Doreen Adams…. One tessera at a time

Doreen Adams

As I write this entry, I am in a beautiful house at the edge of the ocean just south of Santa Cruz. At this moment, I can hear a seal calling through the distant fog. That said, I thought to write an entry about fellow artist and Facebook friend, Doreen Adams, because her studio, Creativeartmosaics.com, is located in a similar environment in the hills above Malibu, also overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Being where I am right now, (and as a flock of pelicans makes circles in the sky outside my window), I can truly relate to the inspiration Doreen must feel as she looks down over the ocean from her studio each day. I think I understand why she is compelled to create art to express her love of nature and her respect for all living things. Being here has caused me to gain a new appreciation for these things as well as for the art that Doreen creates.



Doreen is one of the finest mosaic artists around.



One of the most defining characteristic of Doreen’s mosaic art is its resemblance to paint on canvas. She tends to lay the tesserae in concentric patterns, using a style known among mosaic artists as ‘painting with glass’. The fine detail with which she executes each mosaic must require the patience of a saint!

Doreen's imagination is clearly not limited to the natural beauty that she sees from her studio window. This piece, entitled simply, "Cheeseburger" was included in the 8th Annual International juried exhibition at the Museum of Man in San Diego last February during the convention of the Society of American Mosaic Artists. The mosaic was also featured as cover art on the "Mosaic Rocks" CD.




When her “White Rabbit” (above) piece won second place in the 3rd Contemporary Mosaic Art Competition “Breaking the Rules” also at the 8th Annual International juried exhibition at SAMA 2009,one of the judges had this to say:

“We love this mosaic! Everything about it is considered. In the first place it is very well drawn and composed – you can feel the white rabbit’s ‘lateness’ and, astonishingly, considering the strong use of complimentary oranges against greens, the overall effect is very harmonious.

Andrew commented on how the tesserae at the front are very small and detailed compared to the larger broader work at the back – this is the opposite to what one would expect and so there’s an interesting lesson to learn here – you don’t ALWAYS have to get smaller and fiddlier as you progress back into the picture.
We would therefore like to award this mosaic joint second prize.
(I will provide the prize for Doreen – namely a book on the work of Boris Anrep, which I feel will be useful to her in her future mosaics.)” Martin Cheek



Talented on many artistic levels, Doreen began her life’s journey in Edinburgh, Scotland, and has traveled the world taking classes from many inspirational artists. She describes herself as a “freelance, self-taught, self-employed artist” and writes, “My love of animals and children can be seen throughout my art whether it be my mosaics, decorative painted furniture, children’s illustrations, fine art paintings and drawings or my handmade crafts. “

Here are a few of Doreen’s watercolor illustrations:








Doreen is available for commissioned work and takes a flexible approach to these projects, sometimes working from a selection of photographs or if possible, paying visits to a specific site personally, to gather her own reference material. As she works through her commissioned art, she periodically documents her progress on her web site so that her clients can appreciate the painstaking detail that she enlists to create their mosaics.

Doreen is a member of SCBWI, (The Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators), SAMA, (The Society of American Mosaic Artists), MAA (The Malibu Art Association) and MAO, (The Mosaic Artists Organization).


Please visit her web site to see more of Doreen's beautiful art work or to get further information.

Latifah Shay – Artist by Nature

Latifah Shay


“I feel such joy and freedom when I create. When I paint I am present with the
truth of who I am. I move through life enjoying, exploring and expressing this
exciting part of my being.”

Desire

Latifah Shay is an artist acquaintance whom I met through Twitter, the social networking site. Her notoriety as an artist began in third grade when she won a school coloring contest. Then, in high school, one of her architectural drawings ranked first place in the state competition. Her art fire was fueled, so off she went!
Delicate Intensity


“I attended the architecture program at Texas A&M University. Three years later I
found myself disenchanted. Plumbing, structures and HVAC held no allure for me. I
completed my degree, delving deeper into figure drawing, photography and
furniture design.

Two years later, I began pursing graphic design. Bought a computer, learned the
programs, took classes, and read voraciously. In short time I had a job at a mid-sized
creative company as a designer.”

Flamboyant

Her work characteristically consists of "geometricized", concentric forms and hues used independently of their local color. One frequently finds swirls that are full of emotion and brilliant color, moving across a plane. The swirl can be seen as a symbol for the "endless circle" (similar to the endless knot) in Chinese culture.

