Threads

Threads...one leading to the next. Sometimes the thread is just that, some sort of fiber; sometimes it is thoughts or memories. For the last while Ted has been on my mind. I miss so many things; his wisdom, his charm, his stories and his view of the world expressed with a brush. Just when I think I have put him to rest again, some unrelated occurrence brings him back to mind. This time it was a PBS special about saving some of the great art work from the last millennium during World War II. This is quite a saga and speaks to the importance of art in the lives of everyday people. Ted's stories about his experiences during the war were riveting; I think he would have had real memories come flooding back if he had seen this special. Threads.

I think Ted would have been charmed by the growth of our grandson Matthew. Matthew was not even two when we lost Ted, yet Ted had great affection for him. I think Ted would be delighted to see how Matthew has grown into such an art critic as well as an artist. I think he would approve of the exposure to art that Matthew gets. And he would have loved watching Matthew swing his foot to some music in the background at the same time. Matthew is turning into quite a painter in his own right. He has already experimented with color; once an emphasis on purple another time shades of black. He is getting quite good at blending colors. Young and old. Threads.

It is for the Teds and the Matthews that groups of people, dedicated to creating art, get together to support each other. So our little coop continues to exist. The members continue to weave a part of themselves in the art they create, that thread of creativity. Photographs that amaze, paintings that speak to us in different ways, sculpture that bids you look closer, metal work that fills a need while being beautiful, threads made into all manner of art, clay made into beautiful vessels, wood made new, glass and jewelry to adorn are just some of the offerings from this group of talented artists. We each continue to spread ourselves out into the world, while trying to keep the flame of hope for a gallery space alive. Watch for us to burn brightly again. Until then keep checking our site. Threads.

Video Experiment

More creative experimentation. This is a video composite of a sequence of still images. I know, why not shoot video? Because I happened to catch this sequence with a still camera and decided to see what I could do with them. And I wanted to see if we can post videos on our blog. See it full size at YouTube

Still Working

I must always watch for opportunities to create. I have put a lot of work into managing the local eagles Fred & Ethel and developing preconceived compositions. I have installed another perch on the beach. Every year the winter storms take out the perch. I have been wanting to get shots of an eagle or two at sunrise, or shortly after. This morning held promise of some good color so I was down on the shore at 5 AM. Color was not very good but Fred and Ethel appeared. So I took lots of shots and this was one of my favorites.

Some people and galleries don't consider photography as art. But if they only knew how much planning, work, and skill goes into making good images perhaps they would change their opinion.

The penny dropped

I made it to the blog after google confused me and I discovered my mistakes.
I hope to keep weaving, knitting and spinning for a while yet, and will join you guys in whatever endeavours I can.
Please come visit me at the Tilth Farmers Market Saturdays 10 to 2. If you come early you'll find some exotic fresh vegetables-- humdrum ones too.
Also look for the ads for WIFFFS. So it's all animal and fiber stuff but Jennifer Bowman will be part of the show.
I'm hoping Etsy will find customers for us. Look up local sellers and support islanders.

Where do we go from here?

Creating is work; selling those creations is even more work. Artists try to think of all the ways to get ourselves out there so we can share our love of art and creating. This blog is one more way.

We spent hours this last week revisiting the process of how one makes a bronze. Someone thought they might like us to do some work and they wanted an honest estimate. So we went to work, going through the steps in our head, and finally on paper. We figured out how much time, supplies and labor it really takes to make waxes of 25 pieces, put sprues on them, invest them, burn them out, check them for cracks and repair those cracks if there are any. It was more than we thought. But going through that process and being up in the shop started the creative juices flowing again. It's time to start making more art.

For the last couple of years we have given up the festival circuit in favor of trying to show our art in less demanding venues; that is places where we don't have to cart boxes of bronzes and 100 pound rocks and stands just to display our art. This afternoon we helped the kids pack up from a weekend festival. But our kids (also cooperative members) do festivals all summer in addition to selling their wares wholesale. They work hard but make a living with this business we call art. They inspire us to keep trying. This festival, called Sorticulture, is a perfect fit for the garden art Johnathan and Jandellyn make. This is a very laid back festival, with lots of room and plenty of original art to see. And as pack out goes not too bad. But we remembered all over again how much work it is to get your art out there for the public to find, how you have to really dedicate yourself to the selling process and come up with new ideas to catch the public eye. They will be doing the Edmonds Arts Festival next weekend, one of their biggest and we will be their cheering section.

In the meantime, if you want to see our sculpture, feel free to call 360-678-6522 and make arrangements anytime to visit the Cottage Gallery. We'll be happy to show you around.

Welcome Co-op Members

This is the first post to a first cut blog for the Co-op. If you got here, you accepted the invitation in the email "You have been invited to contribute to Artists Cooperative of Whidbey Island". Sorry you had to create a Google account to get here, but blogger.com is a Google site that requires you have a Google account to be able to post "blogs" to the site. Anyone adding a comment to your post does not have to have a Google account.

So what now? Well, once you have established yourself as a contributer, sign in and try posting a "blog" (click "New Post" in the top right). Tells us anything you want, including any images you wish upload into the blog - like this:

So there you have it. Please enter a comment after this blog so that we may see you read it. Click on "# comments" to see all comments and to enter your comment.