tried something new

I tried something alittle different.  More gears, no zentangle... definite steampunk influence...  I like combining the organic with the inorganic.  I'll be trying more of these I think

Latest Zentangle

I'm going to be doing a class at Stamp Your Art Our in January that combines stamping and Zentangling.  Here is one of the samples for the class.

  The class will be January 15th, if i can get my act together and get samples and paperwork down to Connie. LOL!  Hope to see some of you there.

Gears

I've always been fascinated but clockwork machinery...  gears, cogs, anything of that nature.  When I was living in England, I visited The Cabaret Mechanical Theatre at Covent Garden.  It was a fascinating display of automatons, gear driven sculptures, so intricate in design as to seem magical.  Of course my visit was almost 15 years ago, so much has changed I would imagine.  There is a website that is quite inspiring, http://www.cabaret.co.uk/, so do visit them. 

Conversations

One of the blogs I read on a fairly regular basis is the Zentangle blog. There is always something interesting and the art work is astounding. Yesterday, Rick and Maria posted a letter they received. You can read the post by clicking here.

http://zentangle.blogspot.com/2010/11/conversation.html

I think what amazes me most about the email that Rick and Maria received is that it was sent at all. And yes, I know, that's terribly naive but really, they receive them on a regular basis? What a waste of time and energy. What did the individual hope to accomplish by writing to them? Why not channel that energy into their own art or back into helping the community, (which is ALWAYS the best use of extra time and energy). Engaging in thoughtful debate is a necessary part of human civilization, we are all entitled to our opinions. But ignorance is not an opinion. To quote Martin Luther King Jr. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

I'm going to put these comments into their blog as well as here so you may see them twice. My apologies. I am just amazed as to the emotional response Zentangle attracts. I don't mind people who are passionate about things.... please just be respectfully passionate about them. LOL. Putting away my soapbox now.

A Short Art History Lesson

I only wish that I'd known my self better when I was younger.  I would have liked to have majored in Art History, not that being a History major was far off... but perhaps I could have pursued a career in art.  I remember being fascinated with art history even in grade school.  One of my Social Studies books had a picture of the Venus of Willendorf on its bright, glossy pages and it has forever captured my imagination.  If you aren't familiar with this comfortable little sculpture, she is alittle over 4 inches high, and was carved from limestone between 22,000 and 21,000 B.C.E.  She was discovered by Austro- Hungarian archaeologist Josef Szombathy in 1908 near the village of Willendorf in Austria.   It's interesting to read what all the scholars have decided that see represents, from a fertility idol to a self-portrait.  What I find so amazing about her is that during a time when human beings needed to direct all their energies on surviving, someone would have found the time to create art.  Human beings have always and will always feel a need to create art in some form, it is as basic as eating, sleeping, and breathing.  The Venus of Willendorf proves that.

Zentangle Class at Marco Paper

I will be teaching an introductory Zentangle class at Marco's Paper on Saturday, November 20 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.  Marco's Paper is located on Whipp Road near Far Hills.  For all the details about the class follow this link,
http://www.marcopaper.com/products.php?product=Untangle-with-Zentangle-with-Nicole-Ewing-%252d%252d-November-20

I hope to see you there!  It's going to be alot of fun.

Sassy Zentangle Chic

I finished this sample for a class I'll be teaching in January and my favorite part is definitely her hair!!  I used an old stamp that I've had for years that was just the outlines of a paper doll.  Then i zentangled her insides.  With such a chic dress, she cried out for an elegant bouffant hairdo.... and this is the result...  aren't you just lovin' the hair?  or and that little thing in her hand is supposed to be a purse but it didn't scan very well...

I had such fun making her, I'm going to have to do a whole bunch of zentangle paper dolls, just so she'll have some friends at that party she seems to be going to.... :)

new pattern

I've posted this pattern on my flickr site but I'm going to start posting my patterns here on my blog.  This pattern is from the grid work at the front of my church.  And yes i did sit and sketch it out one morning during the service....  I'm horribly ADHD....  what can i say?  drawing helps me focus.   Anyway, the final version smudged badly but its supposed to be shaded to make it look very 3D.  As soon as I've done something i actually LIKE using this pattern I'll post the finished piece.  In the meantime, here are the steps...