform that makes it easy to design, produce, and sell all sorts of book and magazine projects (both print and digital!).

I started designing the book on paper (as I do with all things) making sure that my idea is fully explored and properly mapped out. I chose not to add words this time. I was speechless the whole time the plane flew above those mountains and I felt like adding words was untruthful to that moment I was seeking to honor. It would be picture book only.

Once I had a skeleton of the project together, I started photographing the paintings I had been saving for at this point, years, and started to think about the final layout. I picked a landscape (10 x 8) orientation and opted for a nice shiny softcover and premium matte pages.

One of the reasons I love Blurb is the number of tools I can use to access their platform and design my book. As someone who is very familiar with Photoshop and Lightroom, I really appreciate the ability to use these programs for exceptional creative control over the process. In this case however I used their service; BookWright to design the entirety of the project. It’s super straightforward and allowed me to think more about the content of the book while they handled the finer details of the creation.

Just about a week later, the book was in my hands!

It was exactly what I was hoping it would be. The paper was rich and smooth, the book had a beautiful weight to it and my photos printed perfectly. I was elated, flipping through the velvety pages for the first time; each one reminding me of a landscape from memory.

Thanks to Blurb for getting the ball rolling on this, I’m so in love with the final product. It is a creative weight off my back, finally being able to set this idea free in the form that felt right.

If you want to check out the book pop on over to the book page where you can flip through mine and purchase your own copy too. Or stop by their Book Shop to see the rest of their catalogue!

What about you? Have you made a book of your work before? What’s your favorite part of the process?

Colors of Italy; Part II

We’ve spent the last few days in the Lake Como area, going back and forth between Varenna and Bellagio.

In many of the places we visit I go off on my own to find a little corner of inspiration, some color shift or movement in the water to focus on; some small moment of beauty.

Here however it’s literally everywhere and honestly, it’s a little overwhelming.

I only have so many pages left in my sketchbook.

We’ve taken a few hikes up the mountainsides and explored the lake and I’ve tried to sketch when I can, but every view seems to better than the last. I am completely inspired and yet paralyzed by the amount of things I want to sit and paint.

The buildings are so vibrant against the gray clouds, the shadows of the mountains breathe in and out of existence with each wave of rain and though we’re constantly wet (its the rainy season here) - it is easily one of the most beautiful places I’ve been.

In the end I didn’t end up making as many sketches as I hoped, but spent more time outside processing with my eyes and camera instead. Of the sketches I was able to make - I can’t wait to get home and translate them to canvas.

Huge thanks to my sister-in-law for suggesting this place, it was magic for me.

Colors of Italy; Part I

I know, I know.

Not a travel blog.

But so much of my process is rooted in the colors of my surroundings, in the different shades of water and sky that to provide an accurate idea of the inspiration behind my work it’s helpful to share these moments away from the studio.

Plus it’s just really, really pretty here.

We flew into Italy earlier this week and I have been absolutely entranced with the light. Everything is yellow. I joked with my husband that I finally understood the naming behind “Naples Yellow” and am so grateful I didn’t cherry pick my paints for this trip. I’m going to need them all.

We have a few days here in Rome to explore and we’ll do all the regular tourist attractions (though if you have a suggestion of something else please let me know!) before moving northward.

As this is again, not a travel blog I won’t bore you with photos of food and old stonework and get right into the sketching.

On our second day en route to a brewery I found a square sketchbook and it makes my heart happy. I also bought a few paint pens, though I’m not sure what use I’ll have for them yet.

And now to the good stuff.

My internal clock is still all sorts of discombobulated, so I’m napping late and waking up at odd hours. With a bit of extra time because of this weird schedule, I was able to finish a few sketches and get a couple of layers down on canvas before heading out.

These siennas are a response to walking the grounds of the Coliseum and Palantine Hill, just incredible ruins of ancient Roman society. It was breath-taking.

We’re headed northward in a few days, up to Verona and Lake Como by train - and I’m hoping to get some sketching done on the long train rides up.

(Or naps.)

An Afternoon with Contours - at the MSU Broad Art Lab

On October 13th I had the honor of leading a workshop at the MSU Broad Art Lab.

The class was an intro to using contour lines as the basis for an abstract painting, using still life setups as the starting point. (Materials found at The Scrap Box! Read about re-visiting my childhood paradise here!)

It was also an especially meaningful class to teach, as I am a graduate of the MSU Fine Art program. It was just a ‘few’ years ago that I was a student and was a major honor to be invited to back in an instructor role! <3

Our group began by surveying the 3 setups, finding moments in the chaos that interested and intrigued us - and then began to sketch. For the sketches we used water soluble graphite*, so that we could work back into our sketches later as we expand and explore.

Once we had gathered a collection of contour sketches to pull from, we moved into the front area and began to paint. Watching and helping the attendees respond to the sketches with color was an absolute joy.

The workshop was so much fun and I really enjoyed getting to work one-on-one with so many people and watch their paintings come to life. Huge thanks to MSU Broad Art Lab for setting it up!

I’m hoping to offer another class like this soon, but if you have any suggestions on what you would like to see from me feel free to message me or leave a comment.

<3

* Link contains an affiliate code. If you purchase the product from my Amazon shop they send a little money my way! No cost difference to you, just helps support my work and keep me able to find new materials for you to try <3

The Scrap Box; my childhood paradise, my artist playground

The Scrap Box has been a staple in Ann Arbor since the early 80s, and was my absolute favorite place to go as a kid. Whenever there was a special event to celebrate, or I had a few extra bucks from chores - this is where I begged my parents to take me.

The Scrap Box is is a donation-based creative reuse PARADISE, filled with all sorts of odds and ends, like thin-chopped white tubing, fantastic spongy shapes, nylon in every color of the rainbow, green nettings, yarns, papers, pieces of wood…. I couldn’t attempt to name everything they have! It’s all been donated by area businesses/individuals and provides kids/artists/educators/explorers with access to neat materials for very cost.

The bulk room; my favorite place.

As a child I would make 3D paintings, sculptures and scenes out of these bits and pieces - now as a working artist it is my haven for still life supplies. Especially when I’m teaching a class or breaking down my process, having access to all this weird stuff is amazing.

And if I’m setting up a still life for just me, I really appreciate having a cache of items that I don’t necessarily understand (or know what they are!) to scatter on a table. It keeps me from assigning meaning to their placement and sketch.

I usually combine the Scrapbox treasures with a few vases/cups I picked up at our thrift store add some crumpled paper, then get to work.

This is one of my favorite exercises to start the day with, or if I’m feeling just a little stuck - making some interesting (not necessarily pretty!) arrangements and sketching from these tends to yield some results that beg other questions, that warrant more sketching and exploration.

On Saturday I’ll be taking these supplies with me up to the MSU Broad Art Lab - where I’ll be setting up a few of these still lifes and teaching a little workshop on my contour drawing process. There’s still a few spaces left if you are in the area!

It was so wonderful to walk into the Scrap Box this week and gather a few extra items for Saturday’s class. This is the first I’ve been in since we moved back and I already have plans for more of the materials I saw there. Walking through the barrels in the bulk room gave me the same feeling as way back when; (except that now I am tall enough to actually see into the barrels!) endless inspiration, limitless possibility and knowing that I’m about to need A LOT more glue.

<3