PLAYING

Playing around

Having way too much fun playing around with mixed media art techniques to maintain two blogs. If you want to read more about what is happening go to www.cherrildoty.com 
You can find a list of workshops there as well as blogs about happenings, shows, and more.

TODAY, TOMORROW AND BEYOND

Today, while it might be wonderful to be creating art, I have seemingly failed.  Tried while at work to do Walter Reiss's fun ceramics class, but was just too distracted.  Between working and looking out the window across the sun-filled canyon, I just could not stay focused.  Tomorrow, I will be in the studio playing with mixed media most of the day (much more my speed, I think.) Beyond?  Well, next week Suzette and I will again be teaching a full studio workshop and the creativity will stimulate and flow.  And then?  With creative juices afire, it will be as Buzz Lightyear puts it, "To infinity and beyond!"

POSTAL ART

Just a few of the many wonderful pieces of postal art received

One of the myriad ways in which Suzette and I express Mixed Media Playtime results is through postal art.  During each of our Sunday Studio Workshops we get the names and addresses of each participant.  Everyone then draws a name and sends one of their fun pieces to that person.  This is a wonderful, playful way to share our artistic experiments with each other that just happens to brighten many a postal worker's day.  It also commemorates the day of retreat into artful play, which many a student deems "better than therapy."

YA NEVER KNOW

...and they are soft as a baby's skin :)

Suzette and I are always looking for new ways to use things.  This is especially true of recycling items, but sometimes it's just a new use for something commonly used in another way.  Don't know if it is due to the new grandson, but lately I've been using a lot of baby wipes in my art work.  Seems to me the uses are myriad.  Dry one and then print an image on it--either transfer or straight digital print--is one way.  Torn or whole, these images can then be used in a lot of different ways, adding texture and interest to a piece.  Or use the wet wipe in painting in the same way you might use a finger.  These are just two of the ways. This gives you new options with paint. See what you can do!

Birthday Wishes

Suzette here. Today is my twins 15th birthday! I always like to make them a special card. This year everything seems so rushed...the Sawdust Preview Party is next Tuesday and we are not yet ready!! So late last night I ran to my studio to do a quick photo transfer onto backgrounds I had prepared during our last Sunday Studio Workshop. We are always encouraging students to make lots of backgrounds, and this is one good reason why! When you need to rush a card, you have a surface to work on!!

Now back to getting things ready...Opening day of the Sawdust Art Festival is June 24th! Hope to see you there! For more on hours, classes, special events, and other info click Here.

Judge a Book by It's Cover...

Suzette here. While getting things ready for this Sunday's workshop, I paused to go thru the 'book' I made last year. I had used a number of 6"x9" pieces during one of our two day workshops that ended up being a good record of many of our techniques. I had worked the front and back of each piece, which made me think of them as pages. The only way I could think of containing them as a book was to put them in a box. I just happened to have the right size box at hand. I collaged layers of paper to the outside, added a few more details, and had an Art Box Book. We hope to devote one of our Sunday workshops to demonstrating various ways to make Art Books and Boxes. We will show the results here when we do!

WHY, WHY,WHY?????





We both subscribe to an on-line daily newsletter from a popular craft magazine.  Today's premier article is about stenciling.  While Suzette and Cherril have been using stenciling in their workshops for quite a while, it seems it is "making a comeback."  But most of the recent articles tout spray paint as the way to do it.  Why?  Expedient, perhaps, but both wasteful and environmentally unsound.  So, again, we ask, Why?  Using dry brush methods with acrylics works great.  So...Why?

NO spray paint!

To play with this and other methods, join us in our mixed media Sunday Studio Workshops!