New Adventures in Art Making. Life in a Retirement Community. New Lease on Life, and Letting Go.
I created some new pages here on the blog which you can link into and find pics for miles. The pages are listed at the top of the blog. Check out the ones featuring friends’ inspiring homes (hey there, Mary Korfanty, Barbara Gold, Dwight West, Linda Goodwin, and Dr. Ladenberger).
(This is a new blog format/theme and I am having a hell of a time getting the fonts right. Apologies if it comes out wonky. It is very very late at night.)
After a year on the wait list for an apartment at the Juliette Fowler retirement community, the move happened all of a sudden at Christmas. Around that time we BA ’66 grads lost one of ou icons, one of our beloveds, to cancer. I was so glad to have spent a little time with Bobby Bassett over the last few years; mainly at art venues and then later in hospice. I sure hope I see you in the afterlife.
Bobby is on the left. Middle: Brent; right: BryanLots of artwork in various media going on here in my new home. It’s only 600 sq. ft. and I’m pretty used to living small, but I do have to have my art supplies, artwork and treasures! I’m comfortable here and the 2 big windows with expansive views plus high ceilings, keep me from feeling closed in. I’ve joined the artists’ group here, and have committed to the water aerobics class by purchasing a new swim dress. I was without Wifi for awhile, so couldn’t post. Today and evening I got caught up on blog posts by creatives I follow. That was cool.
Meantime, here are pics from The Lakewood Library 54th Annual Artists’ show on view all of May. I am thrilled to have 2 pieces in it; cardboard and fabric doll, and acrylic painting using the techniques I learned from Lynn Whipple during her online class, The Essence of Still Life. I will never paint the same old way again!
Here is work by a new artist friend Jacqui during our weekly art workshop here at JFCA:
Isabel kitty is happy here! Thanks for visiting!
Time to Try New Things! New Worlds Open Up…..
Discovering the joy of Instagram
Wherein I begin to post all my new (and older) artwork and find a variety of artists and creatives and makers from all over the world, who post their expressions…..and you can communicate with them in real time! I need more real time!
Genie Geer’s Instagram account
Creatives I am currently following on Instagram
A couple photos of what I’ve been working on. Or click on the link above to my Instagram account.
I am still a little challenged on uploading photos from my Flickr page to my blog via downloading them first to this Windows PC…..I find Flickr difficult to use and Instagram is my new crush. I can upload photos from my iPhone to Instagram in a snap, and tell it to share with Facebook and Flickr. Done and Done. I haven’t attempted to upload my phone data to this computer yet. I hope I learn that soon.
On the Bookshelf
I’m always reading / studying several publications at a time. Sometimes it takes me a few months to finish any one of them. Who am I kidding. Sometimes over a year. As is the case of Proust’s tomes; I love them for their descriptive prose, it’s like looking at a series of beautiful paintings. I’m a slow reader, maybe because I visualize every little thing.
Louise Penny “The Brutal Telling”, #5 in the Chief Inspector Gamache novels. I love her characters and the Quebec backdrop.
Elisabeth-Louise Vigee-Lebrun “Memoirs of Madame Vigee-Lebrun, Illustrated Edition”. This is the autobiography of the prolific French artist whose many clients spanning many decades, included Marie Antionette. She traveled and worked all over Europe until her death in 1842. Wow!
Barbara Gold’s “Loving Courageously…First Me, Then You, Now Us”.
https://www.amazon.com/Loving-Courageously
She has a YouTube interview, here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPuEHCeNlNw
Barbara draws on over 35 years of psychotherapy practice to help readers develop a self to love and take good care of as we re-write the script we’ve learned. Knowing me well, and some of the issues I struggle with, she recommended I read:
“When Food Is Love”, Exploring the Relationship Between Eating and Intimacy”, by Geneen Roth (also on Amazon). I’m only in the second chapter, but I can tell you that silent tears streamed down my cheeks all through Chapter 1. Many years ago I had to give up booze and cigarettes and looking for love in all the wrong places. My son grew up to have serious dependency problems of his own. No dad around. Now, I can’t live without artmaking. And comfort food, primarily Blue Bell Ice Cream. I wonder if I will cry during chapter 2 of Roth’s book?
Carole Katchen’s “Express Yourself! with Pastel”. The Art of Carole Katchen
I glommed on to this artist through one of my favorite blogs, “How To Pastel” by Gail Sibley. I’m using what I’m learning through Carole and Gail’s techniques to create my own pastel paintings over the last few weeks. Here’s the link to her blog:
Pastel Journal, http://www.pasteljournal.com. The only magazine I subscribe to these days.
