Santa Fe, New Mexico

Spent two weeks with 3 gal pals I have known for over 35 years in Santa Fe, NM.  I have lots of pics below and will also post a separate section on Route 66.  New Mexico is one of those places I pine for....the land, the food and the art.  Went to some art openings, lots of galleries, great food and got out of the city a bit. Here are some highlights....

Door to our casa

Our host is a metal worker so the following pics are the decoration around the place.

A few fall nature photos.

Opening at a new gallery.

On the design Crawl with a stop at Tom Dixon

Pecos Pueblo where the Spanish and the Indans lived.

A Kiva for their ceremonies.

On the door of the museum

Pottery found at Pecos.

Lots of religious symbols everywhere in SF.

Built in the wall of a private home.

She is new and imported from Mexico.  Held up at the 

border and searched. True story!

I always visit the Stupa.

Typical way of building around a court yard.

Doors

windows

fences

Chili pepper time

Tequila Time

Sculpture around SF

Local kids style

Aluquerque balloon festival

Folkart Museum

One man's collection from all over the world

Was left in the trash after funeral and he rescued it...all beaded!

OCTOBER UPDATE

This is an exciting month as I have my first public art up at the Union Gospel Mission in their new building on Hastings Street.  Photos of the build are below.  I also have a couple group shows:  Connecting the Dots at the Five Sixty Club ...560 Seymour Oct 1/2 and The Retro Show Oct 15/16.

I am also going on a two week trip with my gal pal Dev to Santa Fe to visit a couple other gal pals!  Lots of art, music, the hot air balloon show in Albuquerque, corn dance at the Taos Pueblo, and a few days on Route 66 in Arizona.  
NOTE:  November I will be in www.firstsaturday.ca and www.eastsideculturecrawl.com

Earlier this year Arnt and I received an email asking if the UGM knew anyone who makes crosses out of found objects.  I immediately responded and asked Arnt if he would help.  We had a meeting and here is the project!  Our first collaboration and my first public art piece.

The column is from an east van house

Cut the column in half

scrapping the paint off

we want to leave some paint on for that distressed look

we will do two crosses and show one at the Crawl

we are capping it with a pattern piece from Nye's Foundry on Powell

The cross piece has to be distressed..here Arnt is using chain

a hammer is used for a different look

finally sanding out some stress patterns

here it is put together

we are using this cloth as a model for our cloth of copper

we start with flat copper

we need to crinkle it up to start the folds

here it is crinkled

we now have to open it up and fine tune the folds

mocking up how it will hang

measurements are good but looks a bit like a garland

starting the patina process to make it verdigris

we used a taiga torch and chemicals

fine tuning the colours

This should work

Close up of the copper cloth

The finished Cross

September update

Closing in on the end of August....time for new projects to start taking shape.  CONTAINER ART at the PNE is up and running until September 5.  Check out http://www.facebook.com/containerart for pictures and more details on the artists.
FIRST SATURDAY OPEN STUDIOS is on Sept 3 and I will be part of that with my studio opening from noon to 5pm with several other artists.  Check out http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=105967792814139 for list of artists and map.
We will be handing in our final drawings for the SEVEN FOOT CROSS for Union Gospel Mission that Arnt and I are working on together.
A BATHROOM AND KITCHEN store has asked me to come and meet them in order to create a couple of pieces for them.
And finally the CRAWL work for November.  Check out www.eastsideculturecrawl.com for details.
I also have a couple of FALL TRIPS planned...back to Tofino with Sharon, 108 Miles to visit my family, Santa Fe with a couple gal pals and then surfing in Mexico when it gets cold here!
Wow so much for the lazy days of summer.  I guess they will be over soon.  I can't complain as I have had a WONDERFUL SUMMER with three trips to Tofino for boogie boarding, fantastic wedding in Courtenay of my nephew and new niece.  And an amazing sailing trip with Arnt and I on Odin and our best friends on another boat, Ern.  We ate lots of bounty from the sea including Arnt's 20 lb ling cod, crabs and clams.  Even an art project in the Octopus Islands.  Lots of wonderful hikes to giant trees, swimming in turquoise lakes and refreshing dips in the ocean. 

Odin at anchor

Arnt's 20 lb lingcod

Art project at Octopus Islands

Big Cedar Tree at Blind Channel

Me at the tiller

Summer 2011!

Well I won't be part of First Saturday Open Studios for July and August but I will take part in September....will be sailing in the Broughton Archipelago up by Port Hardy, BC, going to my nephews wedding in Courtenay and then working on Container Art at the PNE, Vancouver opening August 20 to September 5.  I help jury the show and then facilitate the artists moving into the 20 foot shipping containers.  We have several different mediums but the deal is the shipping containers have to be left as they were when the artist first arrived...so that means no nails, paint, etc...so not only is the artist an artist but also an engineer.  Look forward to this 3rd annual show.  http://www.pne.ca for details.  See you all in September!