Accidents Are Supposed to Happen!

   After looking at the shoes I painted and ruined I realized that even if I hadn't smeared them, I wouldn't have been pleased with the results.  I was going for a little girl's style and they just ended up hokey.  This has caused me to go in an entirely different direction.  I have put a base coat on the next pair of shoes and am 
    In addition, I have finished reading the entire book A Daily Creativity Journal 365 by Noah Scalin.  It's great that there are no rules because there are projects seem a bit redundant.  For example, one day it says work with all white materials, then several weeks later, work with all brown, then orange, black, green etc.  Another projects instructs me to do someone else's job for the day and create something at the workplace.  I'm not enthused about taking a day off to work somewhere else.   I have worked as a teaching assistant, pizza maker, burger flipper @ Friendly's (for about 2 weeks), pan washer @ Pathmark's bakery, restaurant manager, trainer, special education teacher, private instructor, mentor, and bookseller.  In addition, my father made me detail cars which included taking out the seats and cleaning under them, change tires, oil, radiators and help him fix car doors.  Having to clean up after him and my students wasn't a piece of cake either.  Therefore, I think I'm going to come up with some other projects to replace a few of the others when appropriate.

Inspiration

Sometimes when I read the parameters to a project, I have to admit, I skip to another one because I get stumped, I just don't feel inspired.  Now during grade school I had absolutely no art instruction of any kind.   If someone said "Van Gogh",  I would have replied with, "God bless you."  On occasion we were given craft projects to do but we never had art education.  In high school, the only kids who received art instruction were those who were going to be art majors or headed to Moore College of Art.  Otherwise, forget it!  So, I didn't know I had a lick of artistic ability until I took a class over the summer when I was in college.  It was only three weeks, but I learned something very important...I could actually draw.  
   Anyhoo, as I said, with no art education, I know very little about various artists.  I actually do know about Van Gogh as he is my favorite and I have read a great deal about him.  But other than him...  Luckily working with books allows me to take a gander at art books for free during my breaks or meals! So, I pulled a few off the shelves and took a gander.  I have to say, I found Frida to be strange, not my cup of tea.  But I really like Escher! He really inspires me and the fact that he works with black and white a great deal made me feel better as I like using pencil so much.  I can't stand any of the Wyeths.  I have seen their work first hand at the Brandywine River Museum and can I just say blah.  I would rather be disturbed by Frida than bored by Wyeth.   The good news is I found several artists that I really like and I was worried I wouldn't as Carvaggio is really not up my alley! 

8th Project- Redo!

This one called for designing a pair of shoes or redesigning a pair of my old shoes.  Well, I wear my shoes into the ground!  And my shoes that aren't worn into the ground are ones I wear TO work or are actual working boots, ie steel toed Timberlands that are covered in dirt.  Not exactly conducive to paint or art work.  I do have dress shoes but I would like them to remain dress.  So I bought a pair of  el-cheapo, $3 shoes.  I painted the left shoe in one style and the right in another and I smeared BOTH of them.  What a freakin' ASS!!!  Could I BE any dumber!  I just glanced each one with my hand.  I didn't even realize it with one of them until I saw the shoe.  I looked down at my hand and saw the paint.  That being said, I will redo the project.  Hopefully, I can still get a pair of cheap-ass shoes to screw with.

Seventh Project

It's been a long time since my last post but I find myself thinking more than I ever would have about my projects and that's the whole point right?  Think creatively? The parameters for this project.  Write a 10 word love story and if so inclined, illustrate it!   Here it is.

Sixth Project

  Parameters:  Use black and white materials only.

Flower Inspiration---Spin Off

  I had to do something in addition to the last project.  I just couldn't leave it with the last sad looking chicken made from the petals of the polka-dotted flowers.  I decided to sketch a flower.  Just a pencil drawing.

Fifth Project

I realize that the point of this is to get the creative juices flowing, however I can't let go of the desire to create something that actually looks better than a kid's craft project.  With the time contraints AND working with unfamiliar mediums it is extremely difficult to produce something remotely ... decent.  The assignment for this one was to use flowers, (real or fake) to create something.  I chose fake as I work near a Michael's, they are sturdier, cheaper and I would have greater range of choices.  I was going to choose safe, solid colors but I figured that would be too easy.  So, I picked black and white, polka-dot daisies.  I chopped off the petals and thought they looked like feathers.

Fourth Project

Parameters:  Create something small.  Small enough to put in the palm of your hand.  I created a small sunflower, with a tiny bumblebee on it.  I used paper again as I really need the practice if I'm going to be using in it my journaling.

Third Project

Keep in mind that I can't spend much time on any single project because there is another one the next day.  That being said, the parameters for the third activity were to use only paper as the medium and here it is.

Reading Update

Two books down:  Storm Front by Jim Butcher and The Mermaids Singing by Val McDermid.  The audio book is half-way completed.  I am currently reading two other novels, The Uglies by Scott Westerfeld and Fool Moon by Jim Butcher.

Project Two Complete

   The directions for this project were simple.  Use your favorite animal as inspiration.  Well everyone knows what that is.  So, here is the work for that project.  I have to say I fell back on one of my favorite mediums though because I felt pressure to catch up. (Nothing like being a teacher or spending 12 years in Catholic school to make you create your own deadlines.) 

First Project Complete

   Well, it's not much but it's a start.   The ice hasn't worked out yet.  It didn't freeze outside then with the wind a great deal of junk got into the containers not to mention that the dogs drank a few dry and knocked a few over.  So, that one is on the back burner but just for now. 

   The next project asked me to design a new playing card.  I drew a number of sketches at first but they just fell flat.  The next day I pulled out paper, beads and created a 3-D card.  It might not be beautiful but it is different.  Who knows if we end up having another storm I'll do another one OR a deck. 

  The parameters for day two state that I am only allowed to use water as my medium!  So, I am going to utilize the crappy weather to my advantage and  use frozen water!  One of my kitchen cabinets is bursting with gladware and Tupperware, many of which have no lids.  So, I filled them with water, stuck them in the snow and am waiting for them to freeze.  (Hopefully, by tomorrow night.)  Then I will create some kind of ice sculpture.