good crafternoon

a few of us put aside the WORK for today, well, for an hour, and made pom poms. We also ate cookies. It was nice fun. Good sports, funny fun.
MOre WoRK LaTER, I promise.

Already into week 2?

I'm still liking these forms for trees.....

gotta love this horoscope, taurus.......
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Are you in possession of a talent or interest
or inclination or desire that no one else has? Is there some unique way
you express what it means to be human? According to my understanding
of the long-term astrological omens, the coming months will be your time
to cultivate this specialty with unprecedented intensity; it'll be a window
of opportunity to be more practical than ever before in making your
signature mark on the world. Between now and your next birthday, I urge
you to be persistent in celebrating the one-of-a-kind truth that is your
individuality.

It looks like I get to make the heck out of making for the next week or so...and then some! it's about the process for me, and by making and making I'll get to the artist that I'm looking for, I know it. Well, the artist is actually right here, she just needs to trust herself. SO. 

this might be needle lace....sometime soon!

a "sampler" mostly for me.

I get to be maker mcmakerson all afternoon!

this looks like a shroud....

and now it looks like a self portrait maybe. 

Guest Lecture

Part of meca MFA program is a visiting artist guest lecture series...tonight it was Beth Lipman http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Md2UGdHeXY
she was very inspiring, about intuition, research,  and work. And she'll be visiting me in my studio tomorrow! yay.

Guess What I Did at Skewl Today?

Not My Photo

We went to Higgins Beach today, just 10 minutes from skewl. How nice. 

maybe hypnotism will work!!

a structure

this is a tree constructed of upcycled denim...it pulls apart...a structure that will be explored further. Just thought you'd like to see how I spent my Saturday at cawledge.

structures

faraway shot of small soft sculpture I'm working on

searching for inspiration

looks like you can draw with a needle. Hmmmmm, maybe I'll try it

back to me roots

went shoppin tonight to get back to my big lots and dollar store roots....feeling much better, thank you.....tomorrow, salvation army store.

And a Lecture

Michael Kimmelman came to speak at the skewl about social responsibility and architecture and his travels. Well done! He says "we need messy ambiguous spaces."

oh, and my horoscope. perfect

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In 2011 car traffic began flowing across
Jiaozhou Bay Bridge, a newly completed span that joins the city of
Qingdao with the Huangdao District in China. This prodigious feat of
engineering is 26.4 miles long. I nominate it to serve as your prime
metaphor in the coming weeks. Picture it whenever you need a boost as
you work to connect previously unlinked elements in your life. It may help
inspire you to master the gritty details that'll lead to your own
monumental accomplishment.

GULP

met with my ADVISER today.

cheese and crackers....this sure ain't easy......but, why would it be? I'm still here.

DAD!

okay, so I wrote to my dad about the serious artists that I was introduced to today, and here's what he wrote back......

            Michele,

Serious competition will bring out the best in you.

I remember when you didn’t think you were good enough to play basketball.  I said who is better?

You looked around and realized that you had skills that were lacking in others – confidence, motivation, courage, etc.

Your artistic skill set is probably as good or better than others in the program.  But do they have: confidence, motivation, courage?

Motivation you certainly have.  Who has more courage?  There you are up in Maine with everything on the line.  You’ve got Balls!!!

Made you laugh.

Dad

DAD! I LOVE YOU!!

just thankful

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=gXDMoiEkyuQ#!

Ted Talk....gratitude....and I am truly grateful.

Yup Day 2

I still love skewl. Surviving my 10 minute presentation which was unlike ANYTHING anyone else did, looking at the inspiring work that my co-artists are doing and will do...I'm staying. Still on to the adventure. ME.

this is me, safe and sound in happy town. xoxo's

THIS IS NOT ME!!!!

Day One

this is for painting

this is for sewing

Peepul! I luv skewl!



Of course, it's day one and it was all sitting and talking and free food and getting TWO studio spaces for work, both with windows.


But still, very energetic yet caring group of artists, and feels pretty good to be here.


soooo, the adventure definitely begins...........

Here!

my passengers were very tidy

and kept it quiet but up front it was a little messy

hi, New Hampshire. I feel very welcome

 So, for your viewing pleasure, a little bit of my trip here. A beautiful sunny day, quiet passengers, no views because I drove the highways, but definitely the smell of ocean as I crossed the bridge into Maine. Very welcoming school, sweet dorm living, I treated myself to a thai dinner, and walked down to the harbor. It turns out that everything is within walking distance, and the adventure has begun!

Hi, Smokey. You are slightly ripped.

wildlife on the trail.... I mean, road.

hello, destination!

sweet! home sweet home for 8 weeks.

the lobsterman of maine. I met him tonight.

walked down to smell the fish.

"may you always have fair winds and following seas"

packed

me half packed. Sylvia says "huh?"

packed ?

so neat and tidy..... not mine, but that would be  a great way to pack, wouldn't it? ha.

Not Packing

painting with a toddler....the paintbrushes and rollers were the interesting part, not so much the paint!

before picture. Yes, I'm bring a swiffer.

SOOO instead of packing I'm blogging. That's okay, right? It turns out that packing for college is a lot like packing for camping.....you need to make sure that you have EVERYTHING you need. Except, for college, I'm not bringing marshmallow fluff or pop tarts. Wait a minute, maybe I should be bringing marshmallow fluff and pop tarts. You know, comfort food. SOOOO I'm going to pack now. Well, I'll have another cup of coffee, and read my email, and then I'll pack. Promise.

a little glitter quote

All that is gold does not glitter, not all those who wander are lost; the old that is strong does not wither, deep roots are not reached by the frost. 

                                                                                       JRR Tolkein

don't worry

the object is NOT to do this.......

art materials

So, here's what $300 dollars of art materials look like. Thank you Utrecht! (and M!)

a visual

here I am, trying to make it through this week of waiting and packing and fretting and waiting and anticipation and waiting.

Roomate!

After a flurry of emails yesterday, found out that I have an apartment mate whose name is  Charley. So, I have a roommate! I hope she likes orange.

Smiles,   Michele

oh, and sometimes I look like this when I wake up in the morning. Unsettling if you're not used to it

Wait a minute!

A week from today I will be all settled in to my dorm room and heading to orientation and meeting  the financial peoples and talking and talking because I'll be nervous and I sometimes ramble when I'm nervous. I hope fellow students don't take that first impression of me to heart. WAIT! isn't that what everybody does?

love this drawing of me headed to school drawn by my daughter MELISSA.....the angel is much appreciated!

Amy and Jack gave this depiction of "me" ....yup, it's true!!!

beginning to pack. XL sheets, thoughtful items from AMY including a shower basket and frisbee (pink) to help me to make friends at cawledge.

Nervously smiling,
Michele

watch the ducks

watch the ducks. You'll get some idea of the journey! 
launch, "fly", soft landing.....catch up to the crowd.

before leaving......

look what I found in the local library! A whole book of oil painting....and a tutorial of "the basic outfit"

looking at Byzantine angels and Ukrainian eggs

thumbing the book page

inspiration

research........

What entails will be a blog of MY adventures.....in CAWLEDGE!! Headed to art school, having been given the gift of acceptance to Meca :o) 

Excited (nervous) excited.....working on a power point to introduce myself to the other artists   for 10 minutes. 10. Minutes. Ordering 100's of dollars worth of paint and canvas. Reading Art and Fear by David Bayles and Ted Orland. Got my hair cut.

So, I hope you enjoy following my adventures. I'll try to be adventurous!
Until Next Time,
Michele