I have my computer back!! Yea!

so now I can upload the photos of my recent drawings. still mostly in black ink on paper right now. playing around a bit with markers on paper too. having lots of fun. avoiding my piece i need to quilt. hopefully after I upload some of these black and white drawings i'll be ready to tackle it. Hope you enjoy looking! I'll try and upload these and some more to my etsy shop tonight. Check it out if you haven't already (link on the right side of this blog).

Try this experiment. Take a cheap Bic pen and plain white piece of 8 1/2 x 11 paper. Doodle on the paper until all of the ink in the pen is gone. It's fun!

Heidi

Computer Woes

My computer died a few weeks ago and I"m going crazy without the ability to download or scan photos of my artwork. I can't add items to my Etsy shop, I can't post photos on my blog, I can't send pictures of works in progress to friends for feedback. Thank goodness my husband was able to set me up temporarily with internet and email capabilities.

I just wanted to post to let you all know why you haven't seen any new photos lately. I am still drawing lots of angel figures in black ink. I hae also been working on one on fabric with my watercolor crayons.

I recently attended a meeting of the Georgia chapter of the Surface Design Association and met some really talented and inspiring artists. I'm excited to get more involved with the group.

I'm busy planning the 2008 Art at the Mill event for my son's school. I co-chaired it last year and it was a ton of work but a huge success. I'm looking forward to making it even better this year. so, if you are an artist in the Atlanta area, send me an email if you are available February 5th, 2008. We are looking for new and exciting mediums/techniques/artists to include in the event.Seriously, if you have questions send me an email and Ill give you more information.

I'm hoping to have something finished by Saturday for the Form not Function exhibit. Not sure if I'm going to make it yet.

Go out and have some fun today. Have a coffee break and do some doodling! Dig in your garden. Just do something creative! I promise, it will make you feel good.:)

Heidi

Angels are Everywhere!!! And, new Etsy shop!!!

Hi everyone,

Well, I am totally stuck on pen and ink drawings of angels now. I shouldn't be surprised. They have been showing up in my sketch book since I first started drawing a year and a half ago. They have a very personal meaning to me. They represent my growth. I have an image that I haven't quite been able to portray artistically of an angel cradling me, I'm an adult but somehow a baby too, but if you look closely the angel is me also. I WANT it to be angel, someone else who can handle all of the pain and chaos of life. But, it can't really be, it has to be me. When you are an adult you have to learn to be the one to take care of yourself. Well, it gets more complicated than that. Maybe I can't quite get it artistically because I haven't quite gotten it in real life. Still working through it. Here are a few more.

And, I am super excited to announce that I have opened an ETSY SHOP!!!


Check it out!! I'm very excited to have a new and easy way to get my artwork out their easily and quickly. Check often because I plan to try and add an image a day.

Off to Charleston for a few days. Hope to have fun with the kids and fit in some pool side sketching time.

Take good care and do something CREATIVE today!

Heidi

What do angels look like to you?

So I've been trying to move away from fairies but they keep appearing in my work. I often start off thinking of angels but they somehow always turn into fairies. So, I've been trying harder and finally am beginning to sketch some angels I'm happy with it. My 6 year old son sat down beside this morning we had a conversation:

son: "What is THAT?"
me: "An angel."
son: "No, angels don't look like that."
me: "What do they look like?"
son: "Well, they have a round halo and wear a long shirt. And, their faces are just different than that."
me: "How do you know?"
son: "That's how pictures of them look."
me: "Who drew the pictures?"

anyway, you can see where this is going. So, who really knows what an angel looks like anyway? Be creative, think outside the box! And, I don't want my angel to look like anyone else could have created her!

Heidi

I AM AN ARTIST!!!!

