It's such a strange time of year, when some things are ending and others just beginning. Last night marked the end of Boston Handmade's one month holiday gallery in Downtown Crossing. It was so much fun, and a fitting end to a year in which my main goal was to become involved with other local artists, and get my work out in front of people. I'm so thankful to have joined Boston Handmade and the Salem Arts Association, and for the opportunities that presented themselves in 2008.

So now it's on to new goals for 2009. There are several juried art shows/festivals locally that I will apply to for the first time, and I plan on marketing myself online and with printed materials in a more frequent, consistent manner. But the three main goals I have for myself this year are to:
1. Work 5 days a week in the studio
2. See my work in three new galleries
3. License one or more of my designs

Are goals 2 and 3 at odds with each other? I don't know the answer to that yet. But I'm excited about new opportunities ahead, even during an economy that seems to be going further and further down the drain. The way I see it though, is that just being there is half the battle, and I'm there.

Suspended for the Season

With the kids on school vacation, and all of the holiday shopping, gift wrapping, cooking, and housecleaning to do, my creative life has come to a complete halt. Frozen for the season...much like the view from my front door. Christmas is nice, but is it selfish of me to want to sneak into my studio and just play for a few hours? Sigh.

I just realilzed this is a complete 180 from my last post. Guess I need my art fix more often than I thought!

It was a perfect day to decorate the tree today. Snow storm outside...not the kind of day to be driving anywhere...just right for staying in and doing Christmas things.

Tomorrow I will be at Boston Handmade Downtown once again. It's the last weekend we have for Christmas shopping, so head to the gallery in Downtown Crossing for the most unique gifts you'll find this season!

p.s. if you were wondering about Katie, she is doing fine :-)

So I normally try to blog about what sort of artwork I'm working on. I read other blogs where people describe what's happening in their lives, and while it's interesting, I usually don't do that. But tonight threw me a little.

This is my daughter Katie, who is 11. Earlier tonight she and her brother called me upstairs because of a "mess." The mess turned out to be blood from some sort of pillow fight. Yes, blood from a pillow fight. I am not sure how it happened, given that there was no blood on the actual pillow in question, but anyway...

I have just returned from a two hour emergency trip to the dentist during which Katie had her gums stitched back to the rest of her mouth. The dentist told me that in 35 years he has only seen one other case like hers, and that child had been hit by a car. Let me repeat, Katie wound up at the dentist because of a pillow fight.

They say most accidents happen closest to home. Last weekend our family drove home from Florida to Massachusetts in what turned out to be an excruciatingly long drive in constant rain and terrible driving conditions, and yet we made it through unscathed. Now this.

Katie is on two basketball teams, and sports is what she lives for. I am SO hoping that when we go back on Wednesday for a follow-up that she doesn't have to go in for surgery, and that she heals well in order to get back to what she loves.

Being a parent really sucks sometimes. Okay, end of my pity party.

And thanks so much to Dr. Zicherman :-)

Abstract Collage with Trees

Here's another digi-collage based on the gelatin prints that were so fun to make. This one incorporates a shot of trees taken last summer in Gloucester. I am loving working with these abstract images.