Encaustic Saturday

Today we spent the entire day at a local art store learning a new technique, encaustic painting/collage. Only about twenty blocks away is a little place on Alberta Street called "Collage" where they sell art supplies and offer affordable classes (mostly all one time only) and where we did the felted gnome class last time. For Christmas, rather than a traditional gift, I got us an art class together.

This morning when I woke up, I thought, "We should have rescheduled this to a different date! I need a day of doing nothing." Turns out, we needed a day of doing encaustic. Last time I took a class with Carrie was right before Christmas and my sentiments were the same. I guess just because you think you need to sit on your butt all day and do nothing doesn't mean it's really what you need.

I don't have any pictures of the process, but Justin and I really enjoyed our six hour class. The classroom has a wall of windows so we didn't miss out on the nice sunny weather by being inside, which was another plus.

 Justin's up and down -- below is a tipi in the wave (kinda hard to see in my pic)

 

Mine up and down... below is sort of a commentary on leaving the traditional ways and above on travel and living

[Copying Picasso]

[I love his use of color. Gorgeous.]

I'm taking a community art class through Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art- "Drawn to Experiment," Instructor: Blade Wynne. It's an eight week course, and has included a variety of simple projects which jumpstart creativity. Invariably after my instructor explains what he has in mind for us for the evening, I think to myself, "I don't want to do that. I should just go home!" But then somehow it turns around and I have a good time after all. So far, I have nothing but good things to say for my Wednesday evenings spent amidst paper, pastels and new friends.

Tonight we were told to choose a photo of a painting out of a book and make an interpretation of it. I chose Picasso and drew it sideways (with myself sitting -- usually I prefer to stand). I can see now what was off in my drawing- but art is not about exact copy, it's about interpretation. Of course, learning and practice will improve things...

Art of Lisbon

Since I spent a whole day in art museums, I thought I would share. I am not usually so lucky to find so much free art which interests me to visit. Just another treat from the city of Lisbon.

From the Museo de Arte Contemporary

This was an artist named Columbano.The way he captured expressions. His early work (late 1800s) was really amazing. Most of these are from that time period. It seemed as he got older, his painting was more conventional and dead feeling. But maybe that's just me.

Centro de Arte Moderna

Berardo Modern Art Musuem in the Cultural Centre of Belem

It was a video. I think how relationships feel at times.

MUDE Art and Design. What it's like to be in an orchestra. Took up a whole floor, and was amazing.

Only place truly worth mentioning...

And I accidentally went there, I didn't even know the true name of the place, but it was alternative art and video, just off Hero's Square in Budapest. It is the Palace of Art. I just looked it up. It was listed as something you could miss. It is the best thing I saw in Budapest. Inside was a gorgeous building, followed by installations which were beautiful, connecting, and thought-provoking.

To follow is are photos from an exhibit (a film) entilted something like, "trying look good in front of a camera." From the 1960's. The exhibit I saw today was mostly archives.

North Dakota Cultural Experience

A few days ago, my mom, Carrie, Oatie and I were making our way back to Minot in the car from Grand Forks. We were all talking loudly (everyone yells in ND, even in the car- it's just the way it is) when my mom said, "Listen!" Carrie and kept talking anyway. Finally after a minute or so, she said, "This was Ellen's favorite song when I was in high school." So we started to listen. "My ding-a-ling, my ding-a-ling. Won't you to play with my ding-a-ling." Chuck Berry. On the Devil's Lake radio station, 102.5. Those dirty North Dakotans!

This of course, resulted in a sharing of our own personal favorite dirty songs, which I won't divulge here unless you send me an email with your personal favorite dirty song, and then I'll happily sell all my family's secrets!

So now I return to the matter at hand: North Dakota Cultural Experiences.

My favorite: North Dakota Museum of Art on the University of North Dakota Campus.

We'd stopped in Grand Forks on the way back to Minot and at my stuck-record insistence, we finally made it through the doors of the museum to experience rock sculptures which you could actually touch and photos of North Dakota and Northern Minnesota, which were beyond outstanding. The photography by Chuck Kimmerle, who moved to Grand Forks in 1996 to work in photojournalism, was entitled Unapologetic Landscape. Several of the pictures featured hoar frost on the trees or bales. I mention this because my mom seems to love to find a way to work "hoar frost" into her conversations, so of course she was delighted with the photos as much as I. Dirty North Dakotans!