I realized today that I have finally become comfortable with saying "I am an artist" when someone asks me what I do. I don't mutter it or say "I want to be an artist. I am trying to be an artist." and it feels great! I don't know exactly when that happened. When I was able to say it start calling myself an artist with conviction. It might be that I have had some milestones in the last few months that have increased my confidence. Winning an award in a juried show, selling an image for a professional flyer, being invited to teach at a school for a day, being asked to teach private lessons to someone. Or maybe it was making some money at my last arts festival. I suspect it may be the last. Selling things to people who come off the street was a real rush. I try to not let my identity as an artist be tied up in my ability to make a real income with my work, but I just can't seem to escape it. I guess despite all of my other goals as an artist and ways that it feeds my life and my soul, ultimately, I want to make money and support myself. Well, my husband supports the family now. Which affords me the luxury to stay home with my kids and pursue my art both really full time. But, I have a need to know that I COULD support myself (which I could of course in other ways, as a mathematician for instance) as an artist. Many artists are very, very successful but still have to hold full or part time jobs. I don't want that. So, for now I'm holding on to my dream that if I work at it hard enough I can do this.

And, work at it hard I do. I still find the second question hard to answer after "What do you do?" . I can say "I am an artist" just fine now. But, when the next question is, "Well, is that just a hobby?" or "Do you work outside the home?" or "Do you make a living at it?" I get kind of stuck. I need to work on my answer. Maybe it should go something like this:

No, it is not a hobby. It is my job and my identity. I work as many hours or more than many do in a full time job outside of the home. I sell my work, I am beginning to teach, my work hangs in galleries in juried shows and I have won awards. I do not support my family with my art career.....YET.


How does that sound? Maybe it sounds a little to defensive. I'll work on it some more. I am working on the selling myself part. I love sharing my story, inspiring others to follow their dreams, but I don't like saying "Rah-Rah" for me.

I don't want folks to think it is all about money though. It's not because I want more stuff like cars, houses, or material things. It's really about who I am as a person. An over-achiever. My therapist recently had an ah-ha moment regarding my artistic endeavors (yes, I have a therapist and I am proud of it). She had thought my moving away from mathematics to art was a whole new me. A different kind of way of working. But, as she listened to how I approach it. Which is OBSESSED!! And, totally workaholic like. she realized, oh, this is still Heidi, she is just putting her energies in a different place.

So, what does a day look like in the life of an artist? Well, today was a day "off" meaning out of the "studio", no major deadlines looming for shows or festivals, and I wanted to get out of the house and away from the responsibilities of wife/mother. So, it started by having coffee with my husband at Border's/Starbucks after dropping off Maggie at school. This turned into reading about graphic design and copyright research. I researched how to get more of my artwork into things like magazines, book covers, gift cards, etc. Other creative ways to sell and make money doing what I love, so I can do more of it. Then, off for lunch with 2 artist friends (to pick up some of my artwork from them) which was fun but we discusses judgingj/jurying processes, how to sew a great binding, planning a show for next year, etc. Then, off to the library to return some books which turned into more research about graphic design and checking out books on some of my favorite artists (Kadinsky, Klee, Chagall). Then, finally, a pedicure. My main objective for my day off. During which I sketched about 10 drawings. Pedicures have produced some of the sketches for my best work. Now I am home. The kids are in the back yard. I am blogging in hopes to share my journey with others.

Now, say it loudly with me, I AM AN ARTIST!

Probably more than you wanted but I have been wanting to write more about my whole journey, so here it is.

Now, time to go outside and check on the kiddos, push a swing, play some tage and maybe do some more sketching. Above are a few sketches from my pedicure time.

Heidi

What have I been up to lately?

Well, I mailed off my quilt for Journal Quilt Project 2007 yesterday. Pictures are not allowed but I was pretty pleased with how it turned out. Since then I've been mostly doodling with black ink on paper and looking at lots of art online. Having fun cruising around etsy shops and "outsider" art blogs and web pages. There is so much to see and learn!!!!! And, in the mail today I received the latest issue of one of my favorite zines: Art and Life by Teesha Moore. I haven't read it yet but I have flipped through it to absorb some of the color. Beautiful as usual.

I'll post pics of something soon. Just wanted to let you all know I haven't forgotten about posting.

Take good care.

A few photos from the CAG festival

You can see some of the new artwork I completed for the show and some of my family members there to support me.

heidi

Art Show a Big Success

Hi everyone,

Just a quick note to say I am back home after a whirlwind weekend in Dalton, GA (my hometown). I had a booth at a local arts festival and it also turned out to be the weekend of my 20th high school reunion. I just got home literally 5 minutes ago and instead of unpacking the car, I came in to unwind with my iced latte and the computer for a few minutes.