Feeling My Way



Latifah creates her art for many reasons, but it is, above all, informed by color and a sense of movement. As a mother of 4 yr. old triplets, she finds herself frequently in her local library where she reads with her children. While there, she loves to look at the illustrations and reading about the artists who create them. She is currently attracted to the illustration style of artist David Shannon.

The Truth About Love

“I release so much as I create. I release my emotions, my stagnations and stuckness. I connect with, experience and release my truth as I create.”

Roses and Honey

When her triplets were two Latifah began painting again.
“ Being a mother has brought ligh to my truth. I am an artist by nature. I want to paint, draw and create -- to explore my inner worlds through color, line, form, collage... as much as possible.”

Last month, Latifah attended the Unity Music Festival in Warfordsburg PA. where, for the second year in a row, her worked served as a beautiful backdrop for the main stage musicians.
(Singer Lindsay Mac with Latifah's art in background

Please visit her web site HERE (http://www.latifahshay.com/) for more information about Latifah’s art.

Deryn Mentock - Steampunk-Meets-Tiffany's

Deryn Montock
This is the first time I've featured a jewelry artist on this blog. However, Deryn Mentock's artistry is so unusual and exceptional that I just had to show you her work.
Caged Charlotte

Each piece of Deryn' jewelry is like a little sculpture or a reminder of the past zapped with an idea for the future. It verges on steampunk, but is more refined than that. It almost defies description. I'd say these pieces are a melding of fine jewelry elements with rough and raw materials wrapped in wire and fashioned in unusual ways to come up with something truly unique and wonderful.
Beth's Charm Keeper

One can tell, just by looking at this jewelry, that the artist who makes it draws from multiple influences. She writes, "As a kid, my parents always encouraged me in the direction of art making. My mom was very creative and I grew up in a do-it-yourself household. Consequently, I've had my fingers in a lot of different art pies! I haven't had much formal training but I've pretty much tried it all, creatively speaking; painting, leaded glass, jewelry making, calligraphy, sewing, pottery, drawing, embroidery, collage, photography, candle making and more. I think that varied background has given me a good knowledge of materials and techniques that I'm able to apply to the artwork that I do today."

Little Green Apples

Deryn's designs mingle unique, worn and well-loved finds, religious pieces and faceted, semi-precious stones as well as one-of-a-kind handmade elements. These elements are all combined in eye-catching ways that are unexpected. She titles each piece suitably with names that characterize the jewelry's unique qualities just as any artist would title a painting or sculpture.

Miraculous

When working on her jewelry, Daryn prefers to create the look and feel of vintage, unusual and found objects. She delights in blending these treasures into her work. Each composition, infused with color and texture, reveals an intuitive message of faith conveyed through the artist’s hands.

Koi Pond

Deryn enjoys teaching nationally and is a design team member for Susan Lenart Kazmer’s “Objects and Elements.” Her artwork has been featured in several books including “Mixed Emulsions” by Angela Cartwright. “Exhibition 36” by Susan Tuttle and, most recently, “Collaborative Art Journals and Shared Visions in Mixed Media” by LK Ludwig. You can also find her work in many articles and publications, including Step by Step Wire Jewelry, Belle Armoire Jewelry, Belle Armoire, Art Doll Quarterly, Stampington's Gallery, Correspondence Art and Stampington's book Artist Trading Cards.

Amber Collar
You can contact Deryn at mocknet@sbcglobal.net and see more of her work at her BLOG; and her ONLINE STORE.

Buddhist Mandala Ceremony

Back in the 80's, when I lived in Houston, I took my Goddaughter, Petunia, to the final day of a Buddhist mandala meditation ceremony. It was fascinating to watch the Buddhist monks complete their mandala sand painting, slowly and carefully using the colored sands that were all lined up in pots like the ones above. I couldn't believe how much detail was contained in every square inch of the beautiful sand painting.





During these ceremonies, the construction process takes several days. Then, much to the dismay of the viewing audience, the mandala is destroyed shortly after its completion. This is done as a teaching tool and metaphor for the impermanence' of all contingent and compounded phenomena.



For those of you unfamiliar with the mandala and its significance, it is a design that is a representation of the cosmos or the universe, created in a circular pattern which leads to a central point. It is a symbol or wholeness, of beginning and end.



Simple mandala have been drawn by many native people in many counties, including the early Australian Aboriginal people. Many Christian churches have a circular stained glass window, with the cross as the center point of the circle.


