Dreamer

This collage, Dreamer is done on stretched canvas.   I did a whole series  some time ago on canvas.  I like being able to attach actual objects.  The photograph is an altered one- one from my collection of old family pictures.  The ruler piece is from one of those old rulers that fold all up.  I have a few of these from my partner's father.  We found them when we were going through things after he died. 
One of my favorite artists is Joseph Cornell.  For some reason this collage makes me think of him.  I think it is the color and the map and ruler.

Questions of Faith

This collage is titled:  Questions of Faith.  Even though I did this quite a while back it is a good image for what I have been thinking about of late.  The faith card is being played out in this election in some very hurtful ways.  Here in Minnesota there will be an amendment to the state constitution to vote on- if it passes it will forever ban same sex marriage.  We can't get married now here but "they" want to make sure we never can- The Faith comes into play here- there are many churches that are working hard to pass it and I am happy to say there are many churches that are working with us to defeat the amendment.  Then I can go on and say questions of faith in our humanity- can the hate stop?  I strive to be  "the glass is half full" kind of person but the tone in the country and the world for that matter makes that a real challenge.  I still think goodness and love will win out once again- just want to have faith it will be sooner than later.
All the photographic imagery in the collage is my own that I altered and the rest is ephemera from my collection.

Lost & Found

This collage is titled Lost Direction.  It was done over a year ago and was very cathartic for me.  I had recently retired from teaching and was dealing with a bout of depression.  I have to say there is a big difference between having the blues and depression.  I am pleased to say I am feeling much better and retirement is incredible.  The lost direction feeling is fading as well.  After teaching for 36 years one may think it would be easy to be done but it wasn't easy for me.  I was use to being in that giving environment- I was tired and knew it was time but didn't realize the transition would be as hard as it was.  There is that feeling of guilt- I should be doing something...  I will forever be the teacher and am excited to have a space in our home where I can teach small workshops.
So I have made a new map for my new life that has lots of unknown territories to be explored.

Courage

This digital collage is titled Courage.   I made it after reading the quote.  Just in case you aren't aware of this- you can click on the collage and it will enlarge so you can see it better- that is of course if I saved it right.  I think we all deal with courage issues- it's hard to have courage to speak the truth sometimes- especially to people you love as we don't want to hurt them.  I have learned though that not telling them the truth isn't a good choice.  It takes courage to put your art "out there". It also takes courage to keep on making art after a rejection letter for an exhibit.  Seth Apter on his blog The Altered Page (see my side-bar) asked some artists if they were ever jealous of other artists' work- it sure took courage for sharing their honest replies.

Alice

This is a cut and paste collage.  I like to work with old family photographs and alter them.  All of these elements were cut out and then I put them together in this composition.  This came about because one month my ATC group had Alice in Wonderland as a theme.  So I made this collage and then I reduced it down to ATC size.  The words are from Jefferson Airplane's White Rabbit song.  Guess that really dates me but I still love hearing Grace Slick sing that.

Stitched

This is a digital collage that I made after reading this quote from Augustan.  He wrote Running With Scissors. And as is often the case- I feel the book was way better than the movie.  The quote above is really a nice way to look at things.  We all have flaws but most (not all) people have good intentions.  I love collecting quotes and they often are the inspiration for a collage or a journal page.

Friends

This is a digital collage I made a while ago.  I really liked the quote about friends.  I find that the meaning of being and having a friend is so different for some.  When I see people on Facebook with hundreds and hundreds of friends- or have hundreds of followers on Twitter (I don't Tweet) I wonder what that really means to them- it almost seems like it's a competition.  I guess I am old school- to have a friendship means to me- a real commitment and a bond on many levels.  It is a sharing of interests beliefs- being there for one another.  My friends are so important to me.  I am very blessed to have some very special friends.  Why not take some time today and tell your friends what they mean to you!