Post 92... Catching up a bit...

What have I been doing... 

1). Got out of conventional art education

2). Applied for my second graduate degree... This one in Fine Arts!

3). Was a tattoo apprentice

4). And now... Working on my business, "Art 411 Studio, LLC", learning to "Expect nothing, and accept everything", & planning on moving this information to my business website... Oh and, proposing a show of my work, & applying for a scrapbooking team, after a long, long break... Plus, an abundance of home, family, friend, and art stuff... 

So, not much happening here... Ha Ha Ha... :)

Blogging my evolution as a NON-TRADITIONAL artistic art educator, artist, and start-up business owner... Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 91 - - Summer through November... In brief... Beach, new job, printmaking, student work, holiday ideas...

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 

Drawing I created on the table covering 

in a wonderful jazz club in Chicago.

After a brief Chicago trip, to visit my eldest step-daughter, we hit the beach.. The "Summer of the Shark" effected our vacation trip to the Outer Banks for me. I could not enjoy the water for even the briefest of moments... scanning, scanning, scanning. All I did was watch for fins in the water, while my daughter, her friend, and my husband enjoyed themselves to the fullest.

I did enjoy the sand, the food, and the weather at night... the smell of the ocean, the site of it from our deck, drinking homemade coconut mojitos, playing cards on the back screened in porch, eating the best breaded fried shrimp of my life, visiting Ocracoke Island (which had a shark attack just days after we left)... 

I also had the distinctly odd experience of interviewing on the phone for the job that I now possess. Google "Phone Interview" some time, just for fun. Apparently, one person believes that the interviewers can "feel" if you smile or not, on the other end of the phone connection. So, one is supposed to talk on the phone while looking in the mirror, so one can be sure to smile regularly. Another post suggested that you should wear whatever you would for the interview, so you feel professional. This I did do. The "smile in the mirror" thing, I did not do, because it just sounded goofy.

Needless, to say, it all worked out well. I received an e-mail request for a second interview with my present head principal before we left the OB, and he offered me the job two days after we returned.

School improvements by me and my kids.

I teach gifted art students and regular middle school visual art at Winton Woods Middle School now. It is a roller coaster that is intense and satisfying on a regular daily basis. I wanted a "family", and am feeling more and more like one of them each day. I work with good people. I have a great big room. I have support and creative freedom. I am hopeful... slow and steady, but hopeful...


In the midst of teaching, I am working on fulfilling my re-certification requirements. I have the majority of it finished, but need a few more hours. That need led me to reconnecting with my fine art love for printmaking. I joined the Tiger Lily Press membership, and have taken three classes so far... screenprinting, linoleum relief printing, and letterpress (mucho difficult), but good, because I got to see my Art Academy professor, April Foster. LOVE HER!! Tremendous lady and inspirational educator... I am looking forward to more printmaking adventures soon!

Screen printed skull from photographic image 

I took a while back.

Well... In brief, that brings you up to November, now... I am busy trying to get my first semester of kids through their projects, and busy making (to my husband's dismay) Christmas gifts. Stitching crazily for the next few weeks... and, enjoying it!

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 90 - - Aim High, Ira Glass, Christmas gifts, Sculptural adventures...

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 

1). I want so much to grow. I need to AIM HIGH, and I can only go forward... In one such way, I have been working with an incredible, encouraging and talented instructor lately, and he has challenged me to "share my gifts" in a way that I have never really considered seriously. The Summerfair organization has an annual award that they offer each year, to deserving artists who want to make strides in their creative work. I intend to meet my instructor's challenge. I intend to apply this year. The work I have been doing lately uses a mixed media technique that my instructor devised, and I LOVE IT!... An example of a piece I finished is posted below... Wish me luck!

2). An AMAZING few powerful words from Ira Glass... I am sharing them here, and will share them with my students very soon... 

3). The Christmas gifts I made and gave this year used a technique that I have my students use... gel medium image transfers. (Basically, a laser printed image is moved from the paper carrier to the new surface with an acrylic medium and even pressure. The medium is allowed to dry overnight, then the paper carrier is dampened and rubbed off.) I made 32 plaques with my photos and quotes pulled from a favorite resource.

