Upcoming & Previous Workshops, New Work, and the Artist's Life of PAIN

Summer is about over, and it's been a good one. I've enjoyed being back in town, being able to have a newly painted, well-lit studio, the big front porch, and riding my bike for errands. Now that I'm back to school, I'll enjoy the 2 minute morning walk to the office the most yet.

Upcoming workshops: CoffeeTree Books of Morehead, Kentucky, our fantastic local & independent bookstore, will be hosting a workshop and book signing on Saturday, September 13th from 12:00 - 4:00 p.m. (workshop) and 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. (book signing) in association with the book I am featuring in, "Creative Quilting with Beads", published by Lark Books. The cost of the four hour workshop is $50, and includes all supplies & the book (retailing @ $24.95). Call 606-784-8364 to register or for more info, and/or visit www.coffeetreebooks.com and *click* "events". I'm very excited about this opportunity - besides this being a local event since I rarely teach out in my region, the Fuzzy Duck, our local coffee place, is literally in the building, and anyone who knows me, knows I need a steady and reliable source of coffee at all times.....

Students will make a piece like this, approx. 4 x 6"


Other scheduled workshops: Byzantium Bead store in Columbus, Ohio is hosting me again (they have been FANTASTIC to me and will be helping to pay my MRI bill - see below) on Sept 20 from 12:15 - 5:15. The class is very comparable to the one @ CoffeeTree, and the piece to be created is a similar size, do-able in an afternoon. If you are interested in a more intensive workshop re: the embellished textile assemblage techniques, Byz is also hosting a weekend workshop in October that I will post more info on later. Visit www.bigbead.com or call (614) 291-3130 - they are located @ 1088 N. High Street just north of the Short North (fun place in C-Bus).

Way, way off in the future: I will be back (like Arnold) at the Society for Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh for a weekend workshop April 4 & 5. Pittsburgh is a great town, and Laura Rundell, Education Programs Manager, does a wonderful job as mastermind of the educational programming. Last time I had a blast walking around the neighborhood/business district surrounding SSC, including PennMac, which has to be one of the best Italian grocery stores in the US. You can e-mail thestudio@contemporarycraft.org or phone 412.261.7003 for more info about educational programming @ SCC.

Final workshop news: the weekend workshop @ Craft Alliance in St. Louis was a terrific time, with great students and terrific publicity and support from Luanne Rimel, Senior Director, Education & Exhibition Programs. One of the students, Carlene Fullerton, was an amazing host, running what I consider the Artist's B&B of choice. The Craft Alliance is located in "The Loop", an arts district with lots of good restaurants and fun stores - always a good thing when I have a little stipend burning in my pocket. Beyond the workshop, other benefits gained: I will be included in the pre-holiday art exhibition @ Craft Alliance with my smaller pieces, and will be exhibiting at Forest Park Community College in Sept/Oct 2009, conveniently when St. Louis's city-wide event, Innovations in Textiles, will be happening. Bad news: schlemping work and supplies around airports, etc., in association with Craft Alliance was the tipping point for a C-Spine injury that I'm currently nursing. Lots of visits to the chiaropractor and being careful should reverse it. Ah, the artist's burden.

Images from Craft Alliance:



Two finished pieces recently. The first one is part of the Appalachian Altars series, This one is called "Appalachian Altars #1: Fertility", and is about 12 x 11". There will be others, about crows, atvs, etc.

Here's a small 6 x 4" one - this one and its cousins are for sale for $200 framed, and are available through me or Craft Alliance during their upcoming October/November exhibition.


Soon, Kira Campbell and I will be heading up to Morgantown WV for our two-person exhibition called "A Ribbon Tied Around a Bomb", at Zen Gallery Gallery, which will be up for the month of September and part of October. Go to www.zenclay.com for more info. Cream of the Crop, at the Southern Ohio Museum just came down, and I have a slew of exhibition submissions to get to in the next few weeks. Fall is here and time to get back to business!