Mary Blair's Small World Wonderland

Currently, the Disney Gallery at Disneyland is showing some of the artwork of Mary Blair, an Imagineer that helped bring to life many films and attractions and murals for Disney. Below are some of the artworks that she created for 'Alice in Wonderland', 'it's a small world' and mural installations that are seen in Tomorrowland and the Contemporary Resort at Walt Disney World. Mary Blair's artwork is distinctive in its bright and bold colors and simple geometric shapes with a modern edge. I have always loved the facade of 'it's a small world' with all of the various circles, squares and triangles creating this intricate and fascinating entrance to a very sweet and whimsical attraction. What was interesting in viewing her work was how often she collaged colored pieces of paper or fabric to create a piece. Not all of her pieces were paintings only. In some of the pieces, there were still traces of pencil where she had marked off a grid to assist her in laying out and planning her work. When I see how she worked, it gives me ideas of how I may approach my art.



An Artful Quote

"Attempt to be creative for the joy it brings… Select something like music, dance, sculpture, or poetry. Being creative will help you enjoy life. It engenders a spirit of gratitude. It develops latent talent, sharpens your capacity to reason, to act, and to find purpose in life. It dispels loneliness and heartache. It gives a renewal, a spark of enthusiasm, and zest for life."  Richard G. Scott

I have to give thanks and credit to my friend Sherry for finding this quote. Richard G. Scott is a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the LDS church.

Just Play!

I was catching up on my emails today and I had received an offer from one of my craft magazines for a book on polymer clay. While I have seen some interesting projects done with polymer clay, I haven't been overly inspired to work with it. This book, though, really piqued my interest in wanting to go buy a bit of polymer clay. I was also very interested in the book. The woman who wrote the book (Patterns in Polymer, by Julie Picarello, ISBN: 9780871164094) had some fascinating designs and techniques that had me entranced by the detail, color and composition of her pieces and not seeing them as just another item made out of polymer clay. I may still buy her book, but I want to attempt to do as Ms. Picarello did.... find my technique and 'voice' in the material. I do not want to copy what another artist has done, but rather learn their technique and make it my own or incorporate it into my repertoire of skills and knowledge. For now, I think I will just play....or as Nike says, 'Just Do It'. I think that in this play or time of experimentation, I will see what it is that I can do and what more I would like to learn of the material. It will be then that I think I will be ready to seek out the instruction of Ms. Picarello's book and build on my own experience. I have some plans to block out time to not only play with polymer clay, but to also play with some other materials and techniques (particularly resin and soldering) and see what I come up with. I will definitely post my results.

The Artist, Formerly Known as Karilyn

With the Royal wedding of William and Kate just over a week ago, I was interested and sometimes amused at some of the titles that the royals use. There are probably those like Princess Diana that grew into her title and I am sure that there are others that never seem to measure up to or feel comfortable in taking on a royal title. In the real world, people take on the titles of doctor, lawyer, professor, general, senator, etc. In the case of such titles, one has to work for it by earning a degree, working through the ranks or kissing a lot of babies to get elected. Basically you either are a doctor or you are not. You do not have to have a degree to be an artist and there is no governing body that licenses you or grants you that title. I think one of the hardest things to do is to label or title yourself an artist. I think it is hard to do because art is so subjective. Art is very personal and not everyone will connect with it....that being said, if someone doesn't like or 'get' a piece of art, the artist is still an artist. I remember when Charles Barkley was playing in the NBA, Jim Rome (a radio sports commentator) would ask if Barkley was any less a great player than Michael Jordan, Larry Bird or Magic Johnson because he hadn't earned a Championship ring. I found myself yelling at the radio that there were a lot of bench warmers on those winning teams that got rings, but didn't have the talent Barkley did. Barkley's game play and passion for the game made him one of the greatest players, not a ring. The same goes for artists. You don't have to have paintings in auctions selling for thousands or millions of dollars to call yourself an artist. Your skill, passion and imagination are what make you an artist. And it just seems fitting to give oneself a title if that is what you are engaged in. I have been calling myself a 'mixed-media artist'. That title feels comfortable to me and I don't feel silly telling people that that is who I am. I think the reason I chose that title is because it doesn't sound stuffy, it is a true statement or label about what I do and I don't believe that people automatically assume that I do some kind of highfalutin fine art akin to Renoir or Van Gogh. Giving myself a title does make me take my art more seriously. It makes me work a little harder or be more in tune to what I want to accomplish and produce in my artwork. I think choosing and using a title tells people that you are serious about what you do and it tells yourself the same thing. If I really wanted to go beyond a label or title, I could always come up with a symbol that represents me....like Prince did. Hmmm....now what would that look like?

Artist Quote

"Painting is easy for those that do not know how, but very difficult for those that do!"  Edgar Degas

Making Time for Art & Blogging

I haven't posted for almost a week, but I did think about it several times.....I just didn't make myself sit down and blog. That is the thing about any creative venture.....making the time to do it. I think so many of us feel that creating is a luxury activity and that we only do it when we have gotten all of the have-to's and honey-do's out of the way and our 'regular' life is under control. For those of us who like to paint, bead, sew, draw, collage, assemble, etc., it is an inner need to delve into those activities and be ourselves. I once had a magnet that said something like "Women who enjoy life do not worry about housework." In other words, forget the housework (it will still be there), go and do those things that bring you joy and enrichment.