Sunday 5 July 2009

Creative daze






We have had what feels like the first summer in 2-3 years here in England. The past 2 years have been so overcast and rainy it was a gamble to step outdoors.

I've had lots of day trips out with my family and a visiting friend from overseas. Creating lots of happy memories. Taking in shows, long walks, art projects in he garden.

My visiting friend is an artist and she carried one of her mermaid canvases all the way from Seattle to give to me. The shells glued onto the mermaid canvas are ones that she has collected herself from Hawaii and Costa Rica. Looking at them whisks me off to distant shores of colourful sun kissed lands. Last time she visited she brought me a painting of her 'super donkey' overlooking Seattle's space needle. I love them, my walls are blessed ;o)

During the quieter moments we have been painting new pictures over old canvases. I like recycling. Megan has been creating another mermaid for her collection. I have been painting a tree in a wildflower meadow.

Painting is not really a strength of mine. I tend to stick with textiles but I'm enjoying the experimentation of it all. The girl who used the canvas before me coloured the canvas in with felt tip pens so I have had to apply quite a dark base colour to cover it all up. I'm now building up paler meadow colours. Both paintings are works in progress and far from complete.

While taking a break from painting, Megan has been decorating tins with layers of paper and glue montage style. The tin looks great. I have been making beads out of old copies of 'The Big Issue' and letting my daughter string them into necklaces for friends and family members. I got the idea from a visit to the shared earth shop in town. The shop was selling these necklaces for £5 each which I thought was disgraceful for a bunch of newsprint beads. But having made them myself now I accept that although the materials have virtually no cost and there is not much skill to the technique, the process is very time consuming. I love the end result, very DIY punk, and i'm all for creating things out of recycled materials.

Earlier this week I received a cut out 'Alice' from Susan at Artspark Theatre. I have had great fun taking Alice along with me on day trips and trying to find interesting ways to photograph her. It's a really fun project that Susan is working on right now (thank you Susan for letting me take part). More visual testaments to Alice's adventures can be seen on the blog Artspark Theatre.

9 comments:

Tammie Lee said...

It sounds as though and looks as though you have been having a wonderful time!

ArtSparker said...

Glad you are having such a fruitful week - what a wonderful way to spend time with a friend.

Anne said...

it feels like you have a great time with your friend this summer.
i love your paperbeads:))

Shanti Mama said...

Love the newsprint bead necklace.

The quote hanging over my desk right now: "There is no use in trying," said Alice; "one can't believe impossible things." "I dare say you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

t said...

Hello Jasmine, thanks for your lovely comment on my blog. Your blog is beautiful....

Nao said...

Oh, nothing like a good friend and inspiration~ One of the most beautiful combinations I think. You are always up to creating magikal things over here.

Unknown said...

I like your blog !
Kathrin aus Bremen Germany

Caio Fern said...

hi Jasmine ! what a lovely post!this is summer . nice moments with people that matters , and constructing sweet memories for keep into the heart for ever .
when you said that it is the first summer in 2 - 3 years , i got scared . in 2007 i spent the spring in england , and came back to Sao Paulo in the begining of July . my family said that have never see me so tanned , they asked me what i have done , where was i ... i told then that it is the England sun . this is the irony , i lieve Brazil to get tanned in England .
this is my favorite country today , i always tell people to go there , it is colorful , people are great and very polite , the best landscapes a lovely arquiteture ..... it was a huge surprise to me , because on the movies we always see an England grey , with rude charaters . it is the oposite .
let me just say that was realy nice to know your blog . and thank you very much for your nice comments . it was very kind , i apreciate a lot .
see you .

Jasmine said...

Thank you all for your comments :)

Shanti Mama, i love that quote, thank you.

Caio Fernandes, we have had a wonderful summer here so far, I;m even peeling, despite factor 50 sun cream (I'm fair, my skin does not like too much sun).

I'm sure you will get a lot more positive feedback from your painting. It offers so many questions.