ART-A-WHIRL 2013

May 17   5:00 - 10:00 pm
May 18   Noon - 8:00 pm
May 19 Noon - 5"00 pm

"Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven's sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something.” 

--Kurt Vonnegut

I’d love to share with you what I’ve been creating latel) and to hear what rings your bells. Do you cook? Carve? Garden? I’ll bet it’s not because it makes any kind of economic sense to do so, but rather because of the joy you feel when you create something that matters to you. So come on over to Art-A-Whirl and let’s talk! These things matter, you know.

"Chimera"  -- framed watercolor

You'll find me in Gallery 427, Northrup King Bldg., 1500 Jackson St., N.E.,Minneapolis 55413. And while you're there, do stop in the 3rd floor gallery where NEMAA's annual silent auction is held. It's a great place to bid on some excellent original art, jewelry, and gift certificates. You'll find "Chimera" there...original price $400, minimum bid $90. 

WHEN PUSH COMES TO SHOVE...

I've spent the past five weeks or so putting together a memory book for my high school class' 50th reunion. I love this kind of work: challenging, detailed, exacting, but mostly fun indulging in fond memories of growing up in the 50s and finishing high school in the early '60s. Mine was an odd birth year...too old to be baby boomers (by a year), but too young to be part of the Elvis Presley era. By the time the swingin' part of the '60s hit, most of my friends and I were married and parents. So putting this book together, reading all the bio's, looking at the hopeful, naive faces in our 1963 yearbook and comparing them with our senior citizen photos has been great fun.

"Pavane"watercolor on archival paper  $400 (framed)

On the other hand (and isn't there always an "other hand"?),  the result of five weeks of intensive computer time is that I've neglected my easel and my paint brush. Art-A-Whirl is rapidly approaching (more on that later) and I've not got nearly the new work finished that I'd planned on. Three are at the framer's, including "Pavane." It's a departure from my usual work. Maybe it's remembering (and finally laughing at) the bad advice my high school counselor gave me about my future that loosened me up, maybe it's (once more) realizing that all those near-misses of growing up have had a positive effect on me, after all. What I'm sure of is that when I stepped back and looked at "Pavane," I liked what I saw. And isn't that the best part of growing older?

BREAKING THROUGH THE QUAGMIRE OF A LONG, LONG WINTER

Andromeda Waits (detail)
Water Color, Ink, and Acrylic

It's been a while since I've posted anything. For that matter, it's been a while since I've picked up a paint brush. Ennui? The endless weather we Minnesotans are enduring? My historically proven tendency to fade out on what I was certain would become a life-long passion? The votes aren't in yet. In the meantime, I've been luxuriating in memories of my childhood and teen years, the result of having volunteered to do the memory book for my high school class's 50th reunion.

I've spent hours studying photos in our yearbook, looking for the match between those young faces and the photos of the near-70-year olds classmates are sending me. (It's always there in the eyes.) I'm having a great time reading their graduation ambitions and comparing them with the people they've become. I suppose if a demographer were to study Edison High School's class of '63, she'd find nothing surprising. There'd be the same proportion of marriages and divorces, deaths and illnesses, professionals and skilled trades people that one would find in the general population. But gosh, those are just numbers. The bio's they've sent say so much about who they've become, and I find I want to learn more. I'm looking forward to seeing these "kids" in June.

If you've read thus far, you're probably wondering what connection there is between the painting and this blog entry. The answer is none. I finally finished this one a couple of hours ago. I'm posting it so that I can convince myself that yes, I still have an interest in wetting a brush.

WHAT'S ON MY EASEL

work in progress

I took my first botanical watercolor class about two years ago. Marilyn Garber, founder of the Minnesota School of Botanical Art, is an exceptional instructor who pushes me beyond my comfort level, but not so far that I panic. The image to the right is what I'm working on right now as a part of her "Tulip Mania" class. It's about 3/4 finished. There are parts of the work that I like, but a whole lot more that I'm dissatisfied with. But then I'm never happy with my work. 

Marilyn and I were talking about this recently. "I know many artists who are never satisfied with their work," she said. "As long as we compare ourselves to others, it's likely we'll find ourselves wanting."

This reminded me of a post-workout conversation in the sauna at the gym the other day. "This keeps on getting harder," one of the women said. "Maybe," I replied, "it's because we keep raising our own bars. I'm able to do more than I could a year ago, and certainly much, much more than I when I first joined the 'Y'. What was hard then is easy now."

So maybe it's the same with painting...or music...or sculpture...or cooking; we're critical of our own work not so much because we compare ourselves to others but rather that we keep trying for something more challenging. But then, to paraphrase Miles Davis, isn't it better to try something new and do it badly than to keep doing the same ol' thing?

