an assemblage and book combo

since i have to work cyclically lately between different mediums, sometimes i can’t decide if i want to create an assemblage or a book.  they are, after all, the two things i’m most passionate about creating (though i’m still overly obsessed with the idea of creating a portrait i don’t hate).  so this time i decided to create both in unison… a book inside an assemblage.  it’s funny how i say that as if i’ve never done that before.  i’m totally laughing right now.  this is probably my forty-third assemblage with a book in it.

meet the second gal in my doll box series (the first, “exhibition of self” can be found in seth apter’s book “the pulse of mixed media” where i was one of the featured artists).  i fell instantly in love with that little face of hers and had to create something special.  at least i feel she’s special.  ❤

like most people, she has her secrets; some are kept in the little drawer just above her heart, and others can be kept in the book within her belly.  the drawer is actually not empty.  can you guess what’s inside?

the book is made with bones upon the spine and a metal and shark tooth closure i fashioned out of miscellaneous found objects.

you can see several more detail photos on my site, here, if interested >>

what did you create today?

check your pulse

i am so excited to share that today i will be one of the many featured artists on seth apter’s “the pulse” for his weekly style file.  this is week 8.  (eight is a magical number.  if you knock it over, it’s an infinity symbol.  seth and the pulse and all participants are infinitely amazing!)

update: i’m a ditzy girl sometimes, despite my high IQ.  i posted this in advance, forgetting it was the STYLE photo, not the art photo.  so, you get a preview of a piece that will later be featured.  whoops!  sorry seth! after you see this, forget it entirely, ‘kay?  thanks.  🙂

the piece that i chose to submit is called “finding the rabbit hole” and is a play on my favorite story “alice in wonderland” (i’m sure you’ve heard of it).  🙂  but, this piece has the alicia-twist with a bit of taxidermy, a bit of nature, some watch parts and gears and lots of secret places.  the piece itself measures 6″ x 12″ and is the first in a series of 3 or 4 or 5 — i haven’t decided yet.  basically this is a rip-off of what i did in lisa jurist’s book for the pulp redux collaboration because i LOVED that piece so much — it really hit a personal note for me so i’ve created one for myself.  (i deserve it.)

in the piece you can see many representations of the story of alice: a glass ring that represents the looking glass, a mouse skull which represents the mouse she meets in the pool of tears, a broken piece of a pocket watch and taxidermy rabbit paw representing the white rabbit who is notoriously late, the rusty key, etc.  the little tree is the one she fell through the hole under its branches.

here you can see detail of the skull through the little hole (click to enlarge):

when i was a little tiny girl, we lived in the middle of nowhere, oregon.  (it was actually called lorane — still is)  at the time, the population was about 47.  three or four of those were my family and at least 98% of the rest were “old” people (anything over ten is old when you’re 3).  i had really only one friend that i can recall (a cute boy named jasper pony p.) and the rest of the time it was solo going.  i would wander around our forest searching for gnomes, faeries and THE rabbit hole.  usually this would end in disappointment as i would typically only find things like caterpillars (who i would speak to as if i were alice), snakes, mushrooms, berries and deer poop.

detail of the taxidermy rabbit foot and rusty old key (the frame around the tree was one of the first things i made out of apoxie clay from a mold i created about a year ago — was saving it for something special):

after a long time of searching day and night for the rabbit hole (and probably not “night” — my parents were not neglectful or anything and would never have let me wander a dark forest alone at night as a small child), i gave up.  i thought that if it were meant to be, i would just find it.  instead, my flexed my creativity muscles and thought up my own stories of “alicia’s wonderland” and drew pictures of what it would look like while perched under trees with our goats, chickens and kitties.  that was equally as fun.

under the vintage photo of alice on the front resides a deep compartment — her photo being the door.  i have yet to finish the inside (shhh) but it will have these and/or other vials inside (drink me!) and a menagerie of additional skulls, bones and other bits.  probably a butterfly, too.

within each of the sides of this piece, there are four secret little drawers (whose faces i still must paint!).  inside the drawers: a beetle, a butterfly wing and a button, currently.  i am looking for a caterpillar and other pertinent items to fill them up a bit more.

