A little birdy told me...


I spend a lot of studio time making light switch plates and magnets, ostensibly because they generate a (very) little cash - enough to help offset my supply bill, again, a very little. I recently decided to vary my substrates, add some excitement to my creative day. 
The visual journal workshop rekindled my love for creating backgrounds, and techniques I learned from Pam Carriker came in very handy (I'll never run out of baby wipes again!). Though I didn't have a clue what the image would be, I knew I wanted to use shades of blue. And, I've been stuck on coffee and birds lately. Maybe because I discovered that I can draw both and I'm thrilled, albeit behind the curve a decade or so:); everything I touch will probably have a bird, or coffee cups and beans on or in it - for a time anyway. 
A while back, in the letters section of several Somerset Magazines, readers made mention of the possible overuse of certain embellishments/ephemera in art pieces. Like crowns and wings, both of which I love and use whenever I feel the need. Not sure why anyone would bother taking issue with classics but no doubt birds and coffee cups have appeared in at least as many pieces. 
A blog pal and very talented artist, Jodi Ohl, recently lamented a comment made about her fabulous house series, which depict her life history, being trendy. Do we not all, or most of us anyway, live in a dwelling of some kind? A yurt, a mobile home, apartment, row house or mansion... how can a house be trendy? Who monitors and decides these things? I'm either super naive or really onto something. 
I guess what I'm beating around the butterfly bush about is that certain images lend themselves to mixed media and are important, if not universal thematic elements in our lives.  So I did this canvas, a puzzle piece magnet and a mini-journal using the same color palette and images - birds and coffee. 
I'll post the other pieces soon. Until then, here's my latest, and one of the few canvas/collages I've done lately! Thanks for looking (and for listening:)  

Comments

Jodi Ohl said…
Thank you Patti for exploring this issue a bit further and for pointing out the truth of the matter--who is to really decide when enough is enough??? The world is big enough to hold all of our ideas, art, desires, truths, elements, and symbols without interfering with a dang thing :) Whether meaningful or fun or a combination of both--let's just all keep doing what we love to do, and that is create :)
Anonymous said…
I think we should just create what (and how) we want and not worry about what others think:) thanks for that post, and thanks for the comment on my post (about my son getting older) I think I feel a little better just writing about it, but it is so hard to let go.
have a great weekend and hope to chat again soon!
Trish
Karin Bartimole said…
I agree with Trish - create what moves you and put your own personal twist on it. I think when certain imagery starts to saturate the market people can get tired of seeing it, but that means nothing for the artist in terms of what they are creating. Remember when the howling coyote was the rage?! the problem is commercial rip off artists see what creative souls are doing, see that it's resonating with people and then they send their imitations to China to be stamped out on every imaginable thing that can be bought and it's no wonder - people get tired of seeing it! But universal symbols are universal symbols, and eventually they will fall to the wayside in terms of commercialism, and artists will be let off the hook! If wings are what tell your story, then let them fly, I say!! Of course, this is simply one woman artists opinion :)

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