And then through all these great learning sources, I can’t forget YouTube, because many generous artists of all genre share their expertise online. There aren’t enough hours in the day! Yipee for retirement! A friend of mine was shocked when she found out how many hours a day I devote to social media plus my artwork. One wonders how I even have time for ice cream.
Katherine Dunn’s “Creative Illustration Workshop for Mixed Media Artists”. I found this gem at HalfPrice Books. I first saw her work in one of Cat Bennett’s books. There is a whimsy and similarity in their styles, I think.
Lastly, two “In Easy Steps” how-to reference books on Windows 10 and Word 2013 because I had to retire my old and small, MacBook. Because I sometimes get to work with a couple of friends involving using a computer, and they use Windows, and mainly because I could not afford to upgrade my Apple OS, I made the decision to purchase a used, refurbished Toshiba laptop. And this sucker is big, for ease of use. This post is ‘Shiba’s virgin foray into the blogesphere of Artyology and friends. I am also using Google Chrome for the first time. Having a little challenge with curser control.
Stitch with Friends
It was a fun evening at Kelly’s with our friend Linda, and Kelly’s darling dogs, Gypsy and Elsa. I was really rusty since no actual fiber arts have been accomplished over here lately, just lots of looking at various textile artists’ blogs. I want to start some more dollmaking with simple patterns, smallish in size, and with some drawing on the fabric plus little “samplers” stitched onto their simple clothes….
That’s all for now. I’ve got a buncha blogs to read!
Hope Returns and Sharing Maker Inspiration
I continue to rework some older cloth dolls as the mood strikes me. I am still incubating ideas for new pieces. Often, before I fall asleep, I rehearse a technique and assemble all the parts completely in my head. I might even paint a picture (also in my head). Too bad all the inspired work going on in my head doesn’t actually come to fruition. Is this normal behavior?
Artists/Makers/Teachers whose work has influenced me lately are:
Claudine Hellmuth – collage
Lynne Perrella – collage, mixed media
Thread and Thrift – textile artist, printmaker
The Pale Rook – cloth doll art
My mom, D.J. Geer, who passed sixteen years ago, would have turned 90 this past July. She was an artist and especially loved any sort of textile art. We were playmates. She loved birds. When she died, I took her favorite ceramic purchase, a fat budgie. This is my watercolor of it.
Hey, New York: Hipsters thrive in Texas too!
Over the last few months, I have been fortunate to supplement my social security income by typing, and helping edit, a dear friend’s memoir. It is turning into therapy for us both (besides the obvious learning experience). In addition, we are working on an art project together; I am scanning and mounting her drawings. Here’s a little sketch I made of her after a memoir session at my kitchen table:
April to present was filled with difficulties related to family issues and there were times I couldn’t make much art, or even read blogs; it was a struggle to open my email and Facebook. Just wanted to sleep round the clock. My memoir-writing friend has lent me her Inspector Gamache and The Walk novels, as I confessed to only reading my collection of “research” material related to Art or Decor or Fashion.
I needed an escape, and boy do I love Louise Penny’s and Richard Paul Evans’ work now! I’m an addictive personality and can barely put them down long enough to return to Blogs and Art. I expect to learn some things about Life and People, and maybe….maybe that will lead to some new Artwork, as well. Hope returns.
The Boomer Digital Learning Curve + Self-Doubt = Just One More Challenge
Hip hip hurrah! During Thanksgiving week, a woman in New York purchased one of my paintings from my new Etsy site! My God, I was so proud and pleased (still am) because this was validation that my art mattered, it spoke to someone besides me, it gave someone so much pleasure to see that they were compelled to buy it. I’m like a proud parent sending a cherished child into the world.
Even so, a big funk recently overtook me (for days and days), and I began to doubt my ability, my path, and worse: I felt I didn’t deserve anything good, much less recognition and validation. Who did I think I was, anyway? And my gawd, look how old I am! A retired Boomer, washed-up old hag…..blah blah blah.
In my very long experience with this issue there were too many times I got close to my goal, backed away, gave up. Pouted and indulged in despair (and things that weren’t very good for my health). So OK, this time I did dig in to the Blue Bell ice cream a whole lot, but I remembered to turn to my collection of books on creativity for help. One is Julia Cameron’s ‘The Artist’s Way Trilogy’, and since I do believe we are guided, closed my eyes and let it fall open…..and the page it fell open to featured the section on ‘Creative U-Turns’. Damn! Magic, yet again.
And then there’s the what I call The Boomer Digital Learning Curve. I have been in computer hell for a few days, figuring out how to make a watermark to apply on my pics of my artwork ‘cuz copyright infringement is a hot topic and maybe, just maybe, some idiot would download one of my pieces and slap it in a frame, bypassing actually purchasing it from me. I don’t think so! This means I have been notating all my digital work, uploading new photos to my Etsy shop, and taking some off my Pinterest site, finally realizing Pinterest is not really the best place to post your own work anyway; and on it goes.