WRITER'S BLOCK

The Listener pastel

I've not posted anything new for quite some time. Can't say I'm too busy, although my days are full. Can't say I'm bored because I'm not, nor have I been for at least 30 years. Can't say there's nothing on my easel because I have several projects in process. Nonetheless, I seem to be at a loss for something worth your time. So, I'm offering you the opportunity to chime in. What subject(s) interest you? What do you like to read? Why do you read blogs? Is there anything in particular you'd like me to write about? Hit "comment" below and fill in the blank. I need your help here!

      

LESSONS FROM A SIXTH GRADE ELECTION

I first published this in October, 2008; I've had a few requests to run it again.

"Redrawing My Past"

The passionately contested political races this fall take me back to my run for political office. I vied with Ricky Johnson for sixth grade class president.

Classes were smaller for those of us who were born the year before the Baby Boomers. The nine girls and nine boys in Mr. Brink’s room were evenly divided in whom they backed for the coveted roll of class president, a job whose sole purpose was to daily decide whether it would be the girls or the boys who would be excused first for recess.

I campaigned at recess. Ricky campaigned at recess. (I campaigned on the girls' side of the schoolyard. He campaigned on the boys' side.) I made signs. Ricky made signs. (But mine were spelled correctly.) I brought candy. Ricky brought candy. (But he brought more.)

Tuesday came. All 18 of us wrote on our allotted slip of paper the name of our chosen candidate. I did what I thought all girls did in 1955: I voted for Ricky. It was what one did (I thought), and since I knew Ricky would vote for me, what could it matter? Well, it mattered a lot. Mr. Brink counted out the votes. ”Judy has eight votes; Ricky has 10. Congratulations to Ricky Johnson, our new class president.” The significance of the outcome hit me: I lost because I voted for my opponent! He won because he voted for himself! O, the ignominious horror! The growing awareness of the workings of how the world worked! There was a lesson to be learned here, but it's taken me a lifetime to figure it out.

ART ATTACK 2012

The Northrup King Building celebrates

15th annual Art Attack

Over 200 artists working in nearly every art medium

open their private studios for this weekend long event.

This year the artists are joined by

REwork Participatory Art Projects.

Featuring a truly unique art experience.

~ Explore hibernation positions 

~ See your dreams performed

~ Draw a real/fake figure model

~ Eat dessert with art loving strangers in another city

~ And more!  

FREE EVENT, FREE PARKING

for more info go to

www.northrupkingbuilding.com

LOOKING BEHIND THE CURTAIN

Meditation IV: collage on paper

scrim |skrim|
• a piece of gauze cloth that appears opaque until lit from behind, used as a screen or backdrop.

• a thing that conceals or obscures something: a thin scrim of fog covered the island.

It was when I first started teaching junior high that I became gut-wrenchingly aware of the scrims that kids create to make it through their days. That was more than 30 years ago. Since then I’ve realized that it’s not only adolescents who protect themselves behind a self-manufactured curtain; we all do this, some more than others.

Are you aware of the scrims the people in your life create?
How do you get behind them? What are the scrims that you erect -- and more importantly, why?

My new series of multi-layered collages deals with this question. The work will be ready in time for the Northrup King Building’s 15th Art Attack on November 2, 3 and 4. Over 200 artists working in nearly every art medium open their studios for this weekend long event. The event is free, and so is the parking. For more info go to www.northrupkingbuilding.com.

ONE THING LEADS TO ANOTHER

Warsaw's Old Town: watercolor collage

A few months ago I wrote about "personal shrines and where they can lead". In that post, I talked about my maternal grandmother and what must have been for a very young, single woman a harrowing journey from pre-WWI Poland to Minneapolis. Where that all led was a trip to Poland and some new art work.

What a remarkable country, what a remarkable trip! I went with some vague questions about my ancestry and the post-WWII Slavic northeast Minneapolis culture in which I grew.  I came back with some answers...all of which went a long way to heighten my pride in my Polish heritage.

I'll not bore you with a narrative of my trip. But I would like to share some new work which is the direct result of that trip. The piece above is a water color adaptation of a photo I took in Warsaw's Old Town. It's one of a number of paintings in a similar style that I'll be showing at November's Art Attack at the Northrup King Building in Minneapolis (more about this in a later post).

By the way, if you're thinking about a visit to Poland, I highly recommend StayPoland. Excellent service, excellent tour (small groups!). Best part (from an American dollar point of view) is that Poland is quite affordable. (We paid more for our flight than we paid for the tour.) Warm, friendly people, amazing history. Go!

NEW WORK...AND THOUGHTS ON PLAGIARISM

The Kiss

I received a disturbing email a few weeks ago. I've been unable to erase it from my thoughts. To paraphrase: "I love your work, I love your website. But I notice you post very few blogs. For only $79 per month, we will write your blog entries for you and publish them under your name." 

