Wood Signs for Woodland Nephews

One of my very favorite friends is going to be Aunt Mel for the second time (this May), and I did a carve+stain+sand on this tree truck cross-section for her to take all the way back to her nephew's nursery, in Sandpoint, ID. 

Queen Mother Mary

18"x24" oil on canvas. Portrait of my mom and her cat. I started painting this pink years ago, and realized it was silly not to finish it, especially since I just used it as a birthday gift. 

Detail

The Cape, Boston, and the Mapparium

Last month I took Forrest to Boston for his 30th birthday. One of the most unique and outstanding features was unexpectedly the Mapparium. This is a multi-story, stained glass globe that was built in 1935, and correct politically to the world map at that time. You aren't allowed to take photos; so that's why I'm attaching this link "Mapparium". Not to mention that this whole thing is in the Mary Baker Eddy Library, which taking the time to read the tour signs, I found there to be a more complex rise of a religious movement than expected. The acoustics on the glass bridge of the globe were also surprising; you can hear yourself whisper in surround sound. 

While in Boston, we stopped at the site and love abounding memorial to the Marathon victims. On the 6th, Forrest was king of champagne and lobster. We stayed with the lovely Heather Falardeau, my roommate while in Savannah (and half of Two Girls Making Stuff)! I wish I had a photo of her very accurate studio. We also made it to CAPE COD. Warm enough to swim, smelled good like blankets of seaweed, awesome coffee shops. That last photo is some type of metals studio/renegade apocalypse shelter outside of the Cape. *ALSO* I was working on The Sketchbook Project during this trip-  more posts on that to come.

(instagram by Heather)

Día de los Muertos

The Day of the Dead coincided with my friend Damien's 30th birthday, so that was a party opportunity waiting to happen, especially since earlier in the year he was being a diva of sorts about the whole ThirtyMilestone. We kept a slightly satirical funeral vibe, complete with a coffin that he popped out of after we stood in a large circle reciting hilarious eulogies. What better way to dramatically tell your friends you love them? But the Dia de los Muertos aesthetic can be completely gorgeous and I think from now on I'll be skipping Halloween and sticking with this. Of course they really do it up right in Mexico and other participating cultures; large breads shaped like skulls, and parades...

Backyard lighting

Hurricane Sandy day two. Candles were not just for looks.

Forrest painted this both pretty and practical, and now he has a newly awakened love of painting all things. Looks like I have a new studio partner. 

Another by product of Hurricane Sandy. A rope was strung up indoors for this. It reminds me of 'putting the F-U-N back in funeral'.

 Going to work

Colors we could wear everyday. Totally.

Ink Party

Forrest/Rudy/SB

circa 07

("Gondola
   gondola
   gondola etc.")
("Golgotha is far away from here")
("This is a tutu/ I finally have a tutu")

Paper 15

Here's a little piece of paper for the old rocker in all of us..[related fact]: Today is also Melissa Cromwell's birthday. Check out her work http://melissaannecromwell.wordpress.com/. Check out her other work at http://www.jonathanadler.com/, too.

("How do you feel LOVING the most popular man in AMERICA?? [Bruce Springsteen]")

PS PS PS

http://yesbaker.tumblr.com/ is my new mood board style blog. Here you can also find a little montage shrine dedicated to M.Cromwell today. Other days see spectacle, color, and tableaux vivants.

Compact 1

A four inch eyeshadow compact from Athens, Greece in 2002 has long been emptied and refilled with acrylics, clear coat, and gold leaf. So that's that. A "fruit variation" on the way, someday.

Paper 5

("A practice developed in 1989,

The group of rainbow candy clusters on a field of drab pavement

Equaling a day of the week, an hour of the day or anything else I like the most- and set apart

as a four year old would.")

Color clusters.

More examples will follow.

-Sent from a fresh bed of my own, including this colored heaven of iris sheets.