Penland Spring Concentration 7th week.

 My corner of the painting studio with one week left to go

The last week will be a mixture of working, critiques, and cleaning up, with a live auction on Thursday night and "Show and Tell" on Friday, where the entire school will put up the best work they've done over the last 8 weeks.  I've done 20 pieces in this time, all work that I sandwiched in while helping my students who are all, at this point, fairly independent, usually just coming to me for confirmation or advice on how to do something technically.  I've stuck to my rules fairly well, only using materials that I found/scrounged/bought here, or photos taken here as well.  Among other things, I discovered a new technique of using pieces of dry wall mud that have cracked off another substrate, then reassembling  and gluing them down("Trouble").

"Giant Waving", I did using a cast off image from the letter press class for the main part of the body and the ground(found in the trash and used with permission of the artist).

I'm not sure how successful these images are, and I won't really know until I get them home and see them in my studio, away from the clutter and compression of the class.  However, I feel very good about having worked with seven other artists in a fairly confined space, sharing thoughts, ideas, and experiences(as well as being irritated with each at times as well). But most of all, I've loved being part of this community of artists, makers, and art related people who think that spending 8 weeks making art, day in and any out, is just about as good as it gets.

Penland Spring Concentration 5th week

                    "Woman with Spring" 2018

In sharing a workspace with seven other people, I've come to realize how much I need the space and solitude of my own studio.  Because my method of working has evolved over the years, I hadn't really realized what the key ingredients were to my making an image until I found that I didn't have those things.  They are 1. Lots and lots of space(I mean 7-8 large tables space)so that I can spread out and make a mess, and then leave the mess. 2. Not to have to think about what other people are doing or thinking or saying. 3. To be able to go in and out of the many moods I evolve through (among them irritability and frustration) without worrying about other people's reactions. And 4.  To be able put up work in progress and look at it, often for weeks or months, until I feel it's done. 

As we've progressed through our time here, I've found myself stealing as much space as I can and working early in the morning or on weekends when few people are around.  I've learned to tune out much (but not all) of need for approval and attention from the other artists I share the space with.  And I've gone ahead and finished pieces in a few weeks without the luxury of living with them until I'm sure they are finished. And that may not be such a bad thing.

Penland Spring Concentration 3rd week

The rules for working on my own images during my two months at Penland School of Crafts are this:  

1.  I can only use materials that I find(or buy)while at Penland.

2.  I should try and use materials that are completely new and/or foreign to me.

3.  Any photo I use should be taken while at Penland.

4.  I have to stop complaining in my head about the lack of privacy and space available to me.

5.  Students needs come first, except after hours.

6.  I can break any rule I want.

"Round Head" is made from the negative space left over from student Troy Skully's portrait, the white marks are made using a new foam roller from a set bought at Michael's, the mouth is from a piece of dry wall mud mixed with polymer medium with the teeth drawn in ink, the eyes are student Beth Kokol's, and the sweater neck is from a photo of Photography Studio Manager, Betsy Dewitt's cap.  Image not yet adhered, could blow away with the next strong gust of wind that blows in periodically when the door next to my area opens and shuts suddenly.