These art festivals are a ton of work but I love getting to meet people, especially children, who like my art. I love telling my story of how this is a recent new journey and encouraging people who are just starting on their own.

My biggest hit was my coloring books (not financially, just in terms of actual items sold). It was a last minute idea and they went like hotcakes. I'm going to spruce them up a bit and make a large quantity now that I know they are a hot item.

I sold several larger items including my Stitch Frenzy piece which recently returned home to me from the National Small Art Quilt exhibit in Groton, NY. I lost a few sales since I don't take credit cards so I'm going to fix that problem before I do another show.

Thanks to everyone for the encouragement and support. Every day I know that I have really found my true calling.

Take good care,

Heidi

My Hope Piece

Here is the detail image of my Hope piece. This is before I decided to stuff her face so she looks a bit different now but not much.

Heidi

Fiber Art Fusion-Hope Exhibit Opening

Hi again,

Last Thursday evening was the opening for Fiber Art Fusion's member exhibit. It turned out beautifully. A special thanks goes to Rebecca Reasons-Edwards (the beautiful blonde in the photos), President and founder of the group. Her vision led to this event after only about a year and a half as a group. I took a few photos, but forgot to take one of my own piece. I'll post more when I can. I hope to go back and take some more photos soon.

So, if you live in the area (Marietta, GA) check out the exhibit at The Art Place. I believe it runs through the 23rd.

This weekend there are several events worth checking out--The East Cobb Quilt Guild exhibit, the Creative ARts Guild Festival in DAlton, GA (I have a booth there), and the Roswell Arts FEstival. So, if you are looking for something fun to do this weekend there are plenty of choices.

Sleep well everyone,

Heidi

Corel Drawing

Hello again,

I've not been using Corel much the last few days. I've actually been painting real paintings. But, I did scan a drawn image and then "paint" it in digitally. Here is the result.

heidi

Today's Corel Experiment

So today I'm in a bit of a hurry but wanted to try pulling in some of my own artwork to Corel Paint Shop and seeing what kind of interesting things I could do with it. The first picture is a photograph (or scan, can't remember) of my original piece. The next two have been manipulated in Corel Paint Pro. Not many changes. Just working with color, saturation, half-tones and such. What do you think? Oh, the possibilities are endless!




Heidi

Today's Digital Art

It's a bit silly but this one a day thing isn't as easy as I thought it would be. It's a great way when I am stuck creatively or am not working on other things. But, right now I am trying to get ready for the Creative Arts Guild Festival in Dalton next weekend. Which means I am actually trying hard to focus and finish all of those 90% done pieces around the house so I have enough for my booth. So, this is my 10 minute digital art inspiration for the day.

heidi

Adventures in Dyeing

Well, dyeing was fun yesterday but the results were only so-so. I didn't take the time to plan carefully enough and ended up with quite different results than planned. A few of my pieces turned out rather interesting. I scanned these so the images look a little weird. Hopefully I'll actually do something with them soon rather than just add them to my stack of unfinished projects. I'll take pics of the kids in their creations and post them soon.

Okay, here is today's Corel Painting after all

Heidi

Oops, I missed a day on my Corel Paint posting

So, here is one from a week or so ago. I am still playing around with it everyday but nothing else exciting to post just yet. I'm working this one into a quilt design. I call it jellybeans and ice cream.

Take care. Have a nice holiday weekend. My family and I are off to do some fabric and clothes dyeing in the backyard today! Yippee! Can it get any better? Art, dyeing fabric, family time. I must be in heaven.

heidi

Here's today Corel Paint Shop Art

Not sure what it is or represents but I love the colors. I've always wanted to take a pastel class and now I really, really want to since using the Pastel option in Corel Paint Shop.

On to other things.

heidi

I'll call this one, releasing the toxins

I'm thinking I'll post one (or at least one!) a day of these computer generated art pieces. It will give me something to look forward to and a way to be creative in a non-messy way. So, I know it's not fiber art but hopefully at least some of these designs will end up in my fiber pieces.

Thanks for looking.

Did I say procrastinate?

Okay, so I am totally addicted to computer drawing, painting, etc. I can't stop!!! Is there a self-help program for this? It's just so easy to sit down and make a painting and 2 hours later you look up and wonder where the time has gone. Plus, no clean-up! Can it get any better? Or worse? EEk?