Here is my mixed media painting that was my first sale on Etsy:
One of the gifties I sent to Cousin Julie in Virginia, is this print of my sketch, “Tablet Guy”. Julie says her iPad is her ‘constant companion’. This coming from a lady who, not too long ago, was not eager to tackle the Boomer Digital Learning Curve and now she could probably teach a class on it.
To make my life easier and less angst-full I think I will blog more regularly instead of saving up too much chatter in my head. I can release it into the blogosphere, thereby freeing more space in the brain for creative thoughts.
Sometimes It Just All Goes Terribly Wrong. Until You Work Through It.
Well, that’s a bit of an overstatement about my irritations today, but I’m still in a twit over it and needing to just get over myself. Nothing’s so irritating as knowing just enough about computers and blogs and social media sites and online shops and digital photos and scans ET AL….to just irritate yourself silly.
I was tweaking my blog you see, and sorta crashed my PC. I still have my MacBook which needs a new OS (since it is going on 8 years old) so I’m plugging away on it right now. I do love it, bless its tiny screen, but I also love my BIG monitor PC. OK.
Poking around in my photo files, I found some pics that illustrated what I thought were Projects Gone Terribly Wrong. I’m wondering if I can rescue a couple of them because in retrospect, they don’t appear as horrid to me know as they did back then. I can crop and digitally correct some scans, and I can paint all around and over the oil. Unless I just decide to start on Something Else Entirely.
But Oh Boy! Here’s some Things I REALLY Like; pics from friends, the neighborhood, famous artists, and my own scribbles as well:
I’m really getting in the mood to make some simple cloth dolls. I had forgotten about this little drawing, and maybe she has surfaced at just the right time. Yes, most definitely. 
Feelin’ better already. Funny how that works.
The Big Leap ~ or, How to Change Your Life just short of having a nervous breakdown
Apparently, I like change as evidenced by recent events. Of course it is hard, but worth the challenges and serendipitous happenings. Last year I was stuck trying to rearrange my studio; but when my son moved in 6 months ago, my studio space (almost effortlessly) moved to the living room area which is a much better location anyway!
Last November, I had the honor of participating as a vendor in the winter Art Mart Underground at Bath House Cultural Center on White Rock Lake here in Dallas. The weather was unexpectedly frigid with ice storms causing hundreds of shoppers to stay home. But a thrilling experience nevertheless.
After 3 straight years (no paid time off) at a fast paced high pressure low wage customer service call center, where constant policy and data changes and criticism was the norm, I recently 
found it necessary to bail out. Family and friends are encouraging me to press on with my Aryology project. So, I’m opening an Etsy store soon.
Mixing it up with sketch, stitch, and paint
Commissioned work scares the hell out of me. And not because I am afraid the piece won’t turn out well, but because some of the magic of spontaneity may not find its way in, that even one limitation to the work’s intuitive process (some specific requirement as requested by the commissioner) will limit me in such a way that I become very uncomfortable. Never mind that the buyer’s ideas may make my artwork even better, perish the thought! Clearly, I have control and ego issues.
But I love it when someone likes a finished piece so much he/she must have it, and when this occurs, nothing could be sweeter. You feel as if you have truly communicated your intention as told to you by the artwork itself.
The photos show recent sketches and a couple of cloth dolls – I’m calling them BodyParts Dolls, as I continue to assemble, or in some cases, disassemble dolls; changing hair, making new clothing bits, faces, hats…..
I continue to draw and paint, usually drifting from one project to another. That’s a great benefit of having let my “studio” space be the very same as my “living area”. Can’t separate them.
Before & After & During
As one thing leads to another, I can’t help sort of drifting from one project to another. The behind the scenes stuff is too irritating to mention.
Before and After: My Art & Craft Studio-Workplace
I “work” for months in my head, sketching, planning, making notes about how I think I want to re-organize my whole in-home art studio before anything actually gets done. Lucky to have an open floor plan so that I can play at all sorts of things all at once. This is key: I must have access to my tiny TV even if I am not actually watching it. And CDs.
So the process of setting up my work space in it’s current configuration has taken a few months. Which recently included sorting, washing, and rolling into remnant bundles, my little fabric stash. I ruthlessly tossed anything I don’t adore. Purging of fabric scraps is necessary and freeing. Of course, there is more to do: always. Especially in my office area. I hate paperwork but if you are alive, you are probably drowning in it.
So here is the record of the Great Before And After Project…….
Genie Geer Artyology 