Christmas Memory

you're probably asking your self just what these two pictures have to do with each other

one of the clearest memories I have of Christmas as a child was when my day would bring home a box of chocolate cherries --

I have always loved that combination

when I was in the store the other day I spotted this bag of cherry cordial m&ms

I just couldn't resist buying a bag to check them out

mmmmmmmmm

I'll be buying my dad one of these for Christmas this year

(yeah, that's him, there in the sailor suit!)

thinking about new directions

yesterday we made a trip to a craft show

we went with a purpose -- to find a stone cutter who has done some work for us in the past (I had a large chunk of turquoise I want him to cut for me), and to visit with friends that we knew were going to be there

I haven't done a show in almost 2 years

and while I really can not get excited about doing outdoor summer shows, the idea of an indoor show is a possibility

while we were there I talked with several fiber artists who were doing some interesting things as well as some painters

there didn't seem to be as much jewelry as there has been in the past either, which I found rather interesting -- perhaps that craze has burned itself out

so I'm now considering the idea of doing this show next year

and taking some of my small quilted pieces as well as some of my wearables (the small, "Colorado Beach Glass" pieces, etc.)

certainly that would give me the chance to get some feedback on new stuff

it would give me someplace to perhaps sell some of the "experimental" pieces that I'm thinking about doing to learn some new techniques -- and it might generate a commission or two, which would be worth while

I will continue to think about this -- especially if the items I currently have in a store show are well received

oh yeah, and I'm thinking about MOO cards too

Representational or abstract, original or derivative?

I'll be doing a trunk show for my local quilt guild in January, so I'm starting to think about what I will say in that hour or so that I will have

as a member of SAQA I've read with interest the recent posts on the email list about art -- the cycles of what is "in fashion" between representational art or abstract art and the whole question of doing original versus derivative work

everything we create stands on the shoulders of our experiences and our learning

like technology, art comes out of what others before us have created

I will admit that I personally like representational pieces -- for me most abstract art is like progressive jazz -- created solely for the pleasure of the person making it -- but I will admit that a piece of art that is based on something like a leaf examined so close you can see every tiny texture but blown up to cover a wall has its own abstract but recognizable form

perhaps that is my real stumbling block -- recognizing -- my brain likes to be able to put a label on what I see