So, I'm so absorbed with playing with it I can't tell yet if I am making some good work (not sure what I will do with it to turn it into something real, off the computer) or I am just fingerpainting. It's fun either way! I hope to use it to inspire/create my fiber/quilt art. It's great for laying out colors, shapes, etc.

Is this what graphic artists/designers get to do all day? Maybe I should go back to school!

Happy creating,

Heidi

How to Procrastinate

I decided to download a trial version of a drawing program. Don't ask me why. I was just sitting at the computer to quickly read emails and look up a phone number. And, an hour later here is what I have accomplished. Tons of fun! I can tell this will be a total time sink for me. Just when I'm trying hard (okay, maybe not so hard) to get my butt up and away from the computer more often. This when I should have been cleaning house and some other things. Well, at least my 6 year old played around with it too. He is home sick today and I just thought he might need a break from his 2 year old sister so I set him down and let him play around with the program.

Fun with Pamela Allen

I took two classes last week with Pamela Allen and had a blast. The first day was very fast paced and we all made 5 small art quilts. Here is one of them. I'm still working on it. While trying to decide what this little alien was all about I kept looking at his outstretched arms. I thought of two things. First that he is welcoming and welcoming to all, being the diverse individual that he is. And, that second, it reminded me of a little thing they say in our children's Sunday school class, "Our church is the church of the open mind, loving heart and helping hands." So I've started stitching Open Mind, Loving Heart and Helping Hands on him.

Remember to create something every day, even if it's just a doodle while you are on the phone!

Heidi

Happy Dance!!!!!

Hi everyone,

I have several reasons to celebrate. First, my piece, Stitch Frenzy, won the Juror's Choice Award #1 in the National Small Art Quilts Exhibit currently running at The Main Street Gallery in Groton, NY. Yippeeee!!!! Check it out online if you like:

www.mainstreetgal.com/lnkname/Fiber%20Art/7663/&pos=5&pos=35

And, I recently added (or really started) my fiber art collection with a piece from Virginia Spiegel!!! Excellent!!!

School starts tomorrow for my first grader and then in another week by 2 1/2 year old will be in school a few mornings a week. Getting excited about having time to myself again to create art (and get my teeth cleaned and my hair cut!). Althought, I really enjoyed my summer with the kids. We had a blast. Way too short.

Have a great week everyone! I'll be busy finishing my piece for the Hope exhibit coming up very soon. Eeek..

Heidi

I did say obsessed in that last post didn't I?

So, here are a few images. One is Dye-Na-Flow drawing. Another is a carving into foam plate. One is watercolor paint on watercolor paper. And, 2 are my traditional watercolor crayons on watercolor paper. Hopefully I'll find a way to either make them into their own pieces or to use them and integrate them together into my piece for the Hope exhibit.

heidi

Latest work

I've been working on an idea for an upcoming exhibit with my local fiber group (Fiber Art Fusion). The exhibit theme is hope. I've been trying to come up with something for almost a year and have too many sketches and notes to even remember. The image that stuck with me is of a pregnant woman. I finally got the courage to start the piece last night (thanks to a late night sew-in with some friends, thanks!). It's coming along but I'm finding myself now obsessed with the pregnant form of a woman's body. I've started carving them today, cutting them out of foam shapes, drawing them, painting them. Here is the start of a simple sketch on a foam plate. Hopefully it will work for some printing. I find that I often become obsessed with one form. At one point it was the curves of the Yoni. Another, the simple rounded faces of my fairies. Lately, pregnant bodies, and aliens (that later, thanks to my 6 year old son).

I originally wanted to piece this art project and get back to my quilting roots. But, that will have to be another project. This one is turning out to be right in my comfort zone right now, watercolor crayons on fabric.

The exhibit will be at The Art Place in Marietta, Georgia, right next to the Mountain View Library. Opening reception is September 6th.

Have a nice evening.

Heidi

Recent Work

I just returned from vacation in Minnesota. Some in Minneapolis and some on Fall Lake close to Ely. I did a lot of sketching and also this painting of some of the sunflowers in my in-laws gorgeous garden.