2). Below is a detail of the metal flashing wall sculpture I created over the Summer. Having not had as much sculpture creation experience as I have wanted to have in the past, I relished the opportunity to take a class over this past Summer. I used power tools, hand tools, and 100 tiny nuts and bolts, as well as participating in critiques with a wonderful class and instructor. I cannot wait to return to the Mount this coming Summer! 

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

ART & MATH... The beauty of keeping both strong in schools is illustrated here...Thanks TED!

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 



Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 89 - - Mt. Healthy Art Show is coming (May 3rd)... Preview of my students' works... So proud!

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience...

Painting Basics Course - Faux Oil Painting (Created with oil pastels & Turpenoid)

Drawing Fundamentals Course - Observational Chair Drawing/Betty Edwards video course (Graphite)

Drawing Fundamentals Course - Observational Flag Drawing/Betty Edwards video course (Graphite)

Photo Workshop Course - Extension of Reality (Mixed media/collage copy with colored pencil)

Photo Workshop Course - Mosaic Montage (Multi-copy collage images, re-cropped, re-assembled)

Painting Basics Course - Wandering Watercolor (Pencil doodling/liquid & cake watercolors/)

Show is at the high school from 1 - 3 p.m. on May 3rd... Address--8101 Hamilton Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45231... Hope you can make it!!

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 88 - - Gauche Alchemy's FAB ATC KIT, and my digi collage sheets...

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 

Bold and beautiful... Fun and Fab... This new kit is a dream come true for anybody wanting to make Artist Trading Cards (ATCs)... 

Gauche Alchemy developed the kit...

ARTist Trading Card TechniKit

... and, I developed some SAAAAWEEEEET digital Collage Sheets for them...

Backgrounds

Images

Word/s

Plus, I also created an ATC-how-to-make-them-basic-directions-sheet (The Anatomy of an ATC), and added a possible theme list, for those artisticly blocked moments (all of which comes with the kit)...

So, no matter what your experience level is with ATCs, you will find lots of ways in, lots of ways to fly, and lots of inspiring materials... The kit is INCREDIBLE!!... Check it out here... : )

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 87 - - Punky Scraps Neon Challenge... My wall plaque... Madonna and Shakespeare come together...

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 

Punky Scraps and Gauche Alchemy are teaming up for a NEON CHALLENGE... Check it out and try your hand at some neon fun, like I did...

I used lots of neon acrylic paint, some molding paste and GA Punchinella as a mask, hot glue to create the word "make", a multitude of alpha options for the Shakespeare quote, some stamping with Staz-on ink at the edges, and a wonderful old magazine pic of Madonna kissing herself in a mirror, in which I tried my hand at my first gel medium skin transfer... I am pretty seriously happy with this piece!... I may add some final touches to this piece before I am completely finished, and I promise to post detail shots and any additions soon...

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 86 - - Viva Las VegaStamps!... DT Tryout... 3 stamp-focused pieces for consideration...

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 

Let's see... It is very hard to pick only three artworks to share with the VLVS peeps, that I have created, that feature stamping, because I use stamping to some degree in everything I do... But, here goes... Enjoy!

Artist Trading Cards

A jointed paper doll

A scrapbook page

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 85 - - More People, Places and Things... Collage heaven!!

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 

More people...

More things...

More places...

And, more MASTER COLLAGES...

And, lots more creative collage fun.... Try your hand!... Collect people, places, and things, and make your own collages... Simple, effective, strong and versatile... : )

Check out my future blog posts for ways to S-T-R-E-T-C-H your MASTER COLLAGE creations, and make them reach their full potential... 

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam

Post 84 - - Working on my studio... An incredible wall decal designed for me by Single Stone Studios!

Blogging my evolution as an artistic art educator - An art-based experience... 

My husband wrote a short text length poem to me last year, and I saved it, because I loved it so much. A year later, we are in a new home and I have a brand new studio to decorate, and his poem and my style were used to design a wall decal for my studio... Thanks Shelley!! (Single Stone Studios)

Safety, health, happiness, and peace... Pam