My reaction: How is this any different from  plagiarism? Paying to have someone write my entries, even though I've paid for them, is still "the practice of taking someone else's work or ideas and passing them off as one's own" (iMac Dictionary definition). I deleted his email but I'm still dismayed at the idea that more and more people are claiming someone else's work as their own.

This happens in the art world, too. It's so effortless to download a photo or painting, print it out, and use it without permission. As a mother, a writing teacher, and now an artist, I can't begin to describe the anger this behavior evokes in me.

Enough of the rant; thanks for listening. As for my most recent work (including the image above), I need to credit California artist Myrna Wacknov and her Creativity Journal for inspiration and instruction.

GOING IN A WHOLE NEW DIRECTION

http://www.judywestergard.com 
I know; I promised that I'd post pix of my basement "studio," AKA my oil painting work area. But I keep getting waylaid...lately with some experimental work that's far out of my comfort zone. What happened is that in thinking about and cleaning up my work spaces, I came across art supplies that I'd forgotten I had. That, combined with a stack of paper I made in the last 4 weeks and my close following of California artist Myrna Wacknov (http://myrnawacknov.blogspot.com) lured me into water color collages. I'm both excited and intimidated by the improvisation that this kind of work demands. But I'm discovering that it's that "push me/pull you" tension that I love. Will I continue in this vein? Darned if I know, but I'm sure learning a lot by experimenting.

WORK SPACE MATTERS

I used to meet monthly with a writer. The idea was that by summarizing our work and stating a goal, each of us would inspire the other to end procrastination and do more work. Our collaboration fell apart but there are a number of benefits that came out of it, not the least of which was the awareness of how important a clean workspace is. In other words, a lack of clutter makes it easier to get to work. No more random paint tubes lying around. Piles of paint covered rags are periodically banished. Color trials and scribbly sketches that I tossed onto random piles I now periodically either file or trash. The result? I’m creating more work and wasting less time. More importantly, I’m eager to get to my studio.

I was showing my newly cleaned spaces with a friend who said, “Your studios are so functional.” (Note: read “basement” and “upstairs bedroom” for “studios.”) “You really ought to post some photos. There lots of beginning artists who might benefit from seeing how you made use of your available space.”

So, here’s a quick run-down of how I made an attic-cum-bedroom work for me. It’s where I do my dreaming, planning, and watercolors. I hope you can use some of my ideas for your own workspace.

I collect lots of art books. When our daughter moved out, she chose to leave behind her book case. I turned it on its side, added a door.

  
No water? No problem. A recycled plastic gallon jug for fresh water and a pail for used works well for water-based media. A miniscule amount of liquid soap in a pump bottle filled with water works well when I need to wash my hands. I keep a basket of old towels  nearby.

Peg board is uber cheap, uber handy.

  
The room was originally a bedroom. The knotty pine paneling absorbed light so I stapled an old white sheet to the walls. True color lamps on the ceiling (not in photo) and on the table give me a lot of light. I splurged on a drawing table with storage space for brushes, pencils. (OK...the secretarial chair was a splurge, too...but I waited ‘til it was on sale. If I were more patient, I’d’ve scoped out garage sales, etc. But for comfort, height adjustment, and ease of movement, you can’t beat these chairs. Look for one with good back support.)

My basement “studio” is where I work on my oils and store paper, canvasses, and props. I’ll post pix of that in a week or so.

A WEDNESDAY MORNING SNAPSHOT

Why is that woman in the very short shorts and bra waving at us? "Hi!" she calls out from across the street. Or is she greeting someone behind the plate glass window that separates us from the coffee shop's interior?

"A hooker," my husband says. "After she walked past us, she crossed the street, walked back up, and now she's in the park."

What I'll remember is her creamy cocoa complexion; that, and the fact that she looks like a everyone's idea of a pre-school teacher...except for that marshmallow-white bra.

ART-A-WHIRL 2012

'What an artist is trying to do for people is bring them closer to something, because of course art is about sharing: you wouldn't be an artist unless you wanted to share an experience, a thought.'
David Hockney
What I’d love to share with you is my new work with color and light...in nature and in people. I’ve also been trying some “canvas on canvas” paintings. (Hard to explain, even harder to photograph.)
 

I’ve been revisiting the abstracted yoga poses I did in pastel several years ago. This time they’re in oil.




You’ll find lots of new miniatures on my shelves and...best of all...the building has a new “people friendly” elevator. Access it through the Door F at the loading dock. You'll find this and more at Art-A-Whirl: N.E. Minneapolis Arts Association's annual open studio tour.

Click here for directions to Minneapolis' Northrup King Building.

Click here for info about NEMAA and Art-A-Whirl.