Photo Find Collaboration

A few years ago I wanted to start an art collaboration. I had a few people who were interested, and I started up - but, true to life in a busy house with a five year old (and my health issues) I dropped the ball. I'm thinking of picking it back up again at some point, and I wanted to get some eyes on the blog and thoughts - and maybe get a few new co-conspirators.

You can see the blog here, where you'll also see more information about the project and how you can get involved. Essentially it is a collaborative art project that pairs photos & photo art with text, and distributes them randomly. Finders are encouraged to return to the blog and comment on the entry for their found photo, then redistribute the piece. People are also encouraged to make and distribute their own art, and send a digital copy to the blog owner for publication as well. I think it could be a lot of fun, especially if we have people from all over the world participating. When I start it up again I'll be sending photos to other people to distribute wherever they choose.

Imagine buying a book at the bookstore, or checking out a book at the library and finding a photo or piece of art. It might be a nice surprise for people, or something that intrigues them. With luck everyone that gets a piece will come and comment, and leave the card somewhere for someone else to find.

Thoughts? I'd love to get a discussion started on how best to do this, and how successful people think it might be.

Something new coming...

I'm getting ready to try something I've been thinking about for a while - upcycling. I can get so many great clothes & handbags cheap at my wonderful local thrift store, and I'm going to start working on them and creating some cute and funky upcycled stuff. I will probably start out on eBay with them, and I might eventually open up an Artfire shop.

I've also started another Artfire shop for my paper creations, but more on that later. I'm going to be featuring notecards, greeting cards and some other cool stuff.

Stay tuned!

A bit more crochet for the day.

A few years ago, before the shoulder problems really hit hard, I made a scarf for my mother. I didn't like the way it looked, so it got stuck in a bag and languished unfinished. I found it before I left, showed it to Mom and she loved it. So, I sewed in all the loose ends and it's not too bad.

Tomorrow I start another spud. So far my arm isn't bothering me - I'm being careful, and using lots of pain rub and such. Hopefully I can get back into more crocheting, because I've really missed it.

The Spud

In my quest to learn to read a crochet pattern, my friend Leah gave me a pattern she found online for a stuffed alien. I was able to read the whole thing (thanks Leah!), but of course I had to modify.

So, here is the Spud. I finished him and my mother promptly claimed him, so here is photographic proof.

His eyes are askew so I need to fix them, but otherwise pretty cute! It was fun, I think I will make another.

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This week's featured Smoosher!

Let's face it. Into the Dawn is just a neat, neat person. She is a joy to know on Plurk, and she does lovely work in polymer clay. I also discovered while reading her blog that she has several tutorials in it on how to do some neat stuff. This one is all about Tarot journaling, There are others, listed in the sidebar of her blog. I hope she does more!

Dawn is very versatile - her work ranges from tiles to focal beads to Artist Trading Cards in polymer clay. I've seen items for The Day of the Dead in her Artfire shop, as well as Mardi Gras items and beautiful flowers. Please, go check it out her shop and see all the gorgeous stuff she has to offer.

Mica shift

 Tiled mosaic clay box

Artist Trading Cards

Artist Trading Cards, also known as ATC's are a fascinating bit of art. About the size of a baseball card, they're intended to be mini bits of artistic expression - and always traded, never sold. You can read a bit more about the specifics at the Wikipedia article.

ATC's are made in every kind of medium imaginable - paper & ink, fabric, polymer clay, mixed media... it is a fascinating and amazing little niche in art. I think of them as inspiration starters - there's really no wrong way to make them (save the size, which is fixed), and it seems that they'd be an amazing way to jumpstart your creativity. I know I've gotten some amazing ideas just surfing through photos - try doing a Google Image Search for ATC or Artist Trading Cards.

I've not made one yet, although I'm itching to. I've started assembling supplies, and talking to people about it. To help out in this area I've started a Gallery site for trading purposes, and a mailing list for ATC related chatter. If you are interested in either please email me at atc_info at gundo.com. Anyone who makes or is interested in making ATC's is welcome to join, but membership will be approved first.

Join us! I'll send out an email with info on how the Gallery site will work, and a login so that you can create your own folder of cards you'd like to trade, as well as photos of cards you've made and traded previously. The email list will deal with all sorts of questions about the Gallery, as well as discussions on ATC's and art in general.

Our Featured Smoosher!

This week the Smooshers are celebrating cnewcomb. I first became aware of this guy on Plurk, then as a Smoosher. My Dad was a woodworker, so anyone who works with that amazing medium is naturally okay by me...

  - anyone who mixes it and polymer clay is just plain awesome.

(Naturally the subject matter of this one is pretty darned close to my heart, too... a triple win!)

I'm really excited to see someone working in both wood and clay, and it's always nice to have a guy in the mix, since sadly artsy guys (particularly those who work in pc) have typically been hard to find. Take a jaunt on over to his studio and check it out!