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walking a tightrope

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Am walking a bit of a tightrope right now, balancing time in the studio with minding my day job. It would be soooo easy to let the day job work slowly fade away, if there weren't financial repercussions. I keep telling myself that the client work underwrites the art. For now. Recently finished Lewis Hyde's The Gift and, although I found much of it tedious, I mined a few gems. Namely, some of the thinking/rationale behind protecting the arts from the marketplace. It's resonated for me and cooled my heels on wanting to figure out a "business model" for my art.

We're about 2/3 finished with the inside trays on the CityDance boxes...

Pyramid-Atlantic summer intern Nora Simon

...and I'm starting to get a little pickier on craftsmanship, now that we've got some rapport going with the interns and volunteers. Designed a companion booklet that will rest on top of the books and will post pics once I have something more concrete. Looks like we'll gold stamp the box lid, which I've never done before, so that'll be fun to learn. We're nowhere near that step, just trying to think ahead on cover board prep options.

Made a little progress this weekend on my own edition for the project. Actually, it's been very meditative coating digital ground on both sides of 150 sheets of handmade paper. It's a time-consuming step, but I like the crispness of the text I get using the ground vs. uncoated on my pigment printer. A couple of hours into it, I realized it could be much easier if I used Susan King's paint roller trick - so I got me a 6" foam roller, paint tray and am cookin' along:

Created a nice rhythm on Sunday: coat some paper, hang it on the line in my studio to dry, do a load of laundry, work on a proposal for a client, plant some hostas, rinse and repeat.

moving parts artists on the move

Our artist book editions of 50 (plus 2 display copies) for the CityDance Moving Parts project are due by the end of this month. Gulp. As one of the coordinators of this project, you'd think I'd set an example and get mine done on time. More on that in a different post. For now, feast your eyes on a couple of completed editions by Irene Chan and Leah Frankel.

Iren Chan, 2009Leah Frankel, 2009

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moving parts boxes on the move

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We kicked off the edition of 50 custom clam shell boxes for the CityDance/Pyramid Atlantic Moving Parts project last week. After what felt like a slow start with a grouchy board sheer and an inexperienced team (myself included!), I spent much of last weekend wondering what I'd gotten myself into.

This week we're making more progress than I could have imagined. After setting up nine work stations using innovative found jigs like empty drawers and bricks, we turned out 18 "inside trays" in a few hours.

Yesterday's progress revealed more to me, and not so much in terms of "numbers of things done," but in the smiles as people built their first tray, the way they made it their own once they got into a rhythm, and enthusiastic volunteers that are getting involved after the interns go back to school in August.

A conversation with Gretchen (my Pyramid colleague who's co-leading this project) helped put things in perspective, too - that this is doable, that we'll take our time and do it well, that teaching/empowering others to do this is so worth the time. We solved several design problems, too. I'm starting to see that the production phase is as much a string of problems to solve as it is "producing" - and that's a good thing, if I remember to sit with the discomfort of not knowing until the answer reveals itself. That, and remembering to keep asking for help.

Am coming to believe that just moving steadily through a project like this for the first time will put a lot of these anxieties to bed as I/we learn how to handle each step. I have no context - so part of me is excited about what each stage reveals, part of me wants to know, damn it, so I can stop worrying about if we can pull it off or not. But what does that mean? What happens, happens and we'll move through it.

Am also noticing that editioning and production may not be my cup of tea. Too soon to tell, but it feels vastly different from the rich conceptual/creative stage I just left in Susan King's workshop. I find I get cranky if I don't get to do a little of that (and Morning Pages) every day to balance out the other stuff.

ideas for artist books

After a week in Susan King's Ideas for Artist Books workshop at Shakerag, I'm brimming with new material for several projects. Susan's process works and was not at all what I expected. Much to my delight and surprise, I walked into our classroom that first night for orientation and ran into some old friends: Julia Cameron's The Artist Way and Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird.