 (i need to paint the edges of the canvas the piece is on, too!  how embarrassing that it’s STILL not all the way complete!)  i love all of the twigs, nature bits, flower petals, dried roses, shells, moss, feathers and wings that are between the layers.  reminds me of my forest.

what was your favorite childhood story?

imagine my surprise

about three or four and a half weeks ago i happened upon the coolest website i’d found in quite some time.  it was for a shop called paxton gate, which is located in san francisco.  they have everything from articulated skeletons to taxidermy eyes, carnivorous plants to fantastically cool books, peacock feathers to cloches, plus bones, fossils and minerals, science junk and art, etc.  if you know me, you know i was elated beyond words.  i loved this site so much that i kept the tab open for weeks so i could peek back every now and then to drool a bit.

fast-forward to last weekend and a friend tells me while out for a couple of drinks… “there is a new shop on mississippi that i know you’ll love….”.  long story short, it’s paxton gate!!  how i did not know we had one in portland is beyond me.  well, true confession: i don’t get out much so it’s no wonder i didn’t notice it.  so, we ended up going the very next day, the husb and i, and i rather love that shop.  i have to say, though, that it’s both odd and comical to me that i have always loved bones and dead/preserved creatures and everyone told me i was “gross” or “morbid” and now it’s tres cool to have a taxidermy baby skunk or mink skull or dead, framed bugs in your living room, for example.  who’s morbid and weird now, huh!?  yeah… not just me… not that i ever thought it morbid or weird.

anyway, this is a cool shop.  a bit sterile and open, but very cool none the less.  you should check if out if you’re able.  at least check out the site…

all images copyright paxton gate.

books, bones and new charlottes

phew!  what a summer!  things are always crazier this time of year, aren’t they!  travel and kids home (mine and half the neighborhood), move travel and no time to work or art it seems.  at least we’ve had some adventures to spokane and coeur d’alene and long beach and corona and san diego and la and such… though not all were under the best pretenses (though that’s neither here nor there, i suppose).  i haven’t had a lot of time to art or hardly any time to visit my favorite blogs, but soon summer will be over and school days will reconvene.

i’ve at least gotten to finish four more charlotte pieces for my attempted 100 piece series (now if i stopped selling these i could maybe actually have 100 someday!).  i have photos of numbers 9 and 11.  at least i have plenty of 1900 and 1901 sheet music to do twice that many so we shall see where i end with these.

i just did a PDF tutorial that i’ll be posting in a week or three on how to crackle and age frozen charlottes and other bisque or porcelain dolls.  as a result, i had lots of new little girls to play with.

charlotte’s song #9: heart song

lots of vintage lace, naturally dyed and aged, metal bits and pieces that i’ve rusted, antique sheet music, recycled sari silk ribbon, etc…

charlotte’s song #11 (i really need to photograph 10 and 12!)  this is just a simple one, but cute none the less.

detail: a rusty or metallic charlotte and pretty turquoise stones.

i have a 20 to 30 piece show with these little girls next month but the left-overs will surely be going up in my etsy shop (aiming to have 30 done just in case there is room but may only have room for 20).  better get to sewing though, huh!!

i also had the time to start three books, but just barely.   i gave a mini peek of book one a few days ago and will show it soon, completed.  that one is for me and is entitled phantoms and shadows.  i dig ghostly things, ya know?  book two was supposed to be for a collaboration that kerin and i are doing (see below) but she is a silly and fickle girl and wanted to change the size so this will be a different alicia-book which is just [almost] as thrilling ’cause i’m already loving it.  i’ve had so much fun working on these covers and am looking forward to hearing what everyone thinks once i get them done.  i still need to come up with a title and better theme for my big huge book with kerin (okay, not HUGE, but decent sized — i think they are 9″ x 12″ and will probably be a foot or three thick, hah), especially since the cover is nearly done.  we’ll be posting those in the weeks to come, huh keriny!?  other than these and my art journals, that’s really all i’ve gotten to do as of late.  but i shall not complain!

oh, the book… i almost forgot about these photos.  this is of course not at all done, but it’s a pretty fun cover, i’d say.  i am going to singe the lace a bit, for one… maybe do something to the bird skull but it’s so lovely natural “as is” that i’ll probably just leave it.  you can’t tell in this photo but the skull and vials are inset about 1/2″ or so from the rest of the book…

and i’m going to do that waxy alicia-thing to the ends of the vials before i actually attach them (they currently hold porcupine quills, something green and nature-esque, and some animal teeth — yeps, i like taxidermy parts and bones!)…

hopefully i’ll get at least two of these books done before summer’s end, and a handful more charlotte pieces.  i’m not sure why i like them so much but they are quite fun!

does anyone know where to get taxidermy bird wings?  i really, really, REALLY need one for this book.  have found nothing on ebay or anything else and know a lot of bird parts are illegal to sell (wings?) in some places.  if i wasn’t so sweet i’d sick one of our cats on a crow.  totally not serious!!

what are you working on this summer?