In the Buddhist mandala, the circles represent levels of the cosmos, and the squares generally depict earthly levels. The levels may have gates, which lead into the center of the mandala. The mandala is used as an external expression to help find the universe within. Often, the mandala incorporates symbols or physical representations of the Buddha to show the transition of the spiritual journey



No two sand mandalas are ever alike.



However, each one is created using the same basic concepts.



Here is a video that I found on YouTube that illustrates what the ending ceremony is like:

(If you are unable to view the video above, please click HERE.)

A Steampunk Orange

Back when I was a kid, the old man who ran the local photography studio taught me how to hand tint photos with oil paints and a Q-tip. Now my Mom's album of family photos contains a number of pictures of strange-looking blue or magenta- skinned individuals.

Photo Manipulation has been practice since the 1800's. Before computers, photo manipulation was done with oil paints, as mentioned above, with ink, double-exposure, piecing photos or negatives together in the darkroom, or by scratching Polaroids. Now, with the use of Adobe Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, Corel Photopaint, and other software program an image can now be edit with ease. A good quality and angle of both images is a must to achieve a good manipulation result.

Here are some fun manipulated computer images that I was able to dig up on the web. Some of them are downright amazing! :

Connie Cohen - Spizzi Mosaics

Connie Cohen

Wouldn’t you just love to have a shower surround like this?!

Firedog Shower

If you’re a fan of modern mosaics with Old World style, you might want to pay a visit to Spizzi Mosaics, the studio of Minneapolis, Minnesota mosaic artist, Connie Cohen.



Connie began her art life as a graphic designer. Then, a friend told her about a do-it-yourself TV program she had seen about pique assiette techniques and tile cutting. The friend suggested that the two of them begin making mosaics and the rest is history. Connie very quickly became hooked on the art form. A couple of years later, she found herself in Ravenna, Italy with her Mom where she took Lucianna’s mosaic course and fell in love with smalti. Since then, she has spent much of her life creating and perfecting her beautiful decorative and fine art works. Connie works primarily with either Italian or Mexican smalti, but has recently begun to add stained glass to her work.





“I fell into the world of mosaics by chance and have discovered something far beyond what I could have ever imagined. What began as a hobby has led me deeper into the world of art, history and architecture. For me, it is the perfect synergy of my background in graphic design and architecture. I’m captivated by the process and I’m intrigued by the idea of making a fluid “painting” using a solid material. I am amazed by the magic in the process and I create to be a part of that magic.”



Whether working to music or in quiet solitude, Connie’s work reflects a deep, thoughtfulness about the designs and process.




“Whether I'm studying someone else's technique or free-forming on my own, I think my hand and personal sensibility comes through without really thinking about it.”

Connie enjoys working with and sharing her work with children and has participated in a number of Artist in Residency programs in her career. Perhaps most admirable was her stint with the Kulture Klub Collaborative, a non-profit that offers art opportunities to homeless youth. She coaches her students to find designs and colors that portray each person’s unique style.





If you happen to be in the vicinity of Long Beach, CA. this summer, you might want to stop by the 2nd. Cith Council Gallery. Two of Connie’s pieces, “The Tree of Inner Solitude” and “Kissed by the Tree of Weeping Love” , were accepted into the juried show: Tesserae: The Art of Mosaic. They will be at the gallery from June 27 - August 5.

You may view more of Connie Cohen’s work HERE.

Exhibition Notice

I received the following announcement today. Imaging making 50 mosaics in 50 days!





>
> Hello friends, family, and colleagues,
> I’m writing to tell you about my art blog called Jude Pittman’s Studio,
> www.judepittmanstudio.blogspot.com
> The new artwork which I’m making every day for 50 days will be exhibited with 66 other artists’ work In the 50/50 Show at the Sanchez Art Center July 24-August 29.
>
> Whew! It’s an exhilarating challenge to make a mosaic every day for fifty days.
> A couple new pieces will be added to the blog every few days. Please join me in this creative journey by checking out my blog! Then come to the grand opening on
> Friday, July 24 7–9 pm
> at the Sanchez Art Center
> 1220 Linda Mar Blvd. Pacifica CA
>
> All of these 6" x 6" artworks are for sale
> and may be taken home at the time of purchase.
> Cheers,
> Jude Pittman
> Visit my website for more artwork at www.judepittman.com
>