Our days took on a nice rhythm. We started every day with timed morning pages as a group, then shared (or not) what came up for us in our writing. After a timed writing assignment ("write about a place you call home," "write about the 30 minute walk outdoors you just took"), we spent afternoons into late nights creating mock-ups of the book that was inspired by our writing, complete with relevant structure, binding, possible look and feel and text. The next morning (after morning pages), we had a crit, then repeated the whole cycle again.

Creating under the gun like that was liberating. Not only did it work - everyone, regardless of level, dug deep and produced emotionally intelligent, articulate, communicative work - but I also learned that you don't need a lot of time and materials to do good work. In fact, they can be a crutch. Forced to let my intuition take over and dive deep for creative inspiration, I found myself just listening and making decisions naturally.

Another pleasant outcome is how much we bonded as a group. You don't spend five long days with ten interesting, engaged women and walk away untouched. Susan did an excellent job at creating a safe environment where we could take risks, feel supported, yet get real feedback. We're continuing the lively discussion, sharing, ideas and crits in our new online group through Artist Books 3.0.

By the way, if you don't know about Shakerag's Studio Immersion in the Mountains, you should. Faculty and staff are world class, as is the southern hospitality, food (!), and attention to detail for an inspiring, initimate opportunity to study with the best.

handmade mart a success by any measure

Survived my first craft fair recently and, boy, did I learn a lot. A huge thank you to my hubby for being there with his heavy lifting and moral support - before, during and after the actual event. My BF Mandy showed up twice to help with set up, midday support and homemade snacks. Friends, family, neighbors and collegues stopped by. I was feeling the love!

Lessons learned?

  • There is waaaaay more work than meets the eye to pull this off. It took me two days to recover.
  • Setting up my booth in our empty spare room 2 weeks out was key - there's no way we could have created what we did without the dry-run and blueprint that time and space afforded me. However, I hadn't anticipated what 25+mph winds would do to my display! So glad I invested in the heavy-duty sandbag weights for my tent.
  • It's not all about sales (for now) - just completing my first fair was the goal; that said, I didn't sell much. The few vendors I had a moment to check in with were having mixed results. My guess is that because this was a first-time event, the crowd was going to be iffy anyway. The seasoned craft fair vets told me not to base any decisions off my first time out (at a first-time fair).
  • It is about finding the right niche. Not sure the indie craft scene is mine, but we'll see. I hope to get into a couple more juried fairs this fall, one (Art on the Avenue) of which might be a better fit.
  • AND...I'm thrilled that this fair got me exposed to the women behind ArtSpring, the reincarnation of the Pyramid Atlantic Store that opens this July in Silver Spring. We met, they took a bunch of my work to sell in their store, and I'm excited to work with their merchandising manager on a creative store display that's inspired by my booth.

 

beautiful book exhibit

My first group exhibit, Beautiful Book, opens on June 5th at 23 Sandy Gallery in Portland Oregon. The e-postcard arrived today and the online catalog has launched. I'm thrilled and honored to be included in this show. Thanks to Laura Russell, gallery owner/curator, for being game to get creative on how we display my piece. Check out the photos here, along with the other "beautiful bookers."

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countdown to handmade mart

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Lordy, getting ready for my first outdoor craft show has been a lot of work. To my hubby's point, I am a little obsessive about the myriad of details that I've decided must get done. Our spare bedroom has been converted to a mock-tent/booth, signage pinned to the curtains and all. And when we set up my new EZup Craft Dome tent in the driveway, neighbors flocked over to find out what the heck we were up to.

To make things a little more challenging, I've decided to take the "brand your booth" advice I learned at the Summit of Awesome to heart. Since I'm selling accordian books that convert to wearable tutus, other dance-related prints, and my new little biz's name is TurningPointe Press, I'm going with a dance studio theme. I won't spoil the surprise here (you'll have to come visit my booth!), but think ballet bar, life-sized dancer and wooden floor to set the mood.

 

handmade mart!

Got into my first juried indie craft show, Handmade Mart in downtown Silver Spring, MD on Sunday, May 31st! Am honored to be included in what looks like an awesome line-up of talented crafters and artists. You can download the vendor map and check out the blog and vendor profiles here.

Stop by booth 36 and say hi! I'll be right across from the Pyramid Atlantic Store and Maryland Youth Ballet School (hmm, maybe that bodes well for wearble tutu book sales?!).

summit of awesome class of 2009

Met a bunch of great folks at last weekend's inaugural Summit of Awesome. Aptly named, the event brought over 200 smart, creative, generous and inspiring indie crafters from across the country together for three days of practical learning and networking.

What a great way to get introduced to the rockin' indie craft scene! I didn't know what to expect, but having my (handmade) socks knocked off was a nice outcome. The wealth of experience, biz savvy, and ingenuity gave me the jump-start I needed to give the indie craft scene a try.

Can't wait till next year's summit. In the meantime, I hope to reconnect with new friends throughout the year at local and regional craft shows.

moving parts on the move

Last fall, I approached Gretchen Schermerhorn at Pyramid Atlantic with an idea that Paul Emerson of CityDance and I had been hatching for awhile. Actually, Paul was patiently waiting for me to get the courage to put my idea out there, after an initial brainstorm in the spring of 2007.

This fund-raising project idea is a reflection of my interest in artistic collaboration, cross-pollination between the visual and performing arts, and making a difference (okay, let's be honest: I love the book arts and I'm a life-long dancer. This was really a ploy to get a bunch of folks excited and involved in my greatest passions).

The project involves ten artists, each interpreting a theme or idea from CityDance's 2008-2009 season through an artist book. We're doing an edition of 50 small books each, which we'll house in custom 2-tier lidded boxes.

To say that this project involves a lot of moving parts is an understatement. But the name, Moving Parts, is a reflection of what it takes to conceive and pull off a professional dance company's season. For a glimpse behind the scenes on that story, check out Paul's blog for CityDance.

Moving Parts is on the move. Montgomery County TV is filming our monthly progress meeting tomorrow night at Pyramid (I'll post the airing details here once I know more), and my piece for the project just got accepted into a national exhibit at 23 Sandy Gallery in June.

I hope this is just the beginning. As the project progresses, I'll profile the other artists involved and events supporting our interest in getting the word out here. In the meantime, in the words of a good friend in reaction to seeing my prototype book for the project, "heaven is a tutu!"

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back to basics with paper

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I've noticed a trend in TV ads lately: paper. It caught my attention maybe six months ago with ads from CTI, Comcast and Microsoft. Beautiful paper butterflies unfurling on flowering paper trees, hand-drawn animated collages, flat-looking paper doll cut-outs. Just now, I witnessed back-to-back UPS and AT&T ads use the same "paper" treatment.

I'm sure that I'm not only one to notice this trend, but I can't find anything specifically about it online. As a book artist, it's sure caught my attention! My guess is that it's art directors' attempts to reflect a back-to-basics mood of the American consumer. While unemployment soars, we have no stomach for glitz and slickness. Maybe we can handle beautiful, tactile, simple paper.

For a taste of what I'm noticing, check out these short clips:

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starting to dance again

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Wow, what a difference a few months makes. I was recently encouraged to apply for an emerging artist residency at Pyramid Atlantic. My first reaction what shock, then secret pleasure at even being included on the list of others invited to do so. I then moved to "dare I?" and to "well, I won't get it, but let me go through the exercise just to get my feet wet." Today, as I send in my application...I want this!

I see this as progress: from not considering myself an "emerging artist," to someone who really is. I walked away from a dance career nearly 25 years ago, and haven't starting forgiving myself for this until recently. "Dancing again" feels like forgiveness...and a reclamation of my artist self.

 

creative genius on loan

My friend Joanne brought this talk by Elizabeth Gilbert (of Eat, Pray, Love fame) to my attention. As I wade further into some projects that are asking me to be more visible with my book art, Gilbert's take on putting safe distance between ourselves and the work we "channel" is helpful. Putting my ideas out there, inviting input from experienced others, risking rejection...these necessary tasks become more palatable when I take the pressure off of myself